The wounded soldier collapsed onto the stone floor, trembling violently."The army..." he gasped once more. It is slaughtering everyone."Rainwater mixed with blood beneath him as silence descended upon the command hall.
Even the captain of the hunters appeared shaken. "The Purge Order turning against civilians was particularly distressing because it was meant to serve as humanity's shield, not its executioner." Kael promptly stepped forward.
"What precisely occurred outside?" The soldier struggled for breath."The Titan attacked the front lines..." His eyes filled with fear, and the commanders panicked."
Selene closed her eyes briefly.
"They activated extermination protocols."
Rylan frowned."You continually refer to this as if it were normal." "It was once forbidden,"
The stranger's cold voice interrupted,
"But fear rapidly alters laws." The soldier suddenly looked toward Lyra.
"They believe anomalies are attracting the Titans." The room fell silent again,
and Lyra anticipated what was coming before he spoke. "They are executing awakened civilians."
Kael cursed softly under his breath, slamming a fist against the table. "Fools." Yet beneath his anger was a sense of guilt, because even Aerindor had once contemplated a similar course of action. Outside the command hall, alarm bells echoed through the city, accompanied by distant screams amid the storm.
The world was disintegrating at an uncontrollable pace. Suddenly, the ground trembled again, more violently this time. Cracks formed across the walls of the chamber, dust falling from the ceiling.
Rylan glanced upward nervously. "Please ensure there is only one Titan." No one responded, and that silence was more alarming than any answer.
Lyra's balance mark flared sharply again.
Her vision blurred instantaneously, and in that brief moment, she perceived enormous shadows moving beneath distant continents, sleeping, waiting. Not one Titan, but many.
Lyra staggered backwards, and Kael immediately grasped her shoulders.
"Lyra."
His voice anchored her.
She looked up at him, breathing unevenly.
"There are more." Selene's face darkened.
"How many?" Lyra swallowed hard. "I do not know." That was even more troubling. The stranger turned toward the northern horizon."The system is accelerating."
The hunter captain frowned sharply."What does that imply?"Selene responded quietly, "It indicates that the world believes humanity is becoming unstable."Rylan blinked slowly.
"I find it quite distressing when the world gains self-awareness."No one responded, because every word now seemed terrifyingly real. Suddenly, an explosion resonated from outside the hall. Guards shouted, steel clashed violently. The hunter captain quickly grasped his weapon.
"What now?"
A soldier entered, breathless,
"Captain! Citizens are fighting in the lower districts!"Kael frowned."Humans against anomalies?" The guard shook his head."Everyone against everyone." Silence followed, and that was even worse. Fear had evolved into chaos.
The city was tearing itself apart internally.
Lyra advanced toward the door immediately. "We must intervene."Selene grasped her wrist."You cannot save everyone tonight."Lyra looked sharply at her."Then what do you suggest I do?" Selene hesitated, appearing exhausted—not physically, but emotionally.
"Choose what is most important before the world forces the choice upon you."This statement resonated deeply with Lyra, who understood precisely what she meant.
Save the city?
Stop the Titan?
Protect the anomalies?
Prevent war?
Find the Core?
She realised her capacities were diminishing; the scope of the conflict was too vast.
Kael quietly stepped beside her.
"We will face this together."
Rylan nodded immediately.
"Of course. I am too emotionally invested to give up now."Even the stranger moved closer, offering silent support—steady and unwavering. Despite the fear, despite the chaos, they remained.
Suddenly, a surge of golden energy exploded across the sky above Aerindor. Everyone gazed upward towards the shattered windows, then froze. Far above the city, Caelum hovered within the storm clouds, surrounded by golden light, as the sky distorted around him. He was not alone.
Behind him, several colossal golden rings rotated slowly among the clouds, resembling ancient machinery. The Core connected directly to him. The entire city stared upward in terror. Caelum's voice echoed across Aerindor with composed authority.
"Humanity stands at the brink of extinction."
Below, people froze in the streets, even ceasing their fighting.
Caelum looked down upon the city as if addressing mortals from a divine vantage point.
"The Titans have awakened because your world refuses to maintain balance."His golden eyes sought Lyra among the crowd.
"However, extinction is not inevitable."The storm intensified violently."Join me, and I can save what remains."His voice softened slightly."The choice is yours."
A suffocating silence followed, as every listener paid heed. Not only anomalies, but humans too, were listening. Fear made desperate offers seem plausible. The hunter captain stared upward with fury.
"He is manipulating them."
"No," Selene whispered,
"he is offering hope."
This was the real danger—hope that could easily lead to obedience in desperate times.
Lyra stepped into the rain, her silver energy slowly rising around her.
Caelum watched her intently from above.
The city held its breath.
Then Lyra raised her voice across Aerindor.
"You call this salvation, yet every path you present begins with fear."
Silver light spread through the streets below.
The inhabitants looked anxiously between the two.
Two visions of survival, two possible futures.
Caelum's expression remained calm.
"Fear reveals the truth."
Lyra shook her head.
"No."
Her silver aura intensified.
"Fear only exposes what people become when they cease trusting each other."
An ominous silence fell over the city.
For the first time, Caelum's composed demeanour cracked slightly.
Then, a titanic roar outside Aerindor shook the heavens, answered by a second from beneath the city itself.