The transition ended without ceremony.
Arios staggered one step forward as the mana field released him, boots scraping against stone that was colder and denser than anything he had stepped on before. The air in this new chamber felt heavier, not in pressure but in presence, as if the space itself carried weight. It was quiet in a way that did not feel natural, the kind of silence that suggested something was deliberately holding its breath.
He did not rush to move.
