The Titanic's grand hall hummed with life. Warm laughter, soft music, and the clinking of glasses filled the air like a nostalgic melody, but there was a subtle shift in energy—an undercurrent of finality. Civilians and enforcers shared stories, their spirits high after their latest victory. But at the far end of the hall, Aiden, Rowan, Amara, Kieran, and Sylva gathered in solemn preparation.
Captain Smith stood across from them, his white coat pristine as always, his gaze firm yet knowing. He leaned on the table, hands pressed flat, his eyes locked on Aiden.
"You sure about this, boy?" Smith's voice was steady, no anger, no doubt. Just pure, unwavering command. "Cutting into the Core's influence directly ain't like taking a walk through the park. You'll be past any line I can drag you back from."
Aiden glanced down at his hand, fingers brushing over the Ring of Vows. The gentle pulse of its glow matched his heartbeat, steady and strong. He curled his hand into a fist, then looked at Captain Smith with eyes that no longer wavered.
"I know," Aiden said, his voice steady as steel. "But if we stay, it finds us. If we move, we find it. I'm done waiting for it to make the first move."
Smith studied him for a moment, his eyes narrowing as if weighing every ounce of resolve Aiden had left. Then, his mouth tugged into a faint grin.
"That's the right answer, boy," Smith said, pushing off the table and folding his arms. "When you step through, don't look back. Not for me. Not for them." He glanced at Rowan, Amara, Kieran, and Sylva. "Take care of him, you lot. Especially you, Sylva."
Sylva's glow intensified for a brief moment. "I always have."
Rowan snorted. "He's the one dragging us into this. Shouldn't it be the other way around?"
"You wish," Aiden shot back with a grin.
"Keep moving, boy," Smith said one last time, his voice firm but not unkind. "But watch the cracks beneath your feet."
Aiden nodded, turning to face the others. His eyes met each of theirs, lingering just a little longer on Kieran. "Ready?"
Kieran rolled his shoulders, his smirk faint but genuine. "Do I look like I'm backing out now?"
"Then let's go," Aiden said. His gaze sharpened. Aiden turned to face the space ahead, his gaze sharp as broken glass. His fingers curled into a fist, his eyes narrowing on the empty air. pulling his hand back like drawing a blade from its scabbard. The glow from his ring brightened, the pulse growing rapid. Energy crackled around his arm as he cut into the fabric of the air itself.
The air screeched, a jagged slash of silver light splitting the space in front of them like a wound torn in reality. The air buckled, rippling outward, revealing a churning, swirling veil of light and darkness beyond.
"Thank you for everything," Aiden said over his shoulder. Pausing for half a step before mumbling. "Captain."
Smith raised two fingers in a loose salute. "Forward, boy. Always forward."
With a deep breath, Aiden stepped forward, letting the veil of silver light wash over him. It was like stepping into freezing water, sharp and shocking. His lungs seized, and for a moment, he couldn't breathe.
The world twisted.
The air shifted instantly. The sharp tang of copper and steel from the Titanic was gone, replaced by the overwhelming scent of wet earth and foliage. The ground beneath them was soft, uneven with moss and roots. A cacophony of nature's sounds surrounded them—buzzing insects, the distant calls of unknown creatures, and the hum of something primal, like the heartbeat of a world too old to know them.
"This…" Kieran said, wiping his forehead as sweat dripped down his brow. "This is not right."
"No kidding," Rowan muttered, her eyes scanning the treeline. Her spear spun once in her hand, the rhythm quick and tight. "Feels like something's off."
"You're right," Amara added, crouching low, her sniper rifle held tight to her chest. Her eyes flicked left, right, then up. "I dont here any birds."
Sylva floated forward, her eyes distant, fingers gently trailing through the air as if she could touch it. Her glow dimmed slightly.
"This timeline is fractured," Sylva said softly, her voice distant like she was recalling a memory she'd never lived. "Pieces of it shouldn't be here, but they are. This isn't just one era. It's several echoes of them."
Aiden glanced at her. "You mean like the fragments we saw before?"
"No," she said, her glow flickering. "Worse. This isn't just bleeding through. This is where fragments collapse."
Her gaze turned upward, her voice quieter now. "This space shouldn't exist."
They moved carefully through the undergrowth, the sounds of something larger thudding in the distance. The boom-boom-boom of footfalls grew louder, like something heavy moving through the trees.
Amara's grip tightened on her rifle. "If that's what I think it is, I'm calling it now — we run."
Aiden stepped forward, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the tree line. He saw nothing but shadows. Too many shadows. He glanced at Sylva, her glow flickering like a lantern in a storm.
"You're holding something back," Aiden said quietly. "What aren't you telling us?"
Sylva's glow dimmed even further, her face flickering with uncertainty. Her eyes softened—not with fear, but with sadness. "You deserve to know," she said slowly, her gaze flicking to each of them. "I wasn't always Sylva. I was something… more. I was whole."
Kieran raised an eyebrow. "Whole? You mean you were stronger before?"
"Not stronger," Sylva corrected, her eyes locked on the ground as if she could see something they couldn't. "I was complete. One mind. One soul. But something changed. Something… broke." She glanced at Aiden, her eyes sharp. "That break is what created me. It created Lila. And it created the Core."
Her words lingered in the still air.
"Wait," Rowan said, her eyes narrowing. "You're saying the Core is—"
"Me," Sylva finished, her voice quiet but firm. "It's me. It's all the parts of me I threw away. My fear. My anger. My doubt. It all festered… and it grew smarter. It grew into something else."
For a moment, no one spoke.
Kieran crouched, picking up a stone from the ground, rolling it in his hand. "You're saying it moved because it didn't stop to think. It just moved. You didn't." He snorted, tossing the rock aside. "Smart people always freeze up. They overthink everything. Dumb people? They just keep going. Even if it's painful."
Kieran adjusted his glasses, squinting at her. "Funny thing about logic, Sylva. overthinking keeps us stuck where we are. It sounds like the Core didn't know better on how to second-guess itself. Sometimes, that's all it takes."
His words lingered in the air.
Sylva said nothing.
CRACK.
The sound of a snapping branch.
Amara raised a fist, halting them all. She turned slowly, her eyes scanning the thick foliage. The buzz of insects had stopped.
"Rowan," Amara muttered, her eyes locked on the underbrush.
"I heard it," Rowan replied, her spear already drawn. Her eyes darted left, then right. Her voice was low and sharp. "We're being flanked."
They all turned, forming a circle with Sylva at its center.
"Eyes open," Aiden warned. "It hasnt ambushed us yet."
The sound of slow, steady movement echoed from the foliage. Not heavy footfalls. Soft. Precise. Calculated.
The first shape emerged.
A figure, low to the ground, its body framed by dappled light filtering through the leaves. A raptor. Its body shifted with the texture of living shadow, its form bleeding into smoke at the edges. Its feathers shimmered like dark oil, its eyes burning like twin rubies.
"Dark Enforcer," Aiden muttered, his eyes locked on the creature. "The Core's sent them after us."
It sniffed the air, slowly tilting its head toward him. Then its eyes locked on his hand—specifically, the Ring of Vows. The raptor tilted its head in the exact same way Aiden had seen himself do a hundred times.
A low, clicking sound echoed from the underbrush. Chittering. Soft but sharp. It wasn't one sound. It was several. Dozens.
"Spread out!" Aiden snapped, raising his hands. "Weapons ready!"
Another shape emerged to the left. Then another to the right. Three of them. Each one flanking them from a different direction.
"Well, this just got interesting," Rowan muttered, her eyes sharp with focus. She spun her spear, shifting to a combat stance. "Ready to show these things what we got?"
One of the raptors stepped forward, its feathers bristling, its claws scraping against the stone. It opened its mouth, revealing a set of curved, sharp fangs. But it didn't growl. It didn't roar.
It laughed.
Not a roar. A low, guttural, human-like laugh.
Kieran's eyes widened. "That's not a raptor. That's—"
"An Enforcer," Aiden finished. His heart pounded in his chest, his gaze locked on the glowing red pulsating under its black smokey feathers.
Amara slowly raised her sniper, her voice quiet but stern. "Orders, Aiden?"
Aiden took a slow breath. The raptors didn't rush. They didn't lunge. They waited. They knew.
"Don't break formation," Aiden said, his eyes narrowing. His hand brushed against the Ring of Vows, feeling the heat of it under his glove. "We move together. No one gets separated."
The raptors began to spread out, their eyes locked on him, their steps slow, deliberate, like predators on the hunt.
"Don't think," Kieran muttered as he raised his shield.
The air grew tense. One heartbeat. Two. Three.
Then, with a flick of his hand, Aiden's eyes locked with his team.
"Move."
The world ignited.