The moment Ryan's feet touched the crystalline ground of the Precursor Homeworld, he felt it. A deep, resonant hum that vibrated up through the soles of his boots and into his very bones.
It was the sound of a planet-sized machine, running in perfect, silent harmony. The air was clean and cool, carrying no scent at all.
The silence was absolute, broken only by the faint, musical chime of his own footsteps on the crystal streets.
He stood for a moment, looking up at the impossible towers of light and the graceful, floating islands above. It was a lonely, beautiful sight.
He watched as the Odyssey, his home and his fortress, banked silently and flew off towards a distant, shadowy canyon, beginning its part of the mission.
A pang of loneliness, sharp and cold, struck him. He was truly alone, for the first time in a long time, in the heart of a dead civilization.
He pushed the feeling away, his mind focusing on the task ahead. He had to find the core. He had to find Oracle.
