The hum of the observatory had changed.
It was softer now — almost... breathing.
Lyra stood beside the central console, her eyes flicking between readings that made no sense.
"The signal hasn't stopped," she whispered. "But the frequency is... syncing with our heartbeats?"
Arven didn't answer.
He was staring at his reflection in the glass wall — and in that reflection, for a split second, he saw another face overlapping his own.
A man with silver eyes and markings like constellations across his skin.
"Arven." Lyra's voice broke the silence. "Your hand — it's glowing again."
The symbol on his palm pulsed faintly. Lines of blue light crawled up his arm, connecting like circuits until they reached his neck.
Daren grabbed him by the shoulder. "Hey, stay with us! Don't you dare pass out again."
Arven blinked hard, trying to stay conscious.
"It's… showing me something. A city made of glass. A sun that never sets…"
Then everything stopped.
The lights in the observatory flickered once — and froze.
The sound of machinery vanished.
Even the floating dust in the air stopped moving.
"W-what the hell?" Daren whispered. "The air's not moving. Nothing's moving."
Lyra checked the screen — the timer on the monitor had halted at exactly 03:00.
Her voice trembled. "Time stopped."
Arven's breathing slowed.
"No," he muttered. "Time didn't stop… We did."
His pupils shimmered faintly blue, reflecting the strange, endless light that now filled the room.
A voice — faint and distorted — echoed through his mind.
> "Unit: Kaelis_01. Memory sequence… reactivation complete."
The words weren't heard by the others — only by him.
And as they sank into his thoughts, a surge of pain tore through his skull.
He fell to one knee, clutching his head.
Fragments flashed before him: a sea of light, endless towers reaching into the void, a woman's voice whispering his name in a forgotten language.
> "You once gave birth to the stars… and then you abandoned them."
When Arven's vision cleared, his breath trembled.
Lyra and Daren stared at him — not with fear, but confusion.
Because for a brief moment, Arven's shadow had split into two.
And one of them was still moving.