Kai didn't realize he was limping until the ground dipped and nearly took him with it.
He caught himself on a bent metal beam, breathing hard. His arm ached in a deep, heavy way—less pain now, more warning. The Wild Zone wasn't finished with him. It was simply letting him go.
For now.
PREDATOR INSTINCT — ACTIVEENVIRONMENTAL THREAT: MODERATE
"Still not low, huh," Kai muttered.
The darkness shifted again.
Not close.Not attacking.
Trailing.
He felt it like a pressure between his shoulder blades—something keeping pace just beyond sight. Whatever had run earlier hadn't gone far.
It was learning.
Kai slowed his steps, letting his breathing steady. Panic would make noise. Noise would get him killed.
He angled toward the faint outline of the maintenance gate, the city's glow bleeding through cracks in the ruined structures like light through broken teeth.
Almost there.
A scrape sounded behind him.
Kai turned—
Too late.
Something heavy slammed into his back and drove him to the ground. His vision burst white as his chin hit stone.
The creature wasn't a dog this time.
It was taller.
Longer limbs. Too many joints. Its skin stretched thin over a frame that looked unfinished, like someone had stopped building it halfway through. A second mouth opened along its neck, teeth clicking uselessly.
Kai screamed as claws raked across his shoulder.
LETHAL THREAT CONFIRMED
No shit.
Kai rolled, barely freeing his pinned arm, and drove his knee upward. It connected with something solid. The creature shrieked—high and wrong—and recoiled just enough.
Kai scrambled to his feet.
The gate was close.
So was the thing.
I don't win this, he thought. I survive it.
The Adaptive Core flared, heat spiking through his spine.
ADAPTIVE RESPONSE: PRIORITY SHIFTFOCUS: ESCAPE
His legs moved faster than they should have. Not stronger—smarter. Each step adjusted mid-stride, balance shifting automatically as rubble slid beneath his boots.
The creature lunged again.
Kai jumped.
The claws missed his ankle by centimeters and tore sparks from the metal edge of the gate instead.
Kai slammed his palm onto the keypad.
Nothing.
"Come on—come on!"
The creature reared back, muscles bunching.
The keypad lit.
Green.
The gate shuddered open just enough.
Kai dove.
The creature crashed into the narrowing gap, screeching as reinforced steel crushed its shoulder. The gate snapped shut with a final, violent clang.
Silence followed.
Real silence.
Kai lay on the concrete, gasping, chest burning like he'd swallowed fire.
Behind the gate, something hit the metal once.
Twice.
Then it stopped.
SURVIVAL CONFIRMEDCORE EXPERIENCE GAINED
Kai laughed weakly, staring up at the underside of the city.
"Yeah," he whispered. "I noticed."
He made it back to his apartment just before dawn.
Every step up the stairs felt heavier than the last. His jacket was torn. Blood—his and not his—stained the fabric dark and sticky.
He locked the door, leaned against it, and slid down until he was sitting on the floor.
Only then did he let his hands shake.
The interface unfolded, calmer now. Colder.
CORE LEVEL: 1TRAITS:— Predator Instinct (Lv.1)— Minor Recovery (Passive)
WARNING: HOST HAS BEEN OBSERVED
Kai's breath hitched.
"Observed… by what?"
The screen flickered.
DATA RESTRICTEDRECOMMENDATION: AVOID REPEAT PATTERNS
Kai stared at the words until they burned into his mind.
Someone—or something—had noticed.
The Wild Zone didn't forget.
Neither did systems built to control it.
Kai pushed himself up and stumbled into the bathroom. He washed his hands, his face, his arm. The cuts looked cleaner than they should have. Shallower.
He caught his reflection in the mirror.
Same face.
Same eyes.
But there was something else now—something tight and awake behind them.
Not hunger.
Intent.
Kai straightened slowly.
"Next time," he said quietly, "I'm not running."
The interface pulsed once, approving—or maybe just listening.
Outside, the city woke up.
Inside, something that had been Null began planning its second night out.
[End of Chapter 6]