“Kael?” Mira’s voice was groggy from the sedation chair. Her eyes opened—hazel, confused, but sharp . Too sharp for someone who’d just received a full GenPatch. “What happened? The last thing I remember is… the field. The children’s school. The bomb.”

The tank’s bioluminescent algae flickered, casting jade shadows across Kaelen’s face. He stared at the diagnostic slate, his reflection fractured by a single, pulsing red line:

“I see it,” Mira whispered, touching her temple. Her voice changed. Dropped an octave. Became something older, colder. “I see what you tried to do. You tried to take my war from me.”