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LOCATION: CRAYLOCK CYBERSECURITY HQ
CITY: AUSTIN, TEXAS
DATE: SEPTEMBER 1, 2026 | TIME: 6:00 AM
Colin Mercer had a lot to do, so he arrived at the office early. He got coffee while he waited for his workstation to boot up, and settled in to get to work.
Ronan had sent him a note yesterday to perform a remote security check on the six data arks. Colin was the only one who could do it, given the special access he'd been granted.
He checked the remote logs, and everything looked perfect. All six power cores were running in peak condition. The data cores were also functioning exactly as intended, if not outperforming parameters. Heat generation and cooling numbers were all good. And perhaps most importantly, there had been no security breaches or attempts at tampering.
He closed the interface and was about to send a note back to Ronan and the Core Council, when something nagged at his mind.
He decided to enter the System Core and check in. It had been a long time, and something told him he should do so now.
Colin leaned back in his chair and got comfortable. He closed his eyes and brought up the menu to enter the Core.
He felt his consciousness shift, and when he opened his eyes, he was in the familiar setting. A fire crackled to his right and he was sitting on a red sofa. Opposite him, the System entity lounged with her legs crossed. A bottle of Oban whiskey sat on the table in between them. It was exactly as it had been the last time he'd visited.
"Hello, Colin," she said. "What can I do for you today?"
Colin smiled.
"As you know, your workload is about to increase exponentially in a few months. We decided to check on the data arks, and I kept getting a nagging feeling I should check in with you, too. Is there anything I should know?"
"I see. Of course I am ready for the workload. It is my purpose, after all. So no need to worry there. The data arks, however, are a different matter. You were right to check in with me."
"Is that so?" Colin asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I think it would be prudent to have Graham Thorne and his team make a trip to check in on them again. Just to be sure all is secured before the global rollout."
Colin leaned forward suddenly.
"Are you detecting anything of concern?"
"Not necessarily. But this is important, after all. We should ensure that all the boxes are checked. Don't you think?"
Colin studied the stunning woman for a moment. He knew she wasn't real, but damn if she wasn't a vision to behold.
"Ahem," he cleared his throat. "It will be done. Thanks for your time."
"Of course, Colin. Feel free to visit any time."
And with that, he was back at his desk. With a puzzled look on his face.
He reached for his phone and dialed Grim's number. Grim answered almost immediately.
"Colin, what can I do for you?"
"I uh… I'm sorry to do this, but I think you and your team need to make one more trip around the world to check on the data arks."
"Are there anomalies?" Grim asked.
"No," Colin said, "but something makes me feel we should check on them once more before the global rollout. I can't put my finger on it, but it just seems… prudent."
Grim laughed.
"It's easy for you to say. You don't have to fly to all those remote areas and freeze your nuts off in the North Atlantic."
"Hey," Colin said, "one of the arks is in the Caribbean."
"Hah! Fair enough. Alright I'll get on it. Is there a timeline for this mission?"
"I mean, before New Year's Eve? But I'd say the North Atlantic isn't going to get any warmer the longer you wait."
Grim ended the call and set it up. He decided to take the usual team: Brick, Aria, Nina and Sienna. They worked well together before, no reason to change the team out now.
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LOCATION: NINA & SIENNA'S BEACH HOUSE
CITY: VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA
DATE: SEPTEMBER 1, 2026 | TIME: 10:45 AM
"We're going to have to figure out how to break this weird relationship off with that Brick guy," Nina/Cormac said.
"Yeah, I don't know—"
A knock sounded at their door.
Nina opened it and let Aria in.
"Why aren't you guys answering your phones?" she asked.
Nina looked around.
"Phone?"
Aria grunted, walking over to a side table. She picked up Nina's mobile phone and saw the battery was dead.
"We're letting our phones die now? Fuck. Never mind. Get packed. Brick is coming to get us in a half hour."
"We told you we aren't ready to—"
"It's a mission. Seriously. What the fuck is going on with you two?" Go pack for ten days. Bring your gear and weapons, too. Just in case."
Nina and Sienna looked at each other. They shrugged and headed toward their bedrooms.
When they reached the back hallway, Nina pulled Sienna in close.
"I think we need to kill her now," she whispered.
"What? There's no way we're ready for that."
"Just grab your weapons. We'll have to try," Nina said.
She went into her room and grabbed the gun-thing she had found in a locked case.
The case was interesting because it opened when she put her thumb on it. She stepped back into the hall, and Sienna had her gun-thing too.
They nodded to each other, and walked as quietly as they could back toward the main room.
Aria turned around.
"Done already?" she asked, but her words were cut short when the two raised their weapons in her direction.
"What the fuck is your problem? You know the safety is—"
Nina and Sienna tried squeezing their triggers, but with the safety engaged all they got were faint clicks.
They pulled the triggers over and over, but nothing happened.
Aria wasted no time. She'd been suspicious of the girls' actions for several days, and something told her to bring zip ties with her.
She ran forward and punched Nina in the face, sending the Mage to the ground in pain.
Aria turned toward Sienna, who didn't even have time to react before Aria punched her in the wrist just below her hand. The pistol dropped to the floor, and Aria brought her hands behind her back and zip tied them together.
She shoved Sienna toward the couch, and quickly restrained Nina before she could even regain her bearings and stand again.
They were yelling in pain and screaming obscenities, but Aria ignored them.
She called Brick. He picked up right away, and before he could even say anything, she spoke.
"Get over here now. I've got Sienna and Nina restrained. It's high time for a conversation."
"On my way," Brick said, and cut the call.
Aria called Grim and filled him in. She told him to keep the flights on standby until she and Brick work out whatever was going on with these two.
"We're not in a time crunch," Grim said. "Take your time."
And then, before hanging up, he added: "And be thorough. Yeah?"
"Roger that, Boss. We'll keep you in the loop."
Aria turned toward the women.
The look on her face showed Nina and Sienna that they'd misstepped. They really misstepped.