The Large Dismantling Platform was one of a series of integrated facilities newly built by the Research Center, specifically meant to deal with the increasing number of massive Old Empire ruins. As the New Empire's territory expanded and Macro World outposts gradually developed into small colonies or military bases, more and more Old Empire ruins were discovered. The ancient Shilin Relics available for scientists to study had gradually changed from "little trinkets" into enormous, fully functional ancient Shilin equipment, which had become regular visitors to the Research Center. So Tawell ordered another expansion of the Research Center's Hyperspace Laboratory and the construction of this integrated facility known as the Large Dismantling Platform.
It could be considered a combination of our old Analysis Laboratories, Dismantling Centers, Closed Hangars, and other research departments. Usually, a single platform occupied an independent Hyperspace Laboratory, where multilayer spatial nesting technology ensured that even the biggest objects could be dismantled "indoors"—such as the ship fragments dragged down from Viska's "head."
Within the dark, distorted-gravity space, a colossal cylindrical machine was suspended in midair by invisible restraint locks. All its outer coverings had been cut away, including twisted pipelines and half-melted armor plating. They were firmly "wedged" in place by the distorted gravity around them. Every inconspicuous component was receiving the most thorough inspection. Multifunction probes and Shilin Technicians in white uniforms moved constantly among the enormous pipes, searching for data-recording devices that might have survived. The head of the research team was a steady-looking middle-aged man. I didn't know him, but since Tawell had put him in that position, he was probably an excellent scientist.
Beside the dismantling zone floated numerous hexagonal metal platforms. They were scattered randomly at varying heights, connected only by illusory-looking bridges of light. These broad platforms served as observation points of