The cold metal walls pressed in, humming softly with the distant pulse of the ocean outside. You stood in the dimly lit chamber, the flickering lights casting long shadows that danced eerily around you. Grayhm Grayson stepped forward, his crisp uniform untouched by the dampness of the underwater labyrinth. His eyes, calm but unyielding, locked onto yours.

“You made it farther than most,” he said smoothly, voice low and measured. “But this is where your path ends.”

He held up two fingers, deliberate and precise. “Option one: come back with me. A fresh start, a clean record. We erase the past, and you return to Pelagia with a new identity. A new job. No questions asked.”

You swallowed, the weight of the choice pressing down like the water beyond the thick glass.

“Option two,” Grayhm continued, his smile tightening, “is less forgiving. You become part of our next phase—an experiment, a step toward the future. The cost? Survival isn’t guaranteed.”

The silence stretched, thick and suffocating, as the hum of the facility seemed to grow louder.