ACT II · ALLY FOUND · STABILISER AVAILABLE
The Janitor Knows Everything
Pip rolls free, straightens one bent wheel, and produces a small adapter from beneath its mop. “They keep the expensive tools where managers never look.”
“Where is that?” Paddy asks. “Near the work.” Maddie looks up from the connector. “Pip, I think we’re going to get along.”
The adapter can stabilise a portable relay. Pip also gives Maddie the original purge order and a useful fact: Naught troopers must stop firing during a live recovery audit. Their officers find this profoundly inconvenient.
You reach the central chamber. Light trembles inside a cracked housing. “Are you here to switch me off?” the voice asks.
You now have the right equipment and an eyewitness. You can attempt a careful extraction, or expose the purge while the connection is still live.
Your move: