There are moments when a person realizes the world no longer works by the rules they grew up with.
For Kael Ishiro, this realization didn't come when the sky cracked. It didn't come when the monster fell or when he summoned a machine from nothing.
It came when he heard the screaming.
Not bestial.
Not monstrous.
Human.
[Threat Detected.]
[Distance: 93 meters. Classification: Aberrant Human – Category C.]
[Caution: Threat exhibits erratic behavior and partial cognitive retention.]
Kael stood still in the ruined street, fingers twitching at his side.
The Steel Sentinel beside him tilted its head slightly, detecting the same heat signature. Its plasma cannon began to hum, faint but rising.
"Wait," Kael whispered.
He didn't know why. Reflex, maybe. Curiosity. Guilt.
The system provided more data:
[Subject Analysis: Former Human – Name Unknown]
[Status: Infected. Neural corruption: 63%. Physical mutation: Stage II.]
[Reward: 35 Points upon confirmed kill.]
Even the reward felt... surgical.
Cold.
The system didn't care what it used to be.
Kael stepped forward, slow and careful.
The source of the scream was near the alley ahead. Broken pipes jutted from the walls. A fire still burned in a dumpster nearby, casting long, jagged shadows across cracked pavement.
He saw her a moment later.
A woman, mid-thirties. Once dressed like a paramedic—now barefoot, limping, hair soaked in sweat. Her skin was blistered in places, stretched thin and veined with unnatural blue. Her right arm was elongated. Fingers too long. The flesh didn't move like it should. It twitched.
But her eyes—
They were still human.
She saw Kael.
And spoke.
"D-Don't come near me," she rasped, voice torn raw. "Don't—don't let it in. Don't let it—"
She clutched her head and slammed it against the wall.
Once. Twice.
Kael didn't move. Didn't speak. His throat had gone dry.
[Aberrant Human exhibiting instability.]
[Elimination recommended.]
[Reward: +35 CP | Optional: Collect sample post-mortem for bonus XP.]
He felt sick.
Not from the scene.
From how easy the system made it sound.
Like she was a resource.
Not a person.
"Sentinel," he said, voice quiet, steady. "Don't fire unless I say."
[Command Registered.]
Kael approached slowly.
The woman flinched but didn't run. She couldn't. Her legs shook too much.
He raised his gauntlet slightly and activated Scan.
[Scan Active…]
[Subject: Aberrant Human]
[Cognitive Fragment Detected – Identity Unknown]
[Mutation Source: Unknown Vector. Bio-signature contains unidentified protein cluster.]
Then, unexpectedly—
[Blueprint Available: Mutation Sample – Unstable (Locked)]
[Requirement: Biological Lab or Creator Tier Access.]
Kael froze.
The system wasn't just measuring her.
It was trying to use her.
"Do you understand me?" he asked carefully.
The woman looked at him again. This time longer. Her mouth opened, and her voice came out slow and ruined.
"You… smell wrong."
Kael stiffened.
"Too quiet," she murmured. "Too clean. You're not real. You're not broken yet."
Then, fast—faster than she should've been able to—she lunged.
A scream tore from her throat. Her body twisted mid-air, the mutated arm stretching toward Kael like it had a mind of its own.
[Steel Sentinel: Autonomous Defense Engaged.]
Kael flinched.
A flash of blue light lit the alley.
BOOM.
The woman hit the wall mid-jump. Her body crumpled. Steam rose from a smoking wound in her side. She wheezed once.
Then went still.
[Target Eliminated.]
[+35 CP Awarded.]
[Remaining Points: 60]
Kael stood in silence, the light from his gauntlet casting faint shadows across the alley.
He didn't move for a long time.
This was the value of a corrupted life:
Thirty-five points.
Enough for a small turret or a simple upgrade.
Not enough to feel good about.
Later, as he walked away, Kael opened the system menu again. Not to build. Not to summon.
To read.
He opened the Blueprints tab.
One new line had appeared.
[Aberrant Mutation – Unstable]
Status: LockedNotes: Dangerous organic instability. Potential weaponization or cure path unknown.
Kael closed it without another thought.
He didn't know which disturbed him more—
The monsters outside...
Or the machine inside his mind, keeping score.