The distortion spread like an unseen hand pushing through the chamber, rippling outward along the curved walls.

  The edges of the tear glowed deep blue, the light thick and muted—like a flame burning at absolute zero.

  The man who emerged stood nearly two meters tall, broad enough to block a doorway. His skin held a dark bronze tone, muscles sharply defined beneath the light. His eyes were sharp and deep, the gaze of a hunter locking onto unfamiliar territory.

  He wore a rough brown leather jacket, its buttons undone to reveal a linen shirt beneath. At his hip hung an exquisitely crafted short blade. Fine geometric patterns were etched into the sheath—uncannily similar to the runes Erika had seen in the murals.

  The hilt was wrapped in dark red hide, polished smooth by years of use.

  The moment he arrived, he scanned the chamber instinctively, his gaze flicking between Erika and Lucas. Muscles tightened beneath his skin.

  “Where is this place?” he asked.

  His voice was low, carrying the rhythmic cadence of an African dialect. His English was heavily accented, but every word landed with weight.

  No one answered immediately.

  Lucas narrowed his eyes. Erika, without realizing it, took half a step back—the man’s presence felt like a storm gathering overhead.

  The scent of incense and metal seemed stronger now, thickening the air.

  The runes etched into the stone floor flickered faintly as all three of them settled into position, as though an ancient ritual had been activated by accident.

  “Who are you?” Erika asked at last, her voice steady but cautious.

  “Jabari Kanyo,” he replied without hesitation, his guard still up.

  “A guide from the Maasai Mara… or rather, its inheritor.”

  “Inheritor?” Erika frowned.

  Before she could ask more, Lucas spoke.

  “Your family’s blade is forged from meteor iron, isn’t it?”

  Jabari’s eyes sharpened instantly.

  His hand moved to the hilt. “How do you know that?”

  “Meteoric iron contains a rare nickel-iron structure that remains stable at extreme temperatures,” Lucas said evenly, a glint of inquiry flashing behind his glasses.

  “What’s rarer is that this dagger has been passed down for seven generations—and according to your people’s legends, it can ‘drive away the darkness.’”

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  Jabari’s grip tightened.

  His grandfather had told him that the blade was more than a weapon—it was a conduit to their ancestors. Only a true inheritor could awaken the spirit fire within it.

  “I don’t like being investigated,” Jabari said coldly, stepping forward. The pressure in the air spiked.

  Erika fought the instinct to retreat and held her ground.

  Lucas didn’t move. He simply adjusted his glasses.

  “Not investigation,” he said. “Prediction. Because you, I—and her,” he glanced at Erika,

  “were brought here by the same force.”

  “What force?” Erika demanded.

  “The one that activated three days ago,” Lucas replied, his gaze sweeping over their chests.

  He knew—her jade pendant, Jabari’s blade, even the core component of his own instrument all carried traces of the same ancient sigil.

  Jabari didn’t understand all the technical terms, but instinct screamed that the man knew too much.

  Instead of relaxing, he slowly drew his blade.

  The moment it cleared the sheath, blue flame ignited along its edge.

  It wasn’t the heat of burning air, but a cold, luminous fire. Staring at it made Erika’s eyes sting faintly.

  “This is my covenant with my ancestors,” Jabari said, his voice low but reverent.

  “And the reason I am here.”

  The blue flame cast its glow across the murals. Symbols that had lain dormant for ages began to shimmer in response.

  Erika felt the jade pendant tremble faintly, answering the fire.

  She closed her fingers around it and sensed a thin thread of qi stirring within her—weak, but undeniably real.

  Lucas tilted his head as the probes on his device vibrated more violently.

  “As I suspected,” he murmured.

  “Different civilizations’ powers… resonating in the same space.”

  Jabari didn’t grasp the science, but he could see it in Lucas’s eyes—not mockery, but the thrill of a hunter spotting rare prey.

  That realization made him even more wary.

  Then the crystals in the chamber’s ceiling dimmed—all at once.

  The murals flared.

  Every rune began to glow, their light drawn toward the center of the chamber as if pulled by an unseen force.

  “This is bad,” Lucas muttered.

  Jabari didn’t ask why.

  And Erika—

  the jade pendant was heating rapidly now, its pulse nearly merging with her heartbeat.

  She knew it.

  The real trial was about to begin.