Calyx and Preservation

[Cleretic]

And that's why I think there is a possibility it's not of Ancient creation. Why would our Azem make a device that is capable of dimensional fusion which would undo Venat's sundering? And how would pre-sundered Azem know how to make such a device that works in a world they are not, and will not be a part of? And on a meta level, Azem leaving our character the gift of a device that is capable of traveling anywhere is kind of game breaking. Which leads me to believe that our Azem or Venat during her time as Azem found the device during their adventures, and maybe put a protective seal on it.

Actually, it's a fair assumption that its chief purpose is dimensional travel, not fusion; the lalafel didn't graft Aloalo Island onto the Ninth, they traveled there. To ask 'why would Azem make a tool capable of dimensional fusion' is probably like asking 'why would the Wright Brothers create something capable of destroying a building': they didn't, other people brought the creation to that conclusion.

...except that there's a different problem that's also at play with this presumption, that we also hit if we're talking about dimensional travel: the other dimensions did not exist at the time Azem was around. Why create a tool with the express purpose of traveling to a location that literally doesn't exist? Especially given we're not exactly talking about seasoned geniuses in the subject; I don't even know who in Ancient society would be able to predict where the shards would be on a dimensional-physical level (which I can only imagine would be unfathomably difficult, you can't exactly point on a map and go 'there'), but I wouldn't put that bet on Azem.

This is why my suspicion with the key is that it wasn't made by Azem: it was made afterwards, by people evoking Azem's symbol and story after it had faded into legend. That makes a lot more sense to me; the other shards confirmably exist at that point, and the key isn't realistically that much of a leap beyond later tech we've seen. It'd have to be from a group we haven't seen before, but there's a lot of gaps in the game's worldbuilding to fit new, interesting locations.

Also it'd mean we wouldn't get a rehash of the least interesting zone in Endwalker to me, and that'd be great too.