Chapter 4: H.A.D.E.S
The faint hum of neon lights buzzed in the still air as Ren stepped through the weathered door of Neon Bits, a hole-in-the-wall internet café at the edge of Shinjuku. Its name flickered faintly in sickly green over a cracked facade, a relic of a pre-rift Tokyo that felt more like a distant memory than a piece of living history. Inside, the café hummed with the low growl of overworked terminals, their ancient fans struggling to keep up with the demands of a fragmented, post-breach world.
The cashier, a lanky teenager with bleached hair and bloodshot eyes, glanced up from his handheld console. "Back terminal's open," he mumbled, jerking his chin toward the far corner. Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, "Weird shit's been going on lately, huh? You out there looking for trouble?"
Ren smirked faintly, offering no answer as he handed over a chipped payment card. The boy shrugged, swiping it before pocketing the cash. "Well, if you're messing around in the grid, don't let the vans catch you. They've been circling."
Ren paused mid-step. "Vans?"
"Yeah. Government types. Been sniffing around the past week." The boy leaned closer, his voice dropping conspiratorially. "Weird hours. Like they're looking for something—or someone."
Ren didn't reply. He moved to the terminal, slipping into the chair as it groaned under his weight. The smell of fried circuitry and stale coffee filled his nostrils, grounding him as he booted up the system. He rolled his shoulders, cracking his knuckles before logging into the proprietary Spell Coding interface that flickered to life on the cracked screen.
The interface was familiar, a labyrinthine expanse of digital options layered over an outdated operating system. Ren activated his Source Access passive, his HUD lighting up with a flood of glowing options. As a Spell Coder, he didn't just use magic—he rewrote its rules. His unique access allowed him to dive into the raw, unfiltered source code of the system governing this fractured world.
The cursor blinked expectantly in the empty coding window. Ren leaned back, letting his fingers hover over the keyboard as memories bubbled to the surface.
Ren had always loved systems. Growing up, he'd been fascinated by the way disparate elements worked together, whether it was mechanical clockworks, interconnected networks, or lines of elegant code. The game WatchCats had captivated him as a teenager—a power fantasy of controlling a city's infrastructure with nothing but a smartphone. He'd spent hours speedrunning the game, hacking traffic lights and surveillance drones, weaving chaos through the meticulously designed world.
But that was a game, a simulation. Ren had fantasized about bringing such power to life, only to be crushed by the reality of how far current technology was from creating a true city-spanning control network. He'd dreamed of something like that, but it had always been impossible.
Until now.
This fractured world, with its rifts and systems, had rewritten the rules of reality. Magic itself had been encoded into a system—a source code Ren could access. It wasn't just casting spells; it was building frameworks, manipulating subroutines, and creating something entirely new. The impossible was now a challenge to be solved.
The framework for H.A.D.E.S. began to take shape in his mind, a spell that wasn't just a tool but a system unto itself. It would be a passive suite, capable of seamlessly integrating into the world's networks and drawing information from every available source. It wouldn't merely hack—it would monitor, adapt, and control.
He began typing.
class HADES {
constructor() {
this.type = "Passive";
this.range = "Citywide"; // Maximum range adaptable to network availability
this.manaCost = 1; // Continuous operation cost
this.cooldown = 0; // Passive; always active
this.parameters = {
systemAccess: [
"Blockers", "Road Spikes", "Bridge Access",
"Electric Grid", "Lights / Traffic Lights",
"Train Network", "Steam Pipes",
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
"Crime Prediction System", "Security Cameras",
"ATMs", "TVs and Video Adverts",
"Citizens' Private Information",
"Cellular Communications",
"Internet-Connected Devices",
"Facial Recognition", "Power Transformers",
"Lighthouses", "Vehicles", "Cell Phones"
],
citizenData: [
"Adaptability", "Awakening Percentage",
"Stats", "Jobs", "Potential Rank"
],
stealthProtocol: true,
adaptiveControl: true,
};
}
activate(target) {
// Creates a secure connection to all nearby accessible systems
let extractedData = this.extract(target);
return extractedData;
}
extract(target) {
// Processes all available data streams and integrates them
return `Extracting detailed data and control access for ${target}`;
}
controlSystem(system) {
// Command subroutine for controlling external infrastructure
return `Controlling ${system}. Operation successful.`;
}
}
The spell wasn't just a hack. It was a symphony of interwoven subroutines, each designed to manipulate the infrastructure of the fractured city. H.A.D.E.S. could extract granular information about individuals—everything from their job histories to their potential awakening stats. It could manipulate physical systems, from traffic lights to underground steam pipes. It was a culmination of every lesson Ren had ever learned about coding, applied to a world where magic was written in lines of code.
But the system resisted.
As he typed, the Terminal flickered, its interface rejecting chunks of code with sharp error messages. The source code, alive in a way no human system had ever been, seemed to bristle at his efforts to push its limits. Ren furrowed his brow, his fingers darting across the keyboard as he adapted. He rewrote functions on the fly, embedding commands within nested loops to bypass the source code's resistance. The Terminal groaned under the weight of the spell, but Ren pressed forward, his determination outpacing the system's defenses.
Finally, the last line of code compiled, and the spell activated. A chime echoed softly through the Terminal, followed by a new notification in his HUD:
New Passive Skill Acquired: H.A.D.E.S. (Hacking And Data Extraction Suite)
- Enables: Comprehensive control and data extraction across city infrastructure.
- Range: Citywide.
- Stealth Mode: Undetectable during use.
- Mana Cost: Continuous operation: 1 MP/sec.
Ren leaned back, a satisfied smirk playing on his lips. He wasn't just a corporate software developer anymore. He was about to rewrite the rules of this broken world.
Ren's first test of H.A.D.E.S. began with a simple command. He activated the spell with a silent thought, feeling the invisible web of citywide systems open before him like an endless expanse. Data streamed into his vision, a flood of glowing text overlaying the real world. Every surveillance camera within a 50-meter radius pinged his HUD, each one displaying live feeds that stitched together a complete picture of his surroundings.
He scanned the café. A security drone perched on the roof across the street hummed faintly, its infrared sensors tracking movement below. Ren focused on the drone, issuing a control command through H.A.D.E.S.
Command Executed: Disable Surveillance Drone.
- Status: Offline.
The drone's faint hum ceased, its lights dimming as it powered down. Ren grinned. The system's adaptability was even greater than he had hoped.
He turned his attention to the citizens in the café, letting H.A.D.E.S. sift through their data streams. Each individual was tagged with detailed information—stats, jobs, personal histories, and even a calculated percentage predicting their ability to awaken as system users.
Target Identified: Sato K. (Cashier)
- Status: Civilian.
- Attributes:
STR: 4 | DEX: 7 | CON: 6 | INT: 12 | WIS: 8 | LCK: 10
- Occupation: Café Attendant.
- Awakening Percentage: 2%.
- Potential Class: Support-Tier Analyst (Rank F).
The system knew everything—every strength and weakness, every potential and limitation. It wasn't just data. It was power.
Ren's mind raced as he considered the possibilities. With H.A.D.E.S., he could do more than survive. He could influence the city's very fabric, control its infrastructure, and manipulate the system itself. The fractured world wasn't just a dangerous maze—it was a sandbox, and Ren had the tools to reshape it.
For the first time since the breaches began, Ren felt a spark of exhilaration. He had always been a gamer, a strategist who thrived on solving impossible challenges. Now, armed with H.A.D.E.S., he wasn't just a player. He was rewriting the rules.
The café lights flickered as a low hum resonated through the building. Outside, the faint buzz of government vans reached Ren's ears. He glanced at the monitors, pulling live feeds from nearby traffic cameras. A convoy of unmarked vehicles was weaving through the streets, their presence a reminder that the system wasn't his alone.
But that was fine. Ren wasn't afraid of competition. After all, he had the ultimate cheat code.
"Let's play," he murmured, cracking his knuckles as he turned back to the Terminal.
