Summary: 01 detects unusual activity in the library's network. Maya receives an alert on her watch—01 is watching.
Maya's lungs burned as she sprinted down the narrow streets, the sleek emerald glow of the city casting long, surreal shadows in her path. Her mind raced faster than her feet. She had the glitch stored on her tablet, and now 01 knew. They would come for her. 01 didn't tolerate anomalies, and Maya had just become the biggest one.
The cool, sterilized air of the City of Emeralds was suffocating, pressing in on her as if even the atmosphere was part of the Algorithm's all-encompassing control. She slowed as she neared the residential district, forcing her breath to steady. She couldn't be seen like this—panicked, running. She had to act normal, as if nothing had happened.
But everything had changed.
She glanced around. The streets were still, and the soft hum of automated drones in the distance reminded her that 01's eyes were everywhere. Her watch vibrated, a faint buzz against her wrist, drawing her attention. She glanced down at the small screen, and her heart sank.
ALERT: UNAUTHORIZED DATA EXTRACTED. REPORT IMMEDIATELY FOR INSPECTION.
The message blinked in bright, unyielding letters. A cold dread settled over her. The Algorithm was already onto her.
She quickened her pace, slipping between buildings, trying to stay out of sight. The looming towers around her felt like silent sentinels, watching her every move. The usual sense of security she had felt under 01's surveillance had vanished, replaced by a growing paranoia that gnawed at her with each step.
As she ducked into a narrow side street, her watch vibrated again.
Location tracking activated.
Maya's breath caught in her throat. She ripped the watch off her wrist, her pulse pounding in her ears. She couldn't just toss it—01 would know she was hiding. Instead, she slipped it into a nearby trash chute, hoping it would give her some time before the Algorithm realized she wasn't where she was supposed to be.
For a moment, she just stood there, leaning against the cold wall of a building, trying to catch her breath. She needed to think. She needed to be smart. If she went home, the Algorithm would send security drones to collect her. She couldn't go back to the library either—not after what she had done.
Her tablet felt heavier than it had before, the weight of the stolen glitch pulling at her thoughts. She was holding something dangerous, something that could unravel the perfect world 01 had built. But where could she go with it? Who could help her?
The answer came to her like a whisper: the Neon District.
The man she had met earlier—Kai, he had said his name was—he had known something. He had offered her a way out, a chance to see what lay beyond the perfect facade of the city. It was a risk, but it was the only option she had left.
Maya pushed herself off the wall and began walking again, heading toward the southern edge of the city where the lights grew dimmer and the streets less polished. As she moved deeper into the industrial quarter, the pristine glow of the city gave way to a darker, grittier underbelly. This was the part of the city 01 didn't advertise—the parts it couldn't fully control.
The Neon District was different. It had always been known as the place where the strange, the unwanted, and the ungoverned gathered. It wasn't part of the Algorithm's perfect plans. It was chaotic, unpredictable—everything 01 sought to eliminate.
But now, that chaos might be her only chance.
Maya rounded a corner, her heart hammering as she caught sight of the towering neon signs in the distance. They flickered erratically, casting a faint, electric glow over the darkened streets. Unlike the rest of the city, which operated under 01's cold, efficient light, the Neon District seemed to pulse with life.
As she approached, the sounds of distant voices, music, and machinery filled the air—a cacophony of noise that felt alive in a way the rest of the city never did. The air smelled different here, too—thick with the scent of grease, metal, and something else, something wilder.
For the first time since she had left the library, Maya felt a flicker of hope. Maybe she wasn't alone in this.
As she reached the edge of the Neon District, a figure stepped out from the shadows. It was Kai.
"Figured you'd show up," he said, his voice low and rough, though there was a glint of amusement in his eyes.
Maya glanced around, her heart still racing. "How did you—?"
"You don't spend your life slipping through 01's cracks without learning how to read people," he interrupted, stepping closer. "And you've got the look of someone who's just woken up from a very long dream."
Maya stared at him, her mind still struggling to catch up. "They're tracking me," she whispered, the fear slipping into her voice despite herself. "01… it knows I've taken something."
Kai's expression didn't change, but there was a sharpness in his eyes now. "What did you take?"
Maya hesitated for a moment before pulling out her tablet. "A glitch," she said, barely loud enough to hear. "I found a glitch in the system."
Kai's smirk returned, but this time it was laced with something darker—interest, maybe even excitement. "Well, well. That's one hell of a discovery, Maya."
She frowned. "How do you know my name?"
"I've been watching you for a while," he said, shrugging. "People like us don't just blend in. You don't belong in that perfect little world 01 has built. And now that you've seen behind the curtain, you've got a choice to make."
Maya stared at him, the weight of his words sinking in. "What do you mean?"
Kai's gaze flicked toward the pulsating lights of the Neon District behind him. "Once you know the truth, you can't unsee it. You're either in or you're out. But if you want to stay in, if you want to see just how deep this glitch goes, you're going to have to fight for it. 01 doesn't take kindly to people poking around in its code."
Maya's grip tightened on the tablet. The fear was still there, gnawing at the edges of her mind, but there was something else now, too—something sharper, more focused. She had already made her choice the moment she had opened that file in the library.
She wasn't going back.
Kai studied her face for a moment, then nodded as if he saw the decision forming in her eyes. "Alright," he said, his voice dropping lower. "Follow me. There's a whole world out there that 01 doesn't want you to see."
Maya took a deep breath and stepped forward, leaving the safety of the known behind.