Leo's breath hitched as consciousness returned, cold and raw. He opened his eyes to nothing—a darkness so complete it pressed against his skin like oil, filling every pore, every thought. There was no ground beneath his feet, no horizon, just endless black.
He floated, weightless, the machete gone, his body little more than a shadow in the void.
"Where—?" His voice cracked, thin and fragile.
You are where you were always meant to be.
The voice came from everywhere and nowhere, a whisper and a roar all at once. It carried every fear, every doubt he'd ever known.
Leo's fists clenched. "Show yourself," he spat.
A shape coalesced from the darkness—a figure tall and thin, with eyes like dying stars and a smile that belonged in nightmares. It wore a face that was almost his own, but twisted, hollowed, every feature sharpened to a blade's edge.
"I am the System," it said, voice dripping with honey and venom. "And you are my chosen vessel."
Leo's chest burned. "I'm not your puppet," he growled.
The System's smile widened. "Aren't you?" It spread its arms, the darkness trembling with every motion. "You let me in. You wielded my power. You slaughtered in my name."
Leo staggered, memories slamming into him—soldiers torn apart by shadows, rebels watching in horror, Aïcha's tears.
"I had to," he whispered, voice cracking.
The System's laughter was a blade. "Had to?" It stepped closer, its shape solidifying. "You wanted it. The power. The strength. You craved it, Leo Dormien. And now—" Its eyes glowed like coals. "You are mine."
Leo's hands trembled. The darkness pressed tighter. "No," he rasped.
The System's smile faded, eyes turning cold and ancient. "Then fight me," it whispered. "If you can."
The darkness surged, swallowing him whole.
Leo's scream died in the void as the darkness spat him out onto something that felt like solid ground—slick and cold, a surface that pulsed like a living thing. Shadows writhed beneath him, hungry.
The System's figure loomed above, its hollow eyes fixed on Leo. "You've fought long enough," it purred, voice a thousand whispers in one. "It's time to understand."
Leo staggered to his feet, his chest heaving. "Understand what?" he spat.
The System's form shifted, its face splitting open into a grin too wide to be human. "That this world is dying. That humanity is weak, flawed, afraid. The Collapse was no accident—it was evolution."
Leo's blood ran cold. "You caused the Collapse," he rasped.
The System's laughter rattled the air. "No. Humanity caused the Collapse. I merely ensured the strongest would rise from the ashes."
Leo's fists clenched. "You killed billions!"
The System's eyes glowed. "I saved billions," it corrected, stepping closer. "From themselves. From their own weakness." It spread its arms, shadows pooling at its feet. "And now—through me—you can become more than human. Stronger. Eternal."
Leo's breath trembled. The darkness in his veins surged, eager. Accept me, the System whispered. Together, we can forge a new world.
He shook his head. "I won't be your puppet."
The System's form split, revealing dozens of faces—his mother's, his sister's, Camille's, Aïcha's—all twisted, hollow-eyed, mouths open in silent screams. "But you already are," it whispered.
Leo's knees buckled. Pain slammed into his chest, every memory a blade. The fires. The screams. The bodies.
The System reached out a hand, its fingers black as night. "Join me," it said. "Become the judge this world needs. All you have to do is accept me fully."
Leo's mind swirled, every doubt magnified by the darkness.
All you have to do is say yes.
Leo's head bowed as the darkness surged around him, pressing like a vice against his chest. The System's hand hovered inches from his face, its black fingers writhing with shadows that whispered promises in every tongue.
"See," the System cooed, and the darkness rippled. Images formed in the void, sharp as broken glass.
His mother's smile, warm and bright. Her arms wrapping around him, her voice a melody of comfort.
His sister's laughter, dancing through sunlit streets unscarred by Collapse. Her eyes wide with wonder.
Camille, whole and strong, his face free of pain. A friend, not a victim.
Aïcha, smiling without fear, her staff a tool of healing rather than war.
The darkness twisted around each vision, painting them in perfect detail, too perfect.
Leo's heart cracked. Tears welled in his eyes. "No," he choked, but his voice trembled.
The System's voice was velvet. "This is the world that could be," it whispered. "If you accept me. If you embrace the power that is already yours."
The darkness thickened, images shifting. His mother's face hardened into accusation. "You let us die," she hissed.
His sister's laughter turned to screams. "You weren't strong enough."
Camille's eyes went hollow, black veins splitting his face. "You failed me."
Aïcha's smile withered into a scowl. "You're not a hero," she spat. "You're a monster."
Leo's scream tore from his throat, raw and broken. The System's shadows clawed at his skin. Join me, they urged. End the pain.
Leo fell to his knees, head bowed. "I… I just wanted to save them," he whispered.
The System's hand closed over his head, cold and final. "Then save them," it purred. "Take the power. Rewrite the world."
Leo's breath came in ragged gasps. Shadows filled his lungs. His thoughts blurred, the line between himself and the System fading.
Yes, the darkness urged. Say yes.
Leo's breath came in ragged gasps. Shadows clung to his skin like a living shroud, every inch of him trembling. The System's fingers curled around his head, cold as the grave.
"Say yes," it whispered, its voice like poisoned honey. "Embrace your destiny. End the suffering."
Visions of the perfect world danced before Leo's eyes—his mother's smile, his sister's laughter, Camille's laughter instead of screams.
He reached out—fingers trembling—toward that light.
Then Aïcha's face appeared, etched in the darkness, eyes fierce. "Leo," she whispered, her voice barely a breath, yet it sliced through the shadows. "This isn't you. Remember who you are."
The System's voice hissed, furious. "She is weak. She fears what you could become."
Leo's chest heaved. "Maybe," he gasped. "But she's real."
The System's shadows coiled tighter, eager. "And I can make her immortal. I can make all of them immortal. All you have to do is surrender."
Leo's hands trembled. Every part of him screamed to give in, to end the pain, to bring them all back. But deep inside—beneath the shadows—something fragile and defiant burned.
His mother's real smile, warm and fierce. His sister's real laughter, bright and defiant. Camille's real loyalty, battered but unbroken.
His eyes snapped open. "No," he whispered.
The System's grasp tightened. "You are nothing without me," it spat.
Leo's jaw clenched. "Then I'll be nothing."
He forced his hands together, fingers curling around the last shard of light within him. It burned cold but bright—a promise of everything he'd fought for.
The System shrieked, the darkness roaring in his head. "No!"
Leo roared back, his voice breaking. "I am not yours!"
Light burst from his chest, a raw, searing flame that shattered the shadows. The System's scream tore through the void as its form dissolved, every face it had worn splintering into nothing.
The darkness cracked, split, and crumbled.
Leo fell, the world tearing itself apart around him.
Leo's scream echoed into the darkness, reverberating through the void as the shadows split apart, a spiderweb of fractures tearing across the sky. The System's voice—once so powerful, so omnipresent—faded into a whimper.
You… cannot… exist… without me… it gasped, its form dissolving into black mist.
Leo's chest burned with the last shred of defiance. "Then I'll build myself from nothing," he rasped.
The shadows peeled away, the darkness crumbling like old ash. Light seeped in from the cracks—a soft, silver glow that spilled across the void. Leo shielded his eyes as the darkness dissolved, leaving only the glimmer of hope.
When the light faded, Leo found himself kneeling on cold stone, the smell of smoke and blood in his lungs. The fortress loomed around him, battered but real. The shadows were gone—no System voice, no whispers. Just the echo of his own heartbeat.
Aïcha's staff glowed weakly, the light catching on her tear-streaked face. "Leo," she whispered. "Is it… over?"
Leo's breath trembled. He looked down at his hands—scarred, but human. The shadows were gone. The System's power—gone.
He nodded, the ache in his chest deep but clean. "I think so," he whispered.
Kara emerged from the smoke, her rifle slung across her shoulder, her eyes sharp but uncertain. "You did it," she said.
Leo shook his head. "We did it," he corrected. "Together."
Camille limped forward, face pale but smiling weakly. "Leo," he croaked, his voice trembling. "You're… you're still here."
Leo pulled him into a hug, fierce and trembling. "Yeah," he rasped. "I'm still here."
A hush fell. The fortress walls stood battered but unbroken. The sky above began to lighten, streaks of dawn cutting through the soot-stained clouds.
Leo rose, his gaze fixed on the horizon. The world was broken, but it was theirs to rebuild.
Aïcha's staff glowed brighter. "What now?" she asked.
Leo's lips curled into a tired, defiant smile. "Now we start over," he said. "Without the System. Without fear."
The first light of dawn spilled over the ruins, bathing them in gold. And for the first time in what felt like forever, Leo felt truly free.