Rafe dreamed without dreaming.
There was no scene.No memory.No voice.
Just pressure.
Not crushing—encroaching.
Like something folding him inward while he slept, tightening him until even thought became narrow.
He woke up gasping.
Air burned in his lungs as he shot upright in bed, sweat soaking through his clothes. His heart hammered violently, out of rhythm.
For a split second—
The room felt wrong.
Not unfamiliar.Delayed.
Rafe blinked.
The world snapped back into place.
He pressed a hand to his chest.
"…How long?"
The clock rune on the wall flickered.
Three minutes had passed.
He didn't remember them.
Rafe swallowed hard.
A micro blackout.
It happened again before dawn.
This time, he woke up standing.
One hand pressed against the wall.The other clenched into a fist so tight his nails had broken skin.
The Unassigned state hummed faintly beneath his awareness—active, restrained, unsupervised.
Rafe forced regulation.
Inhale.Hold.Exhale.
The pressure eased.
He slid down the wall and sat on the floor, shaking.
"…This is getting worse."
Selene didn't wait for permission.
She entered his room at sunrise, eyes sharp the moment she saw him.
"You didn't sleep," she said.
Rafe hesitated.
Then told the truth.
Her expression hardened with every word.
"When did it start?" she asked.
"After the assessment," Rafe replied. "It reacts when I'm not conscious."
Selene closed the door and activated a privacy seal.
"This ends now," she said.
Rafe looked up.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm imposing limits," Selene replied. "Extreme ones."
She knelt in front of him, meeting his eyes.
"You will not regulate unless I am present. You will not compress during sleep. If the state activates, you wake me immediately."
Rafe frowned.
"And if I can't?"
Selene didn't look away.
"Then we sedate you."
The word hit harder than any threat.
"…That could destabilize the anchor," Rafe said.
"Yes," Selene agreed. "But letting the state act freely will destroy you."
Silence stretched.
Rafe nodded slowly.
"Okay."
Selene exhaled, tension easing just slightly.
"I'll take the first watch tonight."
Far from Rafe's room, deep within the Academy's restricted wing, a meeting convened.
Crystalline projections floated above a circular table.
The Director's liaison stood among them—calm, composed, dangerous.
"The variable is destabilizing faster than predicted," the liaison said. "Autonomous activation during rest cycles confirms escalation."
An Academy representative crossed their arms.
"We have containment."
"For now," the liaison replied. "But your environment is accelerating his adaptation."
Silence.
Then the liaison continued.
"The Commission is revising the timeline."
A symbol flared red.
"Acceleration authorized."
The Academy representative stiffened.
"That violates—"
"Your protections remain," the liaison cut in. "But observation will increase. Direct interaction may become necessary."
Far away, Rafe shuddered in his sleep—this time without waking.
The Unassigned state stirred.
Not fully.
Not awake.
Learning.
When Rafe finally opened his eyes again, Selene sat in a chair beside his bed, staff resting across her knees.
She hadn't slept.
She was watching him like the world itself might reach in and take him if she looked away.
Rafe swallowed.
"…I lost time again," he said quietly.
Selene nodded once.
"I know."
He stared at the ceiling.
"…Am I still me when it happens?"
Selene didn't answer immediately.
When she did, her voice was honest.
"Yes," she said."But less of you each time."
The words settled like a verdict.
Outside, the Academy bells rang—clear, orderly, unaware.
Inside, something fundamental was slipping.
And the Commission had decided not to wait.