Raven drove the Ironhowl down a quiet stretch of highway, the cracked asphalt leading toward a gated paradise. Her fingers rested loosely on the wheel, but her mind was elsewhere. Not outside. Not even inside the vehicle. Deeper.
With a flicker of intent, she reached out—and the internet responded.
A stream of data flooded her perception. Archived servers. Long-dead blog pages. Video files. Old forums with stored forum posts. She wasn't connected in the traditional sense. She didn't need towers or satellites what she has now is more like a psychic connection. One she could access at any time.
"System," she said aloud, still watching the road. "Is it you that let's me access the internet? Even if the grid's gone?"
The response was instant.
[System Notification:] "Affirmative. This ability has been enabled with the awakening of the host's Technomancer powers to ensure entertainment and digital access in isolation. No further elaboration is required."
Raven tilted her head slightly.
"Well, at least I'll never run out of movies."
The system didn't respond.
The gates of Rose Manor appeared around the bend—tall black wrought iron fences surrounding a modern estate, untouched by time. The last time she was here, she'd been half-starved, half-crazed, freshly escaped from the Red Blood Raiders. She hid in this place for months, scrounging what peace she could until the world dragged her back into it.
Not this time.
Raven stepped out of the Ironhowl and approached the gate. A casual wave of her hand and the lock disengaged. The gate groaned open. She walked ahead on foot and motioned mentally for the Ironhowl to follow. The SUV rolled forward, obedient and silent.
As she neared the house, another system message bloomed across her thoughts.
[System Notification:] "Would the host like to designate Rose Manor as your Home Base? This will absorb the full structure into Sanctuary."
Raven smiled happily.
"Yes."
The air shifted.
Reality folded in on itself.
In a single moment, she was standing back in the familiar grass clearing within Sanctuary. Behind her, the Ironhowl was parked. To her right, the still pond she awakened in. And in front of her, fully transported Rose Manor.
The tennis court, indoor gym, home theater, solar array, and reinforced windows—all intact nothing was missing even the grass and bushes are here.
She exhaled deeply.
"That was simple and easy. Just the way I like it."
Raven turned in place, surveying her new domain. Peaceful, Quiet, and Safe.
"Now, let's wait out these last few days in peace and quiet."
But peace does not mean laziness. She still has work to do.
She chose a spot a few minutes' walk from the villa and instructed the system to deploy her Technomancer Workshop there. It responded without sound or fanfare—metal walls assembling from the air, anchoring into the soil with seamless precision. Inside were benches, 3D printers, mounted tool racks, all clean and ready.
Then she walked in the opposite direction and selected a second space. A wide flat patch of grass near the tree line. She asked the system to deploy her Botany Lab.
The foundation formed beneath her feet—a clean concrete pad. Above it, reinforced frames unfolded, leaving the structure partially open to the elements, just as she wanted.
She inhaled.
Cool air drifted over her skin. The artificial climate in Sanctuary was soft, steady, and hers to control. Here, she could work under the stars or beneath the sun, and nothing—no wind, no storm, no acid rain—would ever interrupt her especially those dam zombies
Raven returned to the Botany Lab and began planting.
One by one, she pulled from her system the rare plants and flowers she collected from NYU.
Wolfsbane. Belladonna. Taxus. Cannabis. Echinacea. Valerian. Pacific yew. Foxglove. Rosary pea.
She arranged them in a perfect circle around the lab's perimeter, spacing them with care. The ground welcomed the seeds. Vines coiled slightly with awareness, sensing her now as one of their own as she ordered them to grow stronger and even more deadly.
With that done, Raven crossed the clearing and stepped into her Technomancer Workshop. She surveyed the layout, hands already tingling with anticipation.
It was time to build her first drones.
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