"Pip, stop shaking," I said. I didn't look up from the dragon's neck."It’s a brain, Arix! A real, wet brain!" Pip yelled. He backed away, his boots crunching on broken glass. "It’s floating in there. It’s twitching!""I know what it is," I said. I jammed a pry bar into the metal. "Hold the light steady. I can't see the mounting bolts.""How can you be so cold?" Pip’s voice went high. "That was Silas! We ate stew with him three weeks ago!""Silas is gone," I said. I felt the bar catch on something heavy. "Right now, this is a processor. If we don't take the power drive, Silas died for nothing. Do you want that?""No, but—""Then hold the light!" I barked."Arix! The knights!" Damian shouted from the edge of the rubble. "They’re at the bottom of the hill! They’re moving fast!""How many?" I called out. "At least fifty on foot!" Damian yelled back. "Plus three wyverns circling. They have their lances out!""Keep them back," I said. "Are you insane?" Damian ran over to me. He grabbed my

"We can take the Palace right now," Damian said. He paced the sewer floor, his boots splashing in the muck. "Did you see that, Arix? Lyra erased a concrete pillar like it was paper! We don't need to hide in the dirt anymore.""We're staying in the dirt," I said. I was busy wiping grease off my Master-Key terminal."Why?" Damian shouted. He stepped into my space, his chest puffed out. "We have the firepower. We can blast the main gates by sunrise. The rebels are ready. They saw what happened. They want blood!""They'll get their own," I said. "You think the King only has one dragon? You think he doesn't have an army of those brain-jars waiting? One mistake and we’re all recycled.""So we just sit here?" Damian asked. He looked at Lyra, who was staring at her black staff. "We have a god-tier weapon and you want to wait?""I want the Soul-Code Treaty," I said. "The what?" Brux asked, looking up from his bandages."It’s a document," I said. "A hard-coded contract kept in the Archives. I

"Watch the vent cover," I said. I shoved the metal grate aside. It hit the floor with a hollow ring. I didn't look back to see if the others were following. I had my eyes on the room.[Area Scan: High Fantasy Archives - Restricted Sector][Security Level: Terminal]"Is this it?" Damian asked. He hopped down behind me, his hand already on his sword hilt. "Where are the books? This looks like a tomb.""No books here, Damian," I said. I pointed at the rows of black stone pillars. "Just glass.""Glass?" Pip asked. He scrambled down, nearly tripping over his own feet. "You mean these tablets? They're floating."He reached out toward a glowing blue pane of glass hanging in a recess."Don't touch those," I snapped. I grabbed his wrist and shoved it back down. "You'll trigger a data-wipe. Then we're all standing in a very expensive, very empty room.""They’re everywhere," Lyra whispered. She stepped into the light. Her eyes reflected the pale blue glow of the tablets. "Thousands of them. It’

"Steady," I whispered. "Don't breathe until I tell you."Damian crouched next to me in the rusted remains of a hauling rig. His eyes were fixed on the road below. Rain turned the oil-slicked asphalt into a mirror. In the distance, the low hum of heavy engines vibrated through the ground."They're late," Damian said. He tightened his grip on his shock-axe. "The Silver Guard is never late. You sure about the timing, Arix?""I'm sure about the data," I said. I didn't look at him. I was watching the green text scrolling across my vision.[Sensor Sweep: Detected][Encryption: Level 7][Target: 150 Meters]"Lyra, you in position?" I asked into the comms. "I’m here," her voice crackled. "The artillery is primed. Just give me the word. I want to turn these bastards into ash.""Wait for the pulse," I said. The first transport rounded the corner. It was a massive, armored beast, plated in reflective silver. Two smaller scout fliers hovered above it, their red spotlights cutting through the r

I pushed the heavy door open. It groaned on its hinges. Six guards leveled rifles at my chest the second I stepped into the room. I didn't stop walking. I didn't look at the barrels. My eyes were on the three people at the long table in the center of the basement."Keep your fingers off the triggers," I said. "Unless you want this whole block to go dark. You know what I can do to the grid."Sledge leaned back. He was a mountain of muscle and scarred skin. He tapped a finger on the table. He looked at the guards and waved them down. The rifles lowered, but the tension didn't."You've got a lot of nerve, Arix," Sledge said. He bit the end off a cigar. "Most people come here to beg. You come here to threaten my men. Why shouldn't I kill you?""I'm not here to beg," I said. I pulled out a chair. The metal legs scraped against the concrete. I sat down. "I'm here to fix your problem before it kills you.""We don't have a problem," Krell said. She leaned into the light. Her optics clicked