Chapter 11: The Next Step
The transition was less violent than the arrival, but just as disorienting. The sensation of being pulled through the very fabric of the ether, the roar of energy replacing the heavy silence of Necropolis-7. When Klaus's vision stabilized, he was no longer on the rooftop of the complex beneath a sickly sky. He was in a small, white, sterile room—no doors, no visible windows. The air smelled like… nothing. It was pure, artificial, and lifeless.
Before him floated a System panel, glowing with a golden hue he had never seen before.
>> CONGRATULATIONS, UNIT [KLAUS]. <<
>> SURVIVAL TUTORIAL (TSI-001) SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED. <<
>> FINAL RANK: HUNTER [SILVER TIER]. <<
>> CALCULATING REWARDS... <<
A wave of dizzying relief washed over him. Silver Tier. It sounded good. It sounded like progress.
>> REWARDS: <<
>> 1. SYSTEM CREDITS: 5,000 (c) [BASE: 1,000c | LOOT BONUS: +3,000c | ELIMINATION BONUS: +1,000c] <<
>> 2. RANDOM REWARD CHEST (SILVER TIER) GRANTED. <<
A white-and-silver metal chest materialized in the air with a soft click and dropped into his hands. It was light, though anticipation made it feel heavy. He opened it.
Inside, there were no weapons or ammunition—just a small sphere of dark, liquid-like metal, marble-sized, resting on a bed of black velvet. When he touched it, the sphere dissolved into a stream of silver particles that coiled around his wrist like a bracelet before being absorbed into his skin. A chill ran up his arm, followed by a strange, omniscient calm.
A new interface—more complex, more organic—overlaid his HUD.
>> NANOCORPOREAL SYSTEM 'SHADOW' [LEGENDARY] INITIALIZED. <<
>> NEURAL SYNC: 100%. <<
>> PRIMARY FUNCTIONS: <<
>> - ADVANCED ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS. <<
>> - REAL-TIME BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY DIAGNOSTICS. <<
>> - TACTICAL ASSISTANT (PASSIVE MODE). <<
>> - AUTONOMOUS SYSTEM CONTROL (COMBAT MODE). <<
A voice, soft and utterly devoid of emotion, echoed in his mind. It wasn't the robotic tone of the general System. It was personal.
>> Unit Klaus. Shadow System online. Ready to assist. <<
Klaus was stunned. This was more than an item. It was a symbiosis—an artificial intelligence living inside him.
>> Initial analysis complete. Post-traumatic stress levels elevated. Recommend rest. Your new rank grants access to the Silver Refuge. <<
Before he could fully process that, the opposite wall of the room dissolved, revealing a wide, well-lit corridor.
>> Proceed forward. I have directed you to your assigned quarters. <<
He walked, feeling oddly guided. The corridor opened into a vast hall—the "post-tutorial lobby." The contrast to the Plaza of Lost Souls was staggering. There was no decaying cyberpunk architecture here. It was clean, futuristic, and coldly luxurious. Floors made of white marble-like material that emitted a soft glow, walls lined with holographic panels showing market data, ranks, and System news.
And the people… they were different. Very different.
At the center of the hall, in open areas, stood the Bronze Tier recruits. They looked like he had when he first arrived—wearing rags, wide-eyed and terrified, huddled around water fountains and basic food dispensers. They slept on mats on the floor.
To the sides, separated by almost invisible light barriers, were the Silver zones. There were sofas, private terminals, a buffet line with real food—fruit, bread, meat—and doors leading to private dorms. The recruits here wore clean clothes, carried visible equipment—holsters, upgraded tactical packs—and spoke in low voices, their eyes sharp and calculating, not the pure panic of the Bronzes.
And at the back, on a raised mezzanine enclosed by a golden energy field, he could see silhouettes of the Gold Tier. They looked more like executives or officers than survivors—immaculate clothes, crystal glasses in hand, observing everything from above with contempt.
Money—Credits (c)—was the dividing line. Klaus saw a Bronze recruit trying to buy an apple at a terminal. The price: 50c. The man looked at his balance, probably the meager 1,000c base, and stepped back, defeated.
Klaus walked toward the Silver area. The light barrier scanned him, and a soundless door opened with a whisper. The ambient noise of the main hall faded instantly. The air here was cleaner.
>> Your quarters are to the right. Room 7B. Recommend locking the door and resting. We will process the tutorial data. <<
He entered the room. It was spartan, but it had a real bed, a shower, and a terminal—a paradise compared to anywhere he had slept in the past ten days.
Sitting on the bed, he activated the terminal. The System Bazaar flashed, displaying an endless list of items. Energy weapons, nanocomposite armor, genetic enhancements, blueprints, vehicles… and the prices were astronomical. His STG-44 rifle, which he had considered a treasure, was worth about 800c. The Plasma Orb [RARE] he'd been hoarding? 15,000c. The Data Crystal [LEGENDARY]? The System displayed: "VALUE NOT LISTED. AUCTION RECOMMENDED."
He'd left Necropolis-7 with a small fortune—but looking at the prices of the things that truly mattered, he was still a poor man.
>> Analysis complete. << the Shadow's voice echoed in his mind.
>> Combat efficiency: 87%. Collection efficiency: 94%. Optimization possible. Recommend studying squad tactics for upcoming phases. Group missions provide reward multipliers. <<
Klaus lay back on the bed, staring at the white ceiling. The Shadow was right. The tutorial was just the beginning. He had risen in rank, gained an incredible tool, and gathered resources.
But the distant, cold gazes of those Gold Tier elites on the mezzanine told him an inescapable truth: he had only just left the minor leagues. The real battle—for power, for resources, for survival in a much larger System—had barely begun.
He closed his eyes, not to sleep, but to plan.
The Collector now had a market.
And he was hungry.