Chapter 35: When the Thread Breaks
Author: MrLostLetter
Silence.
Ethan floated in darkness, weightless, untethered. There was no sound, no pulse of the Codex, no hum of the Core. Just... nothing.
"Where am I?"
His thoughts echoed through the void, but there was no response. For the first time since the Codex had fused with his body, there was no voice. No Crowe. No system humming in the background.
Just... emptiness.
"Am I dead?"
The thought was cold, but it felt... possible. The last thing he remembered was the surge—the Codex pushing deeper, binding itself to his neural pathways until—
"Ethan."
A voice.
But it wasn't Crowe.
"Ethan, come back."
Lena.
Her voice was distant, but it was there, barely breaking through the void.
"Lena?"
Ethan's voice was barely a whisper in the darkness, but her name echoed louder than anything else.
"You're still here..."
Her voice was softer now, filled with desperation and... hope.
"Come back to me."
Ethan's pulse quickened—he could feel it again. Faint. But it was there.
"I'm trying..."
But the darkness wasn't letting go.
---
Lena's grip on Ethan's arm was tight, her knuckles white as she clung to him. His body was still, his breathing shallow, but his pulse... it was there. Barely.
"Ethan..."
Her voice was barely above a whisper now, her heart pounding as she knelt beside him.
"Stay with me."
Dorian was at the console, his cybernetic eye flickering as he fought to stabilize the Core's systems. His hands moved quickly over the holo-interface, his jaw clenched as data streams flooded across the screen.
"It's not working," Dorian murmured, his voice tight.
Lena's breath caught.
"What do you mean it's not working?"
Dorian's expression darkened.
"The Core's merge protocol... it's locked."
Lena's eyes widened.
"Locked?"
Dorian's jaw clenched as he scanned the interface.
"The Codex has taken over."
Lena's heart pounded harder.
"Then shut it down."
"I can't."
Dorian's voice was grim, his fingers moving faster, but the system pushed back—fighting him.
"The Codex's neural pathways are... too deep. It's rewriting his consciousness."
Lena's eyes filled with panic.
"Then what do we do?"
Dorian's hands stilled, his jaw tightening.
"There's only one option."
Lena's breath caught.
"No."
Dorian's eyes met hers, his voice barely above a whisper.
"If we don't sever the connection now..."
Lena's grip on Ethan's arm tightened.
"We lose him."
---
Ethan felt the pull again—the Codex's pulse was faint, but it was there, threading through his mind like a thin thread. But this time... it wasn't binding him.
It was... fraying.
"You have to fight, Ethan."
Lena's voice echoed through the void again, louder this time, pulling him back toward something—toward her.
"I'm trying..."
But the Codex's pull was stronger than he had realized.
"Ethan..."
Crowe's voice returned, quieter now, almost... distant.
"You can't fight this forever."
Ethan's jaw clenched.
"I won't let you win."
"I'm not the one who's winning."
The void pulsed, and suddenly Ethan could see fragments—memories, flashes of the Core, of Crowe's protocols, of the moment the Codex had merged with him.
"You're not just fighting me, Ethan."
Crowe's voice echoed softly now.
"You're fighting yourself."
---
Lena's eyes flickered with desperation as she looked down at Ethan, his body still unmoving.
"Ethan... please."
Her voice was barely above a whisper now, her hand brushing gently against his cheek.
"Come back to me."
Dorian's holo-pad beeped sharply, the data streams shifting faster.
"Lena..."
Dorian's voice was quieter now, but the urgency was impossible to ignore.
"The connection's failing."
Lena's breath caught.
"What?"
Dorian's jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing as he processed the data.
"If we don't do something now..."
His voice trailed off, but Lena knew what he wasn't saying.
They were losing him.
---
"Ethan."
Lena's voice echoed louder in the void now, her words cutting through the darkness like a beacon.
"Don't leave me."
Ethan's pulse quickened, the Codex's hold weakening for just a moment.
"I... I'm still here."
But the void was pulling him back.
"Let go."
Crowe's voice was quieter now, fading.
"Or lose yourself."
Ethan's jaw clenched, his pulse pounding harder.
"I won't let this happen."
"Then choose."
Ethan's breath came faster, the Codex's pulse growing weaker.
"Ethan..."
Lena's voice was softer now, but it echoed louder than anything else.
"Come back."
---
Dorian's hands hovered over the holo-interface, his jaw clenched as he watched the data shift faster than ever before.
"We're out of time," Dorian murmured, his voice barely above a whisper now.
"Lena..."
Lena's eyes never left Ethan's face, her expression filled with quiet desperation.
"Ethan..."
Her hand tightened around his, her touch grounding him, pulling him back from the edge.
"Come back to me."
---
Ethan's pulse slowed, the Codex's energy fading, the line between himself and the system growing thinner.
"You can't fight this forever."
Crowe's voice was barely a whisper now, fading into the void.
"I don't have to," Ethan murmured softly.
Lena's voice echoed louder, pulling him back.
"I'm not losing you," she whispered.
Ethan's jaw clenched, his pulse steadying.
"I'm still here."
The darkness began to fade, the pulse of the Codex growing quieter... weaker.
"I'm coming back."
---
Ethan's eyes snapped open.
Lena's breath caught as she saw the flicker of life return to his gaze.
"Ethan?"
Her voice was barely above a whisper, but the relief was unmistakable.
"I'm here," Ethan murmured, his voice hoarse but steady.
Lena's eyes filled with tears, her hand brushing gently against his cheek.
"You're back..."
But even as the words left her lips, Ethan's jaw clenched.
Because deep down...
He knew the battle wasn't over.
Not yet.
---
Next Chapter: Chapter 36: Echoes of What Remains