*Chapter 30: The Turning thread (part 1)
The silence after Seris vanished felt heavy, like the world itself was exhaling. For the first time in what felt like forever, the threads stopped shifting. Time stood still — balanced, untouched.
Theo collapsed to his knees, breathless.
Nyra rushed to his side. "Theo! Are you okay?"
He nodded slowly, his hand still clutching the Compass. "It's done… She's gone."
Jace, still catching his breath, looked around at the fading Forge. "So this is what peace feels like?"
Lyra touched the glowing floor, her eyes wide with wonder. "We rewrote history. We did it."
But Theo's gaze lingered on the horizon — the soft shimmer where Seris had once stood. Something didn't feel right.
"She didn't fight us with full strength," he whispered. "She… she let me end her."
Nyra blinked. "Why would she do that?"
Theo stood slowly, his voice low. "Because she wanted to be erased… to make room for something worse."
---
Back in the Vault, the timeline was stabilizing. The Compass pulsed gently in Theo's hand, calmer than it had ever been.
The council of Keepers appeared — this time in full form, their robes glowing with light. No longer just fragments of the past.
"You have restored the balance," one said. "But the weave has shifted. A new thread has emerged."
Theo's eyes narrowed. "What kind of thread?"
The Keepers looked at one another. Then the eldest stepped forward.
"One born of you," she said. "Your choices. Your doubt."
Jace frowned. "Wait, are you saying *Theo* created a new threat?"
"No," Lyra said softly, eyes widening. "They mean the thread *is* Theo."
---
Theo sat alone in the heart of the Vault, stunned. The Compass floated above his hands, slowly spinning.
He couldn't breathe.
"I… I'm the threat?"
Nyra entered quietly and sat beside him. "It doesn't have to mean that."
"But it *does*," he said. "Every choice we've made. Every time we've changed the threads. I've interfered more than anyone."
Nyra reached out, taking his hand. "And yet, you saved us."
He looked up at her. "What if I *was* meant to fail? What if Seris was right — and I'm the broken thread?"
Nyra held his gaze. "Then you fix it. Like you've always done."
To be continued…