The transit car shudders free and drops into darkness, then catches on a hidden guide track. Blue station lights streak past the windows as it shoots into a deeper service tunnel, leaving Kaelen's reinforcements behind.

The car slams into a maintenance alcove beneath the spire city. Vents hiss. Warm dust and coolant fog roll over the floor, and the door seals with a hard metallic clang.

Nahuli drops to one knee beside the sparking coupling. Amber warning light washes over his hands as the shard skitters at his boots, still crackling on the floor.

Outside the sealed door, boots hammer past in the tunnel. Inside, Nahuli has only a few breaths before the transit car either launches or becomes a trap.

The transit car lurches, then steadies as Nahuli reroutes power through the coupling. Amber light flickers across the maintenance alcove, and the blackout haze thins around the machine.

A sharp whine rises from the undercarriage, then evens out into a hard, fast hum. The car’s speed climbs, smooth and controlled, with no sparking seams.

Serafina braces against the wall as the floor trembles beneath the renewed drive. Her eyes cut to the exit as the alcove lights streak past.

A diagnostic readout flashes on Nahuli’s scanner, brief and clean. One bypass holds, and a second relay beside it is running hot but stable.

The car keeps accelerating into the tunnel dark, leaving the alcove behind. Somewhere ahead, the spine network opens into the next junction.