The Dawn's Edge, barely spaceworthy, limped out of Tomb-01's silent maw. Jupiter filled the viewscreen, scarred but intact.
Wu Gen tended to Yu. She slept peacefully, no longer glowing, her Catalyst signature dormant again. But different. Quieter. Stronger.
"She didn't just block it," Wu Gen murmured, checking her pulse. "She… changed it. Like the Bloom, but… purer."
[THEORY: YU'S CATALYST BIOLOGY EVOLVED TO SYNTHESIZE VOID/CONSUMER ENERGY]
Lin Mo held the Void Seed. It felt heavier. Not just power. Responsibility. Tomb-01 was quiescent, not destroyed. Other Tombs drifted in the void. And the Consumer… it knew the Key was whole.
Baylor pointed at the scanner. "Incoming vessel. Small. Fast. Pagoda signature… but different."
A sleek, unmarked shuttle docked. The lone occupant stepped out: a woman, early thirties, face weary but eyes sharp. She carried no visible weapons, only a data-slate.
"Lin Mo," she said, her voice tired. "I am Elara. Handler was… my predecessor. I represent what remains of the Black Pagoda Remnant. We need to talk."
She showed them the slate: star maps showing thousands of Tomb signatures across the galaxy. And one, pulsing with urgent priority.
"Sol isn't the only system under threat," Elara said. "But it's where the Cage is weakest. And where we found this."
The image shifted: a desolate, icy moon (Titan). Buried beneath miles of methane ice, scans showed a structure – not Elder Tech. Organic. Vast. Dormant.
[LIFE SIGN ANALYSIS: POSSIBLE ELDER THING (STATIS)]
"We think it's a Builder," Elara said. "One who stayed behind. And it's waking up."