The lead Scav-Hound didn't just lunge; it moved with a terrifying, unnatural twitchiness, its six legs clattering against the rusted metal of the subway entrance like a hail of bullets. It was a blur of serrated bone and iron-like hide, its jaws wide enough to decapitate a man in a single snap.
Reed Blackwell didn't flinch. For the first time since the stranger had slammed the Void into his chest, the chaos inside him felt... directed. The "Evil" in his mind wasn't screaming for control; it was leaning forward, fascinated by the tool Reed was holding.
The Void Blade wasn't a physical sword. It was a six-foot-long fracture in reality, a jagged shard of solidified "nothingness" that bled black smoke from its edges. As the lead hound entered his guard, Reed swung the blade in a horizontal arc.
There was no sound of metal hitting bone. There was no resistance. The blade passed through the creature's midsection as if it were made of mist. The Scav-Hound didn't even have time to whimper. As the shadow-edge touched its molecules, they were simply unmade. The front half of the monster tumbled forward, turning into grey ash before it hit the ground, while the back half dissolved into a spray of black, non-existent sparks.
[CORE WEAPON: VOID BLADE (RANK 1) INITIALIZED]
[DURABILITY: INFINITE (DRAINS VOID ESSENCE PER SECOND)]
[EFFECT: MOLECULAR DISINTEGRATION]
"Reed! Watch the flank!" Nyx's voice cut through the shock of his own power.
Two more hounds leaped from the shadows of a collapsed bus. Nyx moved with the grace of a dying ember, her single glass dagger flashing as she parried a set of claws. She was fast, but she was still wounded. The light-toxin had been removed, but her muscles were frayed. She dodged a snapping jaw, but a second hound pinned her against the rusted hull of the transport, its hot, acidic breath sizzling against her neck.
"Get off her!" Reed roared.
He didn't run. He focused on the Void Blade, feeling the way it anchored him to the earth. He swung the weapon downward, and a wave of black, crescent-shaped energy flew from the tip of the blade. The "Void Wave" tore through the air, erasing the wind itself. It hit the hound pinning Nyx, shearing the creature in half without touching a single hair on Nyx's head.
The remaining pack members froze. These were mutations, but they were predators—they understood when they had stopped being the hunters and had become the prey. With a series of low, clicking whines, the survivors retreated into the toxic fog of the subway, leaving the street in a haunting, sudden silence.
Reed let out a long, shuddering breath. The black blade in his hand flickered and then retracted back into his palm, leaving his skin cold and smelling of ozone.
[VOID ESSENCE: 42/100]
[WARNING: PROLONGED MANIFESTATION WILL ACCELERATE CORRUPTION]
"That... was a bit more than a distraction," Nyx said, sliding down the side of the transport to catch her breath. She looked at the empty spaces where the hounds had been. No blood. No bodies. Just the smell of burned air. "I've seen Shadow-Masters manifest weapons before, Reed. But theirs are made of dark energy. Yours... yours just deletes things. There's a difference."
"I don't care about the difference right now," Reed said, offering her his hand. "I just want to get out of the open."
Nyx took his hand, her grip lingering for a second longer than necessary. She looked into his eyes, searching for the "Error" she had been told to find, but all she saw was a boy trying to survive. "The outpost is just beyond that ridge. If we move now, we can make it before the secondary pack tracks our scent."
They moved through the "Bone Forest"—a graveyard of rusted construction cranes that looked like skeletal trees—until they reached a sheer rock face at the edge of the Dead Zone. High above, a violet beacon pulsed rhythmically, hidden behind a cloaking field that made the mountain appear empty to anyone without the proper optic-sensors.
"Identify," a cold, synthesized voice echoed from the rocks.
Nyx stood tall, despite the blood soaking through her sleeve. She pulled a small, obsidian medallion from her collar—the mark of her rank. "Shadow-Recruit Nyx, ID 774-Beta. Returning with the High Priority Asset, Reed Blackwell. By the order of the Shadow-Leader."
The rock face didn't open like a door; it shimmered and dissolved.
Behind the illusion lay the Shadow Outpost: Obsidian Reach. It wasn't a school or a sanctuary. It was a fortress. Dozens of men and women in sleek, matte-black combat suits moved with military precision. There were no cheers, no laughter—only the hum of dark-energy generators and the sharp, rhythmic clank of weapons being serviced.
As they stepped inside, the "Shadow Aegis"—a massive dome of dark energy—sealed shut behind them. Reed felt the pressure change in his ears. For the first time in days, he felt safe from the Inquisitors, but as he looked around, he felt a different kind of dread.
The people here didn't look at him with terror like the students at Zenith. They looked at him with hunger. To them, he wasn't a boy; he was a weapon they had finally brought home.
A man stepped forward from the command center. He wasn't the stranger from the Wastes, but a tall, scarred commander with an eye patch and a mechanical arm that hissed with steam.
"Recruit Nyx," the Commander barked. "You're three hours late. The report said you encountered High Inquisitors."
"We did, Commander Kross," Nyx said, snapping a salute. "The asset performed beyond expectations. He neutralized a Purifier squad and manifested a Tier 1 Core Weapon."
Kross turned his one good eye on Reed. He walked a slow circle around the boy, his heavy boots echoing on the metal floor. "Manifested a blade already? Impressive. Or dangerous." He stopped in front of Reed, his face inches away. "You think you're special, kid? In the Wastes, you were trash. In the Institute, you were an Error. Here? You're a project. And if you fail to stabilize, we'll scrap the project and move on."
"I'm not a project," Reed said, his voice cold.
Kross laughed—a dry, hacking sound. "We'll see. Nyx, get your shoulder seen to. Then report to the communication room. The Leader wants a private briefing on the asset's psychological state. He wants to know if the 'vessel' is cracking yet."
Nyx's expression went completely neutral. "Yes, Commander."
She turned to Reed, her eyes flicking toward the hallway. "Follow the droids to the medical bay, Reed. They'll give you a proper suit and a Core stabilizer. I'll... I'll see you at the evening meal."
Reed watched her walk away, her posture rigid and perfect. He felt the connection they had shared in the Wastes—the moment he had saved her life—slipping away. In this place, she wasn't his ally; she was a soldier, and he was the mission.
[NEW MISSION: THE OBSIDIAN TRIALS]
Objective: Survive the Shadow Faction's initiation.
Warning: The Faction values results over life.
Hidden Task: Discover the true nature of the "Leader's" orders.
As Reed was led deeper into the fortress by a pair of hovering security droids, he passed a row of containment cells. Inside, he saw other "Errors"—kids his age whose Cores had malfunctioned or mutated. They weren't being taught; they were being experimented on. Some were screaming, their bodies flickering in and out of existence.
Reed realized then that the Shadow Faction wasn't the "good guys." They were just the ones who weren't afraid to use the dark.
High above the medical bay, Nyx stood in a soundproof room, staring at a holographic terminal. The face of the Stranger—the Leader—appeared on the screen.
"Status report, Nyx," the Leader said, his voice like silk. "Has he bonded with the System?"
"Yes, My Lord," Nyx said, her voice trembling slightly. "He saved my life. He used Subtraction to heal me."
"Excellent," the Leader murmured. "The emotional anchor is forming. Continue to be his only light in this dark place, Nyx. The more he trusts you, the more control we have when the Corruption reaches the Second Stage."
"And the Council's orders, sir?" Nyx asked, her hand tightening into a fist at her side. "They want him tested... aggressively."
"The Council wants a weapon," the Leader said, a small, dark smirk appearing on his face. "I want a god. Follow the protocol, Nyx. No matter how much he screams."
The screen went black. Nyx stood in the silence, the weight of her betrayal sitting in her stomach like a stone. She looked out the small viewing port at Reed, who was being strapped into a stabilizer chair below.
"I'm sorry, Reed," she whispered to the empty room. "But the Void always requires a sacrifice."