The door hissed open with no announcement.
No guards. No command.
Just silence.
Lucas exchanged a glance with Ava.
He stepped forward first. Ava followed.
As they crossed the threshold, a low hum vibrated through the floor. Cold. Ancient. Like entering a server that hadn't rebooted in a decade.
The door closed behind them with a click so final it sounded like a trap cage situation.
Inside, it looked nothing like a military facility.
It looked like a vault repurposed by someone who thought games were morality.
A giant square room. Seamless metal floor. Four platforms. A massive display screen built into one wall—off for now. In the center: a console with two handpads.
One glowing red.
One blue.
Ava's bracer flickered once—
[SYSTEM ACCESS REVOKED – LOCAL SEAL ACTIVE][EMERGENCY SYNC LINK: OFFLINE]
Lucas's system buzzed the same alert.
No override.
No brute-force logic path.
They were sealed.
