Lyra Volkov's scream was a psychic rupture, tearing through the penthouse. It wasn't the sound of physical pain, but the raw anguish of her Sub-Optimal Point—her deep fear of irrelevance—being brutally exposed by Kellan's forced mental intrusion. The Psycho-Kinetic Sludge was doing its work, amplifying her terror.
Kellan held her, his face taut with concentration, fighting to anchor the raging storm of her consciousness.
[Optimal Insight (Level 3) Activated! Target: Lyra's Emotional Singularity. Sub-Optimal Point: Past betrayal by a mentor figure. Optimal Anchor: The ultimate promise of power—the Apex Goal.]
"Focus, Lyra!" Kellan commanded, his voice a steady lifeline in the chaos. "You want to be the one who shapes destiny! You want to be Apex Relevant! The fear of failure is a sub-optimal illusion! Burn it! Convert it!"
Inside the psychic storm, Kellan saw glimpses of Lyra's past: a brilliant, young operative abandoned on a critical mission, deemed expendable by her superiors. This failure was the root of her rapacious ambition—a constant, exhausting need to prove she could never be replaced.
The Proto-Crystal Being in the containment unit was glowing an angry red, absorbing the dangerous overflow of fear energy. Seraphina watched, her hand hovering near a console, her face a mask of calculated tension.
Suddenly, the screaming stopped. Lyra's body went rigid.
[Level 4 Optimization Sequence: Critical Failure Imminent! Emotional conversion rate at 0.1%!]
"She's collapsing!" Seraphina yelled, her professional detachment cracking. "Kellan, pull back!"
But Kellan knew the Apex had no retreat. Retreat was the definition of Sub-Optimal. He injected his own will—his pure, cold desire for vengeance against the dimensional threat—into the link.
"You are stronger than the shadows, Lyra!" Kellan forced the words through gritted teeth. "The Sub-Optimal Entities are the masters of fear! They are the ones who will make you irrelevant! Rise! Rise with me, and we will crush them all!"
The shared trauma and the singular, focused goal of superiority struck the final resonant chord. Lyra's eyes snapped open, blazing not with pain, but with a terrifying, white-hot will.
[Emotional Singularity Achieved! Sub-Optimal Point Converted to Apex Potential!]
Lyra's body erupted in a silent wave of shimmering, controlled energy. The Psycho-Kinetic Sludge was not just converted—it was synthesized. The Proto-Crystal Being instantly turned from angry red to a perfect, crystalline gold, its energy stable and pure.
[Level 4 Optimization Complete! Target: Lyra Volkov. Status: Apex Champion (Power-Control Matrix Active).]
[New Ability Unlocked (Lyra): Absolute Energy Control (Can manipulate any energy source—magical, dimensional, or technical—within a localized radius with perfect efficiency).]
[System Update: Host Kellan Thorne has gained 1,000 EXP for successful Level 4 Optimization.]
Lyra slowly stood up. She wasn't just healed; she was perfected. Her clothes seemed to cling to her new, razor-sharp aura of power. Her eyes, no longer merely grey, now pulsed with a faint, contained golden light.
"Kellan," she breathed, her voice a low, resonant hum. "I feel… the Optimal way everything should work. There is no confusion. There is only control."
Seraphina let out a slow breath of relief, her professional admiration replacing her fear. "It worked. She is functionally perfect."
Kellan merely nodded, exhausted but satisfied. "The time for emotion is over. The Apex has chosen its champion. Lyra, the dimensional threat is growing. We need to secure the city's defense."
Lyra smiled, a terrifying, controlled expression of supreme confidence. "I know the flaw in their dimension-sealing technology, Kellan. It's the power relay. I can stabilize it. But we need a base to house the stabilized energy—a fortress we can defend. A new Apex Command."
[Optimal Insight (Level 3) Activated! Target: Apex Command Base Location. Optimal Action: Utilize the remnants of Alistair Finch's original, massive, illegal underground laboratory—already shielded and energy-rich.]
"I know the perfect place," Kellan declared. "Finch's final sin will be our ultimate defense."