Lian's hand met Kai's on the cold glass of the terminal. The moment their skin touched, a pillar of violet light erupted, connecting them to the ceiling.
Lian saw everything. She saw Kai's childhood, his loneliness, his fear of the board. And he saw her—her struggle, her poverty, her hidden strength. The bond was no longer a whisper; it was a symphony.
"DELETE INITIATED," a cold voice announced.
"STOP THEM!" Elena's voice screamed from the hallway. The vault door blew inward, smoke filling the room. Elena stood there, flanked by tactical units in black armor. "Kill the girl! I only need the boy's blood for the bypass!"
Bullets whizzed past Lian's ear. Kai tackled her to the ground, using the heavy server racks for cover.
"The deletion is at 50%!" Kai shouted over the gunfire. "We have to hold them off for two minutes!"
*"Lian, listen to me,"* Kai's voice was calm inside the chaos of her mind. *"I'm going to draw their fire. There's a ventilation shaft behind the main frame. It leads to the subway tunnels. You have to go."*
"I'm not leaving you!" Lian screamed back, both aloud and in her mind.
*"You have to. If they catch you, they can restart the sequence using your DNA. As long as you are free, Project Icarus is useless to them. You are the fail-safe, Lian. Run!"*
Lian felt the bond swell with a protective, fierce love that took her breath away. Kai stood up, his eyes glowing with a violet fire that blinded the tactical team. He wasn't just a CEO anymore; he was a god of light and steel.
"GO!" he roared.