Chapter 65 – The Riftblade That Cut Its Maker

Location: Yxtrielle – Dead Horizon Ridge

Time: [Override Phase Shift – Memory Bond Active]

Ren didn't flinch.

The moment Xal'Zirach growled under Va'theran's command, Ren's three core rings spun up in defiance — Time, Space, and Gravity orbiting his body like satellites made of war.

The air shivered.

Dust lifted without wind.

And from behind him, Lira still lay in silence — cradled in a stasis field of gentle flame and frost, untouched by what was about to erupt.

FROST (whispering):

"He corrupted Xal'Zirach. He rewrote a glyph link. That's… not possible unless…"

BLAZE (spitting fire):

"Unless he has override permissions. On your system."

VA'THERAN (smiling, glitching):

"I don't need your permission, Riftboy."

"I was Kaelreth's equal once. His mirror. His failure."

"And I know how to reverse the tether."

He raised two fingers, etched in static.

And in Ren's chest —

The Override Core screamed.

YSTEM ALERT:

Glyph Channels: Breached.

Resonance Control: Fragmented.

WARNING: SUMMONER GLYPHS NOW CORRUPTED.

Summons:

– Mire Whisperer: Status – Distorted (Sludge Wrath Mode)

– Rattlejaw Knight: Status – Reversed Allegiance

– Velkrin: Status – Silent Mode Forced

– Graith'Vor: Status – Nullifying Ren's own glyphs

– Xal'Zirach: Controlled by Va'theran

– ECLIPSIS: Dormant. Shuddering. Watching.

REN (staggering):

"What the hell did you do?!"

VA'THERAN (mocking):

"I didn't take them."

"You gave them. Every time you summoned, you opened a channel. You let me inside."

"I'm not corrupting your glyphs."

"I'm editing them."

Suddenly, Rattlejaw Knight emerged —

But instead of shielding Ren, it attacked with a delay-slashed echo that tore a chunk of stone out of his shoulder.

Blood sprayed.

Ren fell to a knee.

VEY'STRYX (furious):

"YOU GLITCHED-FACED BASTARD—THESE ARE OURS!"

Ren tried to swing —

But his sword glitched mid-air, blinked out of existence, and reappeared… in Va'theran's hand.

No longer Vey'stryx.

Just a shell.

INTERNAL SYSTEM COLLAPSING: Glyphs: Severed from core loop Summon Slots: Inverted Combat Channels: Hijacked Override Core: Under siege

TIME (sounding… drunk?):

"He's… inside the clockworks, baby."

"I can't turn back shit unless we… melt his fingers off."

SPACE (panicking):

"I don't like sharing! I don't! I don't! KILL HIM—"

GRAVITY (growling):

"He stole control. We take it back."

Ren gritted his teeth and slammed both fists into the dirt.

The planet responded.

Yxtrielle's ground split — a memory pulse shot outward, like a sonar scream through the bones of the world.

Va'theran twitched.

VA'THERAN:

"You're using planetary glyphs now? Dangerous move. That's not your memory. That's hers."

Ren didn't speak.

He was syncing.

Not to the glyphs. Not to the core.

To Ka'rath'Mar's echo.

To the person he used to be.

NEW BOND INITIATED:

Memory Glyph – Origin Thread Unsealed

Function: Glyphs revert to first memory state.

(Pre-contract. Pre-echo. Pre-corruption.)

From Ren's spine, glowing threads of red-blue-gold burst outward, snapping the corrupted glyphs like cracked porcelain.

Mire Whisperer vanished in a scream of black fog.

Rattlejaw Knight screeched as it reversed again — back to neutral, disoriented.

Velkrin flickered back into displacement phase, whispering: "Welcome back, bearer."

Xal'Zirach?

Still lost. But watching.

REN (standing slowly):

"You were Kaelreth's mirror."

"Well guess what?"

"I'm his mistake — and I learned from it."

He reached behind him — his hand clenched.

A new blade formed.

Not Vey'stryx.

Not a glyph weapon.

This one was formed from the Override Core itself.

NEW WEAPON ACQUIRED:

Name: Threadbreaker

Type: Dimensional Anti-Glyph Blade

Effect: Cuts through active glyph code. Destroys corrupted echo contracts. Bypasses Drift defense.

Ren's eyes glowed like twin star-folds.

He raised Threadbreaker.

BLAZE (awed):

"That's… not just a sword."

FROST (terrified):

"That's a reset button."

Ren spoke.

Calm. Cold. Controlled.

REN:

"Time to delete you, Va'theran."

And then he moved.

Faster than Time.

He folded Space.

He bent Gravity.

Straight for the man who stole his glyphs.