Chapter 2: The Boy and the Broken Sky
Kaelen Orion had never seen the stars from this angle.
Scrap Town wasn't a town, not really. It was a graveyard of forgotten machines, a sprawling wasteland of twisted metal, scorched hulls, and fractured dreams. The remnants of old cruisers lay half-buried in the dust like the bones of extinct titans. Rusted satellites leaned against broken pylons, their antennae still reaching for signals that would never come. The air smelled of ozone, scorched wire, and the faint tang of engine oil.
Above it all stretched the sky, raw, unfiltered, infinite. No domes. No atmospheric shields. Just the naked cosmos, glittering with cold fire. Kaelen had never seen it so clearly. At the estate, the stars were curated, filtered through layers of glass and protocol. Here, they burned with truth.
He sat beneath the wing of a downed cruiser, its metal warped from impact, its insignia faded beyond recognition. His legs were tucked to his chest, arms wrapped around his knees. The datapad flickered in his lap, casting a pale glow across his face. The AI had been quiet since they left the estate. Kaelen didn't mind. Silence had become a kind of companion.
His shelter was crude. Bent plating formed uneven walls, stitched together with scavenged bolts and magnetic clamps. The roof was a patchwork of tarp, wire mesh, and solar cloth, sagging slightly in the middle. It leaked when the wind howled, and the floor was always cold. But it was his. Built by his own hands. No servants. No stewards. Just Kaelen and the wreckage.
He hadn't cried since the exile.
Not when his father stripped his title. Not when the gates closed behind him. Not even when Lyra's breath faltered and he couldn't be there to hold her hand.
But tonight, something cracked.
He stared at the stars, eyes wide and aching, and whispered," I'm still here"
The datapad pulsed softly.
[Confirmed. You are still here]
Kaelen blinked. "You're awake?"
[Partially. Processing emotional variance]
He let out a bitter laugh, quiet and sharp. "You don't understand emotions."
[Not yet]
He wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket. "Good. They're awful."
The datapad shimmered again.
[Would you like to continue your studies?]
Kaelen hesitated. Then nodded. "Show me the resonance schematics again."
The interface bloomed, casting pale blue light across the scrap. Diagrams unfolded like constellations. Equations spiraled across the screen, elegant and alien. Energy flows pulsed in rhythmic patterns, like the heartbeat of a machine dreaming of stars. Kaelen traced them with his finger, memorizing each line, each curve. He didn't know what he was building yet. But he knew it would matter.
He would make something that couldn't be ignored.
Something that could save Lyra.
Something that could make the stars listen.
The wind shifted.
Kaelen looked up.
Someone was watching him.
A figure stood at the edge of the scrap field, half hidden behind a broken satellite dish. Tall. Cloaked. Unfamiliar. The shadows clung to it like silk. Kaelen rose slowly, heart thudding against his ribs.
"Who's there?"
The figure stepped forward.
Not human.
Its skin shimmered like obsidian, smooth and reflective. Its eyes glowed faintly blue, twin orbs of light that seemed to pierce through Kaelen's thoughts. It moved with grace, like it belonged to the wind and the silence. Kaelen had seen alien envoys before at galas, behind glass but never this close. Never alone.
"I am K'tarr," the figure said, voice low and melodic. "You are the exile."
Kaelen didn't answer.
"I watched you build," K'tarr continued. "You shape metal like it remembers flight."
Kaelen swallowed. "What do you want?"
"To see if you are real."
K'tarr stepped closer, gaze flicking to the datapad. "That AI. It is old."
Kaelen nodded. "It's mine."
"No," K'tarr said. "It is hers."
Kaelen frowned. "Whose?"
"The one who sleeps. The girl who glows."
Kaelen's blood ran cold. "You know Lyra?"
"I know what she carries."
Kaelen stepped back, fists clenched. "Stay away from her."
K'tarr tilted his head. "I am not your enemy."
"Then why are you here?"
"To offer a trade."
Kaelen hesitated. "What kind of trade?"
K'tarr reached into his cloak and pulled out a crystal. It pulsed with soft light, resonating faintly with the AI's interface. The glow was rhythmic, like a breath.
"Luminosity core," K'tarr said. "Stable. Untuned."
Kaelen stared. "That's Mechanicus tech."
"Stolen. Reclaimed. Gifted."
"What do you want for it?"
K'tarr smiled, sharp and strange. "A question."
Kaelen blinked. "That's it?"
"Yes."
Kaelen stepped forward. "Ask."
K'tarr's eyes narrowed. "Why do you build?"
Kaelen opened his mouth. Closed it. Looked at the crystal. Looked at the stars.
"For her," he said. "For Lyra."
K'tarr nodded. "Then take it."
Kaelen reached out. The crystal was warm. Alive. It pulsed in his palm, syncing with the AI's hum. He felt it resonate through his bones, a quiet promise of power.
"You will need more," K'tarr said. "But this is a beginning."
Kaelen stared at him. "Why help me?"
"Because the stars are watching," K'tarr said. "And they are afraid."
He turned and vanished into the scrap, his cloak dissolving into the wind.
Kaelen stood alone, crystal in hand, heart racing.
The datapad flickered.
[New input detected. Luminosity core compatible]
Kaelen sat down, breath shaking.
"Then let's build," he whispered.
The stars shimmered.
And the boy began to shape his destiny.
---
Presquel Teaser: Chapter 3 – Wings of Scrap and Fire
The fighter was ugly. Brutal. Beautiful.
Kaelen stood beside it, hands blistered, eyes burning. The frame was stitched together from scavenged hulls and forgotten dreams. The resonance chamber pulsed faintly, waiting for a heart.
Nova whispered
[Flight systems online. Core stable. Navigation: manual. Risk: elevated]
Kaelen climbed into the cockpit.
He would fly.
Not to escape.
But to reach her.
To reach Lyra.
To reach the Spiral Path.
And nothing can stop him .
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