Legends of Amacia Srandi: Last Bastion of the Caverias
Chapter 23: The God-locks of Srandi

“Holy shit!” Harry cursed in fearful astonishment. “That Roc engraving actually moved. Hannibal, that thing moved just like the guardian you encountered at Archive entrance in Kaal Bek. Watch yourself!”

“Son of a bitch,” Ned cursed softly under his breath as the giant image moved before everyone’s eyes. “It’s alive!”

“Everyone be still,” Assad roared fearfully, “We do not want to antagonize the guardian Roc on that door by doing anything rash. It will kill anyone it deems a threat. Beowulf, you need to tame the guardian on that door now!”

Hannibal felt an icy chill race down his spine as he heard all the warnings and saw the image move. “I see it,” he called out urgently, “Harry and Assad are right. We’re faced with a guardian golem here like we found in Kaal Bek, only this one is far larger and much more powerful. Be quiet and don’t approach until I say so. I’m the only one who can approach it right now since I triggered it. Hold your peace and let me work. I have a good idea of what I need to do here.”

“Then go to work, Hannibal,” Harry called out urgently. “I don’t want to see that thing come off the door like that one did in Kaal Bek.”

“Right,” Hannibal replied soberly, quickly walking over to the center of the door, standing six feet away from it. Looking up at the Roc image and by extension all the other draken images, he noticed each image had a bright glowing outline around them with shining eyes, all of which seemed to stare directly at him. To Hannibal’s further amazement, he noticed the activation of the door mechanism had caused the eons of dust and tarnish to fall from the door in a soft cloud of dust with the tarnish flaking off in large scales. With the repulsion of the dust and tarnish from the mechanism, the pure cosmic alien beauty of the door became impossible to ignore. Furthermore, the door now radiated an aura of dangerous power and fear as if it were designed to mentally repulse all comers who would dare to violate its secrets. Hannibal felt this and marveled at the sophistication of the device before him. It reminded him strangely of the access door the core of Tiamat. Yet in spite of the repulsive fear he felt emanating in waves from the door, he did not fear it. “Whoa, I am impressed, Srandi,” he murmured softly while gazing up at the sizzling crystal eyes of the Roc on the door and saluting it by putting his right fist with the Caverias signet over his heart. “Please allow us access so we may lift your lockdown and find shelter from the coming storm. Your assistance is once again needed to preserve your people.”

A beam of multi-colored light erupted from the Roc’s eyes on the door, shining directly in Hannibal’s eyes as he once again froze briefly. After a few seconds, the beam stopped and Hannibal sighed deeply in relief as the carving rumbled softly with a tile opening just below and left of the indentation in the left talon palm, revealing a sophisticated scanner screen with a giant handprint outline on it. A smile once again crept across Hannibal’s face at the sight that drew his attention. Looking back up at the Roc’s eyes, he declared, “Everyone here is family, friend, or ally in our war against the Emperor and the Dark Powers, my mechanized friend. You may allow them entry with me. I have cleared them.”

The eyes of the Roc engraving pulsed several times in response and the waves of fear emanating from the door subsided, only leaving the eerie alien power softly pulsing from it like a throbbing heartbeat. Turning back to team, Hannibal called out, “It’s okay now. The guardian will not attack you if you approach. Apparently, it understood my intent and doesn’t see you as a threat since I’ve vouched for all of you. Still, I would suggest most of you stay back until I finish the unlocking process in case something goes haywire. It seems we now need to discover the keys to the lock in front of us.”

“That’s a very wise suggestion,” Tau stated, “I will stay back and let you work. Who do you need to assist you?”

Hannibal scanned the group and said, “Harry, I think now is the time for the backpack you carry. I suspect the key might be among the items in the pack. Leila, you and Jo may come up here too if you wish. Maybe by getting a close look at this door, you’ll unlock more of your memories.” As he spoke to Leila and Josephine, Harry walked up carrying Shadizar Kahn’s scepter in one hand and his war hammer in the other.

“I’d like that,” Leila replied. “Come on, Jo. Let’s see if we can help now that the door feels safe to approach.”

“Okay, but I’m not touching or actively scanning it,” Josephine declared, “That door is fully activated and magnetically sealed just as Nemesis reported. My passive sensors can see that much, but I dare not use an active scan on it. It may trigger the door’s defenses. I will not tempt fate or that ancient machinery.”

“That’s all right,” Hannibal said, looking at Josephine while she stopped Leila in her wheelchair next to him. “The only one who should touch it right now is me, at least until we figure out how to open the lock. What you and Leila can do is examine this thing very closely and if you see something important, let me know. Often times, the clues to the lock on doors similar to this lie within the writing and iconography engraved on them. Just keep a critical eye open as I give this thing a thorough examination.” He then looked out to the team, seeing Nemesis and Ana standing together. “Ana, Nemesis, you come up here too,” he ordered, “Your technical prowess and keen eye will be useful as well. Just don’t touch the door now that it’s fully activated. Even though it doesn’t feel hostile now, I don’t want to test that by someone touching it. After all, only God knows exactly how old this machinery is and there may be some glitches or malfunctions with it after all the hell it went through at the end of the Kragonar.”

“Yes sir,” Nemesis replied, approaching with Ana. “At this point, I think that may be the most prudent course of action. As Jo said, this machine is now fully activated, whereas the last time I touched it and tried to gain entry, it was dormant, except for that time when I tried to blast it. I won’t touch it until you say it’s safe.”

“Me too,” Ana agreed as she and Nemesis stood with Leila and Josephine, who remained back about eight feet from the door, “Besides, this is a dream come true for me. I’ve always dreamt about studying the machinery of Srandi because of its awesome power and sophistication. I can’t wait to see what truly makes this place tick.”

Hannibal smiled warmly, chiding mildly, “Patience, Ana...patience. You’ll get your chance soon enough, but first we need to figure out this lock for it obviously has a lock of both mechanical and electromagnetic nature. Look here.” He pointed at the Roc’s left talon palm with an obvious indentation four inches across that sat at eye level. “There’s another spot for a key here,” he commented, stepping right up to it and gently rubbing it with his fingers. “Something obviously goes here. Now what we need to find out is what.” He stopped cleaning it with his fingers and blew the residue dust out of the indentation. It showed what appeared to be strange metal disk in its base with an extremely complex set of clockwork gears embedded within the metal. “Now that’s truly bizarre,” he commented. “You guys need to look at this. Come over here and see. There are the smallest, finest gears I’ve ever seen embedded in the base of this thing. It reminds me of a supremely sophisticated clock.”

Ana, Nemesis, and Josephine walked over and looked very closely in the indentation, but never touched it. “That is very strange,” Ana chimed, “I’ve never seen such a finely engineered device in all my days. The precision and detail of the mechanism is flawless. It obviously has something to do with the lock for this door.”

“I agree,” Josephine concurred, “This is definitely 1st Age technology, but it’s nothing like I’ve ever seen before. Bolthor never encountered anything like this, otherwise he would have coopted it into his dark tech. It almost feels alive.”

“Jo is right,” Nemesis agreed, “This is superior tech to anything I’ve seen, and the most amazing thing is that it’s operational. My passive sensors can see the power and potential energy surging through the mechanism, but it will not activate until the physical key is put into this slot. Don’t you have an artifact about that size with you? I remember you showing us many of the artifacts you uncovered in your explorations, some of which you brought from the surface. Maybe one of those items is the key to this thing. It does happen to be the same size as the Caverias Seal and the mechanism I see here does match with what I found when I scanned the Seal earlier.”

Hannibal’s eyes grew wide as an epiphany hit him. “Son of a bitch,” he swore softly, pulling the Caverias Seal out from beneath his chainmail shirt as it hung about his neck. “I had the key on me the whole time and didn’t realize it.” He quickly took the Caverias Seal from around his neck and held it up next to the indentation, which caused it to start glowing softly. When he saw this, he again swore softly, saying, “Damn...this is the first time I’ve seen the Seal glow like this. I think you’re right, Nemesis. You said the Seal was a mechanism of some sort when I showed it with the rest of the Caverias artifacts back at the Red Tower. Now I know it for this is the first time the Seal has reacted so vigorously to anything. It knows the machinery of this door.”

“So, the Seal you swiped in Acheron with the Caverias Sword is really the key to the front door of this place?” Harry asked.

“It appears so,” Hannibal stated. “But I get the distinct feeling this isn’t the only thing I need to open this ancient combination lock.”

“You’re right,” Leila called out, pointing to the spot six inches below the large indentation. “There’s another smaller hole just below it for the Signet. Just look.”

Hannibal looked down and saw the ring-sized indentation barely visible right where Leila pointed. “Huh, so it is,” he crowed softly, now getting a better grasp on the tech of the door. “This thing obviously takes multiple keys, including the Signet. This hole is just like the first one we found over by the arch supports at the fake console. Let me take a closer look.” He quickly hung the seal around his neck and leaned in closer, cleaning the hole and the area around it carefully with his fingers before blowing it off. His keen eye again saw a fist-sized metal disk just like the first one he encountered at the edge of the door. The seam between it and the main bulk of the door could barely be seen. The only difference between this disk and the first is it didn’t have any readable writing on it, but mysterious etchings and scrollwork iconography on it so small he couldn’t make it out.

“Jo, Nemesis, Ana; take a look at this and tell me what you see,” Hannibal ordered, “There’s something etched on the disk around the ring socket, but it’s so small I can’t make it out. Maybe you can see it.”

The trio gathered around as Hannibal stepped aside so they could clearly see it. After a few moments Nemesis stated, “I can’t make it out, Hannibal. Something about the etchings is interfering with my visual capabilities, making it so blurry I can’t see it. What about you, Jo? Your cybernetics are 1st Age and much more advanced than mine are.”

“Fascinating,” Josephine breathed, “I’m not getting the same interference Nemesis is getting, though the iconography and scrollwork is very, very small and extremely advanced. I haven’t seen anything like this since Thoth’s grandfather returned from the South Wind Machine in Lemuria with the Hellion. It’s very similar to the physical copies he made of the writing and iconography he found in that god machine.”

“Whoa,” Hannibal breathed, “Can you describe what’s on this thing, Jo?”

Josephine leaned in very close, examining the disk with the scrutiny of a jeweler. “It appears to be a copy of what we see on the door,” she reported, “It’s done in very fine bas-relief as if the piece were stamped by a die. The arabesques and scrollwork is incredible and alien to anything I’ve ever seen. Wait, there’s something else here...some form of writing almost at the nano scale.” After a few moments of intense scrutiny, Josephine shook her head and backed away, saying, “I can’t read it. It’s in an alien language I’ve never encountered before, though the feel it gave me suggested it may be the mark of its maker.”

“That’s okay,” Hannibal stated, patting Josephine on the arm as she stepped back. “I’m sure we’ll figure it out later, but first, can you say anything else about the stuff you could identify?”

“Well, what’s on the disk is an exact copy of what we see on the main door here,” Josephine reported, “The only differences I saw between the door and the disk is the signet socket is in the exact center of the Roc’s chest and these strange lines radiating from the Roc to each of the drakens around it. It’s obvious some form of combination lock that’s connected to the door itself. That’s what I think.”

“I agree,” Ana stated, “...even though I couldn’t make it out just like Nemesis. From what Jo said, I’d say this may be the most sophisticated locking mechanism I’ve ever encountered. I’d love to scan the schematics of it to see how it actually works.” sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ Findɴovel.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“I’m sure you’ll get the chance once we get this place open,” Hannibal stated with a smile. “You all confirmed what I suspected all along. I’ve had the keys to this place all along and not known it. Now, the next thing is to put the keys in place and figure out the combination to this lock.” He lifted the Caverias Seal by its chain, looking at it closely before unhooking it from its chain. Clenching the Seal in his fist, he turned back to the large indentation, eyeing it closely with a tiny bit of trepidation. Everything felt so familiar it scared him. Yet as he looked at the large socket, he felt he was overlooking something. “I’m missing something here,” he declared softly. “What is it? What am I missing?”

As he spoke, Assad and the rest of the team had inched forward until they had formed a thirty-foot perimeter around the door. “Milord, maybe you should check the Roc’s other foot,” Assad suggested. “I see another very small socket for something on its talon. It may be important”

Hannibal’s attention snapped to Assad, and then to the Roc’s other foot. He quickly made his way over to the other foot calling out, “Show me, Assad. This may be the reason I felt I was missing something.”

Assad stepped forward cautiously; meeting Hannibal at the Roc’s other foot. He pointed to a small deep octagonal cavity no more than an inch wide near the end of the claw, saying, “I just noticed it when we got the courage to move a bit closer to see what you were doing. When I saw it, I remembered you said to alert you if anyone saw something out of the ordinary, and I say this fits the criteria. This hole looks like a receptacle of some sort that may be part of this door’s mechanism.”

“Thanks for pointing this out, Assad,” Hannibal replied with growing excitement. “This is definitely important, and may indeed be part of this door’s mechanism.” He vigorously cleaned around the hole, using his breath to blow out the cavity itself. He immediately found another metallic disk surrounding the hole that was just slightly larger than the cavity itself. After cleaning it thoroughly, he gazed at it intently as Nemesis, Ana, Josephine, and Harry joined him and Assad.

“Do we have another keyhole,” Harry asked with amazement.

“It seems we do,” Hannibal stated. “But this one is not like the others. It’s deep and the disk around it is just slightly larger than the hole is. For some strange reason, it reminds me of an ignition key receptacle.”

Harry looked at it very closely, but refused to touch the ancient door out of an abundance of caution. “I do believe you’re right, bud,” he commented once he’d satisfied his curiosity, “But what kind of key would go in it? I’ve never heard of an octagonal key.”

“It’s definitely part of a locking mechanism,” Josephine commented after taking a very close look at it with her cybernetic eye. “However, this receptacle is meant for a very specific type of key, probably a crystal of some kind for I’m seeing microscopic fragments of crystal in the hole.”

“Crystal you say,” Hannibal mused, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand, “Hmmm; very curious indeed. Wait a second.” He slipped the Caverias Seal in the pocket of his leather overcoat and again grabbed for something hanging around his neck. In seconds, he procured one of the two crystal necklaces Okoto had given him and held it up before Josephine. “Take a look at this Jo and tell me if it’s the same crystal type as that of the residue you saw in the hole here,” he ordered.

Josephine openly scanned the crystal necklace dangling from Hannibal’s hand and gasped in astonishment. “By the Ancient of Days,” she breathed, “That is no ordinary crystal, but a supremely crafted and elaborate key. I can see all manner of circuitry engraved into it at the microscopic scale that are pulsing with electromagnetic energy. It’s so small your human eye can’t see it, but my visual scanning capabilities can easily see it. Nemesis, look at the crystal and confirm what I’m seeing.”

Nemesis too scanned the item and rumbled deeply, “You’re right, Jo. This is indeed a key unlike any I’ve ever seen and it does seem to have become active for some reason. I remember seeing and scanning it when you showed us the other Caverias artifacts Hannibal and it was not active then with the circuitry barely perceptible. However now, it’s surging with power as if something has activated it, much like the Caverias Seal has become active.” He looked at the door and then up the side of the keep, adding, “I do believe Srandi itself may be energizing these items so you should be very careful. Who knows how it will react to these items.”

“And so I will,” Hannibal stated bluntly, “but is this the same crystal type you saw in the residue, Jo?”

“It is,” Josephine declared emphatically. “There’s a ninety-eight percent match to the crystal residue I detected in that socket. I do believe that crystal is the mate for this receptacle.”

“Now that’s right down scary,” Harry admitted, “Who would have thought those crystal necklaces Okoto gave you were actually part of Srandi itself? What are the odds of that? My mind is officially blown.”

A sober smile crept across Hannibal’s lips as he turned, placing the crystal right up to the hole to see if its shape matched. His smile grew broader when he saw it did. “It’s a perfect match,” he crowed, pulling the crystal back and looking at it in his hand, now seeing it actually glowing softly. “And you’re right about it reacting to this place Nemesis. It definitely knows the machinery here. This is no happenstance, Harry. I suspect Okoto knew exactly what he gave me when he did it. I was supposed to have these crystals when I came here and this proves it. The puzzle that I’ve spent my entire life working on is now coming together in a coherent form I can now start to grasp.”

“You’re now truly awakening to your destiny, my friend,” Assad rumbled with pleasure, “...and accepting it. This is truly a day of days.”

“I agree,” Hannibal concurred, “but I’m still missing many pieces, though this piece looming in front of us is definitely the largest piece yet. The Lord surely knows how to make a plan come together.” He gazed again intently at the crystal necklace for a few moments, and then asked with some puzzlement, “If this crystal is truly the key to this door, then why did Okoto give me two of them? What’s the other one for?” Before anyone could answer him, he removed the second crystal necklace and looked at the pair...one in each hand. “They look to be identical to me and both of them are glowing because of the machinery here,” he declared. “I’m only seeing half of the picture here. What am I missing? Jo, take a look at this second crystal and see if it’s identical to the first one.”

Josephine came closer and leaned down, using her cybernetic eye to scan the second crystal. “Hmmm, this is curious,” she murmured. “The crystal itself is identical to the first, but the engraved circuitry seems to be different from the first.”

“How is it different?” Hannibal asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Oh, this is very interesting indeed,” Josephine answered as she tightened her scan focus, “The circuitry of this crystal is the exact mirror image of the first one. That would suggest these crystals are meant to be used in tandem on a single mechanism. Only when both are used together will the target mechanism operate as intended. When I look at the two together, the circuitry makes a complete unit.” She looked up at the door before them with awe, saying, “If the mechanism of this door is what these crystals were designed for, then there should be another one of these receptacles somewhere on the mechanism.”

“That’s it!” Hannibal almost shouted in excitement. “That’s the missing piece! Assad saw this socket and brought our attention to it, which happens to be a perfect fit for the first crystal. If what you suggest is right, Jo, then there should be a second socket over on the other foot where the signet and Seal mechanisms are located with the handprint identification panel. Come on! I bet it’s on the same claw on that other foot.” He sprinted back to the first foot, looking very closely at the Roc’s taloned feet, almost immediately spying the socket in the same place on that toe claw. “Here it is!” he crowed in triumph, pocketing the necklaces in the same pocket in his coat he had place the Caverias Seal in. Quickly cleaning it as Josephine, Nemesis, Assad, Ana, and Harry again gathered around, he declared, “It’s the same as the socket on the other side. This thing has a twin key activation like the large nuclear weapons we have on the surface. It takes two keys that are turned simultaneously to arm them. This door must operate in a similar manner.” Hannibal’s face suddenly fell as he realized what it meant. “Damn it!” he cursed. “I can’t be in two places at once and I dare not let anyone else touch this thing right now. It’s only allowing me to mess with it because the machine has identified me as the Last Caverias...the rightful king because of my Caverias gene sequence. How am I going to get this thing open?”

“Maybe I can help,” Selina’s voice called out as she approached from behind. “After all, the Caverias Statue machine did say together you and I are the Last Caverias. Surely this machine will see who and what I am and allow me access too.”

“Selina; when did you get here,” Hannibal asked in amazement. “I thought you were going to stand back and watch because of the security risks involved here?”

“Well, my fatigue vanished once I got something to eat,” Selina reported as she walked up to Hannibal, standing within arm’s reach of him. “Once I got my strength and focus back, I went to the portal chamber and have been watching everything that’s been going on here. As I saw you guys figuring out this thing, something told me I needed to be here physically...that I was needed to open the door here. It seems I was right.”

A deeply relieved smile crossed Hannibal’s face as he embraced Selina gratefully, saying, “The Lord truly is God. He knew it would take both of us to open this thing so He prompted you to come.”

Selina briefly returned Hannibal’s embrace before disengaging and stepping back. “That seems to be the case,” she admitted. “But I will admit it took me almost five minutes to get over the shock of seeing this place in person once I came through the portal. I feel like grain of sand on a beach next to an endless ocean standing here like this. It’s insane how big this place is and it makes me afraid, but at the same time, I feel like I’ve come home. It’s totally bizarre.”

“I know exactly how you feel, princess,” Hannibal admitted, “I felt the same way when I first got here, but you do get used to it after a while. Anyway, I take it you saw everything that’s happened thus far?”

“I have,” Selina stated, “except for what you’ve done in the last five minutes. I came through when Master Assad pointed out the hole for what appears to be one of Okoto’s crystals. How did he get them and how did he know that we’d need them?”

“I have no idea,” Hannibal stated bluntly, “We can figure out that later. First, I need to introduce you to the machine. This door has a strange sort of sentience to it. I believe an AI might be still operating the machinery here, so it needs to identify you before I dare let you touch it.”

“Then let’s get to it,” Selina stated, “How do I introduce myself to this AI?”

“Come over here with me,” Hannibal ordered, leading Selina by the hand to the very spot where the giant Roc bas-relief engraving on the door scanned him with its crystal eyes. Once they reached the spot, Hannibal turned Selina so she faced the door and put his arm around her. “Look up into the Roc’s eyes, princess,” he instructed, “I’ll do the rest.” Selina complied, looking up hesitantly at the giant image of the Roc without saying a word.

“Srandi, this is Selina Milineus Caverias, my wife and soul mate,” Hannibal called out. “She bears the Caverias gene seed within her as I do. Please confirm her identity and allow her access.”

The Roc’s crystal eyes suddenly flashed, shining a beam into Selina’s eyes, freezing her in place. When Hannibal saw her panic at again being paralyzed, he said softly, “Don’t be afraid. The beam will not hurt you. It’s just like the one from the Caverias Statue machine in Hammunaptra. It’s merely confirming who you are.”

After a few seconds, the image of the giant Roc rumbled deeply, “Voiceprint authorization required: speak your name, Lynxian.” This caught everyone off guard except for Hannibal, causing a stunned silence to sweep the courtyard.

“Tell it who you are,” Hannibal whispered in Selina’s ear. “It’ll be all right.”

“Selina Milineus Caverias, wife and soul mate of Beowulf Hannibal Caverias, descendant of Ragnar Omicron Caverias of the Silver Eyes,” Selina called out once she felt the paralysis loose her vocal cords.

The scanning beam from the crystal eyes of the Roc image brightened briefly, as if doing one last scan of Selina’s form. Then the beam vanished, releasing Selina from its grip, causing her legs to give away briefly. Hannibal caught and held her until her legs found their strength again. Moments later, the giant Roc image announced in a deep mechanized rumble, “Voiceprint authorization accepted and confirmed. The Caverias gene seed confirmed within Lynxian female, identifying her as a descendant of Ariel Seraphina Caverias and royal blood of the Caverias line. Identity of Selina Milineus Caverias, wife and mate of Lord Beowulf Hannibal Caverias confirmed and registered with the system. System recognizes Lord Beowulf Hannibal Caverias and Selina Milineus Caverias as the Last Caverias. Welcome to Srandi, milord and milady. You may now proceed to release the fortress from lockdown and open the keep at your leisure if that’s your will.”

“Thank you, Srandi,” Hannibal called out, looking up into the crystal eyes of the Roc image. “We do intend to lift your lockdown and free you of your long imprisonment.” The Roc’s eyes flashed briefly before settling to a soft glow. A soft imperceptible hum emanated from the door only those with the keenest of hearing could detect. Hannibal could hear it barely as he led Selina directly to the door. “Okay...now for the test,” he stated, touching the door, placing his palm flat against it. He could now feel the energy of the mechanism throbbing like a heartbeat in the door. “Srandi has accepted you as royal blood of the Caverias, Selina, as it did for me,” he stated, “Conquer the fear of it I feel rising in you. Touch the door with me. It will not hurt you now.”

Selina hesitantly lifted her hand to touch the door, holding back for a moment. “I’m scared, Hannibal,” she admitted. “This is technology so far beyond what we had in the Kaitian Empire it scares me. Who would think a fortress could be alive as this one seems to be?”

“It’s not alive in the truest sense,” Hannibal said softly, “But it is tech on the level of what we found in Tiamat. I’m sure of it. The only difference is our ancestors in the Caverias line utilized this tech and fortress as their stronghold. It’s programmed to respond to the Caverias bloodline, and it’s done so. You are a Caverias, so you have nothing to fear from this fortress. Touch the door and conquer your fear because I’m going to need you to operate the second key to get this thing open. Do it for me, and everyone you love and cherish.”

Selina felt her courage surge like a tsunami at Hannibal’s gentle words. “You’re right,” she admitted, “I can’t be afraid of this place, even though it’s where some of our worst nightmares took place. I must do this for my family and friends. They need the sanctuary this place will give them.” Selina clenched her fist briefly and then quickly placed her palm against the door right next to Hannibal’s hand. Her fear of the machine vanished like smoke in the wind as she actually sensed a benevolent intelligence associated with the fortress that welcomed her as family. “Hannibal,” she breathed in awe, suddenly placing her other palm on the door. “I can feel its life! It’s been so lonely for so long, and now it’s so happy we’re here to release it from its endless lockdown. It wants to be free of the lockdown. Can you feel it?”

“I can,” Hannibal stated soberly, “I felt it the first time I touched it, and it became very obvious to me when it caught me the way the machine in Hammunaptra did. I don’t understand how it can have such sentience, but it does. That’s why I spoke to it as if it were a person, because I do believe an actual consciousness may be locked somewhere within the machinery of this fortress. Whoever or whatever is possessing this fortress, I pray it isn’t like what Bolthor did to Josephine when he locked her in the core of the Black Fortress after he turned her into a cyborg. I don’t think I could stand seeing something that heinous again.”

“I don’t think that’s what’s happening here,” Selina stated thoughtfully. “The presence I’m sensing feels completely artificial, as if it’s a sentient AI. Regardless, we must open this place and find its core so we can give it real purpose again. It craves having a reason for existing. I can feel it.”

“I intend to do just that,” Hannibal stated, lifting his hand from the door. “But first, we need to get this thing open.”

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