It was Sarah. She had "Ascended" three years ago. The official word was that archived souls couldn't communicate with the physical world, yet here she was, her voice sounding like static and starlight.

He stepped out of the basement and into the midnight air of the city. He was still biological. He was still real. And for the first time in his life, he had all the time in the world. HTMS-05801:37:34 Min

Elias slammed his fist onto the 'Manual Eject' lever. The world turned white. The sensation of his body being pulled apart suddenly snapped back together like a rubber band. The Aftermath It was Sarah

... He scrambled through a ventilation shaft, the metal tearing at his jumpsuit. He stepped out of the basement and into

When Elias opened his eyes, the timer on his wrist was gone. The terminal screen was dark, save for one line of glowing green text: ERROR: HTMS-05801 - PACKET LOST.

"There’s a bypass," she whispered. "HTMS-05801 isn't an archive code. It's an exit port. If you can reach the cooling vents in the basement before the clock hits zero, you can jump the firewall." The Descent