The remaining daylight passed with the underground restoration team working harder than they had at any point since discovering the reservoir.
Yet there was a noticeable difference in their efforts.
For most of the day, the students had been attempting to understand a system that stubbornly refused to behave as expected. Now, they had a procedure to follow, a clearer understanding of its requirements, and enough confidence in their findings to begin preparing for activation.
Ariana directed the Alchemy students through the final preparations, assigning each group a specific responsibility. Some refined the stabilizing compounds according to her revised calculations, while others inspected the regulating seals and compared their responses against earlier measurements. Two students were assigned to monitor the central crystal's circulation during activation, while another pair prepared the instruments needed to measure fluctuations in Myst pressure.
