Ch 52: Crossroads

Kael and Mira had spent years moving forward without a destination. Now, in the quiet of Gron, they were forced to ask the question they had long avoided—What now?

Kael sat in the workshop, staring at a holographic schematic of Gron's power grid. Lora's proposal was ambitious—taking old-world infrastructure and combining it with decentralized energy production, a direct challenge to the Consortium's rigid control over technology.

It was an engineer's dream. A chance to build something instead of just tearing things apart to survive.

But the moment Kael agreed, he would be rooted here. No more running, no more chasing fragments of lost knowledge—just stability.

The idea both excited and terrified him.

"Still here?" Lora's voice pulled him from his thoughts.

Kael glanced up as she leaned against the workbench, arms crossed. She was sharp-eyed, pragmatic, and one of the few people in Gron who recognized just how much potential the city held.

"You've been staring at that schematic for a while," she noted. "Second thoughts?"

Kael hesitated before answering. "I'm used to moving."

Lora nodded as if she understood. "And yet, here you are."

He smirked. "For now."

She studied him for a moment. "Look, I won't pretend this project is some noble cause. It's business. But it's also a future. The Consortium doesn't own everything yet. We're proving that. You could be part of that."

Kael exhaled slowly. He knew she was right.

But was he ready for that kind of future?

Mira, meanwhile, paced through the outskirts of the city, lingering in the shaded alleyways near the market. She had no real destination—just the restless energy that came with too much time to think.

Voss had left his offer open-ended. No pressure, no obligation. Just a reminder that she could do something.

And yet, every time she thought about taking the job, something held her back.

She had been a soldier, an operative, a killer. And for so long, that had been enough. But in Gron, the battle she expected never came. There were no enemies waiting in the shadows, no orders to follow, no threats to eliminate.

For the first time, she felt like a weapon with no war.

And she hated it.

"Lost in thought?"

Mira tensed at the familiar voice. She turned to see Voss standing near a stack of crates, hands in his pockets.

"Thought you left," she said coolly.

Voss smirked. "Didn't say when."

She crossed her arms. "You here to push the offer again?"

"Not really," Voss admitted. "Just figured you'd still be brooding."

Mira scowled, but he wasn't wrong.

Voss took a step closer. "You and I both know what kind of people we are, Mira. Fighters don't just stop fighting."

Mira looked away. "Maybe I don't want to be that person anymore."

Voss chuckled. "You say that, but you're still here, weighing the decision."

Mira sighed, rubbing her temple.

The problem was, she did miss it. The action, the certainty, the purpose.

But purpose and survival weren't the same thing.

And she wasn't sure which one she was looking for.

That night, Kael and Mira sat in their apartment, the weight of unspoken choices hanging between them.

Mira leaned against the window, watching the city lights flicker in the distance. Kael sat at the table, a small device in his hands, fiddling with the inner circuits—his usual habit when deep in thought.

Finally, Kael spoke.

"You talk to Voss again?"

Mira didn't turn. "Yeah."

Kael set the device down. "And?"

She sighed. "I don't know. He's right about one thing—I don't do nothing well."

Kael smirked. "Could've told you that."

Mira rolled her eyes. "What about you? Decided yet?"

Kael leaned back in his chair. "Lora's project is big. The kind of thing that could matter."

Mira glanced over. "And?"

Kael exhaled. "And I don't know if I want to stay."

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then Mira turned fully to face him. "So what do we do?"

Kael met her gaze. "I think we need to stop running on instinct. Actually figure out what we want."

Mira crossed her arms. "Easier said than done."

Kael smirked. "Yeah. But we have time, don't we?"

Mira hesitated—then nodded.

For the first time in a long while, they weren't being hunted.

Maybe, just maybe, they could afford to stop and think.