Kael sprinted down the narrowing corridor, his breath ragged. The countdown echoed in his skull. 00:02... 00:01...
Then-nothing.
Silence.
The bunker didn't explode. The walls didn't collapse. Instead, an eerie stillness settled over them. The glowing symbols flickered... then faded.
Garran skidded to a halt, panting. "What... just happened?"
Liyara was already scanning with her gauntlet, frustration flickering across her face. "I don't know. One second it was collapsing, and now-" She gestured around. "It just stopped."
Kael swallowed hard, his heart still hammering. He could feel something-an unseen force pressing against the air, like the bunker was waiting.
Then, the walls shifted again. This time, not to trap them-but to open a path.
A single passage stretched forward, its end shrouded in a strange, pulsating light.
Kael glanced at the others. "I think we're supposed to go through."
Garran let out a bitter laugh. "Oh, great. That's not ominous at all."
Liyara frowned. "It didn't kill us when it had the chance. That means something."
Kael took a deep breath, stepping forward. The light at the end of the corridor pulsed in response, and as he crossed the threshold, a cold voice whispered through his mind:
"A choice must be made."
The world around them dissolved-And they were somewhere else.