The next pulse took the sound out of the room for an instant.
Eli felt it through the soles of his boots, a pressure passing beneath the platform before the rail began to rattle. Rook bent his knees and kept the release held. The partial brace shifted against its seating, then caught. At the corridor, a field thinned long enough for the rear guard pair to cross into the next section.
“Keep moving,” Rook said.
He gave it to the soldier beside him, who carried the words by voice. No one needed the interface’s help to understand the instruction. The surviving technicians took the mechanical route. The people who could walk supported those who needed an arm. The guards held their sections until the next pair could receive them, making a withdrawal out of present positions instead of a display that no longer knew who had authority over it.
Eli remained close enough to help with the brace.
Juno told him to move back.
“Platform can’t take another surge with that weight,” she said.
“How much warning?”
