Amid layer upon layer of winding stairs, behind ancient doors one after another, countless solemn and magnificent floors were piled deep within the silent tower. The Dim Palace stood upon the earth like weighty tomes stacked one atop another, each level seeming to be a condensed memory of Violet, that ancient, distant, secretive kingdom. And the deeper one ventured into these floors, the heavier that ancient and secretive sensation became—until one passed beyond the lowest levels and entered the underground structures of the dim royal court. The tower continued extending ever deeper, and within those subterranean floors, every object that might represent a "modern" atmosphere had finally vanished without a trace. Only bizarre magical creations from unknown ages operated in its depths, guarding things too ancient—so ancient they should no longer be mentioned.
Descending through layer after layer, the atmosphere was grave within a hall of unknown depth beneath the ground. Calling it a hall was not quite accurate; this space was more like a vast cavern, wrapped in primitive stone vaults and rock walls. Numerous ancient, massive pillars bearing obvious marks of human construction supported the cave's more fragile structures. Between the rock strata of its ceiling, one could also see an artificial roof made of stone slabs. They seemed fused with the rock, deeply "embedded" in the cavern's ceiling, and only vaguely appeared to be the floor of the level above, or part of some sort of "foundation."
Stalactites hung from the ceiling, moisture condensed amid the rocks, and icy droplets fell into the underground cavern. They landed upon a mirror-like surface, sending ripples across its sturdy plane.
Nearly half the entire cavern floor resembled a mirror. It was a pitch-black, pure plane abruptly "inlaid" among the stones of the ground, extraordinarily smooth and level. Yet at that