Accidents happen without warning.


    The generator broke down.


    I realized it when I was finishing up my usual routine and went to start the generator to charge the capacitors.


    It wouldn’t turn on.


    “...”


    Rather than fear or panic, what I felt was more of a resigned Ah, it’s finally happening kind of feeling when I discovered that the power button—something that had never failed me before—was now completely unresponsive.


    I had always expected it to break down someday.


    But I thought it would last at least five years.


    There could be many reasons why it broke down sooner than expected, but my best guess was the synthetic fuel I had been using recently.


    Forget air conditioning—it wouldn’t even provide enough power to run my motion sensors or other security systems in my territory.


    More importantly, for me to survive here long-term, the heart of my domain had to keep beating.


    Clatter, clatter.


    Clang! Clang!


    I popped two caffeine capsules and pulled an all-nighter.


    Even though it was nighttime, I was drenched in sweat by the time I finally pinpointed the cause of the failure.


    It was the shutdown solenoid.


    According to the manual, this part controlled the fuel supply to the generator based on electrical signals. In short, it was what allowed the generator to shut down properly.


    But it wasn’t responding.@@@@


    Possible sniper vantage pointsPotential cover for when I moved to my next targetRetreat and move on to another industrial complexTake out the sniper


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