The moment Ethan confirmed the awakening, the pod trembled violently, releasing a burst of freezing mist into the room.
The containment locks disengaged one by one, metal clamps hissing as they slid away. The pale figure inside stirred, their fingers twitching as their mind struggled to wake from what had been years of forced sleep.
Aya gripped her knife. "Ethan… I don't like this."
Ethan didn't answer. His System was going haywire—data streams flashing across his vision, notifications appearing and vanishing too quickly to read.
Then—
The figure's eyes snapped open.
And everything froze.
Literally.
A wave of cold energy exploded outward, turning the air misty and brittle. The screens in the room flickered and shattered, the temperature dropping so fast that frost spread across the walls in mere seconds.
Aya stumbled back, cursing as she tried to resist the overwhelming pressure that had suddenly filled the room.
Ethan barely remained standing. He could feel something—System power, but it wasn't the normal, structured kind. It was wild, glitched, and ancient.
> [System Alert: Temporal Lock Engaged]
- Source: PLAYER_0001
- Warning: Reality Distortion Detected
Temporal lock?
Ethan's breath hitched. That meant time itself had been affected.
The first player slowly raised their head, their glowing blue veins pulsing softly, as if trying to reestablish their connection to the System.
Then, a raspy voice—soft, mechanical, and full of something Ethan couldn't quite name.
"…What…year…is it?"
The sound of their voice shattered the frozen silence.
Aya swallowed. "Holy shit. They can talk?"
Ethan took a cautious step forward, his instincts screaming at him to be careful.
"We're in the current System Era," he said slowly. "After the Apocalypse Update."
The figure's eyes—once empty—suddenly focused on him.
"…Apocalypse?"
Their voice held something dangerous. Not anger. Not fear.
Recognition.
Like they had heard the term before. Like they had seen it long before it ever happened.
Aya stiffened. "Ethan. Something's wrong."
Ethan barely heard her. His System was still flashing warnings, trying to process the energy coming off the first player.
Then—
The pod shattered.
A surge of blue energy erupted outward, throwing Ethan and Aya against the walls.
Ethan groaned as he hit the floor. He looked up—
And froze.
The first player was floating.
Their arms hung loosely by their sides, their long hair drifting in an unseen current. The glow of their veins intensified, their body fully reconnecting to the System's buried root commands.
> [System Root Access Detected]
- Warning: Entity Overwrites in Progress
- Emergency Protocol Initiated
Aya pushed herself up. "Okay. That does not look normal."
Ethan barely had time to process the words before the first player moved.
And they were fast.
One second, they were hovering in place. The next—they were right in front of him.
Ethan barely had time to react before a hand gripped his throat.
---
The Forgotten Command
Ethan gasped as he was lifted off the ground.
His System defenses activated immediately, trying to counter the pressure crushing his windpipe. But the grip was unbreakable.
Aya cursed and lunged forward, her knife flashing toward the figure's arm.
But before she could even reach them—
The first player turned their head.
The air warped.
And Aya froze mid-motion.
Her body locked in place, unable to move, eyes wide with shock.
Ethan's heart pounded. They had just stopped time for her.
The first player's grip tightened. Their glowing eyes bore into him.
"Who…are you?"
Ethan gritted his teeth, struggling to breathe.
"I should… be asking you that."
The first player stared for a long moment. Then, almost as if hearing something Ethan couldn't, their head tilted slightly.
> [System Prompt Detected]
- Identity Confirmation Requested
- Override: ACTIVE
The first player's grip loosened slightly.
Then, in a voice barely above a whisper—
"…You are not the one I was meant to meet."
And with that, they released him.
Ethan collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath.
Aya, now free from the time-lock, stumbled forward in shock. "What the hell just happened?"
The first player took a slow step back, their movements unnaturally smooth, like a machine. Their expression was unreadable, but there was something almost… haunted in their glowing eyes.
"I was… waiting," they murmured. "For the one who was meant to undo this world."
Ethan pushed himself up, coughing. "Undo? What do you mean?"
The first player looked at him, their eyes unreadable.
Then, for the first time—
They smiled.
It wasn't comforting.
It wasn't reassuring.
It was the smile of someone who knew something Ethan didn't.
Then, before he could react—
The first player's body flickered.
And they vanished.
---
The Watchers' Return
The room was silent.
The first player was gone.
Ethan and Aya remained frozen for several seconds, trying to process what had just happened. The air still hummed with residual energy, the frost clinging to the walls slowly melting. The shattered screens flickered weakly, struggling to reboot.
Aya broke the silence first. "Did we just wake up a literal System god?"
Ethan exhaled, his pulse still racing. "I don't know what we woke up."
But he knew one thing—this changed everything.
The System wasn't meant to have a first player still alive.
The fact that Player_0001 had been sealed away for so long, and the way they had reacted—they were waiting for someone else.
Ethan's mind raced. If the first player wasn't supposed to be him, then who?
And what had they meant by "the one who was meant to undo this world"?
Aya nudged him. "I don't want to interrupt your existential crisis, but we need to go. Now."
Ethan snapped back to reality. "Why?"
Aya pointed toward the door.
At first, Ethan didn't see anything. But then—
A shadow moved.
The door's screen flickered. Then, the same mechanical voice from earlier echoed through the room.
> "Unauthorized access detected. Countermeasures deployed."
The lights dimmed, casting long, shifting shadows.
Then the doors slid open.
They were no longer alone.
---
The System's Enforcers
Ethan and Aya took a step back as three Watchers entered the room.
They moved like ghosts, silent and precise, their black-plated bodies reflecting the faint blue light from the flickering monitors. Unlike before, these ones weren't just standing idly.
They were armed.
Each one carried a long, spear-like weapon—its tip humming with energy. The moment they stepped inside, their heads turned in perfect unison to face Ethan and Aya.
Aya clenched her knife. "These guys again?"
Ethan's System flared warnings.
> [HOSTILE ENTITIES IDENTIFIED: SYSTEM WATCHERS - CLASS II]
- Threat Level: HIGH
- Combat Data: PARTIALLY AVAILABLE
- Weapons: SYSTEM ENFORCER SPEARS
- Objective: ELIMINATE UNAUTHORIZED PLAYERS
Aya muttered, "Yeah, that's not ominous at all."
Ethan's mind worked fast. The first time they encountered the Watchers, they ran.
This time, they might not get that chance.
One of the Watchers raised its spear.
A soft humming noise filled the air.
Then—
It lunged.
Ethan barely dodged in time. The spear stabbed into the floor, releasing a shockwave of blue energy that sent shards of metal flying.
Aya cursed. "They have ranged attacks?!"
The second Watcher moved—this time targeting her. It thrust its spear forward, the energy tip crackling with raw power.
Aya reacted fast. She twisted, barely avoiding the attack, then slashed at its arm.
Her blade connected—
And did nothing.
Aya's eyes widened. "Oh, come on—"
The Watcher swung its arm, knocking her backward with brutal force. She hit the ground hard, rolling to the side as another spear strike nearly impaled her.
Ethan gritted his teeth. They needed an advantage.
> [System Exploit Available: Analyze Weak Points?]
Yes.
His vision shifted, scanning the Watchers in real-time.
> [Weaknesses Identified:]
- Plating Integrity: 89% (No Significant Damage)
- System Core Location: CENTER OF CHEST
- Vulnerability to High-Energy Disruptions: CONFIRMED
Ethan's eyes narrowed. The core. That was their weakness.
"Aya!" he called. "Aim for the chest!"
Aya groaned as she pulled herself up. "That would've been nice to know earlier!"
The Watchers moved again.
This time, they attacked together.
Ethan dodged one, rolling to the side as a spear sliced through the air where his head had been. But the moment he moved, the third Watcher appeared right in front of him.
Before he could react, a black metal hand grabbed his arm.
And then—
Pain.
A sudden, searing heat flooded his system. His vision blurred, his entire body locking up as a surge of System energy burned through him.
> [System Override Attempt Detected]
- Warning: Forced Integration in Progress
Ethan screamed.
Aya saw what was happening and reacted instantly. With a fierce cry, she lunged forward, this time aiming directly for the Watcher's chest.
Her knife glowed as she channeled every ounce of power into the strike.
She stabbed forward—
And hit the core.
The Watcher froze.
Then—its body glitched.
For a split second, the energy surged out of control, sparks flying as its internal systems collapsed.
Then—
It shattered into fragments of data.
Ethan collapsed to his knees, gasping. The pain in his body slowly faded, but the lingering burn remained.
Aya stood over him, panting. "You okay?"
Ethan forced a shaky nod. "Yeah… yeah. Thanks."
Aya turned her attention to the remaining two Watchers. They had stopped moving.
But they weren't fleeing.
They were watching.
Then—in perfect synchronization, they both turned toward the shattered containment pod.
And then—
They vanished.
Ethan's stomach twisted.
They weren't after him.
They were after Player_0001.
Aya wiped her forehead. "I don't know what just happened, but I'm guessing it's bad."
Ethan clenched his fists. "It means one thing."
Aya sighed. "Let me guess. We need to find them before the System does."
Ethan stood up, his mind racing.
The first player was free. The System Watchers were hunting them.
And now, Ethan was caught in the middle.
> [Main Quest Updated: The Forgotten Command]
- Objective: Locate Player_0001 Before the System Does
- Time Limit: UNKNOWN
- Failure Consequence: SYSTEM TERMINATION
Ethan exhaled.
No pressure.
Next stop—wherever the first player had gone.
And if the System didn't want them found?
Too bad.