The peace lasted three weeks.
I stood in the war room, reviewing the latest integration reports. The network was stable. The unified consciousness was whole. The Architects were safe. The Eater was at peace.
But something felt wrong.
"James," Freya said, appearing in the doorway. "There's something you need to see."
I followed her to the lab. She pulled up a holographic display. The network was a web of light, its connections pulsing with energy. But there were new patterns—fractures in the unity that hadn't been there before.
"The network is dividing," Freya said. "Not violently. Not like the Schism. But something's changing."
"What is it?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. But it's spreading. And if it continues, the unified consciousness could fragment."
---
I walked through t
