…
The Book of Knowledge wouldn't stop glowing.
Like… actually glowing.
Faint, bluish light pulsing like a heartbeat. Sometimes warm. Sometimes like holding an iPad possessed by the collective trauma of ancient civilizations.
Dae sat on the dorm rooftop, legs dangling over the edge, hoodie up, hoodie string tangled in the ring on his finger. It was past curfew, but nobody cared anymore. Not after that week.
The stars above the dome blinked like they were in on a secret. And the book on his lap finally whispered.
Not in words. In a feeling.
Like it was nudging him toward something. Somewhere.
A page flipped open without permission.
One sentence, etched in glowing script:
"You've seen the echo. Now seek the source."
…
The Vault.
Not the one from last time—the creepy monster-screaming memory maze where Dae had almost gotten deleted.
This was older.
Buried deeper beneath the academy's archives.
Pix didn't even list it on the map.
But the Book knew the way.
So at 2:44 A.M., in a hoodie, pajama pants, and half a protein bar in his mouth, Dae snuck through the east wing hallway… into a restricted sector that didn't technically exist.
Vault Access Division… Sub-Layer Nine.
Security: Level Null.
The hallway didn't look like academy design. More like a museum had married a server room.
Walls lined with rusted glyphs and floating memory shards, gently rotating like mini disco balls of trauma.
At the end of it… a door.
Not a regular door.
A door made of mirror fragments.
A name etched on it:
VAULT 0 – CALADRA
Dae's breath caught.
The ring on his finger heated.
He reached out.
The door didn't open.
It let him in.
…
It wasn't a room. It was a sky.
A wide, endless place full of floating architecture, like shattered cathedrals and broken bridges suspended in mist.
And in the center… a figure.
Chained to a crystalline throne.
Eyes shut.
Hair white, shimmering like old starlight.
An aura that felt like it had seen a thousand betrayals and still said "try me."
Dae stepped forward.
His voice cracked.
"…Kaelion?"
The figure opened his eyes.
And smiled.
Like he'd been waiting.
"Hello again, Creator."
…
Meanwhile, back in the dorm—
Total chaos.
Kio was trying to prank Kai by replacing his toothpaste with honey glue, but instead ended up gluing his own hand to a pillow.
Zane built a lightning-spitting drone to scare Elio, but the drone malfunctioned and started following Vera, who thought she was being haunted by her own perfectionist guilt.
Rea and Selene sat by the common room fireplace, watching the madness with matching deadpan expressions.
"I give it twenty minutes before something explodes," Rea said.
"Five," Selene replied.
Echo sprawled on the couch with a bag of ghost pepper popcorn, watching like it was TV. Vale curled up near the bookshelf, pretending not to be invested while definitely watching too.
Then Pix's voice cut through the chaos:
" ALERT. Vault Protocols Triggered. Sector Nine breach detected. Subject: Dae."
Everything froze.
Selene was already on her feet. "He went alone?"
Rea stood too. "We told him not to go alone."
Echo grabbed her jacket. "He's a main character. They never listen."
Zane blinked. "Wait, is he gonna die? Do I get his bed?"
"No," Vale said flatly. "Because we're going to get him back before he even has the chance."
She pulled out a map etched with moving glyphs. A rare relic.
"I've seen this vault in the archives. Caladra… it's not just storage. It's a prison."
Kio groaned, still stuck to his pillow. "Okay but can we maybe… not rush into a death crypt without snacks?"
Too late.
They were already moving.
…
Back in Vault 0—
Kaelion didn't look imprisoned.
More like… exhausted.
"You have questions," he said.
"Yeah," Dae replied, heartbeat quickening. "Like why are you in a vault that doesn't exist? Why do I keep hearing your voice in my dreams? And what the hell is Caladra?"
Kaelion chuckled, then coughed. Dust spilled from his mouth like time itself.
"I'm not the vault's prisoner. I am the vault."
"What?"
"I died here," Kaelion said softly. "But part of me refused to vanish. My knowledge, my memories, my regrets… they became Caladra. A living vault."
He gestured to the air.
All around them, floating fragments began to pulse.
Memories.
Pieces of battles. Of betrayal. Of Dae.
"Wait… are these my memories?"
Kaelion nodded. "And the ones they took from you."
Dae stumbled.
The air thickened.
"I want them back."
Kaelion's eyes gleamed. "Then prove you can carry them."
Suddenly, the ground shattered—
And dozens of shadow-forms rose from the floor.
Each one wearing Dae's face.
Smirking.
Mocking.
"You'll have to fight the versions of you that broke first."
…
Outside the vault door, the squad had arrived.
Rea touched the mirror surface, her voice tight. "It's sealed."
Echo nodded. "This place only opens for memory-bound signatures."
"So how do we get in?" Kio asked.
Vale held up a small shard of glass. "With a cheat code."
The moment she pressed it to the mirror, the door pulsed… then accepted.
They rushed in.
…
Inside—
Dae was mid-fight.
Dodging an echo wielding a corrupted version of his own creation power. It looked like a sword made of heartbreak and second-guessing.
Another echo launched a memory storm at him—blasting him with flashes of the day An vanished.
He stumbled… dropped to one knee.
"You are weak," the echo hissed. "You forget too easily."
Then a voice shouted—
"He's not alone!"
Selene arrived first, blades out, cutting into a memory form.
Rea flanked the side, gravity rippling as she crushed one echo mid-charge.
Echo jumped in with a paper spell that detonated midair. "Fight club but with trauma! Love this for us!"
Vale sealed the entrance with a glyph.
One by one, his friends joined him.
Not as side characters.
As anchors.
Kaelion smiled as Dae stood up again, eyes glowing.
"This is what the vault feared," Kaelion said. "That you wouldn't fight alone."
Dae nodded. "I'm done forgetting."
The Book of Knowledge opened midair.
His ring blazed.
And the last memory seal cracked.
…
But what came out wasn't a vision.
It was a name.
A forgotten one.
Spoken by the vault itself.
Dae shivered.
Even Kaelion's expression changed.
"You weren't supposed to hear that yet," he muttered.
"What is it?"
Kaelion looked away.
"Caladra… isn't a place. Or even a vault. It's the name of a girl."
"Who?"
But Kaelion didn't answer.
The throne behind him cracked.
And for the first time… he looked afraid.
…
To be continued in Chapter 33 – Caladra, the Forgotten Heart