Description

[Kannon]

At first sight, Nikeion overwhelms — not with the heavy permanence of stone, but with the improbable grace of the impossible. Rising from the ochre plain like a vision chiselled from a single block of dusk, this pyramid is sheathed in anti-radiation alloy tiles whose soft iridescence recalls nephrite at sunset. But its outward solemnity belies what lies within: the Oon, a colossal sphere suspended in the pyramid’s hollowed heart, where Harmonthep celebrates spectacle, struggle, and victory.

Engineered by Ixians, Nikeion is among their most audacious planetary works beyond their own homeworld: a structure that defies gravitational logic, thermal flux, and atmospheric pressure with impunity. It draws on principles once pioneered in the interior chambers of Heighliners — but here, the purpose is cultural, theatrical, sacred. The Oon is not simply architecture. It is intent, manifested, a sacred space of birth of glory and transformation through trial.

Inside, its curved interior is studded with hundreds of thousands of seats, each registered to a geopositional coordinate of meridians and parallels. This spherical logic reorients expectations. The equator defines the primary performance plane — the widest horizontal stretch, ideal for the most grandiose events. The further one’s seat lies above or below that line, the steeper the viewing angle — and the more layered the experience.

Above the equator, luxury reigns. Balconied tiers hover along the upper latitudes, with private viewing orbs and thopter docking bays discreetly tucked behind curving partitions. The Archon's own balcony usually presides precisely at the equator at the 0° meridian, a visible centrepoint in a theatre without centre, though it can rise up along the meridian if needed. Below the equator, the atmosphere is no less electric — the popular hemisphere, where the sound of a thousand boots carries like thunder once they pour out of meridian elevators onto parallel aisles. All are immersed even as they observe most events from below, with live streaming projections enhancing the experience.

Suspended force field planes generate arenas within the Oon: translucent, semi-permeable floors of calibrated resistance. The equatorial field is the grandest, and this is the girth at which races happen, but others may shimmer above or below it depending on the event. A still body begins to sink; motion maintains position. Racers, athletes and gladiators are thus compelled to dance, to strive, to perform, or fall and likely perish unless another force field or a drone would not arrest their plunge. The Holtzman floor itself becomes a trial of intent.

Ingress of the elite is a ceremony in its own right. Even though the elevators can go up to 20°N, the Oon usually receives its distinguished audiences through the Eyes of the Winds — vast circular openings at the four cardinal walls of the pyramid where the sphere meets them, bringing daylight in. Each Eye is named for a mythical wind: Boreas, Notos, Euros, Zephyros. A passage through one is an act of support for the athletes who have chosen it as their symbol. Pankratos has chosen Zephyros.

For all its splendorous appeal, Nikeion does not reveal all its secrets to a visitor's eye. Only athletes and VIPs can visit the Apex, the chambers at the pyramid's peak above the sphere, from which competitors descend for their showtimes on suspensor platforms, basking in thunderous applause. The Vault, a discreet command room for all of the pyramid's technical and security systems, is off-limits for unauthorised personnel in the only one of the bottom corners of the pyramid which is not well connected to liminal concourses. The Gymnasia, complex training facilities, serve professional athletes first and amateurs second.

Most people arrive in Nikeion through the Terminus, an underground node linking Nikeion to Xenion’s transit web. Then, they await the call to enter the Oon in the Galleries, a complex of lounges, souvenir shops, smaller cultural venues and restaurants tucked into the pyramid’s corner opposite to the Vault.