KNOCK, KNOCK. The heavy sound of the polished stone door being struck echoed through the massive chamber, a sound that rarely broke the solemn silence of Titan's inner sanctum.
"My Lord, they're here," a guard's voice rumbled, muffled by the thick door.
"Ah, send them in," Titan commanded. His voice was deep, resonating with the raw, heavy power of the earth he commanded. He sat upon a throne of obsidian that looked as if it had been forced up from the canyon floor itself, a looming figure of pure authority. The chamber was oppressively vast, illuminated only by molten veins of metal running through the floor—a constant, low-heat reminder of the Enigma's power that made the Delta parents feel small and exposed. Beside him stood his daughter, Rhea, a young Alpha whose gaze was cool and assessing.
The colossal stone doors, etched with symbols of permanence and strength, groaned open. The Silver family—two frightened Betas and their two extraordinary sons—slowly entered.
"We greet you, Lord Enigma Titan," the family spoke in unison, their voices thin against the echoing stone as they dropped to their knees. Mr. Silver gripped his wife's hand, a silent transmission of sheer terror.
"Mr. and Mrs. Silver, please rise," Titan commanded, his tone gracious but final. "I have summoned you all here to confirm the obvious. Your sons are prodigies. The Council of the Six has agreed: they are too valuable to remain untrained. They will represent Zion at The Nexus Point .along with my daughter"
The news, after days of agonizing silence, hit the Delta parents with the force of a geyser.
"What? Really?" the twins shouted in simultaneous astonishment, the raw, unrefined emotion utterly disrupting the Enigma's formal court.
Titan merely smiled, a sight as rare and dangerous as a deep-earth tremor. "They will leave with Rhea and other children and the other Enigma children. Their abilities, while unique, fit the need. Orin, you are arguably the strongest emerging Delta talent we've seen in decades—a tactical mind with power on the cusp of Enigma-level. And Ren possesses the raw, foundational power of a high-Alpha."
The words of praise were a cold relief to the Delta parents. They beamed with pride and fear. Titan was gravely mistaken. The truth was even more dangerous than the Enigma realized: they, the parents, had no idea that their sons were anything more than powerful, exceptional single-trait individuals. They didn't know that Orin was a Delta struggling to mask the terrifying surges of his Enigma trait, or that Ren's Alpha strength was constantly warring with his forbidden Omega nature. The parents' greatest fear was simply that The Nexus Point would expose the upper limits of the power they already knew their sons possessed, confirming them as targets.
Orin, the Yang twin, felt a wild surge of triumph. Titan's mislabeling only confirmed his own secret belief: he was meant for this power. He met Rhea's gaze, his purplish-red eyes burning with excitement.
Ren, the Yin twin, felt the opposite. He absorbed the crushing fear radiating off his mother—a desperate, palpable wave of terror—and the cool, analytical confidence of Rhea. His Omega senses were screaming, warning him that the Academy was a trap, a place designed to find and exploit the very thing they hid.
"You have twenty-four hours to prepare your sons," Titan concluded, gesturing dismissively to the guard. "The first transport to the Nexus Point leaves at dawn. Do not fail us."
The family bowed low and retreated, carrying the pride of acceptance