The Citadel of Origins fell silent.
Silver light surrounded Kael.
The final fragment had awakened.
Ancient memories flooded through him.
Not years.
Not centuries.
Entire eternities.
Worlds rose and fell within his mind.
Civilizations were born and vanished.
The birth of the multiverse.
The rise of the Curator.
The collapse of the First Timeline.
He remembered all of it.
Kael staggered backward as the weight of countless lives crashed into him.
Aria caught him before he fell.
"Kael!"
His eyes slowly opened.
They no longer reflected only the present.
They reflected ages.
And when he spoke, his voice carried an unfamiliar depth.
"I remember."
The chamber remained silent.
"What do you remember?" Aria asked.
Kael looked toward the First Thread.
Then toward the Curator.
