Zurich, Switzerland – 11:44 PM
The underground fortress of the Vana Trust was a cathedral of cold steel and relentless technology. The air thrummed with the low hum of servers, their endless rows stretching into the shadows like silent sentinels of a digital empire. Each step Eris Vana took echoed across the chamber, sharp and deliberate, a metronome ticking in a tomb. The walls pulsed with neon-blue data streams, their flickering light casting her silhouette in stark relief—a queen moving through her dominion with the weight of inevitability.
She approached the core of her empire: a stasis pod of glass and titanium, its surface gleaming under the sterile glow of overhead lights. Faint blue pulses emanated from within, synchronized with the hiss of steam escaping from hidden vents. Condensation beaded on the pod's transparent shell, dripping like tears onto the polished floor. The chamber was a paradox—both a sanctuary of creation and a crucible of destruction.
