The old door shifted only a few centimeters, but it was enough to change the air in the room heavier, denser, as if something slipped in through that thin slice of darkness. Adara clutched Ares's arm without realizing it, her fingers cold, her breath uneven.
Ares kept his gaze on the door.
Not moving.
Not retreating.
Not advancing.
As if every part of him was waiting for something only he could hear.
The footsteps stopped right behind the door.
No shadow fell across the floor.
No silhouette.
No breathing.
It was that silence that terrified Adara the most.
"Ares…" her voice barely existed. "Is that… him?"
Ares didn't answer.
The system in his head trembled slightly not a voice, not a command more like a faint signal unsure of what reaction to take.
> [Identification… failed.] [Unregistered anomaly.] [Priority: protect subject Adara.]
The command tightened Ares's jaw.
He knew exactly what that meant:
whatever stood behind that door, even the system had no record of it.
The door creaked again wider this time.
Adara stepped back, but Ares lifted his hand, silently telling her to stay behind him.
Light from the hallway spilled in.
But what appeared wasn't a figure in a black jacket.
What emerged first was…
the absence of a form.
Like air forced to become solid.
Like space attempting to fill itself.
Adara froze, her face draining of color.
"Ares…" she whispered, trembling. "That's not human."
The room cooled by several degrees.
The walls echoed faintly not with sounds from outside, but from within the structure itself, as though the building responded to something that should not exist.
Ares stepped forward once.
"What do you want?" Ares's voice was low, steady, carrying a threat he had never used in earlier chapters. "If you're following us… say why."
The entity didn't move.
But something rippled from its form an intangible wave brushing against Adara's skin, making her flinch.
"Don't don't come close!" she almost screamed. "Ares, no!"
Ares turned sharply to check on her.
And in that moment, the entity changed.
Its blurred form shifted not toward Ares, but toward Adara.
The system shrieked:
> [WARNING: ACTIVE RESONANCE.] [Subject Adara = primary priority.] [Redirect movement: avoid contact.]
Ares yanked Adara back right before the vague "hand" touched the air in front of her face.
It never made contact…
but Ares felt a heavy force slam into his chest, freezing his lungs.
He held his breath.
The pain wasn't physical.
It felt like…
memories he didn't remember being forced into existence.
"Ares!" Adara grabbed his shoulders as he staggered.
The entity pulsed.
The room pulsed with it.
And then
For the first time, a voice emerged.
Not from a mouth.
Not human.
More like an echo of a memory that didn't belong to either of them:
"…find… the beginning…"
Adara clamped her hands over her ears even though the sound didn't come from outside.
"What is that?! Ares, what does it mean?!"
Ares clenched his teeth, enduring the wave of pain that made the world spin.
"He… didn't come to attack," he gasped. "He's searching for something. And it's connected… to us."
The entity moved again clearer this time.
Its form sharpened, lengthened, as if trying to understand the shape of a body.
There was effort.
There was intention.
There was… searching.
It extended what looked like a hand…
toward Ares.
Adara pulled him back instinctively.
"NO! You don't know what will happen if he"
Ares touched her shoulder gently, calming her.
His eyes were steady.
Quiet.
Not resigned more like someone who finally understood the first piece of an immense puzzle.
"I have to see," he said softly. "If I don't touch it… we'll never know what it wants."
Adara wanted to refuse.
But she saw something in his eyes fear, doubt, and courage tangled into one.
"Don't take too long," she whispered, voice breaking.
Ares nodded.
Then he raised his hand…
…and the entity met the tip of his finger.
No light.
No explosion.
No dangerous sound.
Only one thing:
A memory that wasn't his slammed into his mind.
Images.
Symbols.
A world without a sky.
Footsteps without bodies.
And a massive door…
sealed with the same mark he saw in his first dream.
Adara called his name, panicked.
"Ares! HEY! Wake up! Look at me!"
The system in his head groaned loudly:
> [SYNCHRONIZATION 12%] [MEMORY ACCESS… PARTIAL]
Ares swayed.
The entity faded…
slowly…
as if completing its first task.
Before disappearing entirely, it left one final echo:
"…the beginning… not here…"
And the room fell silent again.
Ares collapsed to the floor, breathing heavily, sweat streaming down his temples.
Adara pulled him into her arms, holding his trembling body.
"Ares… talk to me. What did you see?"
Ares stared at the floor.
Then he lifted his gaze.
"I know one thing," he whispered.
"What?"
He swallowed hard.
His eyes didn't look at Adara but at something far beyond this world.
"This didn't… start at the campus."
His breath hitched.
"There's another place… waiting for us."
Adara froze.
Ares closed his eyes.
And the system delivered one last message:
> [Origin location: BLOCKED.] [Keyword: POINT OF BEGINNING.]