Part 2/10:
The tale opens on Planet Terminus, where a group of children races toward a foreboding Vault, a structure encased in a mysterious force field that wards off all intrusions. A curious boy attempts to breach this barrier but collapses as the force field disorients him. He is miraculously rescued by Salvor, a woman who seems immune to the Vault’s effects—a motif that signals her importance in the greater narrative.