Chapter 26: The Wound Between Worlds

Chapter 26: The Wound Between Worlds Three days later, the first shockwave hit. It wasn’t physical—it was emotional. People across Sanctum Aqualis suddenly reported intense dreams. Shared dreams. A floating city with eyes in the sky. A corridor of mirrors showing their worst regrets. Children woke screaming. The elderly wept and didn’t know why. Elarin traced the anomaly to the recently unlocked chamber Corv had accessed. "He’s triggered a temporal bleed," she said. "Possibly unintentionally. The cube was a quantum seed vault, but not for DNA—for timelines." Jaden stormed into the chamber to confront him. Corv stood in the center, surrounded by pulsing echoes of himself—past, present, and maybe future. "You’ve broken something," Jaden said. "No," Corv replied calmly. "I’ve revealed it." He pointed at the cube. It now floated beside him, trailing threads of glowing code like veins. "Every civilization has a wound it forgets. This... this is ours." Suddenly, a rupture formed in midair—an actual tear in reality. From it emerged beings not entirely physical—half-light, half-thought. They were watchers, and they were angry. Lyra snapped to emergency protocol. Defense grids formed around the Sanctum’s core, while citizens were guided into deep stasis shelters. But the entities didn’t attack. They spoke. In perfect synchrony. "Return what was hidden. Or face convergence." Selas interfaced with one of them from orbit. "Are you the Omega Parliament?" "We are what they became. That is worse." Back in the sanctum, Elarin suggested a desperate move. "We must merge with the cube. Not to contain it—but to converse with it." Jaden and Corv volunteered. They entered the cube together. Inside: A labyrinth of memory and logic. They passed through replays of Sector 18’s darkest days—riots, famine, betrayal. But also its triumphs: the birth of Harmony Grove, the saving of Old Lagos, the dream of Aqualis. In the center: a child. It was Jaden—but not. Younger. Wiser. Unscarred. "You built a future without asking the past for permission," the child said. "Should we have?" Jaden whispered. "No. But you must carry it. Not ignore it." When they emerged, the watchers were gone. And Jalen Corv... was changed. Again. His body now emitted faint harmonic tones. Lyra registered him as half-organic, half-timeline echo. He was no longer just part of Sanctum Aqualis. He was its future. But the cost was high. A section of the outer sanctum had decayed—rapid entropy caused by convergence friction. Families had to be relocated. Archives lost. Jaden stared at the broken walls. "We need to rebuild again. But this time—smarter." Corv placed his hand on the exposed framework. Within moments, vines of crystalline code grew, restoring function. "You’re not alone in this," he said. In orbit, Selas submitted one final report. "The Architect has entered convergence with memory. A choice approaches." Back on Earth, beneath the blooming trees and the glowing lights of Aqualis, Jaden watched children laugh again. But above, cracks still shimmered in the sky. The wound between worlds had opened. And it had not yet healed. From far beyond, another signal pulsed across the void. Encoded. Urgent. Three words: "Prepare the Gate."