Past (6)
The Architect had always prided himself on his precision. Every shadow he cultivated, every reflection he manipulated, every soul he devoured—it all served his grand design: to keep the City intact and its secrets buried. Yet, as he stared out of the arched window in the fourth building, fury boiled within him. His once flawless plan was beginning to unravel, and it all started with the photograph.
The photograph was not just an anomaly; it was a fracture in the City itself, a truth that should have remained hidden. It accidentally slipped into Lara's possession, a moment of pure chaos he hadn't foreseen. He tried to destroy it multiple times, sending reflections to retrieve and eliminate it, but it was as if the photograph had a will of its own. It kept appearing, duplicating itself in places beyond his reach, and worse—it led Lara closer to the beginning of the City's cursed existence.
The Architect's frustration deepened when he turned his attention to Margot. Her fragmented memories were a shield against his manipulations, an irritating barrier he couldn't penetrate without a direct link. So, he devised a new strategy: attach a part of himself—a reflection—to her. It was subtle, a quiet tether that allowed him to guide her actions, planting seeds of doubt and misdirection.
Victor was his chosen tool. The night he mimicked the voices outside Margot's window, calling for her to answer, was a carefully orchestrated act to lure her into despair. Margot had resisted, but her interference only delayed his plans. She disrupted his reflections with the vials she had crafted, unknowingly injuring a fragment of his being. That moment should have been a victory for Margot, but the Architect had latched onto her shadow, embedding himself deeper into her psyche.
When Elias entered the picture, everything began to spiral out of control.
The Architect hadn't anticipated Elias's true nature. At first, Elias seemed like a simple anomaly, another soul lost in the chaos of the City. But as the Architect observed him, it became clear that Elias was different. He saw through the Architect's manipulations with ease, something no one had done before.
When Elias discovered the Architect's tether to Margot, he didn't hesitate. Pretending to leave in frustration, Elias drew the Architect out, forcing a confrontation. That was the first time the Architect saw Elias transform—his human façade peeling away to reveal something far more ancient and powerful.
The battle was fierce and unrelenting. The Architect dominated Margot's body, taunting Elias with the fragility of his human companions. But Elias was not to be underestimated. With an act of sheer will, he extracted the Architect's reflection from Margot's body, severing the connection and injuring the Architect in the process.
The Architect retreated, shaken. Elias had done more than injure him; he had exposed the Architect's vulnerability.
Determined to eliminate Elias once and for all, the Architect devised a new plan. Disguising himself as the Guardian, he lured Elias and his group into a trap. When the group faced the Guardian, Elias pushed the others out of harm's way, locking himself inside to face the threat alone.
What the Architect hadn't anticipated was Elias's sheer tenacity. Though the Architect attacked with everything he had, Elias fought back with equal ferocity. The Architect's movements mirrored Elias's, his strikes faster and more precise than any demon Elias had faced before.
But Elias was no ordinary demon. On the second day of their battle, Elias moved with supernatural speed and precision, stabbing the Architect through his heart. The Architect staggered, clutching his chest as his form flickered and weakened.
In his desperation, the Architect summoned the real Guardian—a towering, monstrous being armed with blades of pure shadow. The Guardian attacked without hesitation, slashing at Elias with relentless force. But Elias, though battered and bloodied, refused to fall. In a final act of defiance, he pierced the Guardian's heart, ending her existence.
As the Architect recuperated, his thoughts turned to Elias. The man had survived two impossible battles—against him and the Guardian. That had never happened before.
The Architect began to study Elias, watching his every move. It became clear that Elias was not just a demon. His strength, resilience, and strategic mind hinted at something far older and more dangerous.
And Elias was far from finished.
While the Architect focused on recovering his strength and consolidating his power, Elias was already two steps ahead. Knowing he was in enemy territory, Elias spoke carefully around Margot and the others, fully aware that the Architect was watching and listening.
What the Architect didn't see was Elias's soul traveling. In the dead of night, Elias's spirit moved through the hospital, searching for the memory door—a place that held the core memories of his group and the City's secrets. Elias knew that by destroying the tethered memories, he could weaken the City's hold and disrupt the Architect's plans.
Elias also knew that Lara's newfound power was a danger to her. The Architect would stop at nothing to claim it, so Elias took drastic measures. He siphoned the power from Lara, locking it deep within his soul where the Architect couldn't reach it. To the outside world, it appeared as though Elias had lost his powers, a deception that played perfectly into the Architect's hands.
As the Architect plotted his next move, he turned his attention to Lyn. A carefully crafted reflection with flawless acting skills, Lyn was sent to infiltrate Elias's group and lead them to the hospital. The Architect knew that once they were inside, he could separate them, manipulate them, and break them apart.
Lyn played her role perfectly, earning the group's trust with her fabricated story. Even Elias appeared to believe her—though the Architect would later realize that Elias had been playing him all along.
When the group reached the hospital's second floor, Elias allowed Lara to open the door leading to the heart of the City's power. The Architect watched from the shadows, shocked when Lara succeeded.
The Architect hadn't anticipated that Lara's connection to the photograph would resonate with the door's code.
As the door opened and the alarms blared, the Architect felt his control slipping further. The zombies—twisted remnants of the hospital's experiments—awoke, flooding the halls in response to the disturbance.
Andy arrived moments later, her expression filled with shock and anger. The Architect turned to her, his face dark with rage.
"This was never supposed to happen," he growled, his voice trembling with fury.
The Architect's mind raced. Elias had outmaneuvered him at every turn. He had stolen Lara's power, unlocked the memory door, and now stood on the brink of unraveling the City itself.
As the building trembled and shadows stirred in the corners of the room, the Architect whispered to himself:
"We are doomed."
A presence stirred behind him, and he froze, his eyes narrowing as he turned slowly toward the darkness.
From the shadows, a faint voice echoed, low and resonant.
"You underestimated him again."
The Architect's fury turned to dread as the presence stepped closer, its form obscured but radiating power.
The Architect's reign over the City was beginning to crumble.