---
## Chapter 25: The Weight of Witness
A profound silence descended upon the Whispering Wastes, broken only by the ragged breathing of Battle Armor Masters and the distant wail of wind through jagged rock formations. Lyra Vance stood frozen, her visor still lifted, her eyes wide with a mix of shock and utter disbelief. The dust cloud where the colossal Legacy Construct had stood was slowly dissipating, leaving behind only scattered, obsidian-like fragments.
"Cade," Lyra finally managed, her voice a strained whisper, "what… what *was* that? And how did you… you just *unmade* it."
Cade's Null Armor hummed, a subtle pulse against his skin as his internal systems stabilized after the immense energy drain. He felt a deep weariness, but also a profound satisfaction. He had risked exposure, but the demonstration was undeniable. He calmly knelt, picking up a shard of the shattered construct. It was smooth, unnervingly cool to the touch, and seemed to absorb the dim light of the Wastes. "A Legacy Construct," he stated, his voice steady. "An ancient automaton. And its destruction involved a precise, resonant frequency. Much like the Unbound, but… different."
Seraphina, though, didn't move. She stood as if sculpted from stone, her own heavy Battle Armor still deployed, her visor still retracted. Her face was a mask of cold, stark comprehension, devoid of her usual analytical composure. Her eyes, fixed on Cade, were a terrifying blend of fear, rage, and a dawning, terrifying understanding that went far beyond mere suspicion. She had witnessed something that shattered her entire scientific paradigm.
Suddenly, the secondary support team's dropship swooped overhead, its comms crackling to life. "Team Alpha, this is Jory. We detected a massive energy spike! Are you alright? What happened?"
The dropship descended, its landing thrusters kicking up dust. Jory Sterling burst out, his heavy armor thudding on the ground, Kaelen Thorne right behind him. They saw the lingering dust, the shattered ground, and the unnervingly calm Cade.
"What in the blazes happened here?" Jory exclaimed, scanning the area.
"The anomaly," Seraphina finally spoke, her voice flat, devoid of emotion. "It was a hostile construct. Master Cade… neutralized it." Her gaze never left Cade. The way she said "neutralized" carried the weight of something unholy.
Commander Valerius's voice crackled through their comms, urgent and demanding. "Team Alpha, report! We registered an unprecedented energy signature, then a complete power collapse from the anomaly! What is your status? Explain immediately!"
"Commander," Seraphina's voice was clipped, official, "all personnel are accounted for. The anomaly was a highly aggressive, unknown automaton. Master Cade engaged and successfully neutralized it. Recommend immediate extraction and full debriefing. We have… critical data." Her emphasis on "critical data" was pointed, aimed directly at Cade.
The extraction was tense. Seraphina moved with a controlled stiffness, her eyes periodically flicking to Cade. Lyra kept asking questions, her excitement undimmed, trying to understand the "how" of Cade's feat. Jory, meanwhile, clapped Cade on the shoulder, a wide grin on his face. "Unbelievable, Cade! You saved our hides! That thing was a nightmare!" Cade simply offered a nod, accepting the praise, but acutely aware of the silent storm brewing with Seraphina.
Back in Veridia City, the contrast was jarring. The gleaming spires and the rhythmic hum of civilian life seemed almost surreal after the raw, terrifying power they had witnessed. They were immediately escorted to a secured debriefing chamber within the Apex Crucible's command center.
Commander Valerius was already there, joined by **Lord Governor Elias Vance** and his son, **Lord Lysander Vance**, the latter a renowned strategist whose gaze was as sharp and calculating as Seraphina's. The air in the room was thick with expectation and a palpable sense of gravity.
Seraphina gave her report first. She detailed the emergence of the Legacy Construct with chilling precision, describing its size, its obsidian plating, and its seemingly impenetrable defenses. Then she shifted her focus to Cade.
"Standard Battle Armor weaponry had no effect," she stated, her voice even, but her eyes held a spark of fire when she looked at Cade. "Master Cade, however, engaged the entity directly. He utilized a method of energy disruption that caused complete molecular destabilization." She paused, then delivered her damning conclusion. "Governor Vance, Commander, Lord Lysander. The energy signature I observed from Master Cade's armor during this event was unlike any known Battle Armor technology. His method of neutralizing the Construct defies every established principle of physics and engineering known to the Houses. It is, frankly, **alien**."
A murmur went through the room. Commander Valerius's gaze sharpened, his jaw tightening. Lord Governor Vance remained stoic, but his eyes narrowed, studying Cade intently. Lord Lysander Vance, however, leaned forward, a dangerous fascination in his expression.
"Master Cade," Lord Governor Vance's voice was deep, resonant with authority. "Lady Seraphina's report is… extraordinary. Can you elaborate on this 'energy disruption'? How does your armor achieve what entire research divisions have failed to grasp?"
Cade knew this was the moment. He had to be convincing, yet elusive. "Governor," he began, his voice calm and measured, "the Null Armor operates on principles that are, as Lady Seraphina observed, distinct from current Battle Armor designs. It utilizes highly specialized internal processors to analyze the energetic and structural vulnerabilities of a target – be it Unbound or, as we've seen, other anomalous constructs. Once identified, it can project a focused energy frequency designed to resonate with and disrupt those specific weaknesses at a fundamental level."
"A 'resonant frequency' that disintegrates a twenty-meter armored construct?" Lord Lysander drawled, his voice a silken challenge. "Without visible force? Without a conventional energy signature?"
"The force is not visible," Cade explained patiently, "because it acts internally. The energy signature is focused to minimize external projection, conserving power and maximizing efficiency. It's a method of **unmaking**, rather than brute force destruction." He made it sound like an ultimate evolution of their own tech, not something fundamentally different.
Commander Valerius pushed for details, for schematics, for proofs. Cade deflected each question with carefully chosen technical jargon and vague philosophical statements about "innate talent" and "unconventional understanding." He offered no blueprints, no data streams, only the undeniable proof of the shattered construct.
As the debriefing concluded, Cade knew he had gained their awe, but also their intense, unwavering suspicion. Lord Governor Vance dismissed them with a polite but firm directive that Cade's "unique capabilities" would require further, more in-depth assessment. Seraphina simply watched him, her eyes burning with a silent promise of unraveling his every secret.
Back in the solitude of his quarters, Cade activated the locket, the familiar hum of the Null Workshop a welcome sanctuary. He still held the fragment of the Legacy Construct. It pulsed faintly, a cold, alien energy resonating with the locket's own ancient power. He had made his statement, but the game had just begun. He was now an indispensable asset, a powerful weapon, but also a profound mystery that the Vance family, and particularly Seraphina, would stop at nothing to solve. The web of suspicion had indeed tightened, and Cade knew the next move had to be carefully calculated, or his entire grand design would unravel.
---