Stalker - Back on Surface 🌄

I pushed up from the dry concrete floor of the cistern, securing my belt webbing against my hips. Morning stillness filled the vaulted chamber. On the northern curve of the masonry wall, a recessed vertical conduit caught my eye. Approaching quietly, I tested the first iron rung embedded into the concrete; it held solid under downward force, bearing my full weight without a tremor. Above, a faint hairline of pale daylight seeped down through a cast-iron manhole rim choked with dry pine needles and grit. I reached up with the flat spine of my utility blade, scraping clear the lower seams of the iron hatch to verify the latch mechanism. An unobstructed vertical exit. Surface access confirmed.