Julian stood in the heart of Helios Tower, the city lights flickering below, the data crystal from Valkor Spire humming in his hand.
The System was already parsing it, flooding his mind with plans, blueprints, vulnerabilities. He could almost see the Concord crumbling under the weight of his next moves.
And then, everything shattered.
Vessa burst into the command room, her face pale. "Julian, you need to see this."
Before he could speak, the main holo-wall activated, casting a giant live feed into the air.
Julian's stomach clenched.
There, bound to a chair in some dim, cold room, was Mira Chen — his old friend from tech school, one of the only people who'd believed in his original vision before the betrayal, before the fall.
Her face was bruised. Her lip was bleeding.
A masked figure stepped into frame.
"Julian Kade. We know you're watching."
The voice was electronically masked, but the intent was clear.
"Here's our offer: walk away. Surrender your System, your assets, your empire. Or Mira dies."
Julian's hands clenched into fists.
"Mira…" he whispered, memories hitting him like a punch — late nights in the lab, arguing over neural code; the way she'd stood by him even after others had laughed at his ideas; the last conversation they'd had before going separate ways, when she'd warned him about pushing too hard, too fast.
He hadn't even known she was in the city.
Nyra stormed in, fists clenched. "They want us to trade everything for one hostage? They're bluffing."
Vessa shot her a sharp look. "It's not just about Mira. This is their play to break Julian. Publicly. If he gives in, they own him. If he doesn't… they make him look heartless."
Julian exhaled slowly. His mind raced.
He could storm in, System blazing — but the moment they saw him coming, they'd kill Mira. He could try to negotiate, but they'd use the time to lock down harder. He could ignore it…
But could he live with that?
He turned sharply. "System. I need options. Now."
[Scanning…]
[Trace Signal Origin: 71% Match]
[Construct Rescue Path: Extreme Risk]
Julian's jaw tightened.
"Show me."
The holo-map filled with data.
Mira was being held in a decommissioned maglev terminal beneath the city — a massive, half-collapsed labyrinth of tunnels and maintenance shafts. Surface access was impossible; Concord agents were everywhere.
But underground…
Julian's eyes narrowed. There was a forgotten ventilation system, barely wide enough for a person, leading right to the holding chamber.
Nyra cracked her knuckles. "I can go in."
Julian shook his head. "No. If they spot any movement, Mira's dead."
Vessa leaned in. "Then what's the play?"
Julian's lips curved into a thin smile.
"I go in alone."
The tunnels were dark, damp, and filled with decaying steel.
Julian crawled through the ventilation shaft, the System feeding him constant data — structural integrity scans, temperature variations, even heartbeat readings.
The ring pulsed, reshaping itself subtly to adjust his movements, syncing his muscle responses to the tight space.
Every sound echoed like thunder.
Every heartbeat was a countdown.
Halfway there, he hit a collapse — the old ventilation tunnel had caved in, blocking the shaft completely.
Julian stared at the mass of steel and concrete.
He couldn't go back.
He couldn't go forward.
For a moment, the weight of it crushed him.
Then, the System flickered.
[Microfilament Deployment Possible]
Julian's eyes lit up.
He reached into his pack, pulling out a roll of ultra-thin carbon fiber thread — normally used for precision electrical work. Carefully, he wove it through the rubble, forming a delicate lattice, while the System calculated exact tension points.
Then, he pulsed a controlled magnetic surge through the ring.
The carbon thread snapped into rigid form, acting like a makeshift support scaffold.
Julian took a deep breath, braced himself — and crawled onto the freshly woven web. It groaned under his weight, but held. Carefully, inch by inch, he wormed his way over the rubble, sweat pouring down his back, until he reached the other side.
Finally, he reached the holding room.
Through the vent, he could see Mira — her eyes closed, her breathing shallow.
The masked figure stood beside her, weapon drawn, their attention flicking between the hostage and the live feed to the surface.
Julian's mind raced.
He couldn't drop in and disable them directly; the risk was too high. He needed a distraction.
His gaze flicked to the ceiling.
Old magnetic control conduits — part of the ancient maglev system.
Julian pulled out a compact energy pack, normally used for field equipment, and linked it to the conduit with delicate micrograspers.
"System," he whispered. "Can you hypercharge the line?"
[Calculating…]
[Hypercharge Feasible: Localized Field Surge]
"Do it."
The surge hit like lightning.
The ceiling sparked, magnetic fields distorting wildly. Metal chairs levitated slightly, weapons jammed, and the masked figure staggered back in shock.
Julian didn't wait.
He kicked the vent open, dropped into the room, and slammed the figure with a precision neural pulse — just enough to knock them out cold.
Mira's eyes flew open. "Julian?"
He gave her a wild grin. "Hey, Mira. Long time no see."
They ran.
Julian's path out wasn't the tunnels — the magnetic surge had already started chain reactions underground, collapsing sections behind them. Instead, he tapped into the System, mapping an escape route upward — straight through a forgotten elevator shaft, using a series of linked grappler coils and kinetic jumps.
They shot upward, narrowly dodging falling debris, until they burst onto the surface.
Nyra was waiting in a skimmer, her grin fierce.
Vessa pulled Mira into the vehicle, scanning her quickly for injuries.
Julian collapsed into the seat, gasping, heart pounding.
He'd done it.
But as the city stretched before him, lit by thousands of neon lights, he realized: the Concord hadn't just wanted to break him with Mira.
They'd wanted to distract him.
Back at Helios Tower, the alarm sirens wailed.
Julian's empire had been hit.
Hard.