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Dismounting in front of the sheer, black wall, D put his left hand to the
steel. A chilling sensation spread through him. The temperature was
probably unique to this special steel. Perhaps it was because, to render the exterior of this structure impervious to all forms of heat or electronic waves, molecules served as atoms in it.

D’s hand glided slowly across the smooth surface.
Finishing the front wall, he moved to the right side. It took thirty minutes to
run his hand over that side. “Sheesh,” said a bored voice coming from the space
between the steel and the palm of his hand. The voice let a sigh escape as D
moved to the back wall. If there’d been anyone there to hear it, this
bizarre little scene would’ve undoubtedly made the eyes bug out of their head,
but D continued his work in silence.

“Yep, this metal sure is tough stuff. The situation inside is kind of hazy.
Still, I’m getting a picture of the general setup. The superatomic furnace
inside is sending energy into the metal itself. You can’t break through the
walls without destroying the atomic furnace, but in order to do that you’d
have to bust through the walls first. So, which came first, the chicken or the
egg?”

“How many are inside?” D asked, still brushing his hand along the wall.
“Two,” came the quick reply. “A man and a woman. But even I can’t tell
whether they’re Nobility or human.”
Without so much as a nod, D finished scanning the third wall.
Only the left side remained.

But what in the world was he doing? Judging from what the voice said, he
seemed to be searching the interior of the Shelter, but, if the outer walls
couldn’t be breached, that was pointless. On the other hand, the voice
explained that destroying the outer walls would be impossible.
About halfway down the steel wall, the left hand halted.
“Got it,” the voice said disinterestedly.

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