THE HOLLOW CODE

CHAPTER 1 : GHOST IN THE CODE

The neon skyline of Neo-Tokyo blazed like an electric jungle, casting sharp reflections on rain-slicked streets. Towering holographic advertisements loomed over the sprawling metropolis, their flickering lights beckoning consumers to drown themselves in the latest virtual reality sensations. Kaito Nakamura walked through this digital urban chaos, his hood pulled low over his face, his eyes constantly scanning the shadows. He could feel it, as he always did—eyes were on him. Whether it was the surveillance drones that hovered silently above or the corp-sponsored mercenaries patrolling the streets, he knew his past made him a wanted man.

Kaito was a ghost, a brilliant hacker who had once been a legend in the underworld. But now, he was nothing more than a shadow, surviving on small-time jobs and trying to forget the sins that haunted him. His past was a labyrinth of mistakes—one bad job too many had left him with blood on his hands and his former allies in body bags. That's why he lived in isolation, buried in code, trying to drown the nightmares with endless streams of data.

Tonight, Kaito wasn't on a job. He was restless, trying to escape the suffocating walls of his apartment, filled with wires, blinking monitors, and old digital junk. As he weaved through the crowd, he couldn't shake the feeling of something bigger closing in on him.

The Coffee Shop: A Meeting of Fate

Kaito slipped into an unmarked coffee shop, its dim lighting contrasting with the neon inferno outside. The hum of conversations surrounded him, but he tuned them out, just like he always did. His fingers absentmindedly tapped on his deck—a slim device grafted to his wrist that allowed him to manipulate code at will. The interface blinked to life, lines of code streaming by as he encrypted his digital footprint. He knew better than to stay offline for too long.

Just as he was about to relax, the chair opposite him scraped against the floor. Kaito's hand instinctively moved to the concealed blade in his jacket, but he stopped when he saw who had sat down.

A man in a perfectly tailored black suit, his eyes cold, calculating, and far too comfortable in this seedy environment. His face was stern, his jaw set like someone who was used to being obeyed. No name tag, no ID. But Kaito recognized the subtle insignia on the man's lapel—the mark of NeuroSphere, the most powerful corporation in Neo-Tokyo. His gut tightened.

"Kaito Nakamura," the man said smoothly, folding his hands on the table, as if this were a casual conversation. "Your reputation precedes you."

Kaito's mind raced. NeuroSphere was a corporation that had its hands in everything—biotech, AI, virtual reality—but they were known for being ruthlessly efficient, devouring smaller companies and controlling vast portions of the digital landscape. For a company like that to know his name meant trouble.

"You've got the wrong guy," Kaito muttered, rising from his seat.

The man didn't flinch. "I don't think I do. NeuroSphere has a... special opportunity for someone of your talents."

A special opportunity. Kaito had heard those words before, usually just before he'd find himself neck-deep in black-market data smuggling or being hunted by corporate security. He didn't like the sound of it.

"I'm not interested," Kaito said, turning to leave.

Before he could take a step, the man placed a small data chip on the table. It gleamed under the low light, its design sleek and far more advanced than anything Kaito had seen on the market. It wasn't just a data chip—it was a key. And Kaito could feel his hacker instincts roaring to life.

"If you change your mind," the man said, his voice calm and cool, "this chip will give you direct access to Ryota Kimura, CEO of NeuroSphere. He's very eager to meet you."

The man stood, his movement eerily smooth, and left the café without another word. Kaito stared at the chip, a storm of conflicting emotions swirling inside him. Kimura. The name was synonymous with genius—and power. Ryota Kimura was a recluse, a visionary who had created NeuroSphere's revolutionary AI systems. To receive a direct offer from the man was nothing short of bizarre.

But what disturbed Kaito more was the timing. He'd been keeping his head down, staying off the radar. How had they found him?

Back at the Hideout: Haunted by the Past

Kaito's apartment was a cramped nest of wires, screens, and chaos. He slammed the door behind him, trying to shake the unease from his encounter. The rain had started falling harder now, tapping against the grimy window. The soft blue glow of the monitors lit up the dark room as Kaito sat down, running his hands over his face. He needed to clear his head, to think.

He tossed the data chip onto his desk and stared at it. NeuroSphere. Ryota Kimura. It wasn't the first time a corporation had come looking for him, but this felt different. It felt personal.

Kaito leaned back in his chair, the hum of his servers filling the room like white noise. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was being pulled into something far larger than himself. And that's when the memories started surfacing again—flashes of the night that changed everything. The night he lost control, the night he became a ghost.

His old crew. The job. The blood.

He shook his head, trying to push the memories down, but they clawed their way up, wrapping around his mind like chains. His hands trembled as he stared at his reflection in the dark screen.

"You don't deserve this life," he muttered to himself, the weight of guilt suffocating.

But then, his gaze drifted back to the data chip. Curiosity was like a virus in his mind. NeuroSphere's offer wasn't a coincidence. It was deliberate. They knew something about him, something they weren't saying.

Before he knew it, his hands moved on their own, slotting the data chip into the terminal. The screen blinked to life, and a sleek interface appeared—a direct communication link to NeuroSphere's private servers.

"I shouldn't be doing this," Kaito muttered, but the hacker in him couldn't resist. The data flooded in, encrypted beyond anything he had ever seen before.

And then, it happened—a single message, displayed in ominous red text across the screen:

We've been waiting for you, Kaito.

His breath caught. There was no escape from this. Whatever NeuroSphere had planned for him, he was already in too deep.