The sentence echoed inside Faye's mind.
The seal was never the weapon.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Every memory that had returned until now suddenly began connecting together.
Pieces that had seemed unrelated.
Fragments that had appeared meaningless.
Ancient conversations.
Forgotten faces.
Lost worlds.
Everything started forming a single picture.
A terrible picture.
The corruption noticed the change immediately.
Its countless eyes narrowed.
For the first time, uncertainty appeared within its gaze.
Faye slowly lifted her head.
The synchronization field trembled as billions watched her.
The corruption had escaped.
Reality was collapsing.
Stars were dying.
Entire regions of existence were disappearing.
Yet Faye suddenly felt calm.
Not because the danger had vanished.
Because she finally understood.
"We never tried to destroy you."
The corruption remained silent.
The Sleeper looked toward her.
The stranger frowned.
"What are you remembering?"
Faye's eyes remained fixed on the entity beyond the fracture.
"The truth."
Ancient memories exploded across the synchronization field.
Everyone saw them.
The first civilization.
At its peak.
Before the fall.
Before the war.
Before the corruption.
A magnificent city stretched across endless skies.
Countless species lived together.
Knowledge flowed freely.
There was no hunger.
No conflict.
No fear.
The first civilization had been everything the universe dreamed of becoming.
Then another image appeared.
A hidden chamber.
Far beneath the city.
Only a handful of people stood inside.
Among them was Elyon.
Young.
Determined.
Afraid.
And standing before them was a sphere of brilliant white light.
The stranger's eyes widened.
"No..."
The Primary Origin stared.
"It still exists."
The memory continued.
One of the ancient leaders spoke.
"The First Light must never fall into its hands."
The First Light.
The words spread through the synchronization field.
Nobody understood them.
Except the ancient beings.
And their reactions terrified everyone.
The darkness lowered its head.
The stranger looked genuinely shocked.
Even the corruption became still.
Faye remembered.
At last.
The First Light was not a weapon.
It was not a machine.
It was not an artifact.
It was the source.
The original spark from which reality itself had emerged.
The beginning of beginnings.
The first flame of existence.
Everything came from it.
Every universe.
Every dimension.
Every star.
Every soul.
The corruption suddenly roared.
The sound shattered entire sectors of space.
"ENOUGH!"
Reality shook violently.
The memory flickered.
But it did not disappear.
Faye understood why.
The corruption had spent billions of years trying to erase this truth.
Because this truth was dangerous.
Not for existence.
For it.
The ancient memory continued.
The leaders of the first civilization stood around the First Light.
One of them spoke.
"If the corruption reaches this power, everything ends."
Another answered.
"Then we must hide it."
A third shook their head.
"It will find it eventually."
Silence filled the chamber.
Then Elyon stepped forward.
A younger version of Faye.
Determined despite the fear in her eyes.
"We won't hide it."
The others stared at her.
Elyon looked toward the First Light.
Then she made the decision that changed history.
"We'll divide it."
The synchronization field erupted.
Everyone watched.
Everyone listened.
Elyon's voice echoed across billions of worlds.
"We divide its power and scatter the pieces throughout existence."
The memory accelerated.
The First Light broke apart.
Not into objects.
Into fragments of existence itself.
Hope.
Courage.
Compassion.
Love.
Sacrifice.
Faith.
Countless fragments scattered across reality.
The corruption screamed.
The memory shattered.
The synchronization field returned to the present.
Faye inhaled sharply.
Now she remembered everything.
Not all her memories.
Not yet.
But the most important truth.
The corruption could not consume the First Light.
Because it no longer existed in one place.
It existed everywhere.
Inside every living soul.
The corruption understood what she had remembered.
Its rage exploded.
Stars died instantly.
Galaxies fractured.
Reality screamed.
"You should have stayed forgotten."
Faye stepped forward.
"No."
The Sleeper moved beside her.
A sea of radiant light surrounded its immense form.
The stranger joined them.
Then the darkness.
Then the Primary Origin.
For the first time since the beginning of existence, every ancient power stood united.
Not because they trusted each other.
Because they finally understood the threat before them.
The corruption was afraid.
Not of strength.
Not of armies.
Not of power.
It feared what the First Light represented.
Hope.
The one thing it could never truly destroy.
The corruption lunged forward.
Reality exploded around it.
The fracture widened to impossible proportions.
Entire universes trembled.
The final battle had begun.
But as Faye stared into the endless darkness, another memory surfaced.
One final secret.
One final truth.
A truth even the corruption did not know she remembered.
And when realization struck her, her eyes widened.
Because hidden somewhere in existence...
The Heart of the First Light still remained.
Untouched.
Waiting.
And if she could find it before the corruption did, the fate of creation itself could change.
Far beyond the battlefield, in a forgotten corner of reality, something ancient suddenly awakened.
A small pulse of white light illuminated the darkness.
As though answering her call.
As though waiting for her return.
And for the first time, the corruption looked afraid.