Offline God
When reality was rewritten, humanity was forced into roles they never chose. Everyone received a class dictated by the System—except Caleb Knox. A former Army Ranger living off the grid, Knox was given something far more dangerous: Root Access.
Now monsters roam the ruins and the System hunts anomalies like him. With only his rifle, his instincts, and his dog Scout, Knox is the last line of defiance. To survive, he’ll have to master a power he barely understands—before humanity is rewritten again.Branches cracked.
Then it emerged.
A bear—or what had been one once.
Knox had a hard time believing what he was seeing. The bear-thing was massive. Covered in patchy fur that flickered with static like an old VHS tape. Muscles bulged in places they shouldn’t and its eyes glowed faintly with pale and flickering light. One blinked out of sync with the other. Its mouth hung open with thick ropes of drool sizzling where they dripped onto the ground.
It was creature out of nightmares and shade. Something not of this earth. At least, not anymore.
Knox didn’t breathe.
Neither did Scout.
The creature twitched.
Then charged.
Knox didn’t flinch. He raised the bear spray, thumbed the safety and pulled the trigger in one smooth motion.
A wide arc of orange mist burst across the clearing. It caught the beast full in the face.
It didn’t even blink.
The thing barreled through it like Knox had squirted it with lemon water. Its eyes—those glitching, flickering, wrong eyes—flared brighter.
“Shit—”
Knox dove left as the monster swept past. Its bulk crashing through saplings like paper straws. The ground trembled. Pine needles exploded skyward from the sheer force of its movement.
Scout lunged.
