Rain lashed against the attic windows as the four of them spread the coded map across Elric's table. Gaslight pooled upon the ink, casting the city's veins in wavering shadow.
Evangeline's fingers traced the lines, her expression taut. "Every mark corresponds to a nexus point — rail hubs, power stations, steam reservoirs. He's weaving them together."
Selene frowned. "Like threads of a net."
"No," Elric murmured. "Like veins of a body."
The thought chilled the room. Hollis crossed his arms, his scarred hands flexing. "A body… of what size?"
Evangeline hesitated. "If I'm right… the size of Brasswick itself. A city-wide automaton."
The silence was heavy enough to crush.
"Impossible," Hollis growled.
"No," Elric replied quietly. "With enough stolen gifts… with enough dead Anomalists… very possible."
A sudden flutter made them all start — the clockwork bird upon Evangeline's shoulder shivered, its wings trembling. She leaned close to it, her ear tilted as if listening. Her face went pale.
"What is it?" Elric asked.
"The Engineer," she whispered. "He's speaking through the machinery. He knows we've seen the map."
And as though to confirm her words, the gaslights flickered, gears hidden in the walls groaned, and a faint metallic chuckle echoed through the pipes.