The GORCI safe-house in Berlin felt deliberately bland. It was like a clean, unmarked space in a city full of hidden stories. When Aris, with a serious Rostova and an obviously amazed Kaito, entered the observation room, the silence felt heavy, hinting at unsuccessful therapy sessions. A child psychologist's report sat on a nearby table, the important part circled: Non-responsive; deeply traumatized; creates her own fantasy worlds.
Lily was in the middle of a simple white room, sitting in a patch of sunlight. She was small for being eight years old, looking fragile, with light blonde hair. Her violet eyes stared at something far beyond the room. She held a worn stuffed rabbit with only one ear. She didn't even glance at them when they walked in.
The walls of the room, however, were very colorful. They were covered in crayon drawings, a wild burst of art. But it wasn't random kid stuff. It was incredibly accurate and a little scary.
"Wow", Kaito said quietly, stepping closer, forgetting about his tech device.
The drawings showed exactly what they were trying to understand. One wall had a tall Obelisk in black and gray, covered in patterns that their scanners couldn't read. Around it, drawn with bright oranges, reds, and blues, were the energy signatures that Felix was starting to map.
Another wall showed the network they had found. It was a detailed picture of the tunnels under the New Forest, with each spot a shining silver circle linked by glowing gold and purple lines. But Lily's drawing showed something their tech couldn't: faint green lines rising from the ground into the network. The life force. The Siphon.
"She's not just drawing what she sees", Aris said, his voice low and respectful. "She's drawing what it is. What it's doing to everything."
Rostova, arms crossed, wasn't convinced. "It could be a coincidence. A kid hearing things on the news and using her imagination…"
Right then, Lily moved. Without looking up, she grabbed some paper and a green crayon. Her little hand moved quickly and confidently. She drew a big, old oak tree with deep roots. Then, she used a silver crayon to draw a circle among the roots. A green line started to flow from the tree into the circle. But halfway there, the green turned brown. The tree in the drawing started to die, losing its leaves.
Just then, Kaito's device beeped. He looked at it, his face turning pale. "Sensor signal 7-Alpha. The three-hundred-year-old royal oak at the forest's edge… is gone. Total breakdown. It's like… a dead shell."
The room was completely silent. Rostova's doubts vanished, replaced by a growing sense of fear. The connection was too clear to ignore.
Aris knelt down a few feet from Lily, careful not to frighten her. He watched as she picked up a red crayon and began a new picture. This one was different. It showed the Obelisk's network, but the glowing lines were all going to one place in the forest, not to the Obelisk itself. The lines were strong, almost exploding with energy. At that central point, she drew a symbol they had never seen: a perfect spiral that looked like a growing flower or a new galaxy.
"It's a focus point", Kaito said softly, his mind working fast. "The energy isn't just being kept there. It's being gathered, made stronger… for something."
Lily finished the spiral symbol and then, with a black crayon, she drew sharp lines through the energy flow. She looked up, and for the first time, her violet eyes met Aris's. There was no fear, just a deep understanding. She looked at him for a moment, then pointed at the stone he wore around his neck.
Aris felt a chill. He remembered what the Archivist had said: 'It's a key, Thorne.'
Lily's drawings weren't just guesses. They were a plan. She had shown them how the energy was being taken, and now she was showing them how to stop it. The question in the room was simple and terrifying: what happens when the key is used?
Rostova finally spoke, her voice serious. "We're moving her. Now. She's coming with us. The child's drawings were the only map they had, and they were running out of time."