He took a deep breath and began to speak, his voice a low murmur in the dark. He told her everything he had been through since he left for the "arcade." He told her about the Zoo Squad, about the corrupted territory, the daemon, and the final, terrifying battle with the Static King.

Alyna listened in silence, her hand resting on his chest.

When he finished, the silence stretched, thick and heavy.

Then, she spoke, her voice soft but firm. "You have to tell her, Ray."

Ray stiffened. "Tell who what?"

"You have to tell your mother," Alyna insisted, sitting up to look at him, her sapphire eyes intense. "You need to tell Lina what happened to you. What you are now."

Ray remained silent, his gaze fixed on the ceiling.

Alyna's voice was pleading now. "Ray, listen to me. Your mother is the strongest woman I have ever met. Multiple sclerosis has weakened her body, but not her mind. Not her soul. She can take it. She deserves to know the truth."

"The truth?" Ray's voice was flat, hollow. "What do I tell her, Alyna? That her son died in an alley a week ago? That a mass of nanites is wearing his face and sleeping in his bed? That the thing she loves is a monster who eats other people?"

"You are not a monster!" she shot back, her voice fierce.

"Aren't I?" he countered, his own voice rising with a cold, desperate anger,

He sat up, facing her, the space between them crackling with tension. "I have killed Alyna. I have consumed minds. There's a part of me, a part I can't control, that turns into a killing machine. What part of that isn't a monster?"

"The part that's sitting here, terrified of hurting his mother," she whispered, her anger dissolving as quickly as it had appeared. "The part that came back for me on that highway. The part that loves us."

She moved closer, her hands finding his. "She's your mother, Ray. She loves you more than anything. She has a right to know who she's loving."

He looked at her, at the unwavering conviction in her eyes, and the walls he had built around himself began to crumble. He felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him, a bone-deep weariness. He was so tired of the lies.

In the end, he gave a single, reluctant nod.

Alyna's expression softened into one of profound relief and love. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a hug, her head resting on his shoulder. "You won't be alone," she whispered. "We'll tell her together."

She followed with a soft, lingering kiss, a silent promise of support. And as he held her, her words echoed in the quiet of his mind, a necessary call to action. She deserves to know.

The quiet hum of Nox filled the small room. Alyna sat on the futon, her NexPort cable already in hand, a look of nervous excitement on her face. Ray sat cross-legged on the floor beside the obsidian tower, placing his palm flat against its cool surface.

"Ready?" he asked, his voice a low murmur.

"Ready," she confirmed, jacking in.

The world dissolved. For Alyna, it was a familiar, smooth transition—a slide from the physical into the digital. For Ray, it was an explosion of pure data, a torrent of information that he now navigated with an instinctual, terrifying grace.

They materialized together on a rooftop overlooking the shimmering, chaotic city of the Net.

Alyna's avatar was a work of art, a reflection of her own brilliant, complex mind. She was a warrior-goddess from some forgotten mythology, her form clad in intricate, silver filigree armor that seemed to be woven from pure light. Her hair was a cascade of impossible, shifting colors, and from her back sprouted wings made of shimmering, crystalline data.

Ray's form was… something else entirely. He was the monster from the heart of the labyrinth. His new default avatar was a sleek, biomechanical horror of obsidian-black plates that shifted and flowed like a living shadow. Through the seams of the armor, a network of crimson light pulsed with a steady, malevolent beat. His hands were permanent, five-fingered claws, each digit a shard of jagged, red data. His face was a smooth, featureless mask of black metal, from which a single, glowing red optic—the Guardian's eye, now his own—stared out.

Alyna took a sharp, involuntary step back, her beautiful avatar flickering with static. The raw, predatory power radiating from his form was a suffocating wave of controlled violence.

Ray saw her reaction, the flicker of fear in her eyes. He looked down at his own monstrous hands, at the crimson light pulsing beneath his dark armor. This was what he was now. But he didn't have to be, not with her.

He focused his will, and his terrifying form dissolved, collapsing inward into a swarm of silvery-black cubes that then re-formed, simplifying, until all that was left was a simple, two-dimensional stickman.

Alyna let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. She moved closer, her own avatar shimmering as she adopted a simpler form—a generic female avatar in a plain grey jumpsuit.

"I have a bit of a reputation in some of the higher-end sectors," she explained, a wry smile in her voice. "Better not to attract unwanted attention."

"Good idea," Ray agreed. "Let's go play some games."

They made their way to the "Digital Rainbow" arcade. It was just as he remembered it from his last, lonely visit—a chaotic symphony of 8-bit theme songs and synthesized explosions. But this time, it was different. With Alyna by his side, the place felt less like a museum of a joy he'd lost and more like a playground waiting to be explored. They played, they laughed, and for a little while, he almost forgot what he had become.

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It was while they were trying to beat the high score on a classic co-op shooter that he sensed them. Five of them. Moving with a coordinated purpose.

The Zoo Squad approached them, their mismatched avatars a bizarre sight in the garish, pixelated light of the arcade.

"There he is!!" Ursa Major said, pointing one his stubby fingers at him.

Kitsune's sleek fox avatar shimmered beside him. "Calm down, Leo. Don't spook him. I want to get a clean scan," she hissed over their private channel.

Ray turned his simple stickman avatar, feigning surprise.

"We know it's you, Glitchy," Goro, the frog, rumbled, his voice deep.

"Kodiak, I don't like this," Glitch whispered, her anxious rabbit avatar trembling. "His signature feels different... it's hungry."

"Guys, cut it out," Kodiak said, calm and authoritative, as he glanced at his friends.

Then he fixed his eyes on Ray. "We're not here for a fight," Kodiak said, his voice a low, even rumble. "We're here to talk."

Kodiak waved to a corner of the digital space of the arcade. There was a booth. The door was open, and inside there was a purple leather semi-circle couch, and in the middle, anchored to the floor, was a round white table splattered with neon paint.

Ray glanced at the booth and then at Kodiak.

Better be done with this fast.

He and Alyna, along with the rest of the Zoo squad, walked inside. Ray and Alyna sat on one side, while the rest of the Zoo Squad sat on the other.

"Thank you for coming," Kodiak said as he glanced at Alyna. "For your friend, introductions are in order," he began, gesturing around the table. "This is Kitsune, our strategist. Goro, our muscle. Glitch, our scout. Ursa Major, our mascot. I'm Kodiak. And you are?"

"I'm… a friend," Alyna said, her voice calm and steady.

Kitsune snorted as she rolled her eyes.

Kodiak, his tone serious, ignored her. "Glitchy," he stated, "We're not here to fight. We're here because of your skills."

He leaned forward slightly. "My crew thinks we should post your signature on every bounty board and let the wolves have at you. It would be the smart and the safe thing to do." He let the threat hang in the air.

"But making an enemy of something as powerful as you are is the stupidest risk of all," he continued, his voice softening. "We're a crew of orphans, Glitchy. Strays. We survived by finding other strays and forming our own pack. You... you seem like a stray to me. A very dangerous one, but a stray nonetheless." He paused for a moment letting his words sink in. "I'm offering you a place at our table."

Ray was silent.

An alliance? Friendship?

Why should I care about this?

Armed with the knowledge from Static King, he was confident he could erase his trace even if they posted his signature. However, he also had more extreme methods at his disposal to ensure the group's perpetual silence.

He was about to refuse when a private message pinged in his interface. It was from Alyna.

Alyna: You should do it.

Ray: Why?

Alyna: Because it sounds fun.

Fun.

His entire existence had been a series of objectives for survival, a grim checklist he had to complete each day. But recently… he thought of the roar of the Kamigami Strike-Z as he'd launched it from that alley, the city blurring into ribbons of light. The thrill and the freedom.

He thought of Arty, of their ridiculous treasure hunt in the landfill. The stench, the grime... and Arty's infectious, manic laughter. He'd smirked then, a real, unforced smile. And just a few nights ago, sitting on the floor of their old apartment, playing that stupid retro tank game with Alyna and his mother, hearing them laugh... that had been fun.

He hadn't been a rat in a cage. He'd been... living. Alyna wasn't being whimsical. She was observing. She was trying to bring a part of him that had been covered by the passage of time and everything he had to endure.

He looked at the strange, mismatched family before him. "I'm not looking for friends," he said, his voice flat.

"Neither were we, when we found each other," Kodiak replied gently. "Sometimes, you just find a pack. So, what do you say?"

Ray glanced into the eyes of each member.

And then he made his decision. "Alright," he said. "I'm in."

His words made Alyna smile softly.

Kodiak's avatar seemed to relax, a low rumble of approval in his chest. "Good. You can leave anytime you want. No hard feelings. But for as long as you're with us, you're one of us." He extended a massive, furry paw across the low table.

Ray's simple, two-dimensional hand met the bear's, and the contract of alliance was sealed.

The virtual space in the booth crackled with a new, awkward tension. The alliance had been formed, the digital hands shaken, but the space between Ray and the Zoo Squad was still charged with the remnants of their initial confrontation and unanswered questions. Ursa Major kept shooting Ray suspicious, pouty glances, while Kitsune observed him with a cold, analytical curiosity.

Kodiak, let out a low, rumbling sigh that seemed to shake the very code of his massive bear avatar. "Alright," he said, his calm and authoritative voice cutting through the silence. "My treat."

With a few deft commands, a low, lacquered table and a set of comfortable-looking cushions materialized in their corner of the arcade. A moment later, virtual food and drinks appeared on the table—steaming bowls of ramen whose savory aroma was shockingly realistic, glistening skewers of yakitori, and tall glasses of synth-beer that fizzed with perfect, effervescent bubbles.

"The sensory emulation in this node is top-tier," Kodiak explained, gesturing for them all to sit. "Tastes just like the real thing."

The squad relaxed instantly, the offer of free food a universal language. Ursa Major grabbed a skewer, his earlier hostility forgotten. Goro grunted in appreciation, and even the anxious Glitch crept forward to take a small bowl.

Ray hesitated, glancing at Alyna who was having a tall glass of dark colored soda.

As if sensing his reluctance, Kodiak spoke again. "We need to decompress," he said, his gaze steady and knowing. "Running hot in the Net gets you killed. We need to build some trust and figure out how we move together. And there's no better way to do that than by shooting at each other."

Kodiak flashed a warm grin at Ray. "How about some 'Chrome Battle Royale'? Ever played?"

"No," Ray confessed, "Never heard of it."

"It's total chaos, loud, and absolutely bonkers," Kodiak explained. "Just what we need to let loose."

Ursa Major's head shot up, his mouth full of virtual chicken. "Yes! Chrome Battle Royale! I'm a god at that game!"

"No, you're not," Kitsune muttered without looking up from her bowl. "You're cannon fodder. But it is… amusing."

Alyna placed her hand on his shoulder and showed him a smile.

Ray glanced at her and then at Kodiak showing him a thumb up.

Kodiak's eyes crinkled in a smile. "Good. Let's see what you've got."

With a collective thought, the colorful arcade corner dissolved, replaced by the chaotic, high-energy pre-game lobby. The space was a cacophony of sound and light—a massive, floating platform where dozens of players showed off their flashiest avatars, tested their virtual weapons at a firing range that shot streams of pure data, and placed last-minute bets. A giant countdown timer ticked down ominously on a holographic screen overhead.

"Alright, squad," Kodiak's voice boomed over their private channel. "Gear up. Select your combat avatars."

Menus appeared before each member of the Zoo Squad. Kodiak's massive bear avatar solidified, its form now encased in heavy, scuffed plates of olive-drab power armor, a heavy machine gun clutched in its paws. Goro's pragmatic frog avatar shed its pinstripe suit for matte-black tactical gear, a bandolier of oversized grenades strapped across its chest. Ursa Major's teddy bear form was now covered in combat harnesses and ammo pouches, its fluffy face marred by a stitched-up, menacing grin.

The two girls opted for a different approach. Reina's avatar shifted into a sleek, athletic woman in a white and silver infiltration suit. The only hint of her usual form was a stylized, holographic white fox mask that covered her face and nine faint, shimmering energy trails that drifted behind her like ethereal tails. Anya's avatar became a small, human girl swallowed by an oversized, glitch-camo hoodie. A pair of long, sophisticated communication antennae, shaped like rabbit ears, were mounted on the headset that covered her hair.

Ray, however, had no custom skins. When the menu appeared before him, the only option available was "Default." His simple stickman avatar dissolved and reformed into a painfully generic, grey jumpsuit with the "Chrome Battle Royale" logo stamped on the chest. He had no mask, no armor, no flair. He was a nobody.

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