No one spoke as the bronze gate drifted inward.The movement was almost gentle. There was no explosion of force, no violent crash. Ancient hinges groaned under a weight they had carried for centuries, and a low, grinding rumble rolled across the chamber until it disappeared into the abyss beneath the bridge.The company stood frozen.The hundreds of handprints covering the gate caught the lantern light, each one pressed into the bronze at a different angle. Some belonged to children. Others were broad enough to have come from giants. Fingertips, palms, even broken nails had been preserved in the metal, as though desperate hands had tried to push the doors shut before time hardened them forever.Lyra couldn't look away."They weren't trying to get in," she murmured.The Guardian's shoulders sagged."No."His voice was barely audible."They were trying to keep it closed."The realization settled over the group like another layer of frost.Astrid stepped onto the bridge first. The stone
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