Chapter 10 - THE LAST DEPLOYMENT
They took the stairs.
Forty-two floors.
Elias made it to thirty-six before James told him to stop pretending age was a rumor.
“You’re going to kill yourself before we save anything.”
Elias glared at him.
Maya was already pulling open the service door.
“There’s a freight lift on thirty-five. Separate power.”
“How do you know that?” Serena asked.
Maya kept moving.
“Intern.”
Even Elias laughed.
The freight lift carried them to B2.
The basement smelled like concrete, hot wiring, and smoke.
Emergency lights painted the corridor red.
A security officer met them near the operations cage.
“Someone disabled suppression in Server Room Three.”
“Fire?” Andrew asked.
“Small. Contained.”
“Again,” Serena said.
They reached the secure door.
Locked.
Andrew entered his code.
Denied.
James crouched beside an old utility panel nearly hidden behind modern conduit.
“Revision 14.”
He opened it.
Inside was a mechanical key slot and a hardwired terminal with a monochrome screen.
Maya stared.
“This thing is ancient.”
Elias pulled a key ring from his pocket.
Serena looked at him.
“You carry that?”
“I’m old. We carry keys.”
The key fit.
The terminal woke.
NOVARIS CONTINUITY CONTROL
PHYSICAL AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED
James smiled despite himself.
“Still ugly.”
“You designed it,” Elias said.
“I know.”
Maya read the options.
NETWORK ISOLATION.
DEPLOYMENT FREEZE.
IMMUTABLE BACKUP HANDOFF.
Andrew leaned closer.
“If we freeze from here, we sever all external pushes.”
“Do it,” Elias said.
Maya selected DEPLOYMENT FREEZE.
The terminal asked for two keys.
FOUNDER OVERRIDE.
ENGINEERING CUSTODIAN.
Elias inserted his.
James froze.
“What?” Maya asked.
He looked embarrassed.
“My key was confiscated when they fired me.”
Maya stared at the empty second slot.
“Then we’re done?”
“No,” James said slowly. “Custodian rights rotate to the active systems chief if the original engineer is separated.”
They all looked at Andrew.
He went pale.
“My credential is digital.”
James shook his head.
“Not the first one.”
Andrew stared.
Then understanding hit him.
“The orientation box.”
“What box?”
“When I became CTO, they gave me a walnut box with a ceremonial key. I thought it was symbolic.”
Elias muttered, “Nothing in this company was symbolic until marketing arrived.”
Andrew almost smiled.
“Box is in my office.”
Forty-two floors up.
The terminal displayed a countdown.
HELIX DEPLOYMENT WINDOW: 00:18:43
Maya’s eyes widened.
“We don’t have time.”
James grabbed the terminal housing.
“There may be a manual bridge.”
Andrew shook his head. “That could brick the continuity controller.”
“And if we do nothing?” Maya asked.
He looked at the countdown.
“Helix deploys.”
A voice behind them said, “Then do nothing.”
Graham stood at the end of the corridor.
No jacket.
No tie.
In one hand he held Andrew’s walnut box.
Two security officers stood behind him.
Not external security.
Novaris corporate security.
Graham smiled.
“Looking for this?”
Elias stepped forward.
“You are finished.”
“Maybe.”
Graham held up the box.
“But finish the wrong way and half the board goes down with me. So does Naomi. So do several government clients. You want scandal? Keep digging.”
Naomi’s voice came from behind Elias.
“Dad.”
She had followed Serena down.
Graham looked at her.
“Tell him.”
Naomi’s face was white.
“Tell me what?” Elias asked.
Graham opened the walnut box.
Inside lay the second key.
And a small encrypted drive.
“Ask your daughter what’s on this.”
Naomi whispered, “Graham, don’t.”
He smiled.
May you like
For the first time all day, Elias looked frightened.
