The six-minute window opened at the height of Jiang's breast.
That was useful until the copper plate tried to rotate toward a human face that was no longer there.
Jiang planted his wider emperor foot across the lower hinge. His forward claws caught two grooves while his tail braced on the dry stone. Aylin turned the outer ring with a wooden pin, and he kept the center from lifting with his breast keel.
No hand-shaped correction entered the mechanism.
[SIGNATURE1 OBSERVATION WINDOW]
[Maximum interval06:00]
[Claim effects0]
[Living passage0]
[Matter passage0]
[Closure control:both sides]
[Current body:penguin]
[Human presentation required0]
The copper plate cleared completely.
Light arrived without warmth. It formed a narrow view of a conservation table, a white wall, and a square black clock held close enough that every segment could be counted.
[CLOCK 09:41:26]
