They reached the Orchard just after dusk.
Not that the sky here obeyed time. The light was wrong—stuck in a molasses glow that never shifted. Half-sunset. Half-dream. The trees weren't alive, but they remembered what life once felt like. Steel trunks spiraled into the air, rusted leaves whispering without wind. Beneath them, the ground pulsed faintly with memory.
Kaia hesitated at the edge of the grove. Her fur stood on end, tail low, eyes locked forward.
> [Anchor Zone: L-Red Sector – "The Orchard of Rust"]
Type: Preserved Memory Field
Status: Stabilization Threshold – 21%
Warning: Core Guardian Active
Kalix drew one of her blades. Nilo reached for his threads, eyes narrowing. Brenn adjusted the weight of his tower shield and looked to Riven.
"Are you sure?"
Riven didn't answer. He stepped forward instead, his hand brushing against Kaia's flank as he passed.
Aya's thread was here. Strong, stubborn, alive in ways nothing else in this world dared to be. It tugged at his core like gravity itself.
They followed it in.
The temperature dropped as they passed into the trees, but there was no breeze. The Orchard wasn't quiet—it was watching. Dozens of children stood frozen beneath the branches. Still as mannequins. Not breathing, not blinking. Faces caught in laughter, terror, confusion. All perfectly preserved in the moment of some distant, forgotten memory.
Kaia padded closer to one—her steps hesitant now. She sniffed a small girl in a threadbare dress. The child didn't move, but her eyes flickered faintly with static.
> [Echo Signature: Failed Anchor Reset – Subject: Aya Vale]
Status: Incomplete Imprint / Memory Overflow
Risk: Cognitive Desync (Moderate)
"This place…" Nilo murmured. "It isn't decayed. It's stuck."
Kalix crouched beside one of the children. Her fingers hovered near the girl's cheek, but didn't touch. "Aya tried to preserve them."
Riven nodded. "She must've been here during the collapse. When the anchors started failing, maybe she thought she could freeze them. Save them."
"Time doesn't freeze cleanly," Brenn muttered. "It frays."
Kaia let out a low whine and trotted deeper into the grove. The others followed until they reached a central tree—larger than the rest. Its trunk shimmered like steel polished with grief. Hanging from one twisted limb was a necklace.
Riven stepped forward.
It was hers.
Aya's locket. Worn even before the world broke.
He reached out, hand trembling slightly—and the second his fingers brushed the metal, the Orchard came alive.
All the children turned their heads in unison. Their mouths didn't move, but static rang through the air like a scream muffled by time.
> [Anchor Guardian Protocol Engaged – Designation: THR-ONE]
Classification: Tier II Defense Construct
Objective: Preserve Failed Thread Loop / Prevent System Breach
Combat Threshold: Immediate
The earth cracked open beneath the silver tree.
From below, something rose.
A hulking figure stitched from rusted armor and shattered anchor coils. Its limbs twitched erratically. Memory shards hovered around its shoulders like wings of broken glass. The voice it projected wasn't mechanical—it was a child's, warping and folding over itself.
"STAY—she said stay—loop must hold—reset reset—"
Kaia snarled and leapt back, fur flaring gold.
"Guardian," Kalix said grimly.
"No holding back," Riven replied. "This is a full anchor lock."
The Guardian lunged.
Brenn threw himself forward, shield raised just in time to deflect the first blow. The impact rang through the air like a bell. Nilo's threads lashed out, wrapping around one of the Guardian's limbs and yanking it off balance.
Kalix vanished from sight, flickering into the shadows between trees. A breath later, her blade struck the Guardian's back, carving through exposed cabling. Sparks flew—but it barely reacted.
"Doesn't feel pain," she called. "It's not alive. Just protecting what's left."
Riven's heart thundered.
Kaia bolted forward beside him, golden light bursting from her paws as she struck one of the Guardian's legs. The blow staggered it, barely. But Kaia didn't stop. Her form shimmered—brighter, stronger than ever.
> [Phasekin Resonance Reached – Evolution Triggered]
Companion Class: Phasekin III
Trait Unlocked: Echo Shield
Effect: Absorbs memory-based impact to protect bonded anchor. 50% redirection.
The Guardian howled.
A wave of static burst outward—slamming into the group like a tsunami of noise. Kalix dropped to a knee. Nilo staggered. Brenn's shield cracked. Riven's vision blurred.
Kaia jumped between him and the Guardian's second strike.
The blade crashed into her side.
But she didn't fall.
She glowed with golden-white intensity, flaring against the impossible weight of the attack. The ground cratered beneath her paws.
She held.
Riven crawled to her side. "Kaia—no, don't take this for me. Not this time."
She didn't look at him, but her tail thumped once. She was choosing him again.
> [Echo Link Stabilized – Loyalty Core Synced]
Companion will now prioritize bonded survival over own instinct.
Trait "Loyalty Above All" amplified.
He grit his teeth, standing tall beside her.
The Guardian reeled, shuddering.
"Loop—memory breach—too loud—she said—she said—"
Riven reached into his pack and pulled out the locket. It shimmered, pulsing faintly in his hand.
He stepped forward and held it out.
The Guardian paused.
The children all turned to face him. Threads wavered.
From the locket, a projection flared: Aya, young and fierce, standing beneath the tree in this very orchard. Her voice echoed faintly.
"If it breaks… If I can't hold the threads… Someone has to remember. Someone kind."
The Guardian twitched violently. Its arms dropped to its sides.
"Remembered," it whispered. "Finally—remembered—"
Kalix, Nilo, and Brenn stood ready.
Kaia stepped forward and nudged Riven's leg.
He looked at the others. "We end it."
Together, they moved.
Kalix's blades found weak points along the Guardian's neck. Nilo's threads surged and held its core open. Brenn charged, slamming his full weight into its side to bring it down.
And Riven drove his echo flare into its chest—right where the locket projection glowed.
Light exploded outward.
Not in fire. In release.
The Guardian's frame collapsed like rust under rain. The children dissolved into threads of light, their faces peaceful. The Orchard fell silent.
No more static.
No more screaming.
Just quiet.
> [Anchor Stabilized – The Orchard of Rust: 100%]
Memory Fragment Acquired: "Aya's Locket"
Trait Gained: Shadow Refract II
Passive Unlocked: Threadbound
Description: You may bear a companion's anchor burden during crisis. Survival rate reduced. Bond strength drastically increased.
Riven fell to one knee.
Kaia pressed into him, her body shimmering with energy.
Not a pup anymore.
A protector.
A partner.
He wrapped his arms around her neck. "Thank you. For choosing me. But next time, we carry it together. Understand?"
She blinked, slowly. Golden eyes full of trust.
Kalix approached quietly, wiping her blades clean. "You alright?"
"No," Riven said honestly. "But I'm here."
"Good enough," Brenn muttered, checking his shield.
Nilo stood near the fallen tree. "Aya's thread… it's stronger now. This place was a splinter."
Riven nodded. "We're getting closer."
They left the Orchard behind just as the last rustleaf fell.
Behind them, silence.
Before them, war.
But they walked together.
And none of them walked alone.