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Chapter 33: The Depths of Deception
last update2025-07-30 21:04:32
Damon’s fingers trembled slightly as he gripped the edge of the submersible’s console. The cold sea pressed in around them, a silent witness to the storm brewing below.

“So,” he said, voice rough but steady, “Lena trusted you enough to send you after me. Why?”

Sive shrugged, eyes flicking to the sonar readout. “Because she knew you’d need someone who can handle the network’s shadows and the ones who dwell in them. I’m not just a pilot I hack, I sneak, and I survive where no one else dares.”

Damon studied her, looking for a sign of deceit. But behind her calm exterior was the same kind of hardened resolve he’d seen in Lena’s eyes before the fracture.

“Can I trust you?”

She grinned, showing just a hint of teeth. “Depends on what you want me to do.”

His jaw clenched. “Get me to the Core Vault.”

Sive nodded. “Already on course. But we’re not the only ones headed that way.”

Damon’s breath hitched. “Rootstream?”

“Worse.”

The sub’s lights flickered. The sonar ping suddenly
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