The whisper lingered in the air long after it had faded, wrapping around Kian-like unseen chains. “You have come too late.” The words echoed through his skull, hollow and ancient, as if spoken from the very bones of the Core itself. He swallowed hard, his pulse a steady drum in his ears. The corridor ahead stretched into darkness, pulsing faintly with an eerie glow, the walls breathing with an unnatural rhythm. Elena tightened her grip on his hand. “Kian…” her voice was barely above a whisper. “I heard it too,” he murmured. Selene groaned from where she lay on the cold stone, clutching her injured side. Blood oozed between her fingers, dark against her pale skin. “What… was that?” Kian shook his head. He didn’t know. And that terrified him more than anything. They weren’t alone. The air around them was charged, like the moments before a storm, thick with unseen energy pressing down on them. Kian scanned the corridor, his instincts screaming at him to keep moving. The rebels wou

Darkness pressed in on Kian’s senses, thick and suffocating, stretching endlessly in every direction. There was no floor beneath him, no sky above—only weightlessness, a sensation of floating through the void. He didn’t know how long he drifted, consciousness flickering at the edges like a dying flame. His body felt distant, as if detached from him entirely. Was he dead? Trapped inside the Core’s remains? Then— A sharp, stinging pain erupted in his chest. His lungs spasmed as he sucked in a ragged breath. Cold air rushed over his skin, dragging him back into reality. Kian’s eyes snapped open. Blurry lights danced above him, shifting between deep crimson and electric blue. The chamber was still intact, but everything felt… different. The metallic walls no longer pulse with the rhythmic glow of the Core. Instead, they flickered erratically, as if struggling to maintain power. The Core was gone. Or at least, it was no longer what it had been. Kian groaned, pushing himself up on sh

The chamber was eerily silent, save for the faint hum of the System’s remnants. Kian sat on the cold, metallic floor, his golden implant flickering weakly as he tried to process what he had just experienced. Elena knelt beside him, her hand resting on his shoulder, her touch grounding him in the present.“Kian,” she said softly, her voice filled with concern. “What happened? You were… gone.”He looked at her, his mind still reeling. “I saw him. Darius. He was… different. The Core—it’s not gone. It’s inside him.”Elena’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”Before Kian could respond, Selene stepped forward, her crimson implant glowing faintly. “The Core isn’t just a machine. It’s an entity. A consciousness. If it’s inside Darius, then we’re not done yet.”Kian nodded, his thoughts racing. “He said we couldn’t destroy it. Not without destroying ourselves.”Elena’s grip tightened on his shoulder. “Then what do we do?”Kian looked at her, his heart aching at the fear in her eyes. “We find hi

The chamber was eerily silent, save for the faint hum of the System’s remnants. Kian stood frozen, his golden implant flickering weakly as he stared down the barrel of Ryker’s weapon. Behind Ryker, Marcus and Darius loomed, their implants glowing ominously in the dim light.“Ryker,” Kian said, his voice steady despite the fear coursing through him. “Don’t do this. You’re better than this.”Ryker’s jaw tightened, but his grip on the weapon didn’t waver. “You don’t understand, Kian. This isn’t about right or wrong. It’s about survival. The System is broken, and if we don’t take control, everything will collapse.”Elena stepped forward, her eyes filled with anger. “And what? You think Marcus is the answer? He’s using you, just like he used Selene. Just like he’s using everyone.”Ryker’s expression faltered for a moment, a flicker of doubt crossing his face. But then his eyes hardened, and he shook his head. “It’s too late for second thoughts. The decision’s been made.”Before anyone coul

A golden shockwave rippled outward as Kian stepped forward, his implant no longer flickering but burning with pure, untamed power. The corrupted System shattered under the weight of his will, rewriting itself as the Origin had intended.Marcus staggered, clutching his head, his once-dominant implant now a dying ember. His breath came in ragged gasps as he reached toward the energy swirling around Kian. “No… I built this! I controlled everything! You were nothing—nothing without me!”Kian’s gaze was cold. The weight of betrayal, years of suffering, and stolen strength boiled inside him, but there was no hesitation in his stance.“I was nothing because you made sure of it,” Kian said, his voice steady. “You robbed me of my power, stole my credit, manipulated Elena, and fed the Federation a lie. But now?” His golden implant flared. “Now, you answer for it.”Marcus let out a desperate growl, lunging forward. His hand reached out, as if he could reclaim what had been taken. But the System