It is well-past curfew and I am lurking on the grid below the airship hangar.

Will and I are once again dressed in our trusty Enforcer uniforms. We sit with our backs to the wall of the dome, waiting for Gus. The shadows and our dark clothes do a handy job of concealing us from anyone who would happen to pass by, but at this hour most of the traffic is kept to ground-level.

I scan the distant gridwork, catching sight of the odd Enforcer making his way between the buildings. Remaining hidden from view isn't so difficult when only Will and I have to make our way up to the hangar, but this chore will be decidedly more difficult tomorrow evening.

Beside me, Will's body is rigid from tension.

"Stop it." I murmur under my breath.

He flinches slightly as I jolt him from his thoughts. "What?"

"Worrying." I roll my shoulders back against the wall behind me. "It's going to be fine."

"I wasn't worrying." He lies smoothly.

I scoff, still scanning our perimeter. I catch a glimpse of a figure circling up the network of stairs and squint into the gloom. After a moment I recognize the long, lanky proportions of Gus and relax again.

"And even if I were..." Will continues and I quirk an eyebrow at him, listening. "Would that be so unreasonable? Our plan, if you can call it that, depends entirely on us trusting one near-stranger and one known traitor."

"Details." I wave my hand dismissively, coaxing a half-grin from him.

We fall into silence, listening to the distant sound of Gus' footsteps.

"Do you?" I ask. "Trust him, I mean?"

"I trust him because I trust you." He doesn't miss a beat. "You were right about Meg and you were right about the Wasters."

"I've been wrong before, too."

"I don't think you were wrong to trust Lara." He muses. "By all accounts she was a good friend for years before she decided to betray you. You couldn't have known what would eventually happen."

My heart thuds once, heavily.

"You don't give yourself enough credit, Kay but you're an amazing judge of character. You see past these roles we put ourselves in and recognize the real person inside. It's an absolutely incredible thing to witness." Will shakes his head. "There is a true moral compass inside of you, giving you this insane drive to always fight for what's right."

I am staring at him, at a complete loss.

He continues, "I would follow you anywhere, you know that?"

I blink, finally managing to find my words. "Did you just call me insane?"

That half-grin. "I misspoke. What I mean was 'maddeningly insane'."

"You're the one willing to follow a madwoman." I nudge him with my elbow. "Which of us is crazier?"

"Fair point." He nudges me back and I topple to the side. We lapse once again into silence, listening to Gus' footsteps growing increasingly louder as he circles the remaining staircase.

"Aren't you worried?" Will's low voice breaks through my thoughts.

"No." I say. "Even if this scheme fails spectacularly, at least we tried. When I die, it will be because I was running towards a fight and not away from one."

A strange expression crosses his face.

I realize my slip and scramble to backtrack. "Shit, Will. That's not what I meant."

"It's fine." He attempts a grin, waving me off as he averts his eyes.

"What you did wasn't running. It was brave. It was smart." I say urgently, willing him to look back at me.

"Kay, it's fine. Really." His voice is firm as he nods towards Gus approaching over my shoulder. "I know you didn't mean anything by it."

I bite down on my lip, swallowing the last of my words. We rise to our feet as Gus draws up, exchanging cursory greetings while he fiddles nervously with the bag slung across his shoulders.

"Have you seen anyone?" He asks.

"None besides you. The upstairs appears abandoned, just like you said." I tell him. "Do they always leave the hangar and its storage facilities unguarded at night?"

"Usually." Gus replies. "The problem being that anyone can access these levels at any time."

"Then we'll just have to be quick." I respond. "Onwards and upwards?"

The men trail behind as I retrace my steps up to the hangar. The staircase hugs the wall, handily keeping us cloaked in shadows as we ascend. I slow my pace near the top of the stairs, peering through the darkness before stepping into the storage room.

Moonlight cuts through the wrought-iron floor above us, sending sharp shards of blue light over the shelves lining the space. An assortment of crates and tools have been stored neatly away and are sitting impassively in their designated areas.

Not for long.

"All right, let's find the gask masks." Will pulls off his black headscarf, placing it on a nearby table as he makes his way over to the shelves. Gus and I do the same, spreading out as we search.

I peer into each of the crates, mentally cataloguing the contents as I work. I come across a neatly-folded pile of canvas sacks and grab a couple, thinking that they will be useful later when we need to transport the masks. Will is the first to strike gold, calling us over as he raises a mask into the air triumphantly.

"There they are." Gus leans over the crate Will has pulled out, whistling under his breath.

"Here." I hand Gus and Will each a sack and we begin stuffing them full of the bulky equipment, afterwards storing the near-empty container back behind a full one. With any luck, no one will notice the scarcity of gas masks until it's too late.

Our sacks filled, we make our way up to the hangar, depositing our burdens at the top of the stairs and making our way out into the open hangar.

I breathe deeply, savouring the unobstructed view of the night sky overhead. The stars sparkle brightly in response, inviting me through the gap in the roof. Soon, I think.

"I have a question." I say, tearing my eyes away from the view and back towards the display of silent, hovering airships. "When the Madam is alerted about the missing airship, is she going to come after us?"

"They'll probably suspect that someone inside tampered with it. Not to worry, though, I have a strategy for dealing with that." Gus pushes his mop of curls back from his forehead. "I plan on employing the tried-and-true method of laying low."

Will's disembodied laugh floats back from somewhere between the rows of airships but I furrow my brow, confused. "Laying low? What do you mean? I thought you wanted to come with us?"

"I do!" Gus says quickly, his eyes darting up in the direction Will took. "But Will asked me to stay behind for now. I'm needed inside Babel to help with the preparation before you attack with the Wasters."

"Oh." I say, slowly. "When did you discuss this?"

"Yesterday, while you were with Lara." Will finally emerges, saving Gus from having to answer any more questions. "We're going to need all the help we can get. If Gus stays behind, he can do any number of things; block the signals from the radio towers and shut down the lift, for starters."

"I see." I have to admit, it's a good plan. "That's really brave, Gus. Thank you."

He blushes, running a hand through his hair. "I should be the one thanking you guys. I can't believe that I finally get to leave this place."

"Believe it." I tell him, firmly. I look back at Will. "Have you found us a carriage?"

"Indeed I have." He spins on his heel and leads us towards the last airship in the row. "This one seems to have the most unobstructed path up to the sky."

"Perfect." I inspect the rope tethering the underbelly of the ship to the ground. "Let's load her up."

Gus lays a plank up against the side of the ship and we drag the bags full of gas masks aboard, stowing them in the compartments belowdecks. I keep my back turned to the cages, my stomach churning as we tuck away the stolen goods.

We quickly take stock of the rest of the ship's supplies, opting to liberate a few extra canisters of nerve gas, just in case.

As a final touch I crawl beneath the control panel at the front of the ship, rolling onto my back as I fiddle with the mechanisms beneath the dash. I disconnect the line that controls the influx of helium to the balloon and stuff the bracket I removed into my pocket. On the off-chance that someone does attempt to fly this thing tomorrow, they will find it incapacitated.

"How did you do that?" Will asks as he helps me to my feet.

"Want me to show you?" He nods and I give him a quick lesson in airship tampering, handing over the bracket I removed while demonstrating my techniques.

"Got it." He smiles. "So, does your knowledge of a ship's innerworkings translate to the captain's seat? Could you fly one of these?"

"I guess." I glance at the great, wooden steering wheel and shrug. "If I had to, but won't you be flying it?"

"Sure. I was just wondering." He looks over his shoulder as Gus approaches. The young mech has retrieved his satchel and is rifling through its contents.

"What have you got there?" I ask.

"Your new best friend." Gus finally withdraws a futuristic device, holding it out triumphantly. "Your very own portable radio."

I take the object from him and turn it over in my hands, furrowing my brow as I examine its construction. The radio is shaped like a brick but covered in thin sheets of metal. Holes have been drilled near the top and bottom of the device and a notched dial along with several buttons decorate its front. A short, metal rod protrudes from the top. Gus reaches forward and tugs on the rod, demonstrating how it extends further.

"This dial indicates the frequency." Gus explains. "Babel operates on channels one through three so they shouldn't be listening to anyone speaking wayyy...." He turns the dial all the way to the right. "...over here."

"Remarkable." Will has grabbed hold of the other radio and is studying it closely. "How does this draw power?"

Gus's smile is bright enough to cut through the ship's gloom. "Burn-infused lithium. It's something I've been experimenting with."

He reaches into the folds of his shirt and withdraws a pair of spectacles. Pushing his messy hair back he first perches the glasses on the bridge of his nose before taking the radio from me and turning it over.

Using a small tool that has materialized seemingly from out of nowhere he pops the back of the radio open, revealing the tarnished minerals hidden in behind. The silvered material emits a faint light, giving the lithium an unearthly glow.

"How is this possible?" I breathe, moving around the device in Gus' outstretched hand.

He adjusts his glasses. "Seems the Burn was good for more than just destroying civilization. Those nasty rays burrowed their way into the ground and mutated the elements underneath." He pries the lithium free of its casing and deposits it on the dash so that we can all get a better look.

"A battery?" Will asks, prodding the glowing metal.

"In a way." Gus radiates eagerness. "Batteries are historically made by infusing an element with positively and negatively charged electrons. Obviously, we no longer have the tech for that kind of science but, thankfully, nature has provided."

"I don't understand half of that jibberish." I shake my head. "But are you telling us that this came from the earth?"

"That's right." Gus picks up the piece of lithium and places it back in the radio. "Burn-infused lithium is tricky to come by but exceedingly useful. It can even regain some of its charge when it's placed in direct sunlight."

"That's incredible." I say, awestruck.

"Renewable power." Will looks up, locking eyes with Gus. "A source of energy that doesn't rely on us drilling water or burning coals. Do you realize what this means?"

"This Burn-infused lithium could change everything." I grab hold of Gus' narrow shoulders, turning him to face me. "This should push our technology forward decades. Eons, even!"

"This is still in its very early, experimental phases." Gus seems flustered as he shoves his spectacles back into place. "I'm not even meant to be fooling around with the minerals. I found some in an old storage crate and have been working with it in my own time."

"Could we get more of this?" I ask.

"Sure. Your people are miners, right? They must come across lithium like this every day." He shrugs but can't fully contain his excitement. "These radios are just the tip of the iceberg. With greater quantities of lithium I could create some amazing things. "

"Gus, you are an absolute miracle." I grin. "If we actually manage to get those people away from the Irrigator, it will all be thanks to you."

Gus blushes, clearly pleased as he quickly instructs us on the basics of using the radios. He shows us how to tune into his frequency and we agree to turn on our radios at midnight every day in order to trade information. I see now why it will be so valuable to have Gus inside the dome while we make our plans to attack.

It occurs to me suddenly that much of this plan has come to rely on Gus' knowledge and expertise. I study him carefully as he instructs us, thinking. He seems genuine. If this kid does turn out to be working for the Madam, then he is undoubtedly the greatest spy I have ever encountered; and that's including myself.

Nothing for it. What's the old saying? In for a penny, in for a pound. Trusting Gus and Lara is a huge gamble but if it pays off, then in just a few days hundreds of people will walk free.

After our lesson in radio operation and maintenance we hide one of the devices aboard and turn to exit the ship. We stow the gangplank back against the wall and cross the hangar towards a glassed-in room I hadn't noticed before.

"Radio control." Gus explains. "When you and your people are ready to attack I'll be sitting in here, knocking out the frequencies so that you won't be detected on your way in."

"Great." I look up at Will. "I guess that's it, then. We're all set."

No such luck. Will forces us to go over tomorrow night's plan once more, in excruciating detail. Gus doesn't seem too bothered, staring at Will with unabashed admiration as he talks. I roll my eyes internally. The kid is still new to this. He'll learn.

We sweep both the hangar and the storage room below for any trace we may have left behind before descending back onto the darkened grid. After saying our goodbyes we turn to go our separate ways; Gus to his home, Will to his empty alcove and me back to Lara's flat.

I move quickly through the maze of gridwork. The structured layout of the iron catwalks and staircases are already second-nature and in no time I arrive outside the red-curtained window. I step inside to find Lara fussing with several bags laid open on the bed and overflowing with clothes.

"Are you really planning on bringing all that?" I ask incredulously, pulling off my dark headscarf.

She barely glances up. "It's not that much."

"I think you've misunderstood something." I pluck a wisp of pink fabric from the messy pile, shaking my head. "This is a cloak-and-dagger escape under cover of darkness, not a luxury vacation."

"Just because I'm a convict doesn't mean that I can't have nice things." She snatches the miniscule garment from my hand and stuffs it into a bag.

"Right you are." I hold up my hands in surrender, moving around her as I remove my gloves and kick off my boots.

"Don't leave those lying around just anywhere!" She points at my boots. "I could trip on them!"

I stare at her, my eyes wide with disbelief as I gesture at the array of clothes and shoes she has left scattered around the room.

"I'm packing these!" She reiterates her point by slamming a satchel shut, grimacing when it catches on its over-stuffed contents.

"Right, Lara." I dutifully kick my boots underneath the vanity. "Do you want to hear the plan for tomorrow night, or are you too busy figuring out how to stow away the kitchen sink?"

"No, I want to hear it." She gives up on trying to force the satchel closed and sits down on the bed, looking up at me eagerly.

"Will, Gus and I are going to take the lift down to the Irrigator after the evening announcements." I lay out the scheme as matter-of-factly as possible, in the hopes that it will sound less mad. "Once curfew has passed, we will go down to the lower levels, release our friends and follow the back staircase up to the surface. You don't need to concern yourself with those details."

"Where should I meet you?"

"On the grid, just above the entrance to the L levels. Do you know where that is?"

She nods.

"Good." I glance at the haphazard piles of clothes littering her bed. "If I were you, I would pack lighter. You aren't going to make it very far sneaking around the grid after-hours if you're lugging all that junk around."

Her bottom lip juts out as she regards the heaps of rubbish. "It isn't junk."

"It's just things, Lara. They don't matter." I speak through clenched teeth and rub the back of my neck to alleviate some of my frustration. "It's only going to slow you down and I won't risk the safety of my people because you couldn't do without your favourite scarf."

She sighs. "Fine. I see your point."

"Wonderful." I pull a long-sleeved top and pants from the pile at random. "I'm exhausted. If you don't mind, I'm going to change and get some sleep."

"By all means." She is looking despondently at the still-open satchels, no doubt already pining over the useless crap she has to leave behind.

I roll my eyes and disappear behind the screen that serves as her dressing room, removing my well-used Enforcer's uniform and tossing the pieces over the top of the paneling.

"Kay, what do you think of this?"

She appears around the side of the screen and I leap back, clutching the clothes to my chest in an attempt to shield myself. Too late.

Her eyes are stretched wide and the slip of fuchsia fabric she was holding falls to the ground. I curse, feeling my cheeks aflame as her gaze roves over the heinous scars creeping around my shoulders and ribs.

"Oh my gods...." Her hands fly to her mouth and she emits a strange, choked sound.

"Get out." I struggle to adjust the useless scrap of clothing covering my breasts, inadvertently giving her a glimpse of my ruined back.

She gasps, staggering back a step.

"Get out." I fairly shriek. I shove her bodily away and she turns, fleeing back behind the screen.

I stand very still, shoulders heaving up and down as I struggle to bring myself back under control. There is no way I can deal with this. Not now. Not when we are so close to leaving this place forever. Gods, why couldn't Lara have just stayed on her side of the screen?

The room outside has gone very quiet. I dress quickly, taking an extra moment to rub furiously at my face, internally cursing and willing away the hellfire of emotions churning inside of me. My back burns with the ghost of an old pain, threatening to pull my thoughts back into that place of darkness. I shake my head to clear it, drawing a single steadying breath before finally stepping out into the room.

Lara is crouched at the foot of the bed, her knees drawn up to her chest. She has turned a deathly pale, staring up at me as though I just emerged from the grave.

A long moment of silence passes, during which a thousand things are said.

"We don't need to speak of this." My impatience gets the better of me. "We can just go on the way we did before."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Her voice is hoarse.

I feel my hands contract into fists and deliberately unfurl them. "It wasn't of any importance."

She is staring at me with a look of utter disbelief. "What are you talking about? Kay, your back...it's...."

"I know what it looks like." I snap. She flinches and I try again, drawing a breath and choosing my words carefully. "These scars don't have to change anything. All I need from you is to stay quiet for one more day, and in return I am going to get you out of here. That's still what you want, isn't it?"

She swallows. "Yes."

"Then don't concern yourself with anything outside of that." I ignore the constriction in my chest, instead focusing my efforts on appearing as calm and in control as possible.

Her red-rimmed gaze flickers over my shoulders and a shudder runs down my spine. Keep it together, Kay. Just one more day.

"I can't." Her voice is barely a whisper.

"Please, Lara." I can't do this.

"I did that to you." Her voice breaks, along with everything inside of me. The room is suddenly incredibly small, the walls pressing in on all sides of me. Please, not now. I can't have a panic attack now.

I force my thoughts to Will and my eyes snap open, darting over to the open window. I could run. In less than a couple of seconds I could be outside that window and on the grid, free of this stifling brothel and far away from Lara.

Yes, I could run, but that won't make it hurt any less.

"I didn't know." She is shaking her head slowly. "When I told them where to find you I didn't know that they would hurt you."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" I feel my cheeks grow warm as the old anger begins to bubble over. "What did you think would happen? A gentle slap on the wrist and then they'd send me back to The Beacon?"

"I didn't. I didn't think. I just..." Her eyes moisten again and my stomach flips. "I just acted."

I stare at her. "You didn't care what happened to me. You gave me up like I was nothing."

"I'm so sorry."

"If you're sorry it's because things didn't work out for you. If the Revolution had failed and you remained a Courtier then you would not have given me a second thought."

Her mouth drops open. "That's not true."

"Yes, it is. You forget, Lara, that I know who you are." I lean back against the wall behind me, effectively disguising the shaking in my knees. "You can try to hide behind the clothes and the jewels and the pageantry, you might fool some people but not me. I will always see the real you."

Her face darkens and I catch a glint of the old spark in her eye. "You're one to talk."

"What is that supposed to mean."

"You would know better than anyone what it is to hide, wouldn't you? Kay the thief, the hero. Donning disguises and flitting about on roofs, saving the world so you don't have to save yourself."

My mouth opens. Closes. Opens again. "How dare you."

"How dare I?" She brushes angrily at her cheek. "We weren't all blessed with your over-developed sense of right and wrong, Kay. Some of us mere mortals are simply trying to survive any way we can."

"You have a funny definition of survival. Food and water are well and good, but you'd rather they come with a side of finery." I shake my head. "You are such an unbelievable hypocrite."

"So are you." She fires back. "You will risk your life for a complete stranger, but when it comes to someone you supposedly loved, you can't show them an ounce of compassion."

"I've already given you more than your fair share of compassion." I am trembling with rage. "Every day, for five years."

"That wasn't compassion. Maybe at first, right after your family died but as soon as you were able to take care of yourself you only pitied me. I became another one of your bleeding hearts to take care of." The tears flow freely down her face but she makes no attempt to dry them.

"I never pitied you." Even as I say the words I don't believe them.

"Yes, you did. It's fine, though, I understand." She swallows. "There was honour in the way you chose to survive, but my way was shameful."

"I never said that."

"You didn't have to." She sniffs and rubs her nose. "I knew."

"What is it that you wanted from me, Lara? I did everything I could to keep you from that life."

"You think that I wanted your money? All I wanted from you was a bit of understanding."

"Understand what, exactly?"

"That I was hurting, too! That I miss him, too!" She cries. "You had the luxury of running from your feelings, Kay, but I never did. You couldn't talk about him so I never could. You had a cause to fight for but I didn't."

The wall at my back is terrifying in its solidity. This room is too small. Lara is staring at me, her dark blue eyes wide and her normally bronzed cheeks blotchy.

"You don't have the slightest idea what it is to hurt." I say quietly, almost to myself. "I went through hell, Lara."

She squeezes her eyes shut tight. "I know."

"No, you don't. No one does." I stare down at my trembling hands. "I was a different person before I was arrested. I was strong."

"You're strong now."

I shake my head. "Now I'm scared all the time. Sometimes I get so scared that the whole world disappears. I have nightmares, horrible nightmares that I can't control."

"Kay..."

"And it's your fault." I continue, finally looking her in the eye. "I trusted you more than anyone and you betrayed me. What they did to me in that gaol hurt, Lara, but knowing that it was you who put me there..." I trail off, biting down hard on the inside of my cheek to refocus the pain. "That's the part that broke me."

A strangled sound escapes her lips. "I didn't understand what I was doing. All I could see was a way out."

"And I paid the price."

She doesn't respond, only managing to take great, gulping breaths as she buries her head in her hands, her shoulders quaking. The silence stretches on endlessly, the walls continuing to press in on all sides. Again and again my eyes dart to the open window but Lara's biting words about my habit of running from problems gives me pause.

"I'm not like you, Kay." She has regained some semblance of control and is speaking slowly, softly. "I had a moment of weakness. I felt so alone for so long and I thought maybe if I had the clothes and the jewels that everything would feel better." She looks forward, suddenly appearing decades older.

A long moment passes. I slump against the wall, sliding down it into a seated position. Lara sits across from me, still hugging her knees and with the folds of her dress balled up in her fists.

"Why didn't you just talk to me if you felt that way?" I ask tiredly. "I would have helped you."

"How could I? My problems felt so small in the grand scheme of what you were doing." She glances up at me. "It still feels that way."

"You were my friend." I tell her. "Your problems, no matter how small, would have mattered to me."

She doesn't respond and instead stares fixedly ahead, her expression unreadable. After a long pause she breaks the silence. "Does it still hurt?"

"The scars? No. Not anymore."

She fiddles with the wrinkles in her dress. "And what about the rest?"

Something seizes in my chest but I remain stock-still, thinking hard about my answer before replying. "Yes. Every single day."

She flinches, looking away again. "How can you bear it?"

"Some days are harder than others." I say truthfully. "But there is a lot of goodness and light in my life, even when things seem at their darkest." Will. Meg. Luca. Jaron. Marc. Cade. Sera. All of my friends down at the Beacon.

She releases a shaky sigh. "I think that I am still searching for my source of light."

"You'll find it." I let my head loll back against the wall behind me, staring up at the ceiling. "It's there, somewhere inside of you."

The stillness of the night surrounds us, filling the room with the heavy weight of a thousand burdens. I regard her hunched form sitting across from me, her frail shoulders trembling slightly. She looks so strange and small, lost amongst the piles of discarded clothing. I resist the urge to reach out and touch her, instead curling my hand into a fist and digging my nails into the palm of my hand.

"Listen." I say, finally. "There are obviously a lot of unresolved issues between us, but still some crazy god of circumstance saw fit to bring us together."

She perks up, watching me intently.

I choose my words carefully. "I am not such a fool to believe that this coincidence doesn't mean anything."

"Really?" There is a note of hopefulness to her voice.

"If you truly are trying to change, Lara, then you could not ask for a more ideal opportunity." I emphasize my point by gesturing out the window. "You are helping to bring all of those people back home. We've both made mistakes but I have to believe that this effort will count for something."

She releases a small, mirthless laugh. "Perhaps." Tilting her head, she regards me. I notice her eyes flicking down to my covered shoulders and a small twitch near her mouth tells me that she is thinking of the scars hidden beneath. "And what about us?"

"We are what we are." I shrug. "I don't want to pretend to be anything else."

"I'm sorry."

"I know you are." I sit up, avoiding her eyes as I rise to my feet. "Don't say it again."

"Right. I'm so-" She catches herself. "Right."

"You should get this mess cleaned up before we leave." I glance around the room. "Or you'll be leaving a trail a mile long."

She nods. "I will."

"Good." I cross the room and flounce down onto the cushions beneath the window, rolling over so that my back is to her. My eyes remain wide open, my ears perked as I listen for her movements. She stays rooted in place for a long time, filling the room with a deafening silence but for an occasional ragged breath.

One more night. One more long, painful, stress-filled night and then I can be done with her forever. This stifling proximity is a small price to pay for in order to finally sever the last ties to Lara.

One more night.

At some point the hours slip away from me. I sleep restlessly, continually pulled back into the brink of consciousness by a million memories and unresolved anxieties. Eventually golden rays of morning light see fit to cut across my makeshift bed, bleeding through my eyelids and causing a dull throb of pain in my temple.

Lara is fast asleep across the room, her chest rising and falling gently. I sit up, surveying the area, noting with satisfaction that all of her clothes have been put away and a single, neatly packed bag has been placed in the corner. Upon closer inspection I can see that she has opted to bring her parchments and paints rather than an excess of clothes.

I reach my hand under the pillow beneath me and grab hold of the keys I placed there for safekeeping. With my fingers clasped around their comforting weight I concentrate and will some strength back into my heart.

That's it, then. All the pieces are in place.

In a few hours I will take the lift down to the Irrigator, where Will, Gus and I will stake ourselves out until it is time to venture into the lower levels. From there, it is a hop, skip and a jump towards finding our friends and sneaking them up the stairs, onto the grid and into the airship waiting in the hangar.

We've done everything we can to be as prepared as possible, but the odds of tonight's success won't come down to planning. No, tonight will depend on bravery, stealth and more than a healthy dosage of luck.

It's that last element that worries me the most. I've pulled off some risky stunts in my time, enough that I have a very real fear of already having run through a lifetime's supply of good fortune. Gods willing, there is still just enough left to get Will and my friends free and clear of this place.

Lara lets out a small snore, blowing a lock of brassy hair across her face. I release the keys and roll onto my side, aiming to get a few more hours of sleep. My eyes screw shut tight, blocking out the blood-red colour filtering in through my eyelids.

As I drift off into another anxiety-ridden sleep I wonder briefly if my time in Babel could have been spent differently. What if I had never run into Lara? What if I hadn't found Will's note? What if Lara hadn't divulged our secret to Gus? How much of this escape plan is dependant on chance and circumstance?

These doubts reside only briefly in my mind before I dismiss them. I don't have to worry about what might have been because it doesn't matter.

It's too late to go back.

And so we move forward.