CHAPTER 41: SHATTERED LINES

Catalyst lay motionless in the healing chamber, the resonance field bathing her body in rippling waves of starlight and thermal plasma. Her systems had barely stabilized after the battle, yet she looked... peaceful. For a moment, Aqualis was quiet—too quiet. The silence wasn’t comforting. It felt like the city was holding its breath.

Outside, Jaden sat slumped against the sanctum’s corridor wall. His arms bore bruises, his eyes bloodshot and sunken. He hadn’t slept in over thirty hours. A medic passed by and handed him a hydration pack.

"Thanks," Jaden murmured, not even looking up.

Lyra approached. She crouched beside him, brushing a loose strand of hair from his brow. "You saved her."

He shook his head. "We saved each other. But it’s not over. That thing—it was just the start."

A faint vibration underfoot interrupted them. Alarms flashed. A wave of displaced air pushed through the city’s lower levels.

Corv’s voice came through the comm. "Aqualis core grid just destabilized. Dimensional rift residue is still bleeding through. We’re running out of time."

Jaden rose, eyes hard. "We regroup. Recalibrate. And we fight again."

In a hidden part of the sanctuary, Nyela stood before a locked chamber door—one marked only with the initials: E.V.A. Her hands trembled as she reached out, her heart pounding.

She entered. Within, a cryo pod hissed open. A young woman inside opened her eyes, blinking slowly—eyes swirling with soft amber light.

"Eira," Nyela whispered.

Eira sat up, her voice soft, almost broken. "How long was I gone?"

"Three years."

Eira blinked. "Then the war never ended."

Nyela nodded. "And we need you more than ever."

Tears formed in Eira’s eyes, but she blinked them away. She wasn’t the same woman who went to sleep three years ago. She was different—sharper, more uncertain, but determined.

Meanwhile, Tia sat alone in the memory grove, her hands stained with soot from the medical dome. She kept hearing the screams—children burned by memory distortion, parents clawing at the gates.

Catalyst found her there. "You did what no one else could."

Tia didn’t look up. "It wasn’t enough."

"You protected life. That’s always enough."

Tia finally met Catalyst’s gaze. "Then tell me why it hurts so much."

Catalyst sat beside her. "Because you’re still human. And we haven’t lost that yet."

They sat in silence as the grove swayed under artificial starlight. For the first time, Tia leaned on someone else. The moment was small, but it healed something within her.

Later, at the sanctum’s operations level, a tactical report played on a central holopad. The footage showed massive kinetic scars left by the dimensional breach, with readings fluctuating beyond stable limits.

Corv grunted. "That wasn’t a test. That was a message."

Lyra crossed her arms. "Then we send one back. Loud and clear."

Jaden added, "We gather everyone. Call back the remnants of the eastern outpost. If Amon wants to break our defenses, let him try. This time, we’ll be ready."

Catalyst spoke softly, yet firmly. "And this time, we end what they started."

As the lights dimmed in the command dome, everyone stood united. The war wasn’t over, but the flame had reignited.