That night, the three of them prepared. Weapons were cleaned, gear checked, maps memorized. Jude didn't sleep. He watched the city from the rooftop, the skyline broken and beautiful in the stormlight. He thought of the children in those files. He thought of what he had once been. What they had tried to turn him into. He would not let it happen again.
When the morning came, they moved.
The hydroelectric plant was massive, flanked by concrete walls and towers. But underground, there was a hidden corridor, a tunnel used during construction decades ago. That was how they got in, through the past.
They fought their way down level after level, silenced guards, avoided tripwires, hacked doors. The facility was active. Scientists moved like ghosts, machines hummed, and the children… they were there. Locked in glass cells. Sleeping. Drugged. Hooked up to machines.
Jude broke the first lock with trembling hands. A small girl opened her eyes and stared at him. He lifted her gently.
