Title: The Summon of Reckoning

Chris' POV

I knew before the AI whispered it into my ear.

A shift. Subtle, but seismic. The algorithms didn't catch it, but I felt it. Like gravity changing. A thread tugging at the very foundation of everything I'd built. For days, I'd watched pieces move on their own. Uncoordinated. Sloppy. Christiana no longer filed reports. Skylar was gaining sympathy from the lower ranks. Rumors buzzed through the digital net like hornets. Small. Dangerous.

But now, I had names. Faces. Coordinates.

And I had waited long enough.

I stood at the apex of the throne chamber. No gold. No velvet. Just cold steel and silence. This room wasn't built for comfort—it was built for obedience. Every inch echoed authority. Every second spent in here was meant to shrink the soul.

They entered five minutes apart. Skylar first. Proud. Chin high, eyes wary. Christiana next. Calm. Calculating. Her eyes didn't show fear—but I could smell the guilt.

I said nothing for the first minute.

Let them stand.

Let silence do the cutting.

Then, softly, I spoke. "The throne doesn't like secrets."

Skylar scoffed. "Maybe the throne needs to get over itself."

Christiana glanced at her, subtle warning in her eyes.

But I continued.

"You both think you're playing a game. You think you can outmaneuver me with whispers, alliances, and stolen files."

I stepped down from the elevated platform, walking between them like a judge circling the condemned.

"Skylar. You hold press conferences like this is a democracy. You pity the poor like they'll crown you queen for it. They won't. They love power. They love me."

She bristled. "They fear you. That's not the same."

"And you, Christiana..." I turned sharply. Her jaw tightened.

"You accessed the Origin Protocol."

That hit like thunder.

Skylar's eyes widened.

Christiana didn't flinch.

"You crossed a line not even I dared test." I moved in close. "Tell me, daughter—what did you hope to find? Truth? Legacy? Redemption?"

Her reply was ice: "Insurance."

I smirked.

Of course it was.

"You thought aligning with the Origin Council would give you leverage?" I whispered. "They're relics. They were never the architects. I was. From the beginning."

I turned my back, pacing slowly. Controlled.

"You both have forgotten one thing. This Empire is not built on love. Or democracy. Or lineage." I looked over my shoulder. "It's built on submission."

Then I stopped.

"Kneel."

Silence.

Skylar took a breath.

"No."

Christiana hesitated.

"You want loyalty?" she said, voice low. "Earn it."

I laughed. Cold. Amused.

Then I pressed a button on my cuff.

The floor lit up.

Around them, holograms of riots began playing. Rebellions. Civil unrest. Famine in District 66. Floods in Zone 42. All orchestrated. All contained. All… bait.

"This is the world without me."

I let the images hang in the air.

"You don't like how I run things? Fine. Take the wheel. Just know—" I turned to face them again "—when this ship crashes, everyone dies."

I walked past them, letting the final sentence linger like smoke.

"You have twenty-four hours to choose. Resistance. Or relevance."

And I left them there.

Two queens.

No throne.