The factions keep staring at me. Waiting.
I do the only thing I can do: stall.
"I… need time," I say, forcing my voice not to shake.
The silver-haired man smirks. "You don't have much."
The masked woman tilts her head. "Tick-tock, little Glitch."
They both turn and vanish into the living streets, their forms swallowed by the city as easily as the man I'd just seen recycled.
---
I sag against the nearest wall. It twitches under my touch. I jerk my hand back.
"This is insane," I mutter.
"Insanity is subjective," Clipboard says cheerfully.
I glare at it. "And you. You've been acting like my tour guide since I got here. Who — or what — are you?"
It pauses mid-hover. For the first time, it actually seems… thoughtful.
"Do you want the short answer or the long one?"
"Short."
It spins its clipboard around. A glowing name appears on it, shifting and twisting until I can read it:
SCRIBE.
"That's your name?" I ask.
"My designation," it corrects. "Scribe-class entities are assigned to track, guide, and document anomalies."
"Anomalies," I repeat.
"You," it says, tapping my forehead with its pen.
"Great. So I'm a lab rat."
"More like an experiment that doesn't know what kind."
I rub my temples. "Okay, Scribe. What does being a 'Glitch' actually mean for me?"
Scribe scribbles something, then looks at me. "It means you don't belong here. And that makes you… unpredictable. The Heart can't see all your choices. The factions can't control all your actions. You're a… wild card."
I blink. "So basically, I'm a bug in the system."
"Yes."
"Why does that sound like a death sentence?"
"Because it often is."
---
Before I can reply, the ground beneath us trembles.
A voice — not the Heart, something smaller, closer — echoes through the walls:
"UNCLAIMED SOUL. TRIAL COMPLETE. REPORT TO THE HEART."
Scribe straightens. "Ah. Summons. You're popular today."
"I just fought a tentacle monster. Can I get a break?"
"No."
The street ahead opens like a wound, forming a fleshy staircase downward.
"Of course not," I mutter.
Scribe floats toward it. "Come along, Kael. The Heart doesn't like to be kept waiting."
---
As I follow it down into the dark, one thought won't leave my mind:
If I'm a Glitch… and the Heart can't control me…
Why does it want me so badly?