Chapter 76: Twenty Minutes
The workshop fell silent except for Vex’s portal apparatus humming with mechanical hunger. Each man absorbed the scope of their enemy’s patience and preparation, realizing they had been several moves behind throughout the entire crisis.
"There’s more," Colonel Hestian muttered. "The guild contracts specify bonus payments for detailed after-action reports. We’ve been paying premiums for the intelligence our enemies harvest."
Principal Whitmore laughed, a broken sound without warmth. "We’re funding our own destruction while they steal our future." He stared at the portal apparatus with fresh desperation. "Master Vex, how long before this intelligence gathering operation becomes invasion?"
"If all students die while the dimensional connection bleeds energy, the white rift will become permanent," Vex explained, his hands moving automatically over calculations. "Based on dimensional resonance theory, we have maybe three days before the threshold consumes us."
"And then?" Aldric pressed, though he suspected the answer would taste like poison.
"Then our enemies have a permanent invasion route that cannot be sealed, supplied with detailed intelligence about our defensive capabilities and populated by an entire generation of our most promising awakened transformed into weapons against us."
The math of their situation became brutally clear. Outside Academy walls, guild teams were dying while unknowingly providing tactical intelligence to their true enemy. Their kingdom’s defensive resources were being systematically cataloged and eliminated, all while the crown treasury funded the process through standard rift bounties.
Master Vex knelt on the workshop floor, pulling crystallized essence from his bag. His hands moved with ritual precision as he began carving complex symbols into stone, each line burned deep with concentrated essence manipulation. The sigils weren’t decorative they were functional components of the dimensional matrix, anchor points that would channel enormous power through geometric patterns older than the kingdom itself.
"Stabilization array," he muttered, his academic training taking control as he worked. "Without proper grounding, the dimensional tear will consume everything within a hundred meters instead of creating a controlled portal."
The symbols he carved pulsed with their own inner light, connecting to form a complex pattern that hurt to look at directly. Each line demanded perfection a single mistake would transform their rescue attempt into localized dimensional catastrophe.
The sharp scent of burning stone filled the workshop as essence seared through rock. Sparks flew from Vex’s chisel, and the temperature rose until sweat beaded on every forehead.
Captain Aldric watched the artificer work, noting how Vex’s hands trembled as he completed each sigil. "Master, how certain are these patterns?"
"The math works," Vex replied, not looking up from his carving. "But Captain, we’re trying to force open a dimensional barrier using techniques that predate our understanding of awakened abilities. These symbols..." He paused, his chisel hovering over stone. "They were found in ruins that existed before the first recorded awakening. Whatever civilization created them understood forces we’re only beginning to glimpse."
The weight of that admission smothered the room. They were gambling everything on knowledge from a lost civilization, implemented by a man who had never attempted anything remotely similar.
Captain Aldric surveyed the assembled leadership, seeing his own grim determination reflected in their faces. "Master Vex, your portal apparatus is our only option. But the anchor requirements haven’t changed?"
"I’m afraid not, Captain." Vex consulted his notes one final time, his voice heavy with academic certainty. "The power demands exceed anything we can generate artificially. We need an essence source with Master-level capabilities and exceptional dimensional stability."
The weight of that requirement settled over the room like a funeral shroud. Everyone present understood what it meant, but no one dared voice it directly.
Lucian broke the silence, his voice carrying calm acceptance of someone who had already chosen his path. "The Northern Expedition taught me that some victories demand sacrifices that seem impossible to justify. But the alternative..." He locked eyes with Captain Aldric. "Captain, we cannot allow two hundred awakened students to remain in hostile dimensional space while our kingdom’s defenses are systematically dismantled."
"Lord Valorian," Colonel Hestian began, but Lucian raised his hand to silence him.
"Colonel, I’ve spent my entire career preparing for threats to this kingdom. I never expected the ultimate threat would require me to become the solution rather than just fighting it." Lucian’s pale eyes remained steady, showing none of the emotion that had to be churning beneath his controlled exterior. "But if I can save two hundred futures while denying our enemies their greatest victory, then the strategic math is clear."
Principal Whitmore found his voice, though it came out hoarse with suppressed emotion. "How long would the rescue portal last with Lord Valorian as anchor?"
Master Vex made one final calculation, his academic precision unable to soften the brutal timeline. "Like I say earlier maybe twenty minutes. Enough time to extract survivors who can reach the portal immediately, but not enough for extended search operations. We would need to find them quickly and pray they’re able to move on their own."
Vex completed the final sigil, and the entire array blazed to life. The carved symbols connected through veins of pure energy, creating a geometric pattern that made the air itself feel heavier. The portal apparatus resonated with the carved matrix, its crystalline components aligning with ancient symbols.
The sharp smell of ozone flooded the workshop as power built toward critical mass. The carved sigils throbbed like a heartbeat, and shadows danced wildly across stone walls.
"Captain, the dimensional matrix is ready," Vex announced, rising from his knees with obvious effort. Essence residue clung to his hands like glowing paint. "If we’re going to attempt this rescue, we must begin immediately. The array will only hold for twenty minutes once Lord Valorian takes his position as anchor."
The countdown to either salvation or catastrophe had begun. Outside, guild members continued dying in service of an enemy they couldn’t recognize. Inside, five men prepared to bet everything on a technique that existed only in theory, powered by symbols from a dead civilization, and demanding a sacrifice that would either preserve their kingdom’s future or become its epitaph.
The portal apparatus reached full resonance with the carved array, its crystalline matrices humming with barely contained power. Ancient symbols burned in the stone floor while modern technology prepared to tear open reality itself. Whatever happened next, there would be no opportunity for second chances.
The workshop trembled as dimensional forces built beyond safe parameters, and Master Vex placed his hand on the activation crystal. ’Gods help us all,’ he thought, and began the sequence that would either save two hundred lives or destroy everything they had fought to protect.