The sky did not flicker this time.
It synchronized.
There was no rupture in the heavens, no vanishing stars, no imposed silence. Instead, Ethan felt something align—like a distant metronome locking into tempo with his own pulse.
A second rhythm.
Faint.
Inconceivably distant.
But unmistakably structured.
The Convergence Node reacted before he consciously processed it. It pulsed once—sharp, alert, precise.
Then the System translated what his instincts already knew.
[External Development Detected][Origin: 3.2 Light-Years — Adjacent Test Region][Status: Active Sovereign Emergence]
Kaelith manifested beside him in a ripple of shadowflame, wings half-unfurled as her gaze snapped upward.
"You were right."
Ethan did not look at her. His eyes were fixed on the distant sky beyond visible light.
"Yes."
Far beyond their solar boundary—past the outer dark where their Tier 1 Convergence Outpost maintained silent vigil—something ignited.
Not fusion.
Not stellar birth.
A pattern.
