I didn't go back to the city.
Not yet.
The night air out here felt strange—quiet, but not calm. It was the kind of silence that made your skin crawl. I stood on the half-finished structure, high above the ground, with wind hitting the metal like whispers. This place wasn't complete, but it was already watching me.
I started building.
Alone.
No machines. No workers. Just me and my tools—soulbound, glowing faintly, alive. I didn't need blueprints. The design was already burned into my mind. Each piece I placed held meaning. I wasn't just making a building.
I was creating something alive.
Something dangerous.
My sweat mixed with dust. My arms moved on their own, like they already knew the steps. Below me, the ground pulsed softly—the Abyssal Frame had accepted the first layer. Its energy rose through the steel like a slow heartbeat. Dark, steady, patient.
Then I saw it—my shadow.
But it wasn't alone.
Two more shadows stood beside it. They moved with me. Built with me. Like reflections of who I used to be… or who I might become.
I didn't stop.
This was the Architect's Path. Not about buildings. About control. About bending the world to your will through design. Most people are scared of the unknown.
But I was building it.
When the last piece locked into place, a deep voice echoed in my mind. Cold. Proud. Familiar.
"Build what the world fears. And the world will kneel to understand it."
I looked at my reflection in the dark steel.
And smiled.