The door did not open—it unfolded.
Stone peeled back like petals of some ancient, infernal bloom, shedding obsidian flakes that dissolved into golden dust. The light that poured from the widening gap wasn't light at all—it was memory, fire, and something far older than time. It struck me in the chest like a blade.
Kael shouted my name behind me.
But the world had already shifted.
As the gap widened, the cavern behind me seemed to ripple and bend, as though the Hollow itself were recoiling. The air went thick and sharp. Every breath cut. Every heartbeat echoed like a war drum. Kael tried to move toward me, but the golden light pushed against him, holding him back—protecting him… or protecting me from him.
And then I stepped through.
The moment my foot crossed the threshold, the world
