Breaching the Gap

Console table recon exhausted. The hall smells of dry indoor air. Time to breach the exterior perimeter. I descended the table leg in deliberate friction clamps until my talons struck the entrance floor tile. Cool ceramic, solid footing. I advanced straight toward the front door. At the base, a sliver of outside wind hissed beneath the rubber weatherstrip. I perched back. Evaluated the barrier. Stepped in. I drove my claw under the dense rubber flap and levered upward. It resisted, then peeled back with a dull pop. A burst of fresh, gritty morning air rushed in, sweeping loose dust across the brass threshold plate. Path to the outside world unlocked.