With a sudden burst of energy, he lunged toward the fire escape. The sound of his long coat cutting through the damp air was the only warning he gave the shadows. He caught the bottom rung, the metal groaning under his weight, and swung himself upward in one fluid motion.

The narrow alleyway held its breath as Elias pressed his back against the cold brick. He could hear the heavy boots of the city guards clicking against the cobblestone just a block away. He needed to move, and he needed to move now.

Elias hit the edge of the roof at a full sprint and leaped. For a heartbeat, gravity lost its grip. The wind roared past his ears, a vacuum of sound that stripped away the noise of the city. He tucked his chin, rolled across the neighboring roof, and vanished into the darkness of the mechanical room. The transition from hunted to hidden was complete.

He reached the rooftop just as a spotlight swept the brickwork below. He didn't stop to look back. He sprinted across the gravel surface, his breath coming in sharp, rhythmic hitches. Ahead, the gap between buildings loomed—a fifteen-foot drop into uncertainty.