This is part of an original serialized fiction project written and edited by the author. All story elements and characters are fictional.

“The key…” Teodora said softly, almost to herself. “The medallion we found.”

Leo took a slow step back.
“You’re saying this room needs to be activated, too?”

Teodora shook her head, though her expression was uncertain.

“I don’t know for sure. But it might be the only way to access whatever is stored here.”

A heavy silence settled over them as the three stared at the pedestal. It sat there like something alive, waiting—watching.

Lucía was the first to speak.
“So what do we do?”

Teodora looked between the siblings, her voice steady but weighed with caution.

“We have two options. We can walk away. Leave this place sealed and hope no one else ever finds it.”

Leo already knew what was coming next.
“And the other?”

“We use the key. We see what this place holds… and decide what to do once we understand it.”

Lucía shook her head immediately.
“What if it’s something we can’t control? What if we wake up something worse?”

Leo didn’t flinch. If anything, his resolve deepened.

“But if Méndez finds it first, we’ll be too late. At least if we see what’s in here, we’ll know what we’re dealing with.”

Teodora listened as their arguments hung in the air. She didn’t respond right away—just quietly reached into her satchel. From inside, she pulled out a cloth-wrapped bundle. Carefully, she unwrapped it.

The medallion.

Lucía’s eyes widened.
“You brought it?”

“I couldn’t risk leaving it behind,” Teodora said. “Not now.”

Without waiting for approval, she stepped forward and slid the medallion into a shallow slot on the pedestal’s surface.

The moment it clicked into place, a low hum echoed through the chamber. The platform began to glow—spiraling patterns of light rose slowly into the air, forming rotating glyphs that hovered and shifted like living constellations.

Leo took a cautious step back.
“What’s happening?”

“It’s reacting to the key,” Teodora said, but her voice held a thread of uncertainty.

Then, a voice filled the room. It wasn’t mechanical or human—it was something older, deeper. A whisper that seemed to crawl out from the walls themselves.

“Access granted. The truth awaits.”

The light intensified.

In front of them, a projection took shape—a holographic display, somewhere between a star map and an archive. Names. Dates. Documents. Patterns. Layers of information scrolled in all directions.

Lucía’s eyes caught on a repeating phrase.
“‘Project Emerald’... what is that?”

Teodora stepped closer, reading the glyphs carefully.

“It’s the original name. The plan to build this place. But look…” She pointed to several entries scattered across the display. “It references other sites.”

Leo leaned in, recognizing a set of numbers.
“These are coordinates. Locations. You think… there are other chambers?”

Teodora nodded slowly, the weight of it sinking in.
“The Esmeralda Building isn’t unique. It’s part of a network.”

Lucía’s face paled. She took a shaky step back.
“Then if Méndez gets this… he won’t just have this building. He’ll have access to everything.”

“Exactly,” Teodora said grimly. “That’s why this knowledge must be protected—no matter what it takes.”

Suddenly, the light dimmed. The glyphs flickered, stuttering. A red symbol appeared at the center of the projection, pulsing in warning.

“Intrusion detected. System compromised.”

Leo stepped forward, alarmed.
“What does that mean?”

Teodora’s eyes widened.
“Someone’s trying to access the system—remotely.”

Lucía looked around in panic, scanning the shadows.
“Méndez? Can he do that?”

“He must have some kind of connection… their technology. It’s more advanced than we thought,” Teodora said quickly, reaching for the medallion. “We can’t stay here. If the system’s live, he could trace it back to us.”

Leo and Lucía rushed to help her. Together, they pulled the medallion from the slot. The moment it was free, the glowing patterns collapsed, the light draining out of the air. But the chamber still trembled softly, like something had been stirred—and wasn’t ready to go back to sleep.

“Should we seal it?” Leo asked, watching as the walls began to dim.

Teodora nodded firmly.
“Yes. This place has to remain hidden. Even if it means we never learn everything it holds.”

With the medallion secure once more, the three turned and began retracing their steps up the passageway, leaving behind the most dangerous archive they had ever discovered.

And as the darkness reclaimed the chamber, the whispers faded—but didn’t disappear.
They were waiting.
Just like the truth.