The deeper we walked into the city,the more the world behaved like it was remembering itself.
Streetlamps flickered awake one by one.Storefronts cleaned their own windows.Graffiti sharpened into readable letters.
Reality was rebuilding—not for us,but around us.
As if preparing a stage.
Aaryan led the way with lazy confidence, glancing over his shoulder occasionally to make sure we followed — or to make sure we witnessed his stride.
The girl walked beside me now,not holding my sleeve,not hiding behind me—
Choosing her place.
[ System Notice: Character identity — strengthening ]
[ Influence balance shifting… ]
Balance.
Between me. The girl. Aaryan. And the things that watched above.
We turned onto a long avenue where skyscrapers leaned like tired giants —glass cracked, steel exposed, the sky reflected in broken shards.
Something about this place felt familiar.
Not memory.Warning.
Aaryan stopped abruptly.
"You hear that?"
The girl tilted her head."I don't—"
Static.
