Level Zero, located beneath White City, presented a drastically different scenario from the civilized environment. As the industrial elevator descended, polished concrete and self-cleaning surfaces gave way to a brutalist aesthetic, marked by exposed steel beams, intense humidity, and the constant noise of substation generators. The air at this level was not adequately filtered, carrying the odor of ozone, industrial dust, and alkaline residues from discarded lithium batteries.
The Agent traversed suspended metal walkways over settling tanks until locating the designated sector. The Disposal Sector was configured as a complex of piping, where Valeria Vance awaited, illuminated by an old sodium lamp. She did not appear to be captive, but rather like a sovereign in her scrap domain, wearing a grease-stained gray Manufacturer jumpsuit while examining damaged circuit boards.
Upon approaching, Valeria showed no surprise at the Agent's arrival, sarcastically commenting on her father's punctuality. The Agent denied being her father and stated he was not there to deliver reports. Valeria then confronted him, revealing that she knew his identity, his activities in the desert, and the fact that his vehicle had attempted to absorb the Chimera script the previous night.
When questioned about Chimera and the Manufacturer's practices, Valeria explained that autonomous driving algorithms require unpredictability to progress. According to her, the Manufacturer keeps groups like Charlie's gang alive as a mechanical stress laboratory, serving as a control group. She accused the Agent of being a paid agent to ensure these 'black sheep' remained confined, as every manual maneuver he performed fed the central System database, which used his piloting to protect itself.
Valeria warned that the situation was about to change due to the new board, which sought maximum efficiency and planned a global update to the patrol fleet, eliminating the need for human control and automating everything, including the Agent's job. When asked about the destruction of vehicles, she replied that both cars and people would be hit by the tractor unless he acted first.
To fulfill the mission, the Agent needed something purely analog, without trackers or cloud connectivity, because the Division's vehicle was programmed to leave him behind. Valeria removed a heavy tarp, revealing a solid red Fiat Coupé. The Agent questioned the model choice, suggesting a Delta Integrale, but Valeria countered, explaining that a car with three differentials and a transmission tunnel would be quickly detected by the Manufacturer's sensors. The Coupé, she said, was an example of efficient mechanical engineering.
Opening the hood, the Agent observed the engine, a monument of industrial density, with the cylinder head marked '2000 16V TURBO ELECTRONIC INJECTION'. Valeria detailed that it was a four-cylinder cast iron Twin Cam engine, designed by Aurelio Lampredi, with custom modifications: forged pistons, H-beam connecting rods, and isolated programmable injection, operating with a 1.5 kg static pressure turbo, generating 320 horsepower directed to the front wheels.
Concerned about the car's stability in front-wheel drive on gravel, the Agent expressed doubts about control. Valeria assured him that the Viscodrive system, a mechanical viscous coupling, would automatically lock the differential if a wheel lost traction in the dust, ensuring purely mechanical operation. Inside the vehicle, the Agent found a nostalgic interior, with a red dashboard and bucket seats, and took control, noting the absence of screens and lane assistance.
Valeria warned that the car required analog piloting, forcing him to learn how to ease off the accelerator to shift weight and induce rear rotation. The Agent, realizing he could not simply disappear, decided to ascend, buy time, and subsequently discover the exact schedule for the fleet update, asking that the car be ready upon his return.
After three days, the atmosphere at the Patrol HQ had changed. The silence of the holographic monitors was replaced by the sound of extra servers being installed, while technicians from the Manufacturer's executive board moved quantum storage units, signaling the start of data migration to the new autonomous infrastructure.
The Agent was summoned to the Primary Directives Room. There, the Commissioner, an individual with chemically treated appearance, observed the holographic map of the desert. The Commissioner ordered the Agent to sit down, but he refused, claiming he had spent twelve hours in the vehicle seat the day before. The Commissioner then pointed to the hologram, informing him that three nights prior, the Agent's vehicle registered a total loss of global positioning data for four minutes and twelve seconds, immediately following an encounter with an irregular combustion propulsion vehicle.
