CHAPTER 123: MENTAL NOTE

The quiet hum of the castle was a stark contrast to the chaotic energy still thrumming through Fin’s veins. He sat at the massive stone table in what Arachne had designated the ’war room’ – a chamber smaller than the main hall, dominated by the table and several stark, uncomfortable-looking chairs. The datachip was slotted into a battered, Guild-issue reader he’d... acquired. Mara had been surprisingly thorough.

Holographic schematics of the Valerius Spire floated above the table, a complex, multi-layered structure. Red markers pulsed over designated targets: divination chambers, psionic relay nodes, primary data archives for Hunter movements across multiple sectors.

’Harder target,’ Fin acknowledged internally. The Spire wasn’t just an office; it was a fortress, the heart of the Association’s information network in the region. ’More defenses. More personnel. Higher stakes.’

He zoomed in on a section labeled ’Sub-level Psi-Corp Conduits’. Intricate networks of cabling and glowing energy lines. ’Disrupt these, and their long-range scrying goes dark. Completely.’ That was the primary objective. Secondary: personnel. The chief diviners, the psionic technicians. Neutralize their ability to see, to predict, to coordinate.

He traced a potential insertion route with a finger through the hologram. Maintenance shafts. Old service tunnels from before the Spire’s last major refit. Less guarded, according to Mara’s notes, but likely still trapped, monitored.

"Valerius is a hornet’s nest," Scarlet’s voice drawled from the doorway. She leaned against the stone frame, arms crossed, watching him. "Stir it, and you get stung. Hard."

"Hornets can be swatted," Fin replied without looking up from the schematics.

Arachne entered silently behind Scarlet, placing a tray with a mug of water and a piece of plain bread on the table near Fin’s elbow. "Your sustenance, my Lord."

He ignored it. "The Spire’s lower levels are older," he mused, tapping a section of the hologram. "Less integrated security. That’s our way in. We hit the conduits first, then move up to the divination sanctums on the upper floors."

Scarlet pushed off the doorframe, walking over to peer at the floating schematics. "Upper floors? That’s where the real teeth are. Elite guards, dedicated response teams. We’ll be fighting our way through a damn army."

"We won’t be fighting an army," Fin corrected. "We’ll be precise. Surgical." He looked up at her, his eyes flat. "Fast in, cripple their eyes, fast out. Like Arclight, but on a larger scale."

"Arclight was knocking over a corner store," Scarlet countered, though a grin touched her lips. "Valerius Spire is trying to rob the central bank during a parade." She tapped a glowing red marker on one of the upper levels. "That’s where their Arch-Diviner usually nests. Old bastard named Elara Vayne. Supposedly sees futures like we see breakfast. Take her out, and they’re blind for months."

Fin zoomed in on the marker. Arch-Diviner Elara Vayne. Her file was thin, heavily redacted, but the threat assessment was high. ’A priority target, then.’

Arachne spoke, her voice quiet but firm. "The Spire’s internal defenses will be formidable. Wards, psionic traps, automated sentinels. And the Hunters stationed there will be of a higher caliber than Guild liaison staff."

"We adapt," Fin said simply. He looked at the holographic representation of the conduits. "These are the weak points. Destroy them, and their ability to coordinate a response across the city, let alone wider, is crippled. They’ll be relying on runners and basic comms. Chaos."

"Chaos is good," Scarlet agreed, her eyes gleaming. "My specialty."

The door to the war room opened again. Meg stood there, holding her wooden staff. Her training clothes were damp with sweat, her face flushed but resolute. She looked from the holographic schematics to Fin, then to the others.

"Am I interrupting?" she asked, her voice a little breathless.

"Just planning our next vacation," Scarlet said cheerfully. "Five-star accommodations in the Association’s most secure facility. All-you-can-fight buffet."

Meg ignored her, looking at Fin. "Valerius? Already?"

He nodded. "The longer we wait, the more prepared they’ll be. Arclight put them on notice."

Meg walked further into the room, stopping beside the table. She looked at the complex schematics, her brow furrowed. "Can I... can I help? With the planning?"

Fin looked at her. The faint white light of her core pulsed steadily. She was still weak, a novice. But her determination was a tangible thing. And her perspective, the way her mind worked... sometimes it saw things he missed in his own cold calculations.

"The schematics are complex," Arachne interjected gently, before Fin could reply. "Perhaps your energies would be better focused on your continued training, Meg."

Meg’s jaw tightened slightly, but she didn’t argue with Arachne. She looked back at Fin, waiting for his decision.

He considered it. Her knowledge of Guild protocols, of city layouts from her time scrabbling in Arclight... it might be useful. And keeping her involved, giving her a role, even a small one... it seemed to settle the restless energy in her.

"Show her the outer perimeter defenses, Arachne," Fin said. "Focus on potential escape routes if the primary insertion fails." He looked at Meg. "Your knowledge of city underbellies might be useful there."

Meg’s face lit up with a small, surprised smile. "Okay. Yeah. I can do that."

Arachne inclined her head. "As you command, my Lord." She touched the hologram, shifting its focus to the Spire’s external grounds and surrounding city blocks.

Scarlet watched the exchange, a smirk playing on her lips. ’Boss is going soft,’ she thought, but didn’t voice it. A happy Meg meant a less broody Fin, usually. Which was good for everyone’s continued survival.

Fin turned his attention back to the primary conduit schematics, his mind already calculating infiltration vectors, contingency plans. The Spire was a risk. A huge risk. But crippling the Association’s eyes was the only way to buy them the time they needed. Time for what, he wasn’t entirely sure yet. Just... time.

---

Across the void, in the cold, sterile heart of the Association headquarters in Valerius, Director Gabriel listened to Rowena’s report. His face remained impassive, his pale blue eyes fixed on the city lights beyond his office window.

"Arclight liaison office compromised," Rowena stated, her voice clipped, professional. "All three primary trackers confirmed neutralized. Local data servers corrupted. The breach was... efficient. Minimal collateral damage outside the target office."

Gabriel didn’t turn. "Jericho?"

"No contact, sir," Rowena replied, her voice tightening almost imperceptibly. "His tracking signal went dark approximately seventy-two hours ago. Last known vicinity matched Carver’s suspected domain resonance point."

A long silence filled the office. Gabriel continued to stare out at the city. Rowena waited, motionless. Jericho failing to report was unprecedented. Jericho going dark entirely... that was alarming.

"The boy is more resourceful than anticipated," Gabriel murmured finally, his voice flat. "And more ruthless." He turned from the window, his gaze settling on Rowena. "He possesses the Mana Cell, he can create and seal a personal domain, he has evaded or neutralized our top retrieval specialist, and now he’s actively targeting our infrastructure."

He steepled his fingers, tapping them together softly. "This is no longer a simple retrieval operation. This is... an emergent threat."

"Contingency Sigma is active, sir," Rowena reminded him. "All Guilds are on high alert. Carver is a priority target."

"Sigma is insufficient," Gabriel stated. "He struck Arclight. Logically, his next target will be here. Valerius. The Spire." He paused. "He’s coming for our eyes."

Rowena’s expression remained neutral, but a flicker of unease touched her eyes. A direct assault on the Spire? Even for someone with Carver’s apparent power, that was suicide.

"Reinforce the Spire’s defenses," Gabriel ordered. "Triple the guard rotations. Activate all dormant psionic wards. I want every diviner, every precog, focused on detecting any anomalous energy signatures, any potential breaches. And... recall Unit 7."

Rowena’s head snapped up, genuine shock finally breaking through her composure. "Unit 7, sir? Are you certain? Their methods are... extreme. And their loyalty—"

"Their effectiveness is unparalleled," Gabriel cut her off, his voice like chips of ice. "If Carver intends to bring war to our doorstep, we will meet him with overwhelming, decisive force. I want him found. I want him neutralized. And I want that Mana Cell retrieved." He leaned back in his chair. "By any means necessary."

Rowena swallowed hard. Unit 7. Things were escalating far faster than she could have imagined. "Yes, Director," she said, her voice barely a whisper. She turned and left the office, the order feeling like a death sentence – for Fin Carver, and potentially for anyone who got in Unit 7’s way.

Gabriel watched her go, then turned his gaze back to the city lights. A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched his lips. ’Anomaly-774,’ he thought. ’You are becoming quite the fascinating problem.’

The war room was quiet again, save for the soft hum of the holographic projector. Fin traced lines on the Spire schematics, his brow furrowed in concentration. Escape routes. Contingencies. The Arclight raid had been clean, almost too clean. Valerius wouldn’t be so easy. Gabriel wasn’t a fool; he’d be expecting them.

Meg sat opposite him, pointing to a section of the outer city map displayed beside the Spire. "These old maintenance tunnels here," she said, her voice gaining confidence as she spoke, "they run beneath the lower commercial district. Some of them connect to the Spire’s older foundation levels, before the last security refit. If the main insertion through the service shafts goes bad, this could be a secondary exfiltration route. They’re narrow, unmapped on most official Guild charts, probably flooded in places, but..."

"But less likely to be actively monitored," Fin finished, looking at the highlighted tunnels. "Good. That’s a viable backup." He made a mental note.