The monorail glided silently along its elevated track, slicing through the sky like a silver blade. Below, the heart of Revel City pulsed with steel arteries and neon breath, humming with the rhythm of industry. Skyscrapers stood like obsidian spires, but none matched the sheer presence of the complex ahead. It was sprawling citadel of glass and carbon steel, its main tower pierced the sky while smaller satellite towers flanked it in precise symmetry. Suspended walkways stitched the structures together like circuitry, glowing faintly with light from within. The entire complex looked less like a corporate campus and more like the crown of a machine god. This was the hub of Korvin Enterprise, Revel City's crown jewel of advanced innovation.
The monorail slowed, barely audible as it coasted into the terminal suspended just beneath the main tower. The glass walls of the station offered an uninterrupted view of the sprawling city below—arterial highways, magnetic tram lines, and geometric greenbelts arranged with surgical precision. As the cabin doors slid open, the man stepped out with a quiet grace. His gait was unhurried and his posture straight. He adjusted his cuffs, brushing out a faint crease—likely the result of bumping into that distracted girl on the train platform. The reflection on the polished floor caught a brief glint from the brass pin on his lapel and the engraved name catching the morning light:
Emrik Sundberg
Norrvakt Systems – Executive Liaison
A security officer was already waiting on the platform, posture rigid, earpiece tucked cleanly into one ear. His eyes scanned the passengers with procedural efficiency until they locked onto the man approaching him. He stepped forward with military precision.
"Mr. Sundberg?" he said with a short nod. "I'm Agent Rusk. Welcome to Korvin. I trust your commute was alright?"
Emrik offered a small smile, the kind designed to charm without inviting conversation. "Exceptionally," he said with a clean, Swedish accent.
"This way, sir. We'll escort you to the executive level."
Rusk turned crisply and began walking, and Emrik followed without hesitation. Two additional guards fell in behind them. They moved down a wide corridor where polished floors mirrored overhead lights in perfect lines. Emrik's eyes took in every detail without turning his head—camera placements, badge scanners, pressure pads subtly built into the floor tiles. This building wasn't just designed for efficiency. It was fortified in its control of movement and information.
They reached a large set of translucent doors that parted at their approach, revealing a sleek reception atrium. Waiting there was a tall man in a dove-gray vest suit, his demeanor that of someone too busy to smile but too important not to. A silver badge on his own chest read:
Tom Mendez – External Development Director.
"Ah! Mr. Sundberg," Mendez said, extending a hand as the doors slid closed behind them. "A pleasure to finally meet you. Norrvakt Systems is no small name here within our circle. We've been reviewing your defense logistics matrix with keen interest."
Emrik took his hand with a firm shake and just the right amount of eye contact. "And Norrvakt has been watching Korvin with equal interest. My superiors wish me to tell you that they are intrigued by the notion of working with you."
Mendez gave a polite, practiced chuckle. "Glad to hear it." With a subtle gesture, he turned and began walking alongside Emrik, Rusk falling back to a respectful distance behind them. The reception atrium gave way to a long, high-ceilinged corridor lined with floor-to-ceiling digital murals and animated displays showing Korvin's innovations in kinetic architecture, synthetic climate control, and high-altitude energy harvesting.
"Our founder had a vision nearly a hundred years ago," Mendez said, folding his hands behind his back. "Not just of industry, but of integration. The city, the people, and the machines that serve them all working in sync with one another. This complex is that vision made real. Every part of it is designed to adapt and evolve. Some would call it over-engineered. We call it the inevitability of progress."
Emrik nodded, saying nothing. He knew a lot more than he let on, but it was useful to let men like Mendez talk while they believed they were ahead of everyone else. As they moved, the lighting subtly adjusted to their positions. Doors unlocked before they reached them. Air vents responded to the pace of their steps. Every wall, every interface, seemed to be aware.
Mendez continued, "Of course, what we're most proud of is our Genesis Engine Initiative—GEI, internally. It's still under wraps, pending further classification, but early prototypes have already seen limited deployment in defense sectors abroad. Fully self-regulating energy distribution, instantaneous feedback response, and—perhaps most groundbreaking—non-linear adaptability. We've never quite seen anything like it before. Frankly, neither has anyone else."
"Fascinating," Emrik said smoothly, his eyes briefly drifting to one of the nearby displays pulsing with abstract fractal patterns. "And your clients have responded well to this adaptability?"
"More than well," Mendez replied with a hint of pride. "The Genesis Engine doesn't just react. It evolves. It learns from its host system. Defense protocols, infrastructure automation, even bio-integrated logistics. We've had senior officers refer to it as 'predictive machinery.'"
Emrik's brow arched faintly. "Predictive?"
Mendez nodded. "It responds to input before the command is fully issued. No delay. No hesitation. As if it knows the needs of its user even before they do."
Emrik paused internally, fighting back the urge to give an anxious swallow.
"I imagine the implications are vast," he said aloud. Mendez stopped as they reached a reinforced elevator at the end of the corridor. He cast a curious look at Emrik, as if somewhat surprised by his inquisitiveness.
"They are. But not without caution," Mendez replied in a low tone. "Hence the restrictions. Even internally, only my division has full clearance on GEI research."
The doors of the elevator opened without a sound and they stepped inside. The elevator began its ascent with such smoothness it was nearly imperceptible.
"As a potential partner, your insight will be valuable," Mendez continued, glancing sideways. "Norrvakt Systems is known for its breakthroughs in autonomous field operations. We believe there's room to combine our approaches. After all, symbiosis is the conquest of the new millennium, is it not?"
Emrik smiled lightly. "Indeed. And Korvin seems to be leading that charge."
"That's the idea."
The elevator opened onto a panoramic conference level. A circular room framed by transparent smartglass offered a breathtaking view of the city below. Light shifted subtly through the tinting panels, keeping the space perfectly balanced between display and privacy.
"The executive conference is in thirty minutes," Mendez said, checking his wrist pad. "I'll have refreshments catered to you. You're welcome to look around the gallery beforehand—company milestones, prototype displays, historical archives. It's all been curated for our visiting delegates."
"Very much appreciated," Emrik replied.
Rusk nodded to him once more before following Mendez back through the door. Left alone in the center of the viewing gallery, Emrik took a slow step forward. The hush of the room allowed only the hum of tech to be heard, like the breath of a slumbering giant. He looked out across the skyline, but his thoughts were elsewhere.
He walked slowly toward one of the exhibit panels, scanning its polished surface. Every innovation, every milestone, it was a breadcrumb leading to the core of something deeper. Emrik wasn't here to admire the architecture or exchange pleasantries. Beneath the suit and accent, beneath the falsified credentials, beat the mind of a man on a mission. And somewhere in this tower was the very thing that had been the driving force behind Korvin Enterprise's innovative empire for the last three quarters of a century—turned into something it was never meant to be by a power it was never meant to have. But no longer. Soon it would be time to steal the sleeping titan's heart.