Chapter 15 – The Crown Division
Beneath the capital of Eronys, past iron walls and shifting memory-lock doors, the heart of Shayan's true empire pulsed in silence.
Crown Division Headquarters.
A city beneath a city.
Artificial daylight mimicked noon above polished obsidian floors. Towering screens streamed data from every empire, syndicate, and world-level organization. And at the center of it all, like a spider resting within its web, sat Seraphis Zaan—the Grand Strategist of the Crown.
He wore no uniform. No titles. Just a single earpiece and a chess piece pendant: the black king.
"Three incursions in under twelve hours," Seraphis muttered, watching the map flicker. "And the AI ghosts on the outer grids are acting... sentient."
Behind him, an assistant approached—barely seventeen, yet modified beyond human limits.
"Report from Monarch Sigma-7," she said, bowing. "He encountered a high-tier mnemonic entity. A memory killer."
Seraphis didn't move. "And?"
"Confirmed survival. Minimal damage. But the enemy has breached veil protocols."
"Then the game begins early." Seraphis smiled coldly.
---
In the upper world, Shayan and Velka stood before the ruins of the observatory. Rain had begun to fall again—washing away the remains of the spawn.
Velka stared into the distance. "You heard it too, didn't you?"
Shayan didn't answer at first. His hand clenched the Chrono-Stake.
"I didn't just hear it," he finally said. "I felt... familiarity."
"That shouldn't be possible."
"I know. But I've only felt that sensation twice before."
Velka turned to him. "When?"
He looked at her.
> "The day my brother died. And the day I stopped dreaming."
Velka said nothing. But the truth that hovered in the silence was louder than words.
This creature—the Memoryless One—wasn't just an anomaly.
It was connected to Shayan's origin.
---
Deep within the vaults of the Crown Division, a sealed chamber hissed open.
Inside it, suspended in a tube of silver liquid, was Subject X, the first of the Silent Children. The prototype.
Unconscious.
Unaging.
And behind the glass, Seraphis Zaan placed his hand on the console.
> "He's waking up, isn't he?" he whispered.
The AI responded with a single phrase:
> "Project Crownfall has entered Phase II."
---
Back above, Shayan opened a neural channel directly to Crown HQ.
> "Seraphis."
The strategist's voice came instantly.
> "Monarch."
"I need access to Level Nine memory vaults."
A long pause.
> "You're sure?"
"No. But I no longer believe that safety lies in caution."
Seraphis didn't argue. He simply nodded once. "Unlocked. Just know this... what's buried there was never meant to be found."
Shayan cut the line.
He turned to Velka.
> "You wanted truth. You'll get it. But what's coming next... might shatter everything."
Velka smiled faintly. "Good. I like broken things."
And so, together, they walked into the world's deepest shadow.
Toward truths forgotten by gods, erased by kings, and locked away by fear.