// Engagement Criteria — Chapter 8

Engagement Criteria - Chapter Eight

by Charlie Forêt 11 min read Aug 19, 2026 PATRON
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Which path to travel?

To Nev it would be an easy choice. But the pull of the unknown was enticing. I could imagine myself being the first human to jump across the galaxy on some newly discovered Architect transport system. A soft pulse ringed that door in my overlay, beating in cadence with the feeling of Flux. It was an echo of the invitation from the Artifact.

Tesiv stood still, the gentle ripples of color under his skin slowing. It felt like he was holding his breath.

"Kes," Nev said. "We should go back to the surface and let them know what we've found."…

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