Chapter 05

A loud crash echoed down the dark hallway as my elbow caught the edge of a steel filing cabinet. Three thick binders hit the floor. The emergency backup lights flickered overhead, casting weak yellow shadows across the walls. The air inside the building was ninety-five degrees and thick enough to choke on.

I crouched to gather the binders.

“Need a hand with that?”

A deep voice came from the shadows near the glass exit doors.

I stood quickly, laptop bag pressed against my chest. “Who’s there?”

A tall man stepped into the dim light. Dark utility uniform. Silver emblem of the National Bio-Defense Task Force on his chest. Broad shoulders, steady posture, dark eyes that narrowed the moment they landed on me.

Recognition hit both of us at the same time.

“Gabriel?” The name left my mouth before I could stop it.

“Young.” His voice was quieter than I remembered. A small, genuine smile touched his mouth, but it didn’t last long. “It’s been forever since we last saw each other. What are you doing hauling boxes out of the research building at eleven at night?”

Gabriel Wright.

My old neighbor from the valley. The quiet boy who used to help Mom with the tractor and the hay. He had enlisted years ago.

In my last life…

A flash of memory slammed into me without warning—heat, iron chains, the smell of burning skin. A soldier in torn gear throwing himself against the sacrificial pillar, hands bleeding as he tried to break the locks. His voice was rough and desperate: “Hold on. I’m getting you out.”

Then fire. Then nothing. I blinked hard and forced the image away. My face stayed blank.

“I’m leaving the university,” I said evenly. “Tonight.”

Gabriel’s gaze dropped to the cardboard box on my cart—personal journals, degree certificates, private research files. His brow furrowed.

“You look like you’re clearing out your entire life.”

“I am.”

He didn’t push. He simply bent, gathered the fallen binders in a few movements, and stacked them neatly on the cart.

“The heat wave is pulling too much power from the main grid,” he said. “My unit was assigned to secure regional food and research assets. We’re auditing state sites.” He glanced at me again. “You shouldn’t be out here alone this late.”

“I’ll manage.”

Gabriel studied me for a second longer, then reached into his jacket and pulled out a black plastic card stamped with a golden crest. He held it out.

“Priority Agricultural Pass. Checkpoints are going up at midnight around the reservoirs. This will get you through without questions.”

I took the card. Our fingers brushed slightly. I didn’t react. “Thank you.”

He nodded once. “I’m walking you to your car.”

“That’s not necessary.”

“It’s about ninety-eight degrees outside and the parking lot lights are out.” His tone left no room for argument. “Lead the way.”

We walked in silence down the back stairs and into the night. The air hit like an open furnace. The sky above the city was a murky, brassy purple. Distant sirens wailed where the first transformers were failing.

Gabriel loaded the boxes into my hatchback with the same efficiency he had always had. When he finished, he rested one hand on the open driver’s door.

“Go straight to the valley,” he said. “Lock the gates. Stay inside. This heat isn’t going to blow over as fast as people think.”

I met his eyes. For a brief moment the past-life memory pressed against the back of my mind again—the blood on his hands, the way he had kept pulling at the chains even as the System energy tore through him.

I looked away first.

“When are you coming back to the valley?” I asked.

“My unit is setting up an outpost near the reservoir. Three miles from our place. I’ll be on patrol in that area tomorrow night. I’ll check on both of you.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I know.” He stepped back. “Drive safe, Young.”

I got in, started the engine, and pulled out of the loading bay. In the rearview mirror he stood under the single working streetlamp, watching until I turned the corner.

My phone vibrated on the passenger seat.

Arthur: Young! Where are you? Clara’s venue deposit was declined for fraud! What did you do to our joint account? Call me right now!

I blocked the number without hesitation.

A cold, thin smile touched my mouth as I drove south toward the dark valley. Tomorrow morning the county sheriff would hand Beatrice an eviction notice. That was only the beginning.

The System panel flickered to life across the windshield.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[MAIN QUEST UNLOCKED: VALLEY FORTRESS]

[TASK 1: SECURE THE RURAL PERIMETER BEFORE THE FIRST THERMAL STORM — TIME REMAINING: 36 HOURS]

[TASK 2: DEPLOY SPIRITUAL SPRING WATER TO THE FIRST CROP MATRIX]

[REWARD: SPATIAL UPGRADE — LEVEL 3 (TIME ACCELERATION FIELD)]

[WARNING: ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE SPIKE DETECTED. THERMAL STORM FORMING.]

A silent red flash tore across the horizon—dry thermal lightning that turned the entire sky the color of blood.

My headlights flickered once.

Then the engine died, and the mountain highway plunged into complete darkness.