The server room swallows us in darkness, broken only by blinking LEDs and that omnipresent purple glow. My vision keeps flooding with status windows I can't turn off:
[Basic Information Sight]
Current Access: 2.1%
Status: Involuntary Display
Note: Unable to control information flow
Professor Lee slams the door behind us, leaving a bloody handprint on the handle. His status window appears whether I want to see it or not:
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Human
Name: Lee Jung-hoon
Threat Level: B
Status: Severely Strained
Distance: 2m
Basic Traits: Mental Enhancement
Current Action: Recovery Attempt
Warning: Power Unstable
"Block the door," he wheezes, more blood trickling from his nose. Sung-min drags a server rack across the entrance, his enhanced strength making the heavy equipment move like cardboard. The metal screams against the floor.
[SYSTEM ALERT: ADAPTATION PHASE: 35%]
[ENVIRONMENT MODIFICATION BEGINNING]
[PHASE 0: EXPANDING]
Min-ji's flames provide unwanted light, casting wild shadows between the server racks. Her hands shake as she tries to control the fire, but it's like trying to hold back a tide with a paper cup:
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Human
Name: Kim Min-ji
Threat Level: A
Status: Power Surge
Distance: 3m
Basic Traits: Fire Manifesting
Current Action: Attempting Control
Warning: Critical Instability
Something slams against the door. The server rack shudders. Through the small window, I see the creature's face press against the glass, its features still shifting, still becoming something worse. My ability forces another update:
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Modified Human
Name: None Registered
Threat Level: S
Status: Evolution Stabilizing
Distance: 4m
Basic Traits: Advanced Mutation
Current Action: Hunting
Warning: Barrier Won't Hold
Between the server racks, deeper in the room, something moves in the shadows. The constant stream of information in my vision makes it hard to focus, hard to think. We might have just trapped ourselves with something worse.
The movement between servers becomes more distinct. My head pounds as new information forces itself into view:
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Modified Human
Name: None Registered
Threat Level: A
Status: Fresh Evolution
Distance: 15m
Basic Traits: Partial Transformation
Current Action: Stalking
Warning: Multiple Signatures
"There's more than one," I manage to say through gritted teeth. These constant updates are like having someone shoving papers in front of my eyes while I'm trying to walk.
[SYSTEM ALERT: ADAPTATION PHASE: 38%]
[TECHNOLOGICAL INTEGRATION BEGINNING]
[PHASE 0: EXPANDING]
The server racks around us start to change. Metal warps, circuits pulse with purple light. Min-ji's fire reflects off surfaces that seem to breathe. Sung-min backs away from a server that's starting to sprout what look like veins.
"Don't touch the equipment," Professor Lee warns, his voice hoarse. "Everything's changing, adapting to—" He cuts off as something skitters across the ceiling. Fast. Too many legs.
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Modified Human
Name: None Registered
Threat Level: B
Status: Unique Evolution
Distance: 8m
Basic Traits: Tech/Organic Hybrid
Current Action: Circling
Warning: Unknown Capabilities
The creature at the door slams against it again. The server rack slides an inch. Behind us, the shadows between the racks grow darker, and my ability picks up more signatures. Three. No, five. Each one different, each one wrong.
Min-ji's flames flare with her fear, catching a transformed server. Instead of burning, the metal seems to drink in the fire. The purple glow intensifies, and the room's shadows begin to move on their own.
[SYSTEM ALERT: ADAPTATION PHASE: 40%]
[HYBRID ENTITIES EMERGING]
[PHASE 0: DOCUMENTING RESULTS]
We're surrounded. The door won't hold much longer. And somewhere in the darkness ahead, something is waiting to see what we'll do next.
"The emergency exit," Sung-min whispers, pointing between the server racks. "Behind the cooling units." His enhanced muscles twitch, ready to move. Ready to fight.
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Human
Name: Park Sung-min
Threat Level: B
Status: Combat Ready
Distance: 2m
Basic Traits: Enhanced Strength
Current Action: Fight Response
Warning: Adrenaline Spike
The door buckles again. The server rack slides another inch. Professor Lee presses his hands against his temples, trying to form another barrier despite the blood now staining his shirt collar.
[SYSTEM ALERT: ADAPTATION PHASE: 43%]
[MUTATION VARIETIES CATALOGING]
[PHASE 0: APPROACHING MILESTONE]
Something moves in the darkness ahead. No, multiple somethings. My ability forces updates faster than I can process:
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Modified Human
Name: None Registered
Threat Level: A
Status: Tech Integration
Distance: 12m
Basic Traits: Server Fusion
Current Action: Emerging
[Basic Information Sight]
Target: Modified Human
Name: None Registered
Threat Level: B
Status: Wall Adaptation
Distance: 10m
Basic Traits: Surface Merger
Current Action: Surrounding
The cooling units ahead have started to pulse, their fans spinning with wet sounds. Min-ji's fire illuminates something crawling out of a transformed server – all cables and flesh and wrong angles.
[SYSTEM ALERT: ADAPTATION PHASE: 45%]
[FINAL MUTATIONS ESTABLISHING]
[PHASE 0: REACHING CRITICAL POINT]
The door cracks. Min-ji's flames flare. Sung-min tenses. And Professor Lee makes the choice for all of us:
"Run. Now."