| Health: 100% |

| Body Equilibrium: 25% |

| DPS: 25 |

| Defense: 51 |

| Agility: 24 |

| Perception: 27 |

| Intellect: 20 |

| - - - - - - - |

| Arm Holster |

| Spinal Decompression |

“[BODY EQUILIBRIUM] 25%, two ability slots enabled”

“Select one ability: Signal Disruption - Allows the ability to send an electrical charge into a system in order to pause it for a time; Melee Combat - Improves combat prowess with melee weapons; Gecko - Enables charged particles in fingertips and feet to stick to surfaces, allowing for climbing on walls and ceilings; EMP Shielding - Ability to disrupt EMP’s impact on cybernetics;”

In the days following Darius had been waiting for this. Some new abilities to help him in his attempt to infiltrate SaeSyn. “I choose Signal Disruption, and Gecko.”

“Did it happen?” CURL asked.

“Yeah, it happened at 25%. It’s given me some choices that I really needed.”

“That’s convenient,” CURL said with a tentative smile.

“It is. Oddly enough, I think the system AI is offering me abilities based on recent events.”

“Maybe,” she furrowed her brow. “Does that mean tonight’s the night?”

“Yes. Tonight, I’m breaking into SaeSyn”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you?”

“I’m sure. Your shoulder is still in bad shape.”

She nodded, but wasn’t convinced. “Fine.”

| Health: 100% |

| Body Equilibrium: 25% |

| DPS: 25 |

| Defense: 51 |

| Agility: 34 |

| Perception: 27 |

| Intellect: 25 |

| - - - - - - - |

| Arm Holster |

| Spinal Decompression |

| Signal Disruption |

| Gecko |

— — —

Darius hid in the shadows of the building across from SaeSyn, watching the neon glow reflected against its dark glass sides. A whisper of danger hovered in the air as a guard locked the front door and headed off to do his rounds.

Darius took this opportunity to move to the doors and use his new ability to disrupt the digital signal to the locking mechanism. He opened the door silently.

Just like a shadow, Geracht watched from the alleyway, silent and damaged nearly beyond recognition. He didn’t see Darius for who he was. All he saw now were the ghosts, and an opportunity to follow.

Darius entered the building. He slipped along the wall to his right, and pressed his hands against the wall. He climbed up the sheer wall to the security camera and disabled it. He did this with the other cameras in the area as well. Moments later, security came to investigate the cameras.

Darius hung from the ceiling and watched as the security guards argued with each other over next steps. He entered the security room and dropped to the floor. Investigating the computer system, he found access to the communications grid, and shut it down.

Then he used the camera feeds to find the maintenance room. Exactly what he needed to find. He proceeded from the security room across the ceiling and down a hallway to the maintenance room. Dropping down to the floor, he disrupts the lock on the door, and enters. A massive electrical panel sat in front of him. He quickly opened it, then shut off the main power with the turn of a large lever. The building went dark, except for some emergency lights running on a backup generator.

“Time to find Del,” he whispered to himself, not knowing that Geracht was following behind, carving his way through the guards that remained.

Darius forced the elevator door open and climbed into the empty shaft, hands and feet slipping a little on the dust and dirt caked on the inside. It was dark in the shaft. The only light have through in small slits between the elevator door seams. A drone patrolled around the inner shaft, slowly hovering up and down within. Darius waited for it to become visible in a small razor width of light before firing his armature gun and taking the drone out.

Geracht watched as the lights flickered out, and made his way to the stairs, knowing the elevators would be inoperable. He began the long climb upward, killing every guard and destroying every security drone in his path. His flesh still burned, his metal still malfunctioned, but his will was unbreakable. He’d tear his way through the entire building if he had to.

Darius continued his crawl up the elevator shaft, working his way to the seventy-seventh floor. Only one thing was on his mind, vengeance.

As he reached the top, he pulled the elevator shaft doors open and climbed out into the hallway.

A pair of lights were all that illuminated the hallway under emergency power. A dim shaft of neon light could be seen coming from under Del’s office door, broken only by the occasional passing of feet.

Darius stopped for a number of moments to allow himself to recover from the long climb. Even with cybernetics, it was a tiring trek. He steeled himself, moving to the office door, pistol in hand, armature gun readied.