The forest was too quiet.
Not peaceful quiet.
Watching quiet.
Kayden wiped the last of the tears from his face, breath steadying after the memory collapse.Alex kept a hand on his back, guiding him gently through the dense trees.Phineas shuffled beside them, flashlight off now, crouching like every branch was a tripwire.
APEX hummed softly in Kayden's mind.
"Operator levels stable.Resonance seed integrating.Proceed—"
A sharp pulse cut through the calm.
Not from APEX.
From the air.
Kayden froze mid-step.
"Alex…?"
Alex turned.
"Kayden?"
Kayden's voice trembled.
"…they're here."
Before Alex could ask—
The forest lit up.
Not brightly.Not fully.
Just enough to show the truth:
Red dots.
Laser-sight halos scattering across the trees like glowing insects.
Phineas squeaked.
"Oh no.NO NO NO—WE ARE NOT READY FOR A BOSS BATTLE—"
Then the voice came:
"SRD OMEGA UNIT — STAND DOWN."
A crack of static rolled across the forest.
Kayden's heart slammed against his ribs.
Alex pulled him behind a fallen log.
Phineas dove so fast he almost dug into the soil.
APEX's warning snapped through Kayden's skull:
"Multiple heat signatures.Ten.No—twelve.Omega class."
Branches snapped behind them.
Boots.Heavy.Precise.
Kayden's breath hitched.
"They followed us…"
Alex gritted his teeth.
"They were always going to.We move—now."
But they couldn't.
Because SRD didn't wait this time.
THUD.
Something heavy landed ahead —a bulky armored figure dropping from the trees like a wolf dropping onto prey.
Kayden flinched.
SRD Omega armor.
Gunmetal gray.Sharp plating.Face hidden behind a black visor etched with warning sigils.
The soldier pointed a resonance rifle straight at Kayden.
"You are ordered to surrender immediately."
Kayden's whole body shook.
Alex stepped between them.
"He's not going with you."
Another Omega unit stepped from the shadows.
"Resistance will trigger termination protocols."
Phineas raised a finger.
"I would like to politely DECLINE termination today—thanks—"
Kayden whispered:
"We can't fight them.Alex—we can't—"
APEX pulsed.
"Operator.Assess surroundings."
Kayden blinked.
"I—I don't—what do you mean—?"
"The forest.Listen."
Kayden closed his eyes.
The air vibrated.
Soft.Gentle.Like the Citadel markings still hummed in the leaves.
A resonance field.
Weak, but present.
His field.
APEX whispered:
"You are no longer suppressed."
Kayden opened his eyes.
"But… I don't know how to use this.What if I hurt someone?What if I—"
Alex grabbed his shoulders.
"You won't.Not if you stay with me."
Kayden swallowed hard.
SRD soldiers advanced in a semi-circle.
The lead soldier activated a resonant snare —a shimmering white lattice growing between his gloves.
He stepped toward Kayden.
"Do not resist."
APEX's voice sharpened:
"Operator.Left knee—shift weight.Right hand—open.Inhale."
Kayden followed without thinking.
The world seemed to slow.
APEX whispered again:
"Release on exhale."
Kayden exhaled.
A pulse rippled out from him —barely visible,barely intentional,a soft tremor of blue-white light brushing the forest floor.
Leaves rustled.
Branches bent.
The snare flickered like a dying lightbulb.
The soldier's visor glitched.
Phineas screamed:
"YOU JUST JUDO-SLAPPED REALITY—"
Alex held Kayden tighter.
"You can do it.Do it again."
The soldiers steadied their weapons.
Kayden trembled.
"I—I don't want to hurt anyone—"
APEX corrected him gently:
"Then target the environment."
Kayden hesitated—
Then raised his hand.
The forest seemed to inhale with him.
Branches above twisted—lightning-fast—interlocking into a natural cage of wood and shadow.
Omega soldiers lunged—
Too late.
CRASH—
Tree limbs slammed down between the group and SRD's front line.Not enough to harm—just enough to block.
Alex's eyes widened.
"You controlled it."
Kayden gasped.
"I–I didn't mean to—APEX is helping—"
APEX hummed:
"You helped.I guided."
Phineas pumped his fists wildly.
"YES!NATURE IS ON OUR SIDE—THIS IS LIKE AVATAR BUT WITH TRAUMA—"
The soldiers regrouped instantly.
They aimed again.
Kayden staggered.
He didn't have another push in him.
Alex saw it before APEX even spoke.
"No more.You're done.We're running."
APEX agreed:
"Operator energy low.Retreat advised."
Kayden grabbed Alex's shirt.
"I can't keep this up—I can't—"
Alex lifted him without hesitation.
"You don't have to."
SRD began cutting through the fallen branches.
Kayden weakly reached out—
A flicker of resonance drifted from his fingers,tugging gently at the forest floor.
Roots shifted.Branches curled inward.Not enough to stop SRD—
But enough to buy three seconds.
Three precious seconds.
Alex shouted:
"RUN!"
And they did.
Phineas tripped over his own feet twice but kept moving.Kayden clung to Alex's neck, chest burning, vision blurring.
Behind them, SRD tore through the forest.
But something else moved too.
Wind twisted against the direction of their movement.
APEX pulsed urgently.
"Operator.New vector incoming."
Kayden blinked, dizzy.
"A-Am I doing that—?"
"No," APEX said.
And then:
"She is."
The Agent.
The Citadel vector tightened —not to stop them,not to capture them—to open a path they could run through.
Kayden whispered:
"She's guiding us again…"
Alex didn't argue.
He simply ran.
Branches parted ahead of them—smoothly, silently,like the forest itself bowed out of their way.
Behind them, SRD roared:
"VISUAL ON TARGET—ENGAGE—ENGAGE—!!"
Kayden buried his face against Alex's shoulder.
"I'm so tired…"
Alex held him tighter.
"I know.But you didn't break.You controlled it.Even a little.I'm proud of you."
Kayden closed his eyes.
The forest hummed.The Citadel trail glowed faintly again.
SRD was close.
But Kayden wasn't the helpless boy from the memory anymore.
He was waking up.
Piecebypiece.