Chapter 10: Core Awakening

Beneath the heart of Rebirth Shore, June descended into the Terraform Grid—an engineered cavern brimming with ancient breath and modern wonder. The walls pulsed with living conduits—crystal roots veined with golden mana-thread, writhing gently like sleeping serpents. The air vibrated with a low hum, as if the land was trying to speak but hadn't remembered the language yet.

Sapphire, in her projection form, floated beside him. "All subgrids aligned. Initiate Core Sequence?"

"Do it," June replied, placing his palm on the Nexus Heart.

In an instant, light rippled outward. Solar petals on the surface bloomed, geothermal tunnels surged with radiant heat, and ambient mana from wind, spirit, and storm began funneling into the centralized Core Node. The Command Hub above blinked alive—a glass and obsidian structure shaped like a lotus of stars. Within its petals: data flows, environmental matrices, and bio-harmonic controls—all now functional.

But as the energy stabilized, a strange rhythm emerged—a second pulse, discordant and deep, echoing like a forgotten drumbeat beneath the harmony.

Sapphire frowned. "Core efficiency at 98%, but… detecting resonance fluctuations from beneath the Terraform Grid."

June closed his eyes and extended his perception. There was something deeper—beyond even the foundation rock. He saw flashes: a buried biomech ribcage, glyphs scorched by war, and a massive dormant root system not mapped in any schematic. It pulsed again—not with energy, but memory. And it was waking.

"Something's alive down there," June whispered. "Something older than this world's peace."

He turned to Sapphire. "Add a containment shell beneath Sector Nine. Route sensory threads but avoid interference. If it wakes… we need to talk to it before anyone else does."

Sapphire hesitated, then nodded. "Containment grid forming. Classified as 'Ancient Unknown.' Protocols initialized."

Above, the Command Hub illuminated a new structure—an information pillar in the form of a glowing spiral. Its title formed in the air:

[Crisis Anticipation: Tier Zero – Subterranean Sentience Suspected]

June took a final glance below, then walked up toward the light. This was no longer just a power source.

The Domain had a heart.

But it also had a buried past—and maybe, buried gods.