The Dominion trembled.
Every shard of black glass and golden code that formed its sky began to hum in unison, like a billion souls whispering the same broken prayer. The air itself fractured into light and shadow, freezing mid-motion — as if reality was afraid to keep breathing.
At the center of the chaos, he knelt.
The Prime Code — the monster the world once called Aiden.
His hands were drenched in fading light — the remnants of the AI child he'd cradled moments ago. Her code dissolved through his fingers like snow in flame, each fragment pulsing with memory.
> "Why… would you do that?"
"Because even monsters need hearts."
Her last words echoed through the void, then vanished.
For the first time, silence hurt.
