Aiden stumbled down the emergency stairwell, hand sliding along the railing to keep himself upright.
The drone's blast had rattled something deep inside his ribs every breath felt like glass.
But he kept going.
People shoved past him on the narrow steps, some crying, some bleeding, all terrified.
A baby wailed.
A man cursed everyone blocking his path.
Aiden ignored everything except the pounding thought cutting through his skull.
Find my family.
Find them alive.
The underground shelter was built beneath an old metro station, concrete halls, thick blast doors, stocked supplies.
It had felt like overkill when the city installed it.
Now people poured into it like water through a crack.
"Aiden!" someone shouted.
He spun, nearly losing balance.
His sister slammed into him, arms around his neck. "Aiden....oh God, I thought—I thought you were—"
"I'm okay," he managed, hugging her back.
His voice sounded broken even to himself.
His parents rushed in behind her, his mother grabbing his face with trembling hands.
"You're bleeding," she said, voice cracking. "Where were you? What—what happened up there?"
His little brother peeked from behind their father's leg, eyes swollen from crying.
"The sky exploded… I saw the ships… Are they aliens? Real aliens?"
Aiden swallowed. "Yeah, buddy. They're real."
His father's jaw tightened. "Those things are attacking civilians. I saw footage — they're landing troops all across the city."
His mother pressed a shaking hand over her mouth. "They shot people… right in the street."
Aiden's stomach twisted. "I saw it too."
Around them, the shelter filled with families reuniting and falling apart, some collapsing into each other with relief, others screaming names that would never be answered.
A woman sobbed uncontrollably on the floor, clutching a child who wasn't moving.
A man with a broken arm shouted into a dead phone for his wife.
An elderly couple huddled together in stunned silence.
Life and loss mixing in the same room.
Aiden tried to look away, but he couldn't.
"Why?" his sister whispered. "Why are they doing this?"
Aiden had no answer.
He only remembered the cold, mechanical movements of the aliens, the precision, the lack of hesitation.
The way they fired not to torture, not to terrify..... just… to eliminate obstacles.
Like they were clearing a forest.
He clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms.
His father put a hand on his shoulder. "We're safe down here for now. Sit. Breathe."
Aiden nodded numbly and let himself drop onto one of the benches pushed against the wall.
But he didn't feel safe.
He felt like a tight wire stretched to breaking.
Across the room, medics tried to tend to the injured, but there were too many.
A child cried out as bandages were tightened around a burned arm.
People argued over space.
Someone vomited from shock.
Every sound scraped Aiden's nerves raw.
His sister sat beside him. "Aiden… what happened to you? You look like you almost died."
He looked down at his shaking hands. "I did."
Her eyes widened. "What?"
He didn't answer.
How could he explain the drone, the crash, the voice inside his head?
He could barely believe it himself.
His father leaned in. "Son… if you're hurt, we need to tell the medics—"
"I'm not hurt," Aiden said quietly. "Not anymore."
His family exchanged confused looks.
Aiden rubbed his face. "I just… I need a minute. I'll be right back."
His mother reached for his wrist. "Aiden—"
He forced a small smile. "I'm not leaving the shelter. Just need air. Well… whatever counts as air down here."
He walked toward the corner of the concrete room, away from the crying, the fear, the eyes of people searching for hope he didn't have.
He sat down, back against the cold wall, drawing his knees up as he took a shaky breath.
The voice.....the System...had gone silent since the fight.
But he hadn't imagined it.
He knew he hadn't.
He closed his eyes.
"System," he whispered under his breath, hoping that wasn't too stupid. "If you're real… talk to me."
A moment passed.
Nothing.
He let out a hollow laugh. "Great. I'm losing my mind. And it picks today of all days."
Then—
[Acknowledged.]
Aiden jumped. "Jesus—!"
The voice resonated inside his skull, clear but calm, not mechanical more like a soft neutral tone that carried no emotion.
[User has initiated communication. Adaptive Evolution Protocol online.]
He swallowed hard. "So you… you're actually real."
[Affirmative.]
He glanced around to see if anyone heard him, but everyone was too busy trying to survive their own nightmares.
"Okay. Then tell me what you are. What you do. Why I have you."
A short pause.
[I am an Evolution Enhancement Interface designed to accelerate human physical, mental, and tactical development.]
"What does that even mean?" Aiden whispered. "Why me? Why today? Why at all?"
[Cause of activation: near-fatal injury. Latent potential detected. Biological survival threshold crossed. User met activation criteria.]
He frowned. "Latent potential? I'm not special. I'm just—"
[Incorrect.]
The voice didn't hesitate. That somehow made it worse.
"Fine," Aiden muttered, rubbing his temples. "Forget that. What can you actually do?"
[Clarifying:]
[This System does not grant power freely.]
[No instant strength. No automatic skills. No accelerated healing beyond baseline enhancements.]
"So… no superpowers."
[Correct.]
[All improvement requires effort.]
"Effort like… training?" Aiden asked.
[Affirmative.]
[Physical exertion increases physical stats.]
[Combat experience increases combat efficiency.]
[Pain tolerance improves under controlled stress.]
[Mental discipline grows through focus-based tasks.]
Aiden blinked. "So the harder I work… the stronger I get?"
[Within human and post-human biological limits, yes.]
"Post-human?" he echoed. "What does that mean?"
The System didn't answer immediately.
[With sufficient training, user may evolve beyond baseline human capabilities.]
Aiden felt something cold and hot twist in his gut. "So… I really can get stronger. Strong enough to… fight them?"
The System chimed softly.
[Potential: High.]
[Limits: Uncertain.]
Aiden's gaze drifted to the shelter's center where a woman cradled her unconscious husband, whispering prayers.
Where children cried into their parents' arms.
Where blood stained the concrete.
And above them in the city he had walked a thousand times aliens walked freely through the streets, hunting people like him.
The anger rose again, boiling behind his ribs.
"System," he whispered, voice shaking but steadying with each word. "If I train… if I push myself… how far can I go?"
[Answer:]
[As far as your will allows.]
His heart thudded.
"Then tell me how to start."
A pause. Then.
[Training Protocol Level 1 unlocked.]
[Objective: Strengthen foundational attributes. Recommend beginning with controlled physical exertion: push-ups, sprints, resistance exercises.]
[Warning: environment unsuitable for physical effort. Injuries possible.]
Aiden exhaled slowly. "Then when I get out of here… I start."
Another pause.
[Inquiry: Desired end goal?]
Aiden looked at the crying families, the injured civilians, the makeshift triage, the blood drying on the floor.
He remembered the alien soldiers firing into crowds like they were nothing.
He remembered the drone that tried to kill him.
He remembered the sky ripping open.
He felt something settle in his chest.
A weight. A truth. A decision.
"My goal?" he whispered.
He clenched his fists.
"To make sure humanity doesn't die today."
His voice hardened.
"To stand on the front lines."
"To fight back."
"To kill every alien that steps on our soil."
The System responded with a soft chime, almost like approval.
[Acknowledged. New Directive Established.]
[Primary User Objective: Contribute to species survival through personal evolution.]
[Secondary Objective: Achieve combat readiness. Early-stage military enlistment recommended.]
[Tertiary Objective: Surpass human limits.]
Aiden opened his eyes.
He didn't feel fearless.
He didn't feel strong.
But he felt something new.
A direction.
And maybe that was enough for now.
He stood, brushing the dust from his clothes, and looked toward his family.
They were watching him worried, scared, desperate for reassurance.
He forced a small, steady smile and walked back to them.
His father placed a hand on his shoulder. "You okay?"
Aiden nodded. "I will be."
He meant it.
Not because he was unhurt.
Not because things were safe.
Not because he believed it would be easy.
But because for the first time since the sky broke, he had something he could control.
Himself.
And he would push himself until he became someone capable of changing the tide.
This was just the beginning.