It was early morning. The weather felt pleasant—not too cold. The streets of District 107 were just starting to wake, people moving like ghosts through a city trying to feel alive again .Kal moved with
them, silent, his green long coat—the standard issue for a Field Sentinel—brushing against his boots as he walked.
Black hair messy from sleep, brown eyes dulled from routine, Kal barely registered the world around him.
What a life I'm living, he thought. Lately, everything feels so slow… like time's stuck. I don't even remember when I joined the Special Forces—the Sentinels. Thought I'd climb ranks fast, be someone important. But here I am...
He let out a tired sigh.
I'm twenty-one now. Two years gone, still stuck at Field Sentinel. And stationed out here, on the edge of nowhere? Where nothing ever happens? It's boring. The worst I deal with is a mindless Altered here and there. But that's fine... as long as I survive.
Once, this world—Proxima—was beautiful. Bright sun. Endless forests. One continent, split between two great powers: the West World Order (WWO) and the East Nations Alliance (ENA).
The WWO, often called Oder, was ruled by a dark corporate shadow—Abyss. No one really knew who ran it. But everyone feared them. They pushed biotech beyond its limits, playing god with DNA and morality.
Their obsession? Creating hybrids. Humans fused with animals, and something else—something not from this world.
On the other side stood ENA, backed by a tech giant called Infante. Their leader, Aariv, was a genius.
Quiet, strange, but brilliant. He built a device no larger than a pocket watch. The Hollow Shield. It could stop bullets, absorb fire. Not perfect—it couldn't stop Scar crystal or raw brute strength—but it gave
people hope.
Then Abyss created something else. The "perfect human." At least, that's what they claimed.
But all they made were monsters.
Soon, twisted beings—part human, part nightmare—began appearing on ENA's side of the border.
Some tall and disfigured. Others with melted faces or too many eyes. ENA retaliated. Their military fought back. But it wasn't enough. These things weren't just threats. They were invitations.
Abyss wanted war. And they got it.
For nine years, Proxima burned.
Tanks. Drones. Bioweapons. Experimental monsters. Cities turned to craters. In the end, both sides launched nukes.
And then... silence.
When it was over, the world was barely recognizable. ENA threw up massive walls to keep what little they had left safe. Infante still stood strong. But Abyss? They didn't just survive. They took over the
entire WWO.
In the ruins of war, ENA formed a new defense: The Sentinels.
An elite force trained to wipe out the creatures Abyss left behind.
Ranks of the Sentinels:
1)Cadet Sentinel – Training only. Brutal mental and physical conditioning.(No given coat)
2)Field Sentinel – Standard squads. Patrol duties. Fight weak to mid-tier Altereds.(Dark green coat).
3)Warden Sentinel – Solo missions. Mutated threats.
Squad leaders.(Grey coat).
4)Sentinel Commander – Tactical planners. Coordinate whole districts.(White coat).
5)Marshal Sentinel –
District control. Rarely fight. Massive-scale operations.(Black coat).
6)High Executor – Top of the food chain. Controls
all. Rarely appears—but when they do, everything changes.(Crimson coat).
"Ahhhh man," Kal muttered, eyes rolling. "Heard it all so many times it's tattooed in my brain. Exactly
what the government wants, right?"
He looked down at the crate in his hands.
"Better get these glocres to the outpost fast. Hope Jecop cooks something edible this time."
He speed up, weaving through the morning crowd. Past the district gate. Toward a simple two-story building.
Voices echoed from above.
He walked in. Up the stairs. A familiar voice called out.
"Yo, Kal! You brought the glocres?"
"Yeah, here. Go cook something already," Kal said, tossing the box toward him.
From behind, a girl chimed in.
"Hey Kal, you decide what color you're dyeing your hair yet?"
Kal groaned. "Ema, again? I'm not dyeing it. Don't care if everyone else is."
Jecop, already cleaning vegetables, added, "Looks like it'll be a peaceful day. Nothing weird last night."
Ema rolled her eyes. "Peaceful? More like boring."
Jecop served food to the group. Everyone sat. Ate. Silence hung in the air until
Jecop spoke again.
"Next month marks two years for me here. With the Warden trials coming, guess I'll miss it again.
There's just... nothing here."
"I wanted fame," Ema muttered. "And power."
Kal leaned over and whispered to Jecop, "Thank god she doesn't have power. She'd be a dictator."
Jecop chuckled.
Ema caught the look. "Yeah? What about you, Kal? What do you want?"
Kal paused.
"I want to survive."
They blinked at him.
"I mean it. I don't care about rank. I just want to stay alive. Warden's too risky."
Laughter broke out.
"Then why'd you even join?" "Could've been a librarian or something."
"Wasn't my choice. My uncle forced me," Kal replied.
Ema grinned. "Well, I wasn't forced. I chose violence."
She hurled her plastic plate across the room. It hit Jecop in the chest.
He stood up. Threw his plate right back.
"I choose violence too!"
Chaos erupted.
Kal stood, brushing off his coat. "Anyway, I'm heading out for perimeter check. Outside the walls."
Ema handed him a lunchbox.
"Your face attracts trouble. You'll need it. And eat something this time."
They smiled at him.
Outside, the air smelled like dry grass and rust. A calm breeze floated over abandoned buildings. Kal
ran a hand across the crumbling wall.
"Still holding up. No Altered signs. Just... quiet."
Too quiet.
A faint sound. Crying.
He spotted her near the road. Small. Fragile. Maybe seven. She was sobbing, arms wrapped around her knees.
Kal approached slowly.
"Hey… you alright? You lost?"
She sniffled. "I—I wanted to see outside… waited 'til the guards weren't looking…"
"Of course you did," Kal sighed. "Come on. Let's get you back."
As they walked, she asked, "Are you a soldier?"
"Something like that."
"Do you fight monsters?"
"Sometimes."
"Are you scared?"
"…Yeah. But I still do it. Someone has to."
"My papa says you're heroes."
"Your papa doesn't know we can't even afford boots."
She giggled. "But you'll protect us, right?"
"I'll do my best."
They reached the gate. Her parents ran up, crying as they thanked him.
"At least she didn't ask me to buy anything," Kal mumbled. "I'm broke."
He looked up. The sun was setting.
"Not a bad day."
He passed through the gate.
Silence.
Too much silence.
"Where is everyone…?"
He stepped into the main hall.
"Ema…?"
She stood frozen, eyes wide with horror. A man in a black coat stood behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Then—
Injection. A black liquid pulsed into her neck.
CRACK!
Her spine arched unnaturally. Spider legs burst from her back. Blood splashed the walls. Her mouth opened in a soundless scream.
"Help... me..." she whispered.
Kal's chainsaw sword was already in his hand.
But the creature lunged.
He was thrown through the window.
[DAMAGE 18% – RIB FRACTURE DETECTED]
Kal hit the ground hard.
The Altered landed in front of him—Ema's face still visible through the monstrosity.
She attacked.
[DAMAGE 31% – SHOULDER PENETRATION]
He struck back.
[DAMAGE 48% – BLOOD LOSS WARNING]
He climbed her back.
"I'm sorry, Ema… STAY DOWN!"
Chainsaw plunged into her neck.
[TARGET NEUTRALIZED – CRITICAL STATE 72%]
Kal collapsed beside her. Her mutated form twitched one last time.
A memory returned.
Campfire. Marshmallow. Laughter.
Jecop had burned his marshmallow again, smoke curling around his embarrassed face. Ema was laughing so hard she nearly choked on hers.
"Don't eat it like that, idiot," Kal said, grinning. "You'll get sick."
"You two are hopeless," Ema said, smirking.
Just three friends under the stars. No monsters. No war. Just warmth.
Now—her dead face in front of him.
But it wasn't over.
Jecop—his head split like a pumpkin, tentacles coming out. Utensils fused into his arms. His right hand
dragged a red-hot skillet, pulsing like a living organ.
Kal stood, barely.
Jecop roared and charged. Kal swung, but Jecop flung him like paper.
[DAMAGE 12% – BACK CONTUSION]
A tentacle wrapped Kal's leg, dragging him.
Kal slashed. The tentacle split.
He got to his feet. Blocked a skillet strike. Countered with a gash across Jecop's chest.
Jecop laughed.
Then—stabbed a tentacle through Kal's thigh.
[DAMAGE 61% – MOBILITY COMPROMISED]
Kal screamed. Then drove the chainsaw through Jecop's gut.
Still laughing.
With a final scream, Kal rammed the blade higher—ripping Jecop in two.
He fell. Silence again.
Kal dropped to his knees.
Another memory hit.
Same campfire. Jecop holding a burned marshmallow.
"You're gonna eat that?" Kal laughed.
"It's crunchy," Jecop shrugged.
Ema: "You two are insane."
Now both of them... gone.
Then… footsteps.
Zolus.
Clapping slowly.
"Well done," he said. "You really don't want to die, do you? You killed two second-tier Altereds."
Kal looked up. "You... did this."
"Not exactly. I just unlocked the potential. Let's see what you become, son of Tansheer."
He grabbed Kal's neck. Kal struggled but couldn't get out of his grip.
He injected him. Burning pain.
[ALTERED VIRUS – IN BODY: ENTITY DETECTED – PROTOCOL: PROTECT THE HOST]
But there was already a virus in Kal's body—it killed the foreign virus and awakened.
Zolus frowned.
"Tch. Taking too long."
He took Kal's Hollow Shield from his coat and turned it off...
"What a shame I don't have much time. Means I have to kill you, boy."
Shot Kal in the head.
Darkness. Kal felt like he was falling.
"So I'm dying."
He saw a light in front.
"What is that? Afterlife?"
A voice: "Brother. Wake up. Don't go toward the light. You can't die now."
"Who are you?"
The voice: "I am with you from the start. Watching you. I am your virus."
Kal's body healed. Like time rewound.
Bullet clinked to the floor.
Chainsaw sword in hand.
VRRRRRMMMM!!!
Zolus, who was leaving, looked back.
"You're standing," Zolus whispered.
Zolus grinned.
"Interesting. You've managed to control it. So that old virus is still alive."
Voice inside roared:
"KILL HIM! HE DESERVES TO DIE—MAKE HIM BEG FOR HIS LIFE!!!"
Zolus stared.
He saw Tansheer in Kal.
"Now then… let's see what you really are, Kal."