Back at Block Zero, Riven placed the mysterious cube onto ARK's main platform.
It hovered.
Silent.
Glowing softly, like it was breathing.
"Alright," he muttered. "Let's see what secrets you've got."
He tapped into the cube using TOOLHAND, syncing ARK to analyze the patterns.
At first—nothing.
Then suddenly—
FLASH.
Symbols lit up, spiraling across the cube's surface.
DECODING... ECHO PROTOCOL FOUND.FUNCTION: ENVIRONMENTAL REWRITE.WARNING: UNKNOWN SIDE EFFECTS.
Riven blinked.
"Wait… rewrite? Like... reality?"
ARK's interface projected a preview.
The cube scanned the space around it and displayed a new version—walls reinforced, materials shifted, air purified. Like an instant upgrade.
"No way. This thing doesn't just build—it transforms."
He tapped again.
The cube pulsed—
And the floor beneath his feet changed.Cracks sealed.Rust vanished.It looked brand new.
Like time had been reversed.
Ash burst in, eyes wide.
"You activated it?! Do you even know what that is?!"
"Some kind of ancient tech," Riven said, still stunned."It rewrites matter. Instantly. Like a... shortcut."
Ash stared at the cube.
"That's not tech. That's Echo Tech. Builders thought it was a myth. A tool left behind by the Pre-Civils. Only one rule: never activate it without a code anchor."
"Why?"
"Because without an anchor, it doesn't know what to rewrite."
A deep hum filled the room.
The cube began scanning again—this time faster.Walls shook.Lights flickered.
"Riven... shut it down!"
He grabbed TOOLHAND—synced the cube with ARK—routed a shutdown command—
Silence.
The cube floated still, like it had just fallen back asleep.
Riven exhaled.
"Okay. So it can rewrite reality… but without a limit, it'll rewrite everything."
He looked at Ash.
"Then we build the anchor."