They did not touch the door.Elias stood in front of the massive stone slab, the golden pendant warm against his chest, and shook his head once. The matching symbol carved into the black rock pulsed faintly in answer, as if inviting him closer. He stepped back instead.“We’re not opening it,” he said. “Not until we know exactly what is on the other side.”Kira kept her rifle trained on the seal, though the weapon felt suddenly inadequate. “Some secrets are better left buried. That thing has been locked down here under a church, under a records office, under an entire district of people who stopped needing food. Whatever is inside has been contained for a reason. Opening it because the symbol matches your pendant is the fastest way to repeat every mistake that created the first portal.”Romeo’s voice came from the stairwell behind them. He had followed their trail into the quarantined zone after the facility’s morning quiet made him restless, arriving in time to see the buried nave and