The moment my hand touched the Stormrunner Engine, it was consumed by blue light.
For a moment, I was positive that I’d just wasted twenty Upgrade Energy on an already damaged engine.
[Upgrade Process Initiated.]
[Target: Stormrunner Engine.]
[Current Condition: 31%.]
[Available Upgrade Energy: 20.]
[Begins mechanical reconstruction.]
The engine vibrated under my touch.
Vexa stood nearby, her eyes wide in some kind of stunned horror.
"Riven," she whispered.
"Yup?"
"If that thing explodes, I’m blaming you."
"Fair."
The first change happened inside the engine.
I could hear it.
Metal ground against metal as internal mechanics rotated and repositioned, broken parts coming away from the main body and floating off into the blue light.
The damaged turbine blades cracked and broke apart, new ones taking their place.
They were thinner, sharper, and etched with fine lines of copper.
Vexa took a step closer.
"That’s not right," she said.
"Nope."
"What is it?"
"An upgrade."
She stared at me.
"That’s not an explanation."
"It is the only one I’ve got."
The Aether chamber suddenly seemed brighter.
A deep sound resonated from the very ground, the Stormrunner Engine pulling energy from the air around it.
Steam rolled off of it in thick clouds, blue electricity dancing across its surface.
Even Nyx seemed impressed.
"I’ve seen Aether engines before," she said.
She crossed her arms over her chest.
"Never one that upgraded itself, though."
Cyra watched the engine closely.
"It’s not upgrading," she said.
I gave her a strange look.
"What do you mean?"
"The Aether is rearranging itself around the engine."
She took a step closer.
"The engine isn’t becoming stronger."
Her eyes narrowed.
"It’s becoming more efficient."
The System suddenly appeared.
[Mechanical optimization: 42%.]
[Aether compression efficiency increased.]
[Thermal output reduced.]
[Turbine synchronization improved.]
[Maximum output increased: 164% → 287%.]
I stared at the text.
"Two hundred and eighty-seven percent?"
Vexa turned to look at me.
"What?"
I pointed at the text in the air.
She nearly dropped her wrench.
"That’s not possible."
"Apparently it is."
She rushed over to the engine, her mechanical tools already in hand.
She began inspecting the new turbine blades.
"This turbine..." she muttered.
It shouldn’t have been able to handle the increased output.
The engine pulsed.
"But it can."
Vexa looked up at me.
"Can you upgrade other machines?"
"Yes."
She gave me a slow smile.
"Everything?"
"Pretty much."
Her smile turned into a smirk.
"I’m going to like having you around."
Nyx immediately narrowed her eyes at her.
"Don’t encourage him."Why?"
"He already thinks he’s invincible."
I raised a finger.
"I never said invincible."
Nyx raised an eyebrow at me.
"I thought it."
"That counts."
Cyra laughed quietly.
The System suddenly chimed again.
[Upgrade complete.]
[Stormrunner Engine has evolved.]
[New Designation: Stormrunner Mk-II.]
[Primary Ability Unlocked: Overdrive.]
[Secondary Ability Unlocked: Aether Glide.]
[Structural Integrity: 94%.]
[Maximum Speed: +72%.]
[Aether Consumption: -41%.]
I stared at the final percentage.
This wasn’t just an upgrade.
I’d taken a damaged engine and turned it into something much better than it’s original form.
Vexa slowly pulled her gaze away from the engine.
"Riven."
"Yup?"
"I need you to understand something."
She pointed at the Stormrunner Mk-II.
"This thing is worth a fortune."
I smiled.
"Good."
"No," she said, shaking her head.
"You don’t understand."
Her expression darkened.
"People will kill for technology like this."
My smile vanished.
"Who?"
"Everyone."
She pointed at the distant skyline.
"Corporations."
Then at the wealthy district.
"Nobles."
Then at the ruined factory.
"Gangs."
Finally, she looked up at the sky.
"And the government."
The words hung heavily in the air.
I looked at the Stormrunner Mk-II.
Until now, I’d always thought of upgrading things as a convenient ability.
Something that helped me get by.
But this was different.
I’d created something valuable enough to change the balance of power.
That meant people would come after me.
The System suddenly appeared again.
[Warning.]
[Upgrade signature detected by external Aether monitoring systems.]
My stomach turned to ice.
"That’s not good."
Nyx immediately understood what was happening.
"What happened?"
"Someone detected the upgrade."
Vexa’s face had gone pale.
"How many?"
"I don’t know."
Cyra closed her eyes.
After a moment, she opened them again.
"Three."
"Three?"
"Three powerful Aether signatures."
She looked up at the skyline.
"Approaching."
Vexa cursed.
"That’s impossible."
"Apparently not."
I looked up at the Stormrunner Mk-II, then the city, then the three women standing next to me.
We didn’t have a ship.
The engine was upgraded.
The authorities were searching for us.
And now someone powerful had seen what we’d done.
"Can the Stormrunner move?"
Vexa nodded.
"If we install it."
"On what?"
She grinned.
"The ship."
I stared at her.
"The ship you stole?"
"Yes."
"Where is it?"
"Docking tower."Can we reach it?"
Vexa looked up at the sky.
"If we move now."
Nyx reloaded her guns.
"Then we move now."
We pushed the Stormrunner Mk-II onto a transport platform.
Vexa activated the machine, the engine roaring to life.
It wasn’t the sound of a normal engine.
It was something... alive.
Steam erupted from its vents as the platform sped through the ruined district.
I gripped the railing.
"That’s faster than before."
Vexa grinned.
"Much faster."
The city blurred past us, buildings turning into white streaks of metal and glass.
Aether signs flashed by, their lights swallowed by the thick clouds of steam rolling over the city.
For the first time, I understood why people used airships.
Aetheria wasn’t a place for people who wanted to walk.
It was a place for people who wanted to fly above the rest.
The transport platform finally reached the docking tower.
Vexa hopped off the back.
"Come on!"
We followed her example, the platform slowing to a stop.
The tower was massive, several levels stretching into the sky.
Airships of all sizes were docked along its upper edges.
Cargo ships.
Military vessels.
Private cruisers.
And near the far end...
A sleek black airship.
Its hull was narrow and predatory, red lights blinking from beneath its wings.
Vexa pointed at it.
"There."
"The Iron Wraith?"
She nodded.
"That’s ours."
I looked at the ship.
It didn’t look like a standard transport.
It looked like something that could outrun trouble.
Perfect.
Then a voice sounded from behind us.
"Don’t move."
We froze as dozens of guns trained their sights on us.
City Watch officers filled the platform, their weapons gleaming in the dim light.
At the front of them all stood a woman in a dark military coat, her silver mechanical eye gleaming beneath her black hair.
She looked at the Stormrunner engine, then at me.
"So you’re the one responsible."
I swallowed hard.
"Responsible for what?"
She gave me a cold smile.
"The impossible machine."
Nyx stepped forward.
The officer raised a hand.
"Easy."
Cyra’s Aether flared to life.
The officer’s eyes narrowed at the sight.
"You’re traveling with a Valt?"
Cyra said nothing.
The officer turned back to me.
"Riven Vex."
My blood ran cold.
She knew my name.
"I believe," she said, "we have a great deal to discuss."
I turned my gaze to the Iron Wraith, then the officers, then Vexa.
She whispered, "Run?"
I smiled.
"Definitely."
Vexa grinned, slamming her hand against the docking controls.
The Iron Wraith’s engines roared to life, the officers turning to look at the ship in confusion.
"Everyone aboard!" Vexa shouted.
We all rushed to the ship as it pulled away from the tower.
And behind us, Aetheria’s Skyport erupted into chaos.