Chapter 12: The Knock That Knows Your Name The freight doors didn’t unlatch. They complied. Metal that should’ve needed keys…

Chapter 11: Steel Water Six hours in a sealed room felt longer than six hours in a city. Time didn’t…

Chapter 10: Clean Map The Foundation didn’t do airports unless they had to. Too many cameras. Too many public chokepoints.…

Chapter 9: Extraction Noise The ladder was older than it had any right to be—metal rungs smoothed by decades of…

Chapter 7: Drop Shaft For half a heartbeat, Ace’s body forgot what “down” meant. The emerald circle didn’t crack like…

Chapter 6: The Hymn Under the Skin The new rhythm didn’t enter through the ears. It entered through the ribs.…

Chapter 5: Pattern-Breakers The circle didn’t close with a clang. It closed with agreement. One moment, the stone under their…

Chapter 4: Choir Zone The arch didn’t feel like a doorway. It felt like a decision. Ace ran straight at…

Chapter 2: Protocol Ghosts The photo in the envelope wasn’t dramatic. It didn’t need to be. A tunnel mouth. Concrete…