Days bled into a blur of restless nights for Elena in the cold, damp cave. The Eclipse Codex lay open on her lap, a mockery of a book, its pages still stubbornly blank or filled with unreadable symbols. She'd scoured every old text and language database she could find on her secure laptop, but nothing. It was like trying to read a rock. Frustration gnawed at her, a hot, bitter knot in her stomach. Every minute spent here was a minute Kiran was still in Koval's grasp, a minute closer to the Great Eclipse.
Finally, a reply from 'Cipher' came through her encrypted comms. It was brief, a single line of old, almost forgotten code: "Seek the Weavers. Deepest threads. Oldest whispers. Watch for the 'Blind Monk' in the market." Cryptic, as always. But 'Cipher' was never wrong. The "Weavers" were a legend, a group rumored to guard ancient knowledge, living outside all networks, beyond the reach of even Neo-Eclipse. They were almost impossible to find, and dangerous.
As she copied the message, a strange sensation prickled at her skin. It wasn't cold or pain, but a faint, deep resonance, like a distant echo in her mind. A flicker of raw, uncontrolled energy, followed by a fleeting image of straining muscles and a desperate, defiant rage. It was like feeling a distant vibration of someone else's emotion. Kiran. He was alive. He was fighting. A wave of intense relief washed over her, so strong it almost made her weep, followed by a surge of renewed determination. The Eclipse Codex on her lap seemed to hum faintly in response, a subtle warmth spreading from its pages. Was this the "seed" Dr. Koval spoke of, somehow connecting them? Or was it the book itself, recognizing a link? Whatever it was, it felt like a silent promise. She wasn't alone in this. And if there was a way to find the Weavers, to unlock the Codex, then there was hope.