The throne groaned back to life, the stone beneath it grumbling as if it had awoken from some deep slumber. Thalyn’s eyes fluttered open, but she remained still, staring at the glyphs pulsing faintly before her, their light a reflection of the ancient power humming beneath.
Korr stood at a table littered with relics of the Elders, his hands moving with precision, the dim light sculpting the lines of his face. He turned an artifact over, his fingers tracing runes worn by time. The air buzzed with the thrum of machinery, like a heartbeat echoing in the chamber.
Thalyn inhaled sharply, the last taste of the memory still heavy on her mind. She rose and staggered a step, finding her balance, her gaze drifted to Elara who peered out of a window, her brow furrowed, her fingers tapping a rhythm against her thigh.
Outside, commander Hurst stood like a sentinel, mask hissing with his breath. His grip tight on the rifle, eyes scanning the tree line, the mist-choked plateau, the cliffs clawing at the sky. Something moved in the underbrush, drawing his eye.
The rifle barked, a sharp report. A group of Nether beasts staggered into view, twisted forms with glowing eyes. They snarled but held, wary of the ruins. Hurst waited until they retreated into the dark, then holstered the rifle with a grunt of satisfaction.
He stepped back into the chamber, eyes cutting to Thalyn. “Ka’el, you back with us?” His voice rumbled through the mask.
Thalyn nodded. “Yes, commander. But it’s... strange.” She said. “When I’m there… I don’t remember myself. I become him.”
Hurst pulled off his mask, eyes narrowing. “Interesting, what did you see this time?”
Thalyn’s gaze unfocused, recalling vivid memories. “I found a plasma rifle, half-buried beneath a broken droid. The city was a labyrinth, turrets malfunctioning, spitting fire without aim. And the beasts…” Her voice caught, the memory clawing at her throat. “They were relentless.”
Elara's head tilted. “You fought them? With the plasma rifle?”
“I did. It kept them at bay, but it was low on charge.” A pause. “Still… gave me confidence.”
Elara’s fingers twitched to hold a plasma rifle, a hunger in her eyes. “But Thalyn, how long were you there?”
Thalyn hesitated. “From before midday to twilight. Maybe longer. The sun was dipping when I emerged.”
Korr froze, a piece of tech half-raised in his hand. He looked up sharply. “Morning to twilight?” His voice carried an edge. “That’s not right. You weren’t gone that long.”
Thalyn’s brow furrowed. “No… I’m sure.” Her voice carried a strained edge. “Almost a whole day.”
Silence settled like a heavy fog. Korr’s lips moved, a muttered string of words lost to himself.
Something pricked her spine. Not a sound, but a presence. She turned, slow. Past the crown’s pedestal and the humming tables, her eyes found the sealed entrance. Behind it, in the shadowed passage where the chamber met the past, stood the sentinel.
A drone, squat, armored, its casing blackened by age, green eyes lit from within. It had stood there motionless since they first stumbled bleeding through that door, when the guardian’s roar still echoed in their bones. It had not stirred. Did not stir now. No motion but the low pulse of its optics, like breath drawn and never let go.
It watched them. Watched her. As if cataloging. Parsing. Remembering. No threat in its posture. Just that quiet intensity. Like a thing half-awake in a dream not its own.
She blinked and it stayed. Not blinking back.
“We need to keep going.” Her voice broke the brittle quiet as she turned again toward them. “There’s more to uncover. I have to go back.”
Jaxon’s jaw clenched, but he nodded. “Careful, Ka’el. We don’t know what it’s doing to you.”
Thalyn gave him a tight smile. “I know.” She turned to the throne, feeling its cold grip even before she sat, her fingers brushing the crown’s edges.
As she placed it on her head, the chamber began to slip away. The hum of the machines softened to a distant murmur, the lights bending and twisting. Her senses blurred, the air thickening with the onset of another life.
A whisper brushed against her thoughts. “Ready for more, Thalyn?” The voice carried a weight beyond the tease.
“Yes,” Thalyn whispered back, her resolve firm. “I’m ready.”
And then, everything vanished, replaced by another world, another life blending with hers.
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