Chapter 17 · The Ghost in the Machine

"Get your hand off the console, Nora. Now."

Elias didn't just say it. He slammed his palm against the metal plating, pinning my wrist down. Cold steel bit into my skin. The neural bond between us flared white-hot. I could feel his panic—not the frantic kind, but the lethal urgency of a man who knew exactly how many seconds we had before the floor vanished.

"I can see it, Elias!" I wrenched my arm back, nearly knocking him off balance. I pointed at the flickering holographic display. "There's a signal. A living neural signature right under the core. It’s not a glitch. It’s a person."

Elias stepped into my space. His chest nearly brushed mine. He didn't look at the screen; he looked at me, gray eyes hard, scanning for a lie.

"We have six minutes before the Lower Ring becomes a graveyard," he snapped. "You're telling me we risk everything for a ghost signal? It's a lure."

"It's not a ghost!" My voice cracked. "The frequency... it matches my mother's encryption. If someone's down there, they're the only ones who can override the kill-switch without wiping me out."

He grabbed my shoulder. His grip tightened, forcing me still.