Chapter 11 – Broken Resonance
The smoke hadn't finished dissipating yet.
The flames of the black site were dying slowly, smothered by the artificial rain triggered by the zone's security systems. Around the ruins, emergency lights flickered, casting distorted shadows over the exhausted Bearers.
Daniella hadn't moved.
She stood apart, arms wrapped around herself, staring blankly at the void left by the explosion. The Light inside her was silent. Too silent.
Kaël approached without a word.
— You cut yourself, he finally said.
She lowered her eyes. A thin line of fractured light snaked along her forearm, like a scar refusing to close.
— It's not physical, she whispered.
— I know.
He gently placed his hand over hers. The shadow tried to respond… but hesitated. For the first time since they had met, the synchronization wasn't immediate.
Kaël froze.
Daniella felt it.
— What…?
He slowly withdrew his hand.
— Something has changed.
A heavy silence fell between them.
Behind them, Pyra coordinated the evacuation of survivors, aided by Terra, who had secured a stabilized passage. Aeris watched the sky, too nervous to joke. Nyx, meanwhile, studied Daniella with cold attention.
— The link is unstable, she said finally.
— Unstable how? Daniella asked, throat tight.
Nyx tilted her head.
— As if it had been… marked.
HÉLIOS — ADVANCED CONTROL ROOM
Elias Korr watched the data scroll.
Not the images. Not the casualties. The curves.
— Repeat the analysis.
— Lymen/Void synchronization disrupted at 23%, confirmed the AI.
— Residual frequency successfully implanted.
Korr nodded slowly.
— So she survived.
— Yes, sir. But the resonance is no longer pure.
A slight smile tugged at his lips.
— Perfect.
An officer dared to intervene:
— We lost the site. Twelve subjects freed.
Korr turned to him.
— And how many did they lose?
The officer consulted the data.
— One. Confirmed.
— No, Korr corrected gently. — They lost two.
A concerned silence.
— The boy… and certainty.
He leaned closer to the main screen, where Daniella's name flashed.
PRIORITY: HIGH
STATUS: ACTIVE — ALTERED
— They think they've won because they saved lives, he continued.
— But what we've taken is far more valuable.
— What have you taken, sir?
Korr smiled.
— Time.
THE SANCTUARY
The return was brutal.
As soon as the last survivors crossed the threshold, the sanctuary locked with a deep rumble. The walls moved more violently than usual, as if struggling to close.
Daniella stumbled.
This time, Kaël caught her just in time.
— Sit down.
— No, she replied immediately. — I need to understand.
She looked up at the central platform. The symbols were still lit… but some flickered weakly.
— They're turning off, Lina whispered, terrified.
Terra frowned.
— Not all of them.
Indeed, new symbols still appeared. But chaotic. Unstable. Like scrambled calls.
Nyx approached.
— HÉLIOS did more than capture.
— They injected a parasitic frequency into the resonance network.
Pyra clenched her fists.
— In plain words?
— In plain words, Kaël said darkly… — They can now track awakenings before Daniella feels them.
A cold chill ran through the room.
— Impossible, Daniella protested. — The sanctuary—
— The sanctuary protects here, Nyx interrupted. — But the outside world? It's open.
Daniella put a hand to her chest.
— So every time someone awakens…
— …HÉLIOS will already be on their way, Aeris finished.
The silence that followed was overwhelming.
FRACTURE
Daniella stood despite protests.
— Show me.
— What? Kaël asked.
— The link. The network. What they've done.
He hesitated.
— Daniella, if you dive in now—
— Then I'll see the truth, she said firmly.
Nyx smiled slightly.
— She's ready.
Kaël gave in.
He placed both hands over hers.
— Slowly. Don't force it.
She closed her eyes.
The Light responded… but differently.
Deeper. Fragmented.
She saw.
Points of light.
Muffled cries.
Failed awakenings.
And among them…
An artificial shadow. Cold. Calculated. Inserted like a beacon.
She screamed.
Kaël yanked her out of the link abruptly.
Daniella fell to her knees, gasping.
— They're marking them, she sobbed. — Not all… but enough to anticipate.
Kaël paled.
— Elias Korr…
Nyx nodded.
— He's no longer hunting the generation. — He's shaping it.
ELSEWHERE — UNKNOWN
A teenager's eyes flew open.
His breath was short. His hands trembled.
A faint green glow pulsed beneath his skin.
Before he could understand—
A figure appeared behind him.
— Calm down, said a soft voice. — You've done nothing wrong.
A syringe pierced his neck.
The light went out.
BACK TO THE SANCTUARY
Daniella lifted her head, burning gaze.
— They've won a round.
Kaël knelt before her.
— Yes.
— But not the war, she whispered.
He stared intensely.
— No. But from now on…
He drew a deep breath.
— …every decision will cost more.
The sanctuary pulsed faintly, like a wounded heart.
And somewhere, in the shadows, HÉLIOS had just proven one essential thing:
Even prophecies can bleed.