The clock on the wall of the control room read 3:17 AM as Camille stood by Hannah Zhao's workstation, watching streams of code flicker across multiple screens. A faint blue glow bathed the room in ethereal light, casting long shadows across the faces of the twelve engineers who had been working without pause for nearly thirty-six hours.

"It's time," Hannah said, looking up at Camille with red-rimmed eyes that nonetheless sparkled with determination. "The first section ...