Chapter 13 · Voices in the Static

"Get out of my head!" Kael screamed, slamming his skull against the reinforced concrete wall. The impact rattled his teeth, but the voice didn't flicker. It didn't even flinch.

"Such a violent little thing," Mord’s voice purred, sliding through Kael’s consciousness like oil on water. "And here I thought you'd be grateful. I've given you a front-row seat to the Architect's masterpiece."

Kael slid down the wall, his breath coming in jagged hitches. He clawed at his temples, nails digging into skin. "What did you do? This isn't the loop. This isn't how it starts."

"The loop is a circle, Kael. Boring. Predictable," Mord whispered. Suddenly, the wall behind Kael shifted. The concrete didn't crack; it rippled. It felt like warm, wet skin. Kael recoiled, his boots skidding on the floor. "I decided to add a few... variables. Let's call it a custom update."

"I'm not your toy," Kael spat, though his voice sounded thin even to him. He tried to summon the stolen abilities, the sparks of power he'd ripped from previous iterations, but they felt muffled, like they were buried under a layer of static.

"Oh, you're more than a toy.