Morning arrived without ceremony. The city did not pause to acknowledge it, and neither could Legacy. Light filtered slowly through streets and structures, but the weight did not lift. It only changed shape. Systems shifted into daytime patterns, energy demands redistributing rather than disappearing. What had been sustained pressure through the night became layered pressure now, overlapping needs stacking one on top of another.Legacy felt the transition immediately.Her legs shook so hard she had to lock her knees for a brief moment, a dangerous choice that sent sharp discomfort up through her joints and into her hips. She corrected quickly, bending just enough to protect herself. Her thighs burned as if they had been set alight from within. The pain was no longer sharp or new. It was old, deep, settled into her muscles like something permanent.Her arms pressed against the column without conscious thought. They had become extensions of her instinct, reacting before her mind could r

The morning continued to unfold above her, indifferent and efficient. The city moved with purpose now. People traveled. Systems synchronized. Energy flowed in clean, coordinated patterns. For Legacy, that coordination translated into sustained pressure that never fully released. The chaos of the night had been replaced by something steadier and more punishing.Her legs shook without pause.The trembling was no longer something that came and went. It lived in her muscles now, a constant vibration that made standing feel unnatural. Her thighs burned with a deep, spreading ache that no longer had edges. Her knees felt loose, unreliable, as though the structures inside them were tired of holding their shape. Every few seconds she had to remind herself to bend just enough, to keep them from locking, to keep herself from collapsing.She leaned into the column more heavily than before. Her arms had taken on a permanent tremor. Forearms burned. Shoulders throbbed with a slow, pulsing pain tha

The hours after late morning blurred into something shapeless. The sun climbed higher, light filtering into spaces that had long stopped mattering to Legacy. She could feel its warmth faintly through the structure, but it did nothing to ease the strain. If anything, the heat made everything heavier. Sweat clung to her skin, soaked into fabric, cooled unevenly, and left her feeling both overheated and chilled at once.Her legs no longer shook in bursts.They vibrated constantly, a fine, relentless tremor that never paused. The muscles in her thighs felt thin and overworked, as though they had been stretched past their ability to contract properly. Every time she bent her knees, even slightly, pain flared through the joints, sharp enough to make her breath hitch. Locking them was not an option. She balanced carefully between too rigid and too weak, riding a narrow edge that kept shifting beneath her.Her feet felt swollen and bruised. The pressure there had become overwhelming, a deep a

The shift came slowly, almost politely, as if the structure itself hesitated before asking more of her. The vibration deepened rather than sharpened, rolling through the floor in a steady, unbroken wave. It did not strike. It pressed. Legacy felt it immediately in her bones, a low resonance that bypassed thought and settled directly into her muscles.Her knees bent without instruction.The motion was automatic now, practiced through repetition and fatigue. Thighs lowered, calves tightened, hips adjusted by fractions too small to see. Pain surged in response, bright and insistent, spreading through her legs like fire moving through dry grass. She locked her focus onto the column beneath her hands, letting its solidity anchor her as everything else threatened to blur.Her breathing slowed deliberately.Air moved in shallow paths through her lungs, careful not to disrupt balance. Her chest felt tight and overworked, ribs aching with each controlled inhale. Sweat continued to run down her

Legacy woke without realizing she had slept.There was no clear break between consciousness and rest, no sense of relief or renewal. One moment she was aware of the floor beneath her feet and the pressure in her legs, and the next she realized time had moved forward without her permission. Her eyes were open, unfocused, staring at the same dull surface ahead of her.Her body felt heavier than before.Not just tired, but dense, as if gravity had increased while she was unaware. Every part of her resisted movement. Even breathing felt like work, lungs expanding reluctantly, chest tight and sore. Her shoulders burned with a deep, constant ache that never eased, no matter how still she stayed.She tried to shift her weight.The attempt sent a sharp warning through her calves, muscles tightening painfully as if they were about to seize. She stopped immediately, freezing in place, breath held. Her legs trembled harder, the vibration running through her knees and thighs without pause.Standi