Chapter 3

It was raining, but the rain didn't fall down. It fell sideways.

Seattle was a blur of neon lights below us, but up here, on the helipad of the data center, the world was gray. The Void Static was thick, buzzing like a swarm of hornets.

"Set it up!" Silas roared over the wind.

He didn't look human anymore. His jaw had unhinged and elongated, his skin rippling as thick, coarse fur erupted along his shoulders. He ripped his shirt off, revealing a torso that was reshaping itself into something terrifying and beautiful.

I ran to the center of the helipad. I pulled the rig out of my bag and slammed the tripod onto the wet concrete.

*10:58 PM.*

"Come on," I hissed, connecting the cables to my laptop. My fingers were slick with rain. "Handshake protocol. Sync the signal."

The shadows on the perimeter of the roof began to rise. They weren't just absences of light; they were physical forms—tall, faceless figures made of smoke and teeth. The Guardians. The antibodies of the universe, here to stop the infection.

One of them lunged.

Silas intercepted it mid-air.

He was a blur of violence. A massive, bipedal wolf, standing seven feet tall, crashed into the Shadow. He tore through the smoke with claws that glowed with a faint, golden light.

*Crunch.*

The Guardian dissolved into mist, but three more took its place.

"Hurry, Leo!" Silas barked, his voice mangled by the wolf’s throat.

"I’m trying!" I typed the final sequence. *Execute.*

The dish hummed. A beam of pure white light shot upward, piercing the gray clouds.

The sky tore open.

It wasn't a clean cut. It looked like someone had burned a hole in a photograph. The gray rain vanished, replaced by a blast of warm, humid air.

Through the rift, I saw it.

It wasn't Seattle. It was a forest of bioluminescent trees—towering oaks with leaves that glowed neon blue and violet. The sky was a bruised purple, filled with two moons. The smell hit me instantly—raw, potent magic. It smelled like pine needles and electricity.

"Silas!" I screamed, grabbing the rig to keep it from blowing away. "It’s open! Go!"

Silas threw a Guardian off the edge of the building and turned to look at the rift. He was bleeding. A slash of darkness crossed his chest, smoking where the Guardian had touched him.

He looked at the forest. His ears perked up. He could hear the calls of his pack on the other side.

"Go!" I yelled again, tears mixing with the rain on my face. "I can't hold it open forever! The battery is draining!"

Silas took a step toward the light. Then he stopped.

He looked back at me.

I was huddled over the laptop, shivering, soaking wet, defenseless. A Shadow was creeping up behind me, forming a blade from the darkness.

Silas snarled. He didn't jump for the portal. He jumped for me.

He tackled the Shadow, ripping its head off in one fluid motion. He landed in front of me, placing his massive body between me and the encroaching army of Guardians.

"You idiot!" I screamed, checking the battery. *15%.* "You’re going to miss the window!"

Silas turned his head. His golden eyes locked onto mine. The wolf receded just enough for the man to speak.

"You think I'm leaving you here?" he growled.

"I belong here!" I shouted, gesturing to the gray city. "This is my world, Silas! Yours is right there! Just jump!"

"Your world is cold," Silas said, stepping closer. "And you are alone."

The portal began to shrink. The edges wobbled.

"Silas, please," I begged. "Don't make this all for nothing."

He reached out. His hand, still half-clawed, grabbed the front of my jacket. He hauled me to my feet.

"I’m not leaving my pack behind," he said. "And you are the only pack I have."

He didn't give me time to argue. He didn't give me time to calculate the variables.

He grabbed my arm, his grip bruising. He turned toward the shrinking rift.

"Silas, wait—I can't breathe over there! The physics—"

"We'll figure it out," he roared.

He broke into a run, dragging me with him.

The Guardians lunged, but we were already moving. We hit the edge of the light. The smell of the alien forest filled my lungs. The static screamed in my ears.

I looked back one last time at the server farm, at the gray rain, at the lonely life of a genius who lived in a basement.

Then Silas jumped, taking me with him into the purple sky.

The light swallowed us whole. The laptop hit the concrete. The portal snapped shut, leaving the rooftop empty, silent, and wet.