The walls of the control room shuddered violently as thousands of human feet slammed against the iron gates outside. The sound of clashing metal no longer registered as a nuisance to my ears, but as percussion. A rhythm played by thousands of people who had rediscovered their own pulse.
Silas stepped back, his cold facade now showing cracks of panic. He reached for the backup lever, desperately trying to force a steam pressure release to stabilize the engines, but his efforts were futile. The massive pipes surrounding us shrieked, belching hot steam into the room like toxic fog.
You have no idea what you are doing! Silas shouted, his voice nearly swallowed by the roar of the steam. If this machine dies, this district will go pitch black forever! There will be no one to heat the homes, no
