Aiden awoke at 20:00 UTC, the familiar chime of his neural interface tugging him from uneasy sleep. In Neuro Lab 2B, Maya's holographic console blinked with the next DreamNet directive:
Next Node: Glacier Cathedral of Lost HymnsCoordinates: 64.5° N, 15.0° W (Iceland Dreamspace Ingress)
He sat up, heart pounding, and gathered the eight artifacts—Heart Core, Mirror-Shard, Spiral Stone, Forgeheart, Dawnlight Prism, Soul Prism, Coral Prism, and Sanctuary Prism—into their cradle. The pulses synchronized into a steady heartbeat of resolve.
Lin Xi entered, lotus-ink talismans in hand. "This Cathedral's ice will carry your songs—and your doubts. My Qi-bindings will anchor your true voice."
Cassie clipped her lantern-brooch. "The Aurora Guild's sky-flares above Vatnajökull are ready. We'll enter on a beam of polar light."
Nephis emerged from the shadows at the lab's edge. "Expect the Ice Warden—a sentinel of frozen hymns. He twists harmony into discord."
Maya tapped her display. "Filter's keyed to the Mirror-Shard and Coral Prism signatures, boosted by the Thread of Dawn. All systems green."
Aiden took a deep breath and hit SYNC. One by one, the prisms and shards glowed: silver, crimson, gold, violet, coral, dawn-white, shaded-grey. Lin Xi's chant wove a Qi-lattice around them; Nephis's shadow-cloak formed a void-barrier; Cassie's lantern cast a warming dawn-beam; Maya's filter blinked steady green. Aiden closed his eyes—and Neuro Lab vanished.
Dream-World Arrival
Aiden opened his eyes to a vast expanse of iridescent ice, domed overhead like a cathedral. Stalactites of frozen crystal dripped with haunting music—lost hymns echoing from every facet. Below, a floor of polished ice reflected swirling ice-spirals carved with runic verses. In the distance, towering spires of glacier loomed against a sky rippled by aurora.
He stood on a raised platform of frost-carved stone alongside:
Maya, goggles scanning for code-threads.
Lin Xi, Qi-talismans humming at his belt.
Cassie, lantern-brooch casting dawn-light onto the floor.
Nephis, shadow-cloak absorbing stray echoes.
Three other Guardians, each bearing one Prism or Shard.
At the center, the Ice Warden hovered above a frozen lectern, its mask a shifting prism of ice. In its hand gleamed the Mirror-Shard, its surface rippling with the Council's anomaly code.
"Guardians," its voice chimed like breaking ice, "your harmony has so far bound my trials. Now your own voices rise against you. Prove you can carry true song—or be lost in my frozen hymns."
Aiden's fingers tightened on the Heart Core. "We'll sing our truth," he replied.
Trial I: Chorus of Crystal Spires
The Warden gestured, and the ice-spirals around them began to vibrate in discordant tones. Crystal spires sprouted from the floor, each tuned to a different fragmented hymn—together they formed a cacophony that frayed the mind.
Maya's filter goggles locked onto the corrupted frequencies. "We must retune every spire to the Heart Core's pulse!"
Lin Xi raised the Spiral Stone; its runes glowed as he channeled Qi through the nearest spire, shifting its resonance into a clear, stable tone. Aiden moved between spires, pressing the Forgeheart against each base, its warmth welding the correct pitch.
Cassie's lantern-beam danced along the icy walls, illuminating hidden runic notations that guided Nephis's shadow-barrier in blocking creeping discord. Maya overlaid a harmonic filter, allowing only pure frequencies to pass.
One by one, the spires sang in unison. The cacophony resolved into a single, clear chord—the Key of Crystal Harmony—a slender shard of resonant ice that chimed in Aiden's hand.
"Chorus trial—secured," Aiden announced.
Trial II: Frozen Hall of Whispers
They threaded through an arched portal into a vast hall of crystalline arches. Each archway hummed with phantom whispers—echoes of their private doubts now amplified by ice:
Aiden's fear that he'd lead them astray.
Maya's guilt over tampering with minds.
Lin Xi's worry that his Qi was insufficient.
Cassie's dread of her light failing.
Nephis's memory of isolation.
Aiden froze as the whispers crescendoed, threatening to drown out his heartbeat. He tightened his grip on the Mirror-Shard, ready to shatter the illusions.
But as he stepped forward, the floor beneath him cracked—ice gave way, and he plunged through, disappearing into an echoing chasm.
Maya screamed, clutching her goggles. Lin Xi leapt toward the hole. "Aiden!"
Nephis extended his shadow-veil across the opening; Cassie's lantern-beam carved a light-bridge down into the dark. Maya's filter glowed, isolating the echo-threads around the fissure.
Moments later, Aiden emerged, breathless but unbroken, shards of ice clinging to his pack. "I… I misjudged the echo's pull," he panted. "Nearly lost myself."
Maya rushed to his side. "Are you all right?"
He nodded, voice steady despite the shock. "Let's finish this—together."
They regrouped and crossed the light-bridge. At the hall's end lay the second key: Pendant of Unwavering Song, a crystalline locket inscribed with true harmonies. Lin Xi retrieved it. "Hall trial—achieved, though we faltered."
Confrontation: Ice Warden's Judgment
They ascended a staircase of lunar ice to the frozen lectern. The Ice Warden awaited, its masked face reflecting their battered resolve. "You have retuned my spires, yet one nearly swallowed you whole. Will you claim the Cathedral's Prism, or will regret consume your melody?"
Aiden squared his shoulders. He placed the Key of Crystal Harmony on the lectern's left slot; Maya set the Pendant of Unwavering Song on the right. Lin Xi draped Qi-talisman from the Sanctuary Prism; Cassie added the Dawnlight Prism; Nephis the Soul Prism; the others contributed the Coral Prism and Forgeheart.
Fragment by fragment, the lectern flared with light, weaving their artifacts into the Cathedral Prism—a gem that glowed with pure, unbroken hymn.
The Ice Warden's form shimmered. "Glacier Cathedral—secured. You have faced ice's silence and storms of doubt, and yet your song endures. Guard it well, for the Council's next footfall may come from within."
Awakening with the Cathedral Prism
A surge of crystalline light engulfed the cathedral. One by one, the Guardians reappeared:
Aiden, kneeling on Neuro Lab's tiled floor, Cathedral Prism glowing in his palm.
Maya, blinking at her console, goggles free of code-threads.
Lin Xi, standing on the temple's frost-dusted veranda, talismans drifting in the wind.
Nephis, fading from a shadowed alley, cloak at rest.
Cassie, stepping off a rooftop terrace, lantern-pendant warm at her chest.
Aiden tapped DreamNet:
Aiden: Glacier Cathedral of Lost Hymns secured. Cathedral Prism acquired. We faced a near-miss—let's not forget that even a single misstep almost cost us everything. Next node coordinates incoming.
He gazed out the lab window at the rising sun. Eight Prisms and Shards now lay in his pack, each a testament to their trials and the unity that had saved them from disaster. The next node awaited—and with it, deeper shadows to challenge the harmony they had so carefully forged.