The forest path eventually gave way to stone.
Ludwig stepped onto the narrow road that wound between the trees and climbed slowly toward the hillside. The Sanctuary revealed itself piece by piece through the branches.
Low buildings of dark stone and glass.
Warm light behind long windows.
Nothing flashy. Nothing grand.
From a distance it could have been mistaken for a small research institute… or an old monastery that had quietly learned how to use electricity.
Ludwig walked straight toward the main entrance.
The heavy doors slid open before he reached them.
"Odin," he said quietly as he crossed the threshold.
The interior was warm, the air carrying the faint scent of cedar and disinfectant.
Cameras watched silently from the corners of the ceiling.
"Yes, Ludwig."
The voice emerged from somewhere above him. Calm. Clear. Almost human.
Almost.
"Medical wing ready?" Ludwig asked.
"Dr. Dante is awake and preparing a room."
Ludwig adjusted Mia's weight slightly on his shoulder.
"She's in bad shape."
"I have observed."
Ludwig walked down the main corridor. The floor was polished stone, soft lights embedded along the walls instead of harsh overhead lamps.
Patients liked it better that way.
The place was designed to calm the mind before anything else.
"You logged her identity yet?" he asked.
A brief pause.
"Yes."
Ludwig already knew the answer before Odin spoke again.
"Subject identified as Mia Valen."
Ludwig didn't slow his pace.
"Figures."
"The probability of misidentification is less than zero point two percent."
"That's comforting."
They reached the elevator at the end of the hall. The doors opened immediately.
Ludwig stepped inside.
The cabin descended quietly.
For a moment the only sound was Mia's breathing.
Then Odin spoke again.
"Ludwig."
"Yeah?"
"You described the situation as unusual."
"I did."
Another pause.
"The camera analysis of her facial micro-expressions suggests an anomaly."
Ludwig glanced down at Mia's unconscious face.
"What kind of anomaly?"
"During the thirty-two seconds she was conscious, her behavioral pattern did not correspond to known profiles of exhaustion, panic, or disorientation."
The elevator doors opened onto a quieter level.
Medical wing.
Ludwig stepped out.
"So what are you saying?"
A beat.
Then Odin answered calmly.
"It is possible that the individual you encountered was not the same personality currently present."
Ludwig kept walking.
"Yeah," he muttered.
"I had a feeling."
At the end of the corridor, the doors to the medical unit slid open.
White light spilled into the hallway.
"Dr. Dante is waiting," Odin said.
Ludwig entered.
And for the first time since finding her in the forest, he wondered exactly what kind of storm had just arrived at the Sanctuary.