Alex awoke with a gasp, the familiar weight of his dual identity pressing down on him. Yet, something felt different. A strange hum resonated within him, a quiet thrumming that seemed to vibrate at the very core of his being.
Disoriented, he sat up and saw Anya regarding him with concern. "You alright, Alex?" she asked, her brow furrowed.
He rubbed his temples, trying to clear the cobwebs. "I had a dream," he admitted, the memory of the spectral scholar and the Void still fresh in his mind. "But it felt… more. Like a vision."
He recounted his dream, the scholar's words echoing in his ears: "The tapestry needs both of you, Alex… The explorer to navigate the unknown, the scholar to weave these new melodies into the grand symphony."
As he finished, Anya's eyes widened. "Alex," she said, her voice trembling with a mix of excitement and trepidation, "what if that wasn't just a dream? What if the scholar found a way?"
