The shift wasn't violent.
It was… intrusive.
Lina was walking home alone that evening. Neo had stayed behind for something minor at school. Eli had practice.
The sky was calm.
Too calm.
Halfway down the sidewalk—
She stopped.
Something felt… wrong.
Not a lie.
Not exactly.
But an observation.
She closed her eyes slowly.
There.
A thin thread of foreign awareness brushing against her existence. Not touching. Not interfering.
Measuring.
Her heart beat faster—but she didn't panic.
Seraphine's voice echoed in her memory.
"Truth doesn't react. It recognizes."
The presence tightened slightly.
Testing.
Lina inhaled.
"That's not welcome."
The air snapped.
A faint distortion in the atmosphere shattered outward like invisible glass.
Several kilometers away—
Nyx Ardent staggered slightly, her perception thread severed mid-probe.
"…Interesting," she whispered.
Beside her, Iris Vale looked up from her projection.
"She noticed?"
"Yes."
Veil's lips curved faintly.
"She didn't attack. She rejected."
Oracle's eyes narrowed.
"Truth is stabilizing faster than projected."
Veil tilted her head slightly.
"And Crown told us to wait."
Oracle didn't respond.
But the silence between them meant something had shifted.
⸻
Back on the sidewalk—
Lina exhaled.
It was gone.
Not defeated. Just removed.
For the first time— She wasn't just training inside Neo's Domain.
She had asserted Truth in the real world.
And it answered her.
She continued walking.
But now she knew.
They were watching.
⸻
The call didn't come through any network.
No signal interference.
No device activation.
No spatial breach.
It came through equilibrium.
The air in my room stilled.
Not frozen.
Balanced.
W.I.S.D.O.M reacted first.
[JUSTICE-CLASS ENERGY SIGNATURE DETECTED.]
[NO HOSTILITY.]
A thin line of golden light formed in front of me—not a portal, not a projection.
A scale.
Perfectly symmetrical.
Then his voice.
Calm.
Measured.
"Neo."
I didn't stand.
"I was wondering how long you'd wait," I replied.
A faint shift in the energy—amusement.
"You're considering movement," he said.
Not a question.
"Yes."
The scale rotated slowly in the air.
"The Apex destabilize balance," he continued. "The foreign energy distorts judgment."
"You've felt it too."
"Yes."
Silence lingered for a moment.
Neither of us rushed the exchange.
Justice never rushes.
"I assume you didn't contact me simply to confirm awareness," I said.
"You're correct."
The golden scale brightened slightly.
"You are approaching a threshold. Whether you escalate or restrain will determine the next era of this continent."
I didn't react outwardly.
Internally—
Accurate.
"I'll be making my way to the Darkshore Union soon," I said evenly.
Not asking.
Not requesting.
Informing.
"I intend to hear what you have to say."
I didn't mention alliance.
Didn't mention cooperation.
Didn't reveal intent.
That conversation belongs in person.
A brief pause.
Then—
A soft chuckle.
"Good."
He understood what I didn't say.
Aurelian never needed full sentences.
"You're bringing the others," he added.
"Yes."
Another faint smile in his tone.
"You're not alone anymore."
That wasn't criticism.
It was acknowledgment.
"I will be expecting you," he said.
The scale began to dissolve.
But before the connection fully faded—
"Neo."
"Yes."
"Come prepared for answers you may not like."
Then—
The light vanished.
The air returned to normal.
W.I.S.D.O.M recalibrated quietly.
[CONTACT TERMINATED.]
I leaned back slightly.
He reached out first.
Which means Justice is anticipating disruption.
Which means the portal is worse than projected.
And which means—
This visit won't just be diplomatic courtesy.
It will be the beginning of something larger.
I closed my eyes briefly.
Apex are evolving.
Truth is stabilizing.
Will is strengthening.
Justice is waiting.
And I'm walking into his territory—
Not as a subordinate.
Not as a rival.
But as something he hasn't fully measured yet.
Good.
Let him try.
⸻
We met inside the Domain.
Not the work chamber.
Not the training sectors.
Just an open field under a constructed sky.
Eli was lying on the grass, hands behind his head.
Lina sat cross-legged, calm as ever.
I just watched them relax, then I eased into it.
"I spoke with Justice," I said.
That got Eli's attention immediately.
"You didn't say you were doing that."
"I didn't," I replied. "He technically contacted me first."
Lina tilted her head slightly. "About what?"
"The portal. The Apex. The foreign energy."
Eli sat up now. "Hold on."
His expression sharpened.
"We already settled this. We're not moving to the Darkshore Union."
Lina nodded. "We agreed we weren't relocating."
"I'm not relocating," I said evenly.
They both paused.
"We're visiting," I continued. "Temporarily."
Silence.
Eli narrowed his eyes. "That's still stepping into his territory."
"Yes."
"And you trust him?" Lina asked gently.
"I trust his principles," I corrected.
That wasn't the same thing.
Eli stood now, folding his arms.
"So why?"
I didn't avoid it.
"Because I need his help."
That made them both blink.
"You?" Eli said.
"Yes."
"With what?" Lina asked.
"The foreign energy," I answered. "I don't understand it. And that's a handicap."
They stared at me like I'd just admitted weakness.
Which I had.
"If Apex escalate," I continued, "this becomes more than internal politics. It becomes continental instability. Justice will be involved whether we like it or not."
Lina's expression softened slightly.
"And you want a temporary alliance."
"Yes."
Eli studied me carefully.
"You're sure this isn't you overextending?"
"I'm sure."
"And Stage Five?" Lina asked quietly.
"Still sealed."
That eased something in her eyes.
"But there's another reason I made that choice."
"I also want to hear his reasons," I added. "Why he wants all the Saints unified so badly."
That part mattered.
Justice rarely pushes without cause.
Eli and Lina exchanged a long look.
The silent kind.
The kind where they measure me—not the strategist.
But the person.
Eli sighed first.
"Man… I hate going into someone else's power base."
"I know."
Lina sighed next.
"You're not going alone."
"No."
She gave me a small look.
"You asked."
Not commanded.
Not decided.
Asked.
Eli rubbed the back of his neck.
"Fine. We'll go."
"But only because you asked," Lina added.
I nodded once.
That was enough.
⸻
The chamber was dark.
Not because it needed to be.
Because he preferred it that way.
Elias Vorn stood before a suspended structure.
It wasn't part of official Apex systems.
It wasn't logged.
It wasn't sanctioned.
Foreign energy pulsed through a suspended geometric lattice—rotating slowly, humming with dimensional distortion.
Incomplete. But close.
Crown extended his hand toward it.
The energy responded.
Not like a tool.
Like a recognition.
"You're accelerating," a voice said quietly from the doorway.
Nyx Ardent stepped into the dim light.
He didn't turn around.
"Yes."
"You told us to wait."
"I told you to delay reporting," he corrected.
Veil's eyes narrowed slightly.
"This isn't sanctioned."
"No."
"And if Blake discovers this?"
"He won't." He quickly added. "It will be fine."
The lattice rotated faster.
Veil watched it carefully.
"You're trying to stabilize the source," she observed.
"Yes."
"You think the government is mishandling it."
"I don't think they are, I know They are."
Finally, Crown turned slightly.
"They're treating foreign divinity like a weapon."
"And you?" she asked.
"I'm preventing it from collapsing reality."
That made her pause.
"You believe Neo will move."
"Yes, of course he will."
"And you're preparing for him?"
Crown's expression remained unreadable.
"I'm preparing for everyone."
The lattice pulsed violently for a moment— Then stabilized.
Veil felt it.
The shift.
The energy was becoming obedient.
Refined.
Controlled.
"You're close," she murmured.
"Yes."
"And when you finish?"
Crown looked at the structure one last time.
"Then I choose," He replied. "And we whom ever I don't pick, gets buried."
The words lingered in the chamber.
Veil watched him carefully.
For the first time—
She wasn't sure if Crown was protecting the Axis State.
Or preparing to override it.
And that uncertainty—
Was more dangerous than open rebellion.
⸻
Apex Command Wing — Internal Briefing Hall
Blake Rogers stood at the central projection table, reviewing surveillance logs.
Energy fluctuation reports.
Truth signature anomalies.
Minor deviations in Apex synchronization.
He didn't like deviations.
The door slid open sharply.
Heavy footsteps.
Rook Calder walked in without requesting clearance.
Blake didn't look up immediately.
"You're not scheduled," Blake said calmly.
"Yeah," Rook replied flatly. "We need to talk."
That tone.
Blake finally lifted his eyes.
Rook's pride still hadn't recovered.
"You look irritated," Blake observed.
"I am."
"About?"
Rook stepped closer to the projection table.
"Crown."
That made Blake's expression sharpen slightly.
"What about him?"
Rook exhaled through his nose.
"He's withholding intel."
Silence.
"Explain."
Rook folded his arms.
"We detected a stabilized Saint signature yesterday. It was the Saint of Truth."
Blake's posture shifted immediately.
"And?"
"He ordered us not to report it."
The room went still.
Blake's voice dropped half a degree.
"Ordered?"
"Yeah."
Blake's jaw tightened.
"Crown doesn't issue orders to Apex."
Rook's lip curled slightly.
"He does when he can pin you into the floor without trying."
That line landed heavier than Rook intended.
Blake's eyes narrowed.
"What happened?"
Rook hesitated for half a second.
Then—
"I challenged him."
"Why?"
"Because he doesn't get to control information flow."
Blake stepped around the table slowly.
"And the outcome?"
Rook didn't answer immediately.
That was answer enough.
Blake's expression hardened.
"He overpowered you."
Rook's silence confirmed it.
"How easily?" Blake asked.
Rook met his gaze directly.
"Effortlessly."
That was the wrong word to use.
Blake turned away, processing.
Crown was already the strongest Apex on file.
But "effortless" meant the gap was widening.
"And you're certain he knew the Saint of Truth's identity before you?" Blake asked.
"Yes."
"And chose not to inform me."
"Yes."
Blake tapped the table once.
A quiet, deliberate motion.
"Why?"
Rook shrugged slightly.
"He says reporting now triggers premature war."
Blake exhaled slowly.
"And what do you think?"
Rook's eyes hardened.
"I think he's positioning himself."
"For?"
"That's what worries me."
Blake turned fully toward him now.
"You're telling me my strongest unit member is running unsanctioned strategy?"
"I'm telling you," Rook said bluntly, "he's building something."
That made Blake pause.
"Building what?"
Rook's jaw flexed.
"I don't know. But I felt it."
Blake's gaze sharpened.
"You engaged him inside a restricted chamber."
"Yes."
"Which chamber?"
Rook hesitated again.
That hesitation was dangerous.
Blake noticed.
"…Which chamber, Gauntlet?"
Rook exhaled.
"Lower dimensional testing wing."
Blake went completely still.