The Golden Bastion did not remain a secret for long. When Kael siphoned the "World-Crush" and transformed the Sump into a glowing subterranean sun, he didn't just save his people; he sent a signal that pierced the planetary crust. To the desperate, it was a beacon of hope. To the merchants of the Fracture, it was the sound of a new gold rush.
Two days after the battle, the first "Neutral" caravan arrived at the iron gates of the Bastion. They didn't come in heavy tanks or high-gravity skiffs. They arrived in Phase-Wagons—shimmering, translucent vehicles that seemed to exist half-in and half-out of reality.
"The House of Gemini," Lyra whispered through the neural link. She stood beside Kael on the battlements of the new gate, her twin stones spinning with a cautious, rapid frequency. "They are the only ones who can move through the Dead Zones without paying a 'Friction Tax' to the Azure. They don't fight wars, Kael. They profit from them."
Kael watched as a single figure stepped out of the lead wagon. He was dressed in a suit of shifting silk that changed color from silver to violet with every step. He didn't have a weapon; he had a ledger made of liquid data.
"Welcome, travelers," Kael's voice echoed, amplified by the Bastion's new gravity-conductors. He didn't descend. He stood at the height of his power, his obsidian cloak catching the golden light of the new core.
The merchant bowed, a gesture so smooth it looked rehearsed a thousand times. "I am Silas of the Twin-Path. I represent the Trade-Consortium of the Gemini. We heard a rumor that a man in the Sump had turned the High Overlord's ultimate weapon into a... street lamp. Naturally, my masters wished to see if this man was a King or a corpse."
"And your conclusion?" Kael asked.
Silas looked at the glowing Runic glass walls, the Sump-Legion standing in their new Taurus-Vanguard armor, and the cool, 1.0x gravity air that smelled of fresh ozone.
"My conclusion is that the House of Terra is about to become very poor," Silas smiled, his eyes flashing a calculating silver. "I see you have refined Gravity-Ore. I see you have Calamity-Shards. But most importantly, I see you have Stability. In a world of fractures, stability is the only currency that matters."
Kael signaled for the gates to open.
The Sovereign Market was transformed. Sia had used the light-filaments to build booths of glowing amber glass. Jax and the Legion acted as the "Peacekeepers," their heavy footsteps providing a rhythmic reminder of the Bastion's strength.
Silas walked through the stalls, his data-ledger recording everything. He stopped at a display of Inertia-Plating—the scrap-metal Kael had up-cycled.
"This metal..." Silas touched the plate, and his silver eyes widened. "It doesn't just resist impact. It deletes it. If you sold this to the House of Obsidian, they would pay you in enough credits to buy a city."
"I'm not selling to the Obsidian," Kael said, walking beside the merchant. "I'm selling to the People. Any scavenger who can reach the Bastion can trade their scrap for food, stability, and protection. But if you want the Inertia-Plating, you trade in Information."
Silas paused, his smile fading into something more professional. "Information? The Gemini deal in many secrets. What does the Aries Sovereign wish to know?"
"I want the coordinates of the Third Array," Kael stated. "And I want to know why the House of Gemini is masking the movements of a First-Tier Calamity in the Northern Tundra."
The market went silent. Lyra's breath hitched. Rin, who had been shadowing Silas from the rafters, shifted their obsidian katar.
Silas laughed, but the sound was nervous. "You are well-informed, Sovereign. The Tundra... that is The Great Leviathan. It is not being masked; it is being studied. But you are right. There is a shift in the Fracture. The 10-Year Reset you performed at the Spire has caused the other signs to 'Wake Up.' The Taurus Array was just the first."
"The Gemini Array is next," Kael said, his platinum eyes locking onto Silas. "And I know your House is trying to 'Split' the resonance to create two Heralds instead of one."
Silas's silk suit turned a sharp, defensive violet. "We are merchants, Kael. We seek balance. A single Sovereign is a monopoly. Two is a market."
"There is only one Star Protocol," Kael's voice dropped into a tone of Absolute Authority. The gravity in the room spiked for a fraction of a second, causing the merchant to stumble. "Tell your masters: I am the Anchor. If they want to trade, they do it on my terms. If they try to split the Gemini, I will fold their Spire into the void."
Silas straightened his suit, his face pale. "I will convey the message. In the meantime... I have brought something as a gesture of 'Good Faith'."
He reached into his Phase-Wagon and pulled out a small, hexagonal crate. When it opened, it revealed a Runic Satellite Link—an old-world relic that could bypass the Azure's jamming signals.
"This will allow your 'Lyra' to map the planet in real-time," Silas said. "Consider it a gift. We Gemini like to be on the winning side of history. And right now... history looks very platinum."
As the Gemini caravan began to set up their stalls, Kael looked at the satellite link. He felt the Sovereign Star Protocol react, the maps of the world beginning to fill in.
[ZODIAC SYNC: 25% (TAURUS)] [MAP DATA UPDATED: 15% OF PLANET RECOVERED] [NEW THREAT DETECTED: THE 3RD CALAMITY 'LEVIATHAN' IS AWAKENING]
Kael looked at his team. Jax was showing a Gemini guard the strength of his bellows; Sia was already taking apart the satellite link to improve it; Rin was back in the shadows.
"The market is open," Kael whispered. "But the war just got a lot bigger."
[DEAD MAN'S SWITCH: 06:40:00] [STATUS: GLOBAL PLAYER]