At the desk, merging with the semi-darkness and burning candles of the room, the man worked intently. His fingers fluttered over the keyboard, and his gaze was riveted to the laptop screen. He tried to fence himself off from memories, completely immersed in current tasks and plans for the future. The past was destroyed, burned to the ground by his own hands, but from the ashes, as Michael believed, something new, more significant was supposed to grow.

And one of the sprouts could be someone from this Station. All that remained was to find and take with him to the Sanctuary. A happy, promising future. And then...

A soft knock broke the silence of the bedroom. At first, Michael did not even hear it, it was so quiet. But on the third time, the sound broke through the veil of concentration. The door opened silently, and a girl in a gray dress appeared on the threshold - a typical servant's uniform at the Third Station.

Michael, like an invisible magician, instantly dissolved into the shadows right under his nose. He froze, propping his head up with his hand out of habit and not taking his eyes off the stranger. He hadn't had time to read the dossier on her, he hadn't had enough time. But now he had the opportunity to study her in person. Every cell.