The sound was a scream of metal and wind — sharp, mechanical, hunting.
Kael gripped the shard the Vaultkeeper had given him, its cold surface humming faintly in his palm. The old man—if he could still be called that—was already reaching for a rusted energy rifle slung over his back.
"Echoes," the man growled, "run if you want to live."
But Kael didn't move.
The tunnel beyond was shaking. Lights overhead blinked in panic, casting chaotic shadows along the walls. Then—emerging from the dark—came the first Echo.
Its body was humanoid, but wrong. Too thin. Its movements jerky, puppet-like. A swirling mass of tendrils and broken armor twisted around a glowing core embedded in its chest. Its face was a featureless mask… except for a single red slit.
"Target confirmed. Awakening anomaly. Orders: Erase."
Kael raised his hand instinctively. The lines along his arm lit up — and the Echo lunged.
He barely dodged.
Its claws tore through concrete as Kael slammed the Vault shard into a console on the wall. The door behind him lit up with alien glyphs… and opened.
"Move!" the Vaultkeeper shouted.
They dove inside. The door sealed a moment later with a thunderous slam — and the Echo crashed into it, clawing but unable to breach the ancient code.
For now.
They were in a tunnel of smooth alloy. Unlike the world above, this one hadn't rotted.
"This path leads straight to Delta-Seven," the Vaultkeeper said, breathing hard. "But it won't stay safe for long. The Echoes are evolving. They remember how to kill the light."
Kael looked at the glowing shard in his hand. It had changed color — now a brilliant orange.
"What am I supposed to find there?" he asked.
The man looked at him grimly.
"Answers. Or the end of hope itself."
—
Meanwhile…
In the Citadel of Iron, Sol stood beneath a massive sphere of swirling data — a fragment of the Architect's consciousness.
He stared as Kael's recent encounter with the Echo played out again and again.
"He's accelerating," Sol whispered.
The voice of the Architect hissed through the air.
"He is unstable. Like the others before. You must correct the code."
Sol nodded. But in his eyes… doubt flickered.
Was Kael truly like the others?
Or was he something else?
End of Chapter 7