Chapter Three – Sector 40
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The council chamber of the Iron Veil Command Nexus was buried five hundred meters beneath the Eurasian Arcology.
Twelve figures sat around a circular holo-table, the air thrumming with static from the active projection feeds.
At the head of the table stood Director Helena Voss, a woman whose gray hair and mechanical left eye reflected the cold blue of the holograms.
> "Begin the briefing," she ordered.
The lights dimmed.
A large image blinked to life — a ruined city marked SECTOR 40 – NORD FRONTIER.
Crimson indicators flickered across the grid.
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⚠️ The Infestation Report
Chief Intelligence Officer Renn Oka spoke first, tapping his wrist console.
> "We've confirmed a C-to-A Class convergence in Sector 40. Forty-eight life signatures have mutated within seventy-two hours. This isn't random. It's organized."
The holo shifted to show an expanding cluster of red dots forming a spiral pattern.
> "Our analysts believe an A-Class Elemental or Shadow Affinity demon is spawning the others. Estimated casualty projection: thirty thousand if containment fails."
Voss leaned forward. "We've deployed the Black Hound Division?"
> "Already on-site, ma'am," Renn replied. "But their transmissions stopped thirty minutes ago."
Silence rippled across the room.
Everyone knew what that meant — the demons had adapted to Iron Veil frequencies again.
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🧩 Orders from the Director
Helena Voss straightened, voice cutting through the tension.
> "Effective immediately, I'm authorizing a full cleanse of Sector 40. Orbital surveillance will lock the perimeter. Field divisions are to purge every lifeform beyond Gatepoint Delta."
A colonel raised his hand. "And the civilians, ma'am?"
> "No civilians remain," she said flatly. "Sector 40 is a graveyard."
The room fell silent once more — until she spoke again, her tone slightly softer.
> "We can't keep losing engineers and soldiers. That's why I've approved the new intake for the Trainee Academy. Fresh minds, fresh strategies. We need builders who can fight."
Her mechanical eye flickered as she looked toward the observation deck feed — where Aiden, unaware, was watching the entire briefing from behind reinforced glass.
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⚙️ The Academy
Two days later.
Aiden stood at the base of a massive concrete structure stretching into the fog — Iron Veil Training Academy, once a university, now repurposed into a military research campus.
Rows of cadets marched in formation. Drones hovered overhead, scanning faces and implant IDs.
Aiden clutched a small case containing his tools and a transfer badge marked Engineering Division – Tactical Systems.
> "Welcome to the Academy," a voice called out.
A tall instructor approached — short blond hair, dark fatigues. Her name tag read Captain Lin Ardent.
"Congratulations, Cadet Aiden Hale. You're officially part of the Iron Veil trainee corps. Dormitory 7-B, Room 04."
Aiden nodded, suppressing his nerves. "Understood, ma'am."
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🏢 Dormitory 7-B
The dorms were stacked steel corridors filled with the echo of metal boots and quiet chatter.
Aiden found his door — a rusted plaque reading 7B-04 — and stepped inside.
Two figures looked up.
The first, Adolf Krein, was tall and broad-shouldered, with sandy hair and eyes that reflected curiosity and calculation. His right arm was covered in mechanical plating — clearly self-installed.
He grinned. "New blood? About time. I thought they'd forgotten to fill our third slot."
The second, Fushiguro Ren, sat cross-legged on his bunk, tuning a small drone with surgical precision. His dark blue hair partly covered one eye, and his expression barely changed when Aiden entered.
> "He's loud," Fushiguro said without looking up.
"You get used to it," Adolf replied.
Aiden smirked, setting down his bag. "Aiden Hale. Engineer division."
> "Engineer?" Adolf's grin widened. "Perfect. Maybe you can fix the auto-locker that tried to eat my boots."
> "Or build me a better drone," Fushiguro muttered.
The tension broke when the dorm's overhead light flickered, followed by an announcement:
> "All cadets, prepare for induction orientation at 1800 hours. Attendance mandatory."
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⚙️ The Orientation Hall
The massive auditorium was alive with hundreds of new recruits — soldiers, scientists, and engineers alike.
Holo-displays showed past operations: flames, ruins, Iron Veil mechs striding through ash.
Director Voss appeared on the screen above the stage.
> "You are humanity's last architects," she began. "Demons adapt. We evolve. Every machine you build, every circuit you design, every weapon you master — keeps us one step ahead of extinction."
Her mechanical eye glowed brighter.
> "Sector 40 will be our next test. And one of you will help design the weapon that ends it."
Aiden's pulse quickened. He didn't know why, but something in her voice felt directed at him.
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⚙️ Back in the Dorm
Later that night, Aiden sat by the window, gazing at the distant horizon — faint red lights glowing beyond the city's defensive wall.
Adolf was snoring already, and Fushiguro's drone hovered silently in sleep mode.
Aiden turned over a small badge in his palm — Iron Veil Trainee Engineer, Level-1 Clearance.
He whispered to himself,
> "Sector 40… whatever's there, I'll be ready."
Outside, far beyond the walls, the mist rippled — and something large and inhuman moved beneath it.