The pain was sharp and shallow, threading fire through his side with every breath.
Asher leaned against the crumbling wall of an abandoned ranger station, coat dark with drying blood.
> [Injury Detected – Laceration: Lower Ribs]
[Activating Moderate Healing – 65 KP Spent]
[Kill Points Remaining: 120]
A cool numbness spread beneath his skin. The gash sealed slowly, muscle knitting together under system-guided warmth. He exhaled—quiet, ragged—and let his head rest back.
The fight replayed behind his eyes. Jeff's grin. The flicker of that knife. The sheer speed packed into each swing.
He hadn't fought a person. He'd fought a storm wearing skin.
> [Entropy: 5.5%]
[Shadow Flicker – Proficiency: 27%]
[Stealth Subsystem XP: 68%]
[Weapon Equipped – Rusted Survival Knife (Durability: 11%)]
[Status: Stable]
The system hadn't tagged Jeff.
No threat level. No anomaly class.
Not even a warning.
Just another walking nightmare who happened to smile while trying to gut him.
He reached into his Inventory and pulled out the cracked Ritual Capsule he'd taken off a cultist days ago. It pulsed erratically—like something unfinished, unstable.
> [Item: Ritual Capsule – Unstable]
[Warning: Contents Unknown]
[Stabilization Suggested – Cost: 85 KP]
Asher stared at the capsule for a long moment. Then slid it back into Inventory.
Not yet.
He didn't have the KP to waste on risks—not when every point could be the difference between life and death. He needed control. Power. A buffer against whatever came next.
If Jeff was just the beginning… he wasn't ready.
He stood, testing his ribs. Healed, but tight.
He turned toward the woods—toward silence—and walked.
---
The forest felt different now. Not peaceful. Just… alert.
Watching.
Parasight hummed behind his vision. Not words, not voice. Just pressure.
Suggestions. Instinctual nudges written in dread.
Kill.
Adapt.
Advance.
> [Replay Log – 1 New Entry Available]
[Timestamp: Post-Encounter – Jeff]
[Note: Fatal Delay – Shadow Flicker Triggered 0.52s Late]
He didn't open it.
He already knew what it showed.
Still… he'd lived. Barely.
The interface blinked again.
> [New Task Branching – Optional: Investigate Cult Movement Near Ashridge]
[Reward: Unknown]
[Risk Level: Elevated – Anomaly Density Increased]
Ashridge.
He'd cleared it out two nights ago—burned their altar, silenced every last zealot.
If the system flagged it now, something had moved in.
He accepted.
> [Optional Task Accepted – Ashridge Investigation]
[Tracking Enabled]
---
It was well past midnight when he reached the edge of the clearing.
No torches. No chanting. Just scorched trees and dried blood.
But the air was wrong.
Heavy. Oily.
Like breath held by something unseen.
Asher crouched low, scanning the dark. Footsteps silent. Knife ready despite its dulled edge.
> [Weapon Durability: 11% – Near Failure]
[Caution: Blade Integrity Low]
Movement.
Low to the ground. Pale limbs. Twisted body.
Not human.
> [Entity Detected – Classification: Unknown Anomaly]
[Recommendation: Observe – Do Not Engage]
He didn't move. The creature twitched once, sniffed the air—and vanished into the treeline with unnatural speed.
Gone.
Asher waited. No second shape. No follow-up.
Just silence.
He let out a slow breath.
Whether it was tied to Jeff, or something worse, he didn't know. But the world was waking up.
And he was still breathing.
> [Entropy: 5.6%]
[Kill Points: 120]