2026-02-02 16:30:20
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THE BARRIER THAT BURNS
Forty-three minutes. I stepped toward the barrier. Heat radiated from it like standing too close to a forge. The system's warnings scrolled across my vision in angry red letters.[WARNING: CATASTROPHIC FAILURE IMMINENT] [COPYING TIER 5 SPELL AT CURRENT RANK: FATAL] [RECOMMENDATION: RETREAT]"Don't," construct Lirae said behind me. "Please. I'm not worth this."I reached out anyway.The moment my fingers touched the barrier, pain exploded through every nerve. It felt like being unmade, torn apart at the seams. The spell was too complex, too powerful, too much for what I was. Fire raced through my veins. My bones felt like they were cracking.[COPYING: PURIFICATION BARRIER (TIER 5)] [ERROR: INSUFFICIENT CAPACITY] [SELF INTEGRITY: 20% → 19%] [CRITICAL: APPROACHING POINT OF NO RETURN] [BELOW 20% IDENTITY CORRUPTION IRREVERSIBLE]I tried to pull away. Couldn't. The spell had hooked into me like barbed wire, dragging me deeper. Memories that weren't mine flooded in. A thousand faces I'd nev
BLOOD ON THE SKY STREETS
The barrier felt like touching lightning.I pulled my hand back, staring at the shimmering wall of energy that separated Skyreach's outer ring from the city proper. One hour and eighteen minutes. That's all I had left before they killed Lirae."Go through the merchant district," the construct said beside me. Her voice crackled like bad reception. "Fewer high-ranking mages there."I nodded and ran. The streets erupted around us. Alarm crystals screamed from every corner. Overhead, floating platforms carrying enforcers converged toward my position. The merchants scattered, abandoning their stalls of glowing silks and enchanted trinkets.A woman in expensive robes turned the corner. She saw me and her hands lit up with pale green fire."Hollowborn scum," she spat. "How dare you set foot in..."I touched her wrist.[COPYING: POISON MIST (TIER 2)] [SELF INTEGRITY: 27% → 25%]Her spell became mine. The knowledge burned into my brain, wrong angles and alien thoughts. I tasted copper and hear
THE FIRST ASCENT
The climb started with ancient stairs. They were carved into the cavern wall, spiraling upward into darkness. Each step was worn smooth by centuries of neglect. Some had crumbled away completely, leaving gaps I had to jump across.The construct Lirae followed me. Even knowing she wasn't real, I was grateful not to be alone."This is suicide," she said."Probably." I kept climbing. My legs are already burned. "But I have to try."Words appeared in my vision.[DISTANCE TO CITY: 2.7 KILOMETERS] [ESTIMATED CLIMB TIME: 14 HOURS] [TIME REMAINING UNTIL EXECUTION: 7 HOURS 42 MINUTES]Seven hours to climb what should take fourteen. Impossible. But I'd survived impossible before.The stairs ended at a massive shaft that stretched straight up, disappearing into darkness. Metal beams crisscrossed the space, remnants of old machinery. Chains hung from the walls, thick with rust."The old maintenance shaft," the construct said. "Before the cities perfected their floating magic, they used mechanical
THE MAN WHO SHOULD NOT EXIST
The old figure led us deeper into the tunnels until we reached a massive cavern. At its center sat a throne made of twisted metal and broken stone.They sat down slowly, joints cracking like old wood. "My name is Vaelor Kyn. Though I suspect that means nothing to you.""Should it?" I asked."Once, perhaps. Before the Council erased me from every history book. Before they declared me dead and threw my name into the void."The words in my vision pulsed.[ENTITY CONFIRMED: VAELOR KYN] [RANK: APEX (6TH RANK) - SEALED] [ORIGINAL VIRE CAPACITY: 89,000] [CURRENT VIRE CAPACITY: 340] [SPELLS AVAILABLE: 3 (RESTRICTED)] [STATUS: SELF-IMPOSED CULTIVATION LOCK]Eighty-nine thousand capacity. The numbers made my head spin. The Blaze rank enforcers who'd hunted me had fifteen thousand. This man, even sealed, was something beyond anything I'd imagined."You were Apex rank," I breathed."I was more than that." Vaelor's glowing eyes fixed on me. "I was one of the twelve arch-mages who performed the Rew
THE LIE OF MAGIC
The pain came in waves. Each one crashed through me harder than the last. My body felt like it was being torn apart from the inside. The blue veins under my skin pulsed so bright they lit up the entire chamber."Kael, stay with me." Lirae's voice sounded far away. "Don't you dare die on me."I wanted to answer. I wanted to tell her I was fine. But my mouth wouldn't work. My whole body had stopped listening. The words in my vision flickered wildly.[SELF INTEGRITY: 55% → 52%] [CRITICAL THRESHOLD APPROACHING] [SELF INTEGRITY: 52% → 48%] [MENTAL BARRIER FAILING] [WARNING: PERSONALITY COLLAPSE IMMINENT]Then new words appeared. Different. Urgent.[ACCESSING DEEP MEMORY FRAGMENTS...] [HISTORICAL DATA AVAILABLE] [INITIATING EMERGENCY INTEGRATION]The world went dark.++++++I wasn't in the tunnels anymore. I stood in a massive hall carved from white stone that glowed from within. Columns stretched up to a ceiling so high I couldn't see where it ended. The air felt thick, heavy with power.P
HUNTED BY THE SKY
The first scream came from the eastern camp. Then another. And another. The sound of magic tearing through flesh echoed across the Undercleft. People were dying."Move!" Rhex shoved me toward the ruins. "Don't stop, don't look back!"But I did look back.The enforcers moved through the camps like a plague. Silver armor flashing. Spells flying. Fire bloomed in the darkness. Ice spears punched through makeshift shelters. Lightning crackled across the ground. They weren't asking questions. They were killing everyone."Why?" I gasped. "They're just looking for me!""They don't care." Lirae grabbed my arm, pulling me forward. "To them, everyone down here is trash. Witnesses. Problems."Guilt crashed over me. These people were dying because I had been stupid enough to use magic. Because I existed.An explosion rocked the ground. Fire erupted behind us, lighting up the night."Faster!" Rhex pulled us into a narrow passage between collapsed walls.We ran. My lungs burned. My legs screamed. Bu
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