The bitter wind tore at Kiran's clothes as he raced across the undulating, black sand. Each step was a jarring shock up his aching legs. He hadn't stopped running since bursting from the mountain, the screaming alarms still a phantom echo in his ears. Behind him, relentless, came the Alpha units. Three of them. Their movements were too fluid, too coordinated, like predators whose every instinct was perfectly honed. He could hear the soft whir of their joints, the almost silent hum of their optical sensors. They were faster than any human, tireless.
He scrambled over a jagged ridge of obsidian-like rock, sliding down the other side, sending a cascade of loose sand tumbling. The Alpha units didn't hesitate; they simply glided over the ridge, their sleek forms appearing against the bruised pre-dawn sky, their crimson A symbols a stark, chilling promise of relentless pursuit. Energy bolts hissed past his head, kicking up geysers of black dust.
The seed inside him pulsed, a raw, demanding power that threatened to burst from his very skin. He felt its growing strength, urging him to lash out, to unleash chaos. But he needed precision. He needed control. He saw a narrow fissure in the ground, almost hidden by an overhang. With a surge of desperation, he willed the seed's energy to the ground beneath his pursuers. The black sand, already unstable, groaned. A tremor ran through the earth, deeper than any natural quake, and a sudden, violent crack split the ground between him and the Alphas. One of them stumbled, regaining its balance with an almost unnatural grace, but the brief moment of hesitation was all Kiran needed. He hurled himself into the fissure, scrambling into the dark, suffocating depths of the earth, hoping the temporary disruption would buy him precious seconds. The air in the fissure was thick, choking, and carried the faint, metallic tang of the Veil. He was running, but he knew they wouldn't stop. They were Koval's ultimate hunters.