Chapter 106: The Open Gates

From the triangle emanates a tension that spreads across the whole tower, then the entire planet. Perhaps throughout the whole solar system, and even beyond.

Perpendicular time.

All light goes out, or almost. The reddened clouds of the setting sun, or the iridescent ones of the northern lights, are barely a black layer reflecting the light of the form-of-three - in this perpendicular time, photons die slowly in mid-flight.

But there are other lights than that of the temporal machine: creatures are present. They are of the exact image of the Wau, and radiate a quiet and faint light like that of fireflies. One creature stands under the form-of-three, directly facing the Wau who is laying Ada on the ground. Six others are behind. When one turns around, there are easily a hundred on the roof of the tower. Others are perched, seated, on the motionless ships.

And there are still others climbing the steps, thousands, millions in the city, and those lights along the crest of the mountains, everywhere - those are more of them still. Others descend from the sky, slowly, like angels.

The closest one, the one beneath the form-of-three, bends down and declares in a perfect language:

- “The human people before their transcendence. I greet you. Humans. And ... the messenger.”

He turns his gaze toward Alpha, who bows. The creature bows in return.

- “And the Armor.”

He looks toward the Wau. He bows.

- “But I do not see the Pilgrim. - We have failed, again? asks another creature beside him. - I am the Pilgrim!” declares Ada, raising her hand.

Before the creatures’ perplexed silence, she adds:

- “I followed the path. I touched the form-of-three. - The beacons functioned,” declares one of the creatures. - “That’s something, at least. Will we never manage to do everything perfectly? - I think one must accept that there is no such thing as perfection or perfect imperfection. - The one you call the Pilgrim,” then asks Andreï, stepping forward, “is he the human to whom the End-of-Times Beacon granted transient powers? For he will not come. - Why? - Well...”