The lights dimmed in Isaac's chamber. It wasn't just night—the array was shifting.
A new configuration. Less suppressive. More… observing.
> "They're studying me," he whispered. "Like I'm not human."
He sat on the edge of the bed. His fingertips brushed the metal seams beneath the mattress—click.
A tiny plate shifted loose.
His heart froze.
Inside the hollow cavity: a small, crystalline device no bigger than his thumb. The moment he touched it, it glowed blue. His soul seal responded. His vision blurred—
And he saw his brother.
Not alive. Not whole.
A holographic projection—fragmented and cracked with static.
> "If you're seeing this, Isaac, it means you've awakened. And it means my fail-safes worked… barely."
> "I embedded this within the soul-architecture of your room months ago—before I vanished. Before I was erased."
> "This world is lying to you. The academy, the Council, even some of the Saints. Your talent isn't unstable—it's interfering with a design centuries old. You're not meant to awaken because your soul… isn't native to this timeline."
> "You're not just a Mirrorborn, Isaac."
> "You're a Temporal Key."
The image cracked, flickered—and then everything went black.
---
Meanwhile, deep within the school archives…
Three men in black robes stood before a burning sigil. None showed their faces.
> "Isaac's awakening threatens the barrier. His soul-pulse pierced the Mirror Veil. Even the Outworlders are starting to stir."
> "Then we'll move up the timeline. Begin Project Split."
> "What about the girl? The Aethra anomaly?"
> "Let them bond. Let them stumble into truths they cannot survive. One soul will crack the seal. The other will light the pyre."
> "And Rizz Almaus?"
Silence. Then, a whisper through the flame:
> "He is the sword. But he may yet choose the wrong wielder."
---