Grant expected resistance.
He did not expect politeness.
The gate opened without protest.
No alarms.
No shouted orders.
Just a security light turning from red to green.
That scared him more than guns ever had.
Inside, the facility felt wrong.
Too quiet.
Too balanced.
Like a place holding its breath.
Personnel watched him pass with carefully neutral expressions.
No one stopped him.
No one escorted him either.
A woman met him halfway down a corridor that curved slightly downward.
Civilian clothes.
Military posture.
"You weren't authorized," she said.
Grant nodded. "I know."
"You shouldn't be here."
"Neither should he."
She studied him for a long moment.
"Follow me."
They walked past rooms Grant wasn't allowed to see.
Frosted glass.
Muted lights.
Doors that hummed with power.
"What is he to you?" the woman asked.
"A trainee," Grant replied. "And a responsibility."
"That's not how command sees it."
"That's the problem."
Li Chen felt Grant's presence before he saw him.
Not through sound.
Through alignment.
The System confirmed it an instant later.
[SYSTEM CONFIRMATION]
[Trusted Variable within proximity threshold]
Li Chen stood.
The room's lights brightened slightly.
Not by command.
By response.
Grant entered the observation room.
Glass between them.
Thick.
Layered.
Li Chen met his eyes calmly.
"You weren't supposed to find me," Li Chen said.
Grant snorted. "You left breadcrumbs."
A corner of Li Chen's mouth lifted.
The woman spoke quietly behind Grant.
"This is as close as you go."
Grant didn't turn.
"He's not an experiment," he said. "He's a soldier."
"And soldiers follow orders."
Grant finally faced her.
"Not illegal ones."
Inside the room, Li Chen raised a hand.
Not touching the glass.
Just near it.
The temperature shifted by half a degree.
The glass vibrated.
Barely.
Every monitor flared.
"Step back," someone hissed.
Li Chen lowered his hand.
The vibration stopped.
"I'm fine," he said. "So is the facility."
The analysts stared.
Grant spoke without raising his voice.
"You're not containing him," he said. "You're negotiating with physics."
No one argued.
The woman exhaled.
"We need time," she said.
"You've already taken it," Grant replied.
Silence stretched.
Then, reluctantly: "What do you want?"
Grant didn't hesitate.
"Transparency."
That night, Li Chen returned to his room.
The door did not lock behind him.
That was new.
The System updated softly.
[SYSTEM PHASE II — STATUS CHANGE]
[Containment posture downgraded]
[Negotiation state entered]
Li Chen lay back on the bed.
Contact had been made.
Not rescue.
Not escape.
But something far more dangerous.
Dialogue.