Master Vex's hands shook as he wrote his final calculations on parchment. The emergency workspace buzzed with activity as assistants hurried around following his orders, but the artificer focused on dimensional equations that would either save them or destroy everything.
"The resonance patterns are working," he told the assembled leadership, his voice mixing hope with fear. Smoke from overworked essence conduits burned their noses.
Captain Aldric walked to the worktable, studying diagrams that might be their only chance. The crystalline matrices and essence conduits spread before them like mechanical guts. "How sure are you about these calculations, Master Vex?"
"The theory is solid, Captain. But..." Vex hesitated, his honesty fighting against desperation. His weathered fingers traced equations that had never been tested in reality. "This technique has never been tried before. We're guessing based on principles that might fall apart under these conditions."
