"Huh?"
Soren's eyes darted left and right, but the staggering scale of the architecture remained vacant. There was no source for the voice, no visible threat, and no sign of life in the entire golden expanse.
'Did I... imagine it?'
The thought flickered through his mind as he stared into the oppressive emptiness. The golden hall was so vast and the silence so absolute that it felt like his own senses might be playing tricks on him. Maybe the stress of the portal closing had finally snapped a thread in his brain.
"Is there anyone here?" However, Soren still called out, his voice cracking slightly. "Who spoke? Show yourself!"
He then waited, his pulse thudding in his ears like a heavy drum. He scanned every reflective surface and every shadow tucked behind the gargantuan pillars.
Silence.
