There weren’t any direct elevators to the bottom levels of Gnosis. Including the surface floor elevator, there were two more sets of elevators that Mod’s group needed to reach Lock on the bottom levels. Each set of elevators had their own security checkpoints, and the next two elevators represented a problem.

Guards and vampires weren’t the only creatures in the compound.

There were also psychics—introductory members of the Menagerie.

TINA had only discovered the psychics after scraping E-mails. Apparently, there was a long-standing handshake agreement between the Menagerie and Gnosis, one spanning several decades and deliberately excluded from written and electronic records. Low-level initiates to the Menagerie would serve as an additional layer of security for the lower levels of Gnosis. These psychics were primarily used for monitoring the mental states of test subjects, but also screened anyone going into the lower levels of the compound.

It was Arsenal that realized it first—these psychics were there to screen for shapeshifters and artificers. Anyone who might be able to bypass normal security measures.

These initiates were just powerful and competent enough to read surface level thoughts, but not strong enough to probe the deeper secrets of employees. Strong enough to be useful, but not strong enough to pose a problem to Gnosis.

TINA had run simulations using data stolen from the Summit and compiled from Emmett’s own personal database… And either way, the psychics were going to be a problem for their group.

Mod and Arsenal had spent time training to defend against a psychic attack, but there wasn’t any way to trick a psychic. They couldn’t repeat mantras in their head or think really hard about something random. If anything, it would just make them look suspicious. Mod and Arsenal’s helmets would shield them from probing or the off-chance that the psychics were powerful enough to paralyze them, but that same protection would also give them away. The psychics would instantly notice the shielding. Athena had her own training, and was wearing McGuire’s autopinchers, just in case they ran into a powerful psychic.

Mod’s group stepped off the elevator and onto the floor. The lower levels of Gnosis had shed their prestige and decoration. The room was a bright hospital white, and their boots echoed on the tiles. There may have been conversations on the upper floors, down here no one spoke in the halls—not even to utter a greeting. Mod, Arsenal, and Athena didn’t waste any time as TINA directed them through the wide and winding halls of sublevel 10.

The upper sublevel floors were reserved for Gnosis’s public-facing cosmetic research—

But the real work was down here.

Occasionally, the long, winding hallways would branch off toward specialized research wings, each with a cryptic name etched into a plaque. The group didn’t slow as they passed these wings, but Mod was curious. As his eyes gravitated toward each new wing, TINA would display information in his HUD.

Sanguis Innovation—research on artificial blood substitutes and general vampire supplements.

Eventide Engineering—preliminary bioweapons research.

Chthonic Genetics—mapping the genes of the vampire virus and vampire spawn.

Pactum Metaphysica—vampire philosophy and historical research, primarily focused on cabals and their belief systems.

Mod had expected biological research, but the metaphysics wing had come as a surprise. He wasn’t sure if TINA was feeding the same information to Arsenal’s HUD, but he wished they had time to talk about it. Despite their preparations, there was so much that they didn’t know about vampires.

Athena seemed to know more than she was letting on, but she declined to elaborate.

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Then they passed one final offshoot:

Crimson Horizon Project—Error: No electronic records found.

Mod focused on the error message. He couldn’t exactly ask his follow-up question out loud nor had he worked out a thought-to-text function to communicate between himself and TINA—

Mod nearly stumbled as more text appeared in his HUD.

The only mention of the Crimson Horizon Project appears in personal E-mails between Gnosis upper management. Even then, it is only referred to by its initials CHP. Gnosis is even more secretive about the Crimson Horizon Project than they are about using Menagerie initiates.

Had TINA just read his mind?

Mod tried to focus again. He tried to ask her if that’s what she had done… But TINA didn’t respond. After a few moments, Mod gave up.

He would definitely ask her about it later though.

The continued following TINA’s directions through sublevel 10, passing two other cryptically named research wings:

Noctis Engineering—bioengineering research on solar protection.

Umbralpolitik—societal and political research.

TINA said in their earpieces, “You’re approaching the next group of elevators. Three armed guards. Likely psychics. The rest of the floor is empty, but avoid gunfire, if possible.”

Mod took a measured breath as they walked. Arsenal was right beside him, and Athena was behind them. They had a plan, but no plan survives contact with the enemy.

The final stretch of hallway was a straight section, nearly forty feet long. There would be nowhere to hide, nowhere to take cover. And no telling exactly how long they had until a psychic saw through their ruse.

Mod, Arsenal, and Athena turned the final corner.

At the end of the long, white hall, three armed guards stood in front of the elevators. Instead of body armor, two of them wore Gnosis’s own in-house light model power armor: Hardened impact plates, actuator enhanced joints, and personal rebreathers. They allowed the average security guard to carry more armor and a bigger gun—enough to be a serious threat to most Class 1 and 2 supers.

The third guard wore the same gear, but didn’t wear a fully enclosed helmet. He was clearly the psychic—

And unfortunately, he clocked Mod’s group as soon as they turned the corner. The psychic reached for his rifle and shouted.

“Intru—”

The guard only managed to get out one syllable before Athena struck. A forcefield as wide as the hallway slammed into them, throwing them backward and pinning them against the wall. Wall tiles shattered.

Mod and Arsenal were across the hall before the first shards of tile hit the floor.

Mod went for the psychic first. Athena’s barrier flickered and Mod slammed a nanite-covered fist into the man’s chest. Nanites covered his body armor and crawled up to his face.

The other two guards didn’t fare much better despite their armor. Athena had reformed two smaller barriers and slammed them into the heavily armed guards. Arsenal was on one of them a split second later. Her thinsuit flared as she ripped off parts of the man’s armor.

Mod tossed a clump of nanites at Arsenal’s target, then turned toward the final guard. The man hissed, baring long vampiric canines. That was all he got to do. Mod punched him in the sternum, shattering his ceramic body armor and throwing the man back against the wall for the third time.

In that split second, Mod felt his cognition speeding up and the world slowing down. He took in the vampire’s subtle reactions—how he winced and recoiled from the impact. Mod wanted to take him out of the fight without killing him, and now Mod knew exactly how hard to hit him.

Mod hit him twice more, barely letting the vampire’s feet touch the ground, before bringing an overhead strike down across his shoulder. The man folded like a broken toy and slumped to the ground.

Nanites covered his face a moment later.

Arsenal’s guard and the psychic were out of commission too. Nanites covered their eyes, ears, mouth, and throat. The psychic’s head was completely covered, except for a small airhole. With any luck, that would keep them from calling out psychically. Arsenal took their radios for good measure.

Mod asked, “TINA, how are we doing?”

“The security cameras are looped. That will hopefully buy you a few more minutes.”

Athena said, “We’re officially on the clock. Let’s go.”

“One sec.” Mod moved so fast he lost a chunk of nanites and had to wait for them to come back.

NANITES 485% CAPACITY

That would be enough to get them to the lower floors. They had to move fast, so Mod couldn’t wait for his nanites to top off. If they got bogged down somewhere, then he could make more nanites.

Mod turned and followed his allies into the second set of elevators.

~ ~ ~