CHAPTER 45: CHAPTER 9.4: THIS UNIFORM DOESN’T MAKE ME A HERO. BUT I’LL TRY ANYWAY

The soft and steady buzz of Vault Terminus’s air filters hummed quietly through the thick walls, like the soothing heartbeat of a giant, sleeping creature. As Jin walked closer to the Command Lounge, he noticed the lights in the hallway dimming behind him, a little trick set up by an automated system that adjusts the brightness based on movement.

Dressed in his sleek black Phoenix Corps uniform, he felt comfortable and ready to move. It was perfectly fitted to provide both flexibility and protection. The reinforced fabric flowed with his movements, and the shiny golden trim caught the light just right, giving him an air of formality that he felt he hadn’t really earned yet.

He stopped right outside the entrance, letting the sensor pick up on him before the double doors quietly slid open. A warm light spilled into the doorway, and Jin took a moment to glance into the Command Lounge, which had changed a lot recently.

What used to be a break room for long-gone techs was now the hub of their survival efforts. Soft blue holograms floated in the air, showing maps of Vault Terminus, status updates from the areas that had been partially restored, and blinking icons keeping track of power flows and dead zones.

Sera was sitting at a revamped command table, giving off a vibe of calm confidence. Her silver hair was pulled back into a tidy ponytail, which looked both practical and stylish. She had a bunch of holoscreens around her displaying detailed schematics of Vault Terminus, their soft glow creating sharp shadows on her deeply concentrated face.

She was scanning a flashing security sweep route with her fingers, the map glitching a bit here and there due to some broken data nodes.

"The south corridor near Sector C-3 needs to undergo routine clearance," she stated matter-of-factly. "We should aim for a minimum of two inspections per day. Should anything breach the power hub in that area, we would risk a cascading failure across the auxiliary relays, and that is a scenario we cannot afford."

Even though Sera didn’t raise her voice, the way she spoke really carried weight and made everyone pay attention.

On her right, Clara Vance was slouched over a portable holo-tablet, her new engineering glasses lighting up with streams of code, system check-ups, and resource charts. She was mumbling to herself a bit, probably running simulations in her head before she jumped in to say something.

"I-I think I can reroute low-tier subsystems to boost thermal and motion sensor coverage," she said, her voice steadying as she locked into her tech-brain rhythm. "It might require temporarily cutting off two comfort moduleslike the mess heater and corridor lighting in D-blockbut it’ll give us better detection windows without overloading the capacitor banks."

Sera gave her a thoughtful nod, but before she could respond

"Ugh, Clara, you’re making it sound like we’re flying a satellite," said Rosa, lounging on a crate with her legs hanging off the side. Her Phoenix Corps jacket was tied around her waist, sleeves rolled up as she tapped lazily at a portable scanner. "Just reroute it, toggle the failsafes, and cross your fingers."

Clara blinked. "T-that’s not how protocols"

"Please. Half this Vault was cobbled together by scientists." Rosa said with a smirk.

Sera sighed. "Rosa."

Rosa raised both hands in mock surrender, grinning. "Fine, fine. But come on Clara’s been running solo engineering miracles like she’s got six hands. Maybe she deserves a little credit... or, you know, a nap."

Clara fidgeted, adjusting her glasses. "I... I just want to make sure no one gets caught off-guard again. Last time, Jin he..."

Her voice faltered for a moment. The room shifted subtly.

"You’re truly doing everything right, you know," Sera said softly, allowing her authoritative demeanor to slip away for just that brief moment. "Your recalibration efforts on Sub-Level 3 were instrumental in saving Jin’s life. So yes, please go ahead and proceed with the optimization. But do remember to take care of yourself and get some rest afterwards, Clara."

Clara blinked in surprise at the unexpected praise, a warm flush creeping to her cheeks. "O-okay. I’ll initiate the adjustment cycle first thing tomorrow morning, as soon as the secondary grid has stabilized and is ready for the process."

From her corner, Rosa couldn’t help but smirk, her playful tone cutting through the seriousness of the moment. "Look, it’s Chief Engineer Clara Vance, the Vault Tech Goddess, in all her glory!"

Sera shifted her gaze toward Rosa, narrowing her eyes ever so slightly as a warning. "And you—please try your best not to trigger another lockdown by poking around in random subroutines, alright?"

Rosa feigned innocence, raising her hands in a gesture of mock surrender. "Hey, that situation turned out to be a great lesson! We’ve confirmed that the vault’s defense turrets are definitely still working."

"They nearly vaporized the med kit locker, though," Sera shot back, rolling her eyes in exasperation.

Jin couldn’t help but grin at the conversation, really enjoying the vibe the three of them had. The lighthearted teasing created a cozy feeling of friendship, even with all the tough stuff they were dealing with at work.

Despite everything they had been through, the girls had settled into a nice groove with Sera leading the charge, Rosa keeping it light with her playful attitude, and Clara bringing in the know-how that kept them on track. It felt good to see them all working together so effortlessly.

"Are you planning to stand there all day admiring your harem, or are you going to actually join the conversation?" Asha’s voice carried a note of amusement. "I’m detecting elevated stress hormones from all three of them.."

Drawing in a slow, steady breath, Jin stepped into the lounge, letting the reality of the situation ground him. The subtle sound of his footsteps on the metal flooring was enough to catch the attention of all three girls, prompting them to raise their heads in unison.

What followed was an immediate flurry of reactions, each one distinct and telling.

Sera’s eyes widened just a fraction—a brief slip of her usually composed demeanor—as she took a moment to absorb his presence. Although she recovered swiftly, Jin noted the fleeting glimmer of approval that sparkled in her gaze.

"Much better," she commented succinctly, her voice adopting a carefully measured tone. "Proper hygiene is absolutely essential when it comes to maintaining discipline and morale among the team."