The Safe Zone's morning siren buzzed to life with all the grace of a dying car battery.
[DAY 2: SYSTEM CYCLE ACTIVE]
New Missions Available. Please report to Terminal Node 01.
Survivors stirred. Groans, curses, and shuffling feet echoed across the cracked concrete. The parking structure's grim silence gave way to anxious murmuring.
Aron hadn't slept.
He watched the walls, listening for that same ripple of static that came with last night's message. But the terminal remained dead. No new surge. No glyphs. Just dust and tension.
He rubbed his eyes and headed toward the mission terminal at the center of the floor.
Greg was already there, barking orders. "We need supplies. More batteries and maybe water filters if we're lucky. Anyone with decent stamina, step forward."
The screen buzzed as the new prompt came alive:
*-------------------------------------------------*
[MAIN MISSION 2: BLOCK SCAN]
Objective: Investigate and clear two nearby buildings for usable resources.
Location: Zone 4B and 4C, East Sector.
Danger Rating: Moderate
Time Limit: 2 hours
Minimum Required Participants: 4
Reward: +50 EXP, Random Loot Crate, +1 Stat Point
Hidden Bonus Objective: No Casualties – Extra EXP
*-------------------------------------------------*
Aron blinked slowly at the text.
Moderate.
Two buildings.
Outside.
He already hated it.
Greg looked around. "We've got six teams registered. Sarah, Orochi, and Ben—good. One more. Aron!"
Aron blinked. "Me?"
"You're not injured. You're fast enough, right?"
He hesitated. Dan was still recovering. Sarah gave Aron a small nod. She seemed calm—just quietly trusting.
"…Fine."
Orochi let out a sharp whistle. "Move out. We're taking the north stairwell. And Aron? You don't have to fight. Just don't get killed."
Zone 4B – East Sector
The outside world wasn't dead. It was paused.
A dusty city block stretched before them—gutted cars, torn banners, and flickering neon signs still advertising places that no longer existed. The silence was worse than any scream.
They passed a collapsed convenience store. Inside, the shelves had been emptied, but the freezer lights still glowed faintly.
Sarah whispered, "Watch for movement."
That's when they heard it.
A soft, rhythmic tap.
Step… step… step…
It started slow—then suddenly fast—then slow again.
Aron crouched, holding his breath.
From the side alley emerged a humanoid figure—its limbs too long, joints reversed like marionettes pulled wrong. Its head tilted to one side, twitching violently.
But the worst part?
It made no sound—only echoed footsteps.
*---------------------------------------------------------*
[ENEMY DETECTED: ECHO STRIDER]
Class: Glitch Variant
Threat: Medium
Notes: Distorted perception field. Prefers chasing over fighting. Avoid mimic range.
*-------------------------------------------------------*
The group froze.
Sarah mouthed, "What's mimic range?"
Then the creature shrieked.
It didn't open its mouth—the sound came from the air around it, like a loud recording playing through torn speakers. It lunged toward them.
Orochi moved first. Sword drawn, clean and fast.
Ben stumbled, nearly dropping his pack.
Aron pulled him back—too hard—and the two of them tumbled behind an overturned car.
"Shit—sorry—" Aron gasped.
The Echo Strider twisted after them.
Aron's HUD flickered. [Warning: Being Tracked]
Ben froze in terror. "I—I can't move—!"
The thing charged.
Aron grabbed a loose concrete shard and threw it past the alley—then yanked Ben to the right.
The noise caught the creature's attention for just a second—enough for Aron to drag them into the stairwell of the next building.
The creature followed—but slipped on shattered glass near the stairs. Its foot caught on a pipe as it fell through the railing with a distorted groan.
Its body landed with a sickening thud, impaled on a rebar spike.
*---------------------------------------------*
[Enemy Defeated – Fall Damage]
+10 EXP
[Aron: EXP 150/500]
*-------------------------------------------*
Aron stared down the shaft, breath tight. He didn't kill it—not really.
But it was dead because of him.
Sarah and Orochi caught up seconds later. "You two good?" Sarah asked.
Ben nodded shakily. "He saved me…"
Orochi eyed the corpse below. "Nice trap."
"It wasn't a trap," Aron muttered.
The team searched the rest of the apartment complex. Most rooms were empty, but one locked cabinet yielded two energy cells and a microchip etched with zone lines.
*------------------------------------------------------------------------*
[ITEM ACQUIRED: Mini-Map Chip – Safe Zone Compatible]
*-------------------------------------------------------------------------*
They returned to the Safe Zone 90 minutes later, bruised but alive.
The terminal chimed.
*---------------------------------------------*
[MAIN MISSION 2: BLOCK SCAN – COMPLETE]
+50 EXP
+1 Stat Point
+Loot Crate Added to Inventory
[Bonus Objective Cleared: No Casualties]
+15 EXP
[Aron: EXP 215/500]
[Points Available: 1]
*----------------------------------------------*
Back in his corner, Aron opened the Loot Crate quietly.
Inside: a worn tactical belt and a stubby flashlight without a battery.
"Figures."
He added the items to inventory and checked his progress:
*---------------------------------------*
[INVENTORY]
– Basic Sword
– Cloth Shirt
– Broken Phone
– Broken Gear Cog (Tier ???)
– Rust-Covered Tag
– Glitched Datacore
– Mini-Map Chip
– Tactical Belt (Equip Bonus: +1 Item Slot)
*---------------------------------------*
He sat down slowly.
Sarah gave him a brief nod. "You did good today."
He looked away. "Didn't do much."
"Still did something," she said. "Doesn't have to be a kill to count."
High above, in the system logs no player could see:
[CONSTELLATION: "The Masked Archivist" has taken interest in Variable_07]
[Evaluating patterns… compiling echoes…]