Kael didn't sleep.
The Memory Anchor ritual still burned behind his eyes. Forbidden magic wasn't just rare—it was suicidal. The fact that someone used it to revive Lyra meant two things:
> One: They had knowledge that shouldn't exist.
Two: They had plans that extended beyond death.
And worst of all—they were still active.
---
At dawn, the rebels gathered for another war meeting. Kael watched from the roof of a half-burnt tower, cloaked in layered shadow.
Lyra stood at the head of the ruined altar. The mask was back on, but Kael had already seen behind it. And now, all he saw was fragility masked as fire.
She spoke in short, clear commands. Measured. Ruthless.
But there was a hesitation in her voice when she mentioned the Empire.
> Like the word itself had holes in it.
---
Kael's attention drifted to the girl from the night before—the one who'd caught him.
She stood behind Lyra, arms crossed, scowling at everything.
> She knows something. More than she said.
---
"Commander," one of the soldiers stepped forward. "We captured a spy last night. Claims he was from the western wing. But he's branded."
Branded.
Kael's blood froze.
There was only one kind of brand in the Empire's shadow ranks—a Void Mark. The same brand Aserion gave to those he wanted to break and bind.
> He sent someone here. Already?
> Or…
> Was the spy not from Aserion at all?
---
They dragged the prisoner forward.
He was young. Maybe seventeen. But Kael recognized the blank stare.
Not of fear.
But of someone who had been emptied.
> A mind wipe?
> No—something worse.
---
Lyra stepped forward, eyes narrowing behind her mask.
"Speak your name," she ordered.
The boy didn't respond.
She leaned closer. "Who sent you?"
Still nothing.
But then the boy looked up—eyes glowing for just a second—and whispered:
> "You did."
---
The camp went still.
Kael stood up sharply, heart thundering.
The boy's body jerked violently. Blood ran from his eyes. Something burst inside him like a broken seal.
Then—
He screamed.
Not a voice. Not a name. A pulse.
A wave of dark memory shot out like a sonic shock, slamming through the rebel camp like a tsunami. Men dropped to their knees. Some passed out instantly.
Even Kael staggered back, blood dripping from his nose.
> [System Alert: Unstable Anchor Feedback Detected]
Anchor Source: UNKNOWN
Echo Triggered: Proximity of Lyra + Interference Protocol
---
Kael's vision blurred.
But through the ringing in his ears, he heard a single sentence, burned into the boy's death-cry:
> "The shadow will fracture what the light could not."
Then silence.
The boy collapsed, dead.
---
Lyra didn't speak. She was frozen.
But Kael saw her fingers tremble.
> She heard it too.
> She felt the anchor pulse.
> And something inside her recognized it.
---
Moments later, she dismissed the others.
But as she turned to leave—
She looked directly at where Kael stood hidden.
Right at him.
Eyes locked.
No words. Just a long, silent look.
And for a second—
He knew she remembered him.
Not everything.
But something.
---
> [Shadow System Update]
Anchor Feedback Recorded
Target: Lyra Ellenhart
Memory Trigger: Partial
Status: Waking Fragment (Phase 1 of 3)
---
Kael dropped from the tower into the woods below.
His head pounded.
His heart screamed.
He had tried to stay distant.
Detached.
But that moment…
That single look shattered all his distance.
---
> "She remembers me."
"Or the part of me that once held her hand before everything burned."
I was supposed to be the shadow.
But maybe… I was the one she remembered even in death.