Black Halo

In the rain-slicked, neon-drenched metropolis of Vantas, humanity exists on a razor's edge. The city is governed by the HALO system-a revolutionary nanotech network intended to unite minds, elevate consciousness, and streamline existence. But every miracle has a dark cost. Kade Vey is a man living on the fringes of this hyper-connected dystopia. Scarred, cynical, and desperate to escape a past that haunts his every waking moment, Kade finds himself trapped in the underbelly of Blackveil Station. When a catastrophic corruption tears through the HALO network, it unleashes a digital plague, transforming ordinary citizens into hollowed-out "ghosts" and drowning the city's data-streams in a tide of violent madness. As the corporate enforcers of Aeternum move in to purge the infected with ruthless, armored precision, Kade discovers he carries a unique, volatile anomaly within his own cybernetics-a fractured, black halo crown.

Samuel Howard Ludke is an American Poet, Western Writer, and Author. His poetry deals with life, love, death, and the pursuit of the American Dream. He has written thousands of poems, almost one hundred books, and articles for many newspapers across the country.