Skybound Odyssey – Chapter 22: Freefall
The final blow struck like a comet.
Ryo's storm-charged punch slammed into Omega's core with a flash of light that lit up the entire vault. The impact bent space for a split second—silence hung thick—then came the collapse.
Omega's body crumpled to one knee. Cracks spiderwebbed across his silvered skin, and for the first time… uncertainty flickered in his glowing eyes.
"Impossible," he whispered. "You're incomplete."
Ryo stood over him, chest heaving, lightning rolling off his shoulders like a cape.
"I'm not incomplete," Ryo said. "I'm alive."
And Omega fell.
The stormlight that held him suspended began to unravel. The vault trembled. The walls shuddered.
The city above began to fall.
---
Skyspire, Surface Level – Command Tower
"Gravitational anchors are failing!" Lyra shouted, pulling on a stabilizer lever.
"Skyspire's dropping like a stone!" Juno's voice came through the comms. "You've got minutes before it hits sea-level!"
Sena stood over the master override console, fingers flying. "If we can reroute Omega's remaining energy into the thrusters, we might soften the fall—"
BOOM. Another tremor.
"We don't have a might!" Lyra snapped. "We've got Ryo, and maybe—just maybe—that core crystal of his can still talk to the city!"
Sena hesitated, then slammed a command key. "Patching him in. He's got one shot."
---
Vault Core – Seconds Later
Ryo knelt beside the flickering husk of Omega. Sparks danced across the cracked floor.
Then, a soft ping.
A holographic map unfolded before him—Skyspire's structure. Falling.
A voice echoed—Lyra's. "Ryo! You need to interface with the system. Use your core. You're the only one left with the link!"
Ryo didn't hesitate. He touched the floor.
His crystal pulsed.
Suddenly, he was everywhere.
He was the city.
He could feel the thrusters failing, the power lines snapping, the anti-grav generators shorting out. He could feel thousands of lives in panic—rebels, civilians, soldiers, even Empire loyalists—about to be crushed by their own floating paradise.
He reached deep.
Past pain.
Past rage.
Into the memory of that woman's voice.
> "He's not a weapon—he's a child."
He whispered, "Thank you… whoever you were."
And he let go.
---
Above…
Every engine flared back to life.
The city slowed. Stabilizers surged. Lightning surged from every spire.
Skyspire didn't crash.
It landed—hard—but intact. A quaking groan spread across the land as its massive legs settled into ancient docks long buried in the sea cliffs below.
Cheers erupted across the rebellion's channels.
Ryo lay in the vault, barely conscious. The city was saved. But his vision swam.
From the cracked remains of Omega, something glowed faintly.
A data crystal.
With trembling fingers, he took it.
---
Later That Night
The rebellion had taken Skyspire. The Empire's high command had fled.
In the war room, Lyra, Sena, and Juno watched Ryo recover.
He sat up slowly. "Did we win?"
Sena grinned. "For now. The Empire's broken—but not gone."
Ryo opened his hand and showed them the crystal. "This has answers. About me. About her."
Lyra looked at him. "Are you ready for the truth?"
Ryo nodded. "I need to know… who gave me life."