He'd expected a city, but what he saw was unlike any city he'd known in his past life or on Ayther.
The warrens of each building stretched upward, nearly uniform arcs supporting a lattice of interconnected roofs, all made of weathered, grey stone. Everywhere he looked at his level, the floor was covered in fine blue sand out of which ruined shapes and dunes jutted.
A cool wind blew, gently enough that he could hear the resonance of the megastructure he was standing in as he climbed onto the floor.
"Wow. This place is big... but pretty boring," Stella said, returning to her normal form as she investigated a small mound of sand with a poke of her tail.
"I think whoever built this place lived on top," Kir said. "But I don't see any stairs or signs of elevators..."