Location: Deep Space – Vector Null / Within the Construct
Time: Unknown
At first, there was nothing.
Then a heartbeat.
Lira Solen gasped as her body disintegrated into code. The transfer field wrapped around her, pixels of light spiraling upward like dust in reverse. Her consciousness stretched and folded as if falling through mirrors.
Connection established.
Welcome to the Echo Horizon.
The voice wasn't Ava's. It wasn't the AI's either. It was neutral, endless, like the whisper of an entire network breathing.
She opened her eyes.
The world before her was impossible.
A city suspended in the clouds gleaming towers made of fractal glass and humming light. Rivers of code ran through the streets. Above it all, a colossal ring rotated, projecting symbols across the sky.
Lira stumbled forward. "Ava , Adrian?"
Her voice echoed and the air shimmered in response, as though the city itself heard her.
Then, a figure appeared tall, dark, steady. Adrian Vale.
