Chapter 72: Blood-Chained
Sylvie knew better than to believe in simplicity, especially when the Codex was involved. The only certainty was that once they set foot on Edrion, nothing would go according to plan.
Sylvie adjusted her visor, syncing it with the tactical readout on her wrist. The overlay displayed the maze of corridors, automated defenses, and enemy patrol patterns. Every breath she took was deliberate, measured, a reminder of her training as a Codex operative—training she now turned against her former masters.
Behind her, Kaiser followed with precise, cautious movements, his weapon gripped tightly. He was tense, his eyes scanning every shadow for potential threats. The distrust between them was palpable. He spoke in clipped tones, his voice barely audible over the ambient noise.
"Move faster," he hissed. "We're exposed here."
Sylvie didn't reply. Arguing would be a waste of breath. The mission was straightforward on paper: infiltrate the supply hub, disable its automated defenses, and extract critical data on Frost Fang. The Codex's supply hubs were fortresses of layered security, designed to repel any incursion with ruthless efficiency.
As they advanced, the hallway split into two paths. Sylvie gestured toward the left route, speaking softly. "Turret emplacements are positioned along this corridor. I'll need about fifty seconds to bypass their targeting systems."
Kaiser nodded, covering her as she moved to the control panel embedded in the wall. Her fingers danced across the interface, bypassing layers of encryption with the ease of someone intimately familiar with Codex protocols. The turrets' targeting arrays went dormant with a soft chime, their sleek barrels retracting into the ceiling.
"Clear," she said, stepping back.
Kaiser's eyes flicked toward her, his expression unreadable. "You're awfully familiar with their systems."