The silence that followed Old Man Henderson's chilling pronouncement was heavier than the humid summer air outside. The illusory luxury of the cabin, with its crackling fire and gleaming surfaces, now felt like a cruel mockery, a fragile veneer over a terrifying reality. Tiffany, still clutching herself, looked as if she might shatter. Katy's face was pale, her usual defiance replaced by a profound, cold dread. Jake, rooted to the spot, felt the full weight of Henderson's words settle upon him, a crushing burden that stole his breath.
"They will come for you," Henderson repeated, his voice softer now, but no less impactful, like a death knell. His piercing blue eyes, which had seemed to see through the very fabric of reality, now held a deep, almost unbearable sorrow. "Your Locus, boy, it shines like a supernova in the void to them. And once they fix on a target, they are relentless. They are a force of nature, driven by an insatiable hunger."
He shifted in his armchair, a creak of leather that sounded unnaturally loud in the quiet room. "What I have told you, children, is almost everything I know. My own grandfather, a Cubix Controller far more powerful than I, was the last to truly delve into their nature before he too, went into a hiding so deep, even I couldn't find him. He left me fragments, warnings, a legacy of fear and knowledge. I have spent my life trying to piece together his scattered truths, trying to understand how to survive. How to simply exist without being consumed."
He looked from Jake to Katy, then to Tiffany, his gaze lingering on each of them, imbuing his words with a solemn gravity. "The Ilinai are not creatures of this dimension. They are inter-dimensional parasites. They don't need physical entry points like doors or windows. They perceive the resonant frequency of a Locus – the unique energy signature of a Cubix Controller – and they can phase through the very fabric of reality to reach it. They are drawn to power like moths to a flame, but their touch is not warmth; it is oblivion."
Katy found her voice, though it was thin and reedy. "But… but how do we fight them? If they're not physical? If they're so many?"
Henderson sighed, a sound of profound weariness. "Fighting them… is a last resort. Their strength lies in numbers, in their ability to overwhelm. A single Cubix Controller, even a powerful one, is no match for a swarm of forty. Or fifty. Or a hundred. My grandfather spoke of ways to briefly disrupt their cohesion, to momentarily force them back into their own dimension, but it requires immense focus and drains the Locus severely. It's a temporary reprieve, not a victory."
He paused, his eyes fixed on Jake. "Your illusions, boy, your creations… they are powerful. They are real within your Locus. But outside of it, they are nothing. And even within it, they are merely extensions of your will, not a shield against the Ilinai. They can tear through your creations as if they were smoke, if their numbers are great enough."
Tiffany, still trembling, managed to speak. "But… my grandpa… you. You lived. You hid. How?"
"Careful, child," Henderson said, his voice gentle but firm. "Constant vigilance. Secrecy. And the absolute, unwavering discipline to control the Locus. To keep its signature as low as possible. To never, ever draw attention to it. To never, ever use your powers carelessly." He looked pointedly at Jake, a clear reprimand in his gaze. "That is why I went into hiding. That is why I have lived a life of isolation. Every time a Cubix Controller uses their power, the Locus flares. It sends out a ripple in the fabric of reality, a signal that the Ilinai can detect. The stronger the creation, the bigger the ripple, the faster they come."
Jake felt a cold wave of realization wash over him. His earlier exuberance, his casual creation of objects, his showing off – it wasn't just a social blunder. It was a cosmic siren call. He had been broadcasting his presence, unknowingly, to a horde of inter-dimensional predators.
"So, all those times I used my powers," Jake whispered, his voice filled with dawning horror, "when I was Aethelred, when I created the realm, when I made things appear in the house… I was just making myself a target?"
Henderson nodded grimly. "Precisely. You were a lighthouse in a storm, boy. A bright, shining beacon in the darkness. And now, you have brought that beacon here. To my Locus. And you have brought a witness." His gaze shifted to Tiffany. "A witness who now carries the knowledge of your existence, and by extension, mine. Knowledge that, if it falls into the wrong hands, will be another flare, another signal."
Tiffany flinched, her face paling further. The weight of her new, terrifying knowledge, and the responsibility that came with it, settled on her shoulders.
"This is not a game, children," Henderson continued, his voice rising, imbued with a fierce, desperate urgency. "This is not some fantasy novel where you are heroes. This is a fight for survival. And you have, through your recklessness, not only put yourselves in unimaginable danger, but you have also endangered everyone around you. Every friend, every family member, every casual acquaintance who might glimpse a flicker of your impossible truth. Because the Ilinai are clever. They are patient. And they will follow any lead, however small, to find a Locus."
He leaned forward, his eyes burning with an almost feverish intensity, his voice dropping to a low, guttural growl that sent shivers down their spines. "Do not go around playing with your powers. Do not show them off. Do not even think about them carelessly. Every thought, every wish, every act of creation sends out a resonance. You must learn control. Absolute control. You must learn to suppress the Locus, to dampen its signal. To become invisible to them."
He looked at Jake, then at Katy, then at Tiffany, his gaze piercing, demanding their full attention. "And you must be careful about who you talk to. About what you say. About what you even hint at. The Ilinai have ways of extracting information. They can manipulate, they can deceive. They can make you reveal things you don't even know you know. Trust no one outside this room with this truth. Not your friends, not your teachers, not even your parents. Especially not your parents, for their own safety. The less they know, the safer they are."
Katy's eyes filled with tears. "But… but what do we do? We can't just… hide forever. We can't just live in fear."
"You learn," Henderson said, his voice softening slightly, a glimmer of something akin to compassion in his eyes. "You learn to survive. You learn to understand the Cubix. And you learn to protect it. Because the Cubix Power is not just a gift, children. It is a responsibility. A burden. And it has made you a target."
He pushed himself out of the armchair, his movements surprisingly fluid for an old man. He walked to a large, antique globe in the corner of the illusory room, tracing a finger across its surface. "There are others, scattered across the world. Other Controllers. Some hide. Some fight. Some… are consumed. We are few. They are many. And they are always, always searching."
He turned back to them, his expression grim. "I have told you all I can, for now. My knowledge is based on generations of fear and evasion. I have no grand plan, no secret weapon. Only the experience of survival. And that, I will share. But you must understand the gravity of your situation. You are no longer just children on summer holiday. You are now part of an ancient, deadly hunt. And you are the prey."
He walked towards the illusory kitchen, pausing at the threshold. "Now, I imagine you're all hungry after your dramatic little road trip. I can conjure up something substantial. We have much to discuss, much to plan. But first, you must internalize this truth: your lives, as you knew them, are over. Welcome to the real world of the Cubix."
The words hung in the air, a chilling finality. Jake looked at Katy, her face etched with fear, then at Tiffany, who stood frozen, her earlier bravado completely shattered. The silence in the cabin, once filled with the impossible, now echoed with a terrifying new reality. The summer had just taken a turn from complicated to utterly, irrevocably deadly. And they were just at the beginning.