STALKER: The Rift Protocol - Flux Load (a web novel) ~ Chapter 36 ~

📖 CHAPTER 36 — “THE OLD FILE” 🎬 Scene 36.0 — Rotation Nexus Two did not wake. It simply... continued. The Lattice maintained suppression. The residual seepage remained measurable. Small. Stable. Persistent. Engineers had stopped checking it every few minutes. Now they checked according to schedule. Which was how emergencies became procedures. A replacement rotation arrived shortly after morning shift. Six engineers. Two security operators. One medical technician. Three crates of lattice control hardware. And enough cabling to make Yura visibly unhappy. He stood beside the incoming equipment. Stared at it. Then at the quartermaster. No. The quartermaster checked his tablet. Yes. Yura I don't work here. Quartermaster You currently do. Yura Temporarily. Quartermaster Exactly.... Yura pointed toward the crates. Those look permanent. Nobody answered him. Wu Ming checked the rotation sheet. His name. Oksana's directly beneath it. RETURN — GREYFIELD Same transport. Same departure window. No annotation. No explanation. None required. That was simply how teams handled the duo now. If one rotated out... the other usually did too. Unless operational needs dictate otherwise. No one discussed it. Nadiya remained assigned to Nexus Two. Telemetry. Western monitoring. Residual Flux observation. She read the sheet once. Then folded it. Oksana noticed. You staying? Nadiya nodded. For now. Oksana didn't ask why. She already knew. 🎬 Scene 36.1 — West Wu Ming found himself at the western observation corridor again. He had not intended to go there. At least, that was what he told himself. Beyond the reinforced glass, the battlefield was already changing. Rain had flattened the ash. Recovery crews had removed damaged equipment. Spent casings had been collected. Broken defense emplacements were being dismantled. The ground remembered the battle less every hour. Pavel was gone. Nothing moved on the western road. Wu Ming watched anyway. Oksana approached from behind. She stopped beside him. Close. Familiar distance. For several seconds, neither spoke. He came back. Oksana looked toward him. Wu Ming continued watching outside. Pavel... ... Eventually. Oksana understood what he had actually said. Her expression changed. Only slightly. Ming~ He said nothing. Pavel had disappeared. Been classified MIA. Been assumed dead by almost everyone who knew him. Then... he walked back. Changed. But alive. Or something close enough that Wu Ming could still recognize him. Wu Ming looked west. They stopped looking. Oksana knew immediately who he meant now. Not Pavel. She leaned lightly against the railing. They stopped the search. Wu Ming finally looked at her. Oksana held his gaze. You didn't. Something old moved behind his eyes. Not memory yet. Just.... pressure. Rain. A radio repeating the same unanswered call. Mud beneath his boots. A name spoken until it stopped sounding like a name. Jian. Then, another voice. Female. Unknown then. Sharp. Close. Stop moving. The memory vanished. Oksana was still beside him. Present. Older. Known. Wu Ming looked at her. She knew what he had remembered. She didn't ask. 🎬 Scene 36.2 — Departure The DTV-12 HAULER waited in Vehicle Bay Three. Engine running. Rear compartment open. Routine transport. No escort. No ceremony. Yura appeared carrying a diagnostic case. Wu Ming looked at him. You're coming? Yura shook his head. Apparently~ Engineering says I'm "es~sen~tial~"... Oksana giggled and glanced toward the mountain of equipment being unloaded. Congratulations~ Yura Don't. Nadiya arrived behind him. She handed Oksana a sealed medical telemetry packet. Morning environmental set. Oksana took it. Send the next one to Greyfield. Nadiya Already scheduled. Nadiya looked toward Wu Ming. If he comes back— Wu Ming nodded. Call us. No hesitation. No reassurance. Just certainty. Nadiya accepted that. Oksana climbed into the Hauler. Wu Ming followed. Two seats beside one another had already been left open. Nobody had deliberately reserved them. Probably. 🎬 Scene 36.3 — Transit The Hauler moved east. Nexus Two disappeared behind reinforced concrete. Then fencing. Then trees. Then nothing. Oksana reviewed the medical packet. Wu Ming sat beside her. Quiet. Too quiet. She finished reading. Closed it. Twenty-nine. Wu Ming looked at her. She raised her wrist slightly. Before you ask. Wu Ming I wasn't going to. Oksana You were. He almost smiled. The Hauler hit a rut. Their shoulders bumped. Neither adjusted away. Oksana looked at him again. You haven't thought about him in a while. Wu Ming knew better than to pretend otherwise. I think about him. Oksana That's not what I said. Silence. She was right. There was a difference between remembering someone, and returning to the moment they disappeared. Pavel had opened that door. Not intentionally. Probably not knowingly. But it was open now. Wu Ming leaned his head against the steel wall. Closed his eyes. Just for a moment. SSsshhhhsshhhh The sound of water falling unto his skin. He opens his eyes. Rain. Again. Older equipment. A weaker radio network. No Greyfield. Not yet. Someone shouting coordinates. Someone else saying the sector was being abandoned. Wu Ming moving in the opposite direction. Fang! No response. Mud. A broken service road. Blood running down his forearm. He ignored it. Kept walking. Then~ a hand caught him. Hard. Pulled him backward. His boot stopped centimetres from ground that... moved. Not collapsed. Moved. A woman's voice. Fang! Are you trying to die? Wu Ming turned. He remembered pale hair soaked almost grey by rain. A medic pouch. Blood that wasn't all hers. A face he did not know. Yet. Then the Hauler struck another rut. Wu Ming's eyes opened. Oksana was beside him. Reading his expression. That one? He looked at her. A faint trace of amusement touched her face. Not because the memory was funny. Because she knew exactly which memory had found him. Wu Ming looked forward again. You pulled too hard. Oksana's eyebrow lifted. You nearly stepped into a shear pocket. Wu Ming I noticed. Oksana After I pulled you out. A pause. Wu Ming looked at her. You bruised my shoulder, Sana. Oksana You're welcome, Ming. And there it was. Small. Ordinary. A piece of history neither of them needed explained. 🎬 Scene 36.4 — The Search Greyfield Elias had not gone home. Amara suspected this was because he no longer remembered where home was. Hanae suspected he simply disliked sleeping. Neither theory tested. The Day-26 witness report remained open. The problem was simple. The witness had not used a full name. Only a field handle. Common at the time. The camp where the interview had been recorded no longer existed. The interviewer was dead. The regional registry had been reorganized twice. And a fire had destroyed part of the original civilian movement archive. Amara stared at the screen. So he's gone. Elias looked at her. We don't know that. Amara That's what gone means in archival terms. Hanae sat opposite them. Try medical. Amara looked over. Medical? Hanae He described operating independently in a contaminated sector. Amara So? Hanae Stalkers lie about names. Hanae pointed toward the witness report. They lie less when they need antibiotics. That produced something. Not immediately. But enough. A camp medic ledger. Same field handle. Same month. Treatment for: deep laceration chemical exposure fractured left index finger Then... a transport record. The patient had been evacuated east. Amara followed it. One settlement. Then another. Then... ...nothing.... For nineteen years. Elias leaned closer. Last registered location? Amara checked. An old industrial settlement outside Directorate administration. Still inhabited. Barely. Hanae looked at the map. That's not nothing. Elias stared at the screen. The witness might still be alive. Or someone there might remember him. For now, the investigation had somewhere to go that wasn't inside an archive. 🎬 Scene 36.5 — Two Histories The Hauler continued toward Greyfield. Oksana had fallen asleep. Not fully against Wu Ming. Just enough that her shoulder rested against his. Her head shifted once with the movement of the vehicle. Wu Ming adjusted slightly so she wouldn't wake. Automatic. He looked down at her. Then toward the rain streaking across the small armored window. The memory returned. Not the shear pocket. After. ...A temporary field shelter... Rain hammering sheet metal. His arm wrapped badly. The same woman sitting opposite him. Pale hair wet. Hands shaking from exhaustion while she tried to thread a needle through torn fabric. Not his skin. Her own sleeve. Wu Ming remembered asking: Did you see another Chinese man come through here? She had looked up. He remembered that clearly. Everything around it... less so. Her answer had been immediate. No. Then, after seeing his face, softer: But I've only been here six hours. Six hours... At the time, that had sounded like hope. ... ... Present-day Oksana shifted beside him. Still asleep. Wu Ming looked back through the rain. Years later~ he could no longer remember exactly when the search for Jian (间) had ended. Only when people stopped helping him search. And somewhere inside that same stretch of days— Oksana had appeared. At first... just another survivor in the rain. But now... Wu Ming lowered his eyes. Her hand rested loosely beside his. He covered it with his own. Not waking her. Not asking anything. Just~ contact. In Greyfield, an old witness had acquired a location. In the Hauler, an old memory had acquired a face. Neither was enough. Not yet. 🎬 Scene 36.6 — Greyfield The Hauler arrived without ceremony. Greyfield received them the way Greyfield received everyone. Gate. Verification. Radiation check. Equipment transfer. Medical confirmation. Then... movement. Oksana stepped down first. Wu Ming followed. A logistics technician glanced at the return manifest. Then at them. Quarters unchanged. Oksana nodded. No room numbers spoken. No explanation required. Their rooms were still across the same corridor. Their lockers still adjacent in Operations. Their equipment allocation still processed together unless one of them requested otherwise. Nobody thought anything of it. Wu Ming looked across the vehicle bay. Greyfield felt exactly as it had before they left. Which was strange. Nexus Two had nearly failed. Pavel had returned from the dead. Something had changed outside the largest Rift the Directorate had ever contained. And Greyfield... continued moving. Perhaps, already used to dramatic situations. On the upper observation level— Elias saw them arrive. Amara noticed where he was looking. Don't. Elias remained at the window. I wasn't going to. Amara You were considering it. Elias Considering isn't doing. Hanae passed behind them carrying a folder. Good. Elias looked back. You two have remarkable confidence in my self-control. Amara picked up her coffee. Experience suggests otherwise. Below, Wu Ming and Oksana disappeared into Greyfield. Unaware that one floor above them, UE-01 remained open. 🎬 Scene 36.7 — Old Concrete A maintenance closure diverted them from the normal residential route. Oksana read the temporary sign. That's irritating. Wu Ming looked down the alternate corridor. Older section. Lower ceiling. Narrower service passage. Greyfield before expansion. They entered. The walls changed almost immediately. New concrete became old. New conduit became exposed piping. Modern access panels gave way to reinforced steel doors with mechanical handles that had never been replaced. Oksana slowed. Wu Ming noticed. A section of wall still carried an old painted stripe. Almost completely buried beneath newer coats. Yellow. Faded. Broken by years of repairs. Oksana touched it with two fingers. That's still here. Wu Ming stopped. He knew exactly what she meant. For a moment— the corridor disappeared. ...Rain... Open sky. The same concrete wall— but unfinished. No ceiling over half the structure. Plastic sheeting snapping in the wind. Portable floodlights. Mud everywhere. Greyfield before Greyfield had gained its present look. A younger Wu Ming walked through it— wet. Bleeding. Angry. And someone shouted: Sit down. The memory stopped. Present-day Oksana looked at him. A little smile. You remember. Wu Ming resumed walking. Unfortunately. She followed. You were very cooperative. He looked sideways at her. I don't remember that. Oksana smiling, Exactly. 🎬 Scene 36.8 — Six Hours Back then, the medical station was barely a room. Three walls. Temporary roof. One working light. Two folding tables. A canvas cot. A heater that produced more smoke than warmth. Wu Ming had entered looking for information. Not treatment. His left forearm was wrapped badly. Blood had soaked through twice. He ignored it. The young woman from the road was there. Same pale hair. Now tied back roughly. Still wet. Still wearing field clothing suited to a stray Stalker. Her medical pouch lay open beside her. Most of its contents did not match. Different manufacturers. Different languages. Improvised supplies. Whatever she had been before coming here... she had not come through Directorate Logistics. She was stitching a tear in her own sleeve. Not skin. Fabric. Her hands shook slightly. Exhaustion. Cold. Possibly both. Wu Ming entered. Did anyone come through from the western search line? She looked up. Recognized him. You again. Wu Ming Did they? She exhaled. No. His expression tightened. She saw it. Then added: I told you. I've only been here six hours... He looked toward the rear exit. Already preparing to leave. Her eyes dropped to his arm. You're bleeding. Wu Ming It's fine. Oksana looks at his fingers, It's on the floor. Wu Ming looked down. A dark line had reached his fingertips. He looked back at her. Still fine. She stared at him. Then pointed toward the cot. Sit. Wu Ming I don't have time. Oksana Then bleed standing. Wu Ming paused. The woman returned to her sleeve. Apparently finished with him. That annoyed him more than an argument would have. He sat. She stood. Walked over. Unwrapped his arm. Looked at the wound. Then at him. Who did this? Wu Ming Nobody. Oksana That's not an answer. Wu Ming Concrete. She inspected the cut. Concrete attacked you? Wu Ming I fell. Oksana Better. She cleaned the wound. No gentleness. No unnecessary pain either. Efficient. Practiced. Wu Ming watched the entrance the entire time. You're looking for someone. It wasn't a question. Wu Ming said nothing. She continued working. Brother? He finally looked at her. How do you know? Oksana You've asked three different people outside. A pause. Loudly. Wu Ming looked away. Twin. Her hands stopped for half a second. Then resumed. What's his name? Wu Ming Fang Wu Jian (方无间). She nodded once. Committed it to memory. Nothing more. 🎬 Scene 36.9 — Present Day ...Present-day Greyfield... They reached the end of the old corridor. Oksana pressed the access release. Nothing happened. She pressed it again. Still nothing. Wu Ming looked at the mechanical handle beside it. Oksana followed his eyes. Don't. He opened it manually. The door swung inward. Oksana stared at the useless access panel. Advanced infrastructure... pfft. Wu Ming walked through. Reliable. Oksana piffed, Ancient. Wu Ming dismissively stated again, Reliable. She followed him. Then caught his sleeve. He stopped. Oksana looked at the old scar on his forearm. Still there. Faint now. A pale line. She ran her thumb across it once. My stitching improved. Wu Ming looked down at the scar. Eventually. She pinched his arm. Not hard. Same arm. Wu Ming looked at her. Oksana's expression remained perfectly innocent. He caught her hand again. This time, without surprise. She let him. Then they continued walking. Hand contact lasting several steps longer than necessary. Nobody in the corridor paid attention. 🎬 Scene 36.10 — Located Elias received the message at 14:17. Short. Encrypted. Regional contact. SUBJECT LOCATED. He opened the attachment. Amara moved beside him. Hanae remained standing behind them. The Day-26 witness was alive. Older. Significantly. Living under a civilian registration in the same industrial settlement identified through the old medical evacuation trail. No Directorate affiliation. No active criminal warrants. No current Zone permit. Amara read the summary twice. How certain? Elias Field contact confirmed old injury records. Hanae looked at the screen. Finger? Elias nodded. Old fracture. Left index finger. Poorly set. Still visible decades later. The witness had also recognized the old field handle. Amara folded her arms. Does he remember the interview? Elias scrolled. The contact had not asked. Only confirmed identity. That had been the instruction. Hanae nodded. Good. Elias looked at her. Good? Hanae You wanted independent evidence. She pointed toward the screen. Don't contaminate the witness before you interview him properly. Amara looked toward the observation window. Somewhere below, Wu Ming had just returned. And him? Elias did not look. Not yet. And nobody argued. 🎬 Scene 36.11 — The Name ...The memory had another piece... Wu Ming had forgotten it for years. Or thought he had. The young woman finished wrapping his arm. Tight. Professional enough. Not perfect. She secured the end. There. Wu Ming stood immediately. She sighed. Of course. He checked movement. Acceptable. He reached the doorway. Stopped. Turned back. She had already returned to repairing her sleeve. What's your name? She looked up. The question seemed to surprise her more than anything else he had done. A moment. Then, Oksana. Wu Ming waited. She understood. Oksana Andriivna Zahorna. He nodded. Fang Wu Ming. A faint look crossed her face. I know. Wu Ming frowned. She pointed vaguely outside. You told the radio operator. Then another direction. The search coordinator. Then toward herself. And me. He realized she was right. He had been repeating his own name almost as often as Jian's. Because every search team needed to know who was asking. Every operator needed a reference. Every person leaving the western sectors, might have seen his brother. Oksana looked at him. If I hear Fang Wu Jian... Wu Ming's attention sharpened. She continued. I'll tell them you're here. ... If you're still here. Wu Ming looked toward the rain. I will be. She studied him. Probably didn't believe him. He left. Three hours later, he came back. Not because he had found Jian. Because the western search line had closed. Again. Oksana was still there. 🎬 Scene 36.12 — Separate Rooms Present. Wu Ming stopped outside his quarters. Oksana's door was opposite. Same arrangement as before. She unlocked hers. Paused. Looked across at him. You came back three times that night. Wu Ming leaned against his door. Twice. Oksana adamantly repeating herself, Three. Wu Ming dismissively repeated, Twice. Oksana counted on her fingers. Arm. One finger raised. Radio battery. Second finger raised. Then you came back because they closed the west search line. Third finger. Wu Ming considered it. That wasn't for you. Oksana smiled. I know. No offense. No disappointment. Just fact. Wu Ming looked down the corridor. ...Years ago... he had kept returning to that unfinished medical room because it happened to sit between him and the western search sectors. At least, that was how it had started. Oksana opened her door. Before entering, she looked back. You going to sleep? Wu Ming Eventually. Oksana Ming. He looked at her. Her expression changed. Small. Private. The same expression she used when she knew he was about to do something unnecessary. Don't start searching tonight. It's been years... Wu Ming understood. Not files. Not records. Not Greyfield databases. Memory. He nodded. I won't. Oksana watched him for another second. She knew him too well to believe that completely. But she accepted it. Good night. A pause. Then, quieter~ Ming. His expression softened. Good night, Sana. Her door closed. Wu Ming entered his own room. The lights came on automatically. Same bed. Same wall. Same silence. He sat. For several minutes— he did nothing. Then opened the drawer beside his bed. Reached to the back. And removed something he had not looked at in years. An old photograph. Two young Chinese men. Same face. Different expressions. One looking directly into the camera. The other, slightly away. Wu Ming looked at his brother. Across Greyfield, Elias prepared authorization for a witness interview. Two searches had begun again. Only one of the men involved knew it. 🎬 Scene 36.13 — Interview Conditions The witness refused to come to Greyfield. That had been expected. He also refused Directorate transport. That had also been expected. What Elias had not expected, was that the man still possessed an operational short-band set older than several of Greyfield's junior staff. The connection was poor. The image poorer. But usable. The interview was conducted from a restricted office instead of the main command floor. No operators. No observers. Only Elias. Amara. Hanae. A single recorder. And a screen that took a full twenty seconds to stabilize. The man who appeared was old. Very old. Heavy coat. Collapsed shoulder. Clouded left eye. Left index finger slightly bent inward where it had once healed badly and never correctly. He looked at the screen without curiosity. Without deference. Without fear. State your name. The old man snorted softly. You already know it. Elias did not react. For the record. A pause. Then: Anton Krilov. Amara noted the name. Hanae said nothing. Elias folded his hands. You were interviewed twenty-six days after a field encounter in the western sectors. Anton stared at him. That was a long time ago. Elias Yes. Anton And now you care? Elias answered simply. Yes. Anton leaned back in his chair. Then ask properly. 🎬 Scene 36.14 — The Man on the Road Elias did not begin with Wu Jian. He began with the report. Location. Time. Conditions. Direction of travel. Everything that could be established without leading the answer. Anton corrected them twice. Not because the report was wrong. Because it had been incomplete. It hadn't been a road. Not properly. A service route cut through old industrial drainage ground. Cracked concrete. Standing water. Collapsed fencing. Three men at the time. Anton and two others. They had been moving east. The lone man had come from the west. Walking. Not stumbling. Walking. Did he call out first? Anton shook his head. No. Elias Any threat posture? Anton None. Elias Armed? Anton Not that I saw. Elias Protective equipment? Anton No mask. No suit. No proper kit. Elias PFM? Anton frowned. If he had one, he wasn't using it. Amara looked at the old transcript. That much matched. Elias continued. Why did the original interviewer ask if he was a Drifter? Anton was quiet for several seconds. When he answered, his tone changed. Slightly. Because he should've been dead. No one interrupted. Anton continued. No mask out there. No proper gear. Wrong side of the sectors. Walking alone. Not sick enough to collapse. Not scared enough to hide. He looked directly into the camera. That's not normal. 🎬 Scene 36.15 — Recognition Elias leaned forward. You said in the original interview that he wasn't a Drifter because "he looked at you." Anton nodded once. Yes. Elias Explain. Anton looked tired. Not hesitant. Simply tired of trying to explain something that should have been obvious. Drifters look through you. ... Or at something behind you. Or at nothing. ... ... This man looked at me like he expected an answer. Amara wrote that down. Hanae watched Anton carefully. Not the words. The way he spoke them. No embellishment. No performance. Only memory. Elias Did he seem confused? Anton considered. Not exactly. Elias Injured? Anton Maybe. Hard to tell. Elias Afraid? Anton thought about that longer. Then: No. Elias Tired? Anton Yes. ... Like he'd been moving a long time and didn't know where else to go. Elias exchanged a brief look with Amara. Still not identification. Still not proof. But not nothing. Definitely not nothing. 🎬 Scene 36.16 — Greyfield Elias kept his voice level. What did he ask you? Anton gave him an unimpressed look. You already have that part. Elias I want your memory of it. Anton exhaled. Looked away for a short while. Somewhere past the camera. Back into a day decades gone. He asked which way Greyfield was. Amara remained still. Hanae watched Elias from the corner of her eye. He did not react visibly. Exact wording? Anton shook his head. Don't remember exact. Close enough. Elias Did the name strike you at the time? Anton looked back. Yes. Elias Why? Anton Because nobody out there used it. Elias said nothing. Anton continued. Not like that. Not casually. Not if they weren't connected. Elias Connected how? Anton Directorate. Or trying to be. A dry smile. Back then it was harder to tell the difference. 🎬 Scene 36.17 — Two Men That night, Wu Ming finally looked at the photograph. Properly. Not in passing. Not as an object. As a record. Two young men. Same height. Same face. Almost. Wu Jian had always looked more directly at the world. Wu Ming more carefully. In the photograph, Jian's arm was thrown loosely over his brother's shoulder. Wu Ming's hands were in his pockets. Expression jovial. Smiling with familial closeness. Back then he was more warm. They had not always been close. But not what the picture was depicting. That was the part memory liked to smooth over. People always did that after someone disappeared. They remembered the affection. Edited out the friction. Wu Jian was louder. Faster. More willing to make a decision before all the information existed. Wu Ming hated that. Until it worked. Then he hated how often it worked. Wu Jian called him slow. Wu Ming called him reckless. Both were right. Neither meant it as an insult. Most of the time. They had worked together long before the Directorate learned to call things by proper names. Before FL. Before stable protocols. Before Greyfield became Greyfield. Back when the Zone was less understood and therefore more honest. Everything could kill you. Nobody lied about that. Wu Ming sat on the edge of his bed. Photograph in hand. And remembered Wu Jian laughing at him under bad weather tarps and broken floodlights. Remembered him stealing batteries from a radio kit because the issue packs were never fully charged. Remembered the way he never stopped moving when he should have. Remembered... not the disappearance. Not yet. Something before it. Safer. 🎬 Scene 36.18 — Before ..Rain again... Not the search. Earlier. A narrow service bridge over drainage water. Wu Jian walking ahead of him. One hand resting casually on a cable rail that should not have been trusted. Wu Ming behind him with two supply cases and declining patience. You're going to fall. Wu Jian half-turned as he walked. Then catch me. Wu Ming That's not how bridges work. Wu Jian That's not how brothers work either. Wu Ming hated how pleased Jian looked with that answer. They reached the other side. An improvised field shelter stood beyond the retaining wall. Three medics. Two patients. One generator. And a woman sitting on an upturned crate trying to dry out soaked paper notes beside a heater that wasn't winning her situation. Pale hair. Sharp face. Medical pouch open at her feet. Wu Jian followed Wu Ming's line of sight. Then looked back at him. A grin forming immediately. Ah. Wu Ming kept walking. No. Wu Jian I didn't say anything. Wu Ming You made a face. Wu Jian I definitely didn't. Wu Ming You definitely did. The memory shifted. Not stable enough to hold. But this time, Oksana was no longer just a medic in the rain. Now she occupied the same memory as Wu Jian. Same place. Same day. Same life. Wu Ming went still. Present-day room. Present-day silence. Old photograph in his hand. For the first time... the two histories had touched clearly. Not one after the other. Together. 🎬 Scene 36.19 — Necessary The interview ended without revelation. No hidden photograph. No miracle certainty. No confirmation that the man on the road had truly been Fang Wu Jian. Only a cleaner version of the same truth: someone impossible had survived long enough to ask the way to Greyfield. Anton gave them one final piece as the connection was being closed. Unprompted. He wasn't right. Elias looked back up. Explain. Anton shrugged faintly. He wasn't a Drifter. Wasn't sick like that. A pause. But he wasn't whole either. Amara's pen stopped. Hanae remained perfectly still. Elias What do you mean? Anton looked directly into the camera. Like part of him had gone somewhere else first. And only some of him had caught up. The line hissed with static. Nobody spoke for several seconds. Then the connection ended. The screen went black. Amara exhaled slowly. That's not a scientific description. Elias No. Elias remained seated. But it's a human one. Hanae crossed her arms. And now? Amara already knew the answer. Elias looked down at the UE-01 file. Then toward the window beyond which Greyfield continued operating as if nothing old had shifted. Now... we tell him enough. 🎬 Scene 36.20 — Corridor Wu Ming stepped out into the corridor a little after midnight. Not because he couldn't sleep. Because he had stopped trying. The photograph remained inside his room. Face down on the table. Not hidden. Not displayed. Across the hall, Oksana's door opened almost at once. As if she had been listening for him. That possibility did not feel unlikely. She looked at him. Then at the corridor. Walk? Wu Ming nodded. No other explanation needed. They moved through the quieter residential wing side by side. No one else visible. No alarms. No urgency. Just polished concrete, low light and the familiar sound of Greyfield at reduced night volume. After several minutes— Oksana spoke. You remembered him properly today. Wu Ming looked at her. Properly? Oksana Not as a case relevance. Not as a disappearance. As your brother. He let that settle. Then nodded once. Yes. Oksana kept walking. Good. Wu Ming Why? She looked ahead. Because if they bring him back to you as a problem first... ... ...you'll hate them for it. Wu Ming understood immediately who they were. Elias. Amara. Greyfield. The Directorate. He looked at her. You think they found something. Oksana didn't answer directly. Which was answer enough. Sana. This time she looked at him. Wu Ming's voice lowered slightly. How much do you remember? Oksana held his gaze for a long second. Then looked forward again. Enough. Not defensive. Not evasive. Just controlled. And you? Wu Ming considered that. Then, for the first time in years, answered honestly. Less than I thought. They kept walking. Neither pressed further. Not because there was nothing left to say. Because there was now too much. The old file had opened. Not on a desk. Not yet. Now, it had opened a memory... DIRECTORATE ARCHIVAL NOTE — UE-01 REVIEW STATUS CLASSIFICATION: RESTRICTED REFERENCE: UE-01 HISTORICAL REVIEW STATUS: ACTIVE Current Review Position The UE-01 review remains ongoing. Recent archival recovery and witness verification have strengthened the basis for continued investigation, but no definitive identification has been made regarding the solitary male encountered twenty-six days after the original disappearance event. Confirmed Investigative Points A historic witness has been successfully located and verified. The witness stands by the original account in substance. The witness confirms the encountered individual: travelled alone, lacked normal protective equipment, did not present as a known Drifter, and asked for directions to Greyfield . The witness further assessed that the individual appeared not fully whole , though this remains descriptive rather than scientific. Current Directorate Position At present, UE-01 remains: unconfirmed as surviving, unconfirmed as deceased, unconfirmed as transformed by any known mechanism. However, the case can no longer be treated as closed solely on the basis of improbability. Procedural Note Internal review has recommended that Fang Wu Ming be informed on a limited basis once preliminary witness findings have been organized into controlled briefing form. No direct conclusion is authorized at this time. Note: This is my attempt at making a long series. If you enjoyed reading. please consider giving any amount of claps (1-20 claps) to let me know how well received the chapters and this series is. It'll encourage me to release new chapters more often Index: Chapters Selection Beginning: Chapter 1: The Edge of Entry Links to previous and next chapter: Chapter 35: Aftereffect Chapter 37: (Coming Soon)