Chapter 20: Storm Beneath the Surface
The frost was unforgiving.
The wind tore across the ice field where Project Obsidian once lay buried. Snowflakes danced like knives in the midnight air, but Ares didn't flinch. He stood tall, layered in thermal gear and armed to the teeth, his eyes locked on the crater ahead.
"We're going down there," he said.
Noah cursed under his breath. "I hope to hell you're right about this. If Elira's not alive…"
"She is," Nira said softly behind them.
They turned.
Nira stepped forward, wrapped in a thick coat but untouched by the cold. Her breath didn't fog. Her skin didn't redden. Her eyes… glowed faintly silver.
"I can feel her heartbeat," she whispered. "She's calling to me."
---
The Descent
Using experimental drills and stolen Crane tech, the team began melting their way through layers of permafrost and debris. Every meter down, they encountered twisted metal, shattered glass, and the corpses of failed clones—half-formed things with eyes that never closed.
Noah muttered, "This place is a graveyard."
"Not yet," Ares said grimly. "Not until we bring her back."
Soren stayed above, guiding them through a portable command hub linked to what remained of Obsidian's underground network.
"Warning," he called through the comms. "There's still active energy beneath the ice. Something's keeping the lower levels warm."
"Stasis systems," Ares replied. "Keep us online, Soren."
---
Nira's Awakening
As they descended deeper, Nira began to change.
She flinched, grabbing her head.
Noah caught her. "You okay?!"
"I… hear them," she whispered.
"Hear who?"
Her eyes turned completely silver.
"The sleepers."
Suddenly, the ground shook.
Soren's voice screamed through the comms. "We've got movement! Three unknown signals closing in on your position—fast!"
Ares pulled Nira behind him, weapon drawn. "Get ready!"
From the shadows of the tunnel, three figures emerged—human in shape, but wrong. Eyes glowing blue. Veins pulsing with nano-light.
"Black Root operatives," Noah said, heart pounding.
They moved like ghosts.
Fast.
Silent.
Deadly.
---
The Fight in the Ice
One leapt forward, tackling Noah into a steel pillar. He fired point-blank into its chest—no reaction.
"SHOOT THE HEAD!" Nira shouted.
Ares obeyed—three shots into the skull. The body twitched, then crumbled.
Another came for Nira.
This time, she didn't flinch.
Her eyes lit like silver suns.
And with a whisper, the attacker froze mid-motion—literally frozen in place. Ice crystallized up its limbs, locking it in place before it shattered like glass.
Noah stared. "You… what the hell was that?!"
"I didn't mean to," Nira breathed. "It's getting stronger. Whatever's inside me."
"Control it," Ares said. "Or it'll control you."
---
The Core Chamber
Finally, after hours of drilling, they reached a sealed chamber—intact beneath the collapse.
Inside was the stasis pod.
And Elira.
Still floating, unconscious. Her heart beat once every twelve seconds. Her hair flowed like ink in thick fluid. Tubes connected her spine to the machinery around her.
"She's alive," Nira whispered, tears in her eyes.
Ares stepped forward, placing a hand on the pod. "We're getting you out of there."
Noah opened the control panel, trying to override the ancient lockdown. "It's password locked—Vira's encryption."
"I can break it," Nira said.
She placed her hand on the panel—and the screen glitched violently.
Silver light surged from her fingers.
"Access granted."
---
The Rescue
The pod hissed open.
The fluid drained.
Elira gasped—once, violently—before collapsing forward into Ares's arms.
Her body was weak. Cold. But her eyes opened.
She was awake.
"Hey," Ares whispered, voice cracking. "We're here."
She blinked. "…You… found me."
"Of course we did," Noah said. "You're too damn stubborn to die."
Nira knelt beside her. Their eyes met.
For the first time… not as clones. Not as weapons.
But as sisters.
"Thank you," Elira whispered.
"No," Nira said. "Thank you for surviving."
---
Back at the Surface
They emerged from the ruins into a burning dawn.
But they weren't alone.
A sleek black helicopter hovered overhead. The Crane emblem painted over with something new:
The Serpent Initiative.
Vira's new army.
Dozens of silhouettes inside. Armed. Waiting.
"They found us," Noah hissed. "Too fast. How?!"
Nira's voice trembled.
"Because I called them."
Everyone turned.
"I couldn't stop it," she whispered. "When I touched the system… they heard me."
Elira stepped forward, barely standing but fierce.
"Then we fight," she said. "One last time."