The inside of the command center was cooler than the streets outside, maintained by what Felix recognized as a sophisticated climate control system that had been retrofitted to run on Mana cores instead of traditional power. The architecture spoke of pre-apocalypse luxury, marble floors now cracked and patched with concrete, walls that had once held expensive art now covered with tactical maps and duty rosters.
Ashley led them through a security checkpoint where guards with a mixture of conventional weapons and Mana-enhanced gear scrutinized every visitor. One of them, a heavyset cyborg with a metal jaw and glowing optics, stopped them with a raised hand.
"Ashley Chen. Back already?" His voice had a metallic rasp to it, probably from whatever injury had necessitated the jaw replacement.
"Thought you were scheduled for a three-day perimeter sweep."
"Found something more important than routine patrol, Briggs." She gestured at Felix.
"This is Felix Brixton. He needs to see the Council immediately."
Briggs' optical sensors focused on Felix with an intensity that made him feel like he was being scanned down to the molecular level. Which, given the technology available, he probably was. "Brixton. That name's in the historical database. You're supposed to be dead."
"I was asleep," Felix replied. "There's a difference."
The guard's expression didn't change, but something in his posture relaxed slightly. "Fair enough."
"Council's in session right now actually, discussing resource allocation for the eastern expansion project."
"You'll have to wait until they break, which could be anywhere from ten minutes to three hours depending on how much Senator Morrison is arguing today."
"It can't wait," Cyber interjected smoothly.
"Felix has critical information regarding Mana corruption patterns and potential countermeasures. Information that could change everything we know about fighting the machines."
That got Briggs' attention. His hand moved to a communication device on his collar, and he spoke quietly into it for a few moments.
Whatever response he received made him nod and step aside. "You're cleared to go up. Third floor, main conference room. Don't make me regret fast-tracking you."
They took an elevator that creaked ominously but functioned well enough, rising through the building until they reached a floor that had clearly been converted into Haven's nerve center. People moved with purpose through corridors lined with monitoring stations and communication hubs. Felix caught glimpses of screens showing live feeds from the barrier generators, patrol routes marked on 3D maps of the surrounding ruins, and what looked like a real-time corruption level tracker that measured the intensity of Mana distortion in different zones.
The conference room doors were heavy reinforced steel, probably salvaged from a bank vault or military installation. Sarah pushed them open without ceremony, and the conversation inside immediately stopped as all eyes turned to the newcomers.
Seven people sat around a large table made from welded metal plates, each one marked with symbols indicating their position. At the head of the table sat a woman in her sixties with iron-gray hair pulled back in a severe bun. Her eyes were sharp and calculating, taking in Felix's appearance with the kind of assessment that missed nothing.
"Lieutenant Chen," the woman said, her voice carrying authority that came from years of command.
"Your patrol wasn't due back for another two days. I assume you have a good reason for this interruption."
"Yes, Councilor Zhang." Sarah stepped aside to let Felix move forward.
"We encountered a Titan-class corrupted machine approximately eight kilometers from Haven's outer perimeter."
"It was destroyed with minimal casualties, but more importantly, we recovered someone from the old world. Someone who might be able to help us finally understand the Mana corruption at its source."
The room erupted into murmurs. A younger man with a shaved head and intricate tattoos covering his arms leaned forward, his eyes glowing faintly with Mana energy.
"You're saying this is an actual survivor from before the outbreak? Not a descendant, but someone who was there?"
"Felix Brixton," Felix introduced himself, deciding directness was probably the best approach.
"Chief Engineer of the Mana Integration Project. I went into stasis fifteen years before the corruption event, and I just woke up today. So yes, I was there. I helped create the system that destroyed the world."
The silence that followed was heavy enough to feel like a physical presence. Felix watched the Council members exchange glances, processing what he'd just told them. Finally, Councilor Zhang spoke again, her tone carefully neutral.
"That's quite a claim, Mister Brixton. I'm sure you understand we'll need to verify your identity and your knowledge before we can take you seriously."
"I expected nothing less," Felix replied. "Run whatever tests you need."
"Scan my augmentations, check my DNA against historical records if you have them, quiz me on technical specifications that only someone from the original project would know. I'm not trying to deceive anyone."
A woman to Zhang's right, younger with dark skin and engineer's calluses on her hands, pulled up a holographic display from a device embedded in the table. "I'm Councilor Reeves, head of the Engineering Division."
"If you're really Felix Brixton, you should be able to tell me the resonance frequency required to stabilize a Class-Three Mana core."
Felix didn't even have to think about it. "Trick question. Class-Three cores don't have a single stable frequency. They oscillate between 2.7 and 3.2 terahertz depending on ambient temperature and local Mana density."
"That's why they were never approved for field deployment. The variance was too unpredictable."
Reeves' eyes widened. "That information isn't in any of our surviving databases. We've been trying to figure out why Class-Three cores keep failing during stress tests for the past decade."
"Because you're probably trying to lock them at a single frequency instead of letting them oscillate naturally," Felix explained.
"The variance isn't a flaw, it's a feature. The cores are self-regulating, adjusting their output to prevent overload. If you force them into a fixed frequency, you're fighting against their inherent design."
Another Council member, an older man with white hair and a mechanical arm, chuckled. "Either he's the real deal or he's the best-informed con artist in two centuries."
"I'm inclined to believe the former." He extended his functional hand toward Felix.
"Councilor Hendricks, Defense Force Commander. Welcome to Haven, Mister Brixton. We've been waiting a long time for someone like you."
"Someone like me?" Felix accepted the handshake, noting the strength in the old man's grip.
"Someone who understands the theory behind all this chaos," Hendricks explained, gesturing at the windows overlooking Haven.
"We've learned to survive through trial and error, adapting to Mana through pure necessity. But we don't really understand it."
"Not the way you do. Every advance we make is basically educated guesswork, and every failure costs lives."
Councilor Zhang raised a hand, bringing the room back to order. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Mister Brixton, assuming we accept your identity, what exactly do you propose to do here?"
"We're not a research facility. We're a survival settlement barely holding on against forces that want to tear us apart."
Felix took a breath, organizing his thoughts. This was the moment that mattered, the pitch that would determine whether he got the resources to actually make a difference or spent the rest of his life as a historical curiosity.
"You've survived by learning to channel Mana through human biology," he began.
"Your Wielders are living proof that organic systems can stabilize Mana in ways artificial systems cannot. But you're limited by human capacity."
"A Wielder can only channel so much energy before exhaustion or injury. What I'm proposing is a hybrid system that combines biological and technological approaches."
He walked to the holographic display and started sketching diagrams with his fingers, the interface responding smoothly to his inputs. "Imagine armor that doesn't just protect but actively channels and amplifies a Wielder's abilities."
"Weapons that learn from their users, adapting their Mana output to match individual fighting styles. Defensive barriers powered by both human intent and machine efficiency, strong enough to expand Haven's protected zone by orders of magnitude."
The Council members leaned forward, watching as his sketches took shape into coherent designs. Felix felt the old excitement returning, the thrill of solving impossible problems through engineering and innovation.
"More than that," he continued, warming to his subject, "if we can create stable hybrid systems, we can start reclaiming corrupted technology."
"Imagine being able to purify corrupted machines instead of just destroying them. Turning the enemy's forces into resources we can use to rebuild. It would change everything."
"How long would this take?" Zhang asked, her skepticism giving way to cautious interest. "And what would you need?"
"Six months for initial prototypes," Felix estimated. "Access to your Engineering Division's facilities and research data."
"A team of your best Wielders willing to work with me on testing and refinement. Raw materials salvaged from corrupted machines for experimentation."
"And most importantly, the freedom to fail. Not every experiment will work, and some might fail spectacularly."
Councilor Reeves was practically vibrating with excitement. "This could solve dozens of our persistent problems. Power stability, equipment longevity, expansion capabilities—"
"It could also be a waste of time and resources," interrupted another Council member Felix hadn't been introduced to yet, a thin man with suspicious eyes.
"Senator Morrison, I presume?" Felix guessed, remembering what Briggs had said about arguments.
"Councilor Morrison," the man corrected coldly. "And yes, I'm the one who asks the questions everyone else is too excited to consider."
"What if your hybrid systems just create new forms of corruption?"
"What if teaching machines to interact with Mana gives them a way to corrupt Wielders?"
"You've already destroyed the world once with your innovations, Mister Brixton. Why should we trust you not to finish the job?"
The accusation hung in the air, and Felix met Morrison's gaze steadily. "You shouldn't trust me. Not blindly."
"That's why everything I do will be documented, reviewed, and tested under controlled conditions. I'm not asking for blind faith."
"I'm asking for a chance to make things right, with proper oversight and safety protocols."
Zhang looked around the table, reading the reactions of her fellow Council members. "This warrants further discussion, but not today."
"Mister Brixton, you'll be assigned quarters and given provisional access to our technical archives."
"Councilor Reeves, arrange a formal assessment of his capabilities for tomorrow morning. We'll reconvene in three days to make a final decision on resource allocation."
She stood, signaling the meeting's end. "Welcome to Haven, Mister Brixton."
"I hope you prove to be the asset we need rather than the liability Councilor Morrison fears. Time will tell."
As they filed out of the conference room, Ashley clapped Felix on the shoulder. "That went better than I expected. You didn't even get arrested."
"Is that a real possibility?" Felix asked, only half joking.
"In Haven? Anything's a possibility," Marco said cheerfully.
"But hey, you've got three days to prove you're worth keeping around. No pressure or anything."
Felix looked at Cyber, who gave him a small nod of encouragement. Three days to demonstrate value. Six months to create miracles. A lifetime to atone for the apocalypse.
He'd faced worse odds before. Probably. He hoped.
"Alright then," he said, more to himself than anyone else.
"Let's get to work."