Juan woke with a hunger that felt like a physical void in his chest. It wasn't a common hunger; it felt as if a beast within his body was gnawing at his bones and muscles from the inside out. The moment he opened his eyes, 'Analytical Sight' engaged automatically, deconstructing the rusty interior of the container into thousands of golden-lined structural data points. Corrosion rates on the walls, the millimetric tilt of the ceiling, and micro-currents in the power cables sent a data storm through his mind. The 'Parasitic Optimizer' had begun its morning cycle, drawing fuel from Juan's frail body.
He reached for a small container on the table. With trembling hands, he tossed the half-ration synthetic bar Sofia had saved from last night into his mouth. But as he chewed, he felt the blue interface in his mind flare, and the data began to flow even faster. That single morsel of energy was absorbed by the system before it could even reach Juan's stomach. Far from subsiding, his hunger grew sharper.
"Please... just one more bite. Why am I so hungry?" Juan groaned wiping cold sweat from his forehead.
The price of this power was far heavier than he had imagined. He was no longer just a user; he was a battery for his own ability.
In the corner of the room, Sofia was adjusting her Guardian vest. Deep concern was etched across her face.
""Juan, you shouldn't go out. 'Null-Patrol' is scouring every street. If they catch you, you'll be dragged into those pits. I don't want you to live there as a nobody, but... if you get caught, even I can't save you."" she said.
her voice trembling. Throughout Sector 7, the hum of patrol droids could be heard, hunting for those who failed to gain a rank during the awakening. New Madrid had begun purging those branded as 'None' to the Waste Pits.
Juan knew Sofia was right, but he couldn't wait at home with this hunger.
"I have to find something, Sofia. If I can't meet this energy requirement, I won't die from the awakening—I'll die from starvation" he said.
His voice was steadier than he expected. After somehow convincing Sofia, Juan slipped out through the back door.
The back alleys of Sector 7 were lit by the red sensor lights of patrol droids. Using Analytical Sight, Juan could see through the walls. He perceived the droids' scanning cones the coverage area of their sensors,as transparent blue beams of light floating in the air. Moving like a shadow, he would stop the moment a droid's scan touched a wall and advance as soon as it passed. City security was no longer an obstacle to him; it was an algorithm. With every step, he could feel the Parasitic Optimizer burning through the lipid tissues of his body. His dizziness was increasing, but his mind was sharper than ever.
When he reached the central market, he blended into the crowd. He stopped before the massive piles of metal left by the scavengers. As his eyes swept over the heap, the system issued an alert. Inside a box that many saw as 'trash' lay a mislabeled 'Ghost Logic' chip. Others took it for a broken circuit, but Juan's vision told him the data paths inside were still intact and contained a very rare military protocol.
He approached the weary merchant at the stall. "This chip? Just a piece of Ghost Logic, kid. No one uses these. But if you want it, give me your last credits and take it" the man said dismissively. Juan placed his last silver credits on the table. But that wasn't his real move. As he took the chip in his hand, a data packet from the Primary Core dropped into his mind. In seconds, he synchronized the chip with a small energy module in his hand. The chip suddenly surged to life, emitting a blue glow.
"I just want to make a trade. Can you give me one of those high-calorie pastes in exchange for this?" Juan asked.
The merchant's eyes widened as he saw the chip activate. This was the kind of chip used to optimize the armor of awakened warriors. The merchant snatched the chip from Juan's hand and pulled a pack of concentrated nutrient paste—the kind only elite warriors used—from under the counter. This paste contained enough energy to equal a week's worth of rations.
Juan tucked the paste into his pocket and headed for the edge of the market. Just then, his vision locked onto a piece of scrap at the market's periphery. A discarded 'pulse-regulator' made in the Silver District. Normally, it was considered a piece of junk beyond repair. But this time, the Primary Core did something different. It didn't just produce an error report; it generated a complex schematic—an 'Upgrade' plan—on how the device could be transformed.
Amidst the glowing golden lines, Juan realized this scrap wasn't just a part; it was the first tool through which he could project his power into the physical world. As he reached for the scrap, a new hope shimmered in the dusty air of Sector 7. He was no longer just trying to survive; he had begun to rebuild the world.
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'Bakır Yalaması' — Analitik Görüş aktif olduğunda Juan'ın ağzını dolduran metalik, pil benzeri bir tat ve dönen bir sabit diskin sesine benzeyen tiz bir çınlama sesi.
'Grid-Ghosting' — Şehrin elektrik bariyerinin, işgal öncesi eski silüetin hayalet görüntülerini geceleyin gecekondu mahallelerinin üzerindeki yoğun sis bulutlarına yansıtması fenomeni.
'Onluk Yakma' — Sektör 7 sakinlerinin, şehrin biyolojik sensörlerinden kokularını gizlemek için renkli plastik veya kumaş parçalarını yaktıkları ve havayı keskin, tatlı bir dumanla doldurdukları bir ritüel.