STARLIGHT UNBOUND by Deus Ex Machina - HTML preview

STARLIGHT UNBOUND

His gripped the disk.

But deep down , he realized, she’s not wrong.

The doubt had been there for a long time—quiet, buried beneath routine— but now, it was awake.

The sound of footsteps outside the door made him stiffen. He slipped the disk back into his pocket, his pulse racing. He sat there, staring at the door, listening to the steady, artificial heartbeat of the Bureau beyond. I don’t belong here.

***

The city seemed darker tonight. Lucien moved through the streets. The disk fit neatly into his palm, its smooth, solid edges guiding him in the midst of his swirling thoughts.

The dream still clung to him, the words etched deep into his mind, an unshakable echo:

“The universe is a number or behaves like a number. We exist at a point in the chain where it realizes into matter.”

And then there was Lyra ’s voice. “You’ve been asleep, Lucien. But now... you ’re waking up.”

He wasn ’t sure what he was doing. Part of him wanted to turn back, to toss the calling card into the nearest gutter and pretend none of this had happened. But the pull was stronger—gnawing at him, a whisper that couldn’t be ignored anymore.

The rusted maintenance door creaked as he pushed it open, stale air rushing to meet him. He hesitated, then descended the stairwell, the light above fading behind him. The air grew cooler with each step. When he reached the bottom, the murals greeted him—chaotic, defiant swirls of color that seemed to pulse in the low light.

From the far side of the room, voices drifted, low and tense. Lucien paused, listening.

“I told you this was a mistake,” a voice snapped. “Bringing an outsider into this? What were you thinking?”

“He’s not just an outsider. He’s different.”

A scoff. “Different? He works for the Bureau. For all we know, he’s a spy.”

“Enough,” another voice interjected, quieter but firm. “Let’s hear what she has to say.”

Lucien stepped forward, his footsteps echoing in the cavernous space. The

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