Kael kept walking, refusing to let the conversation slow the group down. Every extra second in these tunnels was another chance for something to wake.
"Who the fuck are you to tell us what to do? You're not even one of-"
The man started, anger flaring like a match. It wasn't about the door anymore. It was about ego. About a "new guy" having authority. Kael felt the moment shift, the way tension in a group changed when someone decided to challenge the wrong person in front of the leader.
"QUIET!" The boss howled.
The shout snapped through the tunnel and made several heads jerk. Kael flinched inwardly, not outwardly. Loud noises in tunnels were invitations. He watched the mini-map out of habit, half expecting dormant dots behind doors to brighten. Nothing moved yet, but that didn't mean nothing heard.
But that wasn't his biggest worry. The boss reacted too strongly.
Kael was about to frown, but that would have exposed his thinking. He realized it there, and it was dangerous.
