They reached a large chamber at the end of the corridor. A cylindrical machine dominated the room, covered in dust and cables. At its center was a glass core filled with pulsing light — faint but steady, like a heartbeat.
Kaela approached cautiously. "It's still active."
Adrian stepped closer, brushing dust from a nearby control panel. The layout was unmistakable — Earth design, decades ahead of anything this world could have made.
He hesitated, then pressed the only button still glowing.
The core flared to life.
A mechanical voice echoed through the room, calm and eerie:
"System reinitializing… Authentication detected. User ID: Adrian Cole. Civil Engineer, Earth Origin."
Kaela's eyes widened. "It knows you."
Adrian stumbled back, heart pounding. "That's… impossible."
The voice continued:
"Project Vigilant remains active. World Integration Protocol at 43%. Subject parameters confirmed. Awaiting construction directive."
The chamber's walls hummed as dim lights flickered to life, revealing machines half-buried in dust — drones, skeletal structures, cranes unlike anything made by hand.
Kaela stepped back, hand on her weapon. "Adrian… what does 'World Integration' mean?"
Adrian's mouth went dry. He didn't know — not completely. But he could guess.
If this facility was part of Project Vigilant, it meant someone — something — had been merging Earth's technology with this world's foundation long before he arrived.
And if it recognized him, then maybe… he wasn't reincarnated by accident.