2025-04-24 00:23:12
Previous Chapter
Related Chapters
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 206
Trying to Read What He LeftThat wasn't him, Kane. It looked like Tony, but the eyes… those cold blue eyes weren't his. It was the Nothingness, wearing his face. That voice… it was old and mean. We ran fast, Darren and I, as that fake Tony went back into the dark spinning light.Now, hiding in a small cave, with only the tool shining light, I feel how much I miss Tony again. It wasn't just him being gone. It was seeing that bad thing to use his face. That makes me angry. The Nothingness wants to play? Okay. We'll play too. And we'll win. For Tony.Darren sits next to me, looking tired and white. He saw it too, that fake Tony. The little bit of hope we had is gone. But now he looks stronger. He knows this is serious. It’s not just about staying alive now.“It… it looked like him,” Darren whispers, his voice still shaky. “But it wasn’t.”No, kid. It wasn’t. It was like a ghost wearing his skin. And we need to know why. Why Tony? Why did it look like him?I take out the b
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 207
Our Friend ChangedElias, but… not really Elias, Kane. I was so happy to see his face, someone I knew in this weird place, but then I got a bad feeling fast. His eyes… didn’t have that spark, that nervous energy he always had. They were calm and quiet, like… nothing was there. And that shiny rock on his head glowed like that spinning light behind him. He looked like Elias, but it felt like his soul was gone.Darren walks closer, sounding a little hopeful. “Elias? Is that… really you?”Elias smiles a soft, peaceful smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “Darren. It’s good to see you both. The world… it’s clearer now. More… quiet.”Quiet? This broken, messed-up world? My stomach feels tight. This isn’t Elias talking. This is… something else using his voice.“Elias, what happened to you?” I ask, my hand moving to my gun. I don’t want to hurt him, but I’ll keep Darren safe. Being loyal to a friend is strong, but staying alive is stronger. Tony taught me that the hard way.He move
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 208
Elias's IdeaMy hands shook as I watched Elias stare hard at the old computer. His face wasn't like he was trying to solve a really tough puzzle. He wasn't the same Elias I knew. He moved strangely, his eyes jumped around, and he talked in broken sentences that didn't make much sense. But sometimes, in all that mess, a little bit of the old smart Elias would shine through. He used to be our tech genius, the guy who could figure out anything."The… lines… they… shake… different," Elias mumbled, his fingers moving over the dusty screen. Strange letters and numbers went up the screen. Darren, his best friend, stood next to him. Darren looked hopeful but also worried. This new Elias was hard for him.I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. Trusting Elias now felt risky. The "new order" had messed him up and turned his smart brain into something… broken. But we needed his help. He was the only one who might know about the "keys" – the important things the enemy wanted, the
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 209
Finding the First KeyThe secret way Tony marked was tight. Dust and rocks fell as we moved. The air smelled wet and like metal. The loud noise from the explosion behind us still hurt my ears. The "new order" soldiers were close.My heart beat fast. That face, that cut… it couldn't be him. Marcus was dead. I saw him fall. But I wasn't sure. The enemy could change the world in ways I couldn't even think of.Darren walked in front, holding his weapon. Even in the dim light from Elias’s computer, I saw he was serious. Losing the old Elias was hard, but it hadn't broken Darren. He was now strong in a quiet way, ready to protect the changed Elias and finish Tony's job.Elias walked between us, still talking to himself. But sometimes he would point out weak spots in the tunnel or changes in the air – things his changed mind seemed to notice. It was strange to trust someone who didn't seem all there, but his ideas had saved us before."The… shakes… they… pull… that way," Elias mum
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 210
The Echo AnswersThe fight was all around us, a mess of glowing lights and desperate moves to stay safe. The Keepers of the Echoes moved smoothly, their bone and shiny rock weapons blocking the Seekers’ dark attacks. Darren fought hard next to me, his light sword moving fast. Even Elias, in the middle of it all, looked at the glowing rock, his hands reaching out like he wanted to touch something we couldn't see.I kept looking at Marcus. The fight in his glowing eyes, that quick moment when he seemed to know me… it bothered me. What had the "Void" done to him? Was there still a bit of the old Marcus inside? It hurt to think about it, but I couldn't stop."Kane, pay attention!" Darren's voice pulled me back. A Seeker jumped at me, its dark energy crackling. I blocked its attack, and my arm hurt from the force. They were too strong for us."The memory… we need to see the memory!" I shouted to the main Keeper, dodging another attack.The Keeper nodded, their eyes full of strong
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 211
What Was Left BehindThe air smelled bad, like burnt stuff and a sharp smell, like after a storm but no rain. We walked slowly to some tents, holding our guns ready. The city around us was broken and quiet. It had been many days since things changed. Days of walking on streets that looked like broken bones, buildings twisted in strange ways. Days of being very quiet. Until now.A woman with very big eyes and a child holding her leg came out of a tent. Her clothes were ripped, her face was dirty, but her eyes showed something – maybe hope, or just a feeling of needing help.“Who… who are you?” Her voice shook, almost a whisper.I put my gun down a little, trying to look calm even though I wasn’t. “We’re alive. Like you.”More people came out of the tents – an old man with a stick to help him walk, a young couple holding each other, and an old woman holding a picture. They looked at us with some happiness but also like they didn't trust us.“Did you… did you see it?” the young
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 212
Strange WhispersThe old woman's face was wet with tears in the flickering light. Her hands shook as she held a mug. "The doll, Kane," she whispered, her voice weak. "Porcelain eyes... they looked right at you. Then... gone. Michael said it blinked."I leaned closer, the table hard under my arms. Outside, the wind howled. The woman, usually strong, was scared. Her fear made me feel cold."And then?" I asked.She swallowed hard. "It just disappeared. Like it was never there. Michael..." I looked at the big mechanic, his eyes empty. He saw a tree with blue leaves that turned to dust fast."Anyone else?" The Old Man nodded slowly, his face full of lines. "My wrench. Right here. I looked away to fix the fire... poof. Gone. Found it in the waters later, dry."A shiver went down my back. Quick pictures, seeing things together, stuff vanishing... it felt like what was real was breaking. We thought it was just stress, but it happened too much, and it was too weird.Yesterday, I saw
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 213
The Enemy's MarkSleep was just seeing glowing eyes and hearing a voice in my head: You are the key. Morning showed tired faces.I walked around, giving tea and saying quiet things. My mind was trying to put the strange things together. The doll, tools, tree… there was a line connecting them. The Old Man looked at the cold fireplace. “The birds, girl,” he said quietly. “They don’t sing right. Like the song is wrong. And some songs… I never heard them before.”It was a small thing, but Hemlock knew the woods well, so it felt important. Another piece.The woman was giving out food and told me something else. “The water, Kane. When I went to get water, it looked shiny. Like oil, but with rainbow colors. Then it was gone.”Rainbow shine. Glowing tree. Light from the ground. Colors that weren’t normal.A pattern was starting: small changes to what was real, weird things mixed in with what we knew. Not just things disappearing; things were changing.Michael, still quiet, pointed at
Latest Chapter
CHAPTER 220
Old Meets NewA cold feeling went down my back. It wasn't just cold; it was because everything around us felt wrong. Outside Kane's strong room, the city looked twisted, like a snake moving in a weird way. Buildings leaned at crazy angles, the sky was a purple bruise, and the air buzzed with a power that felt old and very wrong. My head hurt, a slow beat against the loud strangeness of this new world.The world went crazy, and we had to try and fix it.Kane looked hard at the glowing pictures above the table. Lines of code, a language I used to know well but now felt like a lost one, moved on the clear screen. She bit her lip, something she did when thinking hard. Her usual strong energy was still there, like a small fire that wouldn't go out in the dark. But I could see worry lines around her eyes.“Anything, Darren?” Her voice was rough and tired.I ran my hand over my thin hair. I could almost feel the old wires that used to connect to my brain. “Bits and pieces, Kane. L
CHAPTER 219
Seeing Things DifferentlyShaky light on worried faces around the bright map. Red lights flashed, showing trouble spreading. Kane looked hard, telling people what to do, a bit worried.My clear memories showed a scary pattern Kane didn't get. She saw now; I remembered long ago.Kane stopped talking. "Another dark spot, Tony. No why, no answer... gone." Her upset voice made me feel bad. I knew that lost feeling."Kane," I said, my quiet voice was clear. Everyone looked. I usually just helped, but the memories needed saying.She turned, tired but a bit sharp. "What, Tony? No time.""Not just happening, Kane," I said carefully. "It's happened before."People didn't believe me. Petrov laughed. "Before? Nothing like this in the books.""Books not complete," I said back, looking at Kane. She looked unsure. "Some truths hidden. Some things are forgotten.""Forgotten things?" Sarah looked surprised. "What are you talking about?"I went to the map, pointing at a dark spot. "Look ho
CHAPTER 218
Echoes in the GlitchThe cold voice in the small well-house felt like icy fingers touching my skin. Next to me, Kane held my arm so tight her knuckles were white. The strange key in her other hand glowed, making her scared face look even more so."Elias... Darren... they need to see this," she whispered, her voice shaky.My mind was racing. Elias, so quiet but always noticing things, and Darren, who first saw that things weren't right – they had to know about this. We weren't the only ones in this messed-up world, even if it felt like it."We go together," I said, trying to sound brave even though my heart was pounding. Whatever was behind that disappearing wall, we'd face it together.Kane nodded, her eyes looking strong. She was still scared, but she was also determined. We walked towards the shimmering opening. The buzzing sound got louder, and the air felt strange, making the hairs on my arms stand up.When we stepped through the wall, it was like being swallowed by darkne
CHAPTER 217
Pieces of a Lost WorldThe blue mark on Gareth’s arm disappeared, but we were all still scared, Kane. It felt like a cold weight in our stomachs. The strange things happening weren't just whispers anymore; they were shouting at us.I watched Darren. He’d been quiet since the motel, always looking worried, like he was fighting something inside his head. His broken memories seemed to bother him a lot. Now, when Gareth told us what happened, Darren looked far away, like he could see something we couldn’t.“Did it… feel like anything you’ve felt before, Darren?” I asked. Maybe his weird remembering could help us understand this.He blinked and looked back at us slowly. He shook his head, looking confused. “No… not really. But… there’s something… a feeling…” He stopped, rubbing his head.“Like what?” you asked softly, but your eyes were looking right at him.Darren waited, looking around. “Like… a lost rule. Something… broken.”A lost rule? Something broken? That sounded strange an
CHAPTER 216
Echoes of the Past, Seeds of OblivionMy head hurt bad, like something was trying to get inside. Pictures flashed in my mind – faces I didn't know well, cold white rooms, and a scary feeling of losing something important. This remembering… it felt wrong, like they were forcing it. I sat on the bed, my hands shaking. Each memory that came back was like a punch, not a friendly hello. A cold voice giving orders… a big empty feeling inside… the taste of fear. Who was I supposed to be? The me that wanted to keep you safe, Kane, felt weak, like a dream that could disappear.My stomach turned as a strong memory hit me: a bright room, straps holding me down, and a light shining in my eyes. I wanted to scream, but no sound came out in the memory. Had they done this to me before? I felt sure – this wasn't helping me remember; it was taking me back."Darren," Sarah said, her voice not kind like before. She looked worried. "This is hard. Try to stay calm."Calm? How could I be calm when
CHAPTER 215
Putting the Pieces TogetherSeeing Ben’s empty, blue eyes were stuck in my head. Martha, Elias’s kind Martha, moved like a puppet with those strange figures… it was a real nightmare. The ground still shook, and the twisted trees looked like monster hands reaching for the sky. We had to get away, but seeing our lost friends made us freeze, a scary warning of what could happen to us.“We can’t fight them here!” I shouted over the weird noises of the changing world. “We need to go back, get ourselves together!”Tony, looking pale but determined, nodded. “He’s right. They’re too strong for us here.” He pulled Elias, who was just standing there, looking at Martha. “Elias, come on!”We ran back to the part of the woods that still looked normal. The blue light went away behind us, like a bad eye closing. The air here was still, the trees looked like they always did, but we all felt really scared.Back in the mess hall, it was very quiet and sad. Elias sat with his head down, crying.
CHAPTER 214
Seeing What's Not RealThe memory of the starry ceiling stayed with me, making me feel cold and scared. Our world, the ground, the sky – was it all a lie? It made my head spin.Elias looked at me looking at the metal thing. “You didn’t sleep, Kane.” He knew.I shook my head. How could I explain seeing something that wasn’t possible?Darren looked serious. “Did anything… happen with that thing last night?” He looked at the metal thing carefully.I waited a moment, then nodded slowly. “The ceiling… it changed. For a second. I saw… stars. Not our stars.”The room got quiet. Everyone looked worried. The strange things before were bad, but this was unbelievable.Tony looked confused. “Stars? Kane, are you sure you’re okay? Maybe it was a dream.”“It felt real, Tony,” I said, my voice shaking a little. “Too real. The metal thing… it did something when I was near it.”It was scary to think about. If what we thought was real could change so easily, what else wasn’t true? Our memories
CHAPTER 213
The Enemy's MarkSleep was just seeing glowing eyes and hearing a voice in my head: You are the key. Morning showed tired faces.I walked around, giving tea and saying quiet things. My mind was trying to put the strange things together. The doll, tools, tree… there was a line connecting them. The Old Man looked at the cold fireplace. “The birds, girl,” he said quietly. “They don’t sing right. Like the song is wrong. And some songs… I never heard them before.”It was a small thing, but Hemlock knew the woods well, so it felt important. Another piece.The woman was giving out food and told me something else. “The water, Kane. When I went to get water, it looked shiny. Like oil, but with rainbow colors. Then it was gone.”Rainbow shine. Glowing tree. Light from the ground. Colors that weren’t normal.A pattern was starting: small changes to what was real, weird things mixed in with what we knew. Not just things disappearing; things were changing.Michael, still quiet, pointed at
CHAPTER 212
Strange WhispersThe old woman's face was wet with tears in the flickering light. Her hands shook as she held a mug. "The doll, Kane," she whispered, her voice weak. "Porcelain eyes... they looked right at you. Then... gone. Michael said it blinked."I leaned closer, the table hard under my arms. Outside, the wind howled. The woman, usually strong, was scared. Her fear made me feel cold."And then?" I asked.She swallowed hard. "It just disappeared. Like it was never there. Michael..." I looked at the big mechanic, his eyes empty. He saw a tree with blue leaves that turned to dust fast."Anyone else?" The Old Man nodded slowly, his face full of lines. "My wrench. Right here. I looked away to fix the fire... poof. Gone. Found it in the waters later, dry."A shiver went down my back. Quick pictures, seeing things together, stuff vanishing... it felt like what was real was breaking. We thought it was just stress, but it happened too much, and it was too weird.Yesterday, I saw
