Well, this was certainly unexpected. I recognized the Chozo ruins, but I never expected this place would actually have some significance here!
"Wait wait wait," I said as I held up my hands, signaling to Rhyssa to wait. "How can you tell?"
"The formations," she said, panic building in her voice. "The holes in the walls. Tunnels for changeling subordinates. This was a gathering area."
"Okay, that's a good sign," I said. "Anything else?"
"This tree," she said, using her front left hoof to point at some spots along the trunk of the massive, quite possibly dead specimen that dominated the chamber. "Look. The green, hardened sections. It's been reinforced with cocoon material. That's standard procedure for hive construction."
It seemed there wasn't much else I could do but take her word for it. And the green bits did seem reminiscent of the cocoons I'd seen. Perhaps she was right after all.
"Alright," I said. "Assuming this IS a hive. What does that mean for us?"
"It means we need to be careful," Rhyssa said. "Dangerous creatures could be hiding anywhere."
"Well, guess we just need to be even more cautious," I said as I eyed the holes along the walls of the chamber with suspicion.
As I scanned the area, I happened to look up a bit farther, to the top of the chamber, and noticed something odd: a large panel made of metal. What could it be? A door? Some manner of artifact? Regardless, it warranted investigation.
"Let's get up there," I said as I pointed to the odd object I'd noticed. "Get a closer look at whatever that is. Might help us on our way. We have someone waiting on us."
"Yes...of course..." Rhyssa said, sounding rather distracted, and understandably so. Lilium simply nodded in acknowledgment.
I inspected the lower portions of the chamber and looked for any path across the green gunge and saw a few circular wooden platforms that looked as though they could be jumped across, and a few more going up the tree trunk. Certainly not ideal and definitely risky, but they were better than nothing.
While Rhyssa was fortunate enough to have wings, Lilium and I were still more or less land-bound, and so were forced to make the risky jump from platform to platform, which was rather nerve-wracking. It took a bit of time and effort, and after a few rather irritating encounters with the local War Wasp population, we were finally at the object I'd spotted from below.
After investigating the door for some time, I came to a conclusion. "Well, I do believe this is some sort of door," I said to my companions.
"It would make sense," Rhyssa said in confirmation. "This would be a good location for the path to the throne room, and this door does appear rather sturdy. In this hive's prime, it would have been a very effective security method."
"I don't doubt it," I said. "But I think the locking mechanism is magic-based. If I can just..."
I trailed off as I used my magic to probe the lock. It took a bit of trial and error, but I was eventually able to form my magic into a key of sorts, allowing the door to open.
"Well, that wasn't too hard," I said. "And that's what worries me."
"Wh...what do you mean?" Lilium asked.
"If this is the path to the throne room, it's going to be well-defended," I said. "Any decent mage could do what I just did. That was meant to keep out those who aren't as magically-inclined. There's going to be more challenges ahead."
As I looked to the dark pathway that laid beyond the doorway, I fought to suppress my building anxiety. Several words came to mind, foreboding and ominous prevalent among them. This would be an...adventure? Well, that was certainly a word. Ordeal was another. Trial, perhaps.
Call it whatever you like; it wouldn't be easy. I was sure of that much.