The runic symbols on the circular steel door began turning counterclockwise, bathed in the violet light radiating from the circuit board in Elias’s hand. The mechanism, rusted and locked for years, split open with a deep metallic boom. Cold, electrically charged air billowed outward from inside and struck the team’s faces.
“This place looks more like a giant data archive than an altar,” the technician whispered, aiming the flashlight in his hand into the darkness.
The enormous chamber within was a vast dome where ancient stone columns dating back thousands of years merged in perfect harmony with the cyber-magnetic cables covering the ceiling. At the exact center of the chamber, the spherical second seal hovered in the air, glowing as intricate symbols revolved across its surface. But the seal was protected by blue and red security waves surrounding it.
Elias carefully stepped inside, signaling his teammates to stay behind him. The cybernetic circuits in his left arm gave a faint creak under the high-frequency energy field here. “We have to retrieve the second piece safely,” he said. “AETHEL has shut down completely, but this seal is running on its own independent defense protocol.”
The instant he extended the circuit board in his hand, a shock wave radiating from the seal shook the chamber. Their journey was only halfway over, and the secret of this mountain was merely a small sign of the greater dangers waiting for them.