Chloe's route entered the administrative block through a maintenance stairwell behind the old language rooms. The fortress had sealed the public corridor with filing cabinets from both directions. Nobody had guarded a door that opened into a closet full of broken projectors.
Nox went first because the route belonged to somebody he had trusted for less than an hour. Yeda followed close enough to cut across his shoulder, while Kendra and Vasa brought Chloe through the narrow space behind them.
The library occupied the floor below, separated from the stairwell by concrete and a row of ventilation grilles. Voices traveled upward through the metal, distorted but clear enough when the speakers believed every nearby door was locked.
"Two positions on the landing, both human and neither moving," Yeda whispered, keeping her wrapped blade near the wall.
"Fortress guards who watch the main stairs during collections," Chloe said, lowering her voice.
