Brock adjusted the spear in his hands as he approached the southern edge of the valley. This Time Rend had been reported to last all of July, refreshing daily. Unlike previous illegal rends, it was dense with zombies—weak, mutated, and armored—moving in waves and often blocking each other in the fractured terrain.
He crouched behind a collapsed wall, surveying the valley floor from multiple angles. The jagged ruins offered natural choke points, debris piles, and collapsed vehicles—opportunities to funnel zombies or ambush them from above. He set up a small tent on a slightly elevated ridge and reinforced it with rubble to create a temporary base.
While observing a cluster of unfamiliar Awakeners coordinating attacks on zombies, Brock instinctively focused his Combat Sense. A flash of unfamiliar readings appeared: "HP… Mana…" He could just barely see them—numbers and gauges like a hidden stat panel—but his level wasn't enough to interpret them. The glimpse vanished before he could make sense of it. He shrugged. The valley demanded focus, not curiosity.
Early Wave Tactics
The first wave of the morning wasn't like the scattered weak zombies of earlier rends. Groups moved through debris, occasionally shoving weaker undead into pools of sludge or cracks in the ground. Brock adapted:
He vaulted onto a collapsed truck to gain high ground, thrusting his spear downward into a mutated zombie's neck [XP +30]
When three weak zombies tried to flank him, he grabbed one, slammed it into another, and spun into a kick that sent the third tumbling into a fissure
[XP +30]
Armored zombies approached; he sidestepped debris to funnel them into a narrow alley, striking sword arcs to their exposed joints
[XP +150]
XP tally: 50 carryover + 210 = 260 / 2560
Brock moved constantly, never letting zombies trap him. He used environmental hazards as extensions of his attacks—pushing debris, swinging on broken beams, dropping rubble, and even leveraging hand-to-hand strikes when enemies bypassed his weapons.
Midday Chaos
By noon, waves of zombies had intensified. Weak zombies gave 10 XP each, but the mutated and armored types now dominated. Brock's focus sharpened as he alternated weapons, angles, and attacks:
Weak zombies: 40
[XP +400]
Mutated zombies: 25
[XP +500]
Armored zombies: 10
[XP +300]
XP tally: 260 + 1200 = 1460 / 2560
He rolled under falling debris, used a jagged slope to slide into a group of zombies, striking from below with spear and elbow, then pivoted to thrust at another from behind. Every movement was a calculated combination of environmental advantage and direct attack.
Overdrive
By the third day, hordes became relentless. Brock's Combat Sense warning signals flashed constantly—zombies from every direction. To survive, he activated Overdrive:
Weak points of all enemies highlighted
Enemy intentions clear and predictable
Battle awareness maxed
In a few hours
Weak zombies: 50
[XP +500]
Mutated zombies: 30
[XP +600]
Armored zombies: 10
[XP +300]
[Level-Up: Level 8 → 9]
[XP : 18 / 5120]
He collapsed beside the tent, exhausted, body shaking. Adrenaline Rush had saved him multiple times, but the overdrive left his head throbbing and vision blurred.
As Brock packed and left the battle field he observed Awakeners and gained insights into positioning and group tactics
Brock packed and rationed carefully for the coming days, knowing this rend would last throughout July. Every kill, every trap, every calculated strike brought him closer to Level 10.
It was now early August
Level: 9
XP toward Level 10: 18 / 5120
Credits remaining: 68
Reputation: 0
Brock's ridge overlooked the valley, now quiet for a brief moment. He gripped his spear, readying himself. The Time Rend would continue, waves relentless, demanding adaptation, observation, and precise execution.
"One wave at a time… one kill at a time."
..........
Hundreds of miles away....
The sun had barely risen over the shattered skyline of New Eden when Maya Clark stepped off the transport and into the Ghost Network's compound. It wasn't much to look at from afar—high walls of reinforced concrete, watchtowers scattered at precise intervals, and training grounds that stretched into ruin—but inside, it was a crucible designed to forge Awakeners into operators.
Beside her, Alex adjusted his pack nervously. He was lean but wiry, his fists already itching for action, while Connor fiddled with a handheld console, eyes darting over the lines of code that would simulate a digital defense system.
"This isn't your family's fortress," Maya said calmly, her voice carrying authority despite her youth. "Here, your skills decide whether you live or die. No one's giving you protection."
Alex grunted. "I get it. But do we really need all this… stealth and hacking stuff? I thought we'd just—"
"Survive?" Maya finished his sentence for him. "Exactly. And survive we will, if we use our heads. No head-on charges unless you're desperate."
Phase One — Stealth Navigation
The instructors wasted no time. They were immediately thrust into the first exercise: navigating a partially destroyed urban district under simulated enemy patrols. The streets were jagged and littered with overturned vehicles, broken streetlights, and exposed rebar, each obstacle both a hindrance and an opportunity.
Maya's Tactical Awareness kicked in instantly. She noted shadows that didn't align with the light, faint sounds of distant footfalls, and potential ambush points.
She whispered instructions to Alex and Connor, directing them to move behind cover, use the shadows, and stagger their movement to avoid detection.
Alex's Shock Wave was tested immediately—he used it to knock over a stack of crates, creating a distraction that drew a pair of simulated guards away from their path.
Connor applied his hacking skills remotely, opening a locked digital gate to provide the team with a safer route. Though his skill was low, Maya could sense its potential to create a temporary advantage.
They moved like ghosts through the ruins, shadows among shadows. Maya occasionally flickered her gaze forward, her temporal glimpse showing fractions of a second into the future: a guard about to turn a corner, a loose plank about to fall. Every movement was choreographed in her mind before it happened.
By the end of the morning, the trio had completed the course without triggering alarms. Sweat streaked their faces, and muscles burned, but the instructors nodded in approval.
Phase Two — Combat Simulation
Next came simulated engagements, where Maya's foresight was put to the test. Automated targets that mimicked zombie and human movement were deployed, moving unpredictably through rubble-strewn streets.
Maya analyzed patterns, calling out weak points, timing, and angles to Alex and Connor.
Alex's Shock Wave became an extension of her tactical guidance, knocking down clusters of targets at precisely calculated moments.
Connor remotely disabled traps and temporarily "stunned" targets via digital control panels.
Maya led from the front, darting between overturned cars and rubble, striking only when an opening appeared. When one simulated enemy slipped past Alex's Shock Wave, she pivoted mid-roll, elbowing it into a wall, then slashing its artificial limb with her blade.
Her temporal glimpse overdrive was used once in the exercise, allowing her to anticipate multiple enemy sequences simultaneously. The result was dizzying: she felt a sharp headache as visions collided, showing both immediate outcomes and consequences several seconds ahead. She stumbled slightly, but recovered, her calm aura unshaken.
Phase Three — Coordination and Extraction
By late afternoon, the instructors escalated the challenge. They had to infiltrate a "command hub" in ruins, extract a memory core, and escape without triggering any alarms—simulated guards patrolling in unpredictable patterns, traps scattered along hallways, and environmental hazards designed to break formation.
Maya's tactical mind mapped multiple exit routes before entering the building.
Alex, following her guidance, created controlled Shock Waves to stagger simulated guards, clearing pathways.
Connor bypassed security systems, disabling cameras and opening doors remotely.
Inside, Maya's foresight detected a hidden sequence in the control room: subtle movements in the shadows that weren't part of the simulation. She pointed it out, and Connor focused his hacking to investigate. It was a small puzzle—a test within a test. They solved it as a team, bypassing the last obstacle and securing the "memory core."
Phase Four — Stress and Realism
The instructors weren't done. A second wave of exercises began immediately, simulating multiple Time Rends:
Multiple points of entry, hidden ambushes, and collapsing structures
Simulated enemy reinforcements at random intervals
Environmental hazards: smoke, debris, and fake chemical exposure
Maya pushed her temporal glimpse to its limits, seeing into the immediate past and future simultaneously. The headache returned, severe enough to make her stagger, but her team's success depended on it.
Alex reacted instinctively, his Shock Wave precise, timing coordinated with Maya's commands. Connor's hacking skill temporarily disabled security protocols at critical moments, allowing them to escape tight corridors.
By the end of the day, the Ghost Network instructors declared the exercise a success. Maya's team had completed it with minimal simulated casualties. Sweat, grime, and adrenaline covered them, but they had survived—and learned.
Evening — Reflection and Growth
As the sun set over the compound, Maya sat cross-legged, her blade beside her, reviewing the day in her mind:
Tactical Awareness had saved them multiple times, predicting paths of enemies and hazards.
Temporal Glimpse provided critical foresight, but its overdrive left her drained. She noted she would have to ration its use in real combat.
Alex and Connor had performed well under pressure, but she realized that coordinating their unique skills would be crucial for survival in true Time Rends.
"The Akentens won't wait for us to be ready. We have to be better… faster… smarter."
She looked toward the horizon, already planning the next exercises: field simulations, reconnaissance, infiltration, and combat in unpredictable Time Rends. Every day was preparation for the inevitable confrontation.