Sector 8 was the polar opposite of Sector 9. Where Asher's territory was a chaotic mess of rusted iron and open grease pits, Sector 8 was a heavily automated, sterile industrial processing hub managed by the Chrono-Tech Logistics Corporation.
The border between the two sectors was a massive, fifty-foot wall of reinforced blast-steel, lined with automated laser turrets and motion-sensing radar arrays. Following the destruction of the Specter mercenaries, the corporate executives of Chrono-Tech had completely locked down the sub-grid, cutting off all trade and transit.
But they didn't account for the old drainage and maintenance tunnels that ran horizontally beneath the sector walls.
In the pitch-black dampness of a disused sewer main beneath the border, Lucy moved like a literal shadow. Her new Void Vanguard framework was perfectly silent; the micro-thrusters in her dark-iron limbs kept her body hovering an inch above the toxic sludge, avoiding making even a single ripple.
Behind her came Jax, his massive Abyssal Dreadnought frame carefully ducking under the low concrete arches, his heavy dark-iron shoulders scraping against the walls.
"Ren, we’re under the primary junction box for the outer wall's defense grid," Lucy whispered into her comms, her purple tactical eye scanning a massive bundle of heavy, fiber-optic cables suspended from the ceiling.
Three miles away, back in the Sector 9 command room, Ren sat in total darkness, his fingers dancing across a holographic interface while Nora monitored the power distribution.
"I see the signal lines, Lucy," Ren murmured, his blindfold catching the faint glow of the monitors. "The encryption is standard Chrono-Tech military-grade, but they haven't updated their security protocols since the lockdown. Nora, give me a localized EMP pulse through the link."
"You got it, kiddo!" Nora grinned, slamming a heavy lever on her console.
Through the Monarch Link, a precise spike of localized electromagnetic energy traveled from Nora’s grid, through Asher's core, and erupted directly from Lucy's outstretched hand. The purple spark jumped into the fiber-optic junction.
Sizzle.
Above ground, the massive automated laser turrets along the Sector 8 wall suddenly drooped, their glowing green lenses fading to a lifeless gray. The security cameras glitched, looping the last three seconds of empty rain on the corporate monitors.
"The grid is blind for exactly forty-five seconds," Ren reported. "Move."
Lucy didn't hesitate. She launched herself upward through a maintenance hatch, her wrist-mounted plasma blade slicing a perfect circle through the steel cover. She materialized inside the outer courtyard of a Chrono-Tech security outpost before the remaining backup generators could even kick in.
Two corporate guards wearing light white exo-armor turned around, their rifles halfway to their shoulders.
Flash.
Lucy was gone. She reappeared between them, her body spinning in a fluid, lethal arc. The plasma blade cut through their chest plates like paper. They dropped without a sound, their vitals flatlining on the local network before an alarm could be raised.
Jax burst through the floor a second later, his dark-iron fists humming with kinetic energy. He looked around the empty courtyard, a disappointed grunt escaping his lips. "You left none for me, shorty."
"Speed is the directive tonight, Jax," Lucy said coldly, her tactical eye tracking the movement of a heavy cargo train arriving at the automated depot half a mile away. "The Sovereign wants this sector's logistics network under our control before sunrise.