When the two returned to the Radiance Alliance base, the atmosphere had changed somewhat, though nothing looked different on the surface. Stark was still focused on selecting a target route, while Steve stood beside him with his arms crossed.
"I guess... it should be this one." Stark frowned. Steve had no idea whether he had found some pattern or was relying entirely on intuition, but he chose to trust Stark anyway.
After another Blink, they found themselves in an open space. Both of them made the same motion, looking up. Above their heads stood an endless expanse of High Towers.
In that instant, Stark seemed to lose all his strength and could no longer keep his back straight. Steve covered his face with one hand and said, "Thank God. I knew it... I knew it... it couldn't possibly be that easy..."
"Wait." Stark frowned. He turned in a circle with his head raised, then said, "Why is it so quiet here? Where's Schiller? Where is everyone?"
Steve also recalled the first time he had come to this High Tower. Back then, the place had been packed with people, and Schillers had been constantly coming and going through the corridors. Now, the High Tower seemed much quieter. He could vaguely make out a few figures high above, but the lower corridors were completely deserted.
Steve and Stark both hesitated. Professor X had repeatedly warned them that some rooms in this High Tower were extremely dangerous. Considering Schiller's past abnormal behavior, they felt Professor X's warning made sense.
Even so, they still had to explore this place. The two followed the stairs from ground level to the first floor. It was empty, the doors tightly shut, and the corridor pitch-black.
Neither Steve nor Stark had ever carefully explored the first floor here.