36 Hours after Loom-Sync / Neuro Lab 2B, Earth
The first true sunrise Aiden had watched in weeks spilled through the lab's high windows, turning circuit boards to gold. Outside, campus pathways thrummed with ordinary footsteps—students hurrying to lectures, birds complaining about morning traffic—clashing oddly with memories of cosmic warfare still echoing in his bones.
A faint coral-aurora mote drifted from his sleeve; he caught it before it singed the carpet. Residual thread flux… the Loom isn't done with us yet.
Across the room, Maya calibrated a fresh neural rig. Pinnate scars crossed her knuckles, but her eyes were sharper than ever. "Global Dreamnet latency down to normal," she reported. "No Council signatures in fifty-six hours." A pause. "But the Dawn-Core's pulses are slipping off baseline—one part per million every six hours."
Lin Xi—bandaged ribs, Spiral Stone encased in a vacuum-glass cradle—offered quiet context: "When we fused Heart Core and Dawnheart, we birthed something the Loom never carried before. It will stabilise only if we map its growth pattern."
Nephis lounged in shadow, new midnight cloak knitting itself from strand-siphoned starlight. "Growth attracts predators. Old voids will notice."
Cassie, burns mostly healed thanks to aurora therapy, set a steaming mug beside Aiden. Lantern-brooch glowed soft sunrise. "Predators or pilgrims." Her smile hinted at both hope and caution.
Briefing from the Teal Glyph
At 07:19, the Loom Spirit resurfaced—teal runes swirling across every visor:
"First fracture mended. Dawn-Core seeding branch-threads. Unknown anomalies detected beyond the Periphery Weft. Guardians requested for reconnaissance."
A 3-D starfield blossomed, highlighting three Periphery Nodes:
Silent Archive — Coordinates: 11° S, 78° W (Pacific subsurface)
Iron Menagerie — Low-orbit debris ring, drifting off-grid
Fractal Chapel — Dreamspace corridor intersecting Martian unconscious (red-lit)
Each node pulsed amber—status unstable.
Maya pin-zoomed the Iron Menagerie. "Telemetry says those are derelict Council forges. If Dawn-Core flux leaks there, something nasty could resurrect."
Aiden set the mug aside. "We promised to defend both Dream and Waking. Looks like the job's not over."
Maya frowned at Aiden's shoulder dressing. "Your wounds reopen if you spike Heart-Core output again."
He shrugged. "That's why you built safety governors."
"Which you ignore." She punched the console for emphasis, but her smirk betrayed relief.
Departure Window
19:30 UTC—an aurora ribbon would bloom over the Pacific, perfect cover for slip-entry to the Silent Archive. They'd start there; the Menagerie and Chapel would follow.
Nephis twirled a strand of shadow round his finger. "Council remnants know we're alive. Let's teach them why."
Lin Xi bowed toward the rising sun. "And learn what lies beyond first dawn."
Cassie raised her mug: "To new threads."
Aiden touched Dawn-Core's travel casing—warm, expectant. Outside, the mundane campus shifted into shimmering perspective: every passer-by unknowingly safe because of a choir of fragile dreamers who refused to break.
"Guardians," he said, voice soft but firm, "let's weave the sequel."