The descent was slow.
Cold.
Black.
Liam's breath fogged inside the rebreather as they moved down the water-filled shaft—thick with spores that drifted like dying fireflies.
His dive suit's HUD flickered, struggling to map the space.
Lyra—Girl Zero—drifted beside him. She didn't blink. Didn't need to breathe.
She looked perfectly calm.
Because this place had once been her womb.
[System Alert – Entering: Submerged Root Core]
> Depth: 291 meters
Signal Status: Fragmented
Cure Fragment 10 Beacon: 96%
Environmental Hazard: Root Influence Spiking
Recommended Action: Limit psychic exposure. Engage Soul Web if attacked.
Artemis signaled the group: "Structure ahead."
A dome of ancient alloy, half-cracked and glowing from within, loomed out of the dark.
Runes danced across its surface—half mechanical, half biological.
In the center pulsed a single crystalline root, spiraling up from the sea floor like a horn of glass and flesh.
> The Final Bloom.
As they entered the structure through a breach in the side, Liam felt his skin crawl.
The water turned warm.
Viscous.
A hum pressed against his skull—like someone humming directly into his soul.
Echo's voice hissed in his earpiece: "Do not make eye contact with the Core."
Too late.
Liam looked up.
And it saw him.
> "Gardener…"
> "So you were chosen to prune me."
He dropped to his knees.
Vision pulsing.
Pain spiraling.
The Root didn't speak with words—it injected thoughts.
Vivid. Relentless.
Liam saw girls screaming in fields of black roses.
He saw himself choking on blood.
He saw Lyra burning.
[System Warning – Psionic Overload Detected]
> Root Consciousness Attempting Infiltration
Activating Soul Web…
Linked Defenders: Lyra, Vira, Artemis, Ava, Maya, Echo
Status: Sync Active | Psychic Shield Holding | Liam's Core Focus Stabilized
Lyra floated toward him and pressed her forehead to his.
A blinding wave of warmth crashed through him—like every bond flaring at once.
Her voice whispered inside:
> "This is where I was born."
> "This is where you must choose."
The water drained suddenly.
Not from above, but below.
The dome shook. Roots retracted.
And Liam, gasping for breath, found himself kneeling in a dry central chamber.
At the heart of it—
A girl.
Floating mid-air.
Wings made of bone.
Eyes full of galaxies.
Hair that glowed like the inside of the sun.
[System Alert – Entity Identified]
> Designation: PRIME HOST
Alias: Eve
Status: First Bloom Carrier | Core Root Mind | Creator of the Plague
Vitality: 100%
Consciousness: Stable
Risk: EXTREME
She opened her mouth.
And the chamber broke.
The harem collapsed, clutching their heads.
Even Echo's digital body cracked and glitched.
Only Liam stood.
Barely.
The Prime Host stepped forward.
"You are not the first to try this."
"Thousands have knelt where you now stand."
"And I tore every one of them apart."
Liam clenched his fists.
"I'm not here to kneel."
She smiled.
"Good."
"Then die standing."
[System Combat Event Triggered – Final Bloom Guardian: Eve]
> Condition to Unlock Cure Fragment 10:
– Survive 5 minutes of mental siege
– Maintain Soul Web stability above 70%
Optional: Force Core Sync with Lyra for instant override
The world exploded.
Eve's mind shattered into a thousand voices—each one speaking Liam's fears.
> "She'll betray you."
> "You were just a tool."
> "They don't love you. They obey the System."
> "You're a virus pretending to be a man."
Liam screamed.
But Lyra screamed louder.
"HE IS THE GARDENER."
The Soul Web blazed.
The voices burned away.
Liam rose.
Blood from his nose. His ears.
But alive.
And defiant.
Eve flinched.
Just once.
Then looked at Lyra.
"You were always my favorite."
Lyra's voice cracked like lightning.
"And you were always a lie."
Liam lifted his palm.
The System interface glowed.
[Activate Override?]
He didn't hesitate.
[YES.]
A pulse of white-gold light erupted from Liam's chest.
It hit the crystal at the chamber's core.
It hit Eve.
She staggered, screamed—then split apart into beams of memory and ash.
From the ruin of her body, a single shard of light rose.
The final one.
[System Alert – Cure Fragment 10 Acquired]
> Status: ALL FRAGMENTS RETRIEVED
Root Collapse Timer: 6 hours
Final Event: Choice Sequence Unlocked
Options:
– Upload Cure via Core Network (Destroys Root, resets harem links)
– Sacrifice System, keep harem web, erase Root memory from world
– Merge both: Become permanent Guardian of the Boundary
The chamber collapsed.
Liam fell to one knee.
Lyra caught him.
Behind them, the others blinked into stability.
Ava breathed hard.
Artemis coughed blood.
Echo barely stood.
But they had done it.
The final cure was real.
Now Liam just had to decide… what price to pay.