CHAPTER 4 — THE FIRST RESONANCE**
"Ryn, you're going to be late!"
Someone's voice struck my ears — distant at first, then clear enough to drag me out of the nightmare.
My eyes opened to see Eron already dressed for school, his tie slightly crooked, his smile annoyingly calm.
"Come on, Astro boy," he said, tossing my uniform at me. "You're still alive. That's good enough for the morning."
I groaned, shaking off the chill that still clung to my body. The dream — that blinding pain, those crying faces — it lingered like a bruise somewhere inside my mind.
But there wasn't time to think. Not now.
I got ready in a rush, grabbed breakfast, and followed Eron out.
Cold air brushed our faces; the streets were wet with dew.
Leaves drifted from the trees, gold and red under the faint light of dawn.
It was that strange hour when the sun shone, yet the world still looked asleep.
We walked side by side, our breath fogging the air.
---
### **The Test**
At last, the school gates came into view. The exam went as scheduled.
Teachers bustled about, and when Eron entered the room, our homeroom teacher blinked in surprise.
"Eron Vale," she said warmly. "Welcome back. We missed you."
He bowed lightly. "I apologize for my sudden dropout last term. I'll try to catch up."
When the test ended, I felt lighter — and, strangely, focused. My hands hadn't trembled once.
Maybe the long nights studying under that soft glow had done something to me after all.
After class, Mom came to pick us up. Eron teased me the entire way to the electronics shop where our bet would be settled.
---
### **The Bet**
Mom crossed her arms as we entered the store. "It isn't fair," she complained. "You didn't study the whole holiday — how did you even get full marks?"
I smirked. "That's a secret."
She raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? And what's bigger than that secret?"
I pointed toward the counter. "That the cashier is waiting for you, Mom."
Her lips twitched before she burst out laughing. "You little—"
Eron chuckled behind me. "Told you, Mrs. Calen. I warned him — but he never listens."
We left the shop with a solar-powered laptop.
For once, even Mom looked proud behind her teasing smile.
---
### **The Experiments**
That night, I set up my new laptop in the attic — my little lab.
The solar panels blinked faintly, drawing in the last traces of light from the window.
I placed the small meteor fragments in a shallow tray of water, adding a pinch of salt.
Each fragment pulsed, then dimmed, losing its glow faster than before.
I noted every detail in my e-form journal:
> **Observation Log — Week 1**
>
> * Water with edible minerals causes faster fading of fragments.
> * They no longer trigger nausea or dizziness.
> * Electronic devices nearby flicker; likely a form of radiation interference.
> * Hypothesis: The stones emit waves that affect both biology and technology.
I stared at the laptop screen. For a moment, it glitched — the image warping like heat haze.
When I tried uploading my notes to the scientific board, a red message appeared:
> *"External Error: Network Incompatible with Source."*
I tried again. Same result.
A cold tingle crept up my arm. The faint hum from the stones filled the air.
Something was changing — in me, or around me. I couldn't tell which.
---
### **The Encounter**
After a week of experiments, Eron convinced me to take a break.
We walked to a nearby park, about twenty minutes from home. The evening breeze was cool, filled with the smell of wet grass.
Halfway there, I realized I'd left my laptop behind.
"Eron," I said, "can you grab it for me? I'll wait here."
He nodded and jogged back.
That's when I heard footsteps behind me.
"Why the hell are you stalking us?" I turned sharply.
Two men stood by the path, dressed in black coats with faint metallic pins on their collars.
One of them spoke quietly. "So you've noticed it too."
"What are you talking about?"
"The stones," he said. "You've been testing them. Come with us — just fifteen minutes. We'll show you."
Their tone was calm, almost patient, but their eyes told me it wasn't a request.
I followed.
They led me down a narrow road and into an underground facility disguised beneath an abandoned warehouse.
The air was metallic, heavy with the scent of ozone.
Old tools lined the walls; newer machines lay burnt or corroded.
We passed glass chambers filled with fractured fragments glowing faintly in the dark.
A man waited for us near the end of the corridor — older, sharp-eyed, and oddly kind.
"So you're the third one to notice," he said.
"The third?" I asked.
"There are two others who discovered the same properties before you. This research is under the direct command of the Prime Minister of Japan."
He gestured to a sealed case beside him. "You'll be under our protection and protocol for the next few months until we understand these stones fully. We'd like your cooperation."
He opened the case. Inside were three items:
a black key card, a silver-striped ATM-like card, and a small crystalline sphere — clear at first, then glowing violet as soon as it touched my skin.
"What is this?" I asked.
"The refined essence of the fragments," he replied. "We call it a *core.* Each one contains stabilized radiation extracted from the asteroids. It behaves differently from anything known — corrupts technology, alters energy fields. When someone touched it, the color stayed constant. Until you."
"Why does it change for me?"
His gaze lingered. "Because you're already affected. Either by exposure — or because your body has begun to resonate with it. That means you've started adapting."
I stared at the sphere, the violet light pulsing gently with my heartbeat.
"So… what happens now?"
"You have a choice," he said. "Keep studying under supervision, or volunteer for integration surgery. With a core fused into your system, you could control its energy directly. You'd help us understand what's happening to this planet."
I hesitated — fear, excitement, curiosity — all tangled inside me.
He placed the sphere in my hand. "If you volunteer, you'll receive another one. Think carefully, Ryn Calen."
I looked at the pulsing light, felt the hum crawling through my veins.
"I've already thought," I said quietly. "I'll volunteer."
The core flared brighter — a faint echo of a heartbeat not entirely my own.
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