I retraced my steps in the dim light of the Veins, every hallway and stairwell folding into the next like a hall of mirrors. The ledger's revelations clawed at my mind, fragments of betrayal and manipulation snapping into place. Every route I'd taken, every "choice" I'd made, every ally I'd leaned on it had all been anticipated.
A faint hum vibrated through the walls, low and unyielding, as if the city itself was breathing mechanically. My boots scuffed over uneven concrete, echoing against the chamber walls. Somewhere distant, metal groaned under pressure.
I stopped, pressed my back to the cold stone. The patterns were obvious now. The Syndicate didn't just react; it orchestrated. Doors that closed moments before I passed. Shadows that shifted too perfectly. A stray rat? Or someone waiting, calculating. Nothing had been random. Nothing had been mine.
I muttered to myself, voice dry and sharp. "Guess I'm the rat who thought he dug the maze. Joke's on me."
The hum shifted, a low vibration underfoot, and I froze. A subtle click echoed somewhere deeper locks resetting, mechanisms whirring. I imagined eyes, everywhere and nowhere, tracing every twitch, every hesitation.
My chest tightened, but not with panic. Focus. Calculated, methodical. Survival wasn't about breaking rules. Survival was recognizing them and bending within their lines without breaking. I let the dark humor slide over my thoughts like a protective skin.
The ledger's codes, the Syndicate's ledger of betrayals, the whispers from the Veins they were a map. Not to freedom, but to understanding. I could navigate this web, but I had to remember: every exit was accounted for, every path rigged. I wasn't just in the game. I was part of its architecture, whether I liked it or not.
I exhaled slowly, letting the reality settle. Fear could paralyze, but clarity cut sharper. I moved forward, boots dragging lightly over the wet patches, eyes scanning, brain ticking. The maze wasn't ending. It was only beginning, and I had just realized I'd been running in the wrong direction all along.