Monday came.
The city was still standing.
Which, if you knew what I knew now, felt like a miracle.
I walked into Crestwood High under a gray sky, half-expecting to see everyone wearing their real faces instead of the ones they wore for school.
But no—smiles, backpacks, the sound of lockers slamming.
Normal.
Except it wasn't.
> [Veil Pulse Active – Scanning...]
[5 Civilians. 2 Registered Awakened. 1 Undetected Anomaly.]
The System fed me information in flashes. It didn't shout. It didn't ask.
It just informed.
And today, it was warning me.
There was someone new.
---
I didn't notice her until homeroom.
She sat in the back, second to last row. Pale, sharp features. Jet-black hair that fell over one eye. Black hoodie. Headphones. Quiet.
I knew the look. That was the don't-talk-to-me look.
But what stood out wasn't her vibe.
It was this:
> [ENTITY SCANNED – UNKNOWN]
[ERROR: No Template Match]
[Class Signature: "??? – Glitched"]
[Threat Level: Unconfirmed. Monitor Closely.]
And then she looked up.
Right at me.
Her irises shimmered. Not like normal eyes. Like screens. Lines of white code spun just beneath the surface.
She saw me—the real me.
And when she tilted her head, she didn't blink.
I looked away first.
---
At lunch, she sat alone.
By instinct, I didn't want to go near her. She radiated System static, like standing next to an unstable hard drive. But the System in my head was humming, urging me.
> [Potential Ally Detected.]
[Dialogue Recommended.]
Great.
Because chatting with cyber witches during lunch is totally a normal teenage activity.
---
I approached, tray in hand. Chicken nuggets. The food of champions.
She didn't look up as I sat down across from her.
"You're new," I said. Classic.
Her fingers twitched. "And you're late."
I blinked. "Late for what?"
Her gaze finally met mine—and for a second, her eyes flickered with something inhuman.
"The war," she said.
> [SYSTEM INTERFERENCE DETECTED.]
[Incoming Signal...]
[Warden Node Linked.]
> [Name: LENA ASTRID]
[Class: "Nullweaver" – ERROR CATEGORY]
[Status: HALF-WARDEN]
"Wait," I said, standing. "You have the System too?"
"I am the System," she replied, tapping her temple. "Or at least... the broken half of it."
---
We talked. Or mostly, I asked questions and she answered only what she wanted.
She claimed she'd been "born from a failed root install," whatever that meant. Half-human, half-fragmented data. A walking bug report.
She called herself a Nullweaver—and said the Veil was fracturing faster than forecasted.
When I asked how she knew about me, she smiled for the first time.
"You made a mess," she said. "Two kills in three days. The System noticed."
She leaned in, voice low. "So did they."
> [NEW QUEST: Form Pact – "Glitchwalker's Bond"]
[Reward: Shared Veil Channel – Vision + Skill Link Access]
[Penalty: Denial Will Trigger System Tracking Tag.]
Lena narrowed her eyes. "So... you in?"
---
I should've said no.
I should've walked away and gone back to pretending I was normal.
But the world wasn't normal. Not anymore.
So I said the words:
"I'm in."
> [BOND FORMED: Veil Channel Linked]
[NEW SKILL UNLOCKED: Tactical Sync (Lv. 1)]
[WARNING: Veilbond Cannot Be Broken.]
Lena smirked.
"Good," she said. "Because the next monster's already watching us."
She pointed toward the far window. I turned.
And across the street, in the reflection of a black SUV,
something blinked with no eyes.