The first loaded movement began while Juno was still setting the stabilization reference.
Eli heard the apparatus change before he saw the core move. A different note entered the frame, the sound of weight transferring from an old support into a new one. The crew chief looked at the indicator. The operator kept his hand on the control.
“Hold,” Juno called.
The core rose.
Fine lines drew taut around its base. One vanished into the wall. Another snapped with a flash so narrow that Eli first mistook it for a reflection. The chamber floor moved beneath his boots, a short hard shift that made the medical bag slide against its stop.
“Withdrawal,” Juno said.
The leader shouted for the crew to secure the core. The lifting frame’s upper guide twisted as a falling strip of masonry struck the adjoining support. Dust rolled across the apparatus. A carrier went down beside the checked floor seam, one foot caught under the edge of a dropped equipment case.
Kellan reached him before Eli could cross the room. He pulled the case away from the leg and guided the man clear by the sound side, keeping his own strained shoulder out of the main lift. The worker could stand with help. Kellan sent him to Tessa rather than letting him return to the apparatus to prove it.
