Liam used to wonder if he could ever trust anyone again.
Now, trust didn't matter.
Not when you could control people.
System Prompt[Network Threading Unlocked]
You may now subtly influence low-will individuals.
Anchor Points: 1
Limitations: Cannot force action; must guide decision through probability distortion.
Anchor Expiration: 72 hours (unless stabilized).
Suggested Targets: Addicts, gamblers, desperate minds.
Liam was already thinking of a name.
Jason Reese.
Bookie runner. Shaky hands. Loud mouth. Crushed by debt. Addicted to oxy and adrenaline. The kind of guy who would sell his own socks for an edge in the betting world.
Perfect.
The BaitLiam found him right where he expected — at "Roach's," a half-legal sportsbook tucked between a pawnshop and a Caribbean grocery.
Jason stood by the back corner, muttering to himself, flipping through paper slips. His lips were chapped. Nose bleeding slightly.
Liam walked past without looking.
Slipped a betting stub into Jason's pocket.
The note read:
"Saints by 9. Second half surge. Put $200. Trust it."
— Zero
Jason looked around, confused, but something inside him twitched.
He bet it.
Saints won by 9.
Exactly 9.
Jason didn't sleep that night. He didn't use. He didn't even talk.
He just stared at that stub.
Hooking the Line[Anchor Initiated: Jason Reese]
Stability Level: Fragile (19%)
Next Step: Trigger loyalty response via indirect miracle
Goal: Guide Jason to believe in the "Ghost"
Liam knew what came next.
The setup.
He sent another note two days later.
No contact. Just timing.
"Don't get in Reggie's car tonight."
Jason froze in front of the casino entrance.
Reggie — his friend, driver, supplier — was honking out front, waving him over.
Jason hesitated.
Something in him shook.
He turned and walked back inside.
Reggie was shot 15 minutes later in a back-alley robbery gone wrong.
Jason threw up in the sink. Then cried in the bathroom for ten straight minutes.
He believed.
[Anchor Stability: 58% – Elevated to "Loyal Curiosity"]
Jason Reese is now Influence-Bound.
The MeetingThey met in a parking garage under 149th Street.
Liam waited near the stairwell.
Jason approached cautiously, eyes wide, hands trembling.
"You the one?" he whispered. "The one sending the notes?"
Liam didn't answer. Just tossed him a burner phone.
Jason caught it. Looked confused.
"I don't—"
"You'll get instructions. You'll do what you're told. I keep you alive. I keep you winning. And you never ask who I am."
Jason stared.
"But why me?"
Liam stepped forward, voice low.
"Because your life has never been yours."
He turned, walked away.
Jason stood there, phone in hand, breathing like a man who'd just met God — or the Devil.
[Anchor Bond Reinforced. Jason Reese is now "Threaded."]
CollateralLiam sat alone that night.
The system hummed.
His influence grew.
Control Over Betting Circuit: 1.45%
Network Size: 1 (Jason Reese – Loyalty: 72%)
But the victory came with a message.
Not from the system.
From the world.
There was a knock at his apartment door.
Liam didn't open it.
He waited. Silent.
Another knock. Then a whisper:
"You don't get to rewrite odds without something pushing back."
He pulled open the door — fast.
No one there.
But on the floor: a poker chip. Split in half. Blood-stained.
The System Reacts[Threat Detected: Unknown Entity]
Warning: Unexplained anomaly. Not system-generated.
Tracking Source: Null. Origin: Outside Probability Grid.
Liam's hands tensed.
He stared into the hallway, trying to see past the shadows.
But there were no smiles this time.
Just questions.
Back on the ClockJason texted the burner.
"Got a guy who wants to meet the Ghost. Says he's big time. Fixes international stuff. Turkish. I think he's real."
Liam stared at the message.
His first broker opportunity.
His first global thread.
He typed only one word:
"Send."
Then the system pulsed in his skull like war drums.
Phase Two Objective Initiated:
Begin Cross-Border Thread Expansion
Next Anchor: High-Value Fixer – Intelligence > Normal Threshold. Success Risk: Elevated
Recommended Action: Observe, manipulate, then strike. Joker must remain unseen.
Liam stood in the mirror again.
Still hooded.
Still faceless.
But now, when he looked closely…
he saw a grin forming in the shadows behind him.
And it wasn't his.