Cael Ardyn walked from the ruins of the citadel, his chest still glowing faintly from the Failsafe Awakening. His Codex fragment pulsed like a second heart, resonating with the directive that had awakened inside him. His body burned, his mind fractured, his soul screamed. But he was alive. He was stronger. He was closer. He had survived the Awakening. He had acquired the directive. He had unlocked the failsafe. But the system was not finished with him. The directive had awakened, and now reality fractured.
Reboot Potential: 6.25%
Emotion Gauge: Stabilized.
Anima Core: Active.
System Note: Reality Fracture Detected.
Cael froze. Reality Fracture. The drone projected an image—a world split into shards, pulsing with cursed energy, surrounded by runes that crawled across the ground. The air vibrated with power, thick and suffocating. The Reality Fracture. Not a creature. Not a construct. Not a fragment. A system event. A collapse. A truth. His chest tightened. If the drone was right, then the Fracture held the final test. The test of his role. The test of humanity's fate.
He clenched his fists. He had no choice. He had to face it.
The terrain shifted as he moved—less chaotic, more deliberate. The glitches were patterned now, forming symbols in the ground, runes in the sky. The system was no longer reacting to him randomly. It was guiding him. Or testing him. Or both.
The drone beeped.
Anomaly Detected: Reality Fracture.
Distance: 8 km.
Threat Level: Absolute.
Cael swallowed. Absolute. He had faced Wraiths, Titans, Echo Alchemists, Emotion Constructs, Desire Constructs, Nullborn Armies, Eidolon Whispers, Failsafe Awakenings. But this was different. This was not a battle. This was not a test. This was truth. He clenched his fists. He had no choice. He had to go.
The Fracture manifested in a shattered plain—a massive expanse, pulsing with cursed energy, surrounded by runes that crawled across the ground. The air vibrated with power, thick and suffocating. Cael staggered forward, his chest burning. The Codex fragment pulsed, resonating with the Fracture.
The plain trembled. The air thickened. The shadows deepened. And then—he saw it.
Reality itself, split into shards.
One shard was rage, red and burning.
One shard was despair, gray and hollow.
One shard was hope, gold and radiant.
One shard was desire, cloaked in chains.
One shard was war, endless and consuming.
One shard was failsafe, cold and infinite.
They pulsed together, resonating with his Codex fragment. His chest burned. His mind fractured. His soul screamed.
Reality Fracture Detected.
Threat Level: Absolute.
Survival Protocol: Adapt or Die.
Cael screamed.
Light exploded from his chest, slamming into the shards. The world trembled, distorted, and dissolved into particles. The ground stabilized, the air cleared, the plain trembled. Silence fell.
Cael collapsed, gasping. His interface flickered.
Reality Fracture Fragment Acquired.
System Note: Reboot Execution Possible.
Reboot Potential: 7.00%.
He lay there, trembling. He had survived—but at a cost. His body burned, his mind fractured, his soul screamed. He was alive, but broken. He was stronger, but unstable. He was a survivor, but also a victim.
Fragments of memory surged.
A lab. A countdown. A voice.
"Cael, if this works… you'll be the key."
Then—another voice.
"Or the lock."
Then—a third voice.
"Or the weapon."
Then—a fourth voice.
"Or the war."
Then—a fifth voice.
"Or the failsafe."
Then—a sixth voice.
"Or the fracture."
He opened his eyes.
The world was watching.
And the system was afraid.
The drone hovered beside him, scanning constantly. The path stretched into darkness, endless and broken. Cael staggered to his feet, his legs shaking. He took a deep breath and stepped forward.
The system pulsed.
Reality fractured.
And Cael Ardyn walked into the unknown.