Kai leaned on a greasy counter in a Pahrump diner. The air smelled of bacon and old coffee. His hands were raw from washing dishes. Four days ago, he fled the I-15 diner rift. Now he skipped from Tonopah to Beatty to Pahrump, taking cash jobs to dodge Veilwatch. His purple threads—speed, shields, plasma—kept him free, not some null they could cage. Mara's pistol and that sniper's dart still stung his mind. He stayed in cheap motels with bad beds. No rifts, no Veilwatch, just me. His mother's telescope sat in his duffel. Her voice whispered: You're more. But he didn't want to be a hero. Surviving was enough.
He grabbed ten bucks from the cook and headed to the Shady Rest Motel. Its neon sign buzzed. Lena's DM—"Keep running, lightning"—bugged him. She warned of a 100-teraton super rift. He wanted no part of it. Not my fight. He used speed threads to race through Pahrump's dark streets. The desert air was cool. Near a pawn shop, a purple glow flickered in an alley. No way. A small rift, a foot wide, spit out a goblin. Its red eyes glowed, claws sharp. It jumped at a teen skater, who dropped his board and screamed.
Kai frowned. Just walk away. But the kid's scared face reminded him of Ohio. He sighed, threads whipping out. They cracked the goblin's skull. Black mist sprayed as it fell. The teen gasped, "Thanks, dude!" He snapped a blurry photo. Kai used speed threads and vanished into the shadows. Great, more posts. By morning, Connect buzzed: "Purple lightning saved me in Pahrump!" Kai tossed his phone on the motel's stained bed. He groaned. I need to stay hidden, not go viral.
Lena sat at her bunker terminal. The fluorescent lights buzzed. The 100-teraton super rift was close, set to hit Nevada. It could destroy cities. Mara's offer—"Anything you want"—felt like a trap. Cameras watched Lena's every move. Her secret surge maps showed small rifts in small towns—Tonopah, Beatty, Pahrump. They followed someone. It's Kai. Connect posts spread fast: "Purple lightning" saving people. Lena smiled. She wrote DMs to Kai but didn't send them. Mara's eyes were everywhere. Lena needed the right moment, maybe tomorrow's supply run when agents were busy. Her dad's stargazing words came back: Wait for the stars to align. She'd reach Kai soon. Her maps would lead her to him.
Kai hitched to Goldfield, a dusty town with old buildings. He sorted scrap at a junkyard for cash. His dive bar room smelled of mold. The bed creaked. Rifts kept finding him. At dusk, a small rift opened behind a gas station. Two goblins ran at a waitress locking up. Her keys shook as she screamed. Not again. Kai could run, but her cry sounded like his mom's weak voice. He shaped a thread shield to block a claw. A pulse crushed the goblins' chests. Mist pooled. The waitress whispered, "Thank you." She filmed him. Kai sped off into the hills.
Kai sipped a warm beer in the bar. The TV showed #PurpleLightning clips. Hero? I'm just surviving. News called him a "vigilante." Each save made Veilwatch closer. Lena's super rift warning scared him—100 teratons, no way. He wanted to hide, but rifts kept coming. Their purple glow matched his threads. Are they after me?
In Amargosa Valley, Kai washed trucks for a hauling company. His motel had a leaky faucet. A third rift opened by a trailer park. Three goblins chased a mechanic. His wrench didn't help. Why me? Kai wove a lasso to grab one goblin. A whip broke another's spine. The third scratched his arm, hurting his old wound. A plasma spark burned it to ash. The mechanic filmed Kai running. His post said: "Purple dude's a legend! Whoever you are, man, thank you."
"God damnit, why does everyone have to post this shit." Kai regretted saving these people, but he knows he would feel worse if he didn't.
Riley stood in the bunker's training bay. Her purple threads cut steel dummies. Sweat dripped. At 24, she was Veilwatch's best spellweaver. Her record was five minutes faster than others. Mara picked her for a Tulsa mission—a small rift to contain. Riley's heart pounded as she got in the van. Her threads felt alive. The mission went perfectly. She netted four goblins. Their claws couldn't touch her. Agents scrubbed the area. No one saw. Back at the bunker, Mara smiled.
"You're the best, Riley," Mara said. "You're ready for big rifts."
Riley grinned. "Happy to help, ma'am." Veilwatch gave her purpose. It beat the chaos of Ohio. Kai's absence hurt, but Mara's trust felt good. She'd fight rifts for Veilwatch, save people. Mara watched her closely, her smile sharp. She had plans. Riley trusts me. She'll bring Kai to us. Mara met with her top agents later. "Riley's our key," she said. "She's loyal. I'm guessing Kai cares about her. We'll send her on missions near his sightings. She'll spot him, or he'll come for her. Either way, we get him." An agent nodded. "What if she warns him?" Mara's eyes narrowed. "She might but right now, She believes in us. Keep her busy with rifts. She'll lead us to Kai without knowing." Mara's mist flared. She wanted Kai's power, and Riley was her bait.
Kai reached Indian Springs, washing dishes at a truck stop. His motel room was tiny, with a dim bulb. At night, he aimed his telescope at Andromeda's halo. It calmed him. A fourth rift opened behind the stop. A goblin stalked a cashier. Her scream was loud. I can leave. But her angry curse at the goblin felt like Kai's own defiance. He sent a thread pulse. The goblin crumpled, mist fading. The cashier shouted, "You're that purple guy! Awesome!" Kai ran.
On his cot, Kai scrolled his phone. Posts wouldn't stop. Awesome? I'm just alive. Lena's DMs warned of the super rift. He ignored them. The rifts' glow was too much like his threads. Am I making them? His mom's voice, the telescope's weight, told him to keep running. Each save—skater, waitress, mechanic, cashier—made him a hero he didn't want to be. Riley's with Veilwatch. He'd hide, dodge the surge, let the world save itself.
Lena's terminal showed small rifts following Kai—Pahrump, Goldfield, Amargosa, Indian Springs. The rifts seem to be following him. Her maps tracked his motels through Connect posts. Mara's patrols were close, but tomorrow's supply run gave Lena a chance. Agents would be distracted. She wrote a DM, ready to send: "Kai, you're in Indian Springs. Meet me, we can stop this." Mara's camera blinked. Lena waited. Tomorrow, Kai. I'll find you.