The blackened iron doors groaned, emitting a deafening screech of metal grinding against stone as Lucien and Kael forced them open.
The Grand Underground Hall was a cavernous expanse of polished obsidian and reinforced masonry. It was originally built as a secure bunker for the Imperial faculty. Right now, it was a staging ground for an apocalypse.
The air was so saturated with corrupted mana that it felt like walking into a deep, freezing ocean. Breathing required conscious effort.
In the absolute dead center of the hall, suspended over a massive, glowing purple runic array, was a raised stone altar.
Three figures were chained to the heavy pillars surrounding the altar.
Princess Celestia of the Aurelian Empire was bound on the left. Her stunning ice-blue gown was torn and stained with dirt. Her wrists were locked in heavy suppression cuffs, neutralizing her high-tier ice magic. She was fully conscious, her jaw set, glaring absolute murder at her captors.
