His words rang out like steel, just like his footsteps. The mechanical timbre of his armor echoed through the metallic interior walls of the vehicle, creating a sense of tension. He was clad in pitch-black, reinforced armor. Every movement of his seemed precisely calculated down to the millimeter. On his chest, a red logo in the shape of a crow glowed like a harbinger of death. His black mask concealed his face, resembling a warrior who had severed all ties with humanity.
The man turned to Raven. In place of his eyes was a dark void, but his gaze cut like a blade.
“And a K.R.H. Operative… does not retreat.”
When he finished speaking, he stepped out of the vehicle like a shadow. The vehicle started moving. The vibrations reached every nerve inside the armor.
Raven felt like he was suffocating. His heart pounded like a drum that had lost its rhythm. The armor… this cursed thing was crushing him. It was pressing down on his chest. His breath was short; his lungs were failing him. He tried to push away the flexible but protective material around his throat with his hand, but the armor was stubborn.
“Are you okay, Raven?”
The voice came from the opposite seat. The same armor, the same mask… but the tone was soft. It belonged to a woman.
“I… I can’t breathe…” Raven rasped in reply. His vision was blurry. He reached out his hand toward the woman across from him.
Suddenly, the vehicle jolted.
It was as if they had hit a wall. Everything inside the vehicle turned upside down. The scene went dark.
When he opened his eyes again, he was somewhere else.
He was inside a dark train now. In a carriage of a train that roared like a weary dragon born of iron. He immediately reached into the inner pocket of his jacket, checking for his knife. The cold metal was between his fingers.
“Calm down. You were having a nightmare.” said a familiar voice.
Raven squinted. The voice of ION… It echoed in his mind like a digital alarm. It reconnected him to reality. He took a deep breath. Then he reached for his bag. It was still there. He opened it and pulled out the bottle labeled “water.” He took a sip. It slid down his throat like smooth metal.
Raven clenched his teeth. His shoulder hurt.
“My shoulder is killing me. Can’t you do something about it?” he asked between breaths.
ION’s response came faster than expected.
“You pushed your body far beyond its limits. The fact that you remained on your feet long enough to board this train is statistically close to impossible. If I suppress the pain, there may be permanent side effects.”
“Ugh…” Raven groaned. It was true. He could barely remember anything he did after taking Kornath down. Climbing the stairs, passing the turnstiles, buying the ticket… it was all a blur. The only thing he clearly remembered was vomiting repeatedly.
As he put the bottle back in his bag, he grimaced.
“How the hell did we not locate that bastard with your damned system, huh?! I nearly fucking died!”
After a few seconds of silence, ION spoke.
“My estimation is that they realized their systems had been breached. The device belonging to Kornath was on the other side of the city. He may have caused a distraction to escape.”
Raven pressed his lips together, shaking his head with frustration.
“Weren’t you the AI of the world’s most powerful goddamn nation? Can’t even hack a gang. I feel scammed, ION.”
“There has been a 131-year period of technological regression. Not just encryption — the entire network architecture has changed fundamentally. But this will not happen again.”
Raven sighed. He took out his electronic wallet from his jacket pocket. Right after, he lined up the other wallets he had “borrowed” from the gang members he’d beaten up, laying them across his knees. The tiny, glowing screens cast a pale light.
“If you hack these wallets… maybe I’ll forgive you.”
ION’s voice was firmer this time.
“You cannot use me for theft. Also… if it weren’t for me, Kornath would have already neutralized you.”
Raven waved his own wallet in front of his eyes with a groan. The screen read “38 credits.”
“If you wanna juice up on my tasty-ass bio-energy, I need some Nutrient Gel first. Take a guess.… how much can I get with 38 credits?”
Silence.
ION didn’t respond.
“BINGO! ZERO, goddammit!” Raven grinned and turned back to the wallets on his knees.
“Come on, ION. This is good for you too. A little hack practice, stretch your legs in some new systems…”
After a few seconds of thought, ION responded in a low voice:
“I will help you this one time only.”
A few dozen minutes later, the “38 Credits” on Raven’s electronic wallet had changed to “784 Credits.” It might still have been a laughable amount, but at least he no longer faced the risk of starving. He exhaled with a faint sense of satisfaction.
From the old-fashioned speakers hanging from the train’s ceiling, a forked mechanical voice rose:
“Next station: Delta-6.”
The braking vibrations echoing through the train’s metallic frame signaled the approach of the final stop. Raven slowly stood up. He left the electronic wallets he’d placed on the seat behind — he’d taken what he needed from them. As he slung his backpack over his shoulder and began to rise, a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him.
It was an old woman. Her face was lined with wrinkles, but her eyes carried the hopeful gaze of a young person. There was a peaceful, slightly mad smile on her lips. She extended a card in her hand toward Raven.
“There is still hope, my child.” the woman said in a gentle voice. She caressed Raven’s cheek.
Raven hesitated, then reached out and took the card, giving it a quick glance. On the yellowed card, with curled edges and plain lettering, it read:
Free Therapy Against Synthetic Narcotics
The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
God Is Forgiving
– Ashveil Church
As he read the words on the card, an involuntary grimace formed on his face. He looked toward the woman. Meanwhile, the train had stopped, and the doors slid open with a hiss along the tracks.
“We also serve hot meals, my child.” the old woman said with a wink, then stepped off the train with slow, heavy steps.
Raven took a step after her, but there was a clear expression of embarrassment on his face. He muttered quietly over his shoulder:
“Hey, can’t you just talk to me through brain waves or something?! People think I’m some junkie!”
ION’s voice was clear and indifferent in his mind.
“I do not believe that is the only reason, Raven. And I do not possess the function you mentioned.”
Raven looked down at himself. His clothes were covered in traces of blood, escape, and combat. The seams of his pants had split in places, and his jacket was stained with blood, oil, and dust. The clothes he had stolen from the gang members had been on him for days, and their smell had become nearly unbearable.
He sighed and activated his communication device. Moving his fingers across the virtual panel, he tapped the “Map” icon. In the search bar that appeared, he typed quickly:
“Bottle Bottom Bar”
A loading icon spun for about a second before a holographic route appeared. Raven looked at the screen and smiled.
“Nice! The place hasn’t changed its name.”
He stepped onto the platform of the train station. Passing by the sign that read “Delta-6, Ashveil” he made his way toward the stairs. As he descended with slow but determined steps, his eyes scanned the surroundings.
This city… It felt like an enlarged version of Grimhaven. The same rusted neon lights, the same stench of decayed oil, the same dark street corners… But there was one noticeable difference: Delta-6 was slightly better off economically than Grimhaven. Here, beggars and addicts didn’t appear at every street corner, but rather every second street corner.
“This city is also not present in my system.” said ION, in a cautious tone.
Raven squinted and replied in a hushed voice. He didn’t want to be mistaken for a madman by another passerby.
“Most likely, none of the underground cities are registered in your system. Let your big brother explain the underground city system to you. As you get closer to the center, it goes from Delta-6 to Delta-5 to Delta-4. And as the center draws near, the quality of life increases.”
“What's in the centre?”
Raven whispered back.
“Alpha-01. Elyssar. We who were born in the Delta cities call it ‘Heaven’. A piece of paradise…”
ION had detected the emotional weight in his tone.
“Are there cities with the codenames Beta and Gamma as well?”
Raven nodded, eyes scanning the crowd ahead, searching for a path.
“Beta cities are called the ‘inner circle’. They surround the Alpha cities. Secure transit routes pass only through them. Delta is the ‘outer circle’.”
“And Gamma?”
A look of disgust mixed with discontent crossed Raven’s face.
“Those are abandoned zones. Full of malfunctioning war machines, radiation leaks, and mutated giant rats. Think of them like a ring of death.”
“So, between the Delta and Alpha cities, there are Gamma zones. And to reach the Alpha cities safely, one must pass through the Beta cities. Is that correct?”
“Exactly.” Raven muttered. ION had once again provided a perfect summary.
At that moment, a sharp notification sound came from the communication device:
“You have reached your destination.”
Raven lifted his head. In front of him, a metal sign illuminated by red neon lights gleamed:
“Bottle Bottom Bar”
As he looked at the sign, a high-pitched scream rang out from inside. A moment later, someone flew out through the bar’s window. The man landed on his back, and a tooth popped out of his mouth. Another person came out right behind him. The two began punching each other amidst the shattered glass.
Raven rolled his eyes at the scene.
“Home, sweet home!”
ION // SYSTEM FEEDBACK — [Session: 011 | Operator: Raven Karr]
Interface: ION_v4.6.1_β // Connection Stable [?]
[?] [MRS-09] Molecular Restoration System
- Operational Efficiency: 10.4% (↑ 2.2%)
- Primary Function:
→ Facilitates tissue regeneration via nano-scale biosynthetic repair protocols
→ Applies localized reconstruction on muscle, epidermal, and limited neural tissues
→ Simulates auto-fibrin production and coagulation to suppress superficial bleeding
→ Engages limited immunosuppression to minimize infection risk
- Critical Limitation:
→ In cases of major tissue disruption or internal organ trauma, system enters “Hemostatic Mode”
→ Prioritizes active hemorrhage control; regeneration rate significantly reduced
→ If operational load exceeds 60%, system may enter temporary shutdown
Raven // BODYCHECK
→ Gear:
? Garbage again. (Covered in blood, dust, rips and despair. No style, no protection.)
? Active Defense Surface [Model: AS929] (It's broken! ION, do something!)
→ Weapon:
? Left Hook of God? (Seriously? This ancient wrist-slam still here? Next to the Super Punchinator? No tech, no spark—just bruises and delusions of divine relevance.)
? Combat Knife [Model: M-12] (Told you it cuts like betrayal! Because it fucking remembers betrayal.)
? Super Punchinator [Left] (Still homemade. Still ugly. Still glorious. Emits lightning. Demands respect. No upgrades—because perfection doesn’t need any.)
→ Additions:
? Sad vibes (Regret hits harder than most fists—but remember, fists don’t smell like home. What am I, a goddamn poet now?)
? Stolen e-Wallet – Balance: 784 [↓2254] (We’re so back baby!)
? VX-21 Commlink (Poor guy…)
? Stylish Black Bag (Used to be cool. Now it’s just “Raven’s personal hell-pocket.” Still cursed. Still smells weird. Stuff stolen from Drail is in here too—don’t ask how he convinced ION.)
? Sustenance & Regret – Contents: Bottled Rations, Bottles labeled “Water” (Both technically edible. Both deeply suspicious. Subject to change if Raven finds an actual sandwich or liquid that doesn’t hiss.)
? Monkey Chocolate (It moved. I’m telling you, it moved! Someone please remove it from his bag. This is not chocolate—this is a parasite!)
? (5) VX-21 Commlink (What the fuck is he gonna do with these?)
? (5) e-Wallet (726 credits from five wallets? What the hell—are these guys hunting rats to survive or something?!)