Chapter 24 — When Permission Is Not Approval
The chamber didn't collapse.
That was the first warning.
The light stayed dim, steady, like it had done its part and washed its hands of the result. The platform beneath Kael's feet cooled, the glow draining away until it looked like plain stone again.
Too normal.
Kael stepped off the platform. The air resisted him for half a second—then let him pass.
"Still here," he said.
Lira pushed herself up slowly, never taking her eyes off him. "You feel… different."
"Yeah," Kael said. "I know."
A faint pressure settled over the chamber. Not the system's clean observation. This was heavier. Messier. Personal.
The light spoke one last time.
"PERMISSION GRANTED DOES NOT IMPLY SAFETY."
Then it vanished.
Not faded. Gone.
The chamber lights died with it. Darkness rushed in, broken only by thin lines glowing faintly in the walls.
Lira swore under her breath. "I liked it better when it talked."
The ground trembled.
From far above, beyond stone and layers Kael couldn't see, something shifted. Not waking up—turning its attention.
Kael felt it like a hand closing around his spine.
> EXTERNAL INTEREST DETECTED
The text flickered, distorted, like it didn't want to appear.
Lira looked around. "Tell me that's not—"
The chamber wall split open.
Not breaking. Peeling.
A tear opened in the stone, edges curling inward, revealing darkness behind it—thick, heavy darkness that swallowed the light around it.
A voice came through the tear.
Low. Calm. Curious.
"So," it said, "you're the one they let through."
Kael stepped forward before Lira could react. "And you are?"
A shape shifted behind the tear. Not fully coming through. Just enough to be seen.
Eyes opened in the dark.
Too many.
"Oh," the voice replied softly. "I'm the reason they usually don't."
The tear widened.
And the chamber began to fold inward, like it wanted to escape what was coming next.