Kael Dravien stood alone in his penthouse.
Outside, Virelia burned quietly—neon lights slicing through falling snow, drones gliding like silent vultures between towers. The storm had softened, but the city never truly slept. It only watched.
In his hand rested a small object.
The Crimson Circuit chip.
It looked harmless—thin, dark glass with veins of red light running through it like a living pulse. But Kael knew better. This chip was not just data.
It was history.It was blood.It was Elaris Vein.
He turned it slowly under the neon glow. The light reflected in his eyes, sharp and unreadable.
"So you woke up," he murmured.
The monitors behind him flickered to life. Waveforms spiked—neural feedback, resonance patterns, forbidden energy signatures.
Her wings.
Kael's jaw tightened.
"You weren't supposed to awaken yet," he said quietly. Not angry. Not calm. Just… honest.
He walked toward the glass wall, city stretching endlessly below. Somewhere out there, she was fighting—inside her own mind, trapped between protection and truth.
Between Xyren…and him.
Kael remembered the first time he saw her files.
They were not named Elaris Vein.
They were labeled:SUBJECT STARWING — TERMINATION AUTHORIZED
He had been younger then. Colder. Still learning how power worked.
He had been ordered to approve the final command.
Erase her.
Instead, he stalled.
Minutes turned into hours. Hours into a night soaked with blood and fire. Syndicate labs burned. Scientists vanished. Records corrupted themselves.
And one girl—half fairy, half machine—disappeared into the storm.
Everyone believed she died.
Kael never did.
Back in the penthouse, he inserted the chip into the console.
The room darkened.
A hologram bloomed in the air—fragmented memories, sealed logs, corrupted visuals.
A child screaming.
Silver wings restrained by glowing chains.
A voice—cold, official:
"Twin separation complete. Emotional link severed.Xyren unit retained. STARWING marked unstable."
Kael clenched his fist.
"You should have told her," he whispered—not to the chip, but to Xyren.
The screen shifted.
Another log surfaced.
ACCESS: KAEL DRAVIEN — OVERRIDE CODE ACCEPTED
He paused.
Even now, the system recognized him.
Not as an enemy.
But as a guardian.
Across the city, alarms rang in DreamWare's underground hub.
Xyren stood frozen before the monitors, watching Elaris' vitals slowly stabilize. Her breathing eased, but her wings—hidden deep within her neural core—glowed brighter than ever.
"This wasn't supposed to happen," he muttered.
He replayed the moment again and again.
That black code.
That ancient signal.
Someone else was watching.
Someone older.
Stronger.
And Kael knew.
Xyren hated that truth more than anything.
Back in the penthouse, Kael removed the chip.
He held it gently now.
"She deserves choice," he said softly."Not cages. Not lies."
His reflection stared back from the glass—mafia heir, monster, savior, villain. All at once.
"I won't break her," he whispered."But I won't let you own her either."
Snow pressed against the windows like silent witnesses.
Kael slipped the chip into his coat and turned toward the exit.
"The mind is a battlefield," he said under his breath."And this time…"
A faint, dangerous smile touched his lips.
"…I'm stepping in openly."
Far away, Elaris stirred in her sleep.
Her wings pulsed once.
As if answering a call.