The sign over the Berger Bridge used to say WELCOME TO LAGOS: CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE.
Now, half the letters were missing, and someone had spray-painted a new slogan over it:
WELCOME TO HELL. RENT IS DUE.
"We've crossed the server line," Bhy Khay announced, slowing the Iron Horse as they rolled onto the elevated tracks of the Mainland.
The transition was immediate. The air grew heavy, smelling of salt water and burning tires. The sky wasn't blue or grey; it was a static-filled purple, flickering like a broken television screen.
[ZONE: LAGOS STATE (Server Node 1)]
[POPULATION: 20 Million (Approx. 5 Million Active Players)]
[SERVER STATUS: UNSTABLE]
[DEBUFF ACTIVE: LAG SPIKE]
"Lag Spike?" Elara asked, clutching the railing as the train shuddered. "Is the engine misfiring?"
"No," Bhy Khay pointed out the window. "Reality is buffering."
To their left, a massive billboard for a generic soda brand froze mid-animation, then glitch-teleported fifty meters down the road. A flock of birds flew backward for a second before snapping forward.
"The server load is too high," Bhy Khay analyzed. "Too many players, too many explosions. The physics engine can't keep up."
"Great," Zayn groaned, checking his scope. "I'm a Sniper. Lag is my worst enemy. If I shoot someone, the bullet might arrive next Tuesday."
"Aim where they're going to be," Bhy Khay advised. "Not where they are. It's called 'Leading the Target' on a metaphysical level."
THE WELCOME PARTY
The train rumbled past Ikeja. Below them, the city was a warzone.
Unlike Ibadan, which was a mix of zombies and survivors, Lagos was pure Player-versus-Player chaos. Guild flags hung from every skyscraper. Tracers lit up the streets.
[GUILD: AREA BOYS (Lvl 20)]
[GUILD: EKÓ KINGS (Lvl 22)]
[GUILD: THE 1% (Lvl 25)]
"Level 25?" Tomiwa whispered, sketching the flags. "Bhy Khay, we are Level 14. We are barely NPCs to these guys."
"Level is just a number representing time spent grinding," Bhy Khay dismissed. "It doesn't measure IQ."
He pointed ahead.
"We're approaching Mobolaji Johnson Station. The end of the line."
The station was a fortress. The modern glass structure had been reinforced with scrap metal, sandbags, and—disturbingly—skulls.
Standing on the platform, blocking the tracks, was a welcoming committee.
It wasn't just the Syndicate. It was an army.
At the front stood The Godfather, his white suit replaced by a sleek, purple void-armor. His cane was gone, replaced by a floating orb of gravity.
[THE GODFATHER (Lvl 20)]
[STATUS: HOSTING]
Behind him were fifty elite soldiers, two tanks (actual military tanks), and a dozen floating mages.
"He brought the whole server," Elara breathed.
"He wants the train," Bhy Khay realized. "An armored transport that runs on mana? It's the ultimate loot box."
"So we stop?" Zayn asked. "If we ram that blockade, the tanks will blow us up."
"Stopping is death," Bhy Khay looked at the station layout. "The platform is a dead end. But the station itself..."
He pulled up the blueprints on the console.
[OBJECT: STATION TERMINAL]
[MATERIAL: GLASS & STEEL]
[STRUCTURAL WEAKNESS: THE ROOF]
"We aren't stopping at the platform," Bhy Khay grinned. "We're taking the scenic route."
"What scenic route?" Elara panicked. "The tracks end!"
"Tomiwa!" Bhy Khay shouted. "Draw a ramp!"
"On the tracks?"
"No! On the cowcatcher! Make it sharp!"
Tomiwa scrambled to the front window. She sketched a massive, wedge-shaped ramp on the nose of the train.
[LIVING INK: THE WEDGE]
"Elara! Ice the tracks! We need max speed!"
"You're insane!" Elara yelled, but she cast [Permafrost].
The train accelerated. 100... 120... 140 km/h.
The Godfather saw them speeding up. He smiled.
"They want to die," he laughed. "Tanks! Fire!"
BOOM. BOOM.
Two tank shells flew toward the train.
"Zayn! Point Defense!"
Zayn's turret spun. THWACK-THWACK.
He didn't shoot the shells (that's impossible). He shot the air in front of them with [Explosive Bolts].
The bolts detonated early, creating a shockwave that knocked the shells slightly off course. They exploded harmlessly against the train's side armor, scorching the paint but leaving the hull intact.
"We're close!" Bhy Khay yelled. "Brace!"
The train hit the end of the line.
But instead of crashing into the barrier, the Ink Wedge hit the concrete buffer.
CRUNCH.
The wedge acted like a ramp.
The 120-ton locomotive launched into the air.
It sailed over the heads of the Godfather's army.
"What the—?" The Godfather looked up as the underbelly of the train passed over him.
The train smashed through the glass roof of the Mobolaji Johnson Station terminal.
SHATTER.
Glass rained down like diamonds. The train landed on the polished marble floor of the main concourse, sliding sideways, crushing ticket booths and benches.
SCREEEEEECH.
It finally came to a halt in the middle of the lobby, smoke pouring from the wheels.
[ZONE ENTERED: MOBOLAJI JOHNSON TERMINAL]
[ENTRANCE STYLE: 10/10]
The Godfather turned around, staring at the hole in his roof.
"They parked inside," one of his minions whispered.
"Get them!" The Godfather roared. "Storm the lobby!"
Inside the train, Bhy Khay kicked the door open.
"Everyone out! Establish a perimeter!"
Zayn climbed to the mezzanine, taking the high ground.
Elara froze the entrances.
Tomiwa drew barricades.
Bhy Khay stood in the center of the station. He looked at the massive digital departure board. It was flickering.
[DEPARTURES]
[LAGOS -> ABUJA: CANCELLED]
[LAGOS -> IBADAN: CANCELLED]
[LAGOS -> VOID: BOARDING NOW]
"Void?" Bhy Khay frowned.
Suddenly, the floor of the station rippled.
A holographic projection appeared in the center of the concourse. It wasn't Dr. Balogun.
It was a glowing, blue avatar of a woman. She looked like a corrupted AI interface.
[ENTITY: THE ADMINISTRATOR (Local Node)]
[MESSAGE: WELCOME, USERS.]
[ERROR: UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS DETECTED.]
"The System AI," Bhy Khay realized. "It's manifest."
The Godfather burst into the lobby, surrounded by his men. He stopped when he saw the blue avatar.
"What is this?" The Godfather demanded, pointing his gravity orb. "Another trick?"
The Avatar turned to The Godfather.
[USER IDENTIFIED: THE GODFATHER.]
[VIOLATION: EXCESSIVE PK (PLAYER KILLING).]
[PENALTY: PURGE.]
The station doors slammed shut. Red lasers grid-locked the exits.
"Purge?" The Godfather laughed. "I own this city, computer!"
He fired a gravity blast at the Avatar.
The blast passed right through her.
[INSOLENCE DETECTED.]
[INITIATING: SERVER WIPE (LOCAL).]
The floor began to dissolve into pixels.
"Bhy Khay!" Elara screamed. "The floor is deleting!"
"It's a wipe mechanic!" Bhy Khay shouted. "The AI is resetting the zone because it detects too many 'Hostile Variables'!"
He looked at The Godfather.
"Hey! Godfather!" Bhy Khay yelled.
The Warlord looked over, panic in his eyes as his tanks outside started to de-rez.
"What?!"
"We have a choice!" Bhy Khay held up his [City Lord Token]. "We can fight each other and get deleted. Or we can fight the IT Department."
The Godfather looked at the dissolving floor. He looked at his vanishing army. Then he looked at Bhy Khay.
"I hate you," The Godfather spat. "But I hate glitches more."
He deactivated his gravity orb.
"Alliance?" The Godfather asked, disgusted.
"Temporary truce," Bhy Khay corrected. "Until the server is fixed."
[SYSTEM ALERT: PARTY FORMED.]
[LEADER: BHY KHAY.]
[MEMBERS: ELARA, ZAYN, TOMIWA... THE GODFATHER.]
Bhy Khay smirked.
"System," Bhy Khay equipped his dagger. "I'd like to file a complaint."