The year was 2439.
The Earth, now known as Terra-9, had become the central hub of the Galactic Federation. After centuries of interstellar expansion, artificial gravity, wormhole travel, and cybernetic integration had turned humans into a post-organic race — part biological, part machine, and fully aware of their place in the vast universe.
But in the ruins of Old Earth, buried beneath the irradiated crust of ancient Eurasia, something stirred.
In Sector D-17, a low-tier scavenger named Riven Kade operated alone. Unlike others in his class, he didn't rely on AI drones or corporate scanners. He trusted his instincts — and his modified temporal scanner, a forbidden tech salvaged from a lost warship of the Time Corps.
One day, the scanner pinged.
[Temporal Anomaly Detected: Class-7]
Coordinates: 17.29.503N / 102.11.205E
Signal Age: 1,234,005 years. Origin: Unknown.]
Riven froze.
A signal that old? Even the oldest Terran satellites weren't more than 800 years into the past. And worse — the signature didn't match any known technology. It predated human history. Way before the pyramids. Way before recorded time.
"Impossible..." he whispered, adjusting the scanner's interface.
The anomaly pulsed again — not just data this time, but... words.
"CHRONO SHARD FOUND. REUNIFICATION INITIATED."
Riven's eyes widened. His neural link flared with static. Visions of cities collapsing in reverse time, alien voices chanting in dead languages, and a shattered crystal floating in the void — all flashed before him in half a second.
Then silence.
And a countdown.
72 Hours Until Temporal Collapse
He didn't know what he had triggered, but one thing was certain—
The future just broke.
And only he could fix it.
[End of Chapter 1]