Kaito Sora stared at his hand in disbelief as faint, flickering lights danced around his fingers, bending and warping the air like a glitchy hologram. The sensation was unnerving but oddly thrilling.
"Okay," Kaito muttered to himself, "this is new."
The rest of the group was huddled around one of Ryuu's glowing monitors, deep in discussion about their next move. Yuki, ever the vigilant one, noticed him first.
"Kaito, what are you doing?" she asked, her tone laced with suspicion.
"I'm not sure," Kaito replied honestly, holding up his hand to show the flickering phenomenon. "But I think I might've… broken reality?"
Yuki's eyes widened, and she immediately stepped back. "That's not normal."
"No kidding," Kaito said.
Ryuu spun around in his chair, intrigued. "Wait, wait, wait. Let me see that!"
Before Kaito could protest, Ryuu grabbed his hand and examined it closely, his eyes sparkling with fascination.
"This isn't just a glitch," Ryuu said, almost reverently. "You're disrupting the System's code. Do you have any idea how insane that is?"
"Insane? I thought it was just terrifying," Kaito quipped.
Aria, who had been silently observing from the corner, finally spoke. "This could be a turning point," she said, her tone measured. "If Kaito can manipulate the System, we might have a way to fight back."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Kaito interrupted, waving his glitching hand. "I didn't sign up to be some kind of System hacker. I don't even know how I'm doing this!"
Ryuu grinned. "Don't worry. I can teach you. The System's not as perfect as it pretends to be. If you're causing these glitches, it means you've found a crack in its foundation."
"And what happens if I mess up and break something important?" Kaito asked.
"Then we'll all probably die," Ryuu said cheerfully.
Yuki groaned. "Can you not say stuff like that with a smile on your face?"
————————————————————
Testing the Limits
With Ryuu's relentless enthusiasm, the group decided to test Kaito's newfound ability. They moved to an abandoned plaza within the glitch zone, where the flickering edges of reality blurred with static.
"This place is already unstable," Ryuu explained. "If you're going to practice, better to do it here than somewhere the System might notice."
"Great," Kaito muttered. "So I'm a guinea pig now."
Ryuu handed him a small, cube-shaped device. "Try focusing on this. It's a basic node simulator—it mimics the System's framework on a tiny scale. If you can disrupt it, we'll know you're on to something."
Kaito stared at the device, feeling a mix of curiosity and dread. "And what if it explodes?"
"Then you'll get a cool scar," Ryuu said.
Yuki smacked him on the back of the head. "Not helping."
Kaito took a deep breath, focusing on the cube. He tried to clear his mind, but the weight of the group's expectations made it difficult.
"Relax," Aria said softly, stepping closer. "Don't force it. The glitch is already part of you. Let it flow naturally."
Her calm voice steadied him, and Kaito closed his eyes. He imagined the flickering lights from earlier, the strange sensation of bending reality to his will. Slowly, the air around him began to hum, and the cube in his hand started to vibrate.
"Something's happening," Yuki said, her voice tinged with both awe and concern.
The cube emitted a low, static-filled buzz before flickering out of existence entirely, leaving a faint ripple in the air where it had been.
"Whoa," Kaito said, staring at his empty hand. "Did I just delete that thing?"
Ryuu clapped his hands, grinning like a madman. "You didn't just delete it—you rewrote its code and erased it from the System's perception! That's incredible!"
Kaito wasn't so sure. The ripple in the air didn't fade—it grew larger, spreading outward like a web of distortion.
"Uh, is it supposed to do that?" he asked nervously.
Ryuu's grin faltered. "Not exactly."
The distortion grew more chaotic, warping the ground and nearby buildings. The faint hum turned into a deafening roar, and Kaito felt the ground beneath his feet start to tremble.
"Move!" Aria shouted, pulling Kaito back just as a crack split the ground where he'd been standing.
The group scrambled away as the plaza dissolved into chaos. Static-filled rifts opened in the air, and the flickering outlines of System drones began to materialize within them.
"Oh, fantastic," Yuki muttered. "You didn't just break the cube—you rang the System's dinner bell!"
————————————————————
The System's Response
A swarm of drones poured out of the rifts, their sleek, angular forms glowing with ominous red lights. Kaito's heart pounded as they zeroed in on him, their mechanical movements eerily precise.
"This is bad," Aria said, drawing her weapon. "Ryuu, can you shut those rifts?"
"I'm working on it!" Ryuu yelled, frantically typing on a portable console.
Kaito clenched his fists, the flickering light returning to his hands. He didn't know what he was doing, but if he didn't act, they were all dead.
"Hey, over here!" he shouted, drawing the drones' attention.
"Kaito, what are you doing?!" Yuki yelled.
"Buying us time!" he called back.
The drones swarmed toward him, and Kaito raised his glowing hands instinctively. To his surprise, the air around him shimmered and twisted, creating a barrier that absorbed the drones' attacks.
"Well, that's new," he muttered.
"Kaito, don't push yourself!" Aria warned, cutting down a drone that got too close.
But Kaito was already focused on the rifts. If he could manipulate the System's code, maybe he could close them. He reached out, the flickering energy in his hands intensifying.
The rifts resisted at first, but Kaito pushed harder, willing them to collapse. Slowly, the distortions began to shrink, the static fading as the rifts sealed shut one by one.
When the last rift disappeared, the remaining drones powered down and crumpled to the ground. Kaito collapsed to his knees, his energy completely drained.
"Is it over?" Yuki asked, looking around warily.
"For now," Aria said, helping Kaito to his feet.
Ryuu let out a low whistle. "Kaito, my man, you just pulled off something that shouldn't be possible. You're like a walking cheat code!"
"Yeah, well, I don't feel like a cheat code," Kaito said, wincing. "I feel like I just ran a marathon while carrying a piano."
Yuki crossed her arms, her expression unreadable. "You're lucky you didn't get yourself killed."
Kaito gave her a tired smile. "Aw, I didn't know you cared."
She rolled her eyes. "Don't push it."
Aria's gaze was serious as she studied him. "You're more connected to the System than we realized. If you can learn to control this power, it might change everything. But it also makes you an even bigger target."
"Great," Kaito said, groaning. "As if being hunted by the System wasn't bad enough."
Ryuu clapped him on the back. "Cheer up! You're a glitch in the System, my friend. And glitches are how revolutions start."
Despite his exhaustion, Kaito couldn't help but smile. For the first time, he felt like he might have a chance to fight back—and win.