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·Chapter Eleven
Echoes and Shadows
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A/N: FYI, the girls in relation with MC can see the system window and read most of the notifications on the system screen. Alex too, being a person saved by MC and deeply involved in this, can see the system screen,but not everything is visible for them.
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The acrid stench of burning metal clung to the air long after the flames had died down. Fire trucks screamed onto the scene, too late to save anything. They sprayed foam over what was left of the sedan—a molten cage, barely recognizable as a car.
Kimberly's knuckles were white against the hood of our vehicle, her eyes glazed over in horror.
"She wasn't supposed to die," she whispered. "We stopped the pile-up. I saw it. I saw her live in the vision."
I crouched beside the wreck, checking the system for any way to reverse it. Nothing. No resurrection option, no rewind. The system interface was eerily silent—except for the message still hanging in my peripheral vision like a curse.
> "Too slow, Kai. You saved the herd. But I only need one."
– R
That letter again. "R."
It wasn't just death we were fighting anymore.
Clear stood behind me, arms crossed tightly. "What does it mean?"
"It means there's someone else," I said grimly. "Someone like me. Maybe stronger. Maybe darker. But definitely... involved."
Alex stepped closer, jaw clenched. "You think this 'R' has their own system?"
"Or they've hijacked one," I replied. "Either way, they're targeting people we're trying to save. If they can inject new deaths into the timeline, then all bets are off."
Kimberly looked up at me, a flicker of hope in her exhausted face. "Then we're not just trying to stop fate anymore. We're trying to beat someone playing fate."
"Exactly."
The system pinged softly—new information, like it had been holding back until I acknowledged the change.
> [System Alert: Opponent Node Detected]
[Interference Source: "Reaper-Class Threadwalker"]
[Codename: R]
[Threat Level: Variable. Predatory AI Entity. Purpose: Accelerate Death Events. Feed on Severed Threads.]
[Recommendation: Avoid Direct Conflict Until Upgrade Tier III]
Clear read the text over my shoulder. "Predatory? As in… this thing feeds on deaths?"
"Yeah," I said. "And it doesn't just wait for fate. It creates its own traps."
Kimberly backed away from the car, shaking her head. "I didn't sign up for this. This isn't just visions anymore. This is a damn war."
I placed a steadying hand on her arm. "You didn't choose this, Kim. None of us did. But we are in it. And if we don't fight back, more people are going to die. And not just because of fate. Because someone's helping it."
She looked at me, eyes wide and brimming with dread—but there was something else behind them now. Steel. Resolve.
"I'm in," she said quietly. "Whatever it takes."
---
The next few hours were a blur of police reports, traffic diversions, and useless questions. Fortunately, the system had scrambled all direct connections to us through digital misdirection—fake license plates, looped CCTV, altered GPS history.
By the time the sun began to set, we were back at our temporary safehouse: a quiet, two-story lodge on the edge of the woods. Far from roads. Far from metal. Far, at least, from the immediate shadow of death.
Inside, the group was quiet. Tension weighed thick in the air.
Alex poured himself a glass of whiskey, the first real sign he was beginning to fray.
Clear sat beside the window, her sketchpad in hand—trying to recreate the moment of Nora's death. She did this with every thread we lost. It was her way of processing. Documenting. Honoring.
Kimberly stood outside on the back porch, arms crossed, face tilted toward the darkening sky. I followed her, letting the screen door close softly behind me.
She didn't look at me when she spoke. "You know... I thought the worst part would be the fear. But it's not."
I stepped beside her, quiet.
"It's the guilt," she said. "I saw them all. I remembered them. Their faces. Their clothes. Some of their names. I knew she was there. And I still didn't save her."
"You're not a god, Kim," I said gently. "You're human. And you've already done more than most ever could. You changed the thread."
"And someone changed it back," she snapped.
Silence.
Then her expression cracked, tears slipping silently down her cheeks.
I reached out, brushing one away. Her eyes met mine—and for a heartbeat, the air between us shifted.
"You're not alone," I said, voice soft. "You've got me. All of us. But especially me."
Her lips parted slightly.
"Kai…"
And then she kissed me.
It wasn't hurried or passionate or wild. It was soft. Hesitant. Like something too fragile to name—but too real to ignore.
When we finally pulled away, her cheeks were flushed, but her eyes were steady.
"I needed that," she murmured.
"Me too," I said.
A pause.
Then the system dinged—perfectly timed, of course.
> [Relationship Milestone Achieved: Emotional Anchor Formed – Kimberly Corman]
[+25 Fate Points]
[System Sync Progress: 1/5]
[New Passive Unlocked: Anchor Link – Shared Premonitions (Limited)]
Kimberly blinked. "Did… something just happen?"
I grinned. "Let's just say we're a little more connected now."
She raised an eyebrow. "Is this your way of flirting?"
"No," I said. "This is my way of surviving."
---
Later that night, while the others slept or stared at the ceiling in restless silence, I activated the system again in private.
> [Fate Points: 230]
[System Shop – Available Upgrades:]
Parallel Path Finder (200 FP) – Temporarily visualize three potential death outcomes for a selected thread.
Anchor Lock – Tier I (100 FP) – Protects one person from death for 24 hours. Cooldown: 48 hours.
Echo Shard (150 FP) – Create a one-use psychic imprint of a location to replay past events.
I chose Anchor Lock and tagged Kimberly immediately. I wasn't about to lose her after what just happened.
As for the rest…
I purchased Parallel Path Finder too. I'd need every edge against "R."
And then, out of sheer impulse, I spent the last 30 on something trivial:
> [Item Purchased: Lucky Silver Coin – Tier 0 Artifact. Minor Probability Shift.]
Couldn't hurt, right?
---
At 3:12 AM, I woke to the sound of static.
The radio in the kitchen was crackling—loud, chaotic white noise, blaring as if someone had jammed the volume knob all the way up.
I stumbled down the stairs, blinking sleep from my eyes.
No one was in the room. The lights were flickering. The window was open.
The coin I'd just purchased?
It was spinning on the counter. Unattended. Faster and faster, humming with unnatural energy.
And then it stopped dead—landing perfectly upright.
A voice came through the radio then. Distorted. Garbled. But unmistakable:
> "You think you're clever, Kai."
> "But you're not the only one who can save them."
> "I'm just better at killing them."
The signal cut.
The coin tipped over.
And the static returned.
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To Be Continued...