I walked through the forest with the data chip clenched in my fist. Genesis Protocol. The words rang in my head like a bell I couldn't unhear. I didn't know what it was, not fully—but I knew one thing: it was dangerous. Dangerous enough to be locked in the heart of the island.
The wind picked up as I reached the ridge overlooking the coast. Thunder growled far off, and the clouds above twisted into something unnatural. Not a storm born from nature—but from design.
The island was reacting.
I descended quickly, heading for the bunker I'd fortified back in Chapter 15. My pace was steady, but my thoughts were far from calm. I wasn't just a survivor anymore. I wasn't just a detective. I was a variable that broke the equation—and whatever system was running this place wasn't happy about that.
When I reached the bunker, something felt off.
I stopped at the threshold.
The door was open.
I'd sealed it shut with metal reinforcements before heading to the Core Vault. Only someone with skill—or desperation—could've cracked it. I slipped the chip into my belt pouch, drew my makeshift blade, and entered.
It was dark inside, but the faint glow of the monitor lit a silhouette—lean, tense, armed with a crowbar.
"I wouldn't move if I were you," I said, voice steady.
The figure turned.
A girl. No older than twenty. Mud streaked her face, her dark hair tangled, but her eyes? Sharp. Familiar.
"Relax," she said. "I'm not here to rob you. I'm here because I saw the lightning. The red kind."
I narrowed my eyes. "You saw it too?"
She nodded and slowly lowered her weapon. "You think you're the only player on this board? There are others. Not many. But enough."
My instincts screamed to stay on edge, but something about her felt real. Tired. Raw. Like me. I gestured to the ration pack on the shelf. "Eat. Then we talk."
As she ate, I watched her carefully. Every bite she took, every glance at the door. She was a survivor, no doubt. One who'd been hunted.
"My name's Marlow," she said finally. "I've been on this island for twenty-four days. My group... didn't make it."
"Ethan," I replied. "Ethan Wilder."
She froze. "Wilder? As in... Echo Wilder?"
That name again.
I sighed. "Long story."
She looked at me with a strange mix of awe and unease. "You're the one who broke the neural maze. That's what the others called it. There's been talk over the radios. Someone was bending the system."
"You've heard radio signals?"
Marlow nodded. "Only static now. But I caught chatter earlier. About a convergence. Something called 'The Gathering Storm.'"
I sat down, sliding the chip onto the table between us.
"That storm?" I said. "It's not natural. The island's reacting to this." I tapped the chip.
Her eyes widened. "What is that?"
"Genesis Protocol. It's… the beginning or the end. I haven't figured out which."
We sat in silence, the low rumble of thunder shaking the walls.
Then I asked the question that had been circling in my head for days.
"Do you want to get off this island, Marlow?"
She nodded slowly. "More than anything."
"Then you and I?" I said, voice low. "We're going to break it. Not survive it. Break it."
Outside, the sky cracked open.
Lightning surged across the dark clouds like veins of fire.
The Gathering Storm had begun.
And we weren't running from it.
We were running into it.
Level 14 Unlocked
—Companion Acquired: Marlow
—Bonus Trait Unlocked: Tactical Bond – Coordinate faster with allies for combined actions
—Map Update: Convergence Zone: Storm Cradle revealed
I looked at the storm tearing through the sky and whispered, "Bring it."