The sourceless light flickered. For a moment, Elara felt the weight of every unspooled timeline pressing against the obsidian drawers. She heard a faint, collective whisper: k-k-k-k , like a needle skating on the edge of a record.

Elara laughed, a brittle sound. “That’s insane.”

The suite was a single, vast room, windowless, lit by a soft, sourceless glow that felt like twilight on a desert planet. Along the walls were not filing cabinets, but drawers—thousands of them, made of polished obsidian. Each had a single letter etched into its face: K. K. K.

The keycard worked. The door clicked open.