He waited.
Still as stone, eyes fixed on the shadow flickering beyond the tree line.
The system's warning pulsed behind his vision—steady, patient.
Whoever was out there wasn't a Grounder.
Too deliberate. Too precise. Too silent.
He took one step forward.
The shape vanished—like it had never existed.
SYSTEM NOTICE:Entity has exited scan range.
No data recovered.
He didn't like that.
Not fear—Ares didn't feel fear.
But the unknown meant variables, and variables meant chaos.
He hated chaos.
The Next Morning
He assembled a squad.
No speeches. No vote. Just presence.
Octavia. Monroe. Miller. Atom.
The ones already orbiting him after Bellamy's fall.
He briefed them in clipped words:
"We move west toward the river.
Water, elevation, and resources first.
If we meet hostiles, we test them.
If they attack, we end them."
Clarke appeared as they armed up, arms folded tight.
"You can't just take people and march them out. What if someone gets hurt? What if—"
"Then they get stronger," Ares cut in. "Or they get replaced."
Her jaw locked.
Octavia's laugh broke the tension. "Starting to think he's the only one here who gets it."
The forest swallowed them—wet earth, resin, the hum of insects.
Ares didn't look at the sky or the sunlight filtering through the leaves.
He mapped terrain, logged wind shifts, counted every heartbeat within earshot.
By mid-morning, they reached the river.
And saw the chain.
It hung from a blackened trunk, iron links thick as fingers, one end still clasping a wrist—half bone, half rust.
The smell was old metal and rain-soaked rot.
Atom froze. "What the hell is that?"
Ares knelt, studying it. The chain had held something strong.
Not Grounder craftwork—too industrial. Too Ark.
Around it: animal bones, dried blood, symbols etched deep into bark.
Not Grounder script. Something colder.
SYSTEM SCAN:Ritual Restraint Detected
Source: Unknown. Age: ~9 months. Residual energy: Dormant.
Caution advised.
Monroe's whisper cracked the quiet. "We're not alone."
Every head turned. Weapons lifted.
Ares didn't draw.
He felt it too—pressure in the air, a pulse not human.
The brush parted.
A man stepped out.
Tall. Scarred. Bare-chested. Skin like sun-burnt bronze, eyes gold-flecked and fever-bright.
Lightning scars crawled over his ribs.
He stared at Ares the way predators study mirrors.
Ares lifted a hand. "Stand down."
They obeyed—not because he shouted, but because his voice left no space for doubt.
The stranger tilted his head, muscles coiling.
SYSTEM ALERT:Genetic Aberrant Detected
Designation: The Broken Chain
Origin: Failed Ark Experiment / Grounder Hybrid
Strength 15 | Agility 12 | Stability Low
Threat Level: Moderate → High.
The growl came from deep in the hybrid's chest.
Ares smiled. "Test me."
He did.
The hybrid charged—a blur of muscle and fury.
Ares caught the first strike on his forearm; pain flared, bone held.
Body of Steel Lv 2 absorbed the shock.
Counterpunch—gut, jaw, knee.
The man staggered, swung again.
Ares stepped aside, let momentum betray him, then drove an elbow into the base of his skull.
The forest rang once, then stilled.
Ares seized him by the throat and slammed him down hard enough to split earth.
"You're strong," he said quietly. "But you're not me."
The hybrid gasped once—and stilled.
Not dead. Yielding.
SYSTEM UPDATE:Unique Encounter – Chainbound Warrior Defeated
XP + 800 → Level 4
Skill + 1 | Attributes + 3
Bonding Trait Triggered – Subject Recognizes Dominance.
Loyalty: Low → Stable.
Name Assigned:Kael
When Ares released him, the man knelt.
Branches rustled behind them—Clarke and a few others had followed.
Her face went pale at the sight.
"What… what is that thing?"
"A relic," Ares said. "Built, used, abandoned. Now mine."
Kael bowed his head lower.
"You can't just—" Clarke started, then stopped when she met Ares's eyes.
"Better to tame monsters," he said, "than be eaten by them."
She didn't answer.
But she didn't walk away.
Nightfall
Firelight painted the camp in gold and shadow.
Kael crouched beside the flames, silent and watchful.
The others stole glances at him—then at Ares.
He opened his system window.
[CURRENT STATS]
Level 4 | XP 1 400 / 3 000
Strength 13 Agility 12 Constitution 11
Intelligence 12 Charm 14
Skill Points 2 Attribute Points 6
He closed the interface and looked into the fire.
The crackle almost sounded like applause.
They don't just follow you now, the system murmured.
They fear you.
They believe in you.
He let the thought linger.
And smiled.