The air inside the abandoned facility felt wrong.
A thick, metallic scent hung in the air, a mix of rust, decay, and something unidentifiable but unmistakably unnatural. The dim red glow of Cora’s drone barely illuminated the cavernous space, casting long, shifting shadows against the rows of shattered containment pods.
Greg wiped a layer of dust off his sleeve and exhaled sharply. “Okay, someone say something encouraging before I start assuming we’re all about to die.”
Tempo let out a nervous chuckle. “Uh… at least we didn’t jump into a pit of acid?”
Greg gave him a dry look. “Yeah, super comforting.”
Cora ignored them both, scanning the cracked control panels with intense focus. “There has to be some working system here. If we can pull even fragments of the last recorded data, we might be able to—”
A low growl rumbled through the air.
Not from the speakers.
Not from a machine.
From something alive.
The temperature in the room felt like it dropped several degrees.
Greg’s body went rigid. “Please tell me that was your stomach, Tempo.”
Tempo shook his head, his breath unsteady. “Nope. Stomach’s empty. Terror, however? Full.”
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The sound came again.
Low. Rumbling.
Slow, deliberate footsteps echoed across the metal floor.
Cora’s drone adjusted its light, sweeping across the darkened facility—until it landed on a deep corridor lined with clawed scratch marks.
Something shifted inside the shadows.
Then—
It moved.
A massive figure lunged forward, emerging into the dim glow of the drone’s light. Its skin was unnaturally pale, stretched too tightly over dense muscle. Red cybernetic lines pulsed beneath its skin like exposed veins, and its eyes glowed a deep, unnatural crimson.
Greg’s breath caught in his throat. “Oh, hell no.”
The creature was human once.
Now? It was something else.
It opened its mouth, revealing jagged, uneven teeth, before its voice—distorted and broken—echoed across the room.
“Fresh test subjects… detected.”
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Tempo swallowed. “Okay, so, option one—we run. Option two—we run faster.”
Greg cracked his knuckles. “What’s option three?”
Cora exhaled. “There is no option three.”
The creature attacked.
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It moved unnaturally fast. One second, it was across the room. The next—
BOOM!
The force of its leap cratered the metal floor beneath it, sending shockwaves through the facility.
Greg barely had time to react before it swung a clawed hand toward his face.
He ducked, but the sheer force of the wind from the attack sent him skidding backward.
“Too strong,” he muttered, shaking the numbness from his hands.
Tempo flickered forward, his body blurring as he accelerated. He struck at the creature’s exposed side—but the hit barely made it flinch.
Its skin was too thick.
Tempo’s eyes widened. “Oh. That’s—not good.”
The creature swiped at him mid-dash, and for the first time, Tempo wasn’t fast enough to avoid it.
Clawed fingers ripped through his jacket, tearing fabric and drawing blood. Tempo let out a sharp cry as he tumbled across the floor, clutching his side.
Greg’s heart pounded. Too fast. Too strong.
And then he saw it—the creature wasn’t just moving at random.
It was studying them.
Learning.
Its head tilted slightly, and its glowing eyes locked onto Cora.
Then—it charged.
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A silver flash cut through the dark.
Arden’s blade intercepted the creature’s claws, the impact sending a violent shockwave through the lab. His stance remained firm, but his jaw clenched slightly.
Greg didn’t miss it. The monster was strong—even for Arden.
Arden didn’t hesitate. His sword shifted into a spear, and in one fluid motion, he launched it forward.
The spear impaled the creature’s shoulder, pinning it to a nearby wall.
For a moment, everything was still.
Then—it wrenched itself free.
The spear clattered to the floor.
Arden narrowed his eyes. It’s adapting.
Tempo, still catching his breath, muttered, “Okay. So. Running’s looking real good right now.”
Cora was already moving. “No. It’s tracking us. If we run, it’ll just pick us off one by one.”
Greg exhaled. They had to end this. Fast.
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The creature’s eyes flickered.
Then—its cybernetic veins pulsed violently.
Its body began to change.
Greg’s stomach twisted. “Uh, is it supposed to do that?”
Cora’s scanner beeped rapidly. “It’s absorbing something. No—it’s evolving.”
The creature let out a distorted snarl, its arms elongating, its claws sharpening. Its wounds were healing.
Tempo exhaled. “Oh, come on.”
Greg clenched his fists. “Alright. New plan.”
Cora glanced at him. “What plan?”
Greg cracked his neck. “Hit it till it stops moving.”
Arden readied his sword. “Agreed.”
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In the Syndicate control room, Sylvia watched with quiet amusement.
A subordinate hesitated beside her. “Commander, should we—”
Sylvia raised a hand, silencing them.
“No,” she murmured. “Let them fight.”
Her gaze flickered toward the Project Revenant monitor.
The data streams pulsed as the creature’s vitals fluctuated.
It was adapting.
Faster than expected.
She smiled.
“This will be entertaining.”
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FINAL CLASH—TO BE CONTINUED…
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