episode 1: The Spiral and the Swamp

Chapter 1: The Spiral and the Swamp

Auris City was a place where secrets walked in daylight, and truth wore a mask.

No woman had ever worked as a detective, spy, or anything remotely close. Tradition said it was impossible. Law said it was unnecessary.

Inaya Rael called it nonsense.

By day, she was Professor Inaya Rael—teaching Physics at Auris University, sipping bitter tea, dodging awkward invitations to the dean's lunch (which always involved kale salads and forced smiles).

By night, she was Auris City's first-ever undercover agent—ghosting through shadows, chasing smugglers, decoding encrypted data, and digging through the rot others ignored.

Her family thought she was just a brilliant academic. That was the perfect cover.

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✦ The Crash That Started It All

Three weeks ago...

On a cold morning, Inaya and her partner Raif set out for a classified mission-

Goal: Hack into an enemy satellite system and retrieve intel.

Everything was perfectly planned.

Until-

Thirty minutes before takeoff, the co-pilot was mysteriously injured.

Out of time, they were forced to bring in a last-minute replacement-

A complete unknown named Waleed Elang

The guy walked in like he owned the jet.

He thought this was some luxury air tour. Maybe a fancy test flight.

Weapons? Agents? Hacking? He had no clue.

Then came the announcement over the speakers:

> "Ladies and gentlemen, today's co-pilot: Wali. Game-trained and dangerously confident!"

Inaya shot Raif a deadly glare.

Inaya (raising an eyebrow):

"You just picked a guy off the street who looked confident?"

Raif (awkwardly):

"He's licensed! What was I supposed to do on such short notice? We've got the main pilot."

Meanwhile, Wali was in the cockpit, daydreaming.

"This is just like my simulation games... maybe even easier," he thought.

---

The jet soared into the sky-quiet, smooth.

Inaya focused on her screen, code flickering in her eyes. Just a little more time and the data would be theirs.

Suddenly-

SIRENS.

Gunfire in the cockpit.

The main pilot was shot and collapsed on the controls.

Wali (screaming):

"Who's flying this thing now?!"

At that exact moment, four armed enemy agents stormed in.

Agent 1 shouted:

"Where's the data file? One minute, or everyone dies!"

Raif pulled his pistol and fired-one agent down.

Inaya rolled to cover, her hands still flying over the keyboard.

The download was still in progress.

Gunshots.

Sirens.

Roaring engines.

Chaos.

Inaya yelled:

"Wali, you have to fly the plane!"

Wali (panicking):

"I don't know how to land! I don't even know what to press!"

Raif:

"Then how the hell are you a pilot?"

Wali:

"I got full marks on the theory test. And I've landed jets 100th times... in simulators."

Raif:

"You WHAT?"

Wali:

"Found this killer YouTube playlist. This is actually my first real flight."

Raif (deadpan):

"Perfect. Simulations were practiced. Time for your first real landing."

Meanwhile, another agent jumped with a parachute-

Raif and Inaya noticed something alarming.

There was only one parachute left on the jet.

Inaya was deep into hacking the autopilot, when suddenly-

She froze.

> AUTOPILOT OVERRIDE DETECTED.

Someone was controlling the jet externally.

Now the plane shook violently.

Smoke filled the cabin.

A red warning light flashed like a heartbeat.

But Inaya didn't stop.

Her fingers flew over the keys.

Eyes blazing. Hands steady.

Inaya (calmly):

"This isn't just a machine. This is my playground."

> ACCESS DENIED. FINAL ATTEMPT.

They were losing control-

The jet was now rerouted to crash in the swamps outside a secret city called Aurish.

Wali (tearfully):

"We're going to die, aren't we?"

Inaya (dryly):

"The plane's going down... but we might survive."

Then-

Raif:

"DON'T press the blue button!"

Wali:

"Why not?"

Raif:

"It makes espresso."

Wali (managing a weak laugh):

"What's a crash without caffeine?"

The cabin was now filled with smoke.

Red alarms flashing.

Chaos everywhere.

Inaya (still typing):

"Wali, today your real training begins."

Wali (eyes wide):

"That wasn't in the tutorial!"

The jet roared closer to the ground-

Water.

Mud.

Flames.

Eight minutes.

Three encryption walls still break.

The ground rushed up.

A deafening crash.

---

Silence.

Smoke.

Mud.

The sharp ringing in their ears.

Then-

A cough.

A shaky breath.

Someone stood up from the wreckage, wiping ash from their face.

Wali-soaked, covered in mud, eyes full of terror and disbelief.

"I... survived? I'm alive?"

A few steps away, Inaya rose from the dirt, brushing herself off.

Her voice was cold, sharp:

"If I ever hear you say you're a pilot again... I'll shoot you myself."

Raif (quietly brushing off mud):

"You remember what the mission was called?"

Inaya (sighs):

"Meteor."

And today, it really did fall from the sky."

Through the haze of smoke, Wali's voice echoed:

"Does anyone want coffee?"

-holding half a broken espresso machine on his shoulder.

Inaya (deadpan):

"You're lucky you lived... this time."

"In one piece, thanks to me,"

The mission was successful. Life slowly slipped back into rhythm.

Inaya returned to juggling lectures, thesis deadlines, and late-night research-her days filled with academics.

Wali, a beginner pilot who dreamed of being an agent, somehow survived because she refused to let them die, maybe because he thought crashing was just "part of the fun."

Two days later, Wali showed up at Inaya's university with a backpack full of snacks and transfer papers to work as her assistant.

"You're insane," Wali said.

"Invaluable," Inaya corrected.

Wali blinked.

"...Is that your way of saying I got the job?"

Inaya: "No. That's my way of saying you'll be fetching coffee forever."

He grinned. "Perfect. I make a killer espresso."

Inaya didn't respond. She just turned and walked off-heading straight to the lecture hall without a backward glance.

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