Chapter 45 — The Collapse of Control
The city didn’t sleep after the docks.
It roared.
By sunrise, every major network had the footage.
Reinhardt — escorted out of a private warehouse under floodlights, face exposed, composure fractured. Armed men detained. Media vans swarming like vultures.
And in the background of multiple frames—
Amara.
Standing.
Unflinching.
The narrative had shifted overnight.
Not completely.
But enough.
Morning — Operations Base
The atmosphere inside headquarters was different now.
Not fear.
Momentum.
Lucia paced near the central console, scanning live feeds and legal updates simultaneously. “Three Council members have gone into emergency session. Two are distancing themselves publicly. One has issued a statement condemning ‘reckless endangerment of i
