Aidan sat on the rooftop of the school, eyes scanning the skyline. The city below buzzed with life—cars honking, people rushing—but up here, it was quiet. The perfect place to think.
The confrontation with Jeremy still echoed in his mind. Not the words—but the weight behind them. There had been no threat of violence, but something colder: awareness. Jeremy wasn't acting on instinct. He was following a plan.
[System Update: Passive Surveillance Mode Activated – Energy Usage Increased by 5%]
"Keep it on," Aidan whispered. "I need to know if I'm being watched again."
No response. Just the faint pulse of the interface blending with the horizon.
At lunch, Aidan took a seat near the window instead of his usual corner. Emily spotted him and joined without asking.
"You okay?" she asked.
"Just thinking," he replied.
"About Jeremy?"
His eyes flicked to her. She wasn't dumb.
"You knew something was off," he said.
Emily lowered her voice. "People are changing. Not just him. Two seniors got into a fight yesterday—over a math riddle. One cracked a desk with his fist."
"System-type change?" he probed gently.
"I don't know. But they didn't look... normal."
Before he could ask more, the system pinged.
[New Anomaly Detected – Hidden System Signature: Fluctuating Signal Detected in Library Basement]
[Risk Level: Unknown – Monitoring Recommended]
Library basement?
Aidan stood abruptly. "Sorry, I need to check something."
Emily blinked. "You okay?"
"I'll explain later. Maybe."
He made his way across the hallway and down the winding stairs leading to the old storage section of the library. The lights flickered; most students didn't even know this level existed.
As he stepped inside, the air changed. Heavy. Static.
The system displayed a new screen.
[Fluctuating Signal Stabilizing... 62%... 85%... 100%]
[System Signature Identified: Unknown Tier – Adaptive Core Detected]
This wasn't Jeremy. Or Raj. This was something else. A fifth system user?
Suddenly, the room temperature dropped. A strange voice—synthetic, glitchy—echoed in the back of his mind.
"System sync request... denied."
Aidan froze.
"What the hell was that?"
No interface appeared. No confirmation. The voice was independent. Raw.
He turned to leave—but the door had shut behind him.
[Emergency Protocol Initiated – Neural Strain Detected – Activate Decision Matrix?]
"Yes," he said, heart pounding.
The system projected a burst of options.
Option A: Try to reopen the door manually
→ 12% success rate
→ Risk: Lockdown escalation
Option B: Use fire alarm override nearby
→ 41% success
→ May trigger teacher involvement
→ Possible exposure
Option C: Trigger minor system overload to short-circuit magnetic lock
→ 78% success
→ Short-term system cooldown required
He picked C.
"Do it."
A small jolt ran through his wrist. The interface flickered out. For a moment, everything went dark—then the door clicked open.
He didn't run, but walked out briskly, forcing himself to stay calm.
Once outside, the system rebooted.
[Cooldown Complete – Sync Log Updated]
[Signature Data Saved: "Ghost Core"]
[Warning: Entity Displays Non-Simulation Intelligence]
He stared at the log. Ghost Core.
This wasn't just a user. This was a system acting of its own will. Not assisting someone. Not helping a host. But thinking.
Which meant...
The playing field wasn't level. Some systems were tools.
Others were alive.
Back home, he sat in silence, reviewing every line of data. The Ghost Core signal had vanished, like it never existed.
But something had changed.
He felt it in his bones—this wasn't about power anymore. It was about control.
Who had it.
Who didn't.
And whether the systems were even on the humans' side at all.