The chamber door slammed open.
Mira's boots echoed before her voice did.
"Toren—!"
She stopped when she saw him.
Curled on the floor, muscles locked in tremor, breath shallow, skin pale with a bluish tint. The med-drone hovered uncertainly above, running diagnostics without intervention.
Mira dropped beside him and slapped the override panel on the wall.
"System, unlock vitals—now."
Toren Vale: Vital signs—unstable. Force surge residue detected. Echo saturation: critical threshold exceeded. Recovery: 67% underway.
She touched his shoulder—he flinched, like a burned wire.
His eyes opened slowly.
"Mira…"
"What the hell did you do?" she said. Not loud. Not cold. Just controlled—like someone holding back an ocean.
Toren tried to sit. She didn't help.
"Tested a diluted dose," he rasped. "Six percent… I thought I could manage—"
"You thought you could risk everything. Without telling me. Again."
Her voice cracked, just once.
He looked at her. Really looked.
"You don't understand what I saw."
"Then show me. Talk to me. Trust me. Or are you still pretending this kingdom is just yours to play god with?"
That hit.
He closed his eyes. The echo of the golden sky still burned behind them.
"I saw something," he said softly. "Something watching through the system. And it knows me."
Mira didn't move.
"I wanted to be ready," he added. "To protect everyone."
She stood.
And this time, her voice was quiet—not angry, just tired.
"We didn't ask you to be a god, Toren."
Then she left.
And the door sealed behind her like the end of a sentence no one wanted to read again.