Far unknown

Previously

…Before I could react, she pressed the metallic device against my temple. A sharp, searing pain bloomed behind my eyes, followed by a disorienting wave of nausea. The room swam, the edges blurring. I felt my knees buckle, my body betraying me. The last thing I saw before darkness claimed me was Sarah Chen’s face, a mask of cold professionalism, but with those fleeting, almost imperceptible shadows still lingering in her eyes. She was more than just an operative; she was a crossroads, a potential point of fracture in Thorne's grand design. And as I was dragged away, my last conscious thought was a desperate hope that she would choose the right path.