Asher learned a second important thing about adrenaline.
After it lies, it abandons you.
He woke up the next morning feeling like someone had taken his skeleton out, shook it aggressively, and put it back in slightly the wrong order.
"…I'm suing gravity," he muttered into his pillow.
His phone buzzed on the nightstand.
He ignored it.
It buzzed again.
Louder.
He rolled onto his back and squinted at the screen.
MAYA:
You alive?
He exhaled in relief and typed back.
ASHER:
Define alive.
Three dots appeared immediately.
MAYA:
I'm coming over.
Asher bolted upright.
"…NO."
He scrambled for his phone.
ASHER:
Wait. Please don't. I look like a crime scene.
Too late.
Another buzz.
MAYA:
Already outside.
There was a knock on his door.
Asher stared at it in horror.
"…I should've moved."
The pressure settled behind his eyes.
Not urgent.
Deliberate.
A screen unfolded.
[Protective Measure – Initiated]
Asher blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
[External Exposure Risk: Elevated]
Threat Vector: Social / Institutional
Solution: Mitigation
"That's vague in a threatening way," Asher whispered.
The knock came again.
"Asher," Maya called. "Open up."
The system continued.
[Protective Protocol: Perception Adjustment]
Asher froze.
"…What."
[Explanation]
Human authorities require coherent causality.
Coherent causality has been provided.
His heart dropped into his stomach.
"…Provided to who?"
[Relevant parties.]
The knock turned into a pounding.
"Asher!"
"COMING," he yelped.
He staggered to the door and opened it just as the system finished its sentence.
[Protocol Active.]
Maya stopped short when she saw him.
"…Wow," she said. "You look like you fought a truck."
"…Bus," Asher corrected weakly. "Long story."
She stared at him.
Then frowned.
"…Huh."
He stiffened.
"What."
She tilted her head.
"For some reason," she said slowly, "I'm remembering this differently."
His blood went cold.
"…Differently how?"
She gestured vaguely. "Like… you didn't hold the bus. You just… braced it? Helped people get off? It feels less… impossible."
Asher swallowed hard.
"…Feels?"
She squinted at him. "Yeah. Like my brain edited the memory."
Oh no.
[Perception Adjustment – Successful]
Asher nearly screamed.
"…You reframed her memory?!"
[Correction]
Perception reinterpretation.
Not deletion.
"That is worse," he hissed internally.
Maya stepped inside, looking around his apartment like it might explain something.
"I swear," she continued, "last night felt bigger. Scarier. But now it's like… I'm remembering the headline version."
Asher laughed weakly.
"Brains are weird," he said.
She narrowed her eyes. "You're sweating."
"I'm in pain."
"Emotionally?"
"…Physically."
She accepted that, dropping onto the couch.
"Anyway," she said, "the news is already spinning it. 'Quick-thinking civilian helps prevent transit accident.'"
Asher stared.
"…That's not what happened."
She shrugged. "Apparently it is now."
His phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
He didn't answer.
It buzzed again.
Then stopped.
A system notification flickered.
[Secondary Mitigation Applied]
Media narrative stabilization complete.
Asher slowly sat down across from Maya.
"…You're terrifying."
[Clarification]
I am efficient.
She glanced at him again.
"Okay," she said. "Serious question."
He braced.
"You weren't supposed to be able to do that," she said. "Right?"
Asher hesitated.
The system remained silent.
He chose carefully.
"…No," he said. "I wasn't."
She nodded slowly.
"But you did anyway."
"…Yeah."
She leaned back.
"Well," she said, "I guess I'm glad you were there."
His chest loosened slightly.
"…Me too."
She looked at him.
"Whatever this is," she said quietly, "it's not normal. And it's not nothing."
He met her gaze.
"I know."
She sighed.
"But you're still you."
He smiled faintly.
"I hope so."
She stood.
"I'm grabbing coffee. You're coming."
"…I can't walk."
"You can limp."
He groaned.
As they headed for the door, a final system window appeared—private, quiet.
[Notice]
Protective protocols reduce exposure but increase dependency.
Asher paused.
"…Dependency on you?"
[Affirmation.]
He frowned.
"That's a problem."
[Acknowledged.]
The screen faded.
Asher stepped into the hallway, leaning slightly on Maya as she pretended not to notice.
For now, the world had an explanation.
For now, the danger was smoothed over.
But Asher knew the truth.
The system had crossed a line.
And once you let something rewrite perception—
It never stops at just one chapter.