The watch status followed Ryker wherever he went.
It was not physical because no enforcers shadowed him. No drones hovered closer than the regulated distance allowed.
However, a digital watch was more dangerous than a physical one.
Every gate scanned him twice. Every system handshake took a fraction longer than usual.
This was passive observation. The most dangerous kind.
At work, he noticed it first in the small delays. Access to files took half-second longer. When processing data, it would lag a little more than others.
It wasn't anything others would catch. But it unsettled Ryker, because he caught all of it.
The tingling sensation under his skin became more active. As if the more the system pushed him, the more something within him resisted.
Then on the fourth day, something happened. It could be said to me minor, but it changed everything Ryker knew and believed.
On his way home from work, a delivery drone malfunctioned. The drone was carrying a crate filled with industrial components meant to be delivered to the D-class utility section.
The restraints on the drone slipped and the crate came crashing down towards a woman standing at a crosswalk waiting for the green light to cross.
People around the woman who noticed the crate falling froze. That was always what happened.
Intervening without license authorization was illegal. Even shouting a warning could be flagged as 'unnecessary disruption.'
Ryker moved faster than he could think. He had never done something like this before.
Before anyone could react, he had jumped and caught the crate right before it smashed on the woman's head.
For half a second, Ryker felt as if his senses had heightened. Muscles surged with strength, and something inside him rolled.
The crate didn't hurt him. The weight somehow felt negligible even though the crate was filled with products.
Then the sensation vanished and the crate hit the ground loudly. Forcing Ryker to bend from the weight.
Even though an accident had occurred, the crate was intact and the contents preserved.
The woman stared at him, eyes wide, mouth open.
The people around them moved forward as if they hadn't witnessed anything. They didn't want trouble.
A drone swooped down instantly.
UNREGISTERED ACTION DETECTED.
Ryker took a step back instantly.
"I slipped." He said automatically with a calm, blank expression.
Not reflecting his pounding heart outwardly.
A blue light scanned him from head to toe then chimed.
VIOLATION LEVEL: MINOR.
PENALTY: WARNING ISSUED.
The drone left.
Ryker didn't dare to linger. He moved forward as if nothing had happened just moments ago.
But the next moment, deep, punishing pain hit him like a tidal wave. It pierced deep into his bones as if to remind him of their limit.
The pain nearly brought him to his knees but he didn't dare collapse, because that would get him noticed. And that was worse than the warning he had just received.
He dragged himself upright and stumbled home.
Back in his room, Ryker lay on the floor until the pain subsided. He realized that it was a backlash from that surge of strength he had experienced when he caught the crate. But he didn't know where that strength came from.
Ryker rose slowly and sat down staring at his hands.
He didn't pretend that nothing happened. Because something had happened.
He had broken a rule and the system had noticed and flagged the violation.
However, instead of a punishment, something within him seemed to have become stronger.
By the next morning, when Ryker pulled up his civic record, it had changed. It was no longer perfect.
A line had been added at the bottom.
NOTE: SUBJECT EXHIBITS DATA NOISE UNDER STRESSFUL CONDITIONS.
Ryker read that line three times before ascertaining that it was in his record.
Data noise.
That was how the system described things it couldn't classify without admitting failure.
His parents' records had the same note before they were taken away for evaluation.
Ryker walked to the bathroom attached within his single room and took a cold shower as if to wake himself up.
The law was never wrong. That was what they were taught from a young age.
But he had also learned that it was never fair either.
Worse still was when the system noticed you, and he had been noticed.
Ryker went to work as usual. He didn't dare to do anything out of his regular routine. Especially after being flagged.
He was working as usual when at noon, a summon arrived.
Not an arrest, but just a preliminary evaluation notice delivered politely to his terminal.
Purpose: Clarification
Duration: Estimated 2 Hours
Compliance Level: Mandatory
Ryker stared at the notice on his work screen for a full five minutes before he moved.
He didn't pack anything. Nothing was ever brought during an evaluation.
Even though personal beliefs were prohibited, people still used going to evaluation empty-handed as a sign of expected return.
The evaluation center was spotless with white walls resembling a heath center and soft lighting. There were no visible restraints.
The evaluation officer in charge of his case was surnamed Han. He greeted him with a professional smile.
"Ryker Miller," she said. "You're not in trouble."
That was always the first line in every evaluation and it was also the first lie.
The fact that he was there alone was a sign that he was in trouble.
But Ryker said nothing.
"We've noticed some… inconsistencies," Officer Han continued. "Probably nothing. We just need some clarification."
She gestured to a chair.
"Please sit." They were always polite.
Ryker did as told without making a sound.
The scanner activated automatically as soon as he sat on the chair.
The machine hummed for a minute before it started to whine and beep continuously.
"Interesting." Han's professional smile vanished.
On her screen, Ryker's data appeared fragmented.
Graphs contradicted themselves. Power readings spiked, then vanished. Classification fields kept blinking.
ERROR. ERROR. ERROR.
It kept repeating the same message.
Han leaned back in her chair as she looked at the screen in confusion.
"Mr. Miller," she said softly, "have you ever used an ability without authorization?"
Ryker met her eyes and replied calmly.