HernanGR

In the lowest levels of Neo-Tokyo 9—where sunlight never reaches and life holds little value—a young girl named Aiko fights to survive amid filth, crime, and decaying technology. Abandoned by the system and scarred by a bloody past, she’s learned to move like a shadow through the urban hell.

But everything changes when she meets a mysterious boy who seems to know her, despite never having seen her before. He wears a spotless white coat, an impossible smile, and carries a proposition that could be their only hope… or the beginning of their downfall.

In a world where machines feel more than humans and secrets hide beneath layers of neon, Aiko will discover that her story is just beginning—and that maybe, just maybe, she wasn’t meant to die as just another forgotten soul.

Get ready for a 120-chapter journey packed with suspense, betrayal, lethal twists, and a rawness that cuts like chrome blades.

HK-07: The girl who wasn't meant to survive

The Abyss didn't sleep, but now it seemed to be holding its breath.

Z3R0 had sealed the entrances. The tunnels were under surveillance, and the hackers were monitoring the signals as if they were waiting for the end of the world.

Kael and Aiko were in an improvised room—barely a cell with a mattress, two chairs, and a flickering lamp.It was the first time in days they weren't running, bleeding, dodging bullets and screams.

Aiko sat on the floor, back against the wall. Her fingers trembled, though she tried to hide it.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" she asked without looking at him.

Kael stood, sharpening a knife with a stone. The sound was mechanical, constant, almost soothing.

"That you were part of the project too."

He stopped. His shoulders tensed, eyes fixed on the blade.

"Because I forgot," he said at last. "Or they made me forget. But when I saw you… something came back. I didn't know what it was. Not until Z3R0 opened your file."

Aiko looked at him. There was no doubt in his words. This wasn't a game.She hugged her knees.

"So what now? Are we just two walking mistakes?"

"No. We're the only proof the government feared its own creation. And that means we're dangerous—even if we don't know why."

"What were you like before?" Aiko asked. "I mean… before all of this."

Kael sat down beside her. His eyes were lost in something farther away than the deepest tunnel.

"I don't remember much. Just flashes. A house. A woman with a soft voice. A song. But I don't know if it's real… or just a fake implantation."

"And do you think I'm not real either?"

"I don't know. But I do know that you are now. You're real to me."

Aiko felt something twist in her chest. She wasn't used to that kind of talk. In the Abyss, nothing was real unless it could kill you.

She looked down at her wrist. At the place where Z3R0 said a number once was.

"You know what the worst part is?" she murmured. "That part of me wants to keep being Aiko. Just… a girl who runs, who survives, who doesn't give up. Even if it's a lie. Because if I stop being Aiko, I don't know what's left."

Kael looked at her. And for the first time, he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Then make Aiko real. Make her more than a number or a project. Make them fear her."

In that moment, the alarm sounded.

It wasn't a raid. It was a silent signal—the kind that only activated when the enemy was already inside.

Aiko took a deep breath. And though fear still crawled through her bones, something new shone in her eyes: resolve.

Chapter 5: Birthmark