The way down was through colder darkness, and the path took that route.
It wasn't a wild, chaotic dark of the upper zones of the Descent, though, but a cleaner one. A controlled darkness. The kind of darkness that was allowed to exist merely because someone had decided that light was not needed.
My shadow obeyed me and went ahead of me.
Rei was already aware of it.
"You did not send it," she stated.
"Not at all," I answered. "It went by itself."
The shadow stopped, then it rearranged itself and took on a flat shape, looking like a very thin stretching along the ground like a living sensor. It was not roaming around.
It was mapping.
I saw faintly the text hovering at the edge of my vision.
ECHO-SHADOW AUTONOMY: INCREASING
Rei kept watching it. "Does it hear you?"
I pondered the question for some time.
"Yes," I replied. "It simply does not inquire anymore."
The corridor opened up into a circular hall surrounded by columns—every single one fissured and every one marked with the eroded signs of the previous attempts. In the middle was a low altar, dark metal covered with the trace of ancient stains.
Around it were bodies.
New.
Three candidates. Each one identified. All dead.
Diminished and fading, the text was hovering above them.
TSUKISHIMA REN — TERMINATED
ODA MARI — TERMINATED
HAYASHI KEI — TERMINATED
Rei was suddenly very still. "This just occurred."
I kneeled to look closely at Ren's body, examining the wounds. The cuts were clean. There was no hesitation, and the angles were very sharp.
"Whoever did this," Rei softly uttered, "was composed."
"No," I said, "they were decisive."
The shadow quivered.
It recognized the pattern.
The altar throbbed.
Text was shown, which was very low-priority and almost imperceptible.
OPTIONAL INTERACTION AVAILABLE
Rei was in a state of tension. "Optional interactions normally mean terrible things."
I rested my hand on the altar point.
The universe experienced a hiccup.
Pictures took over my consciousness—not recollections, but records. Kill paths. Probability branches. Outcomes ranked by efficiency.
A voice whispered straight into my mind that was neither male nor female.
*Mercy makes survival almost impossible.*
The text went up in flames.
**ALTAR OF DETERMINATION**
**FUNCTION: PATH OPTIMIZATION**
**COST: MORAL DEGRADATION**
Rei took my hand. "Kuro, don't—"
I didn't let go.
I continued to read.
Future encounters, fights, and betrayals started to unfold in front of my eyes. The solution with the highest rate of survival was the same in each.
Attack first.
Attack with full force.
Eliminate all uncertainties.
I withdrew from the altar.
The shadow had undergone a transformation again—slight, but irrefutable. The sharpness was there, and the expressiveness was less. It was the *intent* that was being mirrored, not the emotion.
Rei was peering into my soul. "What did you see?"
I held her gaze.
"The reality," I responded. "That most of the people in this place will not survive because they will be waiting."
Her tone became brittle. "And you?"
"I will not."
The room was vibrating.
Footsteps could be heard—many people coming from the opposite side, unobtrusively.
A company walked in.
Five people were competing.
They were armed. They were alert. They were nervous.
The text recognized them super fast.
INABA KENJI — ACTIVE
MORIMOTO AYU — ACTIVE
SAITO KENTA — ACTIVE
NAKAMURA EMI — ACTIVE
KOGA SHUN — ACTIVE
The moment they saw the corpses, they stood still.
Kenji's glance moved to me. Then to the shadow. Then to the altar.
"You," he said. "Was it you who did this?"
Rei came closer. "No. We were here after."
That was the truth.
But it didn't count.
Kenji somewhat lifted his gun. Not to the full extent.
Uncertain.
Ayu murmured, "That shadow…"
The feeling was fear.
The feeling was indecision.
The vision of the altar was overlying the current scene.
PROBABILITY ANALYSIS (PASSIVE):
— Negotiation: 27% survival
— Withdrawal: 41% survival
— Preemptive elimination: 89% survival
The shadow made a move.
Not in a violent manner.
In a decisive manner.
It went past Kenji, like a thought with no sound, and then it encircled his neck.
Rei turned to me.
"Kuro—!"
I stayed fixated on Kenji as his eyes grew bigger.
"Put down your weapon," I spoke in a low voice. "Or else you'll die."
Kenji didn't move at all.
The rest did not move either.
Emi was sweating massively. Kenta's hand was shaking. Shun had a hard time swallowing.
This was the decisive moment.
I could let go of him.
I could attempt to converse.
The altar's whisper became louder.
Mercy cuts down survival probability.
Kenji made a slight move.
That was sufficient.
The darkness tightened its grip.
There was a short and unpleasant noise.
Then silence came.
Text lit up.
INABA KENJI — TERMINATED
Rei couldn't believe her eyes and was looking at me.
The others were yelling.
They took off.
I did not go after them.
There was no reason to.
The message had been received.
The shadow slowly unbuckled Kenji's corpse and placed it like a dischargeable object.
Rei recoiled from me.
"Kuro..." Her voice was unsteady. "You didn't have to eliminate him."
I looked at her.
My face was placid.
"I presented him the option," I declared. "He selected the wrong one."
The utterances flowed without difficulty.
That alarmed me.
A text popped up, soft yet decisive.
ALIGNMENT SHIFT DETECTED
DESIGNATION UPDATE: ANOMALOUS SURVIVOR
WARNING: SOCIAL DETERIORATION LIKELY
Rei was regarding me as if she had a stranger in front of her.
Perhaps she did.
I cast a quick glance at the altar again and then in the direction where the others had scurried away.
"They will be the ones to instill terror," I mentioned. "That has its advantages."
Her eyes popped out in surprise. "You are turning them into pawns."
"Yes."
"What is the purpose?"
I kept my eyes on hers.
"To prevent anyone from trying to arbitrate whether or not I am worthy of life."
The shadow wrapped around my feet—silent, compliant, and deadly.
In front, the descent was waiting.
And, for the first time, I did not think I was simply enduring it.
I thought I was turning into something the descent needed.