The first sensation that hit Damien was an icy grip that seemed to reach deep inside him, unlike any chill he had ever experienced. It wasn’t the kind that merely prickled his skin; this cold burrowed into his bones, freezing his thoughts before they could even form.He found himself standing on a jagged plateau, the ground beneath his feet a treacherous black stone. Above him, the sky was a swirling canvas of muted colors an unsettling blend that shifted and shimmered like a fever dream. Beneath him, he sensed a slow, deep pulse, a heartbeat that resonated from something ancient and colossal lurking beneath the surface.And there was Sophia.Her figure was close enough for him to see the uneven rise and fall of her breathing, as though she had just sprinted through a tempest. Her hair clung to her face, drenched and wild. But she wasn’t alone.Beside her loomed a tall figure, more shadow than substance, distorting the air in its vicinity. Each breath Damien took felt heavier, as if t

The air inside the vault felt heavier, as if an invisible weight was pressing down on them, making each breath a bit more labored. Sophia found herself moving slower, not because she was tired or weak, but because every step seemed to pull bits of her thoughts down into the ground. Damien was ahead, quiet as ever, but the light around him bent in a strange way, like he was wading through water.Sophia realized she had been staring at his back for too long. She noticed the curve of his shoulders and how his hand tensed when he reached for the next glowing marker along the vault's path. There was something different about the way he moved hesitant yet resolute that didn’t quite match the Damien she knew outside.She felt the urge to call out to him, to say they should turn back, but the vault’s hum intensified, filling her mind with a low, resonant pulse that drowned out her thoughts. She stepped closer, almost reaching out to touch him, but hesitated. It wasn’t fear of him that held he

The silence that followed the Loop’s voice felt worse than the storm. It hung in the air, heavy and strange, like the atmosphere was eavesdropping on them. The ground didn’t shake, and the sky didn’t crack open, but something was different. Ash could feel it in her chest, a tightness, as if every breath was woven into an invisible tapestry.She shot a glance at Sophia. Her face was pale and hard to read. Damien looked tense, his hands still half-formed into fists, as if preparing to fight with an enemy he couldn’t see. But Lena? She was the most still of them all her eyes were unfocused, and her body swayed slightly, as if she was anchored to something far away.Ash struggled to voice her thoughts. What did it mean that the Loop had claimed them?Lena’s lips moved, but her voice was just a whisper. It means we’re no longer outside of it. The recursion has rewritten itself around us. We’re not just spectators anymore.Damien’s jaw clenched. So what are we, then? Prisoners?There was a

The dome was gone. The guardians? Gone too. Even the low hum that used to fill the space was silent now. Lena stood there, surrounded by a deep silence that felt like she was being buried alive. The fracture had swallowed Sophia and Damien, leaving her standing on a platform of bright white light that stretched out endlessly in every direction. No edges. No shadows. Just light soft, but relentless. Her throat felt raw as she tried to call out, but her voice just faded into the emptiness. It was like the world didn’t want to hear her. She was completely alone, left with nothing but the sound of her heartbeat and the heavy realization that the Source had chosen her. Clenching her fists, she promised she wouldn’t let it break her. Then, out of nowhere, a flicker crossed the white space. Another flicker followed. Shapes began to form in the distance, slowly moving closer. Lena’s stomach dropped when she realized these weren’t strangers. They were her. Hundreds of Lenas, each on

The light receded, and in its stead came silence.Lena's eyes opened tardily, not knowing if they had been shut for seconds or centuries. She was lying on glossy stone, her cheek on a surface which was warm, pulsing. Spread around her was an endless hall, pale and wavy, as if walls could be made of tangled threads of memory.Sophia stepped alongside him, standing with her hand still in Damien's. Her features glowed softly, as if the flame of the Core had seared itself inside of her. She looked at Lena, her expression torn between horror and amazement.Damien surveyed their location, and his muscles were tense. This isn't the Council chamber anymore.It wasn't. The grand marble chamber was gone. No Arbiter. No guardsmen. No lofty thrones of authority. Instead, there were whispers of people moving like shadows in the distance men and women and children, all flickering in and out of existence, like half-remembered ghosts.Lena struggled to her feet. Did the Core pull us in… or did it pus