He followed the pulse across a decayed industrial yard and found the source near a half-buried tunnel entrance, hidden behind rusted panels and vines. Glyphs—faded and ancient—lined the metal walls.
As he touched one, it flared softly.
Alive.
The darkness beyond the entrance was unnatural. It didn't reflect light. It swallowed it.
Liam checked his power core—still half full. He flicked his wrist, activating the rail-saber's power node. A thin blade of humming blue light snapped into form.
"Either I get answers," he muttered, "or I die in something cooler than a rat trap."
The moment he stepped into the tunnel, the world shifted. The temperature dropped. The silence was...wrong. Heavy. Pressed against the skin like oil.
And then he saw it.
A train.
It was enormous. Not in size alone—but in presence.
It stretched into the blackness, covered in layers of soot, rust, and symbols Liam didn't recognize. Its windows were black mirrors. The engine itself looked less like a machine and more like a fossilized beast, waiting.
He approached slowly. Then, with a hiss, the doors slid open. Inside, dim orange lights flickered on like dying embers.
And a voice—cold, androgynous, yet resounding with authority—echoed through the air.
> [Eternity Engine Reclamation Protocol Initiated.]
[Passenger Zero: Liam Drex — Verified.]
[System Integration Pending. Do not resist.]
The world vanished in a flash of white.
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