The online world of the Colossal Machine had the power to take Nigel anywhere and he was homesick. His neural interface fed him images of a world that he feared most. His heart pounded as every detail of his hometown materialized before him. He couldn’t believe the destruction of what had become of Milford. What happened? It reminded him of those wasteland games he used to spend hours in. The air was thick with some sulfurous ash substance. He didn’t know what it was, but his eyes burned from it.

I’ve got to find Ralphie—if he’s alive.

Moments later, he arrived at 302 Sycamore Lane, the house he grew up in.

“Mom? Ralphie?” Nigel said as he tried the doorknob.

Locked. Where could they be?

Nigel examined the porch. A piece of wood was slightly raised. He pulled back on the sliver of wood to find his spare key. The key brought back memories of when he had it made. His mother insisted that he get a spare key made and gave him a fake rock to hide it under. After he found his room ransacked and some of his computer equipment stolen, he’d found a better hiding spot.

A clanking sound came from behind. Nigel turned to find a boy he recognized. He was about twelve and looked like he had been having a hard time at life. The boy ran behind a nearby parked car that looked like the engine compartment had exploded.

“Hey, come out, kid. I won’t hurt you,” Nigel said.

The boy bolted. The kid was fast, but Nigel was faster and grabbed the kid by the scruff of the neck. The boy’s shirt ripped, revealing a malnourished sack of bones. The kid’s appearance reminded Nigel of those late-night advertisements of starving children.

“No, I don’t have anything to take. Leave me alone,” the kid said, tears forming in his eyes.

“I’m not going to hurt you. I can help.”

The kid pulled away from Nigel’s grasp, but didn’t run away.

“Wait… aren’t you—”

“I’m Ralphie’s brother.”

The kid’s eyes widened.

“I didn’t recognize you.”

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“Can you tell me what happened here?”

“We were told to stay indoors, because of a chemical that got released in the air.”

“What chemical?”

“I don’t know the name, but it made people go crazy. They started attacking each other and then those things came...”

“Things?” Nigel asked, his heart racing.

“Yeah, those...creatures. They weren’t human anymore. They had wires in their skin and spoke gibberish,” the boy said, his voice shaking.

Nigel felt a chill run down his spine. This was worse than anything he could have imagined. He had to find his family and get out of here.

“Do you know where my family is?” Nigel asked.

“They took them,” the boy said, his eyes filling with tears.

“Who took them?”

“The...the men with suits. They came in black vans and took anyone who was left alive,” the boy said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Nigel’s worst fears had come true. The Cabal had found his family. He had to find them before it was too late. Nigel scanned the street, his eyes darting between the rubble and destruction. He couldn’t see any signs of life except for the boy standing in front of him. The boy’s words echoed in his mind—the men with suits.

Nigel pulled a virtual gun from its holster and it fell apart before his eyes. He watched the pieces fall to the ground. They bounced across the jagged pavement, but didn’t make any sound. The boy was frozen in indecision.

“Listen to me. We need to move,” Nigel said, his voice low.

The boy nodded, his eyes wide in fear. Nigel took the lead, his eyes scanning the surroundings for any signs of the Cabal.

As they walked, Nigel couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched. Every sound made him jump. Every shadow made his heart race. They rounded a corner and Nigel saw two creatures the boy had mentioned. They weren’t exactly human, or robot, but a combination of the two. The larger of the two had wires hanging from its head.

“Ren robbie donrey,” the larger shape said.

“Tin’ batter bum fen?” the other shape responded.

“What are they saying?” said the kid.

Nigel shushed the boy, but it was too late. The wires attached to the larger creature pointed in their direction.

“Fin’finder buddy bum,” the creature said, pointing toward Nigel.

“Run!” Nigel said.

The boy put his hands over his head and rocked back and forth. He was moaning and crying. The creatures moved like the wind. Nigel ran while the pair of cybernetic monstrosities surrounded the boy. A ragged, weak howl emanated from the boy. Nigel ran. He looked back to see the boy transform into an enormous beast with a massive horn. Nigel couldn’t make out what the beast could be. It was a cross between a rhino and a human. The image of a bestial body and the face of the boy he’d met was too much to comprehend. The cybernetic humanoid thing jumped on its back and let out a battle cry that chilled Nigel to the bone. As he fled, his vision filled with a floating text.

System Message: Initiating the Leviathan protocol.

Danger is imminent—system failure in progress.

A rumbling threw him to the pavement. Pieces of the sidewalk fell into nothingness. Nigel thought he could see the blue grid where the sidewalk disappeared. Other nearby objects faded. Soon it was just him and the riders who closed the distance. The warm and foul breath of rotting animal meat overcame his senses. The nonsensical murmurs of the riders echoed throughout his mind as the world disappeared piece by piece.