The four descended, down into the dark depths beneath the ruins. Spiraling stairs opened up into a vast, yawning chamber of granite pillars that sparkled in the lantern light. Elijah ran his hand over rows of letters carved into the stone.

“These are proto-Alerian glyphs,” he told Azza. “You can tell by the sharp angles taken from Dwarvish runes.”

His student tilted her head. “Why does it say ‘may these stones, from the stars, eternal hide’?”

He stopped mid-step. “How can you read that?” I sure as hell never taught her.

“My mentor taught me. You know, the one who you refuse to meet?”

Ah. “Things like this are why.”

Azza stuck out her tongue. “You might like her, you know?”

“Hide from the stars?” said Felicity with a scowl. “That doesn’t sound ominous at all.”

“Everything about this is ominous.” Elijah hid his unease beneath a smirk. “Come on, let us find this gate.” He led the troupe through the chamber, past groups of dark elves and dwarves. These researchers collected samples, created chalk rubbings of the stone-carved writing, and waved around various instruments.

The gate itself stood on the chamber’s far side. It was a slab of mirror polished onyx framed in fifty runic stones inset into the wall. A sword jutted from the floor. No, not just a ‘sword.’ It gleamed gold as if hammered from pure sunlight, jutting from a circle of arcane markings. The entire edifice thrummed with unseen power. It vibrated in his bones, and he felt a subtle force pulling him closer.

He turned to his companions. “Can you feel that?”

“Yes,” they all replied in unison.

“I see I was right to allow you access,” said a new voice. Cazri the Alchemist emerged from the shadows, her unnaturally blonde hair standing out against the darkness. “The four of you are much more sensitive to magic than any of my guildemates.”

Elijah cleared his throat, turning to face the dark elf. “With respect ma’am, the power behind this portal could move the stars. Sensing it was the easy part.”

“Easy for you, perhaps.” Cazri smiled, showing faint lines at the corners of her eyes. She was a striking woman, middle-aged in elf years, and beautiful, but in the manner of a predatory cat. Her pale eyes darted between them, settling for a long moment on Azza before snapping back to Eli. “Some accuse the Guilds of being ‘blinded by progress.’ Perhaps they are right in more ways than one.”

He grinned back. “We all have our blind spots.”

The alchemist clapped her hands together. “Now that you’re here, my colleagues will expect results, and so will I.” With that, she turned and sauntered off to the other Guild researchers.

“I like her,” said Elijah.

Felicity groaned. “You would.”

“I don’t like the way she looked at me,” Azza whispered.

Eli ruffled her hair and gave a playful shove. “She just wants your horns in a glass jar.”

Azza grimaced. “I like my horns where they are, thank you.”

He bit back a number of inappropriate remarks and squared his shoulders to the looming demon gate. Despite the power radiating from it, the lack of howling demons spilling forth into reality meant it was still dormant, still… closed.

“Let’s get to work,” he said at last. He began unpacking his supplies, pulling out lenses, bottles, scrolls, and various crystals. With more time to prepare, he could have brought a proper field laboratory, but he would make due. “Here.” He shoved a bag of blue faceted crystals into his student’s arms. “See if these react to any of the writing on the walls. If they turn red, let me know. If they turn yellow and shatter, run.”

He turned to Rehtul and Felicity. “We’re working blind right now. I need to know more about this place. How old it is, who built it, what kind of magic they used, and if that magic is still intact.”