The hundred-foot slab of Origin-Iron hummed with ancient, suffocating power.
Dense layers of celestial arrays pulsed beneath the dark meteor plating, weaving a labyrinth of ten thousand interlocking runic seals.
Claire Vance took three slow steps forward, holding a polished brass array-compass in her trembling hands. The needle spun violently, throwing off showers of blue sparks as it tried to resolve the incomprehensible density of the defensive geometry.
“Kaelen, this is madness,” Claire whispered, her voice tightening as she examined the glowing tracery. “There are ten thousand distinct layers. The outer shell is anchored to the planet’s mantle with the Nine-Fold Dragon-Lock Array.”
“The inner core is looped through nine dimensional folds using the Celestial Void-Anchor,” she added, checking the compass dial. “If you touch a single wrong node, the rebound will vaporize this entire cavern.”
Deacon Vane held up his ledger, squinting through his spectacles at the glowing bronze lines.
“According to the imperial annals, Sovereign Solon spent eight centuries designing this gate alone,” Vane said, his voice hushed with academic awe. “He consulted the Nine Grandmasters of the First Age to ensure that no force in creation could breach it. It incorporates the Ten-Thousand-Ghost Suppression Grid and the Eternal Star-Core Seal.”
