The Vault corridor narrowed behind them, closing off the sanctum like a throat swallowing its own secrets.
Kael walked ahead of Aila and Oran, slower than before. Not with caution—but with the kind of gravity that only came after realizing the face in the mirror wasn't yours. Or maybe it never had been.
The revelation from the Guardian hung heavy over all of them: that Kael wasn't born—he was built. That there had been someone before him. A prototype. A truth Spiral buried so deep, even its echoes trembled to speak it aloud.
Oran finally broke the silence. "Do you trust him? That Guardian thing?"
Kael didn't turn. "He didn't lie."
"That's not an answer."
"I don't need to trust him," Kael said. "I just needed the truth."
Aila's voice was quiet behind them. "And what do you do with truth like that?"
Kael stopped walking.
