Eyes Wide Open That pure rage immediately exploded through every one of Elias’s nerves as he felt an excruciating pain slam into his chest. For the first time in a long while, the pain felt incredibly real, intensely biological, without the machine filters that usually dampened his physical suffering. Paru-parunya felt as though they were being scorched by the cold, filthy air of the underground tunnel. Every breath was ragged and heavy, causing his bare chest to heave wildly beneath Sarah’s warm embrace. Elias panted, trying to grip 

Commander ThorneThe silent darkness and the massive concrete ruins instantly sealed the escape route of Elias, Sarah, and Varrick, leaving behind only billowing black smoke that rose into the night sky as acid rain poured down. Above the muddy ground, at the edge of the newly formed crater, Commander Thorne stood tall, letting the cold droplets of acid rain wash over his face, which was marked by horrific scars.The two armored soldiers beside him immediately lowered their weapons, while several others were busy scanning the remains with handheld devices that emitted a constant static hum."I’m tellin’ you, Commander, that was straight-up insane, deadass!" Lieutenant Bobby said as he scratched his head, which was protected by a half-open tactical helmet. He walked toward Thorne with a casual gait. "The three of them were desperate enough to dive straight into a sewer parit full of filth like that. I’m way too lazy to even think about chasin&rs

The Analog ArmoryElias held his breath, feeling Sarah’s chest rise and fall slowly against his bare chest. The tapping sounded again—three regular taps resonating through the rusted iron walls of the old train car where they were taking shelter. The sound of metal striking thick cement was dry and echoed very close by in the freezing silence of the morning. Elias slowly shifted Sarah’s slender body off him, causing the woman to moan softly at the sudden loss of warmth. Their skin, which had been sticky from the remnants of last night's sweat, separated slowly, leaving a chill that immediately pierced the pores of Elias's purely biological skin, now devoid of machine protection."What is it, Elias?" Sarah whispered, her eyes still half-closed, radiating the lingering, sensual charm of last night’s passion.Sarah reached out into the darkness, trying to find Elias's warm chest to lean on again. Her long, messy hair fell over her bare, smoo

The atmosphere deep inside the underground control room felt heavy, dense, and suffocatingly thick, completely saturated with the sharp scent of ozone, burnt gunpowder, and fine concrete dust that swirled into the air every time a minor tremor shook the structural support walls. Elias stood right beside an obsolete computer console that had long since died completely, his breath coming in ragged gasps within the profound silence that was only broken by the dripping of water from leaking pipes somewhere up in the ceiling.Without any digital monitors or system status indicators blinking away in the corner of his field of vision, the world felt infinitely more real—and immeasurably more terrifying. Every single inhalation burned his raw lungs, and each heavy heartbeat thumped fiercely against his ribs, serving as a stark reminder that he was now entirely a creature of flesh and bone, stripped of all programmatic protection and digital armor."Sarah," Elias called out softly, his voice r

Sarah's StrategyElias didn't wait a single second to act as the horrific moaning drew nearer. He snatched up his mechanical assault rifle and pulled Sarah behind his sturdy frame. From the darkness of the frozen tunnel tracks, the shadows of hundreds of cyber-creatures scurried forward, their metal claws scraping against the steel rails with a shrill, ear-splitting screech."Fall back into the bunker, now!" Elias barked, his voice booming with cold tactical authority."Die, you whiny cyber-freaks!" Varrick jumped in front of the steel gate, cocking his heavy machine gun with a loud, wild laugh.Boom, boom, boom!A barrage of large lead bullets spat fire from the muzzle of Varrick's weapon, lighting up the dark tunnel with flashes of blinding orange light. The physical projectiles slammed into the front line of cyber-creatures with devastating force, tearing through their mutated flesh and splashing foul engine oil against the concrete walls. Amids