Kael didn't sleep that night.
Mister's words echoed in his mind like the toll of a bell in an empty cathedral:
"They learn. They choose. They create echoes."
Portals… alive?
Sentient?
That changed everything.
---
The next morning, before the base stirred, Kael moved silently through the corridors of Comandos.
But not toward the library. Nor the training simulator.
He went down.
Deeper than he ever had.
Past locked doors, forgotten paths, and levels not shown on any map.
And there it was: a door of darkened steel, engraved with a symbol he had never seen.
It was the core beneath the core.
LIGA had never mentioned it.
---
With his universal access, the door opened with a metallic hiss.
Inside — a subterranean chamber, lit by pulsating veins of energy.
At its center...
An inactive portal, unlike any other he had seen.
Older.
Rough.
It didn't just emit energy — it radiated presence.
---
Kael stepped closer. The air was thick, as if space itself resisted being disturbed.
Around him, shattered monitors. Old schematics. Manuscripts written in languages he couldn't decipher.
On the floor, carved into the stone:
"Who crosses uninvited returns without a soul."
A chill ran down his spine.
And then, a voice echoed from a hidden speaker — mechanical, but strangely alive:
"You shouldn't be here, Kael."
It was Mister.
But his tone wasn't scolding.
It was fear.
---
Kael didn't reply.
He just stared at the silent portal.
Now he knew:
LIGA didn't control everything.
Not even the portals.
And maybe... they never had.