The bronze labyrinth trembled beneath his feet.
Metal towers rose endlessly into a storm-lit sky, their curved surfaces streaked with glowing runes. Lightning flickered between them, casting jagged shadows across the labyrinthine walkways. Jordan moved silently through it, his boots clicking softly against bronze plating. Sparks danced around his ankles with each step.
Ahead, the air rippled.
A deep hum vibrated through the towers, rattling their vast bronze ribs. From a crack in the labyrinth's floor rose the obelisk. Black stone veined with pulsing gold. Its surface flickered with shifting sigils, each symbol rewriting itself with silent, fluid grace.
Jordan stopped.
His eyes narrowed, watching as the obelisk stabilised. Around it, the bronze walls split open. From them crawled metallic constructs, centipede-shaped with thousands of legs clicking in perfect rhythm. Their carapaces were jagged bronze plates streaked with gold veins. Their eyes burned cold gold.
