Meeting the person who started it.
Bianca immediately decided she hated that sentence.
The system certainly wasn’t helping.
> [ HORIZON FOUNDER DETECTED ]
[ PRIORITY THREAT ]
[ CAUTION ADVISED ]
“Okay,” Bianca said slowly.
“That’s concerning.”
Evelyn Voss stood quietly beside the observation window.
Snow hammered against the glass behind her.
The mountain storm had grown stronger.
White clouds swallowed the distant forest.
The entire world outside looked frozen.
Bianca wished her life had stayed that simple.
Instead, she was standing in a secret mountain facility talking to the founder of a mysterious organization while her System had what appeared to be a panic attack.
Not ideal.
“You’re talking to it again,” Evelyn observed.
Bianca narrowed her eyes.
“That’s becoming a disturbing habit of yours.”
Evelyn smiled faintly.
“Your companion is quite protective.”
Companion.
Not System.
Companion.
Bianca didn’t like that word.
Not one bit.
The old woman stepped closer.
Not threateningly.
Just enough to make Bianca uncomfortable.
“You have questions.”
Bianca stared at her.
“Questions?”
She laughed.
A tired laugh.
“I have enough questions to fill an entire library.”
For a second, something almost sympathetic appeared in Evelyn’s eyes.
Almost.
Then it vanished.
“Ask one.”
Bianca opened her mouth.
Then closed it.
Because where exactly was she supposed to start?
The Void?
The fractures?
The System?
The Red Room?
Her mother?
The whispers?
The giant eye she’d seen beyond reality?
The fact that she technically died?
There were too many.
Way too many.
Finally, she chose the simplest one.
“What happened to me?”
Silence.
Snow continued hitting the windows.
The hallway lights hummed softly overhead.
Evelyn looked at her for several seconds.
Measuring.
Thinking.
Then—
“You died.”
Bianca blinked.
“…wow.”
Evelyn waited.
Bianca folded her arms.
“No really. Incredible revelation.”
The old woman ignored the sarcasm.
“You died.”
Her voice remained calm.
“Your body failed.”
Bianca’s smile faded slightly.
Because hearing someone say it aloud felt different.
More real.
The memories returned immediately.
The aircraft.
The jump.
The parachute.
The panic.
The impact.
The cracks in the sky.
The things watching through them.
Bianca swallowed.
Evelyn continued.
The air suddenly felt colder.
“You didn’t.”
Bianca’s pulse quickened.
“What does that mean?”
“It means something found you.”
The System flashed instantly.
> [ WARNING ]
[ INFORMATION RESTRICTED ]
Evelyn’s eyes narrowed.
Interesting.
Like she noticed the reaction.
Again.
Bianca definitely hated that.
“Something found me?”
Evelyn nodded.
“When the veil broke.”
“The what?”
“The boundary.”
Bianca sighed.
“See? This is exactly what I mean.”
Evelyn actually looked mildly confused.
“You asked.”
“I asked for answers. Not fantasy novel dialogue.”
For the first time— the old woman laughed.
A genuine laugh.
Small.
Unexpected.
Bianca froze.
That somehow made Evelyn seem more dangerous.
Not less.
“The boundary between realities,” Evelyn clarified.
“Better.”
“Your world calls it many things.”
Her expression became distant.
“Dimensions.”
“Universes.”
“Planes.”
“The Void simply calls it a wall.”
Bianca immediately disliked where this conversation was going.
A lot.
The system flickered again.
> [ STOP ]
[ STOP ]
[ STOP ]
Bianca stared.
“…why is my System suddenly acting like an angry traffic sign?”
Evelyn’s eyes sharpened.
“You call it a System.”
“What should I call it?”
The old woman didn’t answer.
Which honestly answered enough.
Bianca felt a knot form in her stomach.
Because suddenly— for the first time— she considered something she’d been avoiding.
What if the System wasn’t actually a System?
The thought hit harder than expected.
It had always been there.
Ever since she woke up.
Commenting.
Guiding.
Protecting.
Watching.
Like a strange roommate living inside her head.
And now everyone kept reacting to it.
Not as a tool.
But as something alive.
Nope.
Didn’t like that thought.
Not even slightly.
A familiar voice suddenly echoed down the hallway.
“Bianca!”
Both women turned.
Ward was jogging toward them.
Maya close behind.
The moment Ward spotted Evelyn— he stopped.
Completely.
Bianca immediately noticed.
The man’s face lost all color.
Very interesting.
Maya looked between them.
Confused.
Ward stared at Evelyn.
“Evelyn.”
The old woman smiled politely.
“Daniel.”
Bianca’s eyebrows rose.
Wait.
They knew each other?
Ward looked like someone had just informed him that history itself had walked into the building.
“Evelyn Voss is dead.”
Evelyn tilted her head.
“People keep saying that.”
Ward didn’t smile.
Didn’t blink.
Didn’t move.
The silence stretched.
Then Maya quietly leaned toward Bianca.
“Is this bad?”
Bianca nodded immediately.
“Oh, definitely.”
Ward finally stepped forward.
Every muscle in his body looked tense.
Protective.
Alert.
Dangerous.
Something Bianca had never seen before.
“What are you doing here?”
Evelyn looked genuinely surprised.
“Visiting.”
Nobody believed that.
Not even a little.
Ward certainly didn’t.
The atmosphere changed immediately.
Bianca could feel it.
Whatever Horizon was— whatever Evelyn had been— this wasn’t a normal reunion.
Not even close.
The system flashed again.
> [ Elevated Risk Detected ]
Bianca rubbed her forehead.
Because of course.
Why wouldn’t things become even more complicated?
Then Evelyn looked directly at Ward.
And asked a question.
A simple question.
One that instantly changed everything.
“Does she know about her mother yet?”
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Ward froze.
Maya froze.
Even Bianca froze.
Her heartbeat suddenly thundered in her ears.
Slow.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
Because there was only one reason someone would ask that.
And judging from Ward’s expression— he had been hiding something.
Something important.
Something big.
Bianca slowly turned toward him.
Very slowly.
“Daniel.”
Ward closed his eyes.
Just for a second.
Which was all the confirmation she needed.
“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
The system flickered softly.
> [ New Information Available ]
Bianca pointed at the floating message.
“You shut up.”
Then she pointed at Ward.
“You start talking.”
Because after everything she’d survived— after dying— after the Red Room— after the fractures— after all the lies— she was finally going to get an answer.
And somehow that terrified her more than anything else.