Henry returned inside with a huge grin on his face.
He wrapped his arms around Cynthia in a tight hug.
"Things are finally going to get better again, honey."
Then he lifted Redy into his arms and kissed her cheeks.
"And this," he said proudly, "is thanks to my good luck charm."
Redy allowed the affection without resistance.
But inside her mind a thought surfaced quietly.
It’s already happening.
At that exact mont, an alarm began to sound.
But it wasn’t coming from the house.
No.
The sound echoed across the entire Sector 601.
****
The soul was supposed to be a vast and empty hollow space.
Its purpose was simple: Fuel life and
Store talents.
That was all.
Or at least...
That was what it was ant to do.
Because the soul had one more function.
A lesser one.
It could mimic the mind.
The mind was everything.
It housed the mories, emotions and personality of a person’s entire existence.
The soul couldn’t fully replicate that.
But it could imitate fragnts.
Echoes.
That was why Adam could understand others by reading their souls through Connect.
Compared to the mind, the soul was simpler and easier to read.
And because of that a normal soul was mostly empty.
A void.
Adam’s soul was proof of that.
Aside from the phantoms, manifestations of his equipped talents, there was nothing else.
Just emptiness.
But Redy...
Was different.
Completely different.
Her soul was not empty.
It wasn’t even close.
It was full.
Overwhelmingly so.
Countless regressions had reshaped it.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Each ti her special talent activated, fragnts of her soul were sent back through ti.
Stacking.
Accumulating.
Evolving.
Over countless cycles, those fragnts began to change everything.
Her cultivation talent improved, her bloodline awakened, strengthened by the repeated accumulation of the recessive spirit factor.
But more than that her soul changed.
Fundantally.
It stopped being just a vessel.
It began to resemble the mind itself.
Not as complex.
Not as perfect.
But close enough.
It held mories now.
Real ones.
And those mories weren’t dormant.
They were alive and active.
She wasn’t just rembering them.
She was living them.
Again.
And right now, Redy stood inside one of those mories.
The day her family died.
****
Henry didn’t hesitate.
The mont the alarm sounded, he moved.
"Get up. Now."
He grabbed Cynthia’s hand and pulled her toward the door, already reaching for Redy with his other arm.
He knew that sound.
A rift breach.
And the timing couldn’t have been worse.
Just when things were finally starting to turn around...
This had to happen.
"Move!" he barked.
They rushed outside.
Henry shoved them into the car and jumped into the driver’s seat.
"We have to get to the shelter. Fast."
The engine roared to life.
Then he floored it.
The car sped through the streets as panic spread across Sector 601.
People were already running and shouting.
Doors slamd as the sirens echoed in the distance.
Henry gripped the wheel tightly.
We’re close. We can make it.
That was the only reason he had chosen this house.
It was near one of the ergency shelters.
Even if it was old.
Even if it was underfunded.
Right now it was their only chance.
But as they turned the next street, everything stopped.
Traffic.
A wall of cars clogged the road ahead.
People abandoned their vehicles and ran.
Henry clicked his tongue.
"Damn it."
He turned to Cynthia.
"We’re going on foot."
He got out imdiately and pulled the door open.
"Stay close. Don’t let go of each other."
Cynthia nodded, clutching Redy tightly.
They joined the crowd.
Pushing forward with everyone else.
The air was thick with fear.
And then a distant roar echoed through the streets.
Redy’s eyes flickered slightly as Henry’s grip tightened.
He didn’t look back or slow down.
There was only one thing on his mind.
Get them to the shelter.
No matter what.
Up ahead, through the sea of people, the gray walls of the shelter finally ca into view.
Hope had never felt so close before.
But it was not close enough.
Because they still had to reach it.
And they weren’t the only ones trying.
****
The low-tier sectors were the most underdeveloped parts of the Alliance and the reason was simple: it was Essence.
There wasn’t enough of it.
The environnt itself wasn’t suitable for strong martial artists.
Resources were scarce.
Growth was slow.
That was why companies like the one Henry had just partnered with chose to operate here.
The costs and competition were low and all they had to do was build up quietly.
Then expand later.
But none of that mattered right now.
Because that sa weakness had turned Sector 601 into a death trap.
There weren’t enough martial artists.
No proper mission hall.
No real defensive force.
When the rift breach happened, there was nothing to stop it.
Monsters road freely.
And the few martial artists present...
We’re falling.
One after another.
But luckily the shelter was in sight.
But chaos ruled the entrance.
A massive crowd had gathered at the gates as people pushed, shoved and scread.
It was barely being controlled.
The gates weren’t open wide enough and entry was slow.
At this rate a stampede could happen at any mont.
Henry’s expression hardened.
"Stay behind !"
He stepped forward and forced his way through the crowd.
Elbows slamd into him.
Hands shoved his shoulders.
Soone nearly knocked him off balance.
But he didn’t stop.
He couldn’t.
I have to get them inside.
He pushed harder and ignored the pain.
And finally he reached the front.
Relief flashed across his face.
But before he could step through a hand shoved him back and he stumbled back.
His eyes snapped up.
A martial artist, one of the few stationed in the sector stood in front of the gate.
Henry clenched his jaw.
"What’s the problem?"
The man didn’t hesitate.
"The shelter is full."
His voice was cold.
"Turn back."
****
A/N: Thank you for reading!
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