Victory changes everything—and nothing.
After Aiko's battle in Neo-Tokyo, the Starfall Frame Project is no longer a secret. New pilots are recruited. Media outlets call them heroes. The government calls them assets. But inside the hangars beneath the city, the truth feels heavier.
Synchronization rates begin to spike beyond safe limits.
Ren Takamura, once the model pilot, starts experiencing phantom feedback—memories during combat that aren't his own. A battlefield he's never seen. A voice calling him by a different name. During a routine interception mission, his Unit-01 "Raikiri" loses control, moving without command and nearly striking an allied Frame. The official report blames pilot fatigue.
Aiko knows better.
Her own connection to Lunaris is deepening. She no longer needs verbal prompts; emotions alone activate weapon systems. But the stronger the bond becomes, the more unstable the Astra Wraiths grow. They stop attacking randomly. They begin targeting specific pilots.
Dr. Virelli uncovers a terrifying pattern: the Wraiths are evolving in response to each pilot's trauma. Fear shapes their claws. Guilt forms their armor.
When a new recruit's suppressed childhood memories manifest as a colossal Wraith that devastates half a district, the truth can't be ignored.
The Frames aren't just fighting monsters.
They're externalizing the pilots' inner fractures.
And if their emotions continue to spiral unchecked, the next enemy won't descend from the sky.
It will rise from within.