It began not with an explosion—but a silence too deep to be natural.
In the heart of the abandoned offshore data haven known as "Node Black", Lin Chen stood still, eyes unfocused, breath shallow. Rain pounded against the transparent dome overhead, yet not a drop touched him. A thin membrane of violet-gold energy shimmered across his body—his last defense.
And it was failing.
[System Warning: Emotional Load Spiking][Warning: Cognitive Integrity—Unstable][Core Logic Fracture Detected. Initiating Emergency Dampening…]
It didn't help.
Because the truth had caught up.
Li Chu—Subject Zero.The reason the system ever responded to him.The origin of his emotions.The cost of his evolution.
She was never just a witness. She was the trigger.
And worse—they knew.
Erebus.
"You used her to manipulate my growth... You engineered my memories."
His voice trembled. Not with weakness. But with the kind of rage that shattered control.
Images flashed in his mind—static memories, once fragmented, now slamming into place like a crashing wave:
—Her screams as scientists injected core residue into his spine.—The sterile voice calling her "emotional prototype."—His own hands, reaching for her through reinforced glass, unable to touch.
He dropped to his knees.
[System Alert: Core Overload Threshold — 98.2%][Warning: Host is entering uncontained neural loop][System Lockdown Suggested — Permission Required]
"Permission… denied," Lin Chen whispered.
[Override Acknowledged. Emergency Mode: OFFLINE]
Then, it cracked.
His system's internal architecture buckled as raw emotional feedback surged through every synapse.
Power ruptured from his body like a supernova.
The entire dome shivered. Steel supports twisted like wax. Monitors exploded. The air rippled with gravitational warps.
And his scream—distorted by emotion, amplified by system feedback—wasn't just heard.
It was felt.
Across the world, thousands of Awakened felt a sudden pulse through their systems. A shockwave that bypassed the senses and went straight into the soul.
[Universal Sync Spike — Host Salvator-01: Critical Phase Entered][Unregulated Emotional Data Detected. Containment Protocol Inactive]
In Erebus's arctic command vault, all red lights went out.
Replaced by a single phrase on every screen:
"Salvator Protocol: DESTRUCTION CODE ENGAGED."
Back at Node Black, Lin Chen's body hovered mid-air—surrounded by a cyclone of broken debris, nanite wreckage, and ruptured core-data.
His eyes glowed bright gold. No pupils. No whites. Just system fire.
[System Mutation Triggered — Core Logic Collapse][Emergency Backup Personality Construct: UNRESPONSIVE][WARNING: Host entering Berserk State]
And at the center of that power, a new module bloomed.
[Unlocked: Protocol Z — Destruction Mode][Passive Skill Gained: "Cognitive Instability - Phase 1: Fracture"][Skill Effect: Removes rational decision-making. Multiplies destructive output x3. Collateral damage: UNCONTROLLED]
He lashed out.
One motion—an entire district block on the data haven vaporized.
Tides reversed. Wind screamed. AI cores melted in their racks.
And yet...
Somewhere beneath all that fury, he remembered her face.
Even broken—some part of him refused to let go.
A faint transmission crackled into his ear.
"Lin Chen…"
Soft. Real. Her voice.
Li Chu.
[Incoming Signal: Subject 00 — Companion Sync Stabilizer Attempting Connection][Compatibility Detected. Attempting Emotional Override…]
That voice hit harder than any weapon.
The fury paused. The golden fire hesitated.
"Come back."
[System Sync Engaged — Host Neural Load Stabilizing][Core Feedback Loop: Interrupted. Emergency Logic Reset Engaged][Rollback Status: 27%... 42%...]
And just like that, the hurricane of his power folded inward, collapsing like a dying star.
Lin Chen crashed to the ground.
Smoke curled from his shoulders. His breath ragged. Systems still flickering. But he was alive.
Barely.
And for the first time in what felt like forever—he felt cold.
Because something inside him had broken.And he wasn't sure it could be put back together.
Not without her.
In the silence that followed, the world watched the crater he had left.
And Erebus prepared for the endgame.