As the twin suns rose over the horizon, their golden light poured through the windows. Sam slowly opened his eyes, his body aching, bandages wrapped around his torso and arms. With a groan, he pushed himself up and swung his legs over the bed. The memories of the previous night were hazy, but the soreness in his muscles told him enough.

Stepping out of the room, he was greeted by the sight of Eislyn, Leona, Rock, and Reese sitting around the dining table, enjoying their breakfast. The moment Rock noticed him, a smirk spread across his face.

“Well, look who finally decided to wake up,” Rock said, stuffing another bite of food into his mouth.

Leona gestured to an empty seat. “Come on, sit down. You need to eat.”

Sam nodded and took a seat, glancing around the room. That’s when he noticed the gaping holes in the walls, shattered pieces of furniture scattered across the floor. His stomach sank.

“Uh… about the damage,” Sam said, rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry about the holes…”

Leona waved a dismissive hand. “Don’t worry about it. It was Rock who threw you through them.” She shot a glare at her husband.

Sam turned his attention to Rock, who was also covered in bandages. The man only chuckled. “What can I say? I was just trying to wake you up a bit. Thought maybe if I knocked some sense into you, you’d finally take those inhibitors off.”

At the mention of them, Sam’s eyes immediately dropped to his wrists. The metallic cuffs were securely fastened, suppressing his energy. He exhaled sharply, flexing his fingers.

Rock noticed his reaction and leaned back. “Don’t worry. I know about them. Your sister told me four years ago.”

Four Years Ago

Rock and Nyssa sat together in a quiet café, steam rising from their meals as they took a break from training.

“My brother… he needs inhibitors to keep his flux energy under control,” Nyssa said suddenly, her voice carrying a weight of concern.

Rock raised an eyebrow. “Why? That kind of tech isn’t easy to get, let alone maintain.”

Nyssa set her fork down, her expression darkening. “Because Sam’s connection to his soul is too strong—too unstable. If he exerts himself too much, his own power could kill him. That’s why I asked Lane to build them for him.”

Rock took a long sip of his drink, processing the information. “And what happens if he ever takes them off?”

Nyssa hesitated, her hands tightening into fists. “I don’t know… and I don’t want to find out.”

As rock told the story. “I see so that's how you know,” Sam said. “Your sister Nyssa, i heard that she was the Theon of life,” Eislyn said. “Yeah, learn about that from Sasha,” Sam said. After they ate breakfast.

All of them were sitting down in the living room watching TV and relaxing. Leona was in the kitchen. “Oh shoot i ran out of neets,” she said. “I can go get some,”Eisyln said. “Yeah sure, take same with you,” Leona said. “Ok,” sam said. Both Sam and Eislyn left and went onto the train to go half across the city to the market.

As the twin suns continued their slow ascent, their golden light bathed the city in a warm glow. Sam stretched his arms as he walked alongside Eislyn toward the train station. The cool morning breeze swept through the streets, carrying the distant hum of a bustling city just beginning its day.

Eislyn glanced at Sam, who still seemed lost in thought. “You okay?” she asked.

Sam exhaled, rubbing his wrist where the inhibitors were locked in place. “Yeah, just thinking about what Rock said earlier. And about Nyssa…” His voice trailed off.

Eislyn nodded in understanding. “It must be strange, hearing how others talk about your sister’s past. You’ve been away for so long.”

Sam looked at her and gave a small smirk. “Yeah, I guess it’s just… weird. I always knew she was strong, but learning she was the Theon of Life? That’s something else.”

Eislyn smiled. “Well, she must’ve been amazing for Sasha to tell you about her.”

Sam chuckled. “Yeah, Sasha never really talks about people unless they’re worth remembering.”

As the train arrived, the two stepped inside and found a seat near the window. The cityscape blurred past them as the train picked up speed, weaving through towering buildings and open districts. Sam took the moment to observe everything—the people, the different alien species interacting, the advanced technology integrated seamlessly into everyday life. It was a far cry from the places he had traveled before.

“So, what exactly are we picking up again?” Sam asked.

“Neets,” Eislyn said.

Sam raised an eyebrow. “The heck is a neet?”

Eislyn giggled. “It’s a type of fruit. It’s sweet, but it has a slightly spicy aftertaste. Leona uses it in a lot of her cooking.”

Sam leaned back. “A fruit that’s spicy and sweet? Sounds weird.”

Eislyn smirked. “You’ll like it.”

The train made a soft chime, signaling their stop. As they stepped out into the marketplace, the air was filled with vibrant colors, the chatter of merchants, and the scent of freshly cooked food.

“Alright, let’s find those neets,” Eislyn said, leading the way through the bustling crowd.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Sam followed, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that someone—or something—was watching them.

In an endless white void, a lone figure stood, cloaked in a tattered hood. His face was obscured, his entire form flickering in and out of existence like a corrupted image. His body glitched erratically, distorting between shapes and colors.

“L-E-tt-s T-ry TH-is,” a fragmented, broken voice crackled from him, as if multiple distorted frequencies were speaking at once.

With an eerie slowness, he reached out and pressed a button.

Sam and Eislyn were walking through the crowded streets when something shifted.

A sharp static noise rang in their heads, their vision stuttering like a broken hologram. For a brief second, reality itself seemed to flicker—then, everything around them was gone.

They stood in a different place now.

A vast, red void stretched endlessly in all directions, the air thick and oppressive. The ground beneath their feet was cracked and pulsing with an eerie glow. Shadows writhed unnaturally in the distance.

Eislyn shivered, instinctively stepping closer to Sam. “Where are we?” she asked, her voice hushed.

Sam’s eyes darted around, his muscles tense. “I don’t know… but stay alert.”

As they cautiously walked forward, a sickening feeling crept up Sam’s spine. He felt something—someone—behind them.

Slowly, he turned around.

A figure stood there—a woman, her body wrong.

Her form flickered, distorting like a broken projection, her limbs twitching unnaturally. A chilling grin was stretched across her face, frozen in place. Thick, dark blood dripped from her eyes, her mouth, and a deep wound in her chest.

Sam took a step back, his instincts screaming at him. “What the hell is that?”

The woman’s head jerked to the side with a nauseating crack, her voice warping between octaves.

“T-h-er-e H-a-ss bEE-n-n TT-alk a-BB-out Y-oo-u.”

Her words sent a cold dread through both of them.

Something was very, very wrong.

“L-e-tsssss S_ee iF YYYY-our WoRth the FuSS,” she said. She snapped her fingers and a wormhole appeared and shot lasers at both of them. Sam and Eislyn dodged them but barely. As the land on the ground. “I can't see anything due to these glitches,” Sam thought. Then she appears behind Sam about to grab him. Sam darted away from her. And be next to eislyn

“Were stuck here, and her random attacks are annoying,” eislyn said. They looked at her hold a spike in her hand and stick her hand into her deep wound in ehr chest to pull out strings.

As the man in the White void watch Sam and eislyn struggle. “D-eee-ad Co-De D-o-N-ttt P-laY Wi-TH Th-em T-o Long,” the man said

All three of them heard the voice but the couldint think about it.

Sam through a punch at her but she doged it. Eislyn use her gravity to throw Dead code backwards. But dead code threw her strings at eislyn arm And grabbed ahold of it. The strings felt werid. “Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh,” eislyn screamed in pain. Sam then kicked dead code in the face the strings let go of eislyn as she fell onto her knees. Then dead code summon spikes and sent them flying towards sam and EIslyn. “Anilation type eight,” sam thought.

As the spikes ended Dead code charges at sam and eislyn but eisyn uses her gravoty powers and use the ground to created wall to protect them

"T-e-lllll T-H-AAA-t M-an to S-Hu-t UP, M-A-K0e Your M-ove NOw, S-t-oooo-p H-iDing!" Dead Code’s glitching voice screeched as she relentlessly attacked the wall with her strings and wormhole blasters, trying to break through.

Eislyn, breathing heavily, wiped sweat from her brow. “Sam, don’t let those strings touch you! They don’t just hurt physically—they cause damage to the soul!”

Dead Code's distorted grin widened as she suddenly teleported inside the wall, bypassing it entirely.

“Damn it!” Sam cursed, preparing to counter.

Thinking quickly, Eislyn used her gravity powers to rip the entire wall from the ground and hurl it toward Dead Code, attempting to crush her. But Dead Code simply obliterated it with a surge of spikes. Moving unnaturally fast, she extended her strings, wrapping them around Eislyn and violently throwing her aside like a ragdoll.

Before Sam could react, the strings lashed around his own body, pulling him toward her. A cold, agonizing sensation seeped into his very being, his soul screaming in protest. His jaw clenched, his muscles spasming as he fought against the pain.

“YYYY-oUR C-O-de iS InTeRsTing,” Dead Code murmured, tilting her head as she examined him.

The strings tightened, dragging Sam closer. He struggled against them, pulling back with all his strength.

“iTs CaLing FOr Me… GIve Ittttt t-oooo meeeeeeee,” she continued, her distorted voice rising in a manic plea.

Sam’s eyes darkened with determination. “Your babbling is pissing me off… But if you insist—here’s ALL of yours!”

With a defiant roar, Sam yanked so hard on the strings that his own arm was torn off at the shoulder. The pain was blinding, but before Dead Code could react, he delivered a brutal kick to her chest, sending her skidding backward. In a flash of energy, his arm regenerated, flux energy crackling around him.

Dead Code barely had time to recover before Eislyn, gritting her teeth, unleashed a gravitational wave that hurled her far away.

“We need to get out of here!” Sam shouted, glancing around for an escape.

Suddenly, a voice called out. “Hurry! Jump through this portal!”

Sam and Eislyn turned to see Rock’s face peering through a portal, his expression tense.

Without hesitation, Eislyn used her gravity powers to launch both of them toward the exit. But just as they were about to escape, Dead Code lashed out with her strings, attempting to drag Sam back into the void with her.

For a moment, it seemed she would succeed—until her glitching eyes locked onto Rock’s face.

Both of them froze.

For the first time, Dead Code’s expression shifted from eerie joy to shock. Her fingers trembled, and she let go of Sam.

The portal snapped shut behind them, leaving Dead Code alone in the void.

She sat there, her glitching form flickering erratically, staring down at the ground. Something about her posture—something human—suggested she was crying.

…Don’t worry, Dead Code. Your story won’t end here…

As Sam and Eislyn lay on the ground, catching their breath, the weight of what had just happened settled in. The eerie void, the monstrous entity, the glitching voices—it all felt unreal.

Eislyn was the first to push herself up, shaking off the lingering unease. When she looked up, she saw her father, Rock, standing over them, his face etched with concern.

“Dad, are you okay?” Eislyn asked.

Rock hesitated for a moment before nodding. “I’m fine… but what the hell happened? How did you two end up in that void?”

Sam sat up, still trying to piece it together. “We were walking through a crowd, just going to the market, and then—”

“Static,” Eislyn interrupted. “It was like this weird interference in our heads, and suddenly, we were just… there. With that thing.”

Rock’s eyes narrowed. “Did anything else happen?”

Sam exchanged a glance with Eislyn before nodding. “Yeah. We heard a voice.”

Rock’s entire body tensed. His hands curled into fists. “This voice… was it glitchy?”

Sam frowned. “Yeah. Real glitchy. Like it was… broken.”

A grim expression crossed Rock’s face as he muttered to himself, “So he finally decided to reveal himself after all these years…”

Eislyn caught the seriousness in his tone. “Dad, how did you even find us?”

Rock exhaled sharply. “You were gone for eight hours. And more importantly…” he paused, his gaze distant, “I felt his presence.”

Sam furrowed his brow. “What man?”

Rock’s expression darkened. “Don’t worry about it. We’re heading home.”

Sam clenched his jaw but said nothing. He knew when Rock was being stubborn, and now wasn’t the time to press him for answers.

As they walked through the city streets, Sam leaned closer to Eislyn and whispered, “Are you okay? That thing’s strings got you pretty bad.”

Eislyn flexed her fingers, testing herself. “Yeah, I’m fine. It didn’t destroy my soul, just hurt like hell. But you—” her voice dropped, eyes sharp, “I saw it land its strings on you too. Are you okay?”

Sam hesitated before nodding. “Yeah… I’m fine. But that entity—Dead Code—it knew who I was. And Rock mentioned that man. What did he mean?”

Eislyn’s brows furrowed in thought. “I don’t know… but we might find answers at the Academy. One of the factions specializes in investigating anomalies like this. And more importantly, the Guardian Division Leader is there—Mugen.”

Sam’s eyes hardened. “Yeah. Let’s head back. I need to know what I just fought.”