The Phoenix Grid control room hummed with activity. Massive screens disyed real-


    time data from thousands of connection points throughout the city. Engineers moved between workstations, checking and rechecking every system.


    Hannah Zhao stood in the center, tablet in hand disying the master checklist. Three days until the officialunch, and the pressure weighed on her shoulders.


    "Junction forty-three, status?" she called.


    "All green," came the response. "Power flow nominal, security protocols active, redundancy systerns standing by."


    Hannah marked it off her list. They had been working for twenty hours straight, methodically testing everyponent. The sabotaged systems that Walsh hadpromised required particrly careful attention Camille entered, immacte in a tailored suit


    despite the early hour. Only the shadows under her eyes betrayed her exhaustion.


    "Progress report?" she asked, moving to Hannah''s side.


    "Eighty-seven percentplete," Hannah


    replied, handing over her tablet. "Western sector is fully operational. Northern at ny-


    three percent. Eastern and southern at eighty-two and seventy-nine."


    "And the corrected systems?"


    Hannah lowered her voice. "All fixed. We''ve reced everyponent Walsh tampered with,


    updated allpromised software. The Grid is clean."


    Relief flickered across Camille''s face. "Show me."


    Hannah led her to a workstation where thermal imaging disyed the


    entire Grid. Each junction


    point glowed green, power flows represented by pulsing blue lines.


    "We''ve triple-


    checked the western junction," Hannah exined, zooming in on the area they had deliberately marked as vulnerable in the false information fed to Walsh. "It''s actually our most secure point now. Extra monitor "And the trackers we embedded in the files Walsh copied?"


    "Active. When Rose and Herod ess those files, we''ll know exactly where they are."


    A technician approached. "Dr. Zhao? We have an anomaly in junction twenty-


    nine."


    Hannah frowned. That junction wasn''t among thepromised systems they had identified. "What kind of anomaly?"


    "Power fluctuation. Minor, but outside standard parameters."


    They moved quickly to the technician''s station. The monitor showed a slight oscition in the power flow.


    Hannah initiated a diagnostic, watching the progress bar fill. After finding and fixing every sabotagedponent, an unexpected anomaly sent warning signals through her system.


    The results appeared. Hannah''s shoulders rxed. "Faulty sensor. The junction itself is fine. The measuring equipment is giving a false reading."


    "Rece it," Camille instructed.


    "Already on it." Hannah dispatched a maintenance team. "This is why we test repeatedly. Even the best technology asionally fails."


    They continued through the control room, reviewing data at each station. Hannah watched Camille''s face as they progressed. The project had be more than just a professional achievement, it had be a symbol of her transformation.


    "Central server farm status?" Camille asked at the final station.


    "All servers running at optimal capacity. Cooling systems maintaining perfect temperature. Backup generators tested


    and ready. Firewall protections at maximum."


    "Show me the load testing results," Hannah requested.


    Graphs appeared, disying the Grid''s performance under various stress scenarios. The lines remained steady even at three times the expected maximum load.


    "We''ve


    simted every possible scenario," the engineer exined. "Power surges, brownouts, cyber attacks, physical breaches. The Grid maintains stability through all of them."


    "What about the western junction?" Camille asked again. "The false vulnerability we created for Walsh?"


    Hannah pulled up the specific diagnostics. "We''ve set up special monitoring. Any attempt to ess or manipte that


    junction will trigger


    immediate alerts. And we''ve stationed additional security personnel nearby."


    "Run the full system integration test," Camille instructed. "One final check."


    Hannah initiated the mostprehensive diagnostic-


    aplete simtion of the Grid''sunch and operation.


    The main disy changed, showing the entire Grid as one interconnected system. Lights flowed from the central


    control hub outward, representing power distribution across all sectors.


    The room fell silent as everyone watched. One by one, the sectors illuminated, Western. Northern. Eastern, Southern. Each junction point activated in sequence. The disy became a web of light, a glowing re Two minutester, the final connection point activated. A soft chime sounded.


    "System integration testplete," announced the automated voice. "All systems functioning within optimal parameters. Phoenix Grid ready for full activation."


    Apuse broke out among the engineers. Hannah felt a wave of emotion, relief, pride, exhaustion, all mingled together.


    Camille didn''t join the celebration immediately. Her eyes remained fixed on the disy, searching for any imperfection, any vulnerability that Rose might exploit. "It''s ready," Hannah said quietly. "We''ve found and fixed everything Walsh sabotaged. The Grid is secure."


    Camille finally looked away from the screens. "Walsh''s information will lead them to the western junction during theunch


    ceremony."


    "And we''ll be waiting. Extra guards positioned discreetly. Cameras covering every angle. The moment anyone attempts to ess that junction, we''ll have them."


    Something passed across Camille''s face, not doubt, but caution. "Rose won''t give


    up easily. Even with Walsh''s sabotage neutralized, she''ll find another way to attack."


    "Let her try," Hannah replied with uncharacteristic fierceness. "This is our creation. We''ve built it to withstand anything she can throw at it."


    Camille nodded, allowing herself a small smile. "You''re right. We''ve done everything possible.*


    She turned to address the room. "Excellent work, everyone. The final inspection isplete. The Phoenix Grid is officially ready forunch."


    As the celebration continued, Camille drew Hannah aside. "Have you sent the final report to Victoria?"


    "Just now. Full documentation


    of all the corrected systems, security measures, and test results."


    "Good. These next three days are critical. Maintain twenty-four-


    hour monitoring. Any anomaly gets immediate attention."


    After Camille left, Hannah returned to her station, reviewing the test results one


    more time. The data confirmed what she already knew, the Phoenix Grid was


    ready. Every sabotagedponent had been identified and reced.


    Yet as she stared at the pulsing lights representing the city''s new powerwork, Hannah couldn''t shake a lingering unease. Not about the Grid itself, she was confident in its integrity, but about what Rose might do when she discovered her sabotage had failed.


    Hannah shook off the thought. That was Camille''s concern, and Victoria''s. Her job was the Grid itself, and she had done that job perfectly.


    Three days until theunch ceremony. Three days until the Phoenix Grid powered up for real. Three days until Camille''s vision became reality.


    The Grid wouldunch as


    nned. Hannah had made sure of that. Whatever happened next was beyond her control, but this magnificent creation of technology and vision was secured.


    Hannah allowed herself a moment of satisfaction as she gazed at thepleted Grid disy. They


    had done the impossible despite every attempt to sabotage their work.


    The Phoenix Grid, like its namesake, had emerged from the fire stronger than before. In three days, the world would see it rise.