The data streams continued to flood the chamber as Lira decrypted layer after layer. Images flickered—Council leaders overseeing experiments, Vaelari beings confined in stasis, their energy siphoned for unknown purposes.
A sudden sharp pulse from the console made her stagger back. The vault's defense system was activating.
"Lira, get out of there!" Kaela's voice was frantic.
But Lira was already running, navigating the twisting tunnels as alarms blared behind her. The cavern began to collapse, ancient mechanisms shutting down in a cascade.
She burst out onto the ash-covered surface just as the entrance sealed behind her.
Breathing hard, she glanced back at the sealed vault.
"This is only the beginning," she whispered.
Her discovery would ignite the rebellion.