The maintenance conduit smelled like a robot's graveyard.
Damp, metallic, and full of forgotten things that probably wanted to kill them.
Michael moved through the oppressive dark, the only light coming from the faint, tactical glows of their gear.
It was tight in here. Claustrophobic.
He could practically feel the thousands of tons of concrete and steel above them, a silent, crushing weight.
"Well, this is cozy," Jax's cheerful voice whispered in his ear, a stark contrast to the tomb-like silence. "Reminds me of my first apartment. Less rats, though. So far."
"Focus," Chloe's voice commanded, a crisp, clean line of pure logic cutting through the gloom.
Jinx was on point, moving with a silent, practiced grace that made Michael feel like a clumsy elephant in a library.
She reached the first security door, a slab of reinforced steel that looked like it could survive a direct hit from a bunker buster.
She didn't even hesitate.
