Worldbuilding

The river door belongs to the old floodgate system beneath the lower archive. It opens when the drowned clock strikes the third bell.

• Mara calls it a myth because the academy erased the floodgate records after the winter siege.
• Jalen's ledger says the lock chooses which timeline survives when both bells answer.
• Lanterns turn blue near active gates; saltwater climbs two streets before dawn.
• Seed with the drowned clock, archive ledger, and ferry route...