We departed Nova Citadel beneath a sky that no longer obeyed time.
The Rift Gate opened like a bleeding wound in the fabric of existence—dark at the edges, humming with the unstable echoes of collapsed realities. Each pulse a heartbeat of something ancient… something watching.
My flagship, the Eclipse Seraphim, led the way.
Its hull shimmered between magic and metal, technology and myth—our first true hybrid-class vessel. I designed it for deep-realm traversal. I never expected it would become my lifeline.
"Coordinates locked. Rift entry in T-minus 10 seconds."
Kaeli stood beside me, silent. Her silver hair shimmered faintly with Aether interference.
My sister—Alis—stood behind us, too young to fight, but too powerful to be left behind.
She hummed softly.
The same melody from the broken lullaby… but hers was different. Hopeful.
It was then I understood.
She was connected to the child.
System Log:
Entering Rift Realm Zeta-Null
Dimensional Timeflow: Unstable
System Safeguards Enabled
Psychoreality Layer Active – Proceed with Caution
The transition shattered the rules of physics.
One moment we flew forward.
The next… we stood on a river of molten mirrors beneath a sky made of pages—millions of floating sheets of parchment etched in every language I had ever studied. Some from Earth. Some not.
"He's near," Alis whispered. "He's scared."
Kaeli unslung her rifle.
"Let's find him. Fast."
The child appeared at the center of the Mirror Delta—a small island floating on fragmented memories.
He looked no older than six. Pale. Barefoot. Hair black as the void.
His eyes glowed with unstable energy—equal parts destructive and innocent.
He looked up at me and tilted his head.
"You're the prince," he said simply.
"And you're Entropy's Child," I replied.
He nodded. Then stepped forward, holding out something.
A shard. Warm. Pulsing.
It was me—or a version of me.
A piece of my soul I had never known was missing.
"He gave this to me," the boy whispered. "Before he became the Crown."
My breath caught.
"You knew him?"
"I was him. Before he forgot the stars."
System Notification:
Artifact Received: Lost Aether Core – 'Memory of the First Prince'
Soul Integration in Progress…
New Stat Unlocked: Presence (0/100)
Presence affects how alternate selves perceive and follow your cause.
I knelt to his level.
"Will you come with us?"
He hesitated, then nodded.
"But the others will try to stop you. They want me broken. Or erased."
Kaeli raised her rifle again, scanning the horizon.
"Company," she said. "A lot of it."
Across the mirror-river, ghost-armies formed.
Twisted reflections.
Failed Jadens.
Some cybernetic. Others corrupted by pure void.
All of them screaming in static voices:
"One soul. One Crown."
We ran.
Fighting wasn't an option.
I carried the boy while Kaeli and Alis unleashed bursts of chaotic light and void-energy behind us, warping the dream-realm just enough to give us space to breathe.
The Seraphim pulled us back through the Rift just as the ghosts closed in.
But as we crossed back into Nova Citadel, I saw it:
A single figure standing atop a tower of corpses—far in the distance, but watching.
His armor was obsidian.
His crown was broken metal.
And he smiled at me.
He'd let me live.
For now.
System Update:
New Companion: Child of Entropy – (Name Unknown)
Stat Gain – Mana +5, Presence +2
New Skill Acquired: Mirror Pulse – Stuns Mirror Variants within 15 meters for 6 seconds
System Fragment Restored – Emotional Safeguard Protocol v1.1