The sky above Sector 3 turned black without a storm.
No thunder. No rain.
Only silence.
And then… the whispers began.
---
> [System Alert: Unknown Spiritual Interference Detected]
Attempting to isolate source...
Failure.
Emotional feedback detected in connected units.
---
Riven stood at the edge of the district wall, watching citizens fall to their knees one by one.
They weren't injured. They weren't in pain.
They were listening.
Eyes wide. Mouths trembling.
Heads tilted as if a distant melody had stolen their will.
He turned to Mira.
"What do they hear?"
She swallowed. "Something that doesn't want to be named."
---
The first casualty came minutes later.
A boy — twelve, maybe thirteen — stepped forward, raised his arms, and smiled as his heart stopped mid-beat.
No blade. No wound.
Just collapse.
And behind him, burned into the stone wall by unknown means:
"The Voice Has Come."
---
> [Critical Quest Triggered: The Voice Without Flesh]
Origin: Unknown
Nature: Faith-Surge Entity (Designation: Apostle-Class Anomaly)
Objective: Contain outbreak. Investigate source.
Threat Level: EXTREME
---
Yra appeared at Riven's side.
"There's a building in the center of the plaza. Old theatre. Converted to a gathering house. Dozens went inside. Haven't come out."
"Volunteers?"
She nodded. "Nine so far. Three haven't returned."
Riven didn't hesitate.
"Suit up."
---
By nightfall, a team of twelve was assembled.
Riven, Eron, Yra, and nine trusted scouts.
They wore breath covers soaked in anti-hallucinogenic herbs.
Mira imbued talismans to protect their senses.
But even that might not be enough.
---
They entered the plaza at midnight.
It looked untouched.
No blood. No weapons.
Only candles — thousands of them — arranged in spiral patterns across the cobblestones.
As they moved closer to the theatre, the System began to twitch.
---
> [Warning: System Stability at 62% in this Zone]
Interface corruption possible.
Do not engage in reflective thought.
---
Inside the building, they found bodies.
Peaceful. Smiling.
Frozen in seated positions facing the stage.
No sign of trauma.
Only serenity.
And at the center of the stage stood a pulpit — carved from black bone.
And behind it… nothing.
No speaker. No statue. No figure.
But Riven felt it.
A pressure. A weight.
A presence.
He raised a hand.
"Pull back. Now."
But it was too late.
---
The candles went out.
And the whispers returned — louder now.
They filled the mind, not the ears.
And with them came a message, clear and final:
"You have been many. But none of them were true. Let me strip them from you."
---
> [System Override Attempt Detected!]
Origin: Class Ω Spiritual Construct
Activating Emergency Lockout...
> Failure.
---
Riven dropped to his knees.
Memories surged.
Names he hadn't heard. Lives he hadn't lived — yet now he felt them.
A queen with black arrows.
A knight who killed his own brother.
A monk who begged to die with his students.
Voices screamed and bled together.
He couldn't breathe.
Couldn't think.
---
Until a spark pushed through the storm.
---
> [Memory Anchor Engaged – Override Protocol: DENIED]
Dominant Identity: Riven Valen
Stability Restored: 71%
Warning: Future breaches may succeed
---
He gasped as air returned to his lungs.
Around him, his squad lay scattered — unconscious, but breathing.
Except one.
Eron.
Standing. Silent. Eyes white.
---
Riven stood, swaying.
"Eron…"
His friend spoke — but not in his voice.
It was deeper. Layered.
A chorus of souls.
"You cannot escape the weight of yourself."
"You are falsehood stitched from glory and fear."
"You are... we."
---
Riven stepped forward, trembling.
"I am one man."
"No," said the Voice. "You are many, and therefore… nothing."
Then Eron collapsed, unconscious.
And the presence… vanished.
---
> [Primary Threat: Disengaged]
> Entity has retreated. Residual spiritual aura remains.
Tracing path...
> Path diverges:
A) Northern Ward – Resistance Cells
B) Southern Ruins – Root Temple of the First Voice
---
Riven stared at the two options.
Then at Eron — being carried out by two scouts.
And at the survivors, broken by whispers.
He had a choice:
Hunt the Voice now while it was weakened…
…or save those already falling into its grasp.
---
> [New System Directive: Diverging Paths – Player Decision Required]
Option A: Pursue the source now. Risk collapse of Sector 3.
Option B: Stay and stabilize. Allow the Voice to flee.
---
He closed his eyes.
Time slowed.
---
"I stay," he whispered.
---
He and Mira led a restoration wave through the plaza.
Candles were gathered and destroyed. Talismans placed at every crossroad.
Mira organized mass healing circles with glyphs that soothed the soul.
By morning, the whispers faded.
And with them — the fear.
But the Voice… was gone.
---
In the aftermath, Riven stood alone in the stage hall.
Where once there was presence, now only dust.
Until a new System panel opened — one he hadn't summoned.
---
> [UNKNOWN INPUT DETECTED]
Message: "You have passed the first silence. But the second will not offer mercy."
End Signature: Designation: Self
---
> Synchronization: 91.4%
Personality Integrity: Moderate
New Threat Classification: Meta-Spiritual Hostile
Override Protection: Holding
---
Riven turned to leave the hall.
Behind him, the wind whispered a final word — his own name, spoken not as identity…
…but as accusation.
"Riven."