[Velmora — Kargal Command Post Delta-6]
The biometric scanner hissed.
A green light flickered over Kiro's fake ID badge, pulsing once... then again. The guard behind the console leaned forward, suspicious—until the retinal scanner locked onto the six-pointed Dominion Sigil now blooming in Kiro's eye.
ID Confirmed: Cadet Valen ThalosAccess Level: Intermediate — Escort Required for Spire Ascension
"Move along, Cadet," the guard grunted, returning to his terminal.
Kiro didn't speak. He bowed slightly—just enough to match Kargal etiquette—and stepped through the reinforced gate.
Behind it, the post opened into a hexagonal war room humming with energy fields, holographic maps, and sharp-eyed officers barking into comms.
Everywhere, the symbol of control loomed: the crescent-fanged Kargal insignia, wrapped around the symbol of House El'Vertigo—a spiral mountain speared by light.
Stay silent. Act Kargal.
The System flickered in his peripheral vision, subtly adjusting his gait and posture based on the memory-echoes stolen from the dead cadet's bloodstream.
[Behavior Sync: 89% Accurate][Speech Protocols: Uploading Accent Map...]
A silver-clad officer approached.
"You. Cadet Thalos. You're late for transport rotation. El'Vertigo wants updated biometric logs at the Keep—personally."
Kiro gave a curt nod.
"Yes, sir."
Perfect.
He was handed a sealed container marked "Bio-Log 72", containing DNA threads, citizen logs, and encryption keys—all sensitive enough to require face-to-face delivery.
The officer pointed toward the northern transport dock.
"Spire transport leaves in five. Don't screw it up."
[Velmora — El'Vertigo Keep, Spire Summit]
Carved into the bones of a mountain shaped by artificial tectonics, the El'Vertigo Keep towered above Velmora like a stone crown.
The path was lined with viora-etched statues of ancestors—faces chiseled in eternal judgment, their eyes burning faintly with surveillance nodes. Automated turrets tracked every movement.
As the transport hissed to a halt atop the spire, Kiro stepped out—cloaked in his false skin.
The Keep's gates opened without a sound.
But the silence wasn't peace.
It was power.
[Velmora — El'Vertigo Keep: Main Courtyard]
Far below, the real heir returned.
Pablo El'Vertigo passed through the open gates, hunched beneath the weight of his own home.
Servants watched from shadows.
The courtyard had no color—just grey stone, dead fountains, and air that whispered of secrets buried alive.
"Welcome home, young master," a mechanical butler rasped as Pablo stepped forward.
He didn't reply.
But then...
CRACK—
A hand closed around his shoulder like iron.
"Running, boy?"
The voice was thunder—coated in ice.
Pablo froze.
Behind him stood Kavo El'Vertigo.
His father.
Tall. Robed in dark viora-threaded armor. His eyes glowed with raw discipline—one silver, one jet-black. His presence bent the air.
"I—"
Before Pablo could speak, Kavo's palm struck his spine.
Viora surged through his body—spiking down his nerves like lightning in a cage.
His muscles locked. His legs gave out. He collapsed to his knees, teeth grinding.
"You destroyed a 1.2 million crown artifact," Kavo said, calm and slow. "You smeared our crest across rebel territory. And worst of all..."
He leaned close, voice dropping to a whisper that made the blood in Pablo's veins still.
"You embarrassed me."
Pablo gasped as Kavo released the hold, letting him fall forward onto the stone.
"Inside," Kavo said. "Now."
And the gates closed behind them.