The signal did not appear on global systems.
It appeared beneath them.
Deep below the academy.
Buried.
Sleeping.
Waiting.
Inside the Research Wing, Mira stared at a trembling projection.
"This… isn't Rift energy," she whispered.
Elias stepped forward, eyes narrowing.
"No."
The frequency pulsed slowly, rhythmically — not chaotic like Riftborn signatures. Not violent. Not hostile.
Resonant.
Alive.
Kai felt it immediately.
His chest tightened.
Not fear.
Recognition.
Mira turned toward him.
"…It's reacting to you."
Ryo crossed his arms.
"Of course it is."
Kai said quietly—
"…Where?"
Mira expanded the projection.
A vertical scan revealed a vast hollow space far beneath the academy — deeper than any known construction level.
"Subterranean structure," Elias said.
"But not built by humans."
The energy pulsed again.
Stronger.
As if responding to Kai's presence.
An emergency council formed quickly.
The discovery was classified immediately.
No government involvement.
No global broadcast.
No leaks.
Only one decision:
The trio would descend.
Meanwhile—
All other academy elites were deployed quietly across the world.
Kael dispatched north.
Mira transferred to global research grid.
Upper ranks sent to Rift investigation zones.
The academy emptied.
The world moved.
But the truth stayed buried.
Descent
The passage beneath the academy opened slowly — ancient mechanisms shifting for the first time in ages.
Stone.
Not concrete.
Not metal.
Something older.
Symbols carved into the walls pulsed faintly as Kai walked past them — geometric patterns matching fragments from his dreams.
Ryo whispered—
"…This place is alive."
Elias replied calmly—
"Not alive."
He studied the glowing markings.
"Dormant."
The corridor widened.
Then ended.
Before them stood a massive sealed chamber.
Silent.
Still.
Ancient.
The moment Kai stepped forward—
The chamber reacted.
Light surged across its surface.
The seal trembled.
And began to open.
The Sovereign Record
Inside the chamber—
Light formed.
Not explosion.
Projection.
A figure appeared — tall, radiant, marked with patterns of flowing energy.
Not fully visible.
But familiar.
Kai's breath slowed.
"…Dezuno."
The projection spoke.
Fragmented.
Echoing across time.
"If you are seeing this… the Sovereign Line has endured."
Ryo and Elias exchanged glances.
The projection continued:
"The Devourer hunts concentrated existence."
"Our world has fallen."
"Thus… the Core was sealed."
The projection turned toward Kai.
Not seeing him.
Recognizing him.
"The child of fractured light… must not awaken too soon."
Silence.
Then—
The chamber trembled.
Something deeper stirred.
The Guardian Awakens
From the chamber floor, light condensed into form.
Not flesh.
Not machine.
Not spirit.
Something older than all three.
A towering construct of layered energy patterns stood before them — silent, watching.
The Guardian.
Not hostile.
Not welcoming.
Measuring.
It spoke without sound.
Directly into their minds.
"Resonance test… initiated."
The chamber began collapsing inward.
Space folding.
Reality bending.
The trial had begun.
Trial of Resonance — Beginning
The pressure was not physical.
It was existential.
The chamber shifted between dimensions, gravity collapsing and reforming violently.
Ryo ignited instinctively.
"Not dying here."
Kai stepped forward—
But the pressure struck him directly.
His seal trembled.
Cracks of silver light flickered across his skin.
Unstable.
Dangerous.
Then—
Elias moved.
Not fast.
Not loud.
Calm.
Focused.
He raised one hand.
And saw it.
Not space.
Not energy.
Structure.
The underlying geometry of reality itself.
"…So this is the pattern," he whispered.
He adjusted his stance.
Compressed distortion.
Stabilized collapse.
Space obeyed.
Silently.
Perfectly.
The chamber stopped shifting.
The Guardian paused.
Recognizing.
Elias had crossed the threshold.
Axis Alignment — awakened.
Not explosive.
Not violent.
But absolute.
The Guardian turned toward Kai.
Then spoke.
Not a whisper.
Not a voice.
A declaration.
"The Sealed Sovereign of Shattered Light… recognized."
The chamber fell silent.
The trial was accepted.