Elijah watched Valeria's expression harden as she activated her communication interface. The corporate insignia of VitaCore glowed on her wrist dispy, its blue light casting harsh shadows across her determined face.

  "I'm initiating an official report under VitaCore security protocol 37-B," Valeria announced, her finger hovering over the transmission button. "Unauthorized neural modifications and system infiltration by unregistered pyer Lyra Kess must be documented and addressed immediately."

  The moment seemed frozen in time. Alexander stood silent, his face a mask of conflicted emotions. Riva had taken a step back, clearly uncomfortable with the confrontation unfolding before her. Lyra remained perfectly still, her eyes fixed on Valeria's communication device as the report was being prepared but not yet sent.

  In that suspended moment, before Valeria could complete the transmission, Elijah felt something unfamiliar rising within him—not the usual calm analysis that was his trademark, but a burning certainty that demanded action.

  "Stop the transmission," he said, his voice surprisingly steady.

  Valeria barely gnced at him. "This isn't your decision, Elijah. Corporate protocol requires—"

  "I said stop," Elijah repeated, stepping forward. The unusual assertiveness in his tone made everyone turn to him in surprise. "Before you submit that report, the team should know exactly who's sending it."

  Valeria's finger paused over the transmission confirmation. "What are you talking about?"

  "We know about the equipment sabotage," Elijah said clearly. "Lyra's pack straps cut almost through before the sandstorm on Floor 12. The damaged breathing apparatus on Floor 22. The corrupted navigation data on Floor 18."

  Valeria's expression flickered momentarily before settling back into professional detachment. "Those were accidents and equipment failures. Common in Game conditions."

  "They were deliberate sabotage," Elijah countered, moving to stand beside Lyra. "And we have proof. The tool residue analysis from your equipment matches the cut patterns. The data corruption signatures contain your access codes."

  Alexander's head turned sharply toward Elijah, clearly surprised by this revetion.

  "We've known about your private VitaCore communication channel for weeks," Elijah continued, each word more confident than the st. "As I reminded you on Floor 14, we've been monitoring every report you've sent to Father's security team."

  Valeria's eyes narrowed, no surprise in her expression—just calcution. She had known they were aware of her communications since their confrontation after the sandstorm incident.

  "And yet you've done nothing about it until now," she said coldly. "You've known I was reporting on you and still followed Alexander's decision to keep me on the team."

  "And yet we have transcripts," Elijah said simply. "Including your assessment that I was 'disappointingly soft' and 'likely unsuitable for executive development,'" Elijah said, referencing words from her reports that he'd confronted her about before. "Or your recommendation that Alexander be extracted and reconditioned due to 'concerning independent tendencies.'"

  The tension in the air thickened as Alexander processed this information, his gaze shifting between Elijah and Valeria.

  "You've been monitoring our performance for Father this entire time," Elijah said, his voice hardening. "Not as a teammate, but as an evaluator with authority to recommend our extraction."

  Valeria's jaw tightened. "Every Architect family does this. It's standard procedure for high-value pyers. Your father merely wants to ensure—"

  "Our compliance," Elijah finished for her. "With a system we're increasingly finding to be corrupt."

  Valeria's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Be very careful with your next words, Elijah. Questioning corporate structures carries severe consequences, even for Voss heirs."

  "I'm not questioning," Elijah replied with newfound firmness. "I'm rejecting. There's a difference."

  The statement hung in the air between them. Elijah could sense Alexander's surprise at his directness—this wasn't the supportive, intellectually-focused brother who typically followed Alexander's lead. This was something entirely new.

  "Alexander," Valeria said, turning her attention to the team leader. "Control your brother. This insubordination is unprecedented and risks both your standings. Your father would expect—"

  "My brother," Alexander interrupted, "is speaking for himself. And I suggest you listen carefully."

  The implied support shifted the dynamics instantly. Valeria's expression flickered between anger and calcution as she reassessed her position.

  "You need to make a leadership decision, Alexander," Elijah said, maintaining his unusual assertiveness. "Either we continue as a team based on trust and shared goals, or we fracture along corporate lines. But know that if you choose to support Valeria's report, you lose both Lyra's technical expertise and my support."

  The ultimatum was clear and direct—completely uncharacteristic for Elijah, who had always been the diplomatic bancer to Alexander's more commanding presence.

  Alexander looked between them, the weight of the decision evident in his expression. The moment stretched as the alternatives crystallized: uphold corporate protocol or protect team integrity.

  Valeria, sensing his hesitation, pressed her advantage. "Alexander, think about what you're risking. Your position, your future, your father's trust—all for what? An Unaligned technical specialist and a moment of rebellion?"

  "No," Elijah interjected before Alexander could respond. "For the truth about what this Game really is. For the opportunity to change something fundamentally wrong. For the chance to be more than what we were programmed to be."

  In that moment, standing between Lyra and the corporate system that sought to control them, Elijah felt a crity of purpose he had never experienced before. The supportive role he had always pyed—the quieter twin, the intellectual bance to Alexander's leadership—fell away, revealing something stronger underneath.

  Alexander looked at his brother with new understanding, clearly seeing the transformation. Then he turned to Valeria, decision made.

  "Lower your communicator," he ordered firmly. "There will be no report."