Kael returned to the base in silence.
No questions. No greetings.
The doors opened before him as always — soundless, emotionless, just recognition.
The main corridor felt longer than he remembered. Maybe it wasn't.
Maybe he was simply more present now.
No Madus.
No Marie.
No echoes.
Only him.
---
The central monitor lit up as he passed.
No image. Only a voice.
"Kael. Status updated. Fragment stabilized. Access granted for realignment."
He didn't respond. He didn't need to.
He climbed the steps of the north tower, where the old tactics hall had been turned into a recalibration space.
The room was empty. As it should be.
At the center, the chair.
Not a throne.
Not a command.
Just a fixed point.
Kael sat.
Closed his eyes.
Breathed.
---
The projection lit up in front of him.
The League's symbol rotated slowly, as if time followed different rules here.
The voiceless presence filled the room.
"You've passed the bond protocol."
"Memory converted."
"Origin point: altered."
Kael opened his eyes.
— I understand.
"Do you know what comes next?"
— The contract.
— The mission.
— No detours.
---
The wall to his left opened in silence, revealing a new sequence of records.
Timelines.
Maps.
Events yet to happen.
The screen projected possible futures.
Kael remained still.
Everything was there.
The locations.
The agents.
The choices.
But he no longer sought certainty.
He sought commitment.
---
"Are you ready for the next insertion point?"
Kael took a deep breath.
Not like someone bracing for something grand.
But like someone who had finally accepted the burden.
— I always was.
Silence.
Then a single word appeared on the screen:
"CONFIRMED."
The room darkened.
The panel rotated.
New mission loading.