Metaverse of Mechas

📘 Chapter 114

⚠️ Scene 1: Cerebane's Collapse

Cerebane's HUD glitched violently.

"Warning: NeuroKrono Invasion in Progress."

"Firewall breached – systems compromised."

Vance's pulse raced as he tried to stabilize the interface. But the Mindspread wasn't just hacking tech—it was speaking directly into his brain.

A voice crackled from the static:

"Hello, Vanguard of Death."

He froze. The voice was his own. Or… almost. Warped. Hollow. Mocking.

"You are not me."

"Not yet. But you will be."

Cerebane's right arm convulsed. Metal plates bent outward. Circuits glowed red. The infected mechs began forming a circle—chanting in broken binary.

Suddenly, a blue mech dropped from the sky like a comet.

Silverthrone.

Kael burst onto the scene.

"Get out of the mech, Vance! It's infected!"

"No—I can still fight it. I need five seconds!"

Kael activated Silverthrone's kinetic shield and extended it over Cerebane.

The virus screamed.

But something else screamed louder.

A new entity emerged from the smoke—twice the size of any previous Mindspread mech. It looked… unfinished. Like wires given rage.

And it spoke:

"I am the Prototype. Your Krono will feed me."

🛡️ Scene 2: Flight and Fire – Aeris's Last Stand

Naira, Zake, and Aeris raced across the underground monorail. Behind them, the rogue guild mechs roared.

Zake tried to overload the control panel.

"Why are they after her? She's just—"

"She's not 'just' anything," Aeris said grimly. "She's Subject 001."

Naira turned her head slowly.

"I remember the labs. I remember their needles. I remember… fire."

Her eyes flickered.

Suddenly, the entire tunnel shook.

A squad of mechanized assassins burst through the ceiling. Aeris stood in front of them.

"Zake, go."

"What?! No! I'm not leaving you—"

"You have to protect her!"

She turned back, smiled.

"Tell Zeron I liked the dumb hoodie."

And then she activated her core.

Her body lit up in golden flame.

Detonation.

The tunnel behind them collapsed.

Zake and Naira were thrown forward into the darkness.

🌌 Scene 3: The Ghost in the Diary – Zeron's Father Speaks

Zeron sat alone, staring at the old notebook.

His father's diary.

It wasn't just pages—it was a Krono-infused record. It glowed as he turned each leaf.

"Project: Parallax.

Subject Alpha: Zeron Rylus.

Status: Sealed. Potential: Cataclysmic.

Reason for Lock: Unstable Krono signature – Color: PURPLE (unclassified variant).

Outcome: If unlocked prematurely… extinction-level event."

Zeron's hands trembled.

"You knew? All this time…"

Suddenly, the page began to speak. A hologram projected from the core.

His father's voice:

"Zeron… if you're reading this, then the seal is weakening. And they're coming. The things from the void… they want your Krono. Don't let them have it."

"But most importantly—don't trust the Guild."

🌿 Scene 4: Zui and the Forbidden Garden

Zui stepped into the Steel Waste. Nothing grew. The ground was cracked glass. The air tasted like iron.

She held the seed tight.

Verdion appeared beside her.

"This was once the birthplace of Krono… until it was poisoned."

She approached a single blackened altar. And when she dropped the seed into the ash—

The world around her shattered.

Suddenly, she was inside a vision of pre-collapse Earth. Towers of light. People flying on Krono-powered platforms.

And one man standing above it all—wearing robes made of swirling galaxies.

"The Original Conductor," Verdion whispered.

The figure looked at her… and smiled.

"You will return it to bloom."

The vision ended.

The seed pulsed. Her hand glowed faint green.

A new Krono branch had awakened in her.

🧩 Scene 5: Prototype vs Cerebane – A Fight in Code

The massive Prototype launched a Krono spike—aimed straight for Vance's brain through the mech interface.

Kael dived in, but too late.

The spike connected.

Vance's mind was split.

For a moment, he was in the Mindspread.

He saw billions of corrupted minds—human and alien—merged in one massive consciousness. All speaking. All screaming.

And one central eye… watching him.

Then—

Zeron?

Zeron's voice echoed in his head.

His purple Krono reached through the bond—shattering the spike.

Cerebane glowed gold-white for a moment.

Purge complete.

Vance gasped and regained control.

The Prototype staggered.

Kael sliced off its arm.

Together, they stood—two mechs battered, but unbroken.

"We need to find Zake," Vance said.

"And fast. That blast wasn't just a defense… it was a beacon."

📝 Chapter Preview – Chapter 115:

Zake and Naira are found by an unexpected ally—an exiled alien engineer who once worked for the Mindspread.Zui's new Krono branch awakens a mysterious ancient flora, leading to a burst of life in the Steel Waste.Kael and Vance uncover an old map in the Prototype's core… pointing to a forbidden zone known as The 13th Layer.And Zeron? He opens the diary's last page—revealing a name he never expected.

His mother.