Ace studied the System’s face as she sat on a branch overhead. That trademark wicked grin of hers spread across her face as they locked gazes, and he knew he wasn’t going to like whatever she was about to say.

  The System jumped from her branch, but her small form floated down rather than falling. Her feet never touched the ground as she hovered just above the bloodstained dirt, and the hem of her dress danced in a breeze that didn't exist.

  "Welcome to the Blood Covenant Exchange," she announced, her arms spread wide. "Where every transaction costs a piece of you—literally!"

  Tara’s brow scrunched in confusion. "You mean we have to bleed to trade a knife for a ring?"

  "Not just blood, silly vampire." The System giggled gleefully. "Each trade takes a bit of HP. Sacrifice—that's the currency that makes my darling entire world function."

  Ace's jaw tightened. "Get to the point."

  The System's childlike face shifted to an exaggerated pout. "So impatient, Sergeant. Let me have a little fun, will you?”

  He tilted his head in silent admonishment.

  “Ugh.” She dismissed his subtle warning with a flick of her wrist. “Fine. Spoilsport."

  She snapped her fingers, and glowing interfaces appeared before everyone present—pulsing blue circles filled with arcane symbols Ace couldn’t read.

  "First, you create your Blood Sigil," she explained. "Place your hand here and sacrifice five percent of your HP."

  "Five percent?" Marcus balked. "For a common knife and ring?"

  "The sigil is a one-time creation," the System clarified, twirling a lock of her blonde hair around one finger. "Think of it as... opening a bank account. Except the account is written into your soul, and the paperwork requires pain."

  Victor, who had been silently observing from the shadows, stepped closer. "It's like biometric authentication. We all have a unique trading signature. Is that right?"

  The System beamed at him. "Someone's been paying attention! Gold star for Victor."

  Marcus scratched the back of his head in confusion. “So… what… I mean, it just floats in front of you when you want to trade?”

  “Oh, no, my darling.” The System laughed, as though he’d told a charming little joke. “I carve it into your soul, remember? To summon it, you have to access it through your interface. Everyone else knows what it looks like. But you? You’ll never see it for yourself.”

  Marcus ran a hand through his hair. "And I'm guessing once we do this, our sigil stays with us forever?"

  "Precisely!" The System said.

  Hmm.

  Ace studied the interface, but none of the floating runes spiraling across the screen made any sense. Five percent of his health wasn’t significant—but as with everything that involved the System’s cheerful sadism, he suspected there was a catch. "And what happens once we create these sigils?"

  "The fun beings!” She twirled in a burst of joy. “You create a temporary Covenant by merging both of your sigils through the interface. This opens a temporary dimensional pocket only you two can access. Your items appear there, verified by yours truly, and then you set the blood price."

  “There’s a blood price?” Rachel asked, her nose creasing in disgust. “What does that mean?”

  "Another sacrifice required to actually use the sigils," Ace stated flatly with a glance at the System. “Am I right?”

  “Ding, ding, ding!” the System said with a little giggle. “You’re so smart, Sergeant. I see those Intelligence points are at play.”

  In answer, he simply huffed.

  “Don’t worry, though,” the System continued. “It’s just one to three percent of your HP, depending on the items’ rarity." The System's voice took on a singsong quality. "Higher value, higher price. The market economy of pain!"

  The sigils glowed and pulsed across the screen before Ace, and his mind raced with all the ways a trade could go wrong in this world.

  Nothing with her was ever simple.

  “It gets even better,” the System added. “Every successful trade leaves what I call a 'reputation echo' on your sigil. Future trading partners can see your history—how many trades, how many items, how many betrayals."

  "Betrayals?" Tara asked, her brow furrowing.

  The System's eyes gleamed. "Oh, did I forget to mention? Once the trade is complete, there's nothing stopping either party from—how shall I put this—renegotiating the terms of your arrangement."

  She drew a finger across her throat.

  “Delightful,” Ace muttered.

  “I will say, your kind in particular are clever little monsters. You’ve developed your own form of insurance."

  Stolen novel; please report.

  "Let me guess," Ace said. "More blood."

  "Oh, you smart cookie! Yes, it’s called Blood Oath Insurance," The System confirmed. "Another five to ten percent health sacrifice that curses anyone who attacks after trading. Their stats drop by fifty percent for an hour. It’s just enough time to escape or, perhaps, to exact revenge."

  Rachel shook her head. "This is insane."

  "It's survival," Victor countered. "In a world where trust is a luxury, mechanisms like this are necessary."

  Ace studied Victor's face, noting the calculating look in his eyes. There was something there—an assessment, as if he were filing away every detail for future use.

  "Fine," Ace said finally. "Let's do this."

  He placed his palm against the glowing interface. The pain was immediate and sharp—not the sensation of blood leaving his body, but something deeper, as if his soul itself were being carved from his core.

  Blood seeped from his fingers. The tendons in his neck tightened as the interface drank it in, absorbing the blood as though it were soaking into the screen. The blue light pulsed, consuming his essence, and the runes flashed one more time before they faded completely.

  For the first time, the screen before him was simply…

  …blank.

  Only by one, the others followed suit. Rachel yelped in pain. Tara winced. Olivia arched her back, shivering with delight, while Victor gritted his teeth in agony. Marcus, meanwhile, muttered a long string of obscenities as his health drained.

  When Marcus finally let out a sigh of relief and relaxed, the blank screen before Ace flickered. A rune appeared before him, something like a backwards “R,” and a ripple shot outward from the two of them.

  Instantly, color drained from their surroundings. Darkness erupted between them, forming a pocket of just… nothing. It expanded, creating a small circle of inky shadows that blocked out the world around them. Within this void, ethereal representations of their offered items appeared—Marcus's ring on one side, Ace's throwing dagger on the other.

  "Set your blood price," the System instructed. "For common items, one percent is standard."

  "One percent," Ace confirmed.

  "Same," Marcus agreed.

  The System floated inside the void with them, her small form drifting between the items. "Boring. What about insurance? Aren't you worried Ace might decide he wants both items after the trade?"

  Marcus glanced at Ace, then shrugged. "We're on the same team."

  "For now," the System said, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "But teams fracture, alliances break, and the moment trading ends is when betrayal is the most… lucrative."

  “Pass,” Ace said.

  “Yeah, fuck that,” Marcus added with a shake of his head.

  As she floated through the inky void around them, the System scoffed. “You two are so boring.”

  “I’m fine with that,” Ace admitted. “Marcus, want to finish this?”

  “For sure.”

  Another sharp pain shot through Ace as more health drained away. Blood misted from both men's arms, swirling into the void as the items changed sides. The dimensional pocket pulsed once.

  Then, it began to collapse.

  "Transaction complete!" The System announced as the world came back into focus. "And now the delicious moment of tension when either of you could betray the other."

  The void disappeared, leaving Ace and Marcus standing face to face. The ring now rested in Ace's palm, while the dagger hung at Marcus's belt.

  "Go on, Ace," the System whispered, floating close to his ear. "He's new. Weak. You could take back the dagger and keep the ring."

  "Will you shut up?" Ace asked.

  “Hmph,” the System said as she crossed her arms in an angry little pout.

  Ignoring her, Ace slid the ring onto his finger. A pulse of energy shot through his muscles. They grew, thickening ever so slightly, and his back straightened as a sense of sturdiness flooded his body.

  Huh.

  Not bad.

  "I'm curious, Blackwell," Victor said, his voice deceptively casual. "What would you trade for information about your former squad?"

  Ace went perfectly still, and his voice took on a dangerous edge. "What did you say?"

  "Your Marines," Victor clarified with a lazy little shrug. "Walker in particular. You took his place here, after all. You were never supposed to come to this place. I've heard whispers about what happened to them."

  Ace's hand moved to his weapon, but Tara caught his arm.

  "He's baiting you," she warned.

  The System floated between them, her face alight with excitement. "Oh, this is getting interesting! Victor knows something you don't, Ace. The question is—what are you willing to sacrifice to find out?"

  Victor watched Ace, that infuriating smirk on his face as much a challenge as a kick in the balls. "I’m offering you a trade, Sergeant. Are you man enough to take it?"

  "And what do you want?" Ace asked, voice dangerously quiet.

  "All of your weapons," Victor said without hesitation.

  The System giggled. "Such a delicious dilemma!"

  Ace's mind raced. Victor couldn't possibly know about his squad—they were still on Earth. Yet, the confident gleam in Victor's eyes suggested he wasn't bluffing.

  "Counter-offer," Ace said. "You tell me what you know, and I don't find out how much damage my Crimson Sword can do to your throat."

  Victor's smile widened. "That’s not how trading works, Sergeant."

  "Then I guess we're at an impasse."

  "Huh." Victor's sigil faded as he lowered his hand. "Suit yourself. Unlike your Marines, however, I'm not going anywhere. The offer stands—when you're ready to make a real trade."

  He turned and walked away, disappearing into the receding fog that curled through the woodland.

  The System hovered next to Ace, her childlike face inches from his. "He touched a nerve, didn't he? I wonder what he knows."

  Ace’s glare fixed onto her, and his eyes narrowed. “I wonder what you told him.”

  “Oh, my, what makes you think I’m involved?” Her eyes batted innocently, but she couldn’t hide the small smile tugging at the edge of her mouth.

  The little brat.

  Ace stared into the darkness where Victor had vanished, the strength ring suddenly heavy on his finger.

  "That can’t be good," Tara said quietly. “I wonder what he wanted to do to you.”

  Ace had a few ideas.

  The System's giggle echoed through the forest as she drifted upward, back toward her perch in the tree. "That's the beauty of the Blood Covenant Exchange, my darling little healer. Everyone bleeds, but only some know why."

  Ace clenched his fist, feeling the subtle power of the ring. Ten points of Strength wouldn't matter in a real fight with Victor. Even without his weapons, he still had Duskblade Manifestation—but Victor could phase through the shadows, too, and Ace had no idea what Skills the man had acquired thus far.

  Deep down, something told him he would find out soon enough—and that, when he did, it wouldn’t be pretty.

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