At 18:48:50, Kestrel ordered everyone away from the Cairo pit.
Nobody argued. They had watched the future worker bleed for six minutes.
The drilling crew backed behind a line of water cans laid on their sides. Kestrel chose the barrier because cans could roll if the ground shifted. Painted safety rails had already proved they could cast shadows into places their steel did not reach.
One worker stayed near the portable lamp.
"Nabil," Kestrel called.
Nabil Shawki looked down at his boots.
Both stood behind the cans.
"I am clear."
His orange municipal coat matched the coat on East Array's future screen. He had the same gray beard. The worker in the image wore no visible name badge, but a wrench hung from his belt on a red cord.
Nabil had tied that cord himself after dropping three wrenches into pump water during his first year underground.
East Array reached 18:48:56.
