Eclipsed Horizon — Chapter 13: "Echoes of Departure"
The storm began before anyone noticed it.
Not wind, not rain—just resonance pressure, pulsing through Zephyr's corridors like a heartbeat that had gone out of rhythm. The sky outside flickered in twin hues: gold and violet, the colors of the scar widening above the city.
Inside the infirmary, Cael Drayen stood before the sealed exit, Pulseband dim but alive. His reflection in the reinforced glass shimmered, half-solid, half-light.
Behind him, Lyra adjusted the harness around her arm, the medical dampeners still faintly glowing.
"You sure about this?" she asked.
He didn't answer immediately. The hum from the Pulseband filled the silence, like something breathing beneath his skin.
"They won't let us out. Not while they think we're the cause."
Lyra's gaze dropped. "Maybe they're right."
Cael looked at her, his tone low but steady. "Or maybe we're the only ones who can fix it."
Before she could reply, the infirmary lights blinked once—then went out.
A coded pulse flickered across the door panel: •• — ••.
Lyra frowned. "That's Eclipser field code."
The door hissed open.
Jax Torren stood on the other side, Pulsegun holstered, jacket half unzipped. His grin was tired but genuine.
"Didn't think you'd wait for permission."
Sena Korr followed, eyes sharp behind her visor. "You've got five minutes before the lockdown protocol reboots. After that, every drone on Zephyr's spine will be looking for you."
Cael nodded once. "Why help us?"
Jax shrugged. "Because I saw what came out of that breach. Whatever it is, Command's not telling us everything. And…"
He met Cael's eyes. "You're my captain. That's enough."
Sena checked the corridor. "Move. Section Twelve lifts are offline—we'll have to cut through the lower conduit."
---
Zephyr Base during a blackout was a cathedral of humming light.
Every step echoed through the steel tunnels, the air trembling with static from the fractured sky. Through the viewport slits, they could see it—light bleeding through the atmosphere, as if the world were unraveling into color.
Lyra whispered, "It's expanding faster than before."
Cael's jaw tightened. "Then we're already too late."
They passed the lower bay, where Eclipser units were being armed and deployed. Holograms of the breach floated above their consoles—complex waveforms marked "Event Horizon Expansion: Critical."
Sena stopped at a control node and began rerouting power lines. "I can buy you a window out through Dock 9, but once you're gone, it's on you."
Jax tossed Cael a compact module. "Pulseblade mod—amplifies resonance feedback. Figured you'd need it."
Cael caught it, clipping it to his wristband. "You always did prepare for bad ideas."
Jax smirked. "And you always made them look heroic."
---
Back in the Command Spire, alarms painted the walls in red light.
Arden Lyss stood before the tactical map, her reflection fragmented across multiple holo-layers.
"Containment breach—Section Twelve corridor," a technician reported.
Arden's hands trembled once before she forced them still. "Who's responsible?"
"Security logs compromised, but energy traces match Drayen and Vance. They're headed for Dock 9."
Silence.
Seraphine Aurel stepped forward, expression unreadable. "Orders?"
Arden's voice was steady—but only barely.
"Seal Dock 9."
She turned away, her face half in shadow.
"…But recall the interceptor drones from that sector."
Seraphine's eyes flicked to her. "Commander—?"
Arden's tone sharpened. "You heard me. They're not to be harmed. If I'm wrong, the sky will bury us anyway."
---
The escape route opened into the hangar's underbelly, where the old shuttles rested in darkness. The hum of residual Aether filled the air—faint, metallic, like the whisper of something ancient.
Lyra froze as she stepped closer to the core elevator. The walls vibrated with resonance energy—stronger than before.
Cael turned. "What is it?"
She stared upward. "It's calling again. The breach. It knows we're leaving."
For a moment, he thought he saw it too—the faint silhouette of that other city reflected in the glass above, like a mirror behind the stars.
Jax ran diagnostics on the shuttle panel. "Engines cold. Aether grid unstable—but it'll fly."
Sena handed Lyra a field stabilizer. "Keep this near your band. It might slow the resonance drift."
Lyra hesitated. "And you?"
Sena smiled faintly. "I stay. Someone's got to make it look like you didn't go willingly."
Cael's eyes softened. "That's not an order anyone gave."
Sena's gaze met his. "You taught me something better than orders."
The deck trembled again—distant explosions echoing through the hull. Security drones were closing in.
"Go!" Jax shouted, pushing the shuttle's ramp closed. "If you get her back through that breach, tell her I want a day off next time."
The ramp sealed. Engines roared to life.
---
From the command deck, Arden watched as the shuttle detached from Dock 9 and dove through the storm clouds. Her officers shouted readings and trajectories, but her attention stayed fixed on the sky.
The breach above Zephyr flared open like a second sun—light twisting in impossible spirals.
Seraphine's voice cut through the static. "Commander, they're entering the fracture zone!"
Arden whispered, "Then may the sky remember them."
---
Inside the shuttle, alarms wailed as gravity bent sideways.
Lyra clutched the console, resonance light flooding her veins. Cael reached across, their hands locking as the hull began to disintegrate into particles of white flame.
> "Hold the frequency," he said.
> "I can't—"
> "Then I'll hold it for both of us."
The Pulsebands on their wrists pulsed in unison—two rings merging into one frequency.
Outside, the sky cracked open—revealing the mirror world beneath, vast and silent.
The shuttle vanished into the light.
---