Two months had passed since Kaius had last touched the chip.
In that time, the world had somehow managed to feel quieter and louder all at once. The shadows in the streets, the figures he saw in the corners of his vision—they were there, watching, waiting. But he hadn't dared dig deeper, not since the external breach, not since the moment he realized that someone else was trying to get their hands on the information the chip held.
And yet, despite the quiet, Kaius couldn't shake the feeling that danger was creeping ever closer.
Inside their small apartment, life had returned to some semblance of normalcy. He and Gareth spoke more often now, their conversations flowing with ease. It wasn't always about the serious stuff—sometimes it was just small talk, the kind that made Kaius feel like maybe, just maybe, everything was going to be okay.
"Dad, do you think we'll ever get out of this city?" Kaius asked one evening, staring out the window as the sun dipped below the skyline.
Gareth's voice came from behind him, steady and reassuring as always.
"We will. But it's not the right time yet. You've got to be patient, Kaius."
Kaius smiled, though the warmth that should have come with his father's words didn't quite reach him.
"You always say that."
"Because it's true...." Gareth's reply was gentle, but there was an edge to it.
"You need to focus on what's in front of you, not what's beyond the horizon."
But as the days turned into weeks, the shadows in the streets seemed to close in. Every time Kaius left the apartment, he caught glimpses of figures—lurking, waiting. It wasn't paranoia. He knew they were there. He could feel them watching him, but they never made a move.
At first, he tried to ignore them, brushing it off as his mind playing tricks. But then they started appearing more frequently, always just at the edge of his vision, disappearing before he could get a closer look. Sometimes he would catch the faintest shimmer, the movement of a coat or a figure slipping between the hover cars.
But it wasn't until one night, after the shadows had pressed closer than ever, that he finally decided he couldn't keep running from the inevitable.
It was a quiet evening, the usual city noise fading into the background as Kaius sat at the small table in the corner of the apartment. He'd spent the last few hours going over old notes, pieces of the equations he and Gareth had worked on, but his mind wasn't on them.
There was a knock on the door, sharp and deliberate.
Kaius's heart raced, and his eyes flicked to the door, then back to Gareth, who sat across the room, his back turned as usual.
"Dad," Kaius said quietly, glancing toward the door, "do you think we should open it?"
Gareth didn't respond immediately. His silence was unsettling, more than it had been in recent weeks. Kaius stood slowly, moving toward the door. He hesitated for a moment, then reached for the handle.
The door swung open, revealing Sura standing there, her sharp, calculating eyes meeting his with a familiar intensity. She looked different now—her hair, messy as ever, cascaded down her back, the ends still ruby-red, but the rest of her appearance was sharper, more refined. The cybernetic leg she had lost was now fully functional, gleaming beneath her trousers as she stepped inside.
Behind her, the looming figures of the Gravewalkers entered one by one, their presence filling the small apartment with an oppressive air.
"Sura," Kaius breathed, his heart pounding in his chest. He turned to Gareth, the words tumbling out before he could stop them.
"Dad, it's her. She's come back to help us."
Sura raised an eyebrow, glancing briefly at Gareth before turning back to Kaius. "Help you?" she asked, her voice carrying a note of amusement.
"Is that what you think I'm here for?"
Kaius felt a flicker of confusion but pushed it aside.
"Yeah. You said we were in danger before, and… I can feel it now. They've been watching me for months, lurking in the streets. I knew it was only a matter of time before something happened."
Sura exchanged a glance with one of the Gravewalkers, her expression unreadable.
"And what does your father think about all this?"
Kaius turned to Gareth, who remained silent.
"He knows. He knows we're being watched. We've been living normally, but we both know something's coming. Right, Dad?"
For a moment, Sura didn't say anything. Her sharp gaze flickered between Kaius and Gareth, and then she finally spoke.
"Kaius… How have you been?"
Kaius blinked, thrown off by the sudden shift in conversation.
"Me? It's been… slow, I guess. But we've been fine. Just living, working on stuff, trying to stay under the radar."
"And your father?" Sura asked, her tone soft but probing.
Kaius nodded, his voice quiet. "He's been here, helping me. Just like always."
Sura's gaze sharpened, but she didn't press further. Instead, she smiled—a strange, almost sad smile.
"Do you remember what happened? The day you saved me?"
Kaius's heart skipped a beat.
"Of course I do. I found you, brought you back here. And Dad… Dad helped fix you. Repaired your leg, your arm. We saved you."
Sura nodded slowly.
"Yes, you did. And I'm grateful for that, Kaius. But… do you remember what happened after that?"
The question hung in the air like a weight, pressing down on him. Kaius frowned, his mind scrambling to pull the memory to the surface.
"After? I… we just went back to living normally, didn't we? We've been fine ever since, right, Dad?"
He looked at Gareth, but Sura's eyes never left Kaius. She stayed silent for a long moment, as if waiting for something to click into place.
Finally, she spoke.
"You've been watched, Kaius. Ever since that day. Ever since the Gravewalkers and I left."
Kaius's stomach twisted.
"I know," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "I've seen them. Felt them. Lurking in the shadows."
The faint beep of Sura's comm unit broke the silence, her hand reaching up to press a finger to her ear.
"Go ahead," she said, her voice calm, though there was a flicker of tension beneath it.
One of the Gravewalkers stepped forward, his expression hard.
"We've got movement. Someone's watching the building."
Sura lowered her hand, her gaze flicking back to Kaius.
"It's fine. They're CyberWatchers—surveillance units from the Sky District. They don't engage. They just monitor."
Kaius nodded, feeling the faint tug of the red strings in his vision, the sense of danger that had been simmering for months.
"I know. I've felt them for a while now. But they're not a threat. Just… watchers."
Sura's eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you sure?"
Kaius nodded again.
"Yeah. I found a chip the day we met at the bus station. I've been working on it ever since, trying to break into it. But two months ago, I stopped. There was an external breach—someone else was trying to get into it too. I didn't want to put us in danger."
Sura's expression changed, curiosity flickering in her eyes.
"A chip? What kind of chip?"
Kaius took a deep breath.
"It was encrypted, something I found in the street. I think it was left for me. I spent weeks trying to crack it, but it was complicated. I had to stop because… someone else was after it. I couldn't risk it."
Sura crossed her arms, her gaze thoughtful.
"And you haven't touched it since?"
"No," Kaius answered. "I didn't want to. I didn't want to get us caught up in something bigger."
Sura stepped closer, her gaze intense.
"Show me the chip."