The library wing never announced its importance.
It didn't need to.
Mina learned this the way people learned most truths at Helix, by watching what was handled carefully. What required dual authorization. What was never spoken aloud unless absolutely necessary.
Today, that was the inner reference hall.
Nessa met her at the threshold, tablet already in hand. "You're assisting with cross-verification," she said. "No annotations. No summaries. You confirm alignment and log discrepancies only."
"Between what?" Mina asked.
Nessa's gaze flicked briefly to the sealed doors ahead. "Between the Establishments."
That word, plural ...landed differently now.
Inside, the hall was circular, its walls curved with recessed glass panels. Each panel held a slim collection of documents, artifacts, and live data streams. They weren't labeled the way ordinary archives were.
They didn't need to be.
Nessa gestured once. "You'll start clockwise."
Mina stepped forward.
The first panel was austere. No ornamentation. No historical flourish. The documents were lean, transactional, precise. Currency flows. Market stabilization models. Long-term debt instruments that spanned decades.
She didn't need anyone to explain this one.
Finance.
Nessa spoke anyway, voice level. "Aurelion Prime Holdings. Establishment One. Capital governance. Liquidity control. External leverage."
Mina nodded and logged her confirmation.
The second panel was louder without sound. Infrastructure schematics layered over city maps. Transit arteries. Energy grids. Supply chain redundancies that could reroute entire districts in minutes.
"Virex Consortium," Nessa said. "Establishment Two. Infrastructure and movement."
Mina's fingers paused briefly over the tablet.
Control of movement wasn't just convenience. It was dominance disguised as logistics.
The third panel made her spine straighten.
Security directives. Enforcement treaties. Containment protocols written in language that left no room for interpretation. This wasn't about protection. It was about response.
Swift. Final. Legal.
"Sentinel Accord," Nessa said quietly. "Establishment Three. Security and force."
Mina logged it with care.
The fourth panel was… different.
Cultural initiatives. Media ownership webs. Influence mapping. Behavioral trend analysis. Not commands...persuasion. Not enforcement..... shaping.
The documents were beautiful in a way that made her uneasy.
"Eidolon Circle," Nessa said. "Establishment Four. Narrative, culture, and legitimacy."
Mina swallowed.
Money. Movement. Force. Meaning.
Four pillars.
Four ways to rule without ever appearing to.
"You'll notice," Nessa continued, "that none of these panels lists a single decision-maker."
Mina glanced up. "Because they rule jointly."
"Because they are required to," Nessa corrected. "Balance is not optional in Aurelion."
Mina finished the last confirmation and stepped back.
That was when she noticed she wasn't alone anymore.
Two men stood at the far end of the hall.
Not entering. Already there.
They hadn't interrupted. Hadn't announced themselves. They were simply… present, like they had always been part of the architecture.
One leaned against the glass of Aurelion Prime's panel, posture relaxed, expression sharp with amusement. The other stood near Sentinel Accord, hands clasped loosely behind his back, gaze assessing everything without betraying a thought.
Nessa didn't turn.
She didn't need to.
"Continue your log," she said evenly.
Mina did, because freezing would have been worse.
The man by Prime spoke first.
"You've mapped them correctly," he said, voice smooth, unhurried. "Most people mistake culture for decoration."
Mina didn't look at him. She finished the entry and closed the file.
The other man spoke next. "Or force for cruelty."
That one was colder. Not cruel, exact.
Mina finally lifted her eyes.
She knew who was who without being told.
Aurelion Prime's heir had the kind of presence that bent attention without demanding it. Power worn like confidence. Like inevitability.
Sentinel Accord's heir was quieter. Tighter. Dangerous in the way locked doors were dangerous.
Nessa turned at last and inclined her head, not deeply, but correctly.
"Heirs," she said.
The Prime heir smiled faintly. "You're training her well."
The Sentinel heir's gaze settled on Mina, not her face, not her body, but her posture. Her hands. Her stillness.
"She logs without hesitation," he said. "That's rare."
Mina felt the weight of that observation more than any compliment.
"She doesn't guess," Nessa replied. "She verifies."
"Good," the Prime heir said. "Guessing gets expensive."
They moved then, crossing the hall with the ease of men who expected space to clear for them.
As they passed Mina, the Sentinel heir paused, not long enough to be obvious.
"Remember this," he said quietly, for her alone.
"Every establishment has a weakness. The mistake is assuming it's the same kind."
Then they were gone.
The hall exhaled.
Nessa waited until the doors sealed before speaking again.
"Now you know their names," she said. "And what they command."
Mina nodded, pulse steady despite everything.
"And?" she asked.
Nessa met her gaze. "And you will never confuse them again."
As Mina left the reference hall, one truth settled with absolute clarity:
Helix wasn't housing four powerful men.
It was training four rulers.
And she had just been allowed to see the structure they would one day control.
That permission could not be undone.