“Decaying, unstable footing, easy to hear and smell coming…” Zexus analysed, his gaze through the cracks of the stone door focused on the small group waiting outside. There were six of the pin-cushioned monsters, each of them stumbling into the walls or over this or that debris. “Limited intelligence. Also likely reliant on one or two senses.”

He tapped the walls as a test.

No reaction.

He slammed his fist a bit harder, eliciting a loud thud.

At this, three of the closest monsters turned and ran for the door. Just as before, they slammed hard into the raised stone, and proved themselves ineffective against the sturdy ‘door’. The blades within them would screech against the rock, as well as bury themselves deeper into the monsters.

“Reliance on sound.” Zexus concluded, the gears of his mind turning. “Not unlike zombies, but certainly much faster and…changed.”

How and why would any creature evolve to have what were essentially steel blades buried inside of them? What purpose is there in harming themselves? The answer is that it was simply unnatural. Organisms may suffer some damage in order to escape a predator, like a lizard losing its tail or a Reekolg losing its shell; but few would experience being torn apart from the inside.

“I wonder if they can feel pain? They seem rather relaxed.” Zexus observed calmly before turning away. His eyes searched for his wife, but she was nowhere to be found in the immediate area.

“Lavenna?”

A moment passed before a response came. “Back here…”

Leaving Avali and June to watch the door, Zexus departed to the back of the room. There, he found his partner sitting in the corner amongst a bunch of boxes. She was curled in a ball, her knees tucked in and her head buried in her arms. Her ears were drooped and her tails were looped around her feet in a protective circle.

“You alright?” Zexus took a seat next to her. Reaching a hand out, he gave a few soft pats on her head.

“Yeah…” Her ill tone sounded anything but well. “Just need to…get out of the smell.”

He nodded in understanding. Her senses were that much more sensitive than his. He could not even begin to imagine what she was going through, although he did have some semblance of feeling through their ethereal bond. The sickness she was feeling, he received it as a flood of negativity skirting around the edges of his mind. Barely noticeable unless he focused, but it was all that he felt from her at that moment.

“We should find a Cleansing Ego or something of the like for you as soon as possible.”

Lavenna chuckled half-heartedly. “Fat chance in this place.”

“Well, with any luck, perhaps we’ll find a face mask in the medical facilities.”

“You don’t believe in luck.”

“I just don’t like her.”

“Pft.” The Kitsune peered at him, her eyes smiling just above the length of her toned arms. “She doesn’t like you either.”

Zexus shrugged. “Then we’ll just have to hope she likes you enough to save a mask.”

One of Lavenna’s tails smacked him playfully, the fox’s demeanour becoming almost supernaturally mesmerising. “Everyone likes me.”

Ten minutes passed before the door to the group’s hideout was lowered. The stone slab descending back into the earth, Zexus stepped out alone. He was immediately rushed by the monsters that remained, now just two as the others had been drawn away by noise or wandered off through their aimless shambling.

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Tranquil as water, Zexus did not blink as he faced the charges of the bladed creatures.

“Twenty metres.” He moved off to the left side, causing one of the creatures to fall a bit further behind the other in their advance.

*Clack clack clack*

Feet more bone than flesh closed the gap, the first pinheads to reach him. With a lowered and side-faced body, Zexus planted his feet in a sturdy stance. Pulling back his right arm, the moment of impact came.

*Crack!*

His fist, straight, narrow and precise, struck the humanoid monster in its solar plexus, or at least where it should have been if it had one. The blades, sailing over his head harmlessly, retracted as the creature flew back from the strike and crashed into its compatriot. Steel drew blood as the two skewered one another. No sound of pain came from them however, even as they struggled to break free, forming an ever-increasing pool of blood up until both ceased in their movements.

Zexus did not celebrate, his collected self already moved onto his analysis. “It survived a strike strong enough to kill the average human. They’re on the same level as the basic eggheads. Perhaps a little more dangerous due to their blades.”

Turning around after one last look, ensuring that no other pinheads were attracted by the noise, Zexus returned to the base.

“Nicely done. Very clean.” June complimented, smiling with a hand to her waist.

Zexus nodded, grabbing Sally’s body and hoisting her over his shoulder. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

“And I’ll keep the door closed until you do. No exceptions.” The mage repeated their ‘plan’.

“Keep safe.” Zexus walked away, sparing no glances.

“You too.” With his departure into the corridors, the stone slab was raised once more, sealing the storage room.

Holobracelet turned on with the projection helping light his way, Zexus took no time to get to the first spot, encountering a few groups of pinheads on the way. Closest to the base in the northern direction, he stepped into an area with the words ‘Medical Centre’ marked in red above the doorway. The symbol of a cross was also painted on the door, although the colour had long been lost to the passage of time.

Few things within were spared of the same fate. Desks, chairs, furniture, devices and items of all sorts had all deteriorated. Almost every surface was covered either in a layer of moss or dirt. Descending a small flight of stairs, he found the place to be damper than most others, with puddles of murky water forming all over the grounds as if a storm had just passed. Making things worse was the limited light, given only by the natural mana particles that drifted through the air. It was enough for him to see, but still made things more difficult than necessary.

“A total mess.” Was what Zexus knew Lavenna would say, and he would have to agree.

Nonetheless, he hoped that what he sought remained functional even in these ruins, and if not, at least a way to fix what was broken.

Walking into the darkness without an ounce of fear, the amber-eyed man soon found himself at the end of the room. There, he found a row of cylindrical pods. They sat horizontally, held up by steel stands and the tube themselves constructed of glass that had since clouded following its construction millenniums ago.

Placing Sally down on a bed of moss, Zexus made to check up on the worn down devices. Starting from the left-most one, his hands ran over the cold surfaces in search of something to unlock or open the tubes. He tapped this and that, prodding along the steel for a button or latch, wiping away the moss and dirt as he did. After a while, he did indeed find a set of buttons embedded into the wall. They were present for all eight capsules, but none had any effect.

Thus, he tried to pry open the containers with force.

Once again, nothing occurred.

Zexus tapped a finger on his arm, contemplative as he focused on the only thing he could see through the fogged up glass, that being a handle on the inside of the pods.

“This one appears broken already. I might as well take a look at the inside.”

He raised a fist and brought it down in a quick swing. The glass smashed open, shattering into a thousand pieces and granting entry to the interior. Snaking his arm through, he pulled the handle with little resistance.

The capsule swung open, and a thin mist seeped out, dropping to the ground in a slow waterfall. As the air cleared, Zexus got a better look at the insides.

Cushioned with what seemed to be leather, a long bed was laid out across the capsule length. Besides that, the only thing worth noting were the rows of small holes that lined the edges of the pod and bigger ports beneath the leather.

“...Hm…”

With a strong grip, Zexus dislodged a tube from one of the ports. Holding it up to his face, he observed the glass, noting the semi-transparent red liquid sloshing at the rounded base.

He narrowed his eyes, the colours draining from the world.

There was no light within the liquid.

“Not a potion.” Setting the tube next to Sally, Zexus moved to check the other capsules. Some were empty, but most had similar liquids stored in them. After the fifth capsule, he had no less than ten vials. The most was half-full, while the least contained nothing but air.

“Seems essential.” He glanced at the capsules, then at the vials.

Unscrewing the metallic part on the ends of one vial filled with a small amount of liquid, he poured it on the large gash on Sally’s left arm where the bones of her elbow had torn through during her transformation. Holding her limb up so the liquid flowed and stayed in, Zexus waited.

Patient as ten minutes passed, his brows creased ever so slightly at the lack of reaction.

“Is it defective?” He pondered, but there was a more likely explanation. “The pods probably serve a purpose in getting these liquids to work.”

That, however, meant more work for him.

Letting out a small breath of air, Zexus stood, listing the things he needed in his mind. “A functioning capsule. It’s probably power they’re missing. I also need a sufficient supply of these liquids, considering there are twelve holes to fill.”

*Click*

“’Electricity’...lightning….I believe that was what the Lost Empire used.” He held a hand to his chin.

Hoisting Sally up, he placed her body in the capsule at the right end, one he opened without completely destroying the glass. Putting those vials that still had some liquid with her, he shut the lid and made for the exit.

“There must be some ‘electricity’ here, considering some lights are still on.” He looked up at said devices, the long rectangular lines more often blinking than not.

*Click*

“I need to find the power source.”