This was just the outer shell. The true core lay buried much deeper.
With this labyrinth of security, an ordinary operative had absolutely zero chance of brute-forcing their way inside.
After roughly ten agonizing minutes of verification protocols.
Authorization was finally granted.
Director Kaelen quickly spun around to face Serena. "Your Excellency, per ship regulations, your medical case must be reopened for a final inspection before we breach the vault's perimeter. We must guarantee that its contents are authorized for entry."
Serena rolled her eyes, making absolutely no effort to mask her explosive annoyance. "Didn't you just scan it?"
Director Kaelen offered a placating smile. "This is the Sanctum Vault, Your Excellency. The clearance tiers are fundamentally different. I beg for your cooperation."
One of the stationed guards stepped forward, clearly intending to pry the case from her grip.
Serena's eyes instantly went dead.
The guard's hand hadn't even brushed the handle before a sheen of cold sweat erupted across his back.
Director Kaelen's face drained of color. He opened his mouth to try and defuse the situation.
But Jerrick cut in, his voice ringing out cold and authoritative. "I'll do it."
The guard froze, instinctively looking at the mercenary commander.
Jerrick lifted his gaze, his expression completely blank. "Did you forget what happened when she boarded?"
That single sentence caused the guard's face to pale dramatically.
During boarding, an inspector had touched her belongings. She had poisoned him on the spot.
The contents of The Panacea's medical case...
God only knew what nightmare toxins were sloshing around in there. If he touched the wrong vial, he would meet the exact same gruesome end.
"But..." The inspection was his duty. If he let her through and something went wrong, his head would be the one on the chopping block.
Jerrick's voice dropped to a glacial chill. "She despises anyone touching her equipment. If you trigger another incident and delay the perimeter inspection, are you taking full responsibility?"
The guard stiffened, throwing a desperate look at Director Kaelen.
Director Kaelen nodded frantically. "Let Mr. Fenris handle the inspection!"
Serena arched an eyebrow, staring openly at Jerrick.
A flicker of unreadable amusement danced through her brooding, lazy eyes.
Jerrick snatched the scanner from the guard but made no move to touch her case. He simply looked at her. "Open it."
Serena scoffed, slamming the case onto the detection array and casually popping the latches.
Under the intense scrutiny of the guards and the Director Jerrick
methodically ran the net
overt
every inch of the interior.
His movements were deliberate and exact.
He had witnessed her explosive temper firsthand.
If he actually let these ship dogs stick their hands into her equipment, who knew if it would trigger a repeat of the boarding incident?
The moment a body dropped, or if she was provoked into outright refusing the job.
The golden opportunity he had painstakingly orchestrated would go up in flames.
He refused to allow any variables to sabotage his operation.
The wand in Jerrick's hand glided slowly over every single vial and meticulously scanned the false bottom.
Yet, he never made physical contact with a single item.
And he flawlessly bypassed every invisible tripwire meant to trigger her traps.
.nět
Serena stood off to the side, arms crossed, watching him with
profound amusement. "Mr. Ferris is certainly a lot smarter than the rest of your dogs."
Jerrick didn't bother looking up, his tone flat. "I just don't want to deal with a corpse."
Director Kaelen stood perfectly still.
The way these two communicated was utterly unhinged.
The scan concluded.
Zero anomalies detected.
Only then did the guard punch in the final override command.
The intricate locking mechanisms illuminated in a cascading sequence.
Under the operative's control, the colossal blast doors of the Sanctum Vault began
to peel back, layer by heavy layer.
The moment the final exterior seal breached.
A suffocating blast of freezing air violently hit their faces.