The air was thick with the sterile, metallic scent of the lab as August and the others entered the large containment room. The walls were lined with cold, blinking machinery, all humming with an eerie, mechanical rhythm. The fluorescent lights overhead flickered sporadically, casting an unsteady glow over the rows of glass enclosures that held various experiments—some of them human, others... not so much. This place felt like a graveyard for both the living and the dead.

And somewhere in the back of the room, in a high-security containment unit, was Sabrina.

August’s heart pounded as they approached the farthest enclosure. His wrist interface buzzed with an alert, the system warning him of the security measures still active. He had to bypass them quickly, but his mind kept drifting back to Sabrina. He could feel the weight of her absence—the guilt, the desperation. She had been their only hope for answers, for salvation. And now, here she was, trapped in a glass cell, hooked up to machines that were doing God only knew what to her.

“Stay focused,” Jude murmured, his voice low but steady as he scanned the room. He was still tense, his jaw clenched as though every moment was a battle. August could feel the tension between them, but there was no time for that now.

Cara was at the terminal in the corner, hacking into the system to disable the alarms and security doors. Her fingers moved with the ease of someone who had done this a hundred times, but August could see the way her eyes darted around the room, always alert. Even she couldn’t shake the sense of impending danger.

Lara, standing just behind them, seemed oddly quiet. She hadn’t said much since the revelation about Sabrina’s involvement with the virus, and August couldn’t tell if it was the weight of that knowledge that had silenced her or something else. Regardless, she was ready for whatever came next—her eyes were sharp, her hand resting on the hilt of a knife at her side.

The minutes stretched out, each second feeling like an eternity. Finally, the door to Sabrina’s containment unit opened with a soft hiss, and August stepped inside, holding his breath. He immediately spotted her—the fragile form of Sabrina, lying unconscious on the cold metal table, connected to a series of IVs and tubes. Her skin was pale, almost translucent, and her chest rose and fell with shallow, labored breaths.

August’s stomach tightened. This is it. He had finally found her, but the joy of that discovery was quickly overshadowed by the anger that surged within him. How could they have let this happen to her?

“Is she…?” Cara began, her voice faltering as she approached Sabrina’s side.

“She’s alive, but barely,” August answered, kneeling beside her. He placed a hand on the glass, his fingers tracing the edge of the containment unit. “We need to get her out of here, now.”

The sound of boots on metal echoed from the hallway, and August’s blood ran cold. They hadn’t even had a minute of peace. He looked up, eyes narrowing.

“Move,” Jude muttered, reaching for his gun. “We’ve got company.”

Before anyone could react, the door at the other end of the room slid open with a violent screech, and a figure stepped through, flanked by a group of heavily armed mercenaries. The man in front was tall, with a commanding presence that seemed to suck all the air out of the room. His eyes were cold, calculating—no empathy, no hesitation. Marcos.

“August,” Marcos said, his voice low and smooth, like a serpent’s hiss. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

The mercenaries spread out, surrounding the group. There were at least ten of them, all heavily armed, all with one goal in mind: to ensure that Sabrina remained under their control. But that wasn’t all. August could feel the weight of the situation pressing down on him—Marcos wasn’t just here for Sabrina. He was here for the system.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“The system,” Marcos continued, his eyes flicking to August’s wrist. “It’s quite the little toy you’ve got there. I’ve been watching you, August. You’ve been using it to disrupt my operations, making a mess of everything. But now, I think it’s time to make a trade.”

August’s grip on his weapon tightened, his knuckles white as he glanced at Jude and Cara. “What do you want?”

Marcos’ lips curled into a smirk, like he knew he had the upper hand. “Sabrina’s life in exchange for the system. You’ve been using it to survive all this time, but without it, you’re nothing. You’ve come this far only because of it. So, here’s my offer. You hand over the system, and I’ll let you walk out of here with her.”

The words hung in the air like a heavy fog, suffocating everything around them. August’s thoughts raced. He had fought so hard to get here, to find Sabrina, and now this man—this monster—was giving him a choice between her life and his own survival. It didn’t feel like a choice at all.

“I’m not giving you the system,” August said, his voice low, steady. He wasn’t going to back down. Not now.

Marcos chuckled, the sound rich with dark amusement. “You don’t seem to understand, do you? You need it. Without it, you’ll die just like all the others. It’s your only bargaining chip. Don’t make the mistake of thinking I can’t take it from you.”

August felt a cold chill run through him. Marcos wasn’t bluffing. He knew exactly how dangerous the system was, how much power it held. And if he really wanted it, he could take it from August. He didn’t need to kill him—just disable the system, and August would be a sitting duck.

“You’re making a mistake,” August said, his voice firm. “I’m not giving you anything.”

The tension in the room was palpable. Every movement felt deliberate, calculated. August could feel the sweat beading on the back of his neck. This wasn’t a negotiation anymore—it was a standoff.

“Then I suppose we’ll have to settle this the old-fashioned way,” Marcos said with a sigh, motioning to his men. “Take them.”

In an instant, the mercenaries opened fire. August dove to the side, his system automatically calculating his movements as he rolled behind a nearby table. The room erupted into chaos. Gunfire filled the air, sharp cracks echoing in every direction.

Jude and Lara took cover, firing back with lethal precision. Cara, her face grim, moved toward Sabrina’s containment unit, trying to disengage the locks. But August couldn’t focus on that. He had to deal with Marcos and the mercenaries.

A burst of bullets grazed his shoulder, and he grimaced, the pain sharp but manageable. He fired back, taking down one of the mercenaries as he moved across the room. But there were too many of them. They were closing in.

The system buzzed with updates—new enemies, incoming threats. August could feel it all happening at once, a flood of information that made his mind race.

“Get her out of there!” Jude yelled over the gunfire, his voice strained. “We can’t hold them off much longer!”

August’s heart pounded. They were running out of time. He turned his attention back to the containment unit, but just as he moved toward it, something unexpected happened.

“Enough.”

Jude’s voice rang out across the room, cutting through the chaos. August froze, his heart skipping a beat as he turned to look at his friend. Jude was standing, hands raised, his gun lowered. The mercenaries stopped, their eyes flicking between him and Marcos.

“I’m done fighting,” Jude said, his voice barely above a whisper. “You’ll have your system. Just let her go.”

The room fell silent. August’s blood ran cold as the words sank in. Jude had just... surrendered? No, this couldn’t be happening. He had fought alongside August, had risked everything to get this far. And now he was giving up? Betraying everything they had worked for?

“Jude, what the hell are you doing?” August demanded, his voice breaking with disbelief. “You can’t just—”

“I’m doing what’s necessary,” Jude interrupted, his eyes hard and unyielding. “I’m not letting her die because of your stubbornness. You can keep your system. I’ll make sure you both survive. But only if you give him what he wants.”

The words hit like a physical blow. August’s world tilted. He looked at Jude, seeing the determination in his eyes—something was different, something had shifted. But why? Why was he doing this? Hadn’t they been through enough together?

And then, as the weight of the situation pressed down on him, Marcos stepped forward, a wicked smile spreading across his face. “Well, this is... unexpected. But I’m not one to turn down such a generous offer.”

He nodded to his men. “Take the system.”

The air around them grew thick, the sound of metal clanging as the mercenaries closed in, and the sickening reality of betrayal set in.