She’d already damaged the structure of the hallway, and the two new grenades destroyed it completely. Mitzi rose a few inches into the air as the concrete floor buckled under her boots, then her stomach flipped as they dropped through the space that had once been the floor.

The impact ran through Mitzi’s body like a miniature shockwave. Judging by the grunts and gasps that came through her helmet, she wasn’t the only one who had been shaken. She tumbled backwards, unable to find footing on the rubble, and bumped into two of her teammates, though she couldn’t tell who through the thick, cloistering white dust. The three of them ended up on the floor, struggling to regain their feet as the pile of rubble shifted under them.

“Up,” Mitzi gasped, getting to her knees. The bricks in front of her bulged as something alive tried to escape, and she recoiled. “Not all of them are dead. Up, quickly!”

A human hand, missing three fingers, its skin hanging in shreds, shot out of the rubble and grabbed blindly for Mitzi’s leg. She kicked it, crushing it, then leapt over the twitching appendage. As soon as she had solid footing in the hallway, she turned around to ensure all of her team had made it out. They were clearly shaken as they staggered away from the shifting pile. Skye was closest, so Mitzi grabbed a grenade from the woman’s belt and threw it towards where she could see Cymics trying to worm their way out of the rubble.

That should slow them down, at least.

“Can we get into the reactor from this level, Nic?”

“’Fraid not, doll. You can admire how big and pretty it is through the surveillance windows, but the only access comes from the floor above. Follow this passageway for a while, and you’ll get back to the first stairwell. We’ll cross our fingers you didn’t damage the lower portions too much.”

Mitzi had learnt to hate Station 335’s long hallways with their empty offshoots and closed doors. She started running, taking advantage of the exoskeleton’s boost to carry her as quickly as she dared down the long passageways. Nic occasionally gave instructions on which way to turn, but for the most part, the suits were quiet except for her teammates’ heavy breathing.

Then there was a flicker of motion at the bottom of her helmet’s screen. Mitzi frowned at the symbols and numbers. It took her a moment to recognise what had changed: all six suits were online.

“Adam?” she asked, feeling frustration rise into her chest. “You better not answer me, you moron.”

There was a familiar chuckle. “Sorry, Cap, I’m tired of waiting. The Cymics have left outside the door, so I can sneak out, no problems.”

“Damn it, Adam, you stay in that room.” Mitzi cast around for a reason that might keep the boy stationary. “I need you to make sure Ellen’s safe.”

“Taurun,” a quiet voice corrected.

“Yeah, okay, sure. You need to keep her safe.”