Chapter 8 The Memory Tax

"The cathedral is a death trap, Cyprian! You can't go alone!" Thomas shouted.

We were standing in the middle of the boardroom, the air still smelling of that silver smoke. The blue flame bird had vanished, but Isadora’s voice was still ringing in my head.

"She has Cedric. I don't have a choice," I said.

"She wants the Relic," Oswin added, his red glow flickering with agitation. "If you give it to her, you're finished. You'll have no leverage left."

"I'm not giving her anything," I replied. "But I need to get into that cathedral. And I need to get Cedric out of that silver cage before they delete him."

"How are you going to do that?" Thomas asked. "You saw what that smoke did to you. You're too weak."

I looked at my hands. They were translucent, almost grey. The Vanguard sweep had drained me.

"I'm going to overclock the system," I said.

Thomas gasped, his eyes widening. "You can't be serious! That's suicide for a ghost! You'll burn out your core!"

"What does that mean, exactly?" I asked.

"It means you pull more power from the Grey Layer than your soul can handle," Thomas explained. "It gives you massive strength, but it burns away your memories to pay the bill. You'll lose pieces of who you were!"

"I'm already dead, Thomas. What do I need memories for?" I asked.

"For your humanity!" He screamed. "If you forget who you were, you'll just become another hollow wraith. You'll be no better than the things hunting us!"

"Cedric is the only one who can crash Alaric's accounts," I said. "Without him, we're just ghosts playing in a skyscraper. I'm doing it."

[System Notification: Access Overclock Mode?]

[Warning: Overclocking requires a Memory Tax. High-tier power requires high-tier sacrifice.]

"Do it," I commanded.

[Select memory for deletion...]

Images flashed before my eyes. My first car. My graduation. My first million. None of them were enough. The system wanted something deeper. Something that mattered.

Then, I saw it. The night I met Isadora.

We were at a rooftop bar. The city lights were reflecting in her eyes. I remember the smell of her perfume—jasmine and rain. I remember the way she laughed when I spilled my drink. It was the first time I felt like I wasn't just a businessman. I was a man.

"That one," I whispered. "Take it."

"Cyprian, no!" Thomas cried.

I felt a sharp, icy pull at the center of my being. It felt like someone was reaching into my chest and tearing out a piece of my heart. The memory began to blur. The rooftop turned into grey smoke. Isadora’s face dissolved into static. The sound of her laughter was replaced by a digital hum.

I screamed as the power flooded my veins.

My translucent skin turned a blinding, electric blue. My muscles felt like they were made of lightning. I wasn't just a ghost anymore; I was a living storm.

"Get out of my way," I growled. My voice sounded like grinding metal.

"Boss? Your eyes..." Oswin whispered, backing away.

"What's wrong with them?" I asked.

"They aren't eyes anymore," Thomas said, his voice trembling. "They're just... empty blue holes. Like code."

"I don't care," I said. "Let's go to the cathedral."

We moved through the city like a blur. I didn't glide; I tore through the air. We reached the Old Cathedral in seconds. It was a massive, gothic structure draped in heavy chains of silver.

"There's the cage!" Thomas pointed.

High above the altar, the silver cage was suspended by glowing wires. Cedric was slumped inside, his static form almost gone. Isadora was standing below it, holding a silver incense burner.

"Cyprian? Is that you?" She called out. Her voice was cold, mocking.

I landed on the altar, the marble cracking under my feet. "Let him go, Isadora."

"You look different," she said, squinting at me. "You look... expensive. Did Alaric's relic do that to you?"

"I don't want to talk about Alaric," I said. "I want my accountant."

"Give me the Relic first," she said.

"I don't have it," I lied. "But I have this."

I lunged forward, my speed so great she couldn't even scream. I didn't hit her, though. I hit the silver cage. I grabbed the bars with both hands.

"Argh!" I roared as the silver burned into my palms.

The white smoke hissed against my electric blue skin. It was trying to bind me, but my overclocked power was too much for it. I felt the silver start to melt.

"Impossible!" Isadora shouted. "Vanguard's silver is pure!"

"I'm purer," I growled.

With a final, violent jerk, I ripped the cage apart. The silver bars shattered like glass. Cedric tumbled out, and I caught him before he hit the ground.

"Boss?" Cedric gasped, looking up at me. "You saved me?"

"You're too valuable to lose," I said.

I set him down and turned back to Isadora. She was backing away, her face pale with terror.

"What are you?" She whispered.

I walked toward her, my footsteps echoing like thunder in the empty cathedral. I wanted to feel something. I wanted to feel the rage I had felt earlier. But I couldn't. I looked at her, and I felt nothing. She was just a person. A small, insignificant person.

"I'm the man who's going to take everything from you," I said.

"You don't even remember me, do you?" She asked, her voice trembling. "I can see it in your eyes. There's nothing left of the man I married."

"The man you married is dead," I said. "I'm just the CEO."

"Alaric was right," she whispered. "The relic didn't just kill you. It made you perfect."

Suddenly, the cathedral doors burst open. The Auditor stood there, but he wasn't alone. He had six other masked men with him, all carrying Deletion Rods.

"Cyprian Fenwick," the lead Auditor said. "Your overclocking has triggered a Level 10 System Breach. You are now a Priority 1 threat."

"Get them out of here, Oswin!" I ordered.

"What about you?" Oswin asked.

"I have a meeting to finish," I said.

I turned to face the Auditors. The electric blue light around me began to pulse. I could feel the system screaming in my head, telling me I was breaking the rules. I didn't care about the rules. I didn't care about the memories I was losing.

"Come and get me," I said.

The Auditors raised their rods, and a wave of white fire washed over the altar. I didn't move. I stood in the flames, my eyes glowing like cold, blue pits.

"Is that all you've got?" I asked.

I raised my hand, and the marble floor began to rise. I wasn't just a ghost anymore. I was the ghost of the system itself.