Codex Requiem

The heartbeat thundered through the Aetherglass Cathedral like a muffled drum—soft at first, then building until the stained-glass windows shimmered with fractured harmony.

Veylor stepped back as the divine harp cracked open.

From its core, a single note escaped. Not music—pure will. It vibrated through the stone, turned torchlight blue, and reached across dimensions like a beacon.

The First God—Eleran—was waking.

---

Far away, Aeren staggered mid-step.

He clutched his chest as the Codex surged with a pulse not his own.

> Codex Alert: External Resonance Detected. Origin: Lost Deity Signature – Eleran.

Danger Level: Incalculable.

He dropped to one knee as the Codex filled his head with visions—not from memory, not from song, but from another mind entirely.

Eleran didn't speak in words.

He sang in concepts.

A perfect world, flawed by freedom.

Harmony enforced like law.

A child's scream, silenced by beauty.

A verse so pure, it burned away truth.

The god's sorrow was ancient… and endless.

---

In the Cathedral, Veylor stood firm, despite the room's growing gravity.

Eleran had no form—only presence. A pressure behind the eyes. A song without a source.

"You remember the Codex," Veylor said quietly. "You remember what it cost us."

The divine voice answered like wind through shattered bells:

> "The Codex did not betray us.

You did."

Veylor flinched. For a moment, his face cracked—not from pain, but from something deeper.

Regret.

"The world was tearing itself apart."

"And so you sealed its voice," Eleran answered.

---

Back in the Ashwood, Aeren gasped as the Codex quieted.

He could feel it now—threads forming between himself, the Codex, and something bigger. Not control. Not dominance.

A conversation.

He looked at Lyssa. "He's alive. The First God."

She froze. "That's not possible."

"He remembers everything." Aeren stood, shaking. "He remembers being broken… and choosing silence."

Lyssa stepped back. "Then why is he waking up now?"

Aeren turned toward the sky, where faint lines of light traced across the stars—a resonance map forming.

"…Because someone just gave him permission to dream again."