Gwen raises one hand before the relay door opens fully. Inside, Tomas Vale, with medium-brown skin, a narrow tired face, and a small scar through one eyebrow, a gaunt middle-aged man with close-cropped gray hair, a black maintenance jacket, and a silver jaw implant, sits behind the console.
Gwen Armitage
Quiet entry. Nobody fires unless he gives us a reason. Reina, mirror the terminal. Vesper, sweep the room. Milo stays secured.
The team enters without triggering the station alarm. Reina places an air-gapped bridge against the console housing while Vesper checks ceiling panels, door contacts, and the relay’s manual locks.
Reina Sato
The mirror is building. No network handshake, no outbound signal. Vale’s active session is trapped inside the isolated copy.
Milo Serrat
That control stack is older Lazarus architecture. The manual interlocks are real, and the emergency purge can still wipe local access history.
Milo remains cuffed near the entrance under Gwen’s watch. Vesper finds the purge housing and locks its cover, while Vale’s console lights shift from green to warning amber.
Tomas Vale
Detective Armitage, you are making a serious mistake. Step away from my station, and I can still explain why Saint Marrow Tower is active.
“Explain now. What’s holding you back? Or are you afraid?”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +1)
Razor
Explain now. What’s holding you back? Or are you afraid?
The question hangs beneath the transit exchange’s electrical hum. Vale’s hand freezes above the console, while Gwen watches his face and Reina’s isolated mirror captures every keystroke.
Tomas Vale
I am afraid. Saint Marrow Tower is not just a clinical site. Venn turned it into a black archive, and the people inside erase witnesses before records can exist.
Tomas Vale
She has the night-sheath prototype there, along with the original personnel files. I kept the relay active because it is the only access path that does not report directly to her.
Reina’s mirror resolves a hidden routing table beneath Vale’s session. A maintenance credential points to Saint Marrow Tower’s sublevel intake, with Venn’s authorization nested above it.
Tomas Vale
I can give you the route, the override, and the archive key. But if you enter through the main clinical network, Venn will know before the door opens.
Gwen signals Reina to preserve the discovery. Vesper keeps the room covered, Milo remains secured, and Vale finally removes his hand from the purge controls.
Quest Complete
Find Tomas Vale
Skill Upgrade: Streetwise Superb→Legendary