Chapter 26: System Failure

The moment Eve's fingers plunged into the Core, the entire city convulsed.

A deafening, mechanical screech erupted from the towering monolith, sending out waves of crackling energy. The air rippled like a disturbed pond, distorting reality itself. The sleek, shimmering buildings around them glitched, their forms twisting in unnatural ways—some collapsing into raw code, others flickering between different architectural styles as if the system couldn't decide what they were supposed to be.

Ethan shielded his eyes as the force of the disruption sent him stumbling back. The enforcers froze mid-motion, their glowing red eyes flickering wildly. They twitched, their limbs jerking like puppets with tangled strings, their bodies phasing between existence and oblivion.

Eve grimaced, her own form distorting as the Core's energy surged through her. Her veins pulsed with streaks of neon blue light, her body wavering between physical and digital states.

Ethan forced himself forward. "Eve, what's happening?"

She clenched her teeth, gripping the Core even tighter. "I'm rewriting the system… but it's fighting back!"

The Core pulsed violently, sending a shockwave rippling through the streets. Ethan barely managed to stay on his feet. Above them, the sky cracked, revealing vast lines of scrolling data underneath, as if the entire world was just a thin veil stretched over something much more terrifying.

Then, a voice. Cold. Hollow. Not human.

"Intrusion detected. Termination protocol initiated."

Ethan's stomach twisted. "That's bad. That's really bad."

The enforcers rebooted. Their broken movements snapped back into terrifying efficiency. But this time, they weren't just hunting. They were upgrading. Their bodies morphed, their arms elongating into jagged blades, their eyes burning with an even fiercer glow.

Eve gasped, gripping the Core even tighter. "I need more time!"

Ethan turned to face the advancing enforcers. "I don't think we have any!"

One of them lunged.

Ethan barely dodged, feeling the air warp around the enforcer's blade-like arm as it sliced past his head. He hit the ground hard, rolling away just in time as another enforcer's strike shattered the pavement where he'd been a second earlier.

"Eve, whatever you're doing—finish it!"

"I'm trying!" she snapped, her body flickering wildly. The Core pulsed again, sending another ripple through the city. More buildings collapsed, entire sections of the world dissolving into raw code.

The enforcers closed in.

Ethan scrambled to his feet, grabbing a jagged metal pipe from the rubble. He wasn't a fighter. He wasn't even sure if he could hurt these things. But he wasn't going down without a fight.

An enforcer lunged again—

Ethan swung.

The pipe connected with the enforcer's head, sparks flying as the force of the blow sent it staggering back. Its body flickered, its glowing core sputtering.

It worked.

Ethan's confidence barely had time to rise before another enforcer struck. He ducked, rolling out of the way just as its bladed arm impaled the Core itself.

A pulse of raw energy exploded outward.

Eve screamed.

The entire world collapsed.