The Architects' decree lingered in the void, heavier than any gravity. Ships drifted like leaves on a black tide, crews too stunned to move, commanders too proud to answer.
It was the Dominion Admiral who broke the silence first. Veyric's voice shook, though he forced steel into it:
"If we surrender the Seed, what future is left? We would be slaves to their will, not masters of our fate."
The Harbinger bared his teeth, gripping his axe despite the dust of his slain beast still coating him. "Slaves? No. Dead. They'll devour us all. I'll cut their throats or die screaming."
The Seer Azhira rose from her knees, her veil fluttering in the storm. "You fools still do not see. They made us, long before we made ourselves. We live in their shadow. This is not a battle we can win."
The Architects stirred. One leaned close to Azhira, its voice like galaxies colliding.
"You were given sight, and yet you sought to twist the threads of fate for your own dominion. Your order is broken."
The Seer's eyes bled silver tears. For the first time in centuries, she trembled.
Another Architect turned its blazing gaze upon Veyric.
"You dreamed of order, yet birthed conquest. You claim to unite, but leave ashes in your wake. You are not a builder—you are a tyrant."
Veyric faltered, the mask of command cracking. His fleet, sensing his weakness, whispered with fear.
The last gaze fell upon the Harbinger.
"You rage against all bonds, but what are you without chains to break? You are emptiness given form. A hunger that devours even itself."
The Harbinger snarled, but the edges of his bravado frayed. For the first time, doubt flickered in his monstrous eyes.
And then the three voices converged, thundering across the stars:
"The Seed is not meant for you. But it listens to one among you still."
Lyra.
Her body burned with light, her voice caught between fear and defiance. "I… I never asked for this. I never wanted to be your vessel."
The Architects' reply was chilling in its simplicity:
"You are not a vessel. You are the test."
The battlefield erupted into chaos. Dominion captains screamed to retreat. The Harbinger's hordes rallied to strike blindly at the giants. Seers fell into madness, visions splintering.
And in the center of it all, Kaelen pulled Lyra behind him, sword raised, defiant even against gods.
"Then test her through me."
The Architects' laughter—vast, ancient, merciless—rolled across the stars like thunder.
The judgment had only begun.