Not out of fear—but calculation.
He watched the skies turn red, digital seams opening in the heavens like fractured code. A swirling gate of System Enforcement Authority blinked into reality, and from it descended a System Archon, clad in white—a figure whose presence alone caused logic to ripple.
Alicia pulled at his sleeve. "Jay... we need to hide. This isn’t like Venn—this one’s a system administrator!"
But Jay’s eyes, now fully open, were locked on the being descending like a god.
> [Authority Detected: System Archon—’Adjudicator No. 6’]
[Level: Unknown. Access: Root Administrator Tier.]
[Host Condition: Untargetable (temporarily)]
[Time Until Status Ends: 2 minutes 17 seconds]
"Two minutes of invincibility," Jay murmured, yawning. "Plenty of time to do nothing useful."
The Archon touched down, her boots gliding inches above the courtyard. Her voice wasn’t loud, but it echoed across space.
"Subject 03-999," she intoned, expression unreadable. "You were not meant to awaken."
Jay lazily flicked a rock with his toe. "I wasn’t meant to do a lot of things. Like homework. Or care."
Alicia stepped in front of him, shielding Jay with her arms. "He’s not a threat! He hasn’t hurt anyone!"
The Archon tilted her head. "Incorrect. The Subject’s existence is destabilizing reality in a three-kilometer radius. Do you know how many laws of physics broke when he yawned?"
Jay raised a finger. "To be fair, I’ve always had that effect. Even before the system."
A faint ripple—System Halo Activation—flared around him, and Alicia’s eyes widened.
> [New Trait Evolved: Reality Disruption Field → "System Gravity"]
Effect: Passive. Any action the host considers ’annoying’ is automatically denied reality-binding.
The Archon lifted a single hand. A glowing sword of code formed in her grasp.
"I am authorized to perform a clean uninstall of Subject 03-999."
Jay blinked. "Wait... uninstall? Like, right-click and delete?"
Before the Archon could answer, something snapped.
Not a bone. Not a spell.
> [Emergency Protocol Triggered: Host’s subconscious will is rejecting world logic.]
[Authority Challenge Detected.]
The courtyard twisted. Time slowed. Gravity folded.
And Jay, still slouched, still hands in pockets, now stood at the center of the event—everything bending away from him.
The Archon narrowed her eyes. "You’re rewriting the rules."
Jay shrugged. "Nah. I’m just bored of them."