~Cassandra ~
“Arrival at the Citadel Gates”
The horizon bleeds.
Steel fangs rise from the earth Vael’s Citadel, an obsidian fortress wrapped in signal scramblers and plasma-thorn gates. It looks less like a building and more like history’s tomb.
In the van, silence reigns. No music. No jokes. Only the clatter of weapons and breaths held in memory.
Elion breaks it. “Satellite feed’s still dead. Echo Protocol’s our only path in.”
Vael Prime hands me a receiver. “You ready to burn what’s left of you?”
I glance at him. “Not burn. Archive.”
---
(Flashback — Milo’s POV)
“The Ghost Deal”
Three days before the signal drop, I met with Adviser Pyrrha from Sector 12. A neutral zone. A neutral face. But not a neutral mind.
She sipped blackfire tea, eyes gleaming. “You want Sector 12’s elit
