> "What happens when those meant to save the world forget how to save themselves?"
___
The sky was too quiet.
Jay Arkwell noticed that first.
The soft hum of the unstable simulated world had faded to a hush, like a theater moments before the final act. Where color once shifted in abstract patches and wind carried static-like whispers, there was now only a still, surreal atmosphere.
He took a step forward across the crystalline path that cracked beneath his feet with every motion. It did not hurt. But it did feel... permanent.
He paused.
Behind him, Alicia followed, her cloak frayed at the edges from battles already fought. Her eyes were sharper now— not just with royal clarity, but with human exhaustion.
And yet she smiled.
"You stopped again," she said, walking beside him, close but not too close.
"I am listening," Jay replied.
"Listening to what?"
Jay's eyes flicked upward.
"…To the world when it forgets to lie."
