Amir forced his breathing to stay even. It wasn't working. The girl in his arms had settled into dead weight, the kind that didn't just press down but slowly sank into the muscle. His forearms burned. A tight, grinding ache crept toward his shoulders with every step. He shifted her carefully, not enough to drop, not enough to show strain.
Ahead of him, the Cog Master walked, unhurried and untouched by the weight Amir carried. The man's coat moved faintly with each measured step, precise, controlled. He did not look back. Not once. Not even when Amir's footsteps grew half a beat heavier against the stone. The distance between them threatened to widen. Amir tightened his grip on the girl and closed it.
They moved.
The memorial grounds faded behind them, replaced by heavier stone and narrower pathways. The air here felt wrong in a way Amir couldn't name. Colder. Thinner. Even the wind slipping between the buildings seemed to quiet as they advanced. Then the structure ahead rose fully into view, and Amir's steps nearly faltered.
It did not welcome.
It watched.
A massive body of dark masonry climbed into the violet-stained sky, its surface carved in long gothic lines that should have felt ancient if not for the dull brass reinforcements stitched through the stone like something added later. Not decoration. Correction. Containment. Narrow slit windows cut high across the upper levels, thin and severe. Between the stone ribs, faint seams of metal traced downward in precise lines that made Amir's eyes want to slide away if he looked too long.
The Cog Master mounted the worn steps. Amir followed.
Up close, the doors were worse. Twin slabs of iron-bound metal stood sealed into the frame, layered with age-darkened brass. Fine geometric etchings crawled across their surface, intricate enough to almost pass for ornament, but too deliberate. Too exact.
The Cog Master pushed the door inward.
It opened with a low, heavy shift. Cold air spilled out. Dry. Still. Old.
Amir stepped inside. The temperature dropped immediately.
The hallway stretched long and vaulted ahead of them, narrow gothic arches reinforced with thin bands of metal that didn't quite belong to the original structure. Aether lamps lined the upper walls, each one burning with a steady, pale glow that flattened the shadows rather than chasing them away. Their footsteps echoed, sharp and exposed.
Amir adjusted the girl again. Pain flared hotter through his arms this time. A faint tremor threatened his fingers. He crushed it down, jaw tightening as he forced his grip steady.
They walked past one corridor, then another. Identical doors lined the walls, each marked with a small brass plate etched in lettering too fine to read in passing. The deeper they moved, the thicker the silence became, pressing inward until even breathing felt too loud.
Then something in the air tightened.
The Cog Master stopped.
Amir froze behind him.
From the upper corner of the corridor, it drifted into view. A sphere. Perfect. Black enough to swallow the lamplight whole. It hovered without sound, without visible support. Thin veins of muted blue light pulsed slowly across its surface, converging toward a narrow crystalline aperture at its center. Inside it, an aether crystal rotated. Slow. Precise. Endless.
The thing stopped directly in their path.
For a moment, nothing moved.
Then the air itself seemed to compress.
STATE YOUR IDENTIFICATION.
The voice did not echo. It simply appeared, flat and measured, pressing directly into Amir's ears in a way that made the fine hairs along his neck rise despite the heat burning through his arms.
Beside him, the Cog Master spoke quietly. "Don't move a muscle." A beat of silence. "Don't even think of running. You will be dead instantly."
Amir didn't test the warning.
The sphere remained perfectly still, faint blue veins pulsing once, then again, slow and deliberate. Watching. Measuring.
The Cog Master stepped forward. One step. Then another. He stopped before the floating construct.
His voice was calm. Eugène Locard
Silence followed. The crystal continued its slow rotation.
Five seconds.
Ten.
Amir became painfully aware of the strain in his arms again. His fingers threatened to twitch. He locked them tighter around the girl, breath shallow but controlled.
Twenty seconds.
Thirty.
Forty.
Then...
WELCOME TO ARCHIVE ROOM 285, EUGÈNE LOCARD. ENJOY YOUR STAY.
The blue veins dimmed. The sphere rotated smoothly and drifted past them, gliding down the corridor it had come from. Within moments, it vanished around the corner as if it had never been there.
Only then did Amir breathe out. Slow. Careful. Not relief. Not quite. His arms still burned.
What was that? How did it.....and…Eugène Locard…? Wait Is that...
"Stop getting lost in thought Mr. Zen."
Amir blinked. The Cog Master was already moving again. "Quick. And don't get lost in here."
Amir swallowed the question rising in his throat and forced his legs forward.
They moved deeper. Room after room unfolded, each packed wall to wall with towering bookshelves that climbed toward the vaulted ceilings. The shelves stood unnaturally orderly, rows upon rows of tightly packed volumes. No titles marked their spines. Not one. The air smelled of paper, dust, and something faintly metallic beneath it all. Quiet ruled here. Heavy. Listening.
After the third room, the Cog Master turned into a narrow side passage. They moved through it without slowing. Then a door ahead opened.
Wind slipped through first. Cool. Alive.
Amir stepped out behind him. The outside stretched wide ahead, the distant university gates visible beneath a sky fully drowned in deep violet, slow currents of purple bleeding across the horizon like something vast turning in its sleep.
Amir adjusted the girl in his arms, muscles still aching.
But he followed anyways.
The air outside the archive carried more movement than before, thin currents of wind slipping low across the grass. Ahead, the distant gate slowly grew larger with every step they took. His arms were still burning. Not sharp anymore. Worse than that. A deep, stubborn ache that had settled into the muscle and refused to leave. The girl hadn't stirred once.
The Cog Master walked as if distance meant nothing.
They closed the gap.
The gate came into full view.
Locked.
Heavy iron bars sealed the entrance, reinforced with thick brass joints that caught the last of the violet light overhead. Beyond it, darkness stretched outward into the outer district. Amir slowed. His eyes lifted. And lifted further.
The walls surrounding the gate rose like a cut of night itself, smooth and obsidian black, easily fourteen , maybe fifteen feet high. No handholds. No seams. Just a sheer vertical stretch that swallowed what little light touched it.
His grip tightened unconsciously.
He glanced sideways at the Cog Master. Does this.....surround the entire university?
The Cog Master didn't look at him. "Yes. The entire university is surrounded by walls."
Amir stared back at the black surface again, something uneasy crawling under his skin. "So nobody unauthorized can come in….or anyone could escape. A beat passed.…Wait then. His eyes narrowed slightly. "This feels more like a prison than a university."
The Cog Master's gaze remained on the wall....It is.
The answer came too easily.
"A prison for students and knowledge seekers. Once you enter, you don't leave until you completed your studies or you failed trying to do it. His voice stayed level. Matter in fact. "Anything that happens inside stays inside. Nobody outside knows."
Something cold settled in Amir's stomach.
What kind of twisted place…
His arms throbbed again.
What kind of sadistic cursed world did I get dragged into?
For a few seconds, neither of them spoke. The Cog Master continued staring at the wall, unmoving. Not studying it casually. Not observing.
Calculating.
Time stretched.
Then, slowly, he shook his head once.…No...Not possible.
Amir frowned. "What's not possible?"
"We can't get to the other side." The Cog Master's eyes remained forward. "Even if I reach the top of the wall…and somehow bring you up….His gaze flicked briefly toward the unconscious girl in Amir's arms.…I can't bring her
Amir followed the look.…Oh
And even if I use the propulsion cannon again, the Cog Master continued calmly, my aether core will explode.
Silence.
Amir nodded slowly.…Right.
The Cog Master said nothing, because he already knew Amir didn't understand a single word of that.
The Cog Master turned away from the gate.
Opposite direction.
He started walking.
Amir hesitated half a second, then quickly followed. Where now?
The main gates.
Amir's head snapped up. WHATTTT...
The Cog Master's eyebrow twitched once.
Sharp enough.
Amir's mouth shut immediately.
Silence dropped back into place.
"Don't worry," the Cog Master said flatly. "It won't be necessary anymore."
Amir frowned.…why?
Then he saw it.
Movement ahead.
Figures.
Someone was approaching them from the deeper within the university, followed by five, maybe six more behind. Amir squeezed his eyes slightly, trying to make out the face through the low violet wash of the sky.
…Is that…His eyes widened. "Is that the Principal?"
His pulse ticked up. We should move quickly...
Stop
Amir froze mid-step.
The Cog Master didn't even look at him. "There's no point."
…What? Why....?
Shut your mouth. Don't say a single word.
Amir went completely silent.
The approaching group closed the distance. Polished shoes met grass. Measured. Unhurried.
Principal Stone stepped forward into the dim wash of light, his smile already in place. He stopped directly in front of the Cog Master.
Then he laughed.
Soft at first.
Then sharper.
"Fate is a very strange thing, isn't it…Detective?" His smile widened. "Who would have thought we'd meet again. Same day. Same university."
Another quiet, mocking laugh slipped out.
The Cog Master's face did not move.
But something in the air shifted.
Amir couldn't see it. Couldn't name it. But he felt it. Like pressure building behind glass.
The Principal's laughter slowly died down. "Now then," he said smoothly, brushing invisible dust from his sleeve, let's get to business, shall we?
His eyes slid toward the girl in Amir's arms. "As you can see….you currently have a student of my university." His smile remained polite. Too polite. "We would like her to be returned. after all it is university policy. We have a clinic fully capable of treating her condition."
A small pause.
So…..if you could.
The Cog Master turned his head slightly and looked at Amir. "Hand her to them."
Amir stiffened.…But....
"Hand her to them."
Flat. Final.
Amir swallowed whatever was about to come out of his mouth. Slowly, carefully, he stepped forward and passed the unconscious girl into the waiting arms of one of the brass-collared men behind the Principal. The man took her without a word.
Principal Stone's smile deepened. "You are quite an intelligent man, Detective."
His fingers lifted lightly. And now….one more small favor.
His tone stayed pleasant. "You see, my assistant is somewhat incompetent. she mistakenly contacted your people and created unnecessary concern at my doorstep." His eyes gleamed faintly. "I would like you to inform them that you found nothing here and the call was a misunderstanding.
A soft pause.
It would save me the rather unpleasant inconvenience of Cog Watchers searching through my university.
He snapped his fingers.
One of the men behind him stepped forward, producing a heavy pouch. The dull clink from inside needed no explanation.
He offered it.
The Cog Master took it.
Without comment.
The Principal snapped his fingers again. Another man stepped toward the West Gate, producing a key. The lock gave with a heavy metallic shift.
The gate opened.
The Principal's smile returned, thin and sharp. "Let's hope we don't have to meet again, Detective. This time, I was generous enough to let you leave with the coins." His eyes hardened just slightly. "Next time….I may not be so generous if you wander into the university's personal matters.
The Cog Master gave a single, shallow nod.
Then he turned.
And walked.
Amir stood there for a second, still processing.
Then, quickly, he moved to follow him.
By the time they had walked far enough that the West Gate was reduced to a thin silhouette against the horizon, night had settled completely.
The sky was deep and dark, nearly black, layered with slow-moving clouds. The moon hung high above them, full and pale, slipping in and out of sight as the wind shifted the cover.
When the clouds parted, silver light spilled across the metal-plated sidewalk. When they closed again, the world dimmed to charcoal and shadow.
The university walls stood far behind now a long, jagged line cutting across the distance. No longer towering. Just there.
The air grew heavy.
A single drop struck the steel with a sharp tick.
Then another.
Rain began quietly. Slow. Sparse. Testing the ground.
Within minutes it spread into a thin, steady fall, slicking the pavement beneath their boots. Water gathered between the seams of metal plates, forming shallow mirrors that trembled with every step.
A man sat on a bench ahead, long coat darkened by rain, flat cap pulled low. A cigar burned slowly between his fingers. The ember flared once as they passed, then dimmed again. He never looked up.
Cog Master walked several paces ahead.
Amir followed.
His arms still hurt.
He had let her go. He had felt the weight leave his body. But the ache remained buried deep in the muscle, throbbing as if something still clung there.
All of that.
And she's still there.
what was the point then ? his jaw tightened.
No.
He tried.
He did everything he could.
The rain blurred his vision. Or maybe that wasn't rain.
Since the day I woke up here…
Gail's face flashed across his mind.
Reil's voice.
Uncle Jimmy's hand on his shoulder.
They died trying to protect me.
His breath hitched.
And what did I do?
Nothing.
His fingers dug into his own forearm, right where the pain throbbed hardest. He pressed until it hurt sharper than the guilt.
It didn't help.
I should have died instead, Gail.
The thought slipped in quiet and poisonous.
If I died, none of this would've happened.
You would've survived.
Reil would've survived.
Uncle Jimmy would've still.....
His throat closed. A tear slid down despite him clenching his teeth. He wiped it away fast, almost angry at it.
Ahead, Cog Master slowed.
Then stopped.
Another bench stood beneath a crooked streetlamp. Rain tapped softly against metal.
He sat.
Not carefully. Just dropped into it like his legs had decided for him.
He crossed one leg over the other. Leaned back. Tilted his face toward the clouded sky.
From inside his coat, he pulled a cigar.
It was damp.
He stared at it for a moment, then put it between his lips anyway.
The lighter flicked once. A weak flame.
Gone.
Again.
Gone.
His hand shook.
Just slightly.
The third time, the flame lasted longer. Long enough to show the tremor clearly.
Then it died.
He lowered the lighter slowly. Slipped it back into his pocket.
The cigar remained unlit in his mouth.
Water ran from his hair down along his jaw. He brushed it back with his fingers, pushing wet strands away from his eyes.
He didn't look at Amir.
He patted the empty space beside him.
Amir stayed where he was.
"Sit."
The word wasn't loud. It didn't need to be.
Amir walked forward and sat stiffly at the edge of the bench. Not close. Not far.
Silence settled between them.
Rain. Distant wind. The faint drip of water from the bench's edge.
"You did your best."
Cog Master said it while staring at the sky.
He didn't look at him.
Amir's lips parted slightly. Closed again.
The pouch landed between them with a heavy thud. Coins shifted inside like something alive.
Amir stared at it.
he muttered the words....Did your best ?
His nails pressed into his palms.
"I probably have more money than that fatherless bastard," Cog Master muttered. A short breath escaped him. It might have been a laugh.
It didn't sound like one.
"You should go home," he continued after a while. "It was a long day. Get some rest. You'll receive a letter tomorrow. If I find anything, you'll know. Even if I don't… you'll still get one."
Amir's vision blurred again.
"Why?"
The word came small.
No answer.
His chest tightened.
"Why did you do that?"
Cog Master remained still.
The mist thickened briefly, then thinned again.
Amir's hands began to shake.
"Why?"
His voice cracked.
"Why?" Louder now. "Why did you hand her to them?"
He turned fully toward him.
You know there is something strange happening inside those walls.
still you handed her to them....why ?
His breathing broke apart.
Why didn't you do anything?
The words tore out of him.
Cog Master's jaw flexed.
"I didn't have a choice."
It came sharper than before.
"There was nothing I could do."
He turned then, finally meeting Amir's eyes.
If we kept running, if we kept fighting, if we kept pretending we could outpace that place.....
His hand clenched against his knee.
"There was a heavy chance she would die."
Rain slid from his brow down to his chin.
"She stopped moving."
The words were quieter now.
Even unconscious…she stopped.
Something flickered behind his eyes. Brief. Hard to name.
That's when I had to make the decision.
Amir's anger wavered.
Stopped moving ?
The phrase lodged somewhere deep.
The rain faded.
Just a thin mist remained.
Amir stared down at the metal sidewalk. His reflection stared back at him in broken fragments between the seams.
After a while, he looked at the pouch.
Then beside him.
The bench was empty.
For a second, he thought he hadn't blinked.
He touched the seat.
Still warm.
He looked up.
The street was empty
He hadn't noticed him leave.
The clouds drifted apart slowly.
The moon emerged whole and bright, washing the metal walkway in cold silver light.
Everything looked clear.
Sharp.
Untouched.
Amir sat there, staring up at it, chest tight, hands still trembling.
He did not feel clear.
He did not feel untouched.