The metallic scraping of The Keeper trying to force the gate was a rhythmic, dull sound in the background, a low-priority distraction.
Lucian allowed himself a full hour of calculated rest inside the entrance corridor of the depot. He was safe, but his body was failing.
The synthetic stitches on his hip were under strain. The core temperature was still elevated due to the deactivated Thermal Regulation Sub-System.
He needed to allocate power to these systems, but first, he needed to allocate power to thought.
Lucian initiated a full Mission Retrospective: a detailed, dispassionate analysis of every asset deployed, every resource spent, and every critical decision made in the last 48 hours.
The centerpiece of this review was the execution of Vance.
Event: Termination of Asset Vance. Time: T - 48:01:03. Method: Monofilament Strangulation. Outcome: Asset secured. Secondary outcome: Decoy signature established.
Lucian's mind was a processor running the simulation in perfect detail.
Vance's final words: "We're brothers!"
Lucian categorized this data as "Emotional Variable (E-Var) 47-B: Sentimentality." This variable had required a 0.04-second cognitive pause from Lucian, equivalent to the time it took to confirm that Vance was not merely confused, but was escalating to full, physical resistance.
Flaw Analysis: The 0.04-second pause was a tactical vulnerability. Had Vance been marginally faster, or had Lucian's internal systems been marginally slower, the core asset could have been compromised.
Conclusion: The existence of E-Var 47-B was the flaw, not the reaction to it. Lucian's initial assessment of Vance's psychological profile had been too lenient. He had calculated Vance's loyalty at 99.7%. The remaining 0.3% was the loyalty to the defunct "brotherhood" concept. This was a severe resource misallocation that had required physical elimination.
Lucian pulled up the data logs of his other sacrificed unit members. One had been loyal to the mission; two were indifferent. The other three, like Vance, held residual emotional connections to Lucian or to the team. In the long run, all six would have eventually failed to meet the Protocol of Absolute Logic that Lucian lived by.
Judgment: The decision to sacrifice the entire unit, though initially for misdirection, serves a higher strategic purpose: Purging emotional instability from the operative pool.
Lucian had learned a lesson not just in survival, but in the foundation of his future command. Sentiment was the soft, warm part of the machine that inevitably broke first.
It was a critical security risk.
System Command: Reinforce Protocol: Sentiment is a Zero-Value Asset.
Lucian initiated the next phase of his planning.
He needed to confirm the viability of the Hydra Drone Forge schematics. If the data core was a decoy or corrupted, the entire mission, including the sacrifice of his men, would have been, simply put, a catastrophic waste.
He secured the Hydra core to a temporary diagnostic port on his forearm. He connected only the barest essential data lines, ready to instantly disconnect if the core attempted a high-level counter-hack.
The initial diagnostic scan began, filling his optical display with complex, mesmerizing layers of code. The Hyperion encryption was the most sophisticated firewall ever devised—it had taken him 48 hours and the destruction of a full unit to steal.
He waited, the only sound the distant, failing attempts of The Keeper to breach the steel beam Lucian had jammed in the gate.
Data Integrity Check: 99.8%.
The core was sound. The Hydra Drone Forge schematics were complete, uncorrupted, and ready for deployment.
Lucian allowed a single, deep breath of the stale, cold air.
His decision was validated. The resources had been spent, the assets purged, and the prize secured.
He was the most efficient entity in the Red Zone.
The next step was building.
He began directing his internal energy reserves back to his systems, prioritizing the Thermal Regulation Sub-System. The pain in his hip was a dull throb—acceptable.
Lucian looked up, gazing into the dark corridor ahead.