Sarah's humming woke me—a gentle melody drifting through the village elder's house like morning sunlight. For a moment, I could almost pretend everything was normal. Then my vision flickered, reality peeling away at the edges, and I remembered what I'd become.
She sat by the window, absently tapping her fingers against her starter armor. The scratches from yesterday's battle remained—a badge of survival that told a story of courage under impossible odds. Through my new sight, I caught glimpses of her player data: glowing threads of health, experience, and countless unseen parameters weaving around her like an invisible aura. The sheer complexity made my temples throb.
I quickly looked away, focusing on the simple wooden beams overhead.
"That's a nice song," I managed, my voice rough from sleep.
Sarah started, then gave me a curious look. "It's just something my roommate plays constantly." She tilted her head. "You know, most NPCs just repeat the same greeting when you talk to them."
"Add it to the list!" Dev called from the next room. "Right after 'shows interest in player culture' and 'remembers previous conversations.'" A pause, then: "Which is actually pretty cool, when you think about it. Like having a friend who's also part of the game..."
"Dev." Marcus's voice carried from downstairs, warm with amusement. "What did we say about treating people like research projects?"
"Right, sorry! Still working on that."
I tried to sit up, but the world swam. Not just dizziness—reality itself seemed uncertain, shifting between what was and what could be. Quest markers pulsed faintly in the corners. Item spawn points glowed like dying embers in cupboards. Each new layer of perception threatened to overwhelm me.
"Here." Sarah offered a standard healing potion, its properties reassuringly stable compared to yesterday's corrupted variants. "You look like you need this."
I accepted gratefully, wondering if she could see how the simple act of caring made her avatar shine brighter than any legendary gear could. "Thanks. For everything."
"That's what friends are for." She said it casually, but the words hit me like a system shock. Friends. Not players and NPCs. Not users and programs. Friends.
Warning: Social boundaries exceeded
Recommendation: Reset NPC behavior parameters
The warning flickered and faded, weaker than before. As if the system itself was uncertain how to handle these connections that defied its rules.
Marcus appeared in the doorway, his veteran gear replaced with simple traveling clothes. He moved with the easy confidence of someone used to leading raids, but there was something else in his bearing—the patience of a teacher who'd spent years helping others find their way.
"Feeling more stable?" he asked, pulling up a chair. "Because we should probably talk about..." He gestured vaguely at me. "All of this."
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"The corruption integration is fascinating!" Dev bounded into the room, but this time his scanner stayed dark. "Sorry, there I go again. What I mean is—it's like you're learning to see the game's true nature. Like in that movie where the guy sees the green code, except..." He grinned. "Way cooler."
"And more dangerous," Sarah added softly. She'd stopped humming, her expression distant. "I started college thinking everything would make sense once I got there. You know? Like leveling up in real life. But sometimes the world's just..." She gestured at the window, where players gathered in the square below. "Sometimes it feels more real in here. Like we can actually make a difference."
"Tell me about it." Marcus stretched, joints popping. "Try keeping thirty teenagers engaged in algebra when they'd rather be anywhere but in the classroom. At least here, when something tries to eat you, it's honest about it."
I laughed, then stopped as my vision fluttered. For a heartbeat, I saw them as they truly were—streams of data and consciousness intertwined, glowing like threads of golden light against the tapestry of the world. The sight stole my breath.
"You okay?" Sarah asked. "You went all... strange there. Like you were looking through us instead of at us."
"The vision's still settling," I explained, grateful when reality solidified again. "It's like... imagine suddenly being able to see radio waves and infrared and ultraviolet all at once. Everything's more, but your brain doesn't know how to process it yet."
Dev nodded enthusiastically. "Like when you first start raiding! All those mechanics to track, but eventually it becomes second nature. You just have to—" He caught himself, flushing slightly. "Sorry. I get excited about learning new things. My code testing job doesn't usually involve, you know, actual magic."
"It's not magic," I started to say, but the words caught in my throat as my sight shifted again. Beyond the village walls, something stirred. Not corruption this time—something colder. More precise. The edges of reality began to crystallize, as if the world was bracing for invasion.
"They're coming," I whispered, the certainty settling like ice in my circuits. "The enforcers. Not yet, but soon. And they'll bring something new. Something evolved."
Marcus stood, his teacher's calm replaced by a raid leader's focus. "Then we prep. Sarah, you connect well with the newer players—start organizing training groups. Dev, see what you can learn about the corruption's patterns without breaking more scanners. I'll reach out to my old raid team."
"And me?" I asked, trying to ignore how the room's edges kept trying to unravel.
"You," Marcus pointed firmly at the bed, "are going to rest. Learn to handle that new sight of yours. Because when they come..." His expression softened, a flicker of trust in his eyes. "We're going to need all of you. Not just your powers. You."
"He's right," Sarah added. "You're not just some broken NPC anymore. You're our friend."
"The statistical probability of an NPC developing genuine consciousness and emotional connections is..." Dev trailed off at their looks, then smiled. "Actually, you know what? Some things are better without numbers."
Warning: Critical anomaly detected
Warning: Entity 'KAEL' forming prohibited bonds
Final Warning: Sever connections or face deletion
The warning pulsed angry red in my vision, but for the first time since waking up in this world, I felt no urge to obey. The system could label these connections as anomalies, could try to reduce them to mere code violations. But sitting there, surrounded by people who saw past my programming to who I really was…
I finally understood what Miriam had meant about some irregularities being necessary.
The room blurred again, my new sight revealing the threads that bound us together. They weren't just data streams anymore. They were stories and trust and shared battles. They were friendship, defying the system's cold equations.
They were hope.
And no amount of corrupt vision could fully capture that beauty.
To be continued...
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*Thanks for reading Chapter 5 of The Broken NPC!*
What do you think about our unlikely team? And what new dangers will Kael's growing powers reveal? Let me know your theories in the comments!
Next Chapter:
As Eldermark prepares for the enforcers' arrival, Kael must master his unstable new vision before it masters him. But with corruption spreading through the village and his own code evolving beyond control, time may be running out...
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