Several kilometers beyond the towering walls of the Stronghold, the world looked nothing like the polished advertisements and glowing skyscrapers inside the city.
Out here, civilization was a memory...
Dead trees stretched toward a gray sky like skeletal fingers while broken buildings from the Old World leaned at dangerous angles held together by concrete eaten away by time and strange mutations. The wind carried dust, rust, and the distant howls of creatures that humanity had learned to fear.
Deep within a collapsed underground site carved beneath a caved-in structure, five figures moved cautiously with handheld lights cutting through the darkness.
One of them pushed aside loose rubble with the sole of his boot.
"Nothing again," he muttered impatiently. "We've been searching this damn hole for hours."
Another voice followed.
"This better not be another waste of time, Ravencliff."
Several pairs of eyes turned toward the young man walking ahead of the group.
Will Ravencliff adjusted the thin rectangular glasses resting on the bridge of his nose.
He was eighteen years old, slightly thin and a bit pale from spending most of his time studying or analyzing data rather than fighting monsters.
He was definitely not someone you'd expect to see this far outside the Stronghold and yet here he was.
Will kept his calm expression as he slowly scanned the walls of the cavern.
"Relax," he said quietly. "We're on the right path."
The group behind him exchanged glances and one of them scoffed.
"You've been saying that for thirty minutes."
Another man laughed.
"Maybe our genius here finally made a mistake."
Will ignored the comment, stepped closer to the rough stone wall and leaned forward slightly.
A thin line of light swept across his glasses... they obviously weren't ordinary glasses.
Like most technology still functioning after the Collapse, they were remnants of advanced systems from before the apocalypse, modified with micro-analysis lenses capable of zooming, scanning, and identifying microscopic details.
Will adjusted the focus with a small gesture and his vision sharpened, scanning across stone, dust and mineral residue.
He suddenly noticed a faint purple speck that was almost invisible.
Will narrowed his eyes.
"There."
He pointed toward a barely noticeable patch on the wall.
The others squinted.
"I don't see anything."
"Yeah, what are you talking about?"
Will stepped closer and traced the stone surface carefully with his fingers.
"This area has different residue patterns," he explained. "Look at the density in the cracks."
No one understood what he meant but they had learned one thing during their previous trips:
If Will Ravencliff said something was there…
There was a very good chance he was right.
Their leader who was a tall muscular man named Garret, crossed his arms.
"Then keep looking."
Will nodded and moved deeper into this section of the underground site until he stopped in what looked like an empty corner surrounded by cracked stone walls.
The others watched him curiously.
"This is it," Will said.
They looked around.
"This?"
"There's nothing here."
Garret frowned.
"Ravencliff, you better not be wasting our time."
Will didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he stepped forward and began running his hands along the wall from left to right and then higher and lower.
His palms brushed across the cold surface repeatedly as he searched carefully.
For a moment, nothing happened until he felt his fingers graze against something soft.
The wall shimmered as small purple leaves suddenly appeared, spreading across the surface like a living pattern.
Several people gasped.
"What the hell—?!"
The leaves had been acting like camouflage, blending perfectly with the rock until they were disturbed.
Will pushed them aside slowly and behind them…
A glowing crystal sat embedded within the stone.
It was a mineral...
One of the Awakening Trio known as the Voltaris Stone.
For a moment the entire group froze and then exploded in excitement.
"Holy—!"
"We found one!"
Someone rushed forward and nearly knocked Will off his feet while reaching for the crystal.
He stumbled backward and fell to the ground as the others crowded around the discovery.
Their flashlights reflected off the mineral's faint electric glow.
Garret grabbed the stone and held it up triumphantly as a wide grin spread across his face.
"Hah!"
He laughed loudly.
"That makes three."
Will slowly pushed himself up from the ground, brushing dust from his clothes.
He smiled faintly.
"Yeah," he said. "We might have missed it if we stopped searching earlier."
Garret chuckled.
"You really are a genius, Ravencliff."
Another man slapped Will on the shoulder.
"If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have found any of these."
Will nodded.
He had heard those words before many times.
In the bubble of excitement, he extended his hand.
"Alright," he said. "Hand it over."
Garret tilted his head.
"What?"
"The Voltaris Stone," Will replied calmly. "According to our agreement, this one is mine."
The group suddenly became quiet as Will continued.
"You already have the Titan Core Crystal and the Neuro Bloom Shard from the previous two raids. We agreed we'd keep searching until everyone had their own set of the Trio."
Garret looked at the glowing mineral in his hand before letting out a slow, amused laugh.
"No."
Will blinked.
"...What?"
Garret shrugged casually.
"I said no."
Will stared at him.
"But that's our agreement."
Garret's grin widened.
"Our agreement?"
He looked around at the others.
"Did anyone else hear something about an agreement?"
Several members of the group snorted and one of them chuckled.
"Man… you really are naive."
Will's stomach sank.
"You already have two minerals," he said slowly. "You can become an Ascender now."
Garret weighed the Voltaris Stone in his palm.
"Exactly."
He smirked.
"So why would I give this one away?"
Something inside Will snapped.
"No."
He stepped forward.
"You can't just—"
Will lunged towards the crystal while speaking but the moment his fingers brushed against it...
Bam!
Pain exploded across his face as a fist smashed into his cheek.
Will collapsed to the ground as someone kicked him in the ribs...
Another boot slammed into his stomach.
The group surrounded him and blow after blow rained down.
"You stupid idiot!"
"Still trusting people after everything?"
Garret laughed as he watched.
"You really thought we'd split the Trio evenly?"
A heavy kick landed on Will's leg and a sickening crack echoed in the cavern.
Will screamed as his leg bent unnaturally and agony shot through his body.
Tears blurred his vision upon realizing that his ankle was twisted.
He lay there helpless as the beating finally stopped, unable to stand or walk.
"He's just going to betray the rest of you..." Will muttered helplessly.
"We don't want to be Ascenders... Garret will take care of us when he becomes one," the only female in the group, voiced with a smile as she rubbed Garret's chest.
"Yeah, its far too dangerous to keep looking for the minerals. We almost lost our lives the previous times. Now that there's three in our possession, boss can ascend and take us with him."
Will realized he had been tricked yet again... this was their plan from the onset.
Blood trickled from his lip while Garret crouched down beside him.
"What a shame," he said mockingly. "We could have used more of your intelligence."
The others laughed while Garret stood up and tossed the Voltaris Stone between his hands.
"Come on."
They turned and began walking away.
Will's chest tightened with panic.
"W–Wait…!"
His voice trembled.
"Please… don't leave me here."
The sky outside the cavern entrance was already darkening.
Night in the wilderness meant death.
Mutated creatures would soon roam the area.
Will dragged himself slightly across the ground as his broken leg screamed in pain.
"Please… just help me back to the Stronghold."
His voice cracked.
"I won't ask for the mineral anymore… I swear…"
The group stopped for a moment and Garret looked back at him before bursting into laughter.
"Listen to him beg!"
One of the others shook his head.
"Pathetic."
Garret waved dismissively.
"Goodbye, Ravencliff."
And just like that hey left.
As their footsteps faded, silence returned to the cavern.
Will lay there with his blood soaking into the dust as his chest rose and fell slowly.
For a long time… he said nothing.
Then suddenly, he started laughing bitterly and weakly.
"Heh…"
His shoulders shook.
"Hehehe…"
It grew louder.
"HAHAHAHA…"
Tears streamed down his face as the laughter echoed through the empty cavern.
"Over and over and over and over…"
He whispered as his life flashed through his mind...
Every betrayal...
Every lie...
Every moment he had been used...
Friends who copied his schoolwork and abandoned him...
Neighbors who borrowed money and never returned it...
Employers who stole his ideas...
Partners who took credit for his plans...
Scavenger teams who used his intelligence to locate resources… then kicked him out before the rewards were shared...
And her, his girlfriend.
The one person he thought cared about him.
The girl who smiled sweetly while secretly sleeping with someone richer.
Using him...
Mocking him...
Leaving him...
His laughter slowly faded.
"...I'm such an idiot."
The sky outside darkened completely as cold wind blew through the cavern.
Will stared at the ceiling.
"I tried so hard…"
He had only wanted to save his mother.
The memory of her pale face on the hospital bed appeared in his mind.
The medicine they couldn't afford...
The treatment he couldn't pay for...
All his efforts and sacrifices... yet in the end, she still died.
Will closed his eyes.
"I've been cheated my entire life," he voiced in a whisper.
The darkness thickened as the world slowly grew quiet.
And then... a voice echoed in his mind.
---
[Congratulations.]
[You have been successfully cheated 1000 times.]
[Hidden Requirement Completed.]
[Cheating System Activated.]