REBEL CODE

Chapter 18 – Into the Fire

Eris stood before the holographic plan of the Citadel, its shifting shape casting cold blue light on her face. The Citadel towered over all districts, a steel and stone skyscraper that was not merely an edifice—more, it was a proclamation. Cold, impenetrable, and dotted with security systems no one had ever made a serious try to breach in over a decade.

And now, they needed to go right into its heart.

Virel’s voice filled the Forge, steady but urgent.

“There’s a vulnerability in their internal network architecture. I’ve traced the route. But the window is narrow—only sixty minutes when the mainframe undergoes its routine cryptographic cycle.”

Zeth leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. “Let me guess. We’ll need to infiltrate during that exact sixty-minute window, bypass the most advanced security grid ever built, avoid detection by facial scanners, biometric locks, auto-turrets, and whatever other nightmares they’ve stashed inside?”

“Yes,” Virel replied without hesitation.

“Of course,” he muttered.

Asher stepped forward. “What’s the prize again? A root key?”

Virel nodded. "The Master Root Key. It's a physical drive that's kept in their vault. With it, I can overwrite all the core processes of the Syndicate's digital infrastructure. Financial networks, spyware programs, drone squadrons, internal AI—anything and everything is at our mercy to manipulate. Or destroy."

Eris traced the blueprint. "We're not going to have another chance for this. Once we move in, there is no going back."

Zeth pulled out a bitter smile. "Planned on hanging up anyway.".

The team moved through the city in armor constructed of stolen Syndicate equipment. Virel had improvised their false IDs into the lower-level portals, and they were able to slip in briefly through the maintenance sub-grids of District Five.

Every move towards the Citadel was a risk.

Every gasp could be fatal.

Eris kept her eyes forward as they moved through under security drones humming overhead. The nearer they got, the quieter the world seemed. Even the air was lighter here—pressurized, monitored. 

"Securing outside perimeter," Asher breathed into their comms. "North wall turrets. Two guards at the entry point." 

"Non-lethal," Eris answered. "We need to stay off their grid.".

Zeth slipped forward and tapped his wrist console. A burst of electromagnetic interference fried the camera grid for five seconds. Eris and Asher moved as one—two tranquilizer darts sent the guards crumpling silently to the ground.

Virel guided them through the side corridor.

“There’s a service elevator in Subsection Delta. It’s not on their public schematics, but I’ve hijacked the control system.”

They hurried down concrete corridors lined with sterile overhead lighting. Machinery thrummed in the walls, vibrating like a pulse. At the elevator, Eris input Virel's override code. The doors hissed open.

"Once we're inside," Virel said, "there's no signal. I'll be blind until you reach the vault chamber uplink."

"Got it," Eris said. "We'll reconnect on the other side."

The doors slid shut.

They descended.

---

The elevator opened onto a corridor whose walls were black glass and whose floors were sterile white. Cameras tracked every step they made.

"I don't like this," Zeth breathed. "Too clean."

"Too quiet," Asher replied.

Eris held up a hand. "Stay sharp. Vault's in this direction."

They moved down the corridor quietly until they reached a heavily reinforced door that said Authorized Level Z Only. Eris scanned the forged IDs Virel had incinerated into their chips.

The door opened.

Inside was a room like nothing they'd ever encountered.

Walls of shifting code crept across see-through panels. Dozens of drives hung in magnetic suspension, each labeled in ancient cryptographic notation. A shining platform in the center pulsed with red light.

"The Root Key," Asher whispered. "It exists."

Eris edged closer, adrenaline pounding in her ears. The drive rotated within a hardened containment field, spinning slowly like a coin in zero gravity.

She reached out.

The second her fingers brushed the outer field, alarms screamed to life.

“Damn it!” Zeth shouted. “It’s a trap!”

Turrets dropped from the ceiling.

The walls sealed.

And a figure emerged from the shadows.

Director Velkan.

“I had a feeling you’d come,” he said, voice sharp as a blade. “You’ve been busy. Toppling towers. Stealing tech. Whispering lies into the ears of a sleeping city.”

Eris stood her ground. “It’s not sleeping anymore.”

Velkan moved forward. "You believe a series of broadcasts will break us? You're playing with guns you don't even understand."

He lowered his head.

The turrets blazed to life.

And then something unprecedented happened.

Ground beneath them shook with a jolt of static. Air rippled. The lights went out—replaced with purple code writhing on walls.

Virel's voice rumbled over the comms.

"Override complete."

The turrets moved.

And opened fire—on Velkan's guards.

Eris charged forward, withdrawing the Root Key from the safety field. The entire vault began shaking.

"We've got what we came for!" she bellowed. "Back!"

Velkan snarled and pulled out a high-powered rifle. He fired—but Eris was already gone, seeking cover. Zeth tossed a smoke grenade. Asher pinned Velkan against the control console, buying them precious seconds.

They ran.

Down the corridor.

To the elevator.

Except it wasn't there anymore.

"The shaft's been sealed!" Asher yelled.

"Backup route," Virel said. "Access panel two meters left. There's a vent shaft that leads to the emergency drop system."

They opened the panel by tearing it apart and entered one after another, crawling through steel ducts with alarms blaring like war sirens. They dropped into a thin escape pod bay.

Eris crawled into a pod, clutching the Root Key to her chest. "Launch us. Now."

Virel didn't hesitate.

The pods shot out like cannonballs.

And in their wake—the Citadel roared.

Pillars of fire consumed the skyline.

Billows of flames pierced the skies.

The entire city looked up and saw the impossible: the invincible Citadel hurt.

---

Hours later, in the Forge, Eris put the Root Key down on the table.

The crew gathered around it.

Zeth's hands were still shaking.

Asher's shirt was charred.

But they were alive.

Virel spoke in a soft tone now—her voice almost one of awe.

"With this, I can shatter the Syndicate's heart. Every order. Every asset. Every secret. I can seize their empire. or burn it all to the ground."

"What do we do?" Asher asked.

Eris stared at her reflection in the shiny drive.

She had worked so hard to tear down walls.

But now she could build something anew.

First," she said, "we open the curtain. All of it. All documents. All deceptions. All concealed truths. Then."

She paused.

"Then we decide if the world is ready for freedom.".