New Game Plus

The paramedics—or rather, the "cleanup crew" Adrian had called—were gone. The office was quiet.

Nora sat on the edge of the ambulance bumper, wrapped in a shock blanket.

Adrian walked over. He had changed his shirt; he looked immaculately terrifying again, though he held two paper cups of coffee.

"Decaf," he said, handing her one. "Your heart rate is still elevated."

"Thanks," Nora said. She took a sip. It was terrible office coffee. It tasted like victory.

She looked at the air above Adrian’s head.

**[ADRIAN THORNE - LVL ?? VAMPIRE - ALLY]**

"So," Adrian said, leaning against the ambulance. "The Mimic is terminated. I've filed the report. Corporate is sending a scrubbing team to wipe the servers and the memories of the surviving staff."

He looked at her. "I can wipe you too, Nora. I can remove the System. You can go back to being... normal. No more text boxes. No more monsters."

Nora looked at the blue interface floating in her vision.

**[QUEST COMPLETE: SURVIVE THE WEEK.]**

**[REWARD: 10,000 XP. LEVEL UP!]**

**[NEW TRAIT UNLOCKED: MAIN CHARACTER ENERGY.]**

She thought about her life before. The silence. The invisibility.

Then she looked at Adrian. For the first time, he didn't look like a predator. He looked like a teammate.

"Actually," Nora said, a small smile playing on her lips. "I think I'll keep it. The HUD is kind of useful for social anxiety."

Adrian raised an eyebrow. A slow, genuine smile touched his lips. It showed a hint of fang, but it wasn't threatening.

"Suit yourself," he said. "But if you're keeping the interface, you'll need a job that fits the skill set."

A new window popped up in Nora’s vision.

**[NEW QUEST: THE PARTNERSHIP.]**

**[ROLE: LIAISON / AUDITOR.]**

**[OBJECTIVE: ASSIST ADRIAN THORNE IN HUNTING ANOMALIES.]**

**[REWARD: DENTAL BENEFITS AND ADVENTURE.]**

**[ACCEPT?]**

Nora looked at the button. She didn't hesitate.

"I accept," she said.

**[ACCEPTED.]**

Nora stood up, tossing the shock blanket aside. "So, Boss. What's the next quest?"