Everything seemed quiet.
But not everyone could sleep.
—
On the third night after the jump, Helena dreamed of sand.
But it was dark sand — endless, whispering names she had never spoken.
She awoke with Kael's name on her lips — not as a call.
As a warning.
—
Marie began hearing metallic sounds inside the walls, even with no active systems near her cabin.
— Like something moving behind the stone, — she told Nikita.
— I felt it too, — Nikita replied. — Like a presence... waiting to be noticed.
—
In the Silent Anomalies Room, the artifact pulsed with a faint, almost imperceptible light.
But Kael returned there every night.
He said nothing. Didn't touch it. Just watched.
And then… he would disappear for hours.
Otrho was the first to notice.
— You've changed, — he said, seeing Kael return with red, sleepless eyes.
Kael didn't reply.
— You're hearing it too, aren't you?
Kael lit a cigarette.
— That thing doesn't belong to the League. Or to time.
Otrho stepped closer.
— Then why is it still here?
Kael exhaled slowly.
— Because it hasn't called me by the right name yet.
—
The next morning, Elizabeth discovered a symbol on the floor of the central corridor.
It was small. Circular.
But it glowed faintly, as if etched from another dimension.
She touched it.
And for a moment, she heard something.
Not a voice. Not a word.
An intention.
—
That night, in their meeting, Kael said very little.
— We're being watched. But not just by the League.
— By what? — Helena asked.
Kael replied coldly:
— By what we brought back.
And finally:
— Now it's waking up.
—
End of Chapter.
---
Heard the whisper? Keep the shield strong with Power Stones.
The Stone resists. The Mist senses. But something else is watching.
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