Chapter 6, Part 2: The Archive Breathes Differently
It started with the scrolls.
Not exploding. Not glowing.
Just shifting—like the shelves had exhaled at the wrong time.
Brix noticed first.
He was meditating near the low-fire shrine, hands open, flame curling lazily between his palms.
It pulsed—once.
Off rhythm.
His eyes opened.
Lio noticed next.
He stood in the northern alcove, inspecting a set of inherited scrolls on internal rune structuring. He blinked. Stepped back.
Light was bending wrong across the spines.
Mav was third.
Because he wasn't watching the walls.
He was licking the inside of a teacup and paused halfway through.
"…that's new," he said.
Brix turned. "What?"
"The taste. The air."
Mav stood, swirling the cup.
"It's too clean." He paused. "Something outside is trying to reach in."
[System Alert: External Influence Detected – High Resonance Spike 003A]
[Barrier Pressure: Increasing. Outside scanning magic being deflected.]
[Recommended: Dormant Containment Maintained – but students may experience emotional bleed.]
Lio crossed the chamber.
"The pressure's shifted. They're not just watching anymore."
Mav tapped the teacup. "Someone's reaching."
Brix cracked his knuckles. "Let them."
Then, a voice.
"…can't anyone keep the temperature steady…"
They all turned.
Kairon sat up halfway, hair flattened to one side, scrolls stuck to his cheek.
His eyes didn't open.
"I know what heavy air feels like," he muttered. "Means someone wants to knock but doesn't want to open the door themselves."
Lio took a step forward. "What do you want us to do?"
Kairon yawned.
"Don't open the door."
A pause.
Then—
"But if someone else tries to?"
He opened one eye, just a crack.
"Bite their hand off."
[System Update: Passive Observation Concluded – Threat Authorization Implied.]
[Student Sync Modifier Applied – Aggression Threshold Lowered. Initiative Bias Active.]
Each of the three felt it.
Not rage.
Not thrill.
Just permission.
Brix exhaled—flames tightening along his spine. Controlled. Ready.
Lio adjusted his blade grip. No sharpening required. It would be drawn soon.
Mav tossed the teacup behind him. It vanished mid-air with a wink.
"Good," he said. "I was starting to get bored."
The archive didn't glow.
It hummed.
Like a coil gathering tension beneath still water.
Outside the dome, the factions couldn't feel it.
But they would.
Very soon.