One step.
Then another.
Then—
Silence.
The floor dimmed.
The humming stopped.
System pinged.
[Trial of Pattern: Complete]
[All participants maintained sync above threshold.]
[No resets triggered.]
[The Messenger inclines his head.]
[The Grin Beneath the Mask clicks his teeth.]
Merlin stopped breathing for the first time in three minutes.
Mae nearly collapsed.
He caught her elbow without thinking.
She stayed standing.
Flint didn't even look winded.
Just turned his head toward the next door.
Didn't speak.
Didn't smile.
But something flickered in his eyes.
Disappointment.
Merlin noticed.
Didn't ask.
Just stared down the new corridor.
Because Dion still hadn't come through.
And now?
They had to keep moving.
—
The path ahead wasn't moving.
Which, by now, meant something was wrong.
Or worse, meant the labyrinth was letting them talk.
Merlin hated that more than any trap.
