As Micah and Maeve rushed forward to stop Joshua from killing Alexander, time froze.

  Alexander heard the commotion outside his tent—the rising tension as Joshua rallied the crowd against him. He sat slumped in his chair, blood seeping from his empty eye sockets, his body a withered husk after channeling his power to the others during the battle.

  Status Update: Mana Pool critically depleted (5/1200) Needle of Fate activating emergency reserves...

  The Needle of Fate on his finger pulsed with soft purple light. Alexander touched it instinctively, feeling its warmth as it began siphoning ambient mana to replenish his reserves. The ring hummed against his skin, providing a trickle of energy, not much, but perhaps enough.

  “I always knew you were hiding something, freak!” Joshua’s voice thundered as he burst through the tent flap. “You know psychic powers are forbidden! I’ll kill you before you get a chance to do any more damage. I’ll recover my Wish in the process!”

  Legion’s tip gleamed in the dim light, prepared to finally end the thorn that had stolen everything from him. As Joshua charged forward, he suddenly faltered. The familiar rush of Force that he’d come to rely on seemed distant, muted.

  [Gambit Weaver] title activated. Probability manipulation in effect...

  Alexander, though weakened and near death from the backlash of the Contracts, focused what little strength remained. He had expended nearly his entire mana pool keeping the others alive and boosting their abilities during the battle against Toko. Now, facing humanity’s strongest fighter, he activated Spider’s Calm with his remaining energy.

  The familiar cooling sensation washed over him, dulling his pain and allowing his mind to analyze the situation with crystal clarity. Through his detached calculation Alexander noted the absence of Aegis.

  “First stage complete but it won’t be enough,” he whispered to himself. “Barely enough mana left to manifest a single Thread.”

  Joshua reached him in three powerful strides. “Your tricks end here, Alexander!” he roared, raising Legion.

  But something was wrong. The sword felt heavier, somehow disconnected from the Force that usually enhanced his blows. Joshua’s brow furrowed in confusion.

  Alexander observed the warrior’s unease through blood-caked eyes. “The shield,” he stated coolly, his analytical mind connecting the variables. “ If my hypothesis is correct, it anchors your Force abilities, gives you protection from psychic effects and is supposed to be used as a matching set with your blade. Without it, your control is compromised. Am I incorrect?”

  Joshua faltered, his confidence wavering as he processed this insight.

  In that moment of uncertainty, Alexander struck. A single Psychokinetic Thread, nearly invisible in its thinness, lashed out from Alexander’s trembling finger. Unlike his usual combat applications, this Thread wasn’t aimed at Joshua’s body but at his mind.

  Joshua felt something cold brush against his consciousness. His instincts screamed danger, and he swung Legion with practiced precision, but the blade passed harmlessly through the air, cutting nothing physical.

  “Get out of my head!” he roared, his free hand clutching at his temple.

  Alexander channeled every fraction of his remaining strength into maintaining the Thread. His body convulsed with the effort, fresh blood streaming from his empty eye sockets. Even with the Needle of Fate’s assistance, the mana cost was devastating, and he could feel his life force draining with each passing second.

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  Warning: Critical mana depletion. Vitality being consumed as a substitute.

  Joshua’s military training provided formidable mental discipline. Years spent resisting torture and interrogation techniques now served him as he fought against the psychic intrusion. The Thread wavered as Alexander’s strength faltered.

  “You’re weak,” Joshua spat, regaining his footing and mental composure. “You’ve always been weak! This is why strength matters, not your tricks and manipulations!” He raised Legion again, its edge gleaming as he prepared for the killing blow.

  The Thread connecting them flickered, close to breaking. Alexander’s consciousness began to fade, darkness encroaching on his vision.

  In that moment, he felt a familiar presence brush against his consciousness.

  “Your Mind Palace contains more than memories, my Archon,” came the silky voice. “It houses your true strength.”

  With sudden clarity, Alexander understood. Drawing upon depths he hadn’t realized existed, he channeled power not from his depleted mana reserves, but from the vast architecture of his Mind Palace, using one Archon-tier ability to fuel another.

  The Threads ensnared Joshua’s mind with lightning speed. Too late, Joshua realized the danger of facing Alexander without Aegis’s protection.

  “What have you done?” Joshua screamed, struggling against the Threads.

  Alexander, his voice strained, spoke. “I’m doing what I must to protect our world, Joshua. Your quest for power has blinded you to the suffering you’ve caused and the ramifications of your actions.”

  As the Threads tightened and mana surged with a purple pulsating glow, Joshua was forced to confront memories, not just his own, but from everyone’s perspectives as well. He saw the devastation his actions had brought, the lives lost, and the pain inflicted.

  He felt the heartbreak at Threads losing his children, followed by the perspective of his own jabs at the man.

  He watched Morgan, a young girl, being abused and taken advantage of by him, through her eyes. Alexander forced him to see his own petrifying gaze mounting upon her, stifling her tears only for his relief.

  He witnessed his brother smiling, all the while aware that he’s being treated like an item to be discarded when he’s no longer of use. It reminded him of someone else in the brother’s lives that had put his own well-being over theirs.

  Because he knew what was best for them.

  He watched the camp flinch as he walked by, seeing the women gather their children as he strode past, high on the bloodlust of a recent kill.

  He saw his people come to Threads for help; after being told they were too stupid by Joshua. The pain on their faces was awash in insecurity and embarrassment.

  “No! This isn’t real! This is just one of your tricks!” Joshua cried out, trying to resist the visions.

  Alexander felt his consciousness dimming, his mana completely exhausted. The Threads began to waver once more.

  Joshua sensed the weakness and launched a final desperate attack, thrusting Legion forward through the Threads. The blade pierced Alexander’s shoulder, drawing a gasp of pain from the weakened man.

  “It’s over,” Joshua growled, twisting the blade.

  Alexander’s hands shot up, grabbing the sword. Blood poured between his fingers as Legion cut into his palms. But instead of trying to push the blade away, he pulled it deeper.

  “What!?” Joshua began, confused.

  “Closer,” Alexander whispered.With Joshua now within arm’s reach, Alexander placed his bloody palm on the warrior’s forehead.

  “It is real, Joshua,” Alexander said, his voice stronger now. “This is the result of your choices. But it’s not too late. You will be needed, see the other paths!”

  A flood of mana, not Alexander’s, but something deeper and more ancient surged between them. The Threads, previously wavering, now glowed with renewed purple light, encircling Joshua’s mind.

  Joshua’s struggles began to weaken as the weight of his actions settled upon him. The Threads, infused with Alexander’s will, started to construct a mental prison around Joshua’s consciousness.

  As the battle in Joshua’s mind reached its climax, Alexander spoke once more. “I can’t let you continue down this road, Joshua. But I also won’t let you be lost forever. If you find true remorse, if you genuinely seek to atone, there will be a way back. I’ll make sure of it.”

  With those final words, the Threads sealed like a cocoon, trapping Joshua within a prison of his own making. His body, now an empty shell, collapsed to the ground.

  Alexander slumped back in his chair, the last of his strength gone. Through blurred vision, he sensed another presence in the tent.

  Attention Archon

  Your Contractor has been permitted an official meeting with the Host.

  Temporarily halting the temporal flow of System 1.