Chapter 17 · Zero Can't Be Locked

"Stop fighting me, Jett. You're going to burn your own nerves out," Reign hissed, his hand tightening around my wrist. He didn't just hold me; he pinned me against the rusted bulkhead of the safehouse, his chest inches from mine. I could feel the heat radiating off his synthetic skin, a shimmering fever that smelled like ozone and scorched copper.

"Get off me!" I snarled, thrashing against his grip. "The System is trying to patch me out, Reign. I can feel it. It's like a thousand needles in my spine. I'm not letting some glitchy piece of corporate software delete me because I'm 'unranked.'"

Reign didn't budge. He was a wall of engineered muscle and cold logic, but his eyes—those glowing, predatory irises—were flickering. He leaned closer, his breath ghosting over my ear. "You're Level Zero. You aren't supposed to be able to interface with the core. If you push this, you won't just be deleted. You'll be erased. No ghost, no backup, just... void."

"Then let me be void!" I yelled, slamming my free hand against his chest. It was like hitting a reinforced tank. "I'm tired of being the trash of Neon Harbor.