The flood of Attunement is aligning me even more perfectly with my Echo.
Micah is in my grasp, and his path of destruction has been halted.
"Ryker, that was bold of you to Split," he says, staring into my eyes.
I condense my Form even further.
"But I can Split even further," he continues.
"By making a disruption, even separating your Form slightly can let my Echo get through this cage!"
He begins to raise his arms above his head, barely any space remaining between him and the top of my construct.
He shouts out:
"Voltgrave!"
His shoulders roll back, fists clenched.
"EMP Slam!"
I see his Sigil Points—one above his head and two near his feet.
I count four total.
They're growing larger, humming an erratic Overtone.
I brace.
I expect a surge of power to burst—but will I be able to contain it?
His Echo is emerging from his Core—an electric eel-shaped form.
It spins upward, creating a double helix above his head… then suddenly stops, facing downward.
Micah slams both fists into the ground.
His Echo follows.
A burst of blue light explodes inside my Form.
My Core shakes—the slightest jostle in the connection between me and my Echo.
I grit my teeth and reassert control, but then—
A blue blur zips across my field of view.
Voltgrave has broken out.
The Echo spins around me like a living bolt, zapping in tight, rapid arcs.
I hold my stance.
Static begins to build—clinging to my chest like pressure.
Sparks of electricity burst and crackle just inches from my skin.
"How do you like that, Ryker?" Micah calls out.
His arms are crossed. His right eyebrow raised, smug.
"No chance you can withstand Voltgrave. Not while maintaining control of your Form."
Each pulse of lightning burns deeper into my jacket.
The fabric smolders, then ignites.
Smoke clouds my vision.
"Look at you," he taunts.
"Look at you, Ryker—too proud to let go."
He grins, leaning forward.
"You'd rather burn up and die than give in. Makes sense."
He's underestimating me.
Yeah, it hurts. Yeah, I'm being burned alive.
But I'm a serum user—my durability's different.
A regular person would've collapsed by now.
Not me.
The static clings to my skin like wet cloth—buzzing, biting, relentless.
Voltgrave circles me like a predator.
His Echo spirals above, crackling in a double helix of blue lightning.
Each pass sends another jolt tearing through me.
My jacket catches fire. The fabric curls away from my arm in a burst of heat.
Still, I don't flinch.
I've been hunting this bastard for over a year.
Scorched cities. Burned substations.
Every whisper of a blackout from Austin to the border? That was him.
Every time I got close, he vanished.
And every time, the aftermath was worse.
But now—finally—he's here.
No more running. No more tricks.
Just him. And me. And everything we've done to get here.
"You really thought power would make you right, huh?" I say, loud enough for the Echo to hear too.
Voltgrave doesn't stop circling.
His eyes burn, but his mouth stays shut.
I take a step forward—through the fire. Through the voltage. Through the pain.
"You scorched homes. Killed the power to an entire hospital. People died, Micah. You did that.
For what? Some sick idea of rebirth?"
The lightning curls into my ribs. I force air into my lungs.
My Form holds. Just barely.
"You think the case chose you? That you're divine punishment for a broken world?"
I raise my gaze, staring into his.
"Wake up. You're not judgment. You're a glitch."
His Echo pulses sharply—lightning lashing out, inches from my face.
But I don't move.
"I've seen what happens when we let the Echo do the thinking."
I point at him, my hand trembling—not with fear, but from holding back.
"You didn't master it. You didn't merge with it.
You disappeared into it."
He stops pacing. His stance shifts. Fists clenched.
"Tell me—do you even remember who you were before the case opened?
Or did you volunteer to be erased?"
He sneers. The voice that answers me is only half his.
"I didn't forget," he growls. "I evolved. I earned this.
I became what I was meant to be."
"No," I answer. "You collapsed into it.
You let your Core rot from the inside out."
A crack of thunder rips through the air.
His Sigil Points shimmer—blue arcs shooting into the sky.
He's charging something massive.
But so am I.
My light pulses out, flaring from my Core.
The fire recoils.
Shadows peel from my body.
And I lock eyes with him.
"I didn't come this far just to contain you.
I came to see if there's anything left of Micah Worth inside Voltgrave…"
I step forward, slowly.
"…or if you're just another Echo waiting to be extinguished."
I step forward.
That's when I hear it—
A high whine, followed by a low boom echoing across the rooftops.
A bright cone of light floods the park.
Dust swirls up around us.
Above, a VTOL breaks through the sky—its hull marked with a red triangle.
SRA.
Serum Regulation Authority.
Of course they'd come now.
They always do, once the damage is done.
The underbelly speakers crackle.
"Ryker Cain—Stand down. Target Micah Worth is now in federal containment jurisdiction. Do not engage."
Micah doesn't flinch.
He just grins.
"Looks like your bosses came to babysit."
I clench my jaw. My Core is still burning. My body, still smoldering.
The VTOL lowers. Side panels hiss open.
Two SRA troopers descend on thick black cables.
Their suits hum—custom dampeners ready for Echo surges.
"Ryker Cain, this is your final warning. Do not engage Voltgrave."
Do they know what they're asking?
I've chased this man for a year.
Watched the body count rise while jurisdictions argued.
Burned through my own Core to get here.
And now that I've cornered him—now they show up?
I don't break eye contact with Micah.
He leans in, voice low enough only I can hear.
"Go ahead. Let them cuff me.
I'll break containment by next week."
My Form trembles—not with exhaustion.
With restraint.
I could end this.
Right now.
But if I do…
I become the one who couldn't stop himself.
I exhale.
Let the fire die down.
Then I speak—calm, but defiant.
"I stand down."
I walk forward—slow, deliberate—until I'm just inches from him.
"You're not free," I whisper. "You're just postponed."
Then I turn and walk away.
My back still burning.