Chapter 46: Echoes in the Wind
The morning sun broke through the thick veil of clouds over Neo-Lagos, spilling golden light across the Tech Nation’s first permanent settlement outside Sector 18. Dust swirled softly in the air, catching the sun’s glow, while construction drones hovered in perfect synchronization above shimmering rooftops. Jaden Cross stood atop one of the new towers, his eyes not on the steel and glass landscape below—but on the distant ruins where another village waited to be rebuilt.
Lyra hovered beside him, her blue eyes glowing faintly as data scrolled across her irises. "We’ve completed eighty-two percent of structural reinforcement in Grid Delta. Medical units are reporting lower infection rates. However, we’ve received troubling reports from the border posts near Red Rift territory."
Jaden turned slowly, his expression drawn. "Kaela’s zone?"
Lyra nodded. "Scouts spotted movements—multiple unidentified units. Possibly rogue Red Rift defectors or... something worse."
Jaden exhaled, the weight of his growing responsibilities sinking into his chest. "We need to secure those border towns and send a relief squad. I’ll go."
Lyra raised an eyebrow. "Delegation is also a function of leadership."
He smirked faintly. "And sometimes, leadership means looking your ghosts in the eye."
By midday, the transport skimmer soared over jagged ruins and faded battlefields. Accompanying Jaden were two newly appointed field strategists—Serah, a logistics prodigy from Sector 11, and Dax, a grizzled former scavenger who’d traded his past for purpose in the Tech Nation.
As they neared the outpost, thick black smoke trailed into the sky. Villagers were screaming. Fires crackled through makeshift homes. Jaden leapt from the transport before it fully landed, activating a low-gravity landing brace.
A woman was trapped under a collapsed beam—her child screaming beside her. Without hesitation, Jaden summoned the Aetheric Frame, one of his newer system designs. It wrapped around his body like molten light, enhancing strength and agility. He lifted the beam with a grunt and pulled the woman free.
But he was too late. Her pulse had stopped.
"Dammit!" he hissed, chest heaving.