Adrian couldn't stop thinking about it. The moment he closed his eyes, he saw that figure again—blurred, distant, but real. It wasn't the Source. It wasn't an illusion. It felt… human. Too human.
"You saw him clearly?" Kai asked.
Adrian shook his head. "Not clearly. But enough. He was there."
Veyr's expression stayed unreadable. "That's not possible."
Adrian looked at him. "You were there. You tell me."
Silence followed. Even Veyr didn't have an immediate answer this time.
"The last Core died," Kai said firmly.
Adrian frowned. "Then what did I see?"
No one spoke. The question hung there, heavy and uncomfortable.
Adrian stood up slowly, still feeling the echo of that place in his chest. "He told me to run."
Kai's eyes narrowed. "Run?"
"Yeah." Adrian rubbed his wrist. "Not fight. Not resist. Run."
Veyr finally moved. "That doesn't sound like the Source."
"It's not," Adrian said. "That's why this doesn't make sense."
Kai crossed his arms. "Or it's trying a different approach. Manipulation instead of force."
Adrian shook his head immediately. "No. That wasn't manipulation. That felt…" He paused, searching for the right word. "Desperate."
That changed something. Kai didn't respond right away this time.
Veyr's voice dropped slightly. "If it really was him… then he's still connected."
Adrian looked at him. "Connected how?"
Veyr hesitated for a second. "Trapped."
Silence fell again.
Adrian's chest tightened. "You mean he's still in there?"
Veyr nodded once. "If the Source didn't fully consume him, then what's left of him could still exist inside that space."
Kai's voice hardened. "Fragments. Not a person."
Adrian looked between them. "That didn't feel like a fragment."
Kai didn't answer.
Adrian exhaled slowly. "Then we go back."
Both of them reacted instantly.
"No," Kai said.
Veyr spoke at the same time. "Not yet."
Adrian frowned. "You both saw what happened. He reached out."
Kai stepped closer. "And you almost lost control again."
"I didn't," Adrian said.
"You almost did," Kai corrected.
Adrian's jaw tightened. "That's not the point."
"It is," Kai said. "Because next time, you might not come back."
Adrian held his gaze. "And if I don't go back, we lose the only lead we have."
That hit. Neither of them denied it.
Veyr spoke carefully. "If he's still there, then the Source is keeping him for a reason."
Adrian nodded. "Exactly. Which means he matters."
Kai shook his head. "Or he's bait."
Adrian didn't flinch. "Then I'll take the risk."
Kai's voice dropped. "You don't get to make that decision alone."
Adrian's eyes narrowed. "It's my mind. My connection. My risk."
"And our responsibility," Kai shot back.
Silence snapped between them.
Veyr stepped in before it could escalate. "Both of you are right."
They both looked at him.
Veyr continued, "We don't ignore this. But we don't rush in blindly either."
Adrian crossed his arms. "So what's the plan?"
Veyr's gaze sharpened. "We prepare for a deeper entry."
Kai frowned. "That's more dangerous."
"Yes," Veyr said. "Which is why we do it properly this time."
Adrian leaned slightly forward. "Define properly."
Veyr didn't hesitate. "You won't go alone."
Adrian blinked. "You mean—"
"Yes," Veyr said. "If the connection holds, I go in with you."
Kai's expression darkened immediately. "No."
Veyr didn't even look at him. "It's the only way to confirm what he saw."
Kai stepped closer. "And if the Source grabs both of you?"
Veyr met his gaze. "Then you pull us out."
Silence.
Kai didn't like that answer. Not even a little.
Adrian, however, looked almost amused. "Wow. I didn't expect you to volunteer."
Veyr ignored that. "If he's still there, I need to see it myself."
That made Adrian pause. "You think it's really him."
Veyr's voice lowered. "I think something of him remains."
Kai ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated. "This is a bad idea."
Adrian shrugged slightly. "Most of ours are."
Kai didn't smile.
The room fell quiet again.
Then Adrian spoke, softer this time. "He told me to run."
Both of them looked at him.
Adrian continued, "Not fight. Not destroy the Source. Just run."
Veyr frowned slightly. "That doesn't make sense."
"It does if he's trying to protect me," Adrian said.
Kai shook his head. "Or mislead you."
Adrian looked at him. "You really think I'd fall for that?"
Kai didn't answer directly. "I think you're still learning."
That stung a little.
Adrian exhaled slowly. "Then help me learn faster."
Silence followed.
Veyr spoke first. "We'll train for it."
Kai looked at him. "You're agreeing to this?"
Veyr nodded once. "We don't have a better option."
Kai looked back at Adrian. Long. Careful. Like he was weighing something important.
"…You don't go back without us," he said finally.
Adrian smirked faintly. "Wasn't planning to."
That wasn't entirely true, but Kai let it go.
"For now," Kai added.
Adrian nodded. "For now."
The decision wasn't perfect.
It wasn't safe.
But it was something.
And right now, that was enough.
Adrian looked down at his wrist. The mark pulsed softly, like it already knew what was coming next.
"…Hang on," he muttered under his breath.
Because if that really was the last Core—
Then this wasn't just about stopping the Source anymore.
It was about finding someone who was never truly gone.
And bringing him back.