April 18, 2059, 8:14 a.m.
Subsurface Level 7, SSRC Facility, Sector 24
A rhythmic beep echoed through the sterile white room, its walls padded with nanofiber insulation to withstand power surges and mental outbursts. Eri lay motionless on a reinforced cot, her body faintly glowing, strands of stardust still pulsing through her veins like whispers of the force within. Electro-stabilizer rings hovered above her limbs, restraining without binding, tuned to suppress anomalous kinetic eruptions.
Rika Maezono, Head of Psychogenic Trauma & Mutagenic Recovery, watched silently. Her lab coat was unbuttoned, sleeves rolled to her elbows, exposing arms inked with old medical formulas and encrypted sigils. She brushed Eri's hair gently, her touch motherly, despite the wariness in her eyes.
"She's stabilizing," Rika murmured. "But if this imprint goes untreated, she won't last a week."
Behind her, Rin paced furiously. "What do you mean 'won't last'?!"
Rika turned, not unkindly. "I mean her body is rejecting the corruption—this power wasn't meant for her. It's like feeding starlight into a paper lantern. Something's going to burn."
Rin bit her lip. Her police uniform was stained with dried blood from Eri's outburst, her badge missing. She hadn't slept, hadn't spoken since they'd arrived—only stood at Eri's side like a soldier at a post.
Then the doors opened.
Officer Katsuhara, tall and angular with a stern jaw and eyes colder than titanium, stepped in. His coat bore the SSRC and the stars of a war hero. But today, he looked like a father first.
"You're Lin Shoafeng?" he asked, voice sharp.
Lin nodded. He stood straight despite the exhaustion tugging at his shoulders. "Yes, sir."
"You were with them when it happened."
"I was," Lin replied calmly.
Katsuhara's gaze narrowed. "You're not listed on any registry. No city file. Your ID is synthetic."
Lin offered a respectful bow. "I'm not here to be filed. I'm here to help."
"Then help me understand," Katsuhara said. "How did my daughter get caught in a bio-psionic activation? Who the hell is Hirukushi?"
Lin didn't answer at first. The crow on his shoulder tilted its head, watching the man with quiet calculation.
Finally, Lin said, "That answer… would only put your daughter in more danger."
Katsuhara's fist clenched. "You think I'm afraid of danger?"
"I think you're afraid of the truth," Lin said softly. "And I respect that. But some truths can't be shared in daylight."
The commander took a long breath. His stare lingered, then drifted to Rin, who refused to meet his eyes. "Rika," he barked. "Keep her alive."
Rika nodded, pressing a few commands into her holo-pad. "Already doing it, Officer ."
Elsewhere – Unknown Subsector, Depth-Shadow District
A blade hummed in the dark, suspended by cords of wire from the ceiling, crackling with pale current. Shadows moved like liquid on the walls. In the center of the room, Hirukushi sat, hands folded, cloak soaked in ash and static.
"She was more receptive than I thought," he whispered, addressing no one.
From the corner, a voice rasped, electric and calm.
"You're playing with stolen souls again, Hirukushi."
The room pulsed. A faint blue glow spread from the doorway, revealing a tall figure—half-man, half-machine. Voltage danced between the fingers of his left hand. A short sword hung behind his back, sleek and black as obsidian.
Designation: BKA201. Codename: Black Reaper.
"You're early," Hirukushi said, amused.
"I'm late," Black Reaper answered. "By exactly seventeen corpses."
The wires from the ceiling snapped downward, trying to pierce him—but lightning bloomed from his hand, burning them to dust midair. He dashed forward. In a blink, he was inches from Hirukushi.
"Tell me why you touched the girl," the Reaper growled.
Hirukushi leaned back. "Because pain makes gods. She was ready."
The Reaper's eyes flickered. A system alert blinked in his HUD—Kinetic Surge Detected.
He didn't wait.
He moved.
Their blades met in a storm of sparks.
To Be Continued