"Lock the perimeter and secure the gates."
Magnus Mace shouted the hoarse order to his Vanguard soldiers. The giant mercenary rubbed his temples. The synthetic acoustic weapon had scrambled his equilibrium.
Ryan Parker stepped through the fractured glass doors of the Royal Grand Opera House.
The heavy brass doors shut behind him with a dull thud. He left the synthetic clone standing alone in the freezing plaza. The physical acoustic war was won.
Ryan walked down the long velvet corridor toward the main auditorium. He adjusted the lapels of his midnight blue suit. He had successfully defended his physical temple.
Two billion global viewers awaited his final strike. The compilation album was queued on the master servers.
The familiar golden light of the System interface vanished from h
