Beep!
The metallic chime reverberated through the cramped elevator. Ruby jolted as though waking from a trance, her lips releasing Mia's with the sudden, embarrassed urgency that only a near-collision with impropriety could spark. Her cheeks, flushed from more than heat, colored a deeper crimson.
Ruby's hand, still clasping Mia's shirt, recoiled. Quickly smoothing the creases, she drew back, mumbling a half-laugh.
"Sorry. That's… that's my floor."
Her voice, normally steady and polite at the office, was now breathless and breathy, brimming with a mixture of apology and suppressed desire.
The doors slid open. Without looking back, Ruby adjusted her ponytail, gave Mia a small, apologetic smile—then slipped out into the dimly lit corridor, leaving the faintest hint of perfume in her wake.
For a moment, Mia remained leaning against the cool mirrored wall of the elevator, her heart still ticking along the old rhythm of betrayal mixed with new, distracting currents. She stared at the closing doors, but her mind was elsewhere—adrift between the ache of loss and the thrill of Ruby's impulsiveness.
It was only when her phone buzzed in her palm that Mia blinked. But there was no notification. Instead, something… flickered.
A shimmer glided across her vision, like the TV static from old hotel lobbies. Translucent screens danced before her eyes—hovering shapes and glowing glyphs she could see, impossibly, only within her own sight. Mia blinked again, shook her head.
The elevator began its gentle descent. Mia's pulse hammered. Could it be shock? Or simply exhaustion, painting visions in the air?
But the screens remained.
[CHESS SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
The words floated in steady gold, crisp against the dim background of her reflected face. Beneath them, icons rotated. a
A knight, a rook, a series of shifting puzzle pieces.
She exhaled slowly, stepping out as the elevator stopped on her floor. Her feet, almost on autopilot, moved toward her apartment. The display followed, persistent and clear.
As Mia fumbled for her keycard, menus blinked open on the system, responsive to her attention, as though her thoughts alone pressed invisible buttons.
[WELCOME, MIA AUERBACH.]
[NEW FEATURES UNLOCKED:]
[Tactical Puzzle Training: Solve real-time puzzles drawn from grandmaster games.]
[Calculation Module: Visualize, simulate lines before execution.]
[Pattern Recognition: Train your intuition—spot tactical themes within seconds.]
[Opponent Database: Statistical analysis, win rates, weaknesses of top players.]
[Personal Profile: (View?)]
Her breath caught. It looked like a dream—no, a video game overlay, but hyperreal.
Inside her apartment, lights flickering on automatically, Mia tossed her handbag on the counter and sat at her dining table, eyes still locked on the floating data.
She focused, intentionally now, on the 'Personal Profile' tab. Instantly, stats spilled out, lines of text swimming in front of her:
***
[Mia Auerbach – Profile:]
[Opening Theory: 89/100]
[Calculation Depth: 77/100]
[Pattern Recognition: 74/100]
[Endgame Technique: 88/100]
[Tactics: 81/100]
[Blunders: 5/100]
[ntuition: 80/100]
***
Mia's eyebrows rose. Some scores she could agree with, others stung with the reality of her recent defeat.
Before she could process it, the golden text flashed again:
[URGENT TASK ISSUED!]
[Solve 10 tactical puzzles in 10 minutes OR USER WILL DIE.]
The shimmering words were ice water poured down her spine. Mia's hands trembled—whether from fear, shock, or the wild hope that this was all just a sleepless hallucination.
But when the first puzzle materialized, black pieces swirling into place, and the digital clock started ticking—
She realized she didn't have time for disbelief.