All the way

Lyra raised an eyebrow. The heliport towers were near the border of sectors—half-built skyscrapers that a bankrupt corp left to rot. It was risky since it edged near areas still monitored by corporate surveillance, but perhaps precisely why they'd assume fugitives would avoid it.

"Do it," she agreed, trusting Jax's gut.

The van sped through the labyrinth of streets. Eris navigated by both instinct and uplink, routing them around police barricades that were cropping up. Once, they had to hide under an overpass as a heavy armored patrol rumbled by on the next street.

Finally, the looming silhouettes of the unfinished heliport towers came into view against the darkening afternoon sky. Eris guided the van down into a deserted underground parking structure beneath one of the towers. The space was empty save for concrete pillars and construction detritus. She killed the headlights and parked behind a pile of steel beams.

For a moment, none of them moved, listening for any sign of pursuit. All they heard was the ping of the van's cooling engine and their own heartbeats.

Jax finally exhaled. "I think we lost them."

Lyra slumped back against the interior wall, the adrenaline slowly ebbing. Her hands trembled slightly as she set down the submachine gun. They had managed to escape, but that had been far too close. She looked over at Eris in the driver's seat. The hacker's face was pale, her violet hair sticking to her forehead with sweat. Yet she flashed a shaky smile at Lyra. "I knew I kept those drones countermeasures around for a reason."

Lyra mustered a grin in return. "Remind me to thank you properly when we're not fighting for our lives."

Jax cracked the side door just enough to peer out. Seeing and hearing nothing concerning, he opened it fully. "Let's move upstairs before they start scanning with aerials. The top floors should be safe for a while."

They gathered what gear they could carry. Eris winced looking at a bullet gouge in one of her monitors and sighed, slinging her salvageable electronics bag over her shoulder. "Up we go then."

Inside the tower, it was dark and skeletal. Exposed girders and half-finished concrete walls greeted them. They found a stairwell lit faintly by the light coming through missing sections of wall. Each footstep echoed as they climbed.

Around the 20th floor, Jax signaled a stop. "This should be high enough." They stepped out onto a vast open floor that would have been office space, now just a windswept expanse with scattered construction materials. A portion of the exterior wall was open to the elements, giving a panoramic view of the city.

Lyra walked over to the edge carefully. A waist-high barrier was the only thing between her and a long drop. Beyond, the city stretched out in a chaotic tapestry of concrete and neon. In the distance, she could see the Prysm-Sek arcology tower they'd escaped barely a day ago, now just another shining spire among many, lit up in corporate blues and silvers even in daytime gloom.

Eris set down her equipment with a clatter and immediately started checking her devices. "I'm going to re-establish a secure link to the shard data. Give me a few minutes."

Jax rolled his shoulders and went to stand near Lyra at the opening, his eyes scanning the horizon and the skies for any sign of hostile craft. For now, the clouds and the height kept them concealed.

Lyra felt the wind on her face, cooling the sweat and grime. They had survived another battle. But Noel was still out there, and time was ticking fast.

Jax broke the silence softly. "How are you holding up?"

Lyra didn't answer immediately. She flexed her hands, trying to release the tension coiled in her muscles. "Honestly? I'm terrified," she admitted. "Not of them"—she jerked her head toward the city at large, implying the corporation—"but of failing. Of being too late to save him."

Jax looked at her, the hardened lines of his face gentling for once. "I won't lie; this is about as dire as it gets. But if anyone can pull off the impossible, it's us three."

Lyra managed a small smile. "We have a habit of beating the odds, huh?"

He nudged her shoulder lightly. "Damn right. And Noel... he's tough. He'll hold on until we get there."

She nodded, hope mixing with fear in her chest. "He always was the stubborn one," she said, voice catching slightly. "When they took him, I... I felt like part of me died that day."

Jax lowered his gaze. "I know. I felt it too. We all did. That's why we'll get him back. Not just because of some mission or duty, but because he's family."

Lyra swallowed the lump in her throat and placed her hand over Jax's, which rested on the barrier. She squeezed it lightly, gratefully. "Thank you. For coming back for me. For this. I never said it."

Jax shook his head. "You don't have to thank me. I should have been there from the start. I'm sorry I let you go in alone."

Lyra knew there was no time to unravel the past, but she appreciated the sentiment. "We'll argue about that later. Once Noel's safe."

He nodded, a fierce determination in his eyes. "Deal."

Behind them, Eris cleared her throat. "Hate to interrupt the heart-to-heart, but I have something."

They turned and moved back toward the makeshift camp where Eris had her laptop open and connected to a small satellite uplink dish pointed out through the opening. Eris's face was lit by the glow of her screen.

"I accessed some city records and cross-referenced with the coordinates we got. There's a decommissioned cold storage facility along the river—used to belong to a biotech firm that went under. It's likely our 'Site Theta'." She pulled up a rough map on screen, showing a cluster of warehouses near the docks. "I also finished decrypting a chunk of the security manifest from the shard. They have a security contingent of about twenty personnel on rotating shifts there, plus drones. Possibly a mech unit, but not sure. It's not as fortified as the arcology, but it's no cakewalk."

Jax studied the map. "Entrances? Exits?"

"Main gate here, loading dock here," Eris pointed. "But there's also sewer access below and maintenance shafts that lead to the river. If we approach carefully, we might bypass some exterior guards."

Lyra took in the layout. It was doable with a good plan. "When do we move?"

Eris looked at them both seriously. "Tonight. We should scout now, hit them under cover of darkness. We can't wait until tomorrow when they plan to move Noel. They might accelerate plans if they realize how much we know."

Lyra agreed wholeheartedly. Every fiber of her being wanted to rush there immediately, but caution tempered her urge. "We need gear. Better weapons, EMPs for drones, something to get Noel out of cryo maybe."

"I can source some stuff from a contact in the black market," Jax said. "The Gunsel down in South End owes me. It's a risk, but worth it."

Eris cracked her knuckles. "I can cook up a virus to disable their security grid if I get close enough to plug in. Or maybe pre-load a spike on your approach."

Lyra placed a hand on Eris's shoulder. "You've already done so much."

Eris flashed a quick grin. "Hey, can't let you two have all the fun."

The three shared a brief moment of camaraderie, standing in the husk of a building, plotting to take on a corporate fortress for the sake of one of their own. The odds were long, but they'd faced long odds before.

Jax pulled a ration bar from a pocket and split it, handing pieces to Lyra and Eris. "Eat. You'll need your strength."

Lyra realized she hadn't eaten since... she couldn't even remember. As she chewed the bland bar, she looked out once more at the city. The daylight was waning, dusk beginning to tint the edges of the clouds. Another night was coming, and with it, their chance to save Noel.

Eris finished her piece and wiped her hands. "I'll keep working on the data, see if there's anything we missed that could help. Maybe an override code for the cryo unit or a schedule we can exploit."

Jax nodded. "I'll head down quietly and see if I can get in touch with my arms dealer contact, get us equipped without drawing attention."

Lyra straightened, a renewed sense of purpose fueling her second wind. "And I'll prep our approach route and contingencies." She rolled her shoulders, ignoring the persistent aches that lingered. They didn't matter. Only Noel did.

Night fell fully as they finalized their plans and prepared to move. The trio stood together at the edge of the rooftop, beneath the first glimmering stars struggling to be seen past the city's haze. Below, the world carried on oblivious to the quiet revolution brewing above.

Lyra looked at Jax and Eris in turn. "This is it. We do this smart, we do this together, and we get Noel back."

"Together," Jax affirmed, chambering a fresh round in his rifle.

"All the way," Eris added, packing up the last of her gear.

With that, they slipped away from the rooftop vantage one by one, disappearing into the night to ready themselves for the battle ahead.