Roaring tongues of orange flame and suffocating clouds of black smoke billowed from the subterranean stairwell leading down into the Central Silo Records Vault.
"The thermal sensors inside the lower vault indicate military-grade thermite charges burning through the archive cabinets," Jax reported, analyzing the structural scan data on his portable terminal.
"Those chemical incendiaries burn at over four thousand degrees and consume steel filing drawers in seconds," Lieutenant Zhao added, checking the temperature spikes.
"Those paper archives contain the unredacted contracts of fifty corrupt Directorate ministers who financed Holt's operations," Vasa shouted over the roar of the fire, her eyes blazing with determination.
"If those records burn to ash, those corrupt officials will escape justice and continue enslaving northern families," Diana added, coughing as the acrid smoke drifted across the courtyard.
