2026-09-21 05:48:23
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Intercepted
The night wind carrying acid raindrops struck my face cruelly as Cora and I ran across the catwalk on the border of Level 1315. We walked on water pipes spanning the outer cliff of this vertical city, avoiding every route guarded by checkpoints. Below our footing, the inter-level abyss yawned, while above us, the glow of fires from various riots still painted the ceiling in horrifying reddish hues.The inter-level abyss seemed eager to swallow us every time we jumped to switch to another pipe, but I ignored it. My right hand constantly pressed the button on my left wrist, keeping the communication channel open."Vex, give me a status update," I called between my ragged breaths.A static hiss answered my call, followed by the sound of clanking metal and wind battering Vex's communicator."We are on the maintenance stairs in the western sector, L," Vex's voice sounded hoarse, panting from the strain of the steep climb. "These stairs are a nightmare. The incline is almost seventy degrees
Rendezvous Point
Our footsteps echoed on the iron floor of the Level 1315 maintenance corridor. Outside the thick concrete walls, the wail of military sirens and the small pops of short-circuiting electrical transformers answered each other continuously, creating a tense soundscape.I led the way with my right hand on alert, near the back pocket of my jacket. Beside me, Cora walked with a steady rhythm, her eyes never leaving the datapad screen displaying the map of the route we were taking.However, beneath my vigilance, there was a much more personal emotional pull driving my steps.I felt impatient to see a part of my family again. Kael, Risha, and Vex were only a few blocks away from our current position. The image of Kael's terrified face as he hugged Spark, as well as Risha's stubborn yet fragile gaze, swirled clearly in my head. The desire to make sure they stood before me intact and unharmed would be a sedative for my guilt."The corridor ahead of us is clear of thermal scanners," Cora's voice
Bridge
Acid rain washed the remaining dust off my red jacket as Cora and I stepped out of the cargo transit station. Noctis Reach's night air no longer smelled of chemical waste, but was filled with the aroma of smoke, panic, and despair. We moved along a narrow corridor behind clean water pipes, deliberately avoiding the streets that had now turned into a sea of uncontrollable civilian panic.The chaos I created at The Garage seemed to have spread to the surrounding levels.From the narrow balcony where we crouched to avoid the streetlights, I could see thousands of citizens flooding the streets. They ran carrying large bags, pushing trolleys filled with scrap, and shoving against each other in front of the inter-level elevators whose screens blinked red—a sign of overcapacity. The city's security authorities truly looked overwhelmed. Riot squads in dark brown uniforms tried to hold back the crowds using energy shields, but their numbers were far too small compared to that sea of panic.In
A Hint of a Smile
The blue light from the datapad screen cast a dim glow on the cargo walls where we leaned. I sat beside Cora, our shoulders nearly touching as we focused our attention on the rows of code scrolling across her holographic screen. The freezing air, carrying the scent of rust and lower-district dampness, felt far more tolerable now. The tension that had been choking my neck like barbed wire slowly began to loosen."Shift the frequency in the northwest quadrant," I said, pointing to the corner of the datapad screen displaying rapidly moving binary code. "That paramilitary force is using standard military communications. Their ciphers usually rotate every four hours. If you intercept the cycle exactly at the fifteenth minute, we can listen in on their channels without triggering an alarm on their servers."Cora glanced at me briefly out of the corner of her organic eye, her fingers dancing with incredible speed across the virtual keyboard. "You know far too much about military communicatio
Cora's Eye
The communicator light on my wrist finally dimmed. The Level 1316 cargo transit station was once again swallowed by silence. The static sound of Vex's transmission still rang in my ears, mingling with the raindrops of acid hitting the roof in the distance. The news from Vex and Grox had provided the temporary certainty we desperately needed.I leaned my head against the container wall. The tension that had been holding my sanity together slowly loosened. The freezing air in this room pierced through the gaps in my scorched red jacket, cooling my skin that had felt like it was burning earlier.Across from me, the blue light from the datapad screen suddenly went out.Cora placed the device on the floor slowly. The tapping sound of the device hitting the floor broke the silence between us. I opened my eyes, looking toward the administrator. She was sitting cross-legged, folding her arms on her lap. Her eyes stared at me. Her ocular implant spun slowly.We sat facing each other. The awkwa
Almost
After the radio connection with Grox was cut, I let my head rest against the container wall. The darkness of this room seemed to swallow every sound, leaving only the soft hum of the city's air processing machines in the distance. Across from me, Cora was still immersed in the blue glow of her datapad. She was hacking the traffic system. Her pale face and the dried blood stain on her temple looked incredibly stark under the screen's glow.I took a slow breath, trying to ease the pain in my ribs, then raised my left wrist again. My index finger pressed the frequency button."Vex. This is L. Come in," I called in a flat tone.There was only the sound of static hiss for the first few seconds. I counted every blink of the green indicator light in my head. Six seconds. Eight seconds. Ten seconds. Tension crept back up, gripping my throat.Ten seconds passed without an answer. My mind began stringing together worst-case scenarios. Bounty hunters, paramilitary troops, even the threat of the
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