Ronan goes still beside me.
“I’m seeing it now,” he says, voice low. “He’s not targeting one location…”
His eyes flick across the data.
“He’s syncing them.”
The realization lands across the room like a shockwave.
I look at Lark.
“How bad?”
She doesn’t hesitate.
“Multiple cities,” she says. “Coordinated. Timed within minutes of each other.”
A beat.
“If he triggers it… thousands die before anyone understands what’s happening.”
Silence.
Not shock.
Not fear.
Calculation.
Cold. Immediate. Absolute.
One of the operators leans back slightly, arms crossing.
“Then we break the chain,” he says.
Another shakes his head once.
“Too late for that if he’s this far in.”
Jace steps forward.
No hesitation.
No debate.
Decision.
“Then we remove the architect.”
The room stills.
Because everyone understands what that means.
Jace’s gaze locks onto the screen.
Voice flat.
Certain.
