The light burned.
Not hot. Not cold. Just too much.
Elyon stood frozen as the crack in the floor widened. The red glow pulsed like a living thing, pushing against the room. The air felt tight, heavy, like it was pressing him flat from all sides.
His wrist burned.
The band glowed brighter than ever.
—OVERRIDE WINDOW: OPEN—
Elyon's heart pounded so hard it hurt.
"I don't know what that means!" he shouted.
Kael stood a few steps away, weapon raised, body tense. "It means the system is offering you a shortcut."
"I don't want shortcuts!"
"No one ever does," Kael said. "Until they're scared."
The floor split wider.
Something moved beneath it.
Not a shape. Not a body.
A pressure.
Elyon felt it reach for him—not with hands, but with intent. Like gravity suddenly choosing him as its center.
"Tell me what to do!" Elyon yelled.
Kael's jaw tightened. "There's no right answer. Only one you can live with."
"That's not helping!"
Kael took a step back. "If you force it shut, you'll win this moment. But it will cost you later."
"And if I don't?"
"The system will adapt," Kael said. "So will they."
Elyon's legs shook. "And I might die."
Kael didn't deny it.
The pressure increased. Elyon's vision doubled. The room felt like it was sliding out of place, like two versions of reality were fighting over the same space.
Think, Elyon told himself.
Don't react. Choose.
He remembered the alley. The fear. How everything had exploded the moment he grabbed for power.
He remembered the object falling when he let go.
His hands trembled.
"I'm not your weapon," Elyon said through clenched teeth. "And I'm not your fix."
He took a step back from the crack.
The pressure screamed.
—WARNING: OPPORTUNITY DECLINED—
Pain ripped through his chest. He dropped to one knee, gasping. It felt like something inside him was being pulled apart, not violently—but disappointed.
The light flickered.
The crack stopped widening.
Slowly… it began to close.
Not sealed.
Not erased.
Just… unstable.
Kael stared. "You refused it."
Elyon coughed, sweat pouring down his face. "Yeah," he said weakly. "And it hurts."
Kael lowered his weapon. "It was supposed to."
The glow faded. The room settled with a deep, heavy sound, like the city itself exhaling.
Silence returned.
Elyon collapsed onto his side, chest heaving. His whole body felt empty, drained, like he'd run for miles without stopping.
The band dimmed.
—CHOICE LOGGED: RESTRAINT—
Elyon laughed weakly. "It keeps score," he said.
Kael nodded. "Everything does."
They didn't stay long.
Kael helped Elyon to his feet, guiding him through another hidden passage before the room could draw attention again. Elyon barely remembered the walk. His legs moved on instinct alone.
By the time they reached the surface, dawn had begun to creep into the sky. Gray light spread over the slums, making everything look tired and worn.
Elyon leaned against a wall, breathing hard. "So what now?"
Kael looked around, checking the street. "Now we disappear."
"Again."
"Yes."
Elyon rubbed his face. "How long does this keep happening?"
Kael met his eyes. "Until you stop being interesting."
"That doesn't sound hopeful."
"It isn't," Kael said. "But you bought yourself time."
Elyon looked down at his wrist. The band looked normal now. Quiet. Waiting.
"Did I do the right thing?" Elyon asked.
Kael didn't answer right away. "You did the hard thing."
"That's not the same."
"No," Kael agreed. "But it's close."
They moved through the early crowd, blending in with workers and vendors setting up for the day. Elyon kept his head down, but he felt eyes on him anyway.
Not real eyes.
Something deeper.
Watching.
—INCUBATION STABILITY: LOW—
He ignored it.
They stopped at a small shelter under a broken overpass. Old, hidden, forgotten. Kael checked the area, then motioned Elyon inside.
"You rest here," Kael said. "I'll be back."
"With answers?" Elyon asked.
Kael paused. "With information."
"That's not the same."
"It's all I can promise."
Kael turned to leave.
"Wait," Elyon said.
Kael looked back.
"If I had taken the shortcut," Elyon asked quietly, "what would I have become?"
Kael's expression hardened. "Effective."
Then he left.
Elyon sat alone, listening to traffic rumble overhead. His body ached, but his mind wouldn't slow down.
Restraint, he thought.
That's what I chose.
The static was still there—but quieter. Watching, not pushing.
For now.
Hours passed.
Elyon drifted in and out of sleep.
Then—
The band pulsed.
Sharp.
Urgent.
—UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS—
Elyon's eyes snapped open.
The world tilted.
Not around him—toward him.
He felt it again. That pull. That pressure. But this time, it wasn't offering power.
It was taking data.
"No," Elyon whispered. "No, stop."
The air shimmered.
A shadow formed in front of him. Not solid. Not fully here. Just an outline, like a hole cut into the world.
And from it came a voice.
Not mechanical.
Not human.
Calm. Certain.
"You refused when you should have accepted," it said.
Elyon pushed himself back, heart racing. "Who are you?"
"We are the ones who clean mistakes," the voice replied. "And you are becoming one."
"I didn't choose this," Elyon said.
The shadow shifted. "You did. You just chose slowly."
The band burned.
—OBSERVER LINK: ESTABLISHED—
Elyon screamed as the shelter lights shattered.
Far above, systems adjusted their paths.
Targets updated.
Tolerance reduced.
Elyon's time had run out.
And this time,
the city wasn't just watching.
It was closing in.