The air outside the chamber felt different, sharp and smelling against their exhausted lungs, carrying with it a weight that was both real and cerebral. Maya stepped cautiously over the cracked, pulsating bottom of the patio’s final platform, the tablet held near to her casket, its sanguine gleam now faint, nearly a twinkle in quiet alignment with her own. Every step resounded through the empty hallways that led down from the destroyed nexus, a subtle chirr beneath their bases that reminded them the structure, though defeated, had n't entirely relinquished its presence. Arman followed, shaking violently, muscles stiff, sweat and blood