Ethan stood alone in the abandoned art building, breath misting in the cool air. The floor beneath him was scarred with chalk lines and old sigil burn marks from Lila's previous training sessions. Dust hung thick, but the silence felt welcome—like a hush before a revelation.
He wasn't here to train with Lila this time.
He needed solitude.
He needed to understand what he had become.
Ever since Delilah had given him the memory shard, something inside him had shifted. The world looked different. Clearer. Like he was no longer just seeing reality—but reading it.
A low hum throbbed in his chest, barely audible but impossible to ignore. It pulsed in sync with the threads he now conjured effortlessly.
"Let's see what you can do," Ethan whispered.
> [Skill Activated: Thread of Will]
Three threads shimmered into view, brighter than before—no longer wisps of silver light but living strands that vibrated with awareness. He willed them forward, shaping a cube, then a spiral cage, then a shield. Each construct obeyed faster, sharper.
Then he focused.
And called to the new voice in his mind.
> [Skill Primed: Spiral Echo]
Awaiting trigger construct…
He took a breath and repeated the motion that formed Shield of Memory, anchoring the threads in a wide, circular formation. The barrier shimmered into existence, glowing faintly with warm light, charged with memory—Mia's smile, her voice, the night she vanished.
The moment it stabilized—Spiral Echo awoke.
> [Spiral Echo Triggered – Emotion Detected: Grief]
Mimicking: Shield of Memory
Emotional Mutation Applied: Inversion Construct
New Construct Formed: Cage of Regret
Type: Bind/Containment
Effect: Encases target in a shifting structure of reactive memory threads that feed on emotional echoes. Duration scales with target's emotional resonance.
From Ethan's palm, a second formation bloomed. Unlike the original shield, this one didn't protect—it imprisoned.
The threads coiled outward, then inward, forming a weeping lattice that hummed with hollow echoes. For a moment, he thought he heard Mia's laughter warped into static.
He shuddered, stepping back.
The Cage trembled… and then slowly unraveled into mist.
> [Spiral Echo cooldown initiated – 3 hours remaining]
He stood there, stunned.
So this is how Spiral Echo works…
Not just a mimic.
A reflection of intent.
Warped by emotion.
The skill didn't just copy—it evolved the construct based on Ethan's inner state. If grief turned a shield into a prison… what would rage do?
He didn't want to find out.
Not yet.
---
Back in his dorm, Ethan sat at his desk flipping through Mia's old sketchbook.
She'd been an artist. A dreamer.
In the weeks before her death, her drawings had grown darker—twisted depictions of eyes in the sky, spirals hidden in reflections, creatures with no faces but far too many mouths. Back then, he'd thought it was her way of processing trauma. Of coping with the world falling apart around her.
Now he wasn't so sure.
He flipped to a page near the end.
There was a sketch of a staircase—twisting through clouds, nearly identical to the Forgotten Steps in the Rift.
And on the last page, scrawled in a trembling hand:
> "They called me Dreambound. I think I went too far."
Ethan's blood ran cold.
"Mia…" he whispered.
She had been there.
Not just caught in the background of the Rift's awakening—but inside it. Connected. Maybe even awakened.
Just like him.
> [System Prompt Unlocked: "Dreambound Lineage Detected"]
Hidden Trait Activated: Inherited Thread Affinity – Source Unknown
Increased resonance with dream-weaving abilities.
Deeper Rift layers accessible sooner.
Caution: Inheritance may include latent corruption.
Ethan sat back in his chair, stunned.
"Why didn't you tell me…?"
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock.
He opened the door to find Lila, dressed in a dark green coat, a long scarf wrapped around her neck. Her face was pale, serious.
"Grab your things," she said. "You're coming with me."
"To where?"
"To meet someone who knew your sister."
---
They traveled by foot, across the city, to a forgotten subway terminal sealed off after a collapse decades ago. Rats skittered through cracked tiles. Rusted rails vanished into the dark. And yet… the air shimmered faintly.
The Rift bled here too.
Lila knelt and traced a sigil on the old ticket counter.
It pulsed—and a door opened where there had been only concrete before.
They stepped through into a chamber of black marble and soft, golden fog. Statues lined the walls—each depicting a Dreamweaver in battle, face contorted with agony or triumph.
And at the center stood a man.
Mid-thirties. Lean, sharp features, a coat of tarnished bronze buckled over layered leather. His left arm ended in a stump of smoothed silver metal, like it had been sealed by dreamfire. His eyes were mismatched—one hazel, one pitch-black.
He turned slowly, gaze settling on Ethan.
"So. You're Mia's brother."
Ethan's throat tightened. "You knew her?"
"I trained her," the man said. "Before she broke through the veil. Before she chose to go deeper."
He stepped forward.
"Name's Varian. I'm what's left of the last generation of Dreamwalkers."
Lila nodded toward Ethan. "He's inherited a Thread affinity. Already awakened Spiral Echo."
Varian blinked. "That fast? Then the Rift's speeding him up. Deliberately."
Ethan frowned. "Why would it do that?"
"Because Lucien's spiral is widening. The Rift needs a counterbalance. And you…"
Varian reached out and touched Ethan's chest, right above the heart.
"You're the fulcrum."
> [System Notification – Dreamwalker Contact Achieved]
Shared resonance detected. New instruction route unlocked.
Mentorship Link Formed: Varian Cail
Access granted to advanced constructs and layer synchronization training.
Varian stepped back.
"I won't sugarcoat this," he said. "Your sister tried to challenge Lucien. She failed. She descended beyond the Deep Spiral—and something took her. Something that might still be using her memory."
Ethan's voice cracked. "You mean she's alive?"
Varian shook his head. "No. But her echo might be. And if it's caught in the wrong hands… Lucien could weaponize it."
Ethan clenched his fists. "Then we stop him."
Varian studied him for a long moment. "You've got the resolve. Let's see if you've got the focus. Meet me here tomorrow. We begin serious training."
Lila placed a hand on Ethan's shoulder. "You ready for this?"
He nodded.
More than ever.
---
That night, Ethan stood at the rooftop again, the wind howling around him.
He held his threads in his hands like strings of fate.
One led to Mia.
One to Lucien.
One to whatever future he had left.
And now…
He would weave them all into something stronger.
Something dangerous.
Something his.