Kieran's breathing came ragged as he stared at the shifting sigil. His instincts screamed to run, but something deeper—older—pulled at his core.
"Why me?" he asked, voice hoarse.
Elias didn't look at him. "Because your system wasn't made to survive the Abyss. It was made to wake it up."
Kieran's blood ran cold. "What the hell does that mean?"
Before Elias could answer, the sigil pulsed, and the world bent.
For a heartbeat, Kieran wasn't in the tunnel.
He was falling.
Into a world of endless stone monoliths that blinked like eyes. Of cities built upside down, floating in an inverted sky. Of voices—not screaming, not whispering—just watching.
[System Interface Corrupted. Emergency Protocol: Dreamwalk Engaged.]
The vision shattered. Kieran was back, knees buckling, gasping for breath.
Elias caught him.
"They saw you," he said. "They'll come now. Slowly. In pieces."
"I didn't ask for any of this," Kieran spat.
Elias's face was stone. "Neither did I."
Silence stretched, thick and heavy, until Elias turned away and started walking.
"We move. Now. There's a place ahead—a sealed chamber. I need time to prepare."
"Prepare for what?"
Elias didn't turn.
"For them."