"Commander Yarric is in custody. Put down your weapons and return to the holding sector."
The voices outside stopped.
Then another man spoke.
"This is Captain Dresk. We know who you are, Arcturus. Open the door and leave the reactor level."
"No."
"You have taken the sanctuary. You do not need the core."
"We need it running."
"If you remain, we will destroy it."
Rhoswen glanced toward Aurelian.
"He is not very good at surrendering."
Aurelian kept his attention on the door.
"Captain Dresk, damaging the reactor will kill the people in the preservation halls."
"They are not our concern."
The answer came too quickly.
Aurelian had heard enough.
"Eirenne, open the first layer only."
The outer section of the door unlocked.
The soldiers reacted at once and forced it wider, believing they had broken through the final defense.
They entered the short security chamber between the outer and inner doors.
Eirenne closed the first door behind them.
The soldiers immediately realized what had happened.
Several began firing into the inner door while others turned their cutting tools toward the outer lock.
"Twenty-six confirmed," Eirenne said. "All are inside the chamber."
"Can you vent the air?" Rhoswen asked.
Aurelian looked at her.
"What?"
"They would lose consciousness."
Eirenne checked the system.
"The chamber is part of the reactor safety network. I can lower oxygen without exposing them to harmful gas."
Aurelian considered it.
It was safer than a direct fight, and the soldiers had already shown they were willing to risk everyone in the sanctuary.
"Do it gradually. Give them one last warning."
Eirenne opened the speaker.
"The chamber is sealed. Oxygen levels are being reduced. Drop your weapons and lie on the floor. Anyone who follows these instructions will receive medical care."
Captain Dresk answered with gunfire.
The bullets struck the inner door and did nothing.
Oxygen levels began falling.
At first, the soldiers continued trying to force their way out. They hammered at both doors, cut through wall panels, and searched for emergency releases.
None worked.
After less than a minute, their movements slowed.
One soldier dropped his weapon and went to his knees.
Another followed.
Dresk shouted at them to stand.
No one listened.
More weapons hit the floor.
By the time the oxygen reached the lower safety limit, most of the soldiers were lying down as ordered.
Only Dresk and two others remained standing.
Dresk stumbled toward the inner door and struck it with the side of his rifle.
"You think this changes anything?"
Aurelian answered through the speaker.
"It keeps the sanctuary alive."
Dresk tried to raise his weapon again, but his grip failed. The rifle slipped from his hands, and he collapsed beside it.
Eirenne restored normal air.
Rhoswen lowered her shield slightly.
"That was easier than I expected."
"Do not sound disappointed," Astra said from the upper platform.
"I am not disappointed."
"You sound disappointed."
"I only prepared for more."
Aurelian opened the chamber once the soldiers’ breathing stabilized.
Support frames were too far away to assist, so Astra and Rhoswen began restraining the group while Aurelian checked the reactor controls.
Captain Dresk woke while Rhoswen secured his wrists.
He struggled once.
She tightened her hold.
"Do not."
He stopped.
Aurelian stood over him.
"Who ordered you to damage the reactor?"
Dresk looked away.
"No one."
"You broke containment with twenty-five soldiers and came directly here."
"We decided for ourselves."
Aurelian did not believe him.
Eirenne searched the captured equipment and found a sealed command chip inside Dresk’s armor. The message it carried was short.
If central command falls, deny the sanctuary to enemy forces. Priority targets are reactor control, transport systems, and preservation support.
The order bore Yarric’s authority, but the signature time was several weeks old.
Yarric had prepared for this long before Aurelian arrived.
Aurelian sent the message to the captured command room.
Yarric answered after a brief delay.
"I issued the order."
"You told your soldiers to destroy the sanctuary."
"I told them to deny strategic systems if the facility was lost."
"Those systems keep the preservation halls alive."
"I know."
Aurelian stared at the communication display.
Yarric continued before he could speak.
"I also canceled that order after you took the demolition network. Dresk received the cancellation. He ignored it."
Dresk’s face changed slightly.
That was enough to confirm it.
Rhoswen looked down at him.
"You were told to stop."
Dresk remained silent.
Aurelian closed the channel with Yarric.
"Take him separately from the others."
Rhoswen pulled Dresk to his feet.
"What about the rest?"
"They go back to the holding sector. Most of them followed him because they believed they still had orders."
Astra came down from the upper walkway after checking the last emergency valve.
"The reactor is secure."
"Not completely," Eirenne said. "The Compact never discovered several deeper control levels. Now that the sanctuary is returning to full operation, those sections are asking for authorization."
Aurelian looked at the reactor map.
Several locked areas appeared beneath the main control room.
They were not part of the Compact network.
Each one belonged to the original Human structure.
"Why did they stay hidden?" he asked.
"The upper reactor room controls power generation, but not full sanctuary management. The deeper levels contain the main distribution authority, reserve systems, and access to several sealed sectors."
Aurelian studied the newly revealed map.
The sanctuary extended far deeper into the mountain than the Compact records suggested.
"What sealed sectors?"
"I do not know yet. Their records are disconnected from the network."
Rhoswen glanced toward the prisoners.
"Do we have time to look?"
Aurelian checked the evacuation progress.
The first transports were loading now, but Neris still needed hours. Solenne was fighting above them, and the Compact fleet had not stopped advancing.
They could not leave an unknown control system beneath the reactor.
"Where is the entrance?"
Eirenne marked a sealed wall behind the main console.
The panel looked like part of the reactor casing, with no visible handle or seam. Only after Aurelian placed his hand on the command scanner did a narrow line of light appear around it.
Human authority recognized.
Secondary access requires local verification.
Aurelian frowned.
"What kind of verification?"
"I cannot tell from the network."
The panel opened.
Behind it was a stairway descending into darkness.
Rhoswen looked down.