Austin stopped on the steel landing between Floors Two and Three.
The hum in his chest deepened. Surplus energy from the crusaders had passed through the capacitor bank and into his core.
Golden light shone through his work shirt.
The landing dipped. Tie Kuang dropped to one knee under the stray pressure.
“Give me a moment,” Austin said. He changed the ballast on his belt, set the balance to within half a thousandth of an inch, and tightened his magnetic containment. The weight around them eased.
Tie Kuang stood slowly. “A warning would be nice.”
“I had about as much warning as you did.”
Above Sunset Peak, the Second Sun contracted to a white point. A wide corona spread around it, crossed by bright streamers. Warm light reached farms and cities far beyond the ridge.
In the royal capital, astrologers shouted about a new heavenly age. Austin studied the equipment blueprints that had come with the breakthrough.
“Tier Six smelters,” he said. “We can cast turbine blades without hidden cracks.”
Tie Kuang looked toward the light in the ventilation shaft. “Half the continent is kneeling, and you are thinking about turbines.”
“Turbines mean backup power. Backup power means the coolant keeps moving if the main line fails.” Austin closed the projection. “That matters more than a priest’s speech.”
They continued toward Floor Three. From below came the crash of ice breaking and Guang Ming’s voice calling it a sacred battle.
Tie Kuang laughed. “He still wants to destroy the core.”
“He wants to win. Ling Yue wants something useful. Wu Nian wants everyone home.” Austin checked the rail bolts as they passed. “Remember those differences. They may matter before this ends.”