Kai woke again sometime after midnight, though the room was too dim and too still for him to be certain.
The darkness felt… thicker than usual. Not just the absence of light, but something heavier — like the air itself had weight.
His body ached.
Not sharply, not painfully — but deeply. As if gravity had settled into his bones while he slept, pressing down from the inside. Even breathing felt slower, heavier, deliberate.
His mind wasn't much better.
Fog clung to his thoughts, stubborn and suffocating. Fragments of dreams lingered just out of reach — shapes, voices, emotions — but the moment he tried to grasp them, they slipped away.
Except one thing.
A voice.
"…If you want to come see your mother…"
Kai's fingers tightened against the bedsheet.
"…No," he muttered under his breath.
Silence answered him.
Slowly, he pushed himself upright. The mattress creaked softly beneath him, the sound oddly loud in the stillness. He rubbed his eyes, blinking until the room came into focus.
Leon's room.
Messy. Familiar. Safe.
Books scattered across the desk. A half-finished assignment buried under random notes. Posters peeling slightly at the edges, clinging to the walls like they were too tired to fall.
Normal.
So painfully normal it almost hurt.
Kai swung his legs off the bed and stood. His muscles protested immediately, stiff and sluggish. For a second, his balance wavered — like his body hadn't fully caught up to the fact that he was awake.
He steadied himself.
Move.
One step.
Then another.
The apartment was quiet.
Not the peaceful kind.
The kind that felt like it was listening.
The faint hum of the refrigerator. The distant ticking of something metallic. And beneath it—
A soft sound.
Pages turning.
Kai stepped into the hallway.
A warm light spilled out from the kitchen, cutting a thin line across the floor.
He followed it—
—and nearly walked straight into Varek.
The man didn't flinch.
Not even slightly.
He stood at the counter, sleeves rolled up, stirring something slowly in a mug. Steam curled upward, thin and ghost-like, dissolving into the air.
His eyes flicked toward Kai instantly.
Sharp.
Aware.
Waiting.
"You're louder than you think," Varek said.
Kai blinked. "You're quieter than you should be."
"That's the point."
Kai exhaled, leaning slightly against the wall. "Fair."
For a moment, neither spoke.
Varek lifted the mug, taking a slow, measured sip before setting it down with quiet precision.
"What are you doing here?" Kai asked.
"Existing," Varek replied.
A pause.
"Since I can't find Alethya, I don't know where else to stay."
Kai frowned. "So… you're living here?"
"For now." A small shrug. "Leon insisted. Or rather, he complained until I agreed."
Kai almost smiled.
Almost.
"And you," Varek added calmly, "have been unconscious for over three days."
Kai froze.
"…Three?"
"Yes."
Varek turned back to the kettle, pouring hot water with the same controlled movements as always.
"You stopped breathing properly twice."
Kai's chest tightened. "What?"
"It corrected itself," Varek said. "Eventually."
Silence.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
Kai ran a hand through his hair. "You could've led with that."
"I prefer accuracy over comfort."
Kai let out a slow breath.
Three days.
Gone.
Just… gone.
"…Varek," he said quietly, "I need to tell you something."
Varek didn't turn.
But he was listening.
Kai lowered his voice.
"I saw the Corrupted again."
The air shifted.
"It spoke to me. Said there's a crack. That some Nulls are disguised as citizens."
Varek's grip on the mug tightened—just slightly.
"And…" Kai hesitated.
"…it mentioned my mother."
That made Varek turn.
Fully.
"What exactly did it say?"
Kai repeated every word.
By the time he finished, the warmth in the kitchen had vanished.
"You did the right thing telling me," Varek said.
Kai nodded.
"Do not tell Leon or Aika."
"I wasn't planning to."
"Good."
A pause.
"They're not ready."
Kai wasn't sure if that meant the truth—
Or what was coming.
A door creaked open behind them.
Leon stepped out, half-asleep, hair completely ruined.
"Kai?"
Kai turned. "Yeah."
Leon blinked.
Then his eyes widened.
"YOU'RE UP?"
Kai winced. "Volume—"
Leon walked over quickly, studying him. Really studying him.
"You scared us," he said, quieter this time.
Kai looked away. "Sorry."
Leon scratched the back of his neck. "Aika's coming. She said she'd bring food but… I don't trust that."
Kai huffed softly. "You shouldn't."
Leon grinned. "If she forgets, we're ordering pizza."
"Good plan."
Minutes later, the door burst open.
"I'M SORRY!"
Aika stood there, slightly out of breath.
"I forgot the food."
Leon pointed instantly. "CALLED IT."
Aika groaned. "I said I'm sorry!"
Kai smiled faintly.
Aika walked over, her expression softening immediately.
"How are you? Really?"
Kai hesitated.
"…Better."
She didn't believe him.
But she didn't push.
Not yet.
The apartment filled with small, normal noise.
Arguments about toppings. Complaints. Laughter.
Kai sat on the couch, letting it wash over him.
This…
This is what normal feels like.
Warm.
Safe.
Fragile.
Too fragile.
"…They could be your friends…"
Kai's fingers tightened slightly.
No.
Not here.
The doorbell rang.
Leon lit up. "Pizza!"
Aika stood. "I'll get it."
Kai's chest tightened.
He didn't know why.
But something felt—
Wrong.
Varek's head snapped toward the door.
Too fast.
Too sharp.
Aika opened it.
A young man stood there, smiling politely, holding two pizza boxes.
"Order for Leon?"
Normal.
Completely normal.
Kai almost relaxed.
Almost.
Then—
Varek moved.
The mug shattered against the counter.
He crossed the room in a blur.
"GET AWAY FROM HIM!"
Everything stopped.
Aika froze.
Leon flinched.
Kai's heart slammed against his ribs.
The man blinked, confused.
Still smiling.
Too still.
Too perfect.
Varek's voice dropped.
Cold.
Lethal.
"He doesn't have a shadow."
Silence.
Leon looked down.
Kai followed.
The light hit the man directly.
But the floor beneath him—
Was empty.
No shadow.
Kai's stomach dropped.
"…He's a Null."
The smile broke.
The man's head twitched.
Once.
Twice.
Too fast.
Too wrong.
His eyes hollowed out.
Something inside him shifted.
Aika stumbled back—
Too late.
The Null lunged.
Kai didn't think.
He didn't plan.
He felt.
Fear.
Sharp.
Violent.
Absolute.
Not again.
The Gear pulsed.
And the world—
Shattered.
Time froze.
The Null hung inches from Aika's throat.
Leon's shout stretched into silence.
Dust floated midair.
The world held its breath.
Only Kai moved.
Only Varek stood beside him.
"Again," Varek muttered.
Kai's voice shook. "Why does this keep happening…?"