Greenish coolant with a sharp chemical smell sloshed around their ankles as Dalia and her crew navigated through the facility's industrial underbelly. The emergency flood protocol had been activated, filling the lower levels with coolant to prevent the Amplifier's systems from overheating during the shutdown sequence.

  "East bay should be two levels up and about three hundred yards northeast," Arlo called, consulting a folded facility map he'd grabbed during their escape. "Assuming nothing's collapsed between here and there."

  "Optimistic as always," Tessa muttered, though her hands remained steady as she supported Lyra, who leaned heavily against her shoulder.

  They'd stopped in a maintenance junction—a cramped space filled with valve controls and pressure gauges, momentarily sheltered from the chaos erupting throughout the complex. Distant explosions periodically shook the walls, sending rust particles drifting down from overhead pipes.

  "I disabled Lyra's main control device," Tessa continued, her focus never wavering. "But whatever they did to her brain is still affecting her motor functions, Captain. Without proper medical equipment, this is the best I can do."

  Lyra offered a weak smile. "It's better. My thoughts feel... clearer." Her eyes found Dalia's, gratitude evident despite her pain. "I can feel the modifications fighting to reassert control, but it's manageable now."

  "We still need to find Joran," Dalia said, turning to Finnian. "Any sign of where they might be keeping him?"

  "According to the facility schematics we saw, specialized containment is on this level, eastern section," Finnian replied. "Given his Resonator physiology, they would likely keep him separate from human prisoners."

  "We can't leave without him," Dalia stated firmly. "He's part of our crew."

  "The coolant is rising fast," Tessa pointed out, glancing at the caustic liquid already seeping into their junction. "If we divert to the eastern section, we risk getting trapped before reaching the east bay."

  Dalia considered their options. "We split up. Finn and I will find Joran. Tessa, you and Arlo get Lyra to the east bay and secure transport. We'll rendezvous there as soon as possible."

  "Captain—" Finnian began to object.

  "It's not up for debate," Dalia cut him off. "I won't abandon any member of my crew. Arlo, give me that map."

  The navigator hesitated only briefly before handing over the facility schematic. "Eastern section is through that corridor and past the auxiliary power station," he said, pointing.

  Dalia turned to Tessa. "If we're not at the east bay in twenty minutes, leave without us. Get Lyra to safety and back to Millport."

  Tessa's expression hardened. "Twenty-five minutes," she countered. "And we're coming looking for you if you're late."

  Despite the gravity of their situation, Dalia smiled. "Deal. Now go."

  As Tessa and Arlo helped Lyra toward the stairwell that would take them to the upper levels, Dalia and Finnian headed east, splashing through corridors where the coolant was already ankle-deep and rising steadily, its chemical smell growing stronger with each step.

  "The specialized containment cells should be designed to withstand flooding," Finnian observed as they jogged through the labyrinthine passageways. "Standard protocol would be to evacuate high-value subjects first, but with the facility in chaos..."

  "They might have left Joran behind," Dalia finished, a spark of hope in her voice.

  They reached the auxiliary power station—a cavernous chamber filled with massive generators that hummed and sparked as the fluctuating power levels stressed their capacity. The air smelled of ozone and hot metal, occasionally punctuated by the sharp crack of electrical discharges.

  "Containment should be through there." Finnian pointed toward a reinforced doorway on the far side of the chamber. A red warning light flashed above it, indicating a security lockdown in progress.

  As they approached, a crash followed by shouting came from beyond the door. Dalia quickened her pace, drawing the stunner she'd appropriated during their earlier escape. When they reached the doorway, they found it partially blocked by fallen debris, but through the gap, they could see into the containment area beyond.

  Joran was there, his slight form instantly recognizable despite the chaos surrounding him. The Resonator was engaged in a desperate struggle with a security guard who was attempting to force him into what looked like a specialized transport pod. Two other guards lay unconscious nearby, suggesting Joran had put up more resistance than they'd anticipated.

  "I will not be your test subject again!" the Resonator shouted, his normally melodic voice strained with desperation.

  "Stop fighting!" the guard growled, trying to secure Joran's wrists with restraints. "The facility is coming down around us. This pod is your only chance of survival!"

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  "I'd rather die here than serve your Protocol," Joran spat back, twisting away with surprising strength for his slight build.

  Dalia didn't hesitate. She leveled her stunner through the gap in the doorway and fired. The guard convulsed as the energy pulse struck him, then collapsed in a heap beside his unconscious colleagues.

  "Joran!" Dalia called, already working to clear the debris blocking the entrance. "It's Captain Sinclair. We're here to get you out."

  The Resonator's luminous eyes widened in surprise and relief as he spotted them. "Captain! I feared everyone had been captured or killed."

  "Not quite," Dalia replied with a grim smile as she and Finnian finally cleared enough debris to squeeze through the doorway. "We're mounting a jailbreak, and you're coming with us."

  Joran moved quickly to join them, though Dalia noted with concern that he was favoring his right leg. "You're injured," she observed.

  "A minor wound," the Resonator dismissed. "The guards were not gentle in their collection methods. But I can walk, and we must hurry. Commander Hayes has ordered the complete flooding of all lower levels. The coolant will reach critical depth in less than ten minutes.

  "Hayes appears to be coordinating the evacuation," Joran continued as they made their way back through the auxiliary power station. "I overheard the guards discussing her orders—all 'high-value assets' are to be transferred to a secondary facility near the southern border."

  "Including you," Dalia surmised.

  "And you, had they recaptured you," Joran added. "The Commander seems determined to salvage what she can of the Protocol, despite Caldwell's apparent failure."

  They reached the corridor beyond the power station to find the coolant now knee-deep and rising visibly, its chemical smell sharp in their nostrils.

  "We need to move faster," Dalia urged, noting how Joran winced with each step despite his stoic demeanor. Without asking permission, she slipped under his arm, providing support for his injured side.

  "Captain, I can—" he began to protest.

  "Save your strength," she cut him off. "We've still got to reach the east bay and rendezvous with the others."

  They pushed forward through the rising coolant, its caustic nature already beginning to eat through their boot leather. Finnian took point, leading them through a service passage that bypassed the main corridors where the flooding was most severe.

  They emerged into a storage room one level below the east bay, its shelves stocked with spare parts and maintenance equipment. The flooding hadn't yet reached this level, though warning klaxons indicated it soon would.

  "Five minutes to rendezvous," Finnian noted, checking a chronometer on his wrist.

  They made their way up one final flight of stairs and through a security door that had been forced open from the other side—Tessa's handiwork, judging by the tool marks on its locking mechanism. Beyond lay the east bay.

  Arlo spotted them first, waving frantically from beside a land skimmer he was in the process of hotwiring. "Captain! Over here!"

  Tessa and Lyra were already aboard the vehicle, the engineer keeping watch while Lyra rested in the rear passenger compartment.

  "Cutting it close," Tessa observed dryly, helping Joran into the skimmer while Dalia and Finnian climbed aboard. "Nice of you to join us."

  "Wouldn't miss it," Dalia replied with equally forced casualness.

  "Hold onto something," Dalia warned as the skimmer's engines roared to life. "This isn't exactly going to be a smooth ride."

  She wasn't exaggerating. The moment the vehicle cleared its storage bay, she pushed it to maximum acceleration, sending them hurtling toward the exit ramp as warning lights throughout the facility changed from amber to red. An amplified voice echoed through the facility: "Warning: Emergency protocols upgraded from evacuation to imminent structural failure. All personnel must evacuate immediately."

  They burst into daylight just as a series of explosions rocked the facility behind them, plumes of smoke and debris erupting from collapsing sections. The facility's emergency systems, overwhelmed by the cascading failures, had triggered a shutdown that was quickly becoming catastrophic. Dalia didn't slow down, pushing the skimmer to its limits as they raced across the rugged landscape surrounding the Northridge complex.

  In the distance, Dalia could see a convoy of Authority vehicles heading south—presumably the "high-value assets" being transported to the secondary facility Joran had mentioned. At their head, a distinctive command vehicle would likely contain Hayes and possibly Caldwell, still working to salvage what they could from the failed Protocol.

  As they put distance between themselves and the collapsing facility, the crew fell silent. Dalia glanced back at her people—each face etched with the strain of their narrow escape, but alive. The adrenaline that had carried them through was beginning to fade, leaving a bone-deep weariness in its wake.

  "I never thanked you," Dalia said finally, breaking the quiet. "Any of you. For standing with me through all of this."

  "Technically, we were assigned to the Gull," Arlo pointed out, though his tone was gentle rather than flippant. "It's not like we had a choice at first."

  "But you do now," Dalia replied. "After everything that's happened—you all have more than enough reason to walk away."

  Tessa looked up from tending to Joran's injured leg. "Where exactly would we walk to, Captain? In case you haven't noticed, we're all somewhat compromised at this point. The Academy thinks we're rogue, the Authority wants us eliminated, and we've just destroyed a secret government facility."

  "Not to mention we're all rather fond of the Gull," Arlo added with genuine affection. "She's temperamental, but she's ours."

  "The Gull is special," Dalia said quietly, her voice tinged with conviction. "Even when we don't know everything about her origins..." She trailed off, thinking of the strange connection she felt with the ship—a link that had deepened over time, becoming more intuitive. That connection had saved them more than once.

  Finnian, who had been silent until now, fixed her with his steady gaze. "The Gull was designed for a purpose, Captain. But what matters is how we choose to use her. In Caldwell's hands, she would have been something very different. In yours, she becomes something better."

  "A shield rather than a weapon," Tessa suggested. "A means of protecting rather than exploiting."

  "A home," Arlo added simply.

  Joran, who had been listening quietly, spoke with unexpected conviction despite his weakened state. "In my culture, we believe that objects retain impressions of those who use them. The Gull has known manipulation and deception, yes—but now she knows courage, loyalty, and selflessness. These new impressions will, in time, override the old."

  Dalia felt something warm unfurl in her chest—a sense of belonging, of purpose, that transcended the manipulations and betrayals that had brought them to this point.

  "What about you, Finn?" she asked the first mate, curious about the unusually forthcoming way he'd been speaking. "You were assigned to monitor the crystal and my activities. Now that the immediate threat is neutralized..."

  "My mission parameters have evolved," Finnian replied carefully. "And I find myself... personally invested in seeing this through." A rare smile softened his normally stoic features. "Besides, someone needs to ensure you don't fly us into any more trouble without proper preparation."