The air in the palace hall was thick with the scent of ozone and the biting sting of spent energy. Zeven stood firm, his chest heaving as he held his ground in the center of the hall. The automated sentry drones buzzed overhead, their laser sights tracing patterns across his skin like hungry insects. Beside them, Rey stood motionless for a heartbeat, his cybernetic systems cycling with a low, mournful whine. The connection to the palace’s mainframe was clearly straining under the necrotic interference Zeven had forced into his brother’s core, but the machine was fighting back, reasserting control with every passing second.
"Rey, look at me!" Zeven shouted, his voice cracking with a mix of desperation and authority. "You are not a weapon. You are my brother."
Rey’s only response was a sha
