Revelations and Decisions

Dante opened his eyes with difficulty, his body aching and heavy. He blinked several times before focusing on the room around him. It was a mix of old and new, reflecting the decaying splendor of Neon City. The walls were covered with panels of worn metal and digital graffiti, where old rebellion slogans and street art mixed with holographic ads and news. Neon lights flickered, intermittently illuminating the dark and shadowy corners.

Cables and electronic devices were scattered everywhere, tangled like metallic snakes. Some were connected to terminals that hummed softly, emitting a faint blue glow. In one corner, a holographic projector floated, displaying data and news on a screen that constantly changed, casting flashes of light that danced on the walls. Heavy, tattered curtains barely blocked the outside light, filtering the flashes from flying vehicles and giant ads dominating the city skyline.

Dante observed Marcus, who was sitting near the bed, smoking an electronic cigarette. Marcus took a deep drag, the small device crackling softly with each puff. He exhaled the smoke in a series of perfect rings that slowly dissipated in the air. As he looked at him, he noticed strange lines and points highlighted with light on his body. The most striking were red: a perfectly horizontal line on his neck, a point where his heart was, and another on the nape of his neck. There were also yellow lines on the inner parts of his arms, the sides of his chest, and other places. Looking at the chair Marcus was sitting on, he could also see yellow points, but lighter, distributed on its structure.

Surprised, Dante didn't panic and started talking to Marcus.

"Where are we?" Dante asked, his voice weak but curious.

"We're at my refuge. I brought you here after finding you on the balcony" Marcus replied, placing a plate of food next to the bed. "But what happened to you? How did you end up in that state?"

Dante took a moment to think of a plausible lie. "I chased the thug who left Kade's room. He spotted me and we fought. I barely managed to kill him, but he hit me on the head, and I lost consciousness."

Marcus looked at him intently, searching for something in his expression. Finally, he nodded. "I found a lead about your sister. Kade said they took her to sector 12 about two or three hours ago. By now, it would be a total of 8 or 9 hours."

Dante felt a knot in his stomach, his heart racing. "What's in sector 12?" he asked, trying to stay calm but with palpable urgency in his voice.

"Sector 12 is an abandoned industrial area, perfect for clandestine operations and a haven for illicit activities. Neotech has established its base of operations there" Marcus explained seriously, watching Dante's reaction.

Neon City was divided into twenty sectors or "neighborhoods." The first ten sectors belonged to the upper class, characterized by their glass towers, advanced security, and unimaginable luxuries. The last ten sectors, where Dante and Marcus were, were plagued by dangers, decay, and misery. The differences between both ends were stark, reflecting the brutal social injustice permeating Neon City.

Dante looked at Marcus with gratitude and worry. His eyes showed fear and determination. "Do you think we can find her?"

Marcus sighed, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "For now, I need to find more leads. You need to stay here and recover a bit before doing anything. It won't be easy, and I need you in the best condition possible."

Dante hesitated, his mind flooded with images of his sister in danger. Finally, he nodded, understanding the logic of Marcus's words. "Alright. I trust you, Marcus," he said, his voice filled with gratitude and hope.

Marcus stood up and headed towards the door, looking at him firmly. "I'm going to get more information. I'll be back soon. In the meantime, eat something and rest."

Dante watched Marcus leave the room, feeling a mix of relief and anxiety. He looked at the food next to the bed and realized how long it had been since he last slept in such a comfortable bed.

While eating, his thoughts returned to the people he had killed. For a moment, guilt overwhelmed him, but suddenly, the mark on his arm glowed slightly, and the guilt disappeared. A cold, calculating thought appeared in his mind: he had done almost everything to survive, and killing was just an extension of that. A cold look, never seen before in him, reflected in his eyes.

Determined to see if all the pain had been worth it, he murmured, "Activate."

At that moment, the system interface appeared in front of him.

Meanwhile, in another part of the city...

Two people stood in front of an abandoned building. If Dante had been there, he would have recognized it as the same place where he found the device that now was part of his body.

"Let's go in; the building is empty," one of the people said, their eyes glowing with a faint blue light. The implant in their head worked like a sonar, emitting regular pulses that scanned the area.

As they walked through the dark, dusty hallways, one of them stopped and spoke in a low voice, with a mysterious tone. "Do you really think we'll find something here?"

"We have to try. The device emits a detectable signal just before it tries to integrate into a body. That signal was right in this building" their companion replied.

"You know the chances of someone being compatible with it are minimal. And even if they were, they should have been completely consumed, like all the others."

They moved carefully through the building, their steps softly echoing in the accumulated dust. The investigator with the sonar implant led the way, emitting regular pulses that scanned the area for any trace of activity.

"It's clear. We can proceed" they said, their voice echoing softly in the vast abandoned space.

Their companion, equipped with a handheld scanning tool, activated the residual energy detector and began sweeping the room, adjusting it to filter out interference.

"We're close" said their companion, their voice filled with tension. "The residual signal is coming from that room."

They entered the indicated room. "Look for any unusual trace" they instructed.

They moved methodically, inspecting every corner. The one with the residual energy detector passed their tool over the floor, and suddenly, it emitted a high-pitched beep. "Here" they said, pointing to a loose tile.

The other one knelt down, carefully lifting the tile to reveal a hidden compartment. Shining a flashlight inside, their faces twisted into a mix of frustration and surprise. The compartment was empty.

"This is ridiculous!" exclaimed the person, their voice full of frustration. "How could that traitor hide it here?"

The other, calmer, observed the empty compartment thoughtfully. "They knew exactly what they were doing. They wanted someone to find it, remember who we're talking about. This compartment is too visible; it was a deliberate mistake. Also, the energy reading indicates the device was here recently. We're not wrong."

Without finding anything, one of them reported to their superiors through a communicator integrated into their wrist. After a brief inaudible conversation, the one reporting turned to the other. "Our new task is to search for clues and track any signal in this sector and the adjacent ones."

Meanwhile, back at Marcus's refuge, Dante observed his statistics on the system interface. They were the same as before, but he noticed one difference: in the skills section, a new one called [Death Line] appeared. His curiosity ignited at this new addition. He tried to touch the skill to see what it did, but got no response. However, when he thought about wanting an explanation, the description appeared:

[Death Line:]

[Requirements: Death Eyes (met), Dagger (100% effectiveness), Knife (50% effectiveness)]

[Description: Follow one of the lines correctly with the indicated weapon and cause severe damage or guaranteed assassination.]

[Consumption: 1 energy per second.]

Dante was surprised and wondered how useful this skill could be. A bit disappointed, he thought, "Follow a line to attack? Why would I do that if I can kill like before?"

Dante grabbed the knife Marcus had left next to the plate and stared at the chair where Marcus had been sitting. He hesitated for a moment about how to activate the skill, then instinctively whispered, "Death Line." Instantly, luminous lines began connecting the yellow points he had seen earlier, precisely highlighting the path he had to follow with the weapon to deal severe damage to the chair. The lines extended from his eyes to the chair's weak points, showing the exact route for an effective attack.

Surprised by the clarity and detail of the skill, Dante began to understand its potential. "Maybe this is more useful than I thought" he murmured to himself.

Then, where it said [Death Eyes], caught his attention, and he felt curious to know more. He navigated the interface until he found a new option called [Anatomical Diagram]. Thinking about it, a detailed holographic model of his body appeared, showing the real-time functioning: the blood circulation visibly flowed through his veins, the heartbeat was marked with a rhythmic and constant pulse, and the breathing was illustrated with the movement of his lungs inflating and deflating. Every anatomical detail was clear and precise, from the flow of his bodily fluids to the activity of his nerves and muscles.

In the part of his eyes, something caught his attention. A pop-up window appeared with the following description:

[Death Eyes:Allows identifying critical or vulnerable points in organisms, whether organic or inorganic, to maximize damage or ensure instant death.]

Dante was surprised and smiled. This indeed seemed really useful.