In his cold, sterile cell, Kiran no longer felt just pain. The "seed" inside him was growing, pulsing with a steady rhythm. He felt a powerful, raw energy swirling beneath his skin, an urge to push, to break free. Dr. Koval came often, watching him, making him perform small tasks. She never used force, but her calm, knowing gaze was a constant pressure. She called them "integration tests," making him focus his will, trying to connect with the raw energy of the seed. During one test, she made him try to speed up a small clock, not with his time-stutter, but with the raw power from the "seed." The clock shattered, unable to handle the uncontrolled energy. It showed him his power was growing, but it was wild and dangerous.
He also felt something else now, a faint, almost silent whisper in his mind. It was Elena. Her frustration, her desperate thoughts about the book. He couldn't hear her words, but he felt her searching, her intense focus on the Eclipse Codex. The "seed" seemed to make him more sensitive, linking him to things beyond normal senses. He knew she was trying to find a way to save him, and the book was her key.
One day, Koval came with a new, unsettling smile. "The first phase is complete, Code X. Your integration is strong. Now, we begin the next stage: preparation for the Great Eclipse. You are about to meet a new... companion." She turned to the glass screen in his cell, and a face appeared. It was Liam. Not a memory, not a vision, but a live feed. Liam's eyes were wide, vacant, his body moving stiffly, like a puppet. He was in a large, dark chamber, connected to strange machines.
"Liam...?" Kiran whispered, his heart hammering. It was his brother, but not truly him. He was a vessel, just as Koval had described. Koval's smile widened, a true, terrible triumph. "Yes. The purest vessel, as the Eclipse Codex instructed. He will anchor your power, Code X. Brother to brother. We are ready." Kiran felt a cold rage. This was the final insult. His brother, used as a tool. He would escape. He would destroy everything Koval planned. The Eclipse Codex book Elena held was their only hope, and he would somehow guide her to unlock its power, even from his terrifying prison.