Ify knows where they are. Unless Xifeng plans on going far to reach the core of Nigeria’s net, they must be in Abuja. In or near Garki District, the city’s principal business and administrative area. Headquarters of the Nigerian Armed Forces, the commercial broadcast networks, the Infrastructure Development Bureau, and the Federal Ministry of Information and Communications. Ify has walked through the halls of that building, ascended and descended in the glass elevators running along its exteriors, enjoyed the uniformity of its floors and office spaces. But she has never seen what lies beneath. No matter her access, she was never permitted there. She doesn’t even think Daren had the security clearance to venture beneath that ground floor. That must be where the core of the net is located. But it would be heavily guarded, no doubt. Not just by armed guards, but likely by all type of mechanized droid, programmed for lethal engagement. How would Xifeng get past that?

As they head toward the city center, the sound of fighting has gotten louder. But there’s another sound underneath it all. Ify would barely hear it were it not for her past among so many Augments and her constant proximity to tech. The soft whirr and buzz of highly powered cyberized people.

Ify and Grace press against the wall of an abandoned charred duplex and watch as an armored personnel carrier disgorges cyberized police officers in the middle of the street. As they fan out, aerial drones lift from their backs and, as they climb higher, unfurl the guns attached to their undercarriages. Ify motions for Grace to be quiet. They don’t stand a chance against even this group, never mind the dozens—at least!—that have been deployed throughout the burning city. On top of everything else, they’re still wanted fugitives, according to Xifeng. She wishes she’d had the foresight to steal some of that face-scrambling cream they’d worn earlier. As it stands, they’re no match for the scanners.

Pretty quickly, the soldiers head away from them. Using the noise and commotion of the riots for cover, Ify and Grace stay as close to the buildings lining the roads as possible, skirting through alleys whenever possible, moving as fast as they can. The quiet is eerie here. It looks like the aftermath of a storm, like a Redlands wildfire has raged through here. But the buildings smolder, which gives Ify pause. There’s been no rain. What could have put the fires out?

Too late, Ify detects the movement to her right.

Through an entire row of buildings crashes the largest humanoid machine Ify has ever seen. She and Grace dive out of the way of its charge but are separated when the hulking monstrosity comes to a stop between them. Its muscles bulge beneath its all-black bodysuit. A helmet fused to its steroidal shoulders reveals only its eyes. It looks like a thing out of a nightmare.