Jeremy didn't show up for breakfast.
Odd. He was usually the first to rise.
Aidan knocked on his door—no answer.
He opened it.
The bed was untouched.
His shoes were gone.
So was his phone.
Aidan's stomach tightened.
> [System Alert: Proximity Node Disruption Detected — Network Interference from Unregistered Source]
> [Target: Jeremy Cade]
[Threat Level: Elevated]
He closed his eyes for a second, calming his thoughts.
"Not again."
---
Rhea was already tracking.
"His last known signal came from the old substation near the viaduct," she said, fingers flying across her custom interface. "And then—nothing. Someone jammed everything, even satellite."
"I'm going," Aidan said.
"I'm coming too," said Emily from the hallway.
Aidan turned. "No. You're staying."
"You're not locking me out again. If something happens to Jeremy and I just sit here—"
Rhea interjected calmly. "You'll be safer helping me monitor."
Aidan nodded. Emily didn't argue. But her eyes—he saw it.
She was done being a passenger in this war.
---
The viaduct was empty.
Too empty.
No civilians. No stray dogs. Not even birds.
Aidan scanned the area with his phone's thermal lens. Nothing.
Then his Core pulsed.
> [Seed Cooldown: 21 Hours Remaining]
[Engaging Tactical Logic Overlay]
The HUD dimmed slightly, highlighting faint patterns—scratches on the concrete, heat distortion from a recently cooled van engine.
He followed it.
Around a corner. Past a broken fence.
And then—footsteps.
Too light for boots. Too rhythmic for civilians.
He ducked just as a dart hit the pole beside him.
"Still quick," a voice called from above. "You're improving."
He looked up.
A figure stood on the scaffold. Masked. Lean, tall.
Jeremy.
Bound and gagged behind him.
---
"Don't bother with a name," the masked man said. "You won't know it."
Aidan's Core ran hundreds of simulations.
Attack paths. Confrontation outcomes. Distraction vectors.
Success rate: 34.2%.
Too low.
Instead, he stalled.
"Why him? Why Jeremy?"
"Because you like him. You trust him. That makes him valuable."
"What do you want?"
"Not what. Who."
The man tapped a small button.
Jeremy's image disappeared.
A live projection?
He'd never been here.
The man removed his mask.
And Aidan's blood ran cold.
Because he recognized him.
From the news.
A "missing" tech prodigy named Cole Naverra—vanished two years ago after his AI research lab was shut down for ethical violations.
> [System Alert: Potential Rogue System User Identified — Status: Confirmed]
"You…" Aidan whispered.
Cole smiled. "I wanted to see what kind of man the Core had chosen. You're good. Not great. But good."
"Where's Jeremy?"
"Safe. For now. But I want something."
A screen projected in midair. It showed Core code.
Aidan's code.
"I want access to your adaptive sequences. You're not just a user anymore, Aidan. You're a mutation. The first of your kind."
"And if I refuse?"
"Then I'll break your trust network. One person at a time. Until there's no one left to fight for."
---
Later, back at home, Aidan stared at the Core interface.
Rhea stood beside him.
"You met Cole Naverra."
"I did."
She was quiet.
"I thought he was dead," she said.
"I think… his system kept him alive. And it warped him. He's not trying to beat the Core. He's trying to replace it."
Rhea looked at Aidan, her voice low.
"Then we need to understand something we've avoided until now."
"What?"
Rhea tapped her screen.
A list appeared.
Five names.
Each one linked to a known system user.
Each one marked: "Selected — Pattern Match"
Except Aidan.
His line said:
"Manually Assigned — Override Decision Detected"
---
The Core spoke.
> [You were not chosen by chance. You were placed. Because change required anomaly.]
Aidan read the message three times.
Then whispered to himself:
"Who placed me?"
And in the pause that followed, the silence held a new kind of weight.
As if even the Core… wasn't allowed to answer.
---