> [Location: NovaCore Nexus — Central Detainment Wing]
[Time Remaining: 09 Minutes 47 Seconds]
[System Status: Critical Collapse Imminent]
The world inside NovaCore was breaking apart.
Walls cracked. Energy conduits burst into streams of unstable Pulse.
Sirens screamed through the corridors.
What was once the most secure system research facility on Earth… was falling.
Arin limped forward, half-supported by Lyra.
Elira led the way, scanning ahead for safe paths.
"We need to reach the extraction bay!" Lyra shouted over the noise.
"Emergency evac pods are still docked!"
> [Evacuation Route Calculated]
Distance: 530 meters
Hazards: Structural Failures, Rogue Drones, Core Detonations
Arin: "Let's move — no turning back."
---
They pushed through collapsing tunnels.
Fragments of corrupted AI systems sparked around them — half-formed holograms flickering, whispering fragments of old directives.
"System override… forbidden… purge… Arin Verma… project…Xeno—"
The voice cut off as another blast tore through the ceiling.
Elira: "We don't have time for ghosts."
> [Pulse Sensors: Multiple Hostiles Detected]
Out of the smoke — a squad of malfunctioning drones, weapons still active.
Lyra cursed.
"They're not shutting down fast enough!"
Arin: "Then we clear a path."
---
[Pulse Surge Mode Activated]
Energy Output: 143%
Duration: 30 Seconds
Arin charged ahead, hurling condensed Pulse bolts, blasting drones apart.
Elira followed, slicing the remaining ones into pieces with lethal precision.
They made it halfway.
But then—the ceiling above them gave way.
A massive section of the central core plummeted down.
Debris rained, smoke blinding.
Arin barely pushed Lyra aside.
[Impact Detected: Severe]
[Vitals: 12%]
He collapsed again — vision swimming, Pulse flickering erratically.
"Go!" he shouted.
"I'll hold them back."
Elira grabbed his shoulder.
"We leave together."
---
[New Objective: Retrieve Critical Personnel — Arin Verma]
Lyra quickly accessed a maintenance shaft system nearby.
"Shortcut — it'll cut our distance by half!"
But it was narrow. Dangerous. Collapsing.
Arin: "I'm not sure I can—"
Elira: "You're not dying here. I'll drag you if I have to."
---
They forced Arin into the shaft.
The tight space was brutal — burning metal, falling debris, the Nexus's death-throes echoing all around.
Finally — a light ahead.
[Extraction Bay Reached]
> [Evac Pod Capacity: 3]
[Auto-Launch: 04 Minutes 22 Seconds]
Lyra collapsed at the controls.
"We made it…"
---
Suddenly — another figure appeared at the far end.
Director Nyros.
Bruised, bloodied… but alive.
"You fools… do you have any idea what you've unleashed?"
Arin struggled up.
"We ended your nightmare."
Nyros laughed bitterly.
"No… you just woke something worse."
Before anyone could react — he activated a failsafe on his wrist.
[Override Detected: Omega Lock Release]
A final surge of Pulse energy tore through the collapsing Nexus.
Far beneath them — something stirred.
Something alive.
---
Elira pulled Arin into the pod.
"Go, now!"
Lyra sealed the hatch.
> [Launch Countdown: 00:10]
Outside, Nyros vanished into the destruction.
The pod launched.
[Escape Successful]
---
Through the viewport, Arin watched as the NovaCore Nexus crumbled into the earth.
But deep inside… something still glowed.
Arin: "We'll be back. I swear it."
Elira and Lyra nodded.
For now, they were free.
But the real war — was about to begin.
---
To be continued…