The cold, whispered question hung in the sterile air of the office like a poised guillotine.
"Are you ready to die?"
Behind her white mask, Architect 328 did not blink. Her heart was a frantic bird in a cage, but her voice, when it emerged from the modulator, was flat, unbroken. "No, sir."
For a long moment, Superior-1 was utterly still. Then, he did something unexpected. He stepped back and let out a soft, synthesized sound that might have been a sigh.
"Your injury report was thorough. Your story is consistent with the structural forensics," he stated, his tone shifting from interrogator to evaluator. "And while you were bleeding out, you managed to initiate a localized server backup of the core's primary logs. The intruders were stealing data. You saved what you could."
328 remained silent, a perfect statue of low-ranking compliance. He was weaving a narrative. For her or for a report?
"The watch and the chip were secondary assets. Expendable. The fact that they targeted them specifically suggests they were after comms and tracking capabilities. Pragmatic." He circled her slowly. "You showed presence of mind under direct assault. You preserved data. You survived."
He stopped in front of her again. "Your current role in sanitation and low-level maintenance is a waste. Effective immediately, pending medical clearance, you are promoted to Assistant Data Coordinator for this sector. You will report directly to me."
It wasn't a question. It was a transfer from invisibility to the edge of the spotlight. A dangerous place for a spy.
"I… I am honored, Superior," 328 replied, injecting just the right amount of stunned gratitude into her filtered voice.
"Your first task," he continued, turning to gaze at a schematic of the damaged core on his wall screen. "The intruders. Describe them."
This was the real test. She had to give enough truth to be credible, but not enough to endanger Wolfen's team.
"They were… fast," she began, hesitantly. "Powerful. They wore masks. Not our masks. Dark, tactical gear. I could not see their faces." True enough. "One of them… generated fire. White and crimson. Another moved like a shadow, cutting through armor. A woman struck with incredible force, collapsing the ground." She touched her bandaged arm. "I was struck by debris when she did that. I saw no more."
Superior-1 absorbed this. "Fire and earth. Primal forces. Alphas, perhaps, or high-tier Omegas. Not mere scavengers." He turned back to her. "You will review all salvageable sensor data—energy spikes, pressure readings. Correlate it with known hybrid signatures in the database. I want profiles."
"Yes, Superior."
He gave a final, dismissive nod. "Dismissed. Return to medical. Begin work when you are cleared."
"Thank you, sir." She turned and walked out, her steps measured, her back straight, every inch the newly promoted, dutiful assistant.
Only when the door hissed shut behind her and she was alone in the empty corridor did she allow herself a single, shuddering breath that fogged the inside of her mask. She had passed. She was in. Closer to the data stream, closer to the secrets A09 needed. And closer to the grey-masked gaze of a Superior who was either brilliantly deceived, or playing a far deeper game of his own.
She walked towards the medical bay, her mind already racing, compartmentalizing the lie, reinforcing the cover. The watch was in the hands of the Anomaly. The chip was active. The path to Lab B3 was now illuminated for them. Her part was done. For now.
All she had to do was survive her promotion.