Chapter 19: Whispers in the Dust
Three Days After the Crash
The skies over Bastion had turned grey, thick with ash and silence. The Seraphim's floating lab, once a monument to bio-engineered tyranny, was now a crater in the wastelands beyond the eastern sector.
And something inside was still alive.
Rayven stood at the edge of the crater, wind tugging at his coat. Rhea, Selene, and Jex flanked him, all staring down into the sunken abyss.
Jex adjusted his scanner, brows furrowing.
"I'm reading faint bio-signatures and… something else. Not human. Not clone. It's ancient."
Selene, hand on the hilt of her blade, muttered, "This feels wrong."
Rayven didn't respond. Because he heard it again.
The voice.
"Blood of Kings… come deeper…"
The Descent Begins
The team rappelled into the crater, descending twisted metal beams and crushed circuitry.
Ash clung to their skin. Static buzzed around them.
Every few feet, more of the lab's horrors became visible—twisted clone husks, shattered glass pods, and melted glyphs lining the walls.
They moved in silence.
Until Rhea spoke. "This whole place… it feels like it's watching us."
Jex winced. "Because it is. The AI core wasn't destroyed. It moved."
The Heart of the Lab
At the lowest level, they found it—an untouched chamber of obsidian walls, pulsing with violet energy. In the center: a stone relic unlike anything Seraphim tech could replicate.
A floating obelisk, carved with symbols no one recognized.
Except Rayven.
He stepped forward, palm trembling.
"This is Pre-Awakening language. My grandfather… he taught me a few words as a child."
Selene's brows rose. "I thought that language was extinct."
Rayven read aloud, slowly.
"When the First Heir falls… the Sleeper shall stir…"
The obelisk responded—glowing brighter—before releasing a surge of energy.
The entire room trembled.
And a door opened in the floor.
The Forbidden Chamber
Beneath the lab's wreckage lay an ancient temple-like structure—hidden for centuries beneath Bastion's surface.
A single staircase descended into blackness.
Carved into the stone above it: "THE SOURCE"
Rayven looked at the others. "We go together."
Rhea hesitated. "Are you sure?"
He nodded. "If the Seraphim never found this, then it's not theirs. It's ours."
The Source Chamber
They emerged into a massive underground dome.
At its center stood a crystal throne—and seated upon it, a skeletal figure clad in dark armor, its crown fused to its skull.
The chamber buzzed with power. Time felt slower here.
Then the figure's eyes lit—burning gold.
"At last… my blood walks again."
Rayven stepped forward. "Who are you?"
"I am the First. The true heir of the Awakened Thrones. My soul was sealed here after the Betrayal… waiting for you."
The Truth Revealed
The ancient being—calling itself King Erevan—spoke of the forgotten history:
"The Seraphim were not always gods. They were our servants. We Awakened the Source. But greed twisted them. They rebelled. My line was hunted. You… are what remains."
He extended a skeletal hand.
"Awaken the Source fully, and claim the Throne of Cities."
Rayven hesitated.
His pulse raced. His body felt the throne—like a second heartbeat syncing with his own.
Selene growled, "It's a trap."
Jex backed away. "Rayven, this place is beyond science. It's rewriting physics just by existing."
But Rayven couldn't turn away.
Not yet.
The Voice of Choice
King Erevan spoke again.
"You have three paths, my heir. Choose."
Sit on the Throne and claim raw ancient power—but risk being consumed by it.
Shatter the Source, denying the Seraphim or anyone else control—but losing his bloodline's legacy forever.
Seal it once more, leaving it hidden for another age—waiting for someone stronger.
Everyone looked at Rayven.
Selene. Rhea. Jex.
They didn't say anything.
Because it wasn't their choice.
It was his.
Rayven's Choice
Rayven approached the throne.
He touched the Source—and pain ripped through him.
Visions of ancient battles. Forgotten kings. Cities made of sky and thunder. His ancestors. His birthright.
He whispered to himself:
"I am not my father. I won't become what he tried to be."
Then he turned to King Erevan and said:
"You speak of legacy like it's a crown. But I say it's a burden. I'll carry it—but I decide what it becomes."
He raised the Gauntlet.
And shattered the throne.
Collapse and Escape
The temple roared in fury. The Source screamed.
Stone cracked. Power surged outward in a blinding wave.
The team ran.
Jex activated a pulse escape beacon, opening a short-range tunnel to the crater's edge.
As they tumbled out of the collapse, the entire underground structure imploded, sucking dust and relics into itself until nothing remained.
Silence returned.
Rayven lay in the dirt, panting.
Selene crouched beside him.
"You okay?"
He opened his eyes.
"For the first time… I think I am."