Page 177 of Neon Flux

I nodded, my mind racing. Eon wouldn’t willingly participate in mass destruction. She wasn’t like that, way too fucking soft. The only person she ever hurt was me, and that was because she knew I could handle it. I’d seen her face when confronted with violence—she feared her own capacity for it. Someone was using her. Manipulating her.

I reached B2 when I heard a voice echoing from a maintenance corridor. A voice that struck a chord in my memory.

That rebel bitch.

She was arguing with someone over comms, her voice strained with panic. “—told you, it’s destabilizing too fast! We need to send out a warning now—”

She paused, listening to whoever was on the other end.

“That wasn’t the plan! We came for the data! I never agreed to level the district!”

I stepped into view, my sidearm raised. “Plans change.”

She spun, eyes widening. A small pulse pistol appeared in her hand, but I was already moving. My Flux surged, overriding her weapon’s circuits before she could fire. The gun sparked uselessly, and she dropped it with a yelp.

“Where is she?” I demanded, closing the distance between us.

“Who?” Taos backed away, hitting the wall behind her.

“Don’t play dumb. Where’s Eon?”

Recognition flickered in her eyes, followed by defiance. “Why? So you can drag her back to POM? Make her another one of your experiments?”

I pressed my forearm against her throat, just hard enough to make breathing difficult. “What experiments?”

“Like you don’t know.” She struggled against my grip, but it was weak. “The Flux labs. The vessel program. All the bioengineering POM’s been doing. I saw all the hidden data. That’s why you want her, isn’t it?”

Vessel program.The same term the Church used. But inside POM? What the fuck was going on?

“Talk.” I growled, easing the pressure on her throat just enough.

Taos’ eyes darted to the side, calculating her chances. I let my Flux rise, dancing visibly across my skin—a reminder.

“We came here to expose it. Leak the data on the experiments. I didn’t know…the code I’ve been working on is almost exactly the same. But they’re talking about ripping people out of their bodies, using the flesh for whatever they want. It doesn’t work long term. Our brains break down. Flux makes you more compatible, but it’s not enough. But Eon…”

I pressed harder. “What about Eon?”

Taos coughed, tears welling in her eyes. “They’ve been tracking her. Now she’s down there, and I can’t—”

I released her and stepped back. The implant above my eye pulsed—schematics flashing across my display, identifying the fastest route to the junction. Time was running out.

“Get the fuck out of here. I’ll get her.”

Taos stared at me. “What?”

“You heard me. Emergency exit’s down that corridor, third door on the right. Go. Now.”

She hesitated, disbelief written across her face. “Why would you—”

“It doesn’t fucking matter why,” I snapped. “Now move.”

Self-preservation didn’t take long to kick in, and she ran for the door.

Then the door ahead of her swung open. Maddox’s huge frame filled the entryway. Before I could say a word, the air pressure shifted.

Taos fell to her knees as the air was ripped from her lungs. She choked, clawing at nothing until her eyes rolled back and she passed out.

“Finally found you. You okay, man?” I barely heard Maddox as he stepped over the body toward me, his face twisted with concern at the way I was just fucking standing there like an idiot.