The morning came without light.
Seoul's skyline was a smoldering silhouette against a gray sky, the city trembling beneath waves of static that rippled through the power grid. Entire districts flickered between light and darkness as though breathing. To anyone watching, it might have seemed like another blackout—one of many since the Seam's first breach.
But Lin knew better.
He stood on the rooftop of the eastern tower, the cold wind cutting through his coat as he stared down at the neon chaos below. Dozens of holo-screens projected emergency alerts in the distance. Yet the real crisis wasn't in the streets—it was buried inside every line of code, every networked circuit, every human mind that dared to connect.
The Seam wasn't gone. It had evolved.
Below him, the lab's reinforced doors hissed open. Hana stepped out, her eyes hollow but resolute. "He's awake," she said quietly.
Lin turned. "How bad?"
