The red alarm on Adrian's main screen wasn't just a message - it blasted like a shout from the machine.
[PRIORITY ONE ALERT: LETHAL ACTION AUTHORIZED]
[TARGET: SELENA JI.]
[OBJECTIVE: ASSET SANITIZATION.]
[ETA: 2 MINUTES, 47 SECONDS.]
For one still second, Obsidian sorted the info.
The change set off a deadly chain reaction - no surprise there.
Taking her out opens up a chance we can use
Next up, Adrian Kain's spirit - a kid just eight years old hiding behind the drapes - howled, breaking through the icy reasoning.
Frustrated, Adrian muttered under his breath - his words sharp in the still hideout.
Hands darting fast, moving like they had no time to waste. 2 and a half minutes.
She was in his sights now. All because of him - his slip, his trail left behind. Now he's stuck fixing what went wrong.
Fine, you jerks, his mind growled. If you're after shadow games - how about we kill every light?
He couldn't call for backup - so he stayed stuck. No way to reach her in time, so options ran dry.
Becoming a ghost wasn't planned… just the only move left.
He pulled up the plans for her place - the Oakwood Tower - a hulking block of concrete.
"Engage building mainframe," he commanded.
[ACCESSING… FIREWALL DETECTED: 'ELARIS MUNI-SEC 3.0.']
A quick, harsh laugh slipped out. "This ain't no firewall - more like an open invitation."
His ghost system slipped into the old software like rain seeping through cracks.
[ACCESS GRANTED.]
1 min 50 sec.
He took charge of the whole place. Not just heating or cooling - but water pipes too - also every wire inside.
Such a weak, outdated tiny empire.
He became its fresh, furious ruler.
Selena knelt, shadows of her dad's history circling close. His journal kept playing back - same line again. I made that prison piece by piece.
The tale felt way deeper, yet kind of shadowy.
She heard something. Then - a quiet bump up above. Didn't think much of it.
After that, a soft clink of metal on the fire escape.
She didn't brush it aside. Instead, her gut yelled at her. Then she stepped toward the window - checking through the slats. A quick look, nothing more.
One stood slightly ahead. Both wore flat dark suits. Moving without noise, smooth as water.
Not cops - too quiet. Not thieves - way too calm.
They seemed like hunters.
She froze inside.
They paused on her level. Then one guy pulled out a gadget, pressing it to her door.
There was a soft, squeaky noise.
They knew.
After that, everything went crazy - suddenly, a fire siren started howling nonstop, like a sharp electronic scream tearing through the air.
Fire? Not a single puff of smoke. Zero warmth at all.
The door to her apartment wouldn't budge - then it collapsed in on itself.
The lock shattered into nothing. A powerful kick sent the thick slab flying inside, ripping apart the wood around it.
Two guys slipped in, crouching low, rifles up. Smooth moves, no wasted motion.
Selena stood still. Not a tale now. Not just numbers on screen.
This was real.
60 seconds plus ten more.
"Way too slow," Adrian snapped. The alarm?
Just noise. They'd slipped in long before that.
He saw them through the hall cam.
Chaos was what he wanted next.
"System override," he commanded, his fingers a blur. "Activate fire suppression system. All floors. Maximum pressure."
[CONFIRM MAXIMUM PRESSURE OVERRIDE?]
"Confirm!" he snarled.
The first cleaner swung his gun around the space.
Got Selena Ji in sight. She's dangerous. Closing in to take her out
Just as he moved forward, rain slammed down - cold, heavy, relentless.
The sprinkler snapped on with a sharp hiss.
Then, a forceful stream of cold, reddish water crashed down.
The jolt hit like a punch. When the Cleaners stumbled back, steam clouded their masks while sparks killed their gear.
For Selena, the jolt came like a surprise. Yet it snapped her out of freeze mode.
Then, gut reflex kicked in.
She ran.
She rushed around, yanking open her satchel while tossing in her dad's notebooks and data-slates.
Water had drenched the pages - still she ignored it.
With hands shaking from panic, she jammed everything inside anyway.
Fifty seconds.
The sprinklers worked okay - still fell short. He wanted blackness.
"Kill the grid," he commanded. "Sever main power to the entire block."
He skipped the city's power grid, setting off a chain reaction.
Waves of uncontrolled electricity followed.
His screen lit up in red - seconds later, it died out.
Right when the second Cleaner cleared his visor, everything disappeared.
The flash, those red blinking strips, the bright city haze - all vanished. Then the screaming siren just stopped.
Absolute darkness.
This time she had an edge - she'd been there before.
They hadn't figured it out yet, though. Her mind moved faster than theirs.
She crawled fast on hands and feet. A shot rang out from one Cleaner - blue plasma zapped past, missing her skull by inches.
That split-second glow showed a wild scene: pair of hulking figures in masks, spinning slow, lost in darkness.
"They're coming!" a digital voice screamed in her comms bead. Ben. "Police just got an anonymous tip! Swarming the block! Get out! Now!"
The last part fell into position. Then came the alarm. Water sprayed from above. Lights cut out completely. Officers showed up right after.
That's how they got out.
A spirit. Not just any - this one messes with systems, quietly breaking how things connect.
Yet it watches over like a protector who thrives on disorder.
The noise from the alarms got nearer.
Mission's blown," a Cleaner muttered, tone strained - pull back. Right away
Selena dragged herself toward the rear exit, then slid into the dim, soaked corridor. She bolted - shoes off, clothes wet - through the emergency stairs.
She stepped right into madness - cops everywhere, flashing sirens, guys in heavy armor running around.
She tugged the hood up, hunched forward, slipping into the mob - just one more soaked, scared figure among many.
She ducked into an alley, pulse pounding like thunder. Fear didn't freeze her now - instead, it shaped her moves. One breath at a time, she changed.
She stumbled upon a dirty motel near the factory zone - somewhere she could vanish into.
She shut the door tight, wedging a chair under it.
Water dripped off her clothes while she trembled from cold.
She tipped out her bag slowly across the dirty blanket. Along came the books - then the cracked tablets. Stuff left behind by her old man.
She grabbed the old leather journal. But water damage bent its cover. Still, the ink smeared into shadows. Totally wrecked.
When she moved her thumb across the puffy cover, a strange spot caught her attention.
It wasn't smooth - something was off.
Despite being worn out, she kept digging - driven by a restless urge that just wouldn't quit.
She slid her nail beneath the leather's edge - then it came loose.
Over there, inside a tiny dipped space, sat an oilskin-covered letter. Hidden right where anyone could see.
Her hands shook. The note had her name on it - "For Selena." Written by her dad.
She ripped it apart. There, just one piece of paper lay inside.
The letters looked hurried - almost wild. Yet shaky, like someone running out of time.
My dearest Selena,
If you're seeing these words, then I didn't make it. Stay away from Althera - she's not what she seems.
There was supposed to be an escape, a way to break what we built together. Fear got in the way though. So I buried the truth instead.
Shame keeps me silent.
The last couple of lines had been underlined - like a frantic message left behind by something that wasn't quite there anymore.
The main thing isn't some code - it's buried in the burnt remains of where we started.