[Emergency Protocol 09A – Site Lockdown Imminent]
[Estimated Time Remaining: 02:59:57]
The sirens didn't scream—they pulsed. A low, humming alarm that vibrated through walls like a distant heartbeat. The floor lights switched from pale white to blood-red, casting long shadows across broken linoleum tiles.
Yu Ren stuffed the last of the medical supplies into his salvaged pack.
Kai was already by the door, rifle slung over one shoulder, jaw tight.
"System says we've got under three hours," Yu Ren said.
Kai didn't respond. He opened the door, peeked out into the hallway, and motioned for him to follow.
Yu Ren stepped out, weapon drawn. He still wasn't used to the weight of the blade they'd crafted from broken surgical tools and wire. It felt foreign in his hands—like it belonged to someone stronger.
But there was no time to doubt now.
---
They took the stairwell two floors up. The map in Yu Ren's system interface painted a path toward an access tunnel that led out of the medical block and into what used to be the administrative sector.
Kai limped slightly—only noticeable if one looked for it. Yu Ren noticed.
"Your ankle," he said.
"Still attached," Kai replied, voice flat.
They passed another bloodstained corridor, the kind that no longer shocked either of them. The corpses were old, dried and sunken, but one twitched as they passed.
Yu Ren froze.
Kai raised his rifle.
[Corpse Status: Inert | Residual Spasm Detected]
"False alarm," Yu Ren muttered.
Kai didn't lower the rifle for another ten seconds.
---
[New Alert – Unknown Signal Detected Nearby]
[Lifeform: Human? – Status: Concealed]
[Distance: 65 meters | Visual Confirmation: Not Available]
Yu Ren's steps faltered.
"What is it?" Kai asked.
"Someone's here. Human signal. System flagged them, but no visual. They're watching."
Kai's head turned slowly, scanning the corridor's upper ventilation ducts. "Could be bait."
"Could be another survivor."
Kai didn't disagree. But his knuckles turned white against the grip of his rifle.
---
The admin sector had collapsed in some parts—entire hallways crushed by fallen ceiling tiles and disjointed concrete. The farther they went, the more the walls cracked, revealing rebar like snapped bones. It was like the building itself had bled.
They stopped before a steel security door jammed open by debris.
Through it: the tunnel.
And beside it: a figure.
Just standing there.
They couldn't see the face—only a silhouette wrapped in what looked like a tattered hazmat suit, one lens cracked, the other glowing faintly green.
Kai raised his weapon. "Identify yourself."
No answer.
The figure turned and, without a word, disappeared down the access tunnel.
[Tracking Lost – Signal Dispersed]
Yu Ren exhaled. "They're gone."
Kai hesitated. "Or leading us."
Yu Ren stepped forward anyway.
---
The tunnel was narrow, with a ceiling so low they had to crouch. The air was heavier here, filled with the stench of chemical fumes and damp paper. There were old lockers smashed open, their contents burned or eaten away.
At the midpoint, the System pinged again.
[Terminal Detected – Decryption Required]
[Encrypted Logs: 1 Entry | Accessing…]
The console screen flickered to life.
Yu Ren watched as data unraveled, lines of code becoming words.
---
[Audio Log – Dr. Kassien, Level Black Clearance]
Date: Pre-Outbreak, T-12 Days
"Subject K-119 shows exceptional stability under duress. Faster response to stimulus, reduced empathy markers, increased adaptability. Pairing with Protocol "Echo" begins tomorrow. If this works… we'll have the key to non-civilian survival units."
"Of course, he doesn't know. Yet."
"That kind of ignorance makes for stronger loyalty."
End log.
---
Yu Ren stared at the screen.
Kai stood beside him, silent.
"…K-119?" Yu Ren asked, slowly.
Kai said nothing.
"Is that you?"
Still silence.
Then: "Forget you saw it."
Yu Ren blinked. "You were… part of the project."
"I said forget it."
"You were made for this, weren't you?"
Kai didn't look at him. "We keep moving."
But in the flickering red light, for the first time, Kai looked uncertain.
---
[Affection Score: Kai +7]
[Total: 17/100 – "Doubt Beneath Steel"]
---
At the end of the tunnel, they found a chamber—once a records archive, now overtaken by rot and crawling vines that had broken through concrete.
A shriek tore through the silence.
Something dropped from the ceiling—four-legged, eyeless, its body a lattice of bone and sinew.
Kai's weapon jammed.
Yu Ren didn't think.
He lunged.
His blade buried into the creature's shoulder—if it had shoulders—then tore sideways as the thing screamed. Claws raked his side, shallow but burning.
He stabbed again.
And again.
Until the creature stopped twitching.
[Enemy Neutralized – Lurker-Class Mutation (Level 2)]
[XP Gained: 85]
[Yu Ren: Level 2 → Level 3]
[New Trait Acquired: "Edge of Panic" – Reflex Speed +5% when under 30% HP]
Yu Ren panted, chest heaving. Blood ran down his shirt. His hands trembled.
But he was alive.
Kai reached him, inspecting the wound. "You fought like someone cornered."
Yu Ren laughed, shaky. "I was cornered."
Kai wiped blood from his cheek. "You didn't scream."
Yu Ren's smile faded.
"No one would've come if I did."
---
They barricaded the chamber as best they could.
Time left: 01:14:29
The lockdown was coming—and they were still inside the perimeter.
Kai bandaged him in silence, hands gentle despite the calluses.
"You're getting better," he said finally.
Yu Ren didn't respond.
Then he asked, "Were you really part of some survival project?"
Kai didn't look up. "Does it matter?"
"I think it does."
Kai tied the bandage tight, looked him in the eyes.
"You're alive. I'm alive. We keep it that way."
Yu Ren stared at him. "You don't trust me."
"I don't trust anyone," Kai said. "But you're trying. That's rare now."
[Affection Score: Kai +3]
[Total: 20/100 – "First Flickers of Fire"]
---
Outside, the red lights dimmed.
Then came a sound far worse than the sirens.
Chains dragging.
Multiple footsteps—inhuman, synchronized.
Something was gathering.
Something big.
[Emergency Override – New Threat Approaching: Assimilator Swarm]
[Estimated Arrival Time: 00:29:12]
[System Advice: Relocate Immediately or Prepare for Wave Defense]
Yu Ren stood, adrenaline already kicking back in.
Kai chambered a round. "So. Stay or run?"
Yu Ren clenched his fists.
"Let's survive first. Then we decide how to live."
---
To be continued.