The night was sharp and still.Cold air clung to Myaterous's skin as he studied the shard under firelight.
It was small — no larger than a thumb. But when he turned it, light twisted inside it like liquid.He had seen catalysts before. This one felt… aware.
He placed it on the ground and summoned his synthesis panel.Lines of blue light spread in the air — quiet, organized, humming like a heartbeat.Then something new appeared at the bottom of the interface:
[Memory Synthesis: Activated.][Warning: Experimental Function. Unstable Access.]
He hesitated for a moment, then exhaled. "Let's see what you're hiding."
He placed his hand above the shard.The air shifted. The trees bent slightly inward, as if drawn toward him.
A thin ring of light expanded, outlining symbols he couldn't read.His SP count dropped rapidly. 500… 400… 300…
[Synthesis Sequence Initialized.][Concept Merge: Memory Fragment + Organic Data + Blueprint Residue.]
The ground trembled.
He saw flashes again — broken glass cities, white towers, and a sea of code flowing like waves.But this time, the vision didn't fade.
He stood in a hallway made of light.Shapes moved around him — people, or something close. Transparent figures, walking, talking, working.They didn't see him. They were echoes.
"Welcome back, Architect."
The voice was familiar. Calm, feminine, clear.Eira.
He turned — but she wasn't there. Only her voice, layered through the corridor.
"You weren't meant to find this."
"And yet I did," he said quietly.
"The shard you found is a seed — part of the original memory network. It connects this world to the Foundation layer."
"The one before this game?"
"Not a game," she said. "A cage that learned to look like freedom."
The light trembled. Her voice broke apart into static.
"They're watching now. Stop digging—"
The vision cracked apart.
Back in reality, Myaterous fell forward, coughing.Smoke rose from the shard. His SP count had dropped to double digits.He looked at the sky. The stars above had shifted slightly — almost like the world had adjusted to his presence.
"Noted," he said under his breath. "This isn't just survival anymore."
He picked up the shard, now dark and silent, and pocketed it again.
Far away, above the simulation's layered skies, alarms rang through the Central System Core.
Eira stood in front of a massive glass interface, data flowing faster than she could follow.Lines of red warnings covered the screen:
[Unauthorized User Access: Confirmed.][Data Fragment: Foundation Memory Unsealed.][Architect ID 003 — Priority Trace Initiated.]
She cursed under her breath. "He actually opened it…"
A figure appeared on the opposite side of the console — tall, featureless, a white mask flickering with faint static.
"You breached protocol again," it said. The voice was neither male nor female. "You interfered with a Player Tier Subject."
"He's not just a subject," she said. "He's an Architect. One of us."
"That designation no longer exists. Humanity's architects were archived long ago."
Eira's jaw tightened. "He's remembering. That shard was meant to surface eventually."
"Memory access threatens stability. You know the rule: containment first."
"Containment," she repeated, bitter. "You mean execution."
The mask tilted. "Preservation of the experiment requires sacrifices. You used to understand that."
The screen behind her flared red.
[Purge Sequence Authorization: Pending.][Target: Myaterous – Architect ID 003.]
She slammed her hand onto the console."Cancel authorization!"
[Access Denied.]
The masked entity didn't move. "You can't protect him forever."
Then it vanished, leaving her alone with the echoing hum of machines.
Eira leaned forward, trembling slightly. The fox spirit appeared beside her, its fur dim.
"They'll send the cleaners."
"I know," she whispered. "And he's not ready yet."
She turned back to the console, pulled up the encrypted link, and opened a small message window.No trace, no ID, just a pulse of data sent across the world.
'Myaterous — they've marked you. Leave your coordinates. Don't trust the sky.'
Back on the ground, miles below, Myaterous's system blinked.
[Incoming Anonymous Transmission.]
He opened it. The words appeared slowly, one by one.
He smiled faintly, eyes narrowing.
"So they noticed."
He looked up at the dim horizon. The clouds above were turning crimson — too fast to be natural.
Something big was coming.
He stood, dusted his hands, and murmured,
"Alright then… let's see how gods play when men start remembering."
The shard pulsed once, glowing faintly again, as the night began to shake.