The narrow filament inside the braid did not remain quiet for long.
For the first ten seconds after the chamber stabilized, everyone simply watched it glow. The strand was thin, almost fragile in appearance, yet it carried a steady pulse that did not belong to Earth.
Then the pulse changed.
Instead of returning a harmonic sequence, the filament brightened and extended.
Not inside the braid.
Beyond it.
Elira's screens filled with cascading data.
"It's increasing amplitude across the link," she said, fingers flying over controls. "Energy draw is still within acceptable range, but the transfer rate just tripled."
Daniel wiped sweat from his forehead. "Transfer of what?"
Before anyone answered, the chamber floor vibrated.
Light climbed up the walls in branching veins as the resonance field reacted automatically to the surge. Sarya planted her feet wider to keep her balance while Mara braced near the perimeter.
The filament thickened.
