[Location: Outskirts of Capital City — Restricted Zone, Former GDA Genesis Facility]
The night was quiet except for the low hum of drone rotors circling over a field of twisted steel and broken concrete. The ruins of the Genesis complex stretched across the valley — skeletal remains of containment domes, scorched corridors, and rusted observation towers. Floodlights from the GDA perimeter trucks painted the rubble in pale blue light.
Cecil stood near one of the mobile command units, collar up against the wind. His short-cropped black hair glinted under the light as he stared at the monitors displaying live feed from the drone sweeps. A faint scowl lined his face; he wasn't fond of returning to this place. Not after what had happened years ago.
A younger operative approached, carrying a data tablet.
"Sir, we've confirmed the anomaly's energy readings," the agent said. "It's matching the Genesis archives within a three percent variance. No other signature like it since the collapse."
Cecil took the tablet, eyes narrowing at the fluctuating energy graph. "That can't be right. Genesis tech was supposed to be sealed, dismantled, and buried under Level 7 clearance."
"It was," the agent said. "But something's active under the debris. We detected a pulse—then this."
He swiped to a thermal feed. On the screen, a faint human-shaped outline staggered through the wreckage. The figure flickered in and out of visibility like static on an old transmission.
Cecil didn't speak for a moment. The quiet tension of recognition crept through him. "Get a team down there," he said finally. "No engagement yet. Observation only."
[Location: Genesis Ruins — Sublevel Access Tunnel]
Two GDA field agents moved cautiously through the debris-strewn tunnel. Their headlamps illuminated charred walls and the remnants of security doors half-melted from energy discharge. The smell of ozone and damp concrete hung heavy.
"Does this place still have power?" one asked, checking his wrist scanner.
"Emergency grid's been dead for years," the other replied. "What we're picking up is residual. Whatever's causing that spike—"
He stopped mid-sentence. A faint blue shimmer glowed at the far end of the corridor. The air rippled around it, distorting the dust and shadows.
"Target in sight," he whispered into his comm.
The figure stepped into view — a man, barefoot, clothes torn and scorched. His hair clung to his face, matted with grime. His skin shimmered faintly under the flicker of blue light crawling beneath it, like current running under glass. He looked lost, unsteady, but not weak.
One of the agents raised a scanner. "Energy field fluctuating. It's not just radiation — it's resonant."
"Back up a few steps," the other said, hand moving to his tranquilizer rifle.
Before either could react, the figure's outline flickered again, phasing for a moment as if his body couldn't decide whether it belonged here. When he stepped forward, the ground beneath him cracked from the sudden energy shift. Both agents stumbled back.
"Command, we've got contact," one shouted. "Subject appears unstable—energy discharge rising—"
The comm went dead with a sharp burst of interference.
[Location: Surface Level — Command Perimeter]
Static filled the monitors. Cecil frowned, leaning closer. "We lost visuals from Unit 3. What's their status?"
"Unresponsive," a technician said, typing rapidly. "Drones 5 through 8 are re-routing."
The new feeds came online — flashes of distorted imagery, interference bursts, and finally, a still frame: the anomaly standing in the middle of the ruined corridor, energy radiating in violent bursts. When the image stabilized, Cecil saw the face clearly for the first time.
He froze.
The data feed beside the image displayed old biometric records:
SUBJECT X9 – Status: Terminated (Presumed)
Last Recorded Experiment — Phase Event #12
Cecil's throat went dry. "No… that's not possible."
The technician looked up. "Sir?"
He didn't answer immediately. Years ago, he'd signed the final report himself — all test subjects deceased during containment breach. Yet the man on the screen was alive, or something close to it.
"Pull every file related to Genesis," Cecil said quietly. "Level 0 clearance. Now."
The technician hesitated. "Sir, those archives were sealed—"
"Then unseal them," Cecil snapped. "That man in the ruins — that's Subject X9."
[Location: Genesis Ruins — Sublevel C]
Ren Kael stood amid the remains of the containment chamber. His breathing was uneven, and faint arcs of blue energy crawled over his arms. The place was familiar in a way that twisted his stomach — the cold steel walls, the faint humming sound of suppressed energy coils. His last memory of this place was filled with screaming alarms and blinding white light.
He knelt, touching the floor where the old experiment circle had been etched into the metal. It was gone now — scorched, destroyed, but traces of the pattern lingered like ghost impressions. He could feel the hum beneath the surface, the residual signature of energy that had once torn him out of this world.
"They tried to control something they didn't understand," he muttered under his breath. His voice echoed faintly, almost lost to the static air.
Outside, the distant thrum of GDA vehicles grew louder. He knew that sound — pursuit. Not the first, and not the last.
Ren looked toward the shattered ceiling. The sky above was fractured by searchlights, and the realization sank in: his return hadn't gone unnoticed.
This world remembered him — and it wanted him back in a cage.
He turned, the faint shimmer of energy fading as he forced his unstable field into suppression. The light dimmed, leaving only the faint trace of exhaustion on his face. He took one final glance at the ruins before slipping deeper into the shadows.
[Author's Note]
This chapter marks the beginning of Ren's return to the Invisible World — his reappearance near the ruins of the original Genesis facility draws attention from the GDA and other factions once involved in Project Genesis. It sets the stage for the upcoming pursuit arc and the deeper exploration of what truly happened within Genesis.
If you're enjoying the story so far, don't forget to drop a PowerStone and support the novel!