Midnight.
The halls of Ash Fortress were silent—almost reverent.
Raine moved like smoke, her armor darkened, neural signal cloaked. Every step measured. Every breath calculated.
Ahead: Lucian's chamber.
Locked behind bio-scanners, retinal walls, and four layers of encryption.
She had cracked them all.
[Goal: Extract Lucian's blood sample]
[Time remaining until patrol shift: 03:19]
She slipped inside.
The room was colder than she expected.
Books. Weapons. A decanter of crimson wine.
And Lucian's coat—hung beside a biometric med-injector.
Perfect.
She moved swiftly to the injector.
But didn't notice the soft sound behind her.
Until the blade pressed against her throat.
Nira's Gambit
"Found you," Nira whispered.
Her breath warm. Her blade sharp.
"Give me one reason I shouldn't slit your treacherous throat."
Raine didn't move.
"Because we're the same."
Nira laughed bitterly. "No. I gave in. You didn't. That makes you dangerous."
"Then help me."
Raine slowly raised the injector. Inside: a sliver of blood—Lucian's.
"If I get this to the system core, I can stop the kill switch. I can free us."
Nira hesitated.
"Free us to what? The world's already dead."
"Then let's give it one last reason to fight."
System Alert
Suddenly:
[ALERT: Unauthorized Access – LUC-PRIME Signature Detected]
[Location: Command Quarters]
[Response Protocol: Engage Asset Lockdown]
Lucian: "Who dares…"
He turned, eyes burning, cloak swirling around him.
"Raine."
Three-Way Standoff
Doors slammed shut.
Lucian stood at the entrance, armed with a plasma blade. Nira shifted beside Raine, unsure.
"Traitor," Lucian growled.
"I'm giving your slaves a choice," Raine snapped. "Something you never did."
Lucian raised his hand.
[System Override: Reactivate Obedience Layer – RAINE]
[Error: Cognitive Firewall Detected]
He blinked. "You broke it?"
Raine raised the injector.
"No, Lucian. I reprogrammed it."
She slammed the sample into her arm.
The system screamed.
[Override Detected – Command Line Intercepted]
[Kill Switch Transfer: 1%... 4%... 9%...]
Lucian lunged.