The night outside the hotel felt colder than it should have been. The air carried a sharp bite, the kind that warned travellers they were stepping onto a path where they no longer had the protection of walls, crowds, or familiar ground.John moved ahead of the team with the transmitter tucked inside his jacket. Every few seconds, it gave off a soft pulse that vibrated against his chest like a heartbeat that did not belong to him. The coordinates displayed on Celine’s map pointed straight toward the city outskirts, far beyond the bright towers and controlled zones.Elias walked beside him, eyes scanning the rooftops and alley shadows. “We will not have aerial surveillance for the first three blocks. After that, we are exposed.”Morgan cracked his knuckles. “Let them try. I owe Harold’s people a few reminders that we are still alive.”Rita shot him a warning look. “Do not pick fights we do not need. The goal is to reach the outskirts without attracting attention.”Morgan shrugged lightl

The world dissolved into blinding white.John staggered forward, one hand raised against the glare. For a moment, he could not feel his legs beneath him, as if the light had swallowed everything but the sound of his own breath. The air changed too. It no longer smelled of dust or metal or decay. It felt sterile. Clean. Cold in a way that did not belong underground.Behind him, the others emerged from the light one by one. Rita shielded her eyes. Morgan cursed under his breath. Celine clutched her tablet as her pupils adjusted. Elias scanned the new environment with immediate suspicion.The chamber they entered looked nothing like the sanctuary outside.This room was untouched.Pristine white walls formed a perfect circle around them. The floor was smooth, polished, and reflective enough to show their dim silhouettes. The ceiling glowed with a soft illumination that held no visible source. The air hummed with a quiet vibration that crawled through their bones.Rita whispered, “What is

The maintenance tunnel shook with every impact from the other side of the hatch. Metal screeched violently, each blow landing harder than the last. The air vibrated. Dust rained from the ceiling. The Sentinels were not slowing down.They were accelerating.Elias ran ahead with the scanner raised, his eyes locked on the map flickering across its screen. “The tunnel leads to a service interchange. If we reach it before the Sentinels break through, we can cut into the northern passage.”Morgan grunted between breaths. “And if they break through first.”Rita shot him a dark look. “Then we are dead. So run faster.”Celine stumbled on a loose pipe but caught herself, clutching her tablet like it was the last thing keeping her sane. “This tunnel was not meant for people to run in. It is too narrow.”“Better narrow than dead,” Morgan replied.A deafening metallic crash ripped through the tunnel. They all turned for a split second.The hatch was bending inward.The Sentinels were punching thro

****The chamber froze.Every heartbeat stopped. Every breath hitched halfway. The blue crystal veins along the walls dimmed, as if even the room itself recoiled at the sound.Harold’s voice echoed again—deep, cold, mechanical, yet unmistakably human beneath the distortion.“You should not have come here.”Morgan instinctively stepped in front of Celine. Rita's hand was already on her blade. Mara slowly shifted her weight, ready to jump in any direction. Elias’ eyes narrowed, calculating, sharp.John didn’t move.His jaw locked. His chest tightened.That voice burrowed into memories he wished he had never inherited.Rita whispered, “John… I thought you said Harold didn’t know about this place.”“He shouldn’t,” John said quietly. “No one should.”Elias exhaled through his teeth. “Then someone tipped him off. Or the failsafe triggered a dormant alert the moment it activated.”Morgan cursed under his breath. “Meaning we basically rang a cosmic doorbell for the one guy we shouldn’t.”Cel

The ceiling split apart like a cracked skull.Stone rained down. Dust burst into the air in violent clouds. The sanctum trembled as a massive dark shape forced its way through the jagged opening above.Rita grabbed John’s arm and pulled him back, her voice sharp. “Move!”The entire group scattered as a chunk of granite smashed into the floor where they had been standing. The noise rattled the chamber like thunder trapped underground.Then Harold stepped through the breach.Or the thing wearing Harold’s shape.His metal frame glowed with molten veins. His eyes burned like two cores of blue fire. The Overseer’s unnatural enhancements coiled around his limbs, tightening and shifting like living armour.He scanned the sanctum in silence.John felt his pulse spike. The air around Harold twisted with an energy that made his skin crawl.Morgan whispered, “He does not look human anymore.”Kael kept his voice steady. “He has not been human for a long time.”Harold lifted his head. His gaze lan