Darkness had teeth.
It bit into my skin with every step I took through the aqueduct's underbelly, the cold damp walls pressing closer with each turn. Time blurred. I didn't know if it had been hours or minutes since the chase. But the Nexus hadn't stopped pulsing. If anything, it beat faster now, as if excited. Or preparing.
I wasn't alone.
Not in the physical sense—I hadn't heard pursuit since leaving the city—but inside. Inside, something moved.
My dreams hadn't been dreams. Not really. They'd been data.
Downloaded straight into my head. Lines of code in a forgotten language I suddenly understood. A voice that called me Heir, whispering secrets with the finality of a prophecy.
Codex synthesis initializing.
It hadn't stopped since.
My fingers trembled. Not from fear, but from the echo of something… shaping. I looked at my palms. Faint sigils glimmered across them now—like ink, but alive. Ever-shifting. I could feel what they were trying to do: unlock something buried in my DNA, rewriting me line by line.
The Nexus was turning me into something else.
I had a choice. I could fight it. Or let it finish.
But did I really have a choice?
A rustle echoed behind me.
My head snapped around. Nothing.
I kept moving, slower now. The tunnel sloped upward until the air changed—less rot, more wild earth. The city was far behind me. Ahead, trees bent under moonlight. I stepped into a clearing, knees weak, senses wide.
And that's when I heard the voice.
"You're not dead. Huh."
I spun.
A boy leaned against a tree, arms crossed. Younger than me, maybe thirteen. Dirty-blond hair. Pale eyes that saw too much.
"Who—?"
"Name's Talek," he said, cutting me off. "You made a lot of noise back there."
"You followed me?"
"I tracked you. Big difference."
I narrowed my eyes. "Why?"
"Because you're either really lucky or really cursed. And I'm betting on both."
He walked toward me, casually, as if he didn't notice the Nexus flaring under my skin.
"You activated a rogue Codex," he said. "And lived. That's not normal."
"Tell me something I don't know."
"Alright." He smirked. "That Codex wasn't rogue. It was seeded. Planted in your bloodline generations ago. Elarion tech. Forbidden now."
"How do you know that?"
He tilted his head. "Because I've got one too."
Talek pulled back his sleeve.
The same sigils. The same shifting ink.
But his were older. Faded. Battle-worn.
I stared. "What are we?"
"Leftovers," he said. "From a war no one remembers and a plan no one talks about. Welcome to the fold."
I didn't know whether to laugh or collapse.
"What does the Nexus want from me?"
Talek's grin faded. "To complete what it started. Synthesis. Integration. Weaponization. Depends on how long you last."
"And if I don't want that?"
He stepped closer, eyes hard now. "You think this is about what *you* want? The moment you lit up, half a dozen hunter factions clocked your location. You're a beacon. You don't get to be normal anymore."
"I never was."
"Then maybe you'll survive."
He tossed a worn pack at my feet. Inside—food, a canteen, some maps. And a small cube.
"What's this?"
"Anchor chip. To help stabilize the next phase. You're mutating too fast."
My stomach turned. "Mutating?"
Talek nodded. "The Nexus doesn't just give power. It rebuilds the host. You'll lose things. Memories. Preferences. Maybe even emotions."
I backed away. "Then why do it?"
He shrugged. "Because they're going to come whether you're ready or not. And if you don't control the Codex…"
"It controls me," I finished.
He looked satisfied.
"You'll feel it soon," he said. "The fractures. Time won't stay straight. You'll see things you haven't lived yet. Hear voices from other versions of yourself."
"And you?" I asked. "How long have you had yours?"
"Five years. Got it when I was eight."
"You don't look older than thirteen."
He smirked again. "I'm not."
The realization hit hard.
"You haven't aged."
He nodded. "Time lock. One of the side effects. Or perks, depending on your outlook."
Before I could reply, the ground shuddered.
Talek swore. "They found you."
A pulse of energy rang out across the clearing. Not subtle. Not quiet. A declaration.
Mara had been right. They were still tracking me.
"Three incoming," Talek muttered. "High-grade. Enforcers, maybe."
"What do we do?"
He reached into his coat, pulling out a slim blade etched with those same sigils.
"We run. Then we plan."
So we did.
We darted into the trees just as the air behind us ripped open—literally torn by one of the hunters arriving via Rift Gate. I didn't look back. I didn't want to see what kind of monster stepped out.
Talek led the way, fast and fluid. Not human fast—something more. And I matched him.
For the first time, I felt the Nexus working with me, not against. Feeding my limbs strength. My mind precision.
But it wasn't perfect.
Not yet.
Branches clawed my arms. My breath rasped. Every time I blinked, sigils bloomed in my vision—directions, calculations, threat matrices.
We broke through the forest into a chasm. Wide. Deep. A single metal bridge stretching across.
Talek didn't slow. "Hope you're not afraid of heights."
I wasn't.
But halfway across, the hunters caught up.
A voice boomed behind us. "Subject 117. Surrender. You have no designation clearance."
I turned—and froze.
They wore old-world armor. Polished. Marked with the sigil of the Ascendant Order. Not just hunters.
Codex Reclaimers.
Talek cursed again. "They're not supposed to be here. Not this early."
"What do they want?"
"You."
A bolt of light screamed past us, shearing through the bridge rail. Sparks exploded.
I reached for power, but the Nexus hesitated—flickering like a weak signal.
"I can't channel—"
"They're jamming your link," Talek said. "Override it. Focus on the Codex, not the interference."
I closed my eyes. Reached inward instead of out.
And there it was.
Like fire waiting for breath.
The shard pulsed. The sigils flared. My limbs went still—but ready.
When I opened my eyes, everything had changed.
The world slowed.
I could see their movements before they made them. Hear the crackle of their armor's joints. Sense the distortion fields flickering around their weapons.
It was time.
I launched forward.
One Reclaimer raised his halberd. I ducked, twisting under the arc, slamming my palm into his chest. A shockwave burst outward—crystal energy detonating from my core.
He flew back.
The second advanced—faster, meaner. But Talek met him mid-swing, blade flashing like lightning.
I didn't see the third until it was too late.
Pain tore through my side.
I staggered, vision flashing white.
"Kaien!" Talek shouted.
But I was already falling.
Over the edge.
Into the dark.
The Nexus screamed.
Then silence.
And then—
Codex synthesis complete. Initiating Phase Two: Core Alignment. Neural unlock in progress. Heir status confirmed.