Chapter 14: Two Eyes, No Peace

Date: 2742-08-24

Time: 08:10 AM

Location: Aito's House – Guest Room

Ren woke up to screaming.

Not from Aito. Not from his dream.

From inside his own head.

KAEL-OPTIC (left eye):

"YO. WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED LAST NIGHT?! Why did I go offline?! DID YOU BREAK TIME AGAIN WITHOUT ME?!"

Ren flailed, rolled out of bed, and slammed face-first into the tatami mat.

KAEL-OPTIC:

"I had you tethered to a temporal sync node! You broke the sync node! I had to REBUILD MYSELF from SCRATCH!"

"Holy SHIT, shut up! It's 8AM!" Ren groaned.

UNKNOWN VOICE (right eye):

"Tsk. Dramatic, isn't he? Overreacting like an old motherboard with abandonment issues."

Ren froze.

"…Who the fuck—"

He sprinted to the bathroom and looked in the mirror.

His right eye was glowing. A soft, cold blue — different from Kael's warm gold glow.

VORLAG-OPTIC (right eye):

"Greetings, brat. I'm the echo of what your future could've been if you'd grown a backbone and a six-pack."

KAEL-OPTIC:

"Oh FUCK OFF, you smug necro-data bastard. You infected my host? Are you SERIOUS?!"

VORLAG-OPTIC:

"Relax. I'm not a virus. I'm a parting gift. Think of me as... Vortex Optic 2.0: Now with better voice modulation and zero conscience."

KAEL-OPTIC:

"Ren, don't listen to him. He's a walking midlife crisis in optical form."

VORLAG-OPTIC:

"And you're a glorified war encyclopedia with trust issues."

Ren rubbed his temples. "Okay, NOPE. This is too much. I can't have two angry eye AIs arguing inside my skull like it's a fucking sci-fi divorce court."

"From now on—Left Eye, you're Blaze.

Right Eye, you're Frost.

Don't ask why. It sounds cool and I'm tired."

BLAZE (Kael's Optic):

"Seriously? I was The Last Light's Optic. I guided warriors across timelines."

"And now I'm named like a 2007 Xbox gamer tag?"

FROST (Vorlag's Optic):

"Mmm. I like it. Sounds sharp. Stylish. Deadly."

BLAZE:

"Of course you would like it, you monochrome edgy bastard."

Time: 08:33 AM

Location: Aito's Room – Paper War Zone

Ren burst back in, holding the folded bloodstained letter from Vorlag — one that materialized the night before.

Aito, still in pajamas, looked up mid-cereal spoon. "Did you just yell 'Frost shut the hell up' at your bathroom mirror?"

"I can explain." Ren dropped the letter. "Actually, no I can't. Just read this."

Aito picked it up, squinting at the crusted edge. "Ew. Is this… real blood?"

BLAZE:

"Confirmed. Final message from the alternate Ren variant. This is Vorlag's last recorded thought pattern."

FROST:

"I prefer 'final mic drop'. Sounds cooler."

Aito ignored both voices — because only Ren could hear them — and read aloud:

🩸 Vorlag's Final Letter

To the only one who matters:

I failed.

Not because I wasn't strong enough — but because strength meant nothing.

I spent centuries chasing something I thought was a destiny. It wasn't.

It was a loop.

I was never the true bearer of the Core.

I only ever inherited its mistake.

In every dimension, there is a "you" — and every "you" is a natural power node. Born with Core resonance.

Every version of you… except this one.

This dimension — your home — was hidden. Off-grid. Forgotten.

You weren't meant to have the Core.

But you do.

That makes you different.

Special.

You're the only version of "Ren Ishida" born without Aetherium resonance.

But now?

You generate it.

You are the source.

I wanted to overwrite reality.

You have the power to rewrite it.

Don't waste it.

Goodbye, brat.

Aito blinked.

"Okay. That's… a lot."

"You believe me now?"

"No," Aito said, sipping his cereal. "But this is the best ARG I've ever played. You've got cryptic notes, glowing eyes, sarcasm AIs. 10/10 immersive worldbuilding."

BLAZE:

"I hate this man."

FROST:

"I like him. He's grounded. You could learn a thing or two, Burny."

BLAZE:

"IT'S BLAZE, YOU FROSTED FRUITLOOP."

Aito leaned back. "So. Do we finally solve that damn puzzle today?"

Ren held up both middle fingers to the ceiling.

"Let's do it before the peanut gallery in my brain starts arguing about eye dominance again."