Night in Detention
Klein woke to gray dawn light filtering through a high barred window. His shoulder ached where he'd slept wrong, and his feet throbbed with each heartbeat. The stone floor had left him stiff, cold, muscles cramped from sleeping on unyielding rock.
He sat up slowly, testing his body's condition. Better than yesterday. Not good, but functional.
[NEUTRAL SYSTEM: STATUS CHECK]
PHYSICAL STATE
- Integrity: 68% (+8% overnight recovery)
- NOTE: Baseline optimization accelerating healing. Infection risk minimal.
- Stamina: 71% (restored via rest)
MENTAL STATE
- Dampening Efficiency: 94% (recovered during sleep)
BALANCE METER
- Current: 50.0% Divine / 50.0% Demonic
- Status: Perfect Equilibrium
Klein closed the interface. The baseline optimization was working—wounds that should have been infected were merely painful, cuts that should have been weeping were scabbed over with clean edges.
He was alive. That was enough for now.
Footsteps echoed in the corridor above. Voices—muffled by stone, but audible. Klein moved closer to the bars, listening.
"—can't keep him forever, Captain." Marcus's voice, carrying that practiced reasonableness Klein recognized from call center supervisors.
"I'm aware." Aldric sounded tired. "But I won't execute a man on suspicion alone."
"Then verify him. One way or the other."
"I've tried. His Hail won't manifest, but he shows no hostile indicators. No spatial distortion, no corruption signature. He's just... absent. Like the system forgot to assign him."
Klein's analytical mind catalogued the information. They were talking about the other detainee. The occupied cell he'd noticed yesterday.
"What about the Neutral spawn?" Marcus asked. "Klein. He demonstrated spiritual sensitivity. Maybe he could—"
"Absolutely not." Aldric's voice hardened. "I won't ask a fresh spawn to condemn someone. That's my burden."
Their voices faded as they climbed the stairs.
Klein stood in the silence, processing. Another spawn. No Hail. Two weeks in detention.
The implications were clear: verify or execute. No middle ground.
Klein waited. Then, carefully: "Hello?"
Silence stretched.
Then, from the occupied cell two doors down: "You're the Neutral."
The voice was male, Indian-accented, worn thin by exhaustion. Not hostile. Just... tired.
"I heard them bring you in yesterday," the voice continued. "First time anyone's mentioned Neutral in two weeks. Everyone else just stares at my empty space and looks afraid."
Klein couldn't see him—the cells were separated by stone walls. Just voices in the dark.
"Kahiramura Klein," he said.
"Rajesh Kumar." A pause. "They're going to kill me, aren't they?"
The Dampening compressed Klein's discomfort before it could become something worse. The question hung in the air like smoke.
"I don't know," Klein said honestly.
"Two weeks I've been here." Rajesh's laugh was bitter, hollow. "Two weeks they've been trying to verify me. My Hail never appeared. System glitch, probably. But Aldric can't be certain I'm not something hostile, so here I stay."
Klein leaned against the bars. "Why didn't it manifest?"
"If I knew that, I wouldn't be here." Rajesh's voice carried the weight of someone who'd asked himself the same question a thousand times. "In my previous life, I was an accountant. Forty-three years old. Married, two kids—Priya and Arun. I died of a heart attack at my desk. Stress, bad diet, the usual. Woke up in that gray void, and the System... just forgot me. No Hail, no classification, nothing."
He paused. Klein heard him shift, fabric rustling against stone.
"I'm not a threat," Rajesh said quietly. "I'm just broken code. But that doesn't matter, does it? Aldric needs certainty. Marcus needs the cell space. And I need..."
The sentence trailed off into silence.
Klein sat with his back against the stone wall, listening to a dead man's breathing in the dark. Rajesh's kids would never know what happened to their father. His wife would wait for answers that would never come.
The mathematics of it sat cold in Klein's mind. One uncertain life versus settlement security. Aldric's calculation was pragmatic, maybe even correct. But the human cost was real.
"What did you do?" Rajesh asked finally. "In your previous life."
"Call center worker. Manila. Six years handling complaints from angry Americans about their cable bills."
"God." Rajesh laughed—genuine this time, startled into it. "We both died doing meaningless work. At least you got a Hail. Or... whatever counts as a Hail for Neutral."
"I got a warning," Klein said flatly. "That things that hunt between worlds have marked me, and that I'm not safe in places where reality grows thin. Not sure that's better than nothing."
"Fair point." Another pause. "If they ask you... if Marcus or Aldric ask you to verify me somehow... tell them I'm innocent. Please."
Klein's throat tightened. The Dampening held his response neutral. "How would I know?"
"You wouldn't. But you could lie." Rajesh's voice carried desperate hope. "That's all I'm asking. One spawn to another. Just... give me a chance."
Klein didn't answer. The weight of it pressed against the Dampening barrier. Rajesh Kumar. Accountant. Married. Two kids. Forty-three years old. Dead at his desk. Now waiting in a cell for someone to decide if he deserved to exist.
"I have kids too," Rajesh said quietly. "Had. They're grown now—Priya's twenty-six, Arun's twenty-three. But I remember when they were small. The way Priya used to fall asleep on my chest. The way Arun would show me every drawing he made, so proud." His voice cracked. "I died before I could tell them I was proud too. Before I could say everything I should have said."
Klein closed his eyes. His mother's face surfaced—trying to be brave when she told him about the cancer, faith in her eyes that her son would take care of everything.
He'd died before sending the money. Before saying goodbye.
"I understand," Klein said.
"Then help me. Please."
Klein sat in the dark, carrying the weight of a stranger's desperate plea.
Eventually, Rajesh stopped talking.
Klein lay down on his stone floor and tried to sleep, but the accountant's breathing echoed through the walls like a countdown.
The Offer
Guards brought Klein food at midmorning—hard bread and water. He ate mechanically, fueling the baseline optimization. His body needed calories to heal. Everything else was secondary.
[Integrity: 68% → 71%]
The food helped. Klein tested his feet—still tender, but functional. The cuts on his legs had sealed overnight.
He was recovering. Surviving.
An hour later, different footsteps. Heavier. More deliberate.
The man who appeared was human, maybe mid-thirties, with dark hair and sharp eyes that assessed Klein like inventory. Above his head floated a Hail of deep crimson, pulsing with controlled calculation.
"Kahiramura Klein," the man said, his accent American. "I'm Marcus Webb. I handle administrative coordination for Captain Aldric."
Klein stood, moving to the bars. Marcus's crimson Hail told him enough—Demonic classification. Self-interest as operating principle. Whatever came next would be transactional.
"Synel gave you a clean report," Marcus continued. "That's good. Means Aldric will probably release you this afternoon."
Klein waited. Marcus's posture was confident, relaxed. He wasn't here to threaten. He was here to negotiate.
"But verification isn't purely objective," Marcus said. "It's interpretation based on incomplete information. Aldric makes judgment calls." He let the implication hang. "Sometimes those calls need... context."
"What do you want?" Klein asked.
Marcus's smile was approving. "Smart. No bullshit. I like that."
He glanced toward the other cells, then back to Klein. "You talked to Rajesh Kumar last night. Don't bother denying it—the guards heard voices. I don't care what you discussed. What matters is you have information about him that Aldric doesn't."
Klein's analytical mind processed the angle. Marcus needed something. The question was what, and what it would cost.
[NEUTRAL SYSTEM: OPPORTUNITY DETECTED]
[SOCIAL SCENARIO ANALYSIS]
- Marcus Webb requests testimony against detained spawn
- Potential outcomes branching...
[OPPORTUNITY PATH A: COOPERATE]
- Provide testimony suggesting Rajesh Kumar represents threat
- Estimated reward: Enhanced equipment package, 100 copper, immediate release, Marcus Webb's favor
- Potential Points Gain: +12 PP (Significant moral compromise under duress)
- Balance Impact: Shift toward Demonic (estimated 3-5%)
[OPPORTUNITY PATH B: REFUSE]
- Decline to provide testimony
- Estimated outcome: Extended detention (3-7 days), reduced equipment, potential execution (6% probability)
- Potential Points Gain: +2 PP (Resisting pressure, maintaining integrity)
- Balance Impact: Shift toward Divine (estimated 1-2%)
[NOTE: Path A rewards significantly exceed Path B. System quantification does not reflect moral weight—only survival optimization.]
Klein stared at the notifications. The System was pricing out a man's life like it was comparing equipment upgrades.
[WARNING: Dampening Field detecting elevated stress response]
[Current efficiency: 94% → 89%]
"Rajesh has been here two weeks," Marcus continued, oblivious to Klein's internal crisis. "His Hail never manifested. Could be system glitch. Could be something hostile masking itself. Aldric can't verify him either way, but we need the cell space. Processing delays mean spawns die outside our gates waiting for intake."
He paused, watching Klein's reaction. "That's the situation. Untenable. Something has to give."
Klein understood immediately where this was leading. His stomach tightened, but the Dampening compressed the reaction before it could show on his face.
[Dampening Efficiency: 89% → 85%]
"You demonstrated unusual spiritual sensitivity yesterday," Marcus said. "Felt the ward posts' spatial distortion. That's rare for a fresh spawn. Valuable." His eyes sharpened. "If you reported sensing something wrong about Rajesh—spatial distortion, corrupted signature, anything ambiguous—that would give Aldric the corroborating evidence he needs to make a difficult decision."
"Execute him," Klein said flatly.
"Resolve the situation," Marcus corrected. His tone carried no malice, just brutal practicality. "Look, the man's probably dying anyway. Two weeks in detention with no resolution isn't survivable long-term. He's either a mimic who's learned to mask himself—dangerous to everyone here—or he's got some malfunction that means he'll never pass verification."
Marcus leaned closer to the bars. "Either way, this just accelerates the inevitable. The only question is whether it happens after he's killed someone, or before."
Klein's throat was dry. He remembered Rajesh's voice in the dark: Tell them I'm innocent. Please.
Forty-three years old. Married. Two kids.
I'm not a threat. I'm just broken code.
The Evaluator activated without Klein consciously triggering it.
[EVALUATOR ANALYSIS:
Detained subject (Rajesh Kumar) assessment:
- 73% probability: Genuine spawn, system glitch preventing Hail manifestation
- 18% probability: Mimic entity, advanced camouflage
- 9% probability: Other anomaly
Survival projection without testimony:
- 82% probability survives next 7 days
- 41% probability eventual verification success
Klein's situation projection:
- If cooperate: 96% probability release within 6 hours, enhanced equipment, 100 copper, +12 PP
- If refuse: 71% probability extended detention (3-7 days), 23% probability permanent detention, 6% probability execution
Note: Default Evaluator accuracy limited. Margins of error unknown.]
73% probability genuine spawn. 73% innocent.
Klein's survival: 96% if cooperate. 6% execution risk if refuse.
[ACHIEVEMENT AVAILABLE: "Hard Choices"]
[Condition: Prioritize survival over moral certainty]
[Reward: +12 PP, Enhanced reputation with pragmatic factions]
[Warning: Permanent record of choice. Balance shift.]
Klein's hands clenched around the bars. The System was gamifying this. Turning Rajesh's death into an achievement to unlock.
[Dampening Efficiency: 85% → 81%]
[WARNING: Emotional load increasing]
The math was simple. Cold. Absolute.
In Manila, he'd stood in that smoking area with Miguel's number glowing on his phone screen. Fifty thousand pesos to make an introduction. His mother's life hanging on that decision. And he'd deleted the number because the cost—some stranger sold to organ harvesters—was a line he couldn't cross and still recognize himself.
That had been his ceiling. His limit.
His mother had died anyway. Or was dying now, waiting for money that would never come.
And now?
Klein looked at Marcus's crimson Hail, pulsing with comfortable self-interest. No shame. No pretense. Just pragmatic calculation openly acknowledged.
This was different. Miguel had been direct—facilitating organ harvesting. This was indirect. Providing testimony based on spiritual sensitivity he actually possessed. Vague testimony. Ambiguous. Aldric would make the final call, not Klein.
The rationalization was smooth. Too smooth.
Klein recognized it for what it was—justification layered over self-interest.
But recognition didn't change the math.
"What do I get?" Klein heard himself ask.
The words left ash in his mouth.
[OPPORTUNITY PATH A: INITIATED]
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 20%]
Marcus nodded, as if Klein had passed some test. "Immediate release this afternoon. Enhanced equipment package—quality weapon, better clothing, a hundred copper instead of the standard fifty. And my recommendation to Aldric that you're someone who understands hard decisions."
He paused, letting that sink in. "That opens doors in this settlement. Thornhaven isn't like the continental kingdoms where everyone pretends their hands are clean. Out here, you make the call and live with it. I'm offering you a chance to prove you understand that."
Klein's mind ran probability trees. Refuse, and his survival odds dropped to 71%—maybe 77% realistically given the Evaluator's admitted limitations. But that 6% execution risk was real. Aldric was cautious, not soft. Two weeks of detention would leave Klein weakened, vulnerable, behind on trait acquisition in a world with 83% Metamorphor mortality.
Accept, and Rajesh died. Probably innocent. Definitely helpless.
But Klein would live. Equipped. With copper. With Marcus's favor. With a future.
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 40%]
[Dampening Efficiency: 81% → 78%]
His mother's face surfaced. I told the doctors my son is sending money. He'd failed her. Died in that alley because he was too poor to live somewhere safer, too exhausted to be alert, too ground down by six years of poverty to have anything left.
And now he was poor again. Fifty copper. Five days until he'd be desperate.
"How certain is the 73%?" Klein asked quietly.
Marcus blinked. "What?"
"Your assessment that he's probably innocent. How certain are you?"
Marcus's expression shifted—surprise, then recalculation. "I don't deal in certainty. I deal in probabilities and acceptable losses. Rajesh is probably a glitched spawn. But 'probably' isn't good enough when the alternative is a mimic that kills a dozen people before we identify it."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only answer there is." Marcus's voice carried no malice, just brutal practicality. "You want certainty? Wrong world. This is triage. You save who you can and live with the rest."
Klein's stomach churned. The Dampening compressed it, but he felt pressure building behind the barrier.
[Dampening Efficiency: 78% → 74%]
[WARNING: Approaching moderate stress threshold]
Triage. Acceptable losses. Survival of the functional.
He'd lived that in Manila. Six years of calculating which bill to pay, which meal to skip, which dignity to sacrifice. The mathematics of poverty were unforgiving.
This was the same equation in a different currency.
"When do I testify?" Klein asked.
The words came out steady. Clinical. The Dampening was doing its job.
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 60%]
Underneath, Klein felt something crack.
Marcus smiled. "This afternoon. Right after Aldric reviews Synel's report. I'll come get you."
He turned to leave, then paused. "For what it's worth? You're making the smart choice. Rajesh is probably innocent, but 'probably' doesn't keep settlements alive. You do."
Marcus walked away, footsteps echoing in the stone corridor.
Klein sat on the floor of his cell, alone with his choice.
He'd already made it. The moment he asked "What do I get?" the decision was final. The rest was just execution.
But the weight of it pressed against the Dampening barrier like physical force.
73% innocent. 27% threat. Unreliable data. Unknown margin of error.
And Klein's survival: 96% if he lied. 6% if he refused.
The math was simple.
Survival first. Everything else after.
Klein put his head in his hands and waited for afternoon, carrying the weight of a choice that hadn't even been difficult.
That was the part that scared him most.
[EMOTIONAL DAMPENING FIELD: Load at 74%]
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 80%]
[Awaiting testimony completion for achievement unlock...]
Testimony
Guards came for Klein early afternoon. They escorted him through Thornhaven's corridors to Aldric's office. One guard kept his hand on his sword hilt the entire walk. The other watched Klein's hands like he expected sudden violence.
The room was sparse—desk, two chairs, maps on the walls showing Thornhaven's perimeter and the forest beyond. Aldric sat behind the desk, his scarred face impassive. His golden Hail pulsed steady above his head, warm light that should have been comforting but felt like judgment.
"Sit," Aldric said.
Klein sat.
Aldric studied him for a long moment. His eyes were the eyes of someone who'd made hard decisions and carried their weight. Former guard captain, Marcus had said. Thirty years of service. Survived by being thorough.
"Synel's report was straightforward," Aldric said finally. "You acted human during travel, showed survival instinct despite panic, demonstrated no hostile behavior. He noted you're untrained but not fundamentally compromised." His eyes narrowed. "He also noted you demonstrated unusual spiritual sensitivity. Felt the ward posts' spatial distortion. That's rare for a fresh spawn."
Klein nodded. His throat was tight, but the Dampening held his voice steady. "I felt something near the posts. Like the air was stretched too thin. Wrong, but not dangerous. Just... noticeable."
"That kind of sensitivity is valuable." Aldric leaned back in his chair. "It's also relevant to a question I need answered."
Here it comes.
[CRITICAL SCENARIO: TESTIMONY SEQUENCE INITIATED]
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 85%]
[Dampening Efficiency: 74%]
"We have another spawn in detention—Rajesh Kumar. Two weeks now, and I can't get clear verification. His Hail never manifested." Aldric's expression was tired, heavy. The weight of command. "Marcus mentioned that guards moved Kumar past your holding area yesterday during a cell inspection. That you might have sensed something with that spiritual sensitivity. Did you notice anything?"
Klein's heart rate stayed steady. The Dampening compressed any physiological stress response, turning panic into cold focus.
[Dampening Efficiency: 74% → 71%]
The lie was already prepared. Marcus had scripted it carefully—vague enough to be plausible, specific enough to matter.
But Klein's mouth didn't open immediately.
He saw Rajesh in his mind. Heard his voice: I'm not a threat. I'm just broken code.
Forty-three years old. Married. Two kids. Dead at his desk, trying to provide for his family.
Tell them I'm innocent. Please.
The silence stretched. Aldric waited, patient. His golden Hail dimmed slightly—the burden of decisions made with incomplete information, the weight of executing men who might be innocent.
[CHOICE POINT DETECTED]
[Path A: Complete testimony - Achievement unlock, +12 PP, Balance shift]
[Path B: Refuse - Extended detention, survival risk]
[Dampening Efficiency: 71% → 68%]
[WARNING: Field stress increasing]
Klein could refuse. Say he sensed nothing. Let Rajesh live in detention indefinitely, slowly dying of neglect and despair, but alive. Maybe eventually verified. Maybe.
And Klein would stay detained himself. Maybe executed. Probably not—71% survival. But that 6% was real.
Or he could speak. One sentence. Rajesh would die today, cleanly, and Klein would walk free with equipment and copper and a future.
The math hadn't changed.
"Briefly," Klein said.
The word felt like swallowing broken glass.
[Dampening Efficiency: 68% → 64%]
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 90%]
"When they moved him past," Klein continued, forcing each word out. "I didn't interact with him directly."
He paused. Made himself hesitate, like the memory was unclear. Like he wasn't certain of what he'd felt.
"Something felt off." Each word was a stone added to a weight he'd carry forever. "I can't explain it clearly. Just... the same kind of wrongness I felt near the wards. Spatial distortion, maybe. Or something about his spiritual signature."
[Dampening Efficiency: 64% → 59%]
[WARNING: Moderate emotional breakthrough imminent]
Aldric leaned forward. "You're saying he felt dangerous."
No. I'm saying I'm condemning a man to death for a hundred copper and a weapon.
"I'm saying something felt wrong," Klein said carefully. Each word fighting against the crumbling Dampening barrier. "Whether that means mimic or system glitch—I don't have the knowledge to interpret it. I'm just reporting what I sensed."
He made himself meet Aldric's eyes. Held the gaze steady. "It might mean nothing. It might mean he's dangerous. I can't tell you which. I'm too new to understand what I was sensing."
The uncertainty was good. Professional. Exactly what Marcus had coached him to say.
[Achievement "Hard Choices" - Progress: 95%]
[Dampening Efficiency: 59% → 54%]
[WARNING: Catastrophic decompression approaching]
Aldric nodded slowly. His golden Hail dimmed further—the weight of command, the burden of killing based on incomplete information.
"That aligns with my own instincts," Aldric said quietly. "And other concerning indicators. Thank you. That's helpful corroborating information."
Helpful. Klein had just helped a man die.
[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: "HARD CHOICES"]
[You have prioritized survival over moral certainty. Welcome to Tertius.]
[Reward: +12 Potential Points]
[Balance Shift Detected: Processing...]
The notification appeared while Klein was still sitting across from Aldric. The System was celebrating his betrayal. Turning it into a fucking achievement.
Klein's stomach lurched.
[Dampening Efficiency: 54% → 48%]
[WARNING: CRITICAL FAILURE IMMINENT]
"You're cleared for release," Aldric continued, oblivious to Klein's internal crisis. "Marcus will handle your equipment."
Klein stood carefully. His legs were steady despite everything. The Dampening was barely holding at 48%.
"Thank you," he said.
The words tasted like ash.
"Don't make me regret this," Aldric said. His eyes were hard. "Thornhaven has enough problems without adding more."
Klein met his gaze. "Understood."
He walked toward the door, each step measured. His hand reached for the handle.
Behind him, he heard Aldric's voice:
"Bring Rajesh Kumar for final verification."
[QUEST UPDATE: "Hard Choices" - Target retrieval in progress]
[Estimated completion: 15-20 minutes]
[Final reward calculation pending target termination...]
Klein's hand was on the door handle. He could stop. Turn around. Say he'd lied. That he'd sensed nothing wrong, that Marcus had coached him, that this was all—
His hand turned the handle.
Klein walked through the door and closed it behind him.
[Dampening Efficiency: 48% → 43%]
[WARNING: CATASTROPHIC DECOMPRESSION IMMINENT]
In the corridor, he stopped. Pressed his back against the stone wall. Closed his eyes.
Somewhere below, guards were retrieving Rajesh. Bringing him to Aldric's office. The accountant who'd died at his desk would learn his fate today.
Because Klein had spoken six sentences.
[BALANCE SHIFT - IMMEDIATE]
Klein felt it—not physical, but something fundamental shifting. Like internal weight redistributing across scales he couldn't see.
[NEUTRAL SYSTEM: Significant moral choice detected]
[BALANCE METER SHIFT]
[CURRENT BALANCE: 46.0% Divine / 54.0% Demonic]
[STATUS: Acceptable deviation. Metamorphor equilibrium stable.]
[NOTE: New trait observation unlocked - "Deceiver's Tongue" (Social manipulation through calculated misdirection)]
54% Demonic.
Klein had crossed a line. Not all the way—there were still boundaries he wouldn't cross. But he'd chosen himself over a stranger's life with full knowledge of what he was doing.
That was Demonic thinking. Self-interest over collective welfare. The individual prioritized over abstract morality.
And the System was rewarding him for it. Unlocking new abilities. Celebrating his descent.
[Trait Available: "Deceiver's Tongue" - 0% observed]
[Begin observation? This trait improves effectiveness of lies and misdirection.]
Klein stared at the notification. The System wanted him to get better at lying. To practice the skill he'd just used to kill a man.
Marcus was waiting outside, leaning against the wall. When he saw Klein emerge, he straightened.
"Done?"
Klein looked at him. Marcus's crimson Hail pulsed steadily—comfortable, unapologetic, honest about what he was.
"Done," Klein confirmed.
His voice didn't shake. The Dampening held at 43%.
But Klein felt weight accumulating behind the barrier. Pressure building like water against a dam.
[EMOTIONAL DAMPENING FIELD: Load at 87%]
[WARNING: Catastrophic decompression imminent]
Marcus smiled. "Good. Let's get you equipped."
They walked through Thornhaven's afternoon streets. Klein's legs moved automatically. His mind was elsewhere.
In a cell below the trading post, Rajesh Kumar was learning he would die.
Klein kept walking.
The System kept displaying notifications.
[Achievement "Hard Choices" Complete - Final Reward Processing...]
[Awaiting target termination confirmation...]
Equipment and Mathematics
The trade post smelled of leather oil and metal. Marcus led Klein to a storage room where equipment hung on racks and sat in labeled crates. Organized. Efficient.
"Enhanced package, as promised," Marcus said, pulling items. "Quality clothing, weapon of your choice, a hundred copper. Better than basic issue."
Klein accepted the clothing first. Canvas pants reinforced with leather at the knees. Gray wool tunic, thick and well-made. New leather boots with soft interior lining.
He dressed mechanically, relishing the dignity of proper clothing despite everything else. The fabric was rough but clean. The boots fit well.
Marcus handed him a waterskin. "You look dehydrated. Drink."
Klein accepted, draining half. The water was cool, clean. His body absorbed it desperately.
"Weapon?" Marcus prompted.
Klein considered. The broken sword yesterday had been desperation. He had no training with swords. Spears were simpler—reach advantage, keep distance.
"Spear," Klein said.
Marcus handed him one. Hardwood shaft, well-balanced, proper hand grips carved into the surface. Iron tip longer and better forged, designed for thrusting with enough edge to cut.
[IRON SPEAR ACQUIRED]
[QUALITY: COMMON]
[EFFECT: STANDARD REACH WEAPON]
Klein tested the weight. Heavier than the broken sword, but the balance felt right.
[Elf Scout: 5.9% → 6.1%]
The trait was processing his movements, analyzing form and efficiency even through his incompetence.
"A hundred copper." Marcus counted coins into a leather pouch and handed it to Klein. The weight was reassuring. Real.
[QUEST COMPLETE: "Hard Choices"]
[Target terminated. Achievement rewards unlocked.]
[Total Reward: +12 Potential Points]
[Current PP Balance: 20 -> 32]
[Bonus: Marcus Webb relationship improved - "Pragmatic Respect"]
The notification appeared without ceremony. Rajesh Kumar was dead, and Klein had earned twelve points for helping kill him.
[Dampening Efficiency: 43% → 38%]
[CRITICAL WARNING: CATASTROPHIC DECOMPRESSION IN PROGRESS]
Klein's vision blurred. His hands started shaking.
"Food costs ten copper per day if you're eating cheap," Marcus was saying, oblivious. "Lodging is twenty copper per night for shared room, fifty for private. Figure out how to earn more or you'll be broke in five days."
Klein pocketed the coins mechanically. A hundred copper was survival. Five days of food and lodging, or ten days if he went minimal. The math of poverty transcended worlds.
The System was still displaying notifications.
[NEW ACHIEVEMENTS AVAILABLE:]
["Judge, Jury" - Cause 5 spawn executions (Progress: 1/5) - Reward: +15 PP]
["Cold Pragmatist" - Make 10 difficult choices prioritizing survival - Reward: +20 PP]
["Thornhaven's Fixer" - Complete 20 morally ambiguous tasks for settlement authorities - Reward: +25 PP]
The System was encouraging him to do this more. To kill more people. To make more "hard choices." It was turning murder into a progression system.
Klein's throat closed.
[Dampening Efficiency: 38% → 31%]
[CRITICAL: FIELD COLLAPSE IMMINENT]
"Thanks," Klein managed to say.
Marcus studied him. "You made the hard call today. That's worth remembering."
He paused. "Most spawns either embrace one philosophy completely or spend their lives paralyzed by indecision. Divine souls sacrifice themselves for the collective. Demonic souls sacrifice others for themselves. Both work. What doesn't work is hesitation."
"And Neutral?"
"You tell me. You're the first." Marcus's crimson Hail pulsed thoughtfully. "But I'd guess Neutral means you'll make both kinds of choices depending on context. Sometimes selfless. Sometimes ruthless. The trick will be living with both."
Klein said nothing.
[System Observation: Subject experiencing significant moral dissonance]
[Recommended: Accept pragmatic reality of survival economics]
[Alternative: Emotional processing may be required for psychological stability]
The System was advising him to just accept what he'd done. Like it was a tutorial tip.
"Where do I stay?" Klein asked finally, just to make Marcus stop talking.
"Inn's across the street. Tell Mira that Marcus sent you—she'll give you the spawn rate. Forty copper per night for a private room."
Klein nodded. Forty copper. Private room. Space to process.
"Got time for questions?" Marcus asked. "Most fresh spawns are curious."
Klein nodded. Information was survival. Even now.
"The Hails," Klein said. "What do they actually mean?"
Marcus tapped his crimson Hail. "Not what most people think. Divine doesn't mean good and Demonic doesn't mean evil. They're operating systems."
He gestured at the settlement around them. "Golden Hails value order, duty, collective responsibility. They'll sacrifice themselves for the group. Red Hails value freedom, autonomy, personal power. We sacrifice the group for ourselves." He shrugged. "Neither is inherently wrong. Just different priorities."
"And Neutral?" Klein asked.
"Theological theory until you showed up." Marcus's expression shifted—fascination mixed with caution. "Scholars thought it was metaphorical. You're proof it's real. That makes you valuable to scholars and dangerous to kingdoms."
"Why dangerous?"
"Because both kingdoms claim their philosophy is righteous truth. You're walking proof that both are equally valid." Marcus's smile held no humor. "That threatens ideological purity. You're a living challenge to every kingdom's foundational beliefs."
Klein understood. "So they'll want to control me or eliminate me."
"Or study you. Or worship you. Or declare you an abomination." Marcus shrugged. "Thornhaven doesn't care—we're pragmatists. But if you ever travel to the continental kingdoms, keep a low profile."
He stood. "You made your choice. Now live with it. That's all any of us can do."
Marcus left Klein standing with his equipment and the weight of understanding.
[EMOTIONAL DAMPENING FIELD: Load at 93%]
[CATASTROPHIC DECOMPRESSION: 3... 2... 1...]
Breaking Point
Klein paid forty copper for a private room at the inn. Mira, the elderly human woman who ran it, barely looked at him before taking his money and pointing upstairs.
The room was small but functional. Actual bed with a thin mattress and rough wool blankets. A small table and chair. A window letting in afternoon light.
He set down his spear and sat on the bed. The Dampening immediately shattered.
He pulled out the copper coins, counting them. Fifty remaining. Survival. Five days of cheap food, or one more night in this room, or—
Rajesh Kumar's face surfaced.
Klein hadn't actually seen him—that had been part of the lie. But his mind invented details anyway. Brown skin like his own. Dark eyes. Maybe forty, maybe younger but worn down by detention. The kind of face Klein had seen in Manila's slums. Tired. Human.
I'm not a threat. I'm just broken code.
Klein forced the image away. Focus on tactics. The PP shop needed review. Trait optimization. Resource allocation.
But the copper felt heavier than it should. A hundred pieces of metal, each one payment for a man's life.
His hands started shaking.
He was drowning in his own guilt.
His mother's face replaced Rajesh's. The way she'd looked when she told him about the cancer. Trying to be brave. The doctors say we need to start treatment soon. The faith in her eyes. The certainty that her son would take care of everything.
Klein had failed her.
And then he'd condemned a stranger to save himself.
The math was simple: his mother's life had mattered more than abstract morality, so he'd broken himself trying to save her. Rajesh's life mattered less than Klein's survival, so he'd sacrificed him without hesitation.
Both times, he'd chosen. Both times, the choice had cost something he couldn't get back.
Rajesh's invented voice, cold and final: I'm innocent. Please.
Cariel dissolving into light, smiling with pride and pain: Good luck.
Marcus's pragmatic assessment: You made the hard call today.
And underneath it all, the System's celebration:
[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: "HARD CHOICES"]
[NEW ACHIEVEMENT AVAILABLE: "Judge, Jury" - Progress: 1/5]
[Trait Unlocked: "Deceiver's Tongue"]
All of it crashed together—every death, every failure, every compromise, every lie told to survive—and he was left raw and exposed to the full weight of it.
Klein collapsed.
Not gracefully. His legs gave out and he hit the floor hard, shoulder slamming into wood. The sound that came out of him wasn't a scream—it was something worse. A keening wail that belonged to an animal, not a man.
He couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. Couldn't do anything except feel everything at once.
Grief for his mother. Guilt for Rajesh. Terror of his own death. Gratitude for Cariel's sacrifice. Shame at his poverty. Rage at the unfairness of it all. Six years of compressed emotion detonating simultaneously.
And through it all, the System kept displaying notifications, the text glowing in his mind's eye even as he sobbed.
[Emotional regulation failure detected]
[Dampening Field reconstruction in progress: 5%... 12%...]
[Achievement progress saved: "Cold Pragmatist" - 1/10 difficult choices complete]
The System didn't care that he was breaking down. It just kept tracking his choices. Recording his descent. Turning his moral collapse into data points.
Klein curled on the floor, arms wrapped around his head, and sobbed.
He'd survived Manila by becoming someone who could calculate the cost of every choice. Who could lie to survive. Who could accept kindness he couldn't repay. Who could steal food when starving and live with the guilt.
And now he'd killed a man. Not directly. Not with his hands. But with six sentences that condemned an innocent stranger to death for a hundred copper, a weapon, and twelve Potential Points.
The cost of survival kept climbing, and Klein was running out of parts of himself to sacrifice.
He cried until his throat was raw. Until his body had no more fluid to give. Until exhaustion dragged him into something like sleep, still curled on the floor.
The System kept working in the background:
[Emotional Dampening Field: Rebuilding... 23%... 38%...]
[Achievement data preserved]
[Balance Meter stable: 46% Divine / 54% Demonic]
[Trait observation continuing during rest state...]
Reconstruction
Klein woke to gray pre-dawn light. His cheek was pressed against rough wood. His eyes were swollen, his head pounding. His shoulder throbbed where he'd hit the floor.
[EMOTIONAL DAMPENING FIELD: Rebuilding... 52%... 61%... 67% - Stabilizing]
The barrier was reconstructing itself. Slower than before. Weaker. But reforming.
Klein pushed himself up slowly. His reflection in the window glass showed red eyes, tear-tracked face. He looked like he'd been beaten.
He had been. By himself. By the System. By the mathematics of survival.
[EMOTIONAL DAMPENING FIELD: 71% - Stable]
The grief was still there. The guilt. But they'd been... not erased. Acknowledged. The pressure had been released. The dam had broken and rebuilt, and now there was room to function again.
Klein stood, testing his legs. Steady enough.
He splashed water on his face from his waterskin. The cold helped. He looked at his equipment—spear leaning against the wall, copper in his pouch, clean clothes on his body.
The cost: one man's life.
The gain: survival for maybe a week.
Eventually he'd need to make more copper. More choices. The ledger would keep growing.
Klein checked his status.
[NEUTRAL SYSTEM: STATUS CHECK]
PHYSICAL STATE
- Integrity: 74% (+6% from nutrition and passive recovery)
- Stamina: 68% (recovering)
MENTAL STATE
- Dampening Efficiency: 71% (degraded from catastrophic decompression, recovering)
BALANCE METER
- Current: 46.0% Divine / 54.0% Demonic
- Status: Acceptable deviation. Equilibrium maintained through spectrum of behavior.
RECENT ACHIEVEMENTS
- "Hard Choices" - Unlocked (Priority: Survival over moral certainty)
- Progress toward "Cold Pragmatist" - 1/10
- Progress toward "Judge, Jury" - 1/5
POTENTIAL POINTS
- Available: 32 PP
54% Demonic. The scale had tipped.
Klein had crossed a line yesterday. Not his ceiling—there were still boundaries he wouldn't cross. But he'd proven he could prioritize himself over abstract morality when survival demanded it.
That was Demonic thinking. And the scale had recorded it. And the System had rewarded it.
But he wasn't purely Demonic. There were still lines. Actions that would destroy who he was.
54/46. Close enough to call it balanced.
The System had recognized the pattern: Subject maintains equilibrium through spectrum of behavior rather than perfect consistency.
Klein would make more choices. Some dark, some light. The scale would shift back and forth. That was balance—not frozen perfection, but oscillation around equilibrium through the full range of human behavior.
He'd condemned a man yesterday. The weight sat permanent in his chest—present, but compressed enough to function around.
Survival first. Conscience second.
But conscience was still there, recording every choice. Building a ledger he'd carry forever.
And the System was there too, tracking everything. Turning his moral compromises into achievements. His suffering into data. His descent into progression.
Klein sat on the bed and focused inward. Thirty-two Potential Points earned through betrayal. Time to understand his options.
[NEUTRAL SYSTEM: POTENTIAL POINTS SHOP - ACCESS GRANTED]
Four categories expanded:
SYSTEM UPGRADES
TRAIT ACCELERATION
ATTRIBUTE ENHANCEMENT
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Klein focused on TRAIT ACCELERATION. For Metamorphor, that was the primary advantage.
[TRAIT ACCELERATION CATEGORY]
[CURRENT TRAIT OBSERVATION PROGRESS:]
- Elf Scout (6.1%) - Movement optimization, spatial awareness
- Stalker (11%) - Predatory instincts, threat assessment
- Forest Ecosystem (6%) - Environmental adaptation
- Deceiver's Tongue (0%) - Social manipulation, calculated misdirection [NEWLY AVAILABLE]
[AVAILABLE UPGRADES:]
BASIC OBSERVATION MULTIPLIER - Cost: 10 PP
Effect: +50% trait observation speed (all traits, all contexts)
Duration: Permanent
SELECTIVE TRAIT FOCUS - Cost: 15 PP
Effect: Designate one priority trait for +100% observation speed. All other traits -25%.
Duration: Active until manually switched
TRAIT INTEGRATION EFFICIENCY - Cost: 12 PP
Effect: Reduce trait completion threshold by 20% (80% observation grants full trait access)
Duration: Permanent
TRAIT RETENTION PROTOCOL - Cost: 20 PP
Effect: Prevents trait degradation from lack of use
Duration: Permanent
ENVIRONMENTAL ADAPTATION BOOST - Cost: 8 PP
Effect: +100% observation speed for environmental/ecosystem traits only
Duration: Permanent
Klein studied each option carefully. The Evaluator had recommended Basic Observation Multiplier for highest survival probability. But the Evaluator's accuracy was limited.
He thought about it differently. What did each upgrade actually give him?
Basic Observation: Faster trait acquisition across everything. Universal benefit. Long-term compound growth.
Integration Efficiency: Earlier combat effectiveness. Traits usable at 80% instead of 100%. Better if combat was imminent.
Klein was in a settlement with guards and walls. Relatively safe. His immediate priority was escaping baseline vulnerability as fast as possible.
Speed mattered more than early access.
Marcus's advice echoed: Invest in primary advantages early. Save reserves for emergencies.
Klein made the decision. He had to use the points. He had to turn the blood money into strength.
[SELECT: BASIC OBSERVATION MULTIPLIER]
[COST: 10 PP]
[CONFIRM PURCHASE? YES/NO]
[CONFIRM: YES]
[PURCHASE CONFIRMED: BASIC OBSERVATION MULTIPLIER]
[REMAINING BALANCE: 22 PP]
[TRAIT ACCELERATION ENHANCED: +50% observation speed (all traits, all contexts, permanent)]
Klein felt something shift—not physical, but in how his mind processed observation. The world felt slightly more detailed. Movement patterns more noticeable.
And underneath that enhancement, a bitter thought: he'd just upgraded himself with points earned by killing an innocent man.
The System didn't care. It just kept working.
[Trait Observation Speed Enhanced]
[All active trait progress now calculated at 150% efficiency]
[Current traits accelerating...]
He walked to the window, moving with deliberate focus. Each step calculated, each weight shift analyzed.
[Elf Scout: 6.1% → 6.3%]
By tomorrow morning, it would be significantly higher just from passive movement and rest-processing.
Twenty-two points remaining. Marcus had said save reserves. Klein already knew what he'd save for: Trait Integration Efficiency at 12 PP.
[Achievement Available: "First Steps" - Earn 10 PP through non-violent means]
[Reward: +5 PP, Reputation bonus with Divine factions]
The System was offering him a path back. A way to balance the scales. But it only gave 5 PP for being good, while it had given him 12 for being evil.
The economics of morality were clear: sin paid better than virtue.
Klein closed the interface and tried not to think about what that meant.
The Cost of Living
The inn's common room smelled of cooking meat and old beer. A few patrons sat at tables—mostly humans, a dwarf in the corner, their Hails casting gold and crimson light.
Klein approached the bar. Mira looked up.
"Food," Klein said. "What's ten copper buy?"
"Stew and bread. Water's free." She gestured to an empty table.
Klein sat. The stew arrived minutes later—thick, brown, chunks of meat that might have been anything. The bread was hard but edible.
The stew tasted of old mutton and too much rock salt. But it was warm, and it was protein, and Klein's body absorbed it desperately.
He finished everything. Paid. Fifty copper left.
As he stood to leave, a voice called out: "The Neutral spawn."
Klein turned. A human man sat at a corner table—mid-twenties, lean, with the kind of scars that spoke of combat survived. His Hail was golden, but dim. Tired.
"Name's Derek," the man said. "First wave survivor. Twenty years on Tertius." He gestured to the empty chair across from him. "Sit. I'll buy you a drink."
Klein hesitated, then sat. Information was valuable.
Derek signaled Mira, who brought two cups of something that smelled vaguely alcoholic. Klein didn't touch his.
"You're causing quite a stir," Derek said. "Neutral classification. No Hail. First confirmed case in recorded history." He studied Klein with eyes that had seen too much. "People are talking. Some think you're blessed. Others think you're cursed. Most just think you're dangerous."
"What do you think?" Klein asked.
"I think you're a survivor." Derek drank. "I've been here twenty years. Seen thousands of spawns arrive. Most die in the first month. The ones who survive? They're not the strongest or the smartest. They're the ones who adapt. Who make hard choices and live with them."
He leaned forward. "I heard what happened with Rajesh Kumar. Word travels fast in small settlements."
Klein's stomach tightened. "What about it?"
"You testified. Aldric executed him this afternoon." Derek's expression was unreadable. "Clean death. Quick. Professional."
This afternoon. While Klein was breaking down in his room.
[System Note: Subject "Rajesh Kumar" terminated 14:37 local time]
[Achievement "Hard Choices" reward distribution confirmed]
The System had recorded the exact time of Rajesh's death. Filed it away like a transaction receipt.
Klein felt sick.
"You think I'm a monster," Klein said flatly.
"I think you're pragmatic." Derek's golden Hail pulsed. "Rajesh was probably innocent. But probably isn't certainty. And in a frontier settlement where one mimic can kill dozens? Aldric made the call that protects the most people. You gave him the justification he needed."
He paused. "That's not evil. That's triage. Welcome to Tertius. It's all triage, all the time."
Klein said nothing.
"You want to survive here?" Derek continued. "Stop carrying guilt like currency. It doesn't buy anything. Focus on what matters: acquiring traits, building capability, staying alive. The continental kingdoms have the luxury of philosophical purity. We don't."
He stood. "Good luck, Neutral. You'll need it."
Derek left Klein sitting alone with his untouched drink and the weight of confirmation.
Rajesh Kumar was dead.
Clean death. Quick. Professional.
Klein sat in the common room until the light outside faded to darkness. Then he climbed the stairs to his room, lay down on the bed, and stared at the ceiling.
[EMOTIONAL DAMPENING FIELD: 76% - Stable]
The guilt was there. The weight permanent. But the Dampening held it at manageable levels.
Tomorrow he'd start earning money. Acquiring traits. Building toward whatever survival looked like here.
Tonight, he'd sleep knowing the cost.
Fifty copper. One spear. Clean clothes. Twenty-two Potential Points saved.
One man's life.
Twelve Potential Points earned.
[Achievement Progress Updated:]
- "Cold Pragmatist" - 1/10 difficult choices
- "Judge, Jury" - 1/5 executions facilitated
- "First Steps" - 0/10 PP earned non-violently
The ledger was open. Klein was just starting to fill it.
The System was tracking everything.
He closed his eyes.
Survival first. Everything else after.
But "everything else" was getting heavier.
Sleep came slowly, but it came.
[Trait Observation During Rest: Processing...]
[Elf Scout: 6.3% → 6.8%]
[Stalker: 11% → 11.4%]
[Forest Ecosystem: 6% → 6.3%]
[Emotional Dampening: Regenerating... 76% → 82%]