<Tower Bootcamp/>

In a blink, silver fluid shimmered from the back of his neck, flowing over his body with unnatural smoothness until he was fully armored. His MOD-issue gear gleamed like liquid mercury under the soft light.

I watched silently, eyes narrowing. That was the first time I'd seen his armor in action, and it screamed tech centuries ahead of what any standard enforcer could get their hands on. I'd been curious before about the MOD families, but seeing Zane activate gear that responded like it was coded directly into his neurons? Yeah, that cranked my curiosity into overdrive.

Before I could comment, a voice rang out.

The rest of the squad stepped off behind him, cautiously, each of them on edge. Then it happened.

A mechanical voice sliced through the air, clean and precise like surgical steel.

"Welcome to Tower Bootcamp. You are participants in Batch 3,872. Please select your pathway number to move forward."

Everyone went still.

"Bootcamp?" I muttered. "What is this, a tutorial level?"

"No," Cason said, his helmet retracting with a hiss. His brow furrowed. "Do not be deceived. It could be a trap. GAIA warned not to trust the Tower blindly."

For once, I agreed with him.

His words were followed by a beat of silence. The air felt heavier, charged. We waited—listening for traps, shifts in pressure, changes in lighting. Nothing.

I scanned the walls. No visible cameras, but I was willing to bet my system was being pinged harder than a public hotspot.

Ten seconds passed. No attack. No drones. Just eerie quiet and flickering lights from the tunnels.

Then, without warning, the glowing numerals above the tunnels flickered and dimmed.

"Let me go first," I said, not because I was feeling brave, but because I wanted control of the narrative. "I'll test the waters."

That earned me a skeptical glance from Nova. I ignored her.

"Noah," Cason spoke. "Try to be stealth."

"Relax, I'm not sending in the nukes. Just poking the beast."

I raised my hand, snapping my fingers. Hexagonal patterns spiraled in the air as I summoned five Recon Drones — matte black, disk-shaped, with glowing cyan eyes like digital hornets. They hovered above me, silent and hungry.

"Check each tunnel," I said, transmitting a command via thought.

I sent each of them toward a different tunnel—silent, low, their optical sensors sweeping the area. They zipped off like phantoms.

The voice returned immediately.

"Warning. Warning."

The mechanical voice returned, this time sharper, colder.

"Battle drone detected."

"Disengage immediately. Weaponry and external equipment are not to be activated inside the Rest Zone. Penalty will be imposed."

A high-pitched whine screeched through the air. Then —

Zzzrrkt! FWHMP!

A lance of red-hot energy slammed into each drone mid-air. Not exploded. Disintegrated. One frame-by-frame moment they were whole, and the next they were ash in the air, like they'd been erased from existence by a god with a delete key.

I blinked, then exhaled slowly through my nose.

"Well," I said, tilting my head, "someone has control issues."

Gaius stared. "What the hell was that?"

"The penalty," I said flatly, shaking the faint sting from my wrist. My system had felt the forced de-sync. Like a slap.

Zane turned toward me. "It considers drones a threat."

"Well, it's got taste," I muttered. "That disintegration beam was overkill, though."

"What now?" Gaius asked, cracking his neck.

"We play the Tower's game," I said, eyes narrowing. "Five tunnels. One way forward. Four, I'm guessing, with consequences."

"Or all five with consequences," Cason added grimly.

"Same odds as dating in high school," I replied, stepping forward. "Only with less heartbreak and more murder."

Everyone stared at me like I'd just grown a second head. I met their looks with a dry smile—half in amusement.

Zane raised a hand. "We go in teams. Two at a time. No weapons drawn, no powers, no summoned drones. Not until we know the rules."

"What if the rules are there are no rules?" Nova said, her voice smooth and detached—like she was entertaining a theory, not asking a question.

Zane's armor flexed. "Then we adapt."

"Let's divide into teams based on our original squads from here on out," Cason said, his voice level but commanding.

"I couldn't agree more," Gaius added with a cocky grin, already stepping into place like it was second nature.

The split happened fast. No objections, no wasted time.

Zane drifted toward Tunnel IV without a word—he didn't need one. The weight of his presence said enough: follow, or get out of the way.

Cason and Conrad peeled off toward Tunnel III, all precision and cold calculation, the strategist to the bone.

Genesis hesitated, clearly angling to follow Cason, until her twin Gaius leaned in with a sharp whisper and that easy smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Whatever he said worked—she fell in line beside him, and the two headed for Tunnel II.

Meanwhile, Nova and one of her flawless, clone-stamped squadmates strolled to Tunnel V like they were selecting a private lounge, not walking into the unknown.

That left Tunnel I.

And me.

Of course.

Mimi trailed behind, clearly assigned to partner with me. I shot a quick glance her way. She met my eyes with a small nod—no complaint, no comment.

I clenched my jaw. I'd been planning to move solo—get in, get out, and gather what I needed without deadweight or witnesses. But now wasn't the time to push back.

Not yet.

I'd have to adapt. Fast.

Find a way to ditch the plus-one once we were past the gate. I had a mission to finish. Secrets to uncover. And I couldn't do that with someone watching my every move.

Not when GAIA was already watching too.

The silence stretched as long as the shadows across the chamber. We stood on the circular platform, uncertain, surrounded by five tunnels marked with glowing Roman numerals: I through V. The clean geometry of the space was deceptively serene—too orderly to be safe.

Then, without a word, the assigned teams started to move.

First was Nova, stepping down gracefully from the platform. She didn't so much walk as glide, her poise making the rest of us look like fumbling amateurs. Zane followed her lead, nodding toward Gaius. "Pair up," he said curtly. "Two per path. We spread out, we cover ground."

Gaius rolled his neck with a grin. "Finally, something fun."

"Define fun," I muttered, releasing a low sigh. I hung back, observing.

As pairs stepped off the platform, the numbers above the tunnel entrances lit up one after another, flickering like old neon signs waking from slumber. Then came the voice again. Crisp. Emotionless. Too precise to be human.

"Please select your pathway. Eligibility will be determined based on affinity."

"What now?" Cason frowned beneath his visor.

Just as he spoke, holographic interface panels burst to life above each tunnel, floating midair. Rows of pulsing data streamed down in an elegant cascade of code and glyphs.

WELCOME PARTICIPANTS. TO ENTER, YOU MUST MEET THE REQUIRED QUOTA AND CONDITIONS FOR THIS PATHWAY.

SCANNING INITIATED. STAND BY.

A faint hum filled the chamber like the throat-clearing of some ancient machine. The floor beneath us vibrated with mechanical intent.