The corridor twisted deeper, into the very bones of the earth. The walls pulsed with soft light—not silver now, but crimson-gold, like the blood of stars.
Kael walked ahead, silent but not hostile. Not yet.
The air thickened with power. The kind that whispered of old oaths and ruined gods.
They stepped into a vast chamber, dome-shaped and impossibly ancient. At its center lay a pool of liquid light—luminescent, swirling, humming softly like a lullaby on the edge of memory.
Above, carved into the stone ceiling, was a sigil: three intersecting circles, surrounded by wings, flame, and shadow.
Liara stopped, breath caught. "That's the mark… from the dreams."
Kael turned to her slowly. "The Trinity Bond was not a gift. It was a seal."
Aeron stepped forward, voice low. "What do you mean?"
Kael's eyes flicked to him—familiar, pained. "You were never meant to remember. None of us were."
Cassian's fingers twitched at his side. "Then why do we?"
"Because the Vault is waking," Kael said. "And with it, the thing it holds."
He walked toward the pool and extended a hand. The surface rippled, revealing visions.
A battle. Not in this world—but in one long crumbled.
Three figures stood against a rift of black flame. One was winged. One burned with fire. The last stood in shadow, controlling it.
The rift swallowed them.
Then silence.
Then rebirth.
Kael's voice dropped to a whisper. "The Trinity Bond wasn't to grant you power. It was to keep the seal from breaking. Each of you was made to balance the others. But now... one piece is faltering."
He looked directly at Cassian.
Cassian frowned. "You think it's me?"
Kael's gaze softened. "I think it's all of us. The bond is no longer just magic. It's love. Conflict. Jealousy. Pain. That makes it beautiful—but dangerously unstable."
Liara's breath hitched. "So if we fracture…"
Kael nodded. "The seal shatters."
A shiver passed through the chamber. The sigil above them glowed, casting their shadows in triplicate.
Aeron stepped closer to the pool, staring into the light. "Then teach us. Tell us how to fix it."
Kael looked at him, something unreadable flickering in his expression. "To fix it... you have to face what you were. What you lost. And what you might still become."
A low rumble echoed through the stone.
The Vault was reacting.
The awakening had begun.