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Chapter Six: Into the Unknown
Ryan and Liana burst out of the Hall of Fates and into the cold morning air, their breaths sharp and uneven. Behind them, alarms echoed through the marble corridors, growing louder as more Scribes mobilized.
They didn't stop running until they reached the narrow alleys behind the plaza, where the noise of the city swallowed the distant shouts.
Liana leaned against a wall, panting. "Ryan… what was that back there? How did you do that?"
Ryan pressed a hand to his arm. The black cracks beneath his skin pulsed painfully, spreading a little farther with each beat of his heart. "I don't know. I just… reacted."
"That wasn't normal magic," she said. "It felt different. Wrong."
He didn't argue. He felt it too.
A soft chime echoed in his mind.
[Quest Updated]
[Objective: Evade Capture for 12 Hours]
[Reward: System Stabilization]
Ryan exhaled shakily. "They're not going to stop hunting us."
Liana stepped closer. "Then we don't let them catch us."
Before he could respond, a shadow moved at the end of the alley. A figure stepped forward—hooded, silent, and far too calm for someone who had just witnessed chaos.
Ryan tensed. "Who are you?"
The figure lifted a hand. "Relax. If I wanted to hand you over, I wouldn't have approached you like this."
Liana narrowed her eyes. "Then what do you want?"
The stranger pulled back their hood, revealing a young woman with sharp eyes and a faint scar across her cheek. "My name is Seris. And I've been looking for you, Ryan Hale."
Ryan stiffened. "Why?"
Seris glanced around, making sure no one was listening. "Because you're not the only one who can break fate."
Ryan's breath caught.
Liana stepped in front of him. "What do you mean?"
Seris met Ryan's gaze. "There are others like you. Hidden. Hunted. And if the Scribes have realized what you are…" She paused. "Then you don't have much time."
Ryan felt the weight of her words settle over him like a cold fog.
"What am I?" he whispered.
Seris took a step closer. "You're a Fatebreaker. A threat to the entire system that controls this world."
Another chime echoed in Ryan's mind.
[New Path Detected]
[Follow Seris? Y/N]
Seris extended her hand. "If you want answers… come with me."
Ryan looked at Liana.
She nodded. "We go together."
Ryan took a breath, then reached for Seris's hand.
Whatever lay ahead… it was a road no destiny had ever written.
And that made it his.