Noah turned to the coordinator. "I need access to the actual compounds. Unopened containers if you have them. Our medical team needs to analyze the contents."

The coordinator nodded, too exhausted to argue anymore. "Follow me."

She led them through another corridor to a storage area where the crates Noah's team had delivered sat partially unpacked. He selected one that was still sealed, reading the biohazard labels carefully before using proper protocols to extract a sample container.

"Marking this as Sample Alpha," Noah said into his comm. "I'm scanning the label information now. Sending to Watch Command for database cross-reference."

His helmet's scanner captured the container's identifying information—lot numbers, chemical warnings, manufacturer codes. All of it transmitted back to Eclipse headquarters in compressed data bursts.

Back in the conference room, Sam was already working, his fingers flying across multiple tablets as he processed the incoming information. Seraleth had entered and stood beside Sophie, four of Eclipse's medical personnel crowding behind her with their own equipment ready.

"I need chemical analysis," Noah said. "Fast. Whatever this compound is, it's killing people and I need to know if there's a way to stop it."

"Understood," Seraleth replied. Her voice carried the usual focused calm she used during crisis situations. "Based on your visual description, I'm seeing symptoms consistent with awakening attempts. The luminescence in the circulatory system suggests the compound is triggering cellular changes that the body can't sustain. The hemorrhaging occurs when vessel walls fail under the stress of transformation."

"Can we treat it?"

"Not without understanding the compound's exact composition. Send us everything—chemical markers, any documentation that came with the shipment, manufacturer information if available."

Noah was gathering what he could when another scream tore through the triage area. He turned to see a young man, maybe twenty-five, his veins blazing bright yellow-green. The glow intensified over fifteen seconds, pulsing like a heartbeat made visible, and then blood erupted from every orifice simultaneously.

The medical staff moved to help, but Noah could see it was futile. The man convulsed once, twice, and then went still. The glow faded slowly, leaving behind just a corpse with blood pooling on the sheets beneath him.

"Nineteen," the coordinator said quietly.

Noah forced himself to focus. "Watch Command, I'm implementing isolation protocols. This facility needs to be quarantined until we understand transmission vectors. I'm also going to need hazmat equipment for my team and medical support for the staff here. They've been exposed to whatever this is for six hours."

"Acknowledged," Sophie said. "We're coordinating support now. But Noah, we have a bigger problem."

"What problem?"

"While you were investigating, our entire network went down. Someone took complete control of our systems. They're in everything—communications, monitoring, building security. And they're sending us a message."

Before Noah could respond, his helmet display flickered. The usual heads-up information vanished, replaced by a simple geometric pattern rotating slowly in white against black. And text, appearing one character at a time:

It was like a hexagon rotating slowly, its edges sharp and white against the black screen, pulsing every three seconds like a heartbeat.

**ECLIPSE FACTION - STAND BY FOR COMMUNICATION**

"Noah, do you see this?" Sophie's voice was tight.

"I see it. What the hell is going on?"

Back at Eclipse headquarters, every screen showed the same pattern. Sam was frantically trying to regain control while Kelvin's voice came through the comm system, strained and distant: "Someone's in the network. They're not just accessing systems, they're everywhere. I can feel them through my technopathy but I can't pin them down. It's like they're—"

His voice cut off as the geometric pattern on every screen pulsed once.

Then a new voice filled every comm channel, every speaker, every audio output device Eclipse Faction controlled. It sounded digitized, processed through filters, but somehow still carrying inflection and personality.

//Hello, Eclipse.//

Sophie's voice came out level and controlled, showing none of the cold fury building in her chest. "Identify yourself."

//I represent an organization whose operations you have been participating in today. Your five contracts were all filed by entities under our control. You've transported materials, extracted assets, and secured distribution channels. All quite efficiently, I might add. Your streaming initiative made the entire process remarkably smooth.//

"We were hired for legitimate humanitarian work," Sophie replied. "If you're suggesting otherwise, you're mistaken."

//Am I? Let me demonstrate how well I understand your organization, Sophie Reign. You served in the EDF's Vanguard forces before leaving to help establish Eclipse. You've been the strategic mind behind this faction's operations since its founding. Your instinct right now is to implement emergency protocols. You're considering three primary options.//

The screens shifted, showing what looked like Eclipse's own tactical planning documents—deployment patterns, response protocols, contingency plans.

//Option one: You'll order Kelvin Pithon to use his technopathy to backtrace our network intrusion and identify our physical location. An excellent plan in theory. Kelvin is remarkably skilled—it took us three weeks to develop an infiltration method sophisticated enough to avoid his detection protocols. We had to be very patient.//

Kelvin's voice came through, strained: "They're not lying. This is sophisticated. They're distributed across multiple nodes, routing through proxy systems. I can't pin them down."

//We've been inside your network for eight days, Kelvin. Not six weeks—we're not arrogant enough to claim we could hide from you that long. But eight days was sufficient to map your infrastructure, identify security gaps created during Eclipse's rapid expansion, and establish the access we needed. You would have found us eventually. We simply needed to act before that happened.//

The digitized voice somehow managed to sound almost respectful.

//Option two: You'll order Noah Eclipse to use his dimensional travel ability to immediately extract all deployed teams and return them to headquarters. This removes your personnel from potential danger zones.//

Sophie's expression didn't change, but Sam noticed her right hand clench into a fist.

//However, this action would constitute breach of contract across five simultaneous agreements. The legal ramifications would be significant. More importantly, it would alert my organization that Eclipse is no longer a useful asset, at which point we would have no incentive to maintain discretion about your involvement in today's operations.//

The screens shifted again, showing timestamped footage from the team deployments. Noah's team unloading crates at Settlement Gamma-Nine. Diana's team extracting individuals from the mining facility. Lila supervising evacuation procedures. Kelvin working on the life support systems. Lucas conducting security operations aboard the refugee transports.

All of it captured in high definition. All of it showing Eclipse Faction performing exactly the tasks they'd been hired to perform.

//Option three: You'll contact EDF authorities and report suspected illegal activity. You'll claim ignorance, insist you were manipulated, and hope your reputation protects you from prosecution.//

The digitized voice somehow managed to sound amused.

//This is perhaps the most dangerous option. Because you see, Sophie, you have no proof that any of today's operations were illegal. Every contract was filed through legitimate channels. Every payment was processed properly. Every task you performed had a perfectly legal justification. What you do have is five teams conducting operations that, if interpreted in a certain light, could appear to constitute smuggling, trafficking, and conspiracy to distribute controlled materials.//

"We didn't know," Sophie said, her voice hard.

//Precisely. You didn't know. But proving you didn't know requires proving that we exist, that we deliberately manipulated you, that there's a conspiracy at all. And every hour you spend trying to prove that is an hour your faction's reputation deteriorates as evidence of your operations spreads across public channels.//

Sam was frantically working his tablet, trying to regain any measure of control. "Sophie, they're accessing our financial records. They can see everything—contracts, payments, operational budgets."

//I'm not accessing your financial records, Sam Torres. I already have them. I've had them since we established our network presence eight days ago. That's when we began learning your patterns, understanding your operations, waiting for the right moment to make use of your capabilities.//

The screens showed Eclipse's internal planning documents, deployment schedules, even personal files on team members.

//Noah Eclipse is currently in Settlement Gamma-Nine's medical facility, observing the results of the delivery his team made ninety-three minutes ago. He's seeing people die from complications related to experimental medical compounds. Some will survive. Most won't. The survivors will develop quite interesting capabilities, but that's somewhat beside the point.//

"You're killing people," Sophie said flatly.

//Some people. Not all. The survivors will represent significant advances in awakening medical science. But that's not your concern right now.// The voice somehow conveyed a shrug. //Your concern is that Noah Eclipse, on camera, delivered the materials currently causing a medical crisis at Settlement Gamma-Nine. Diana Frost extracted individuals who are products of similar research. Lila Rowe facilitated the evacuation of families whose children have undergone genetic modification. Kelvin Pithon repaired infrastructure that maintains biological containment for controlled substances. Lucas Grey provided security for transport operations moving items that would be flagged as contraband upon inspection.//

The screens shifted one final time, showing what appeared to be legal documentation—arrest warrants, seizure orders, investigation protocols. All listing Eclipse Faction as subjects of interest.

//These documents don't exist yet. But they will, if you choose not to cooperate.//

"What do you want?" Sophie asked.

//Simply for you to complete your contracts. Noah delivers the medical supplies—already done. Diana extracts the miners—in progress. Lila evacuates the settlement—proceeding smoothly. Kelvin repairs the station—contract fulfilled. Lucas secures the refugee transports—ongoing. Five simple tasks. You do what you were hired to do, accept your payment, and move on.//

"And if we refuse?"

//Then I release every piece of evidence showing Eclipse Faction's involvement in illegal operations across the eastern quadrant. Your streaming initiative has provided quite comprehensive documentation. The public will watch your downfall in real-time, just as they watched your rise.//

There was a pause, and then the voice continued with something approximating satisfaction.

//Do I have your attention now?//

The conference room fell silent except for the ambient hum of ventilation systems and the distant sound of Noah's breathing over the comm channel as he stood in Settlement Gamma-Nine's medical facility, surrounded by dying people whose suffering Eclipse had delivered.

Sophie stared at the screens, her mind cataloging the situation, finding nothing but walls in every direction.

"Yes," she said quietly. "You have our attention,"

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