(Vena’s POV) “…You’re finally back.” The little girl’s voice echoed through the underground passage.
Soft.
Gentle.
Yet somehow…
It carried a loneliness that felt older than time itself.
Every hair on my body stood on end.
I couldn’t move.
It felt as if that single sentence had frozen the entire world around me.
The Guardian’s grip on my wrist tightened.
“Don’t.” His voice was calm, but I could hear the urgency hidden beneath it.
“Don’t answer her.” I looked at him.
“Who is she?” No response.
His eyes remained fixed on the darkness below the staircase.
The tactical soldiers hadn’t moved either.
The confident expressions they wore only moments ago had vanished.
One of them slowly stepped backward.
Another whispered nervously, “Commander wasn’t supposed to arrive this late…” The Guardian quietly muttered, “…Good.” I frowned.
Good?
Why would that be good?
Before I could ask…
A loud metallic sound echoed from deep beneath the chapel.
Clang…
Clang…
It sounded…
Like heavy chains being dragged across stone.
The little girl’s voice disappeared.
The silence that followed felt even more terrifying.
Rain continued pouring outside.
Drops of water slipped through cracks in the old ceiling, landing one by one on the stone floor.
Drip…
Drip…
Drip…
No one spoke.
No one dared to move.
The tactical team slowly formed a defensive circle around the entrance to the staircase.
Their weapons weren’t pointed at me anymore.
They were aimed…
Below.
One of them took a deep breath.
“I’ve read the reports…” “…but I never believed they were real.” Another soldier replied, “None of us did.” My eyes moved from one face to another.
Who were these people?
They clearly knew far more than I did.
The Guardian suddenly looked at me.
“You need to leave.” Again.
The same sentence.
“No.” I shook my head.
“I’m done running.” “I’ve spent my whole life living inside lies.” “My adoptive family lied to me.” “Nikhil lied to me.” “My memories are incomplete.” “My past doesn’t make sense.” “And now…” I pointed toward the staircase.
“There’s someone down there who knows my name.” His masked face remained unreadable.
“You think you’re searching for answers.” “But answers have a price.” “I’ll pay it.” “You don’t know what you’re saying.” “I know enough.” For a long moment…
Neither of us spoke.
Then…
He sighed.
“You remind me of someone.” My heartbeat slowed.
“Who?” Instead of answering…
He slowly released my wrist.
One of the soldiers suddenly shouted, “Movement!” Everyone immediately aimed their weapons toward the staircase.
The sound of chains had stopped.
Now…
Footsteps echoed upward.
Slow.
Measured.
Almost elegant.
Someone…
Was walking toward us.
The soldiers immediately took cover.
One of them spoke into his communicator.
“Target approaching.” “We repeat…” “Target approaching.” Only static answered.
No signal.
The communicator had gone dead.
The soldier stared at it in disbelief.
“What…?” Another tried his phone.
“No network.” The Guardian quietly spoke.
“Nothing electronic works when the Gate opens.” Gate.
Again.
That word.
I wanted to ask.
But the footsteps were getting closer.
Tap…
Tap…
Tap…
A shadow appeared near the bottom of the staircase.
Everyone held their breath.
The figure slowly climbed upward.
One step.
Then another.
The candlelight illuminated…
A little girl.
She looked no older than eight.
Long black hair reached her waist.
She wore a simple white dress that looked strangely untouched by dust or rain.
She wasn’t carrying anything.
She wasn’t smiling.
She simply looked at me.
Straight into my eyes.
No…
Not at my eyes.
At the pendant hanging around my neck.
Her expression changed.
Not happiness.
Recognition.
“You kept it.” She whispered.
The pendant suddenly became warm again.
The little girl took another step.
The soldiers immediately raised their weapons.
“Stop!” She didn’t even look at them.
She kept walking.
Another soldier shouted, “Final warning!” The little girl blinked once.
Nothing more.
The soldier pulled the trigger.
A bright blue pulse shot across the chapel.
It passed…
Straight through her.
Like she wasn’t even there.
The pulse struck the wall behind her.
Stone exploded.
Dust filled the air.
When it cleared…
She was still standing exactly where she had been.
Completely unharmed.
The soldier’s hands began shaking.
“How…” “How is that possible?” The little girl finally looked at him.
Only for a second.
The soldier suddenly screamed.
He dropped his weapon and clutched his head.
“No…” “No!” “Get out!” “They’re everywhere!” He collapsed onto the floor, breathing heavily.
The other soldiers rushed toward him.
“What happened?” “He only looked at her!” The Guardian remained perfectly calm.
“As expected.” “As expected?” I turned toward him.
“You knew this would happen?” He didn’t answer.
Instead…
He watched the little girl.
Almost respectfully.
She stopped a few feet away from me.
Close enough for me to notice something strange.
Her eyes.
One was dark brown.
The other…
Silver.
The exact same silver as the symbol on my pendant.
She tilted her head slightly.
“You’ve changed.” I swallowed.
“Do…
do I know you?” She smiled faintly.
“You don’t.” “Not yet.” My heart skipped.
“What does that mean?” She slowly reached into the pocket of her dress.
The soldiers instantly pointed their weapons again.
The Guardian quietly raised one hand.
“Don’t.” The soldiers hesitated.
The little girl pulled out…
A folded photograph.
Very old.
Its edges were burned.
She carefully held it toward me.
“This belongs to you.” I reached out instinctively.
The moment my fingers touched the photograph…
A sharp pain exploded inside my head.
Fragments of memories flashed before my eyes.
A burning house.
A woman crying.
Someone carrying me through the flames.
Blood.
So much blood.
Then…
A man’s voice.
“No matter what happens…” “…never let her remember before eighteen.” The memories vanished instantly.
I staggered backward.
The photograph slipped from my hand.
The Guardian caught it before it touched the floor.
He looked at it for several silent seconds.
Then…
His posture changed completely.
For the first time…
He sounded genuinely shocked.
“…Impossible.” The little girl calmly looked at him.
“I told you.” “The timeline…” “…has already changed.” The Guardian slowly raised his head.
His eyes met mine.
Then…
Without saying another word…
He looked toward the broken chapel entrance.
Someone else…
Had just arrived.
…
Someone else…
Had just arrived.
A pair of footsteps echoed from outside the chapel.
Unlike the heavy footsteps of the soldiers…
These were slow.
Confident.
Almost relaxed.
Tap…
Tap…
Tap…
The Guardian immediately stepped in front of me.
For the first time since meeting him…
I noticed something unusual.
His breathing had changed.
He wasn’t afraid.
He was…
cautious.
The little girl quietly turned toward the entrance.
Even the soldiers straightened their posture.
One of them whispered, “…Commander.” The atmosphere inside the chapel shifted instantly.
The rain outside became heavier, crashing against the broken stained-glass windows.
A tall figure walked inside.
He wasn’t wearing armor like the other soldiers.
Instead…
He wore a black overcoat over a perfectly tailored charcoal suit.
Black leather gloves covered both hands.
His face was partially hidden beneath the shadow of the chapel lights, but his sharp features and calm expression made him look less like a soldier…
And more like a businessman.
He slowly removed his gloves.
His eyes scanned the room.
The injured soldiers.
The broken pillars.
The glowing symbol on the floor.
The little girl.
The Guardian.
Finally…
His gaze stopped on me.
He smiled politely.
“So…” “This is Vena.” His voice was calm.
Gentle.
The kind of voice that instantly made people trust him.
But something inside me screamed…
Danger.
The Guardian spoke first.
“You came sooner than expected.” The man smiled faintly.
“I had no choice.” “You’ve complicated my evening.” One of the soldiers hurried toward him.
“Sir…” “The Guardian interfered.” “And the Gate…” “…opened by itself.” The man’s expression didn’t change.
“I can see that.” He walked slowly toward the center of the chapel.
Every step echoed through the hall.
No one stopped him.
Not even the little girl.
When he reached the glowing symbol, he crouched down and touched the ancient carving with two fingers.
The silver light disappeared instantly.
The room became silent again.
I stared at him.
“…Who are you?” He looked at me.
“My name…” He smiled.
“…isn’t important.” “People usually call me Commander.” I frowned.
“Commander of what?” “A group that has been cleaning up humanity’s mistakes…” “…for a very long time.” His answer only created more questions.
“What mistakes?” Instead of replying…
He looked toward the Guardian.
“You’ve already told her too much.” The Guardian folded his arms.
“I’ve barely told her anything.” “Exactly.” The Commander laughed quietly.
“That’s what worries me.” The little girl suddenly walked closer to me.
She gently held my hand.
Her skin was freezing cold.
She looked up into my eyes.
“They’re running out of time.” I blinked.
“Who?” “You.” The single word echoed inside my mind.
“What do you mean?” Before she could answer— The Commander spoke.
“Enough.” His tone had changed.
No longer polite.
Now…
It carried authority.
The little girl slowly let go of my hand.
She looked disappointed.
Almost…
Sad.
The Commander walked toward me.
He stopped only a few feet away.
“I’ve read your file.” My heartbeat skipped.
“My…” “…file?” He nodded.
“Everything about you.” “Your childhood.” “Your school records.” “Your medical history.” “Your rebirth.” I stared at him in disbelief.
“My rebirth?” He looked almost amused.
“You really thought…” “…you were the only person who remembered?” The world around me seemed to stop.
“What…?” The Commander slowly looked toward the Guardian.
“I told you.” “The truth always arrives before the explanation.” I shook my head.
“No.” “That’s impossible.” “You can’t know about—” “The warehouse?” He interrupted.
“The gunshot?” “Nikhil?” “Tanmay?” Every word struck like lightning.
He knew.
He knew everything.
I took a step backward.
“Who are you people?” The Commander sighed.
“We’re the people who failed.” Silence.
No one moved.
He looked directly into my eyes.
“And now…” “…we’re trying to stop history from repeating itself.” The Guardian suddenly spoke.
“Don’t believe everything he says.” The Commander smiled.
“And don’t believe everything he hides.” The tension between them was obvious.
Neither trusted the other.
Yet neither attacked.
Why?
The little girl quietly whispered, “They’re both telling the truth.” I looked at her.
“…How?” She tilted her head.
“Because lies are easier than memories.” Her words made no sense.
Yet…
Somehow…
They felt important.
The Commander reached into his coat.
The soldiers immediately became alert.
Instead of a weapon…
He pulled out a thin black tablet.
Modern.
Sleek.
He tapped the screen a few times before turning it toward me.
It displayed an old newspaper.
LOCAL BUSINESSMAN AND WIFE DIE IN TRAGIC CAR ACCIDENT.
The date…
Matched the day my biological parents supposedly died.
I clenched my fists.
“This article is fake.” The Commander looked surprised.
“You recognized it.” “I don’t know how…” “…but this isn’t the truth.” He smiled.
“Good.” “That means your instincts are beginning to return.” He swiped to the next page.
Another article.
Another accident.
Another family.
Another orphan.
Then another.
And another.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Every article described different accidents across different years.
Different cities.
Different families.
But they all shared one thing.
A child survived.
I looked at him.
“What am I supposed to see?” He looked at me without smiling.
“Those weren’t accidents.” A chill ran through my body.
“They were collections.” “…Collections?” He nodded.
“They weren’t killing families.” “They were searching for children.” I couldn’t understand.
“Searching for what?” Before he answered…
The little girl suddenly covered both ears.
Her expression changed.
She looked frightened for the first time.
“No…” She whispered.
“He’s awake.” The Guardian immediately turned toward the underground staircase.
His voice became unusually serious.
“…Everyone stay silent.” The Commander slowly locked his tablet.
Even the soldiers stopped moving.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody even breathed loudly.
The chapel became unnaturally quiet.
Then…
From somewhere deep beneath the First Gate…
A heartbeat echoed.
Thump.
Once.
Slow.
Heavy.
The ground vibrated.
Another heartbeat.
Thump.
The candles flickered violently.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
A third heartbeat.
THUMP.
Every window inside the chapel shattered at once.
Glass exploded across the stone floor.
The pendant hanging around my neck suddenly burned against my skin.
I grabbed it instinctively.
The silver symbol glowed brighter than ever before.
The little girl slowly looked at me.
Her silver eye shimmered in the candlelight.
Then she whispered something…
Not to the Guardian.
Not to the Commander.
To me alone.
“Whatever happens next…” “…don’t let him hear your real name.” I stared at her in confusion.
“My real name?” She nodded.
Tears slowly rolled down her cheeks.
“You still…” “…don’t remember it.” The heartbeat echoed again beneath the chapel.
Louder this time.
And for the first time…
I heard something else.
Not a monster.
Not a machine.
A voice.
Calling someone…
From the darkness below.
…
The voice echoed once again.
Not from the staircase.
Not from the chapel.
It echoed…
Inside my head.
“…Come home…” My body froze.
The words didn’t sound threatening.
They sounded…
Familiar.
As if someone I had loved for a lifetime was calling me.
Without realizing it…
I took one step toward the staircase.
Then another.
The Guardian immediately blocked my path.
“Vena!” His voice snapped me back to reality.
“What are you doing?” I blinked.
“I…” I couldn’t answer.
For a few seconds…
I honestly didn’t know why I had started walking.
The little girl lowered her eyes.
“It called her.” The Commander quietly sighed.
“So it has finally begun.” The Guardian’s gaze hardened.
“Earlier than expected.” Another heartbeat shook the chapel.
THUMP…
The stone walls trembled.
Cracks spread across the ceiling.
One of the soldiers stumbled backwards.
“Sir!” “The Gate is becoming unstable!” The Commander didn’t take his eyes off me.
“No.” “The Gate isn’t unstable.” “It’s responding.” “…Responding to what?” He looked directly at the pendant around my neck.
“To its rightful heir.” Silence.
Every pair of eyes turned toward me.
I instinctively stepped back.
“No…” “You’re mistaken.” “I’m just…” I stopped.
Who was I?
Vena?
An adopted girl?
A survivor?
Or…
Something else entirely?
The little girl slowly walked toward the glowing staircase.
She stretched out her small hand.
The ancient symbols carved into the walls lit up one after another.
Silver.
Blue.
Gold.
Hundreds of symbols.
All glowing at once.
The Guardian whispered, “…It’s recognizing her.” The Commander nodded.
“It always would.” I frowned.
“What is recognizing me?” No one answered.
Instead…
The walls themselves began changing.
The old stone started moving.
Like pieces of a puzzle.
Dust disappeared.
Cracks sealed themselves.
Within seconds…
The abandoned chapel no longer looked abandoned.
It looked…
New.
Elegant.
Untouched by time.
Ancient chandeliers lit themselves.
Marble pillars replaced broken stone.
The stained-glass windows restored on their own.
I stared in disbelief.
“This…” “This isn’t possible.” The Commander smiled sadly.
“You’re not seeing the chapel change.” “…Then what?” “You’re seeing it…” “…the way it truly exists.” The pendant suddenly floated away from my chest.
The silver chain snapped by itself.
It hovered in the air.
Everyone watched silently.
The pendant slowly moved toward the center of the glowing circle.
Then…
It split into two pieces.
A soft clicking sound echoed.
Hidden inside…
Was something I had never seen before.
A tiny crystal.
No bigger than a fingernail.
Inside it…
A single drop of crimson blood floated as though time itself had stopped.
The little girl smiled.
“You protected it.” The Guardian looked genuinely shocked.
“It survived…” The Commander slowly removed his glasses.
For the first time…
His calm expression disappeared.
“So the Core…” “…was hidden inside the pendant.” One of the soldiers whispered, “After all these years…” “We’ve been searching for the wrong relic.” The crystal suddenly emitted a pulse.
A wave of silver light spread through the chapel.
The moment it touched me…
Everything disappeared.
The chapel.
The soldiers.
The Guardian.
The Commander.
Darkness.
Complete darkness.
Then…
A memory.
Not a dream.
Not imagination.
A memory.
I was running.
Tiny footsteps echoed behind me.
Someone was carrying me.
A woman’s voice trembled.
“Don’t cry…” “We’re almost there.” I looked up.
I couldn’t see her face.
Only long black hair.
Blood stained her white clothes.
She held me tightly against her chest.
Behind us…
Fire consumed an enormous mansion.
People screamed.
Gunshots echoed.
The woman stumbled.
Another person appeared beside her.
A man wearing silver armor.
His face was also blurred.
He looked at the woman.
“We don’t have enough time.” She nodded.
“I know.” The man looked at me.
“No matter what happens…” “…she must never remember before eighteen.” The woman gently kissed my forehead.
“If fate gives you another chance…” “…don’t come back for revenge.” She smiled sadly.
“Come back…” “…to end the cycle.” Everything shattered.
I gasped for air.
The chapel returned.
I had collapsed onto my knees.
My entire body trembled uncontrollably.
Tears rolled down my face.
I didn’t even know why I was crying.
The memories…
They felt real.
Too real.
The Guardian quietly knelt beside me.
“What did you see?” Before I could answer…
The little girl suddenly screamed.
“No!” Everyone turned.
The crystal floating above the circle had changed.
The crimson drop inside it…
Was disappearing.
Not leaking.
Evaporating.
The Commander immediately shouted, “Stop it!” Two soldiers rushed forward.
The moment they crossed the glowing circle…
They were thrown backwards by an invisible force.
The Guardian reached for the crystal.
It refused to move.
The little girl looked terrified.
“Someone…” “…is stealing it.” My heartbeat quickened.
“Stealing what?” She pointed toward the crystal.
“Your blood.” Silence.
The Commander slowly looked at me.
His face had become pale.
“That’s impossible.” “The Core has never been connected remotely.” The Guardian suddenly looked toward the broken entrance.
His eyes widened.
“…Not remotely.” Everyone followed his gaze.
Standing outside the chapel…
Under the pouring rain…
Was someone holding a phone.
A modern smartphone.
The screen glowed with the same silver symbol as the pendant.
The figure slowly lowered the phone.
Even from that distance…
I recognized him instantly.
Nikhil.
My adoptive stepbrother.
He wasn’t smiling.
He looked…
Disappointed.
Almost as if something hadn’t gone according to plan.
The Commander whispered, “…How did he find this place?” The Guardian answered without taking his eyes off Nikhil.
“He didn’t.” “He was waiting…” “…for her to open the Gate.” My breathing stopped.
Nikhil looked directly into my eyes.
Then…
For the first time in both of my lives…
He spoke without pretending to be the caring older brother.
His voice echoed through the silent chapel.
“Vena…” “I warned you not to come.” His expression remained calm.
“But now…” “…there’s no reason to keep pretending.” He raised the phone slightly.
The silver symbol on the screen began rotating.
At the same time…
The crystal above the circle cracked.
A thin crimson line spread across its surface.
The little girl grabbed my arm.
Her voice trembled.
“You have to remember your real name…” “…before the crystal breaks.” I stared at Nikhil.
Then at the crystal.
Then back at the little girl.
One question echoed louder than every heartbeat.
If Nikhil had been waiting for me to open the First Gate…
Had every choice I made since my rebirth been part of his plan?