The road to Sector D wasn't easy. After hours of navigating the crumbling underground, Kia and Jace finally reached the surface, only to find themselves surrounded by the wastelands beyond Rivo District. The morning light barely cut through the thick fog, casting the ruins in a sickly grey. Broken buildings leaned like old bones, fragile under the weight of time.
Jace tightened his jacket. "We shouldn't be out here long. This place… it changes people."
Kia gave him a look. "You mean those creatures?"
Jace nodded grimly. "Them and worse. People who come out here don't always come back. And when they do, they're different."
Still, they pushed on. The tracker in Jace's hand blinked steadily, guiding them toward Sector D's outskirts. But with each step, the air grew heavier, the silence more unnatural. Burnt-out campsites, twisted vehicles, and eerie graffiti passed them by like ghostly echoes of the world before.
"How far?" Kia asked, voice hoarse.
Jace glanced at the screen. "Signal's getting stronger. But the interference is getting worse."
By midday, they stood atop a ridge overlooking what remained of Sector D. A once-industrial zone had become a distorted wasteland of shattered metal and faintly glowing earth. Towers leaned at impossible angles, and patches of ground shimmered with a strange blue pulse.
Jace scanned the area. "Signal's pointing down. Underground."
Kia stared at the terrain. "Of course it is."
They descended into the warped zone, sticking to what cover they could find. Sound felt distant, like it was being swallowed by the air itself. As they approached a rusted fence, Jace suddenly stopped.
"Wait."
Kia froze. "What is it?"
Jace crouched near a broken panel. "Old motion sensors. Still active."
"Can you disable them?"
"Maybe. Just give me a second."
As Jace worked, Kia scanned the shadows. Something about this place felt off. Like they weren't alone.
"Got it," Jace whispered. The panel blinked and powered down. They slipped through the gap and into the zone.
Inside, the temperature dropped. Strange crystal-like formations jutted from walls and ground, pulsing softly like they were breathing.
"These weren't here before," Jace muttered.
Kia knelt beside one. "What are they?"
Jace hesitated. "Not sure. They react to energy, maybe even emotion. This isn't just a factory anymore."
They pushed deeper until they reached a tunnel that split into two paths. One curved to the left, lit faintly by a flickering emergency light. The other sloped sharply down into darkness.
Jace studied the tracker. "Signal's stronger down."
Kia sighed. "Then down it is."
The deeper they went, the more the air changed. Thicker. Colder. Charged with something unseen. Finally, they reached a heavy metal door, humming faintly.
Jace traced strange symbols etched into its surface. "I've seen these before. In the old archives."
"Language?" Kia asked.
"Something close. But not human."
The door groaned, vibrating as if reacting to their presence. Jace knelt beside the panel. "I can try to hack it. But if it's energy-linked, it might alert everything in here."
"We don't have a choice."
Sparks flew. Seconds passed. Then with a hiss, the door slid open.
What lay beyond wasn't what they expected.
The chamber glowed with soft blue crystals embedded in its walls. Machines unlike anything they'd seen rose from the floor, humming quietly. In the center stood an empty platform surrounded by strange wiring.
Jace stepped in, wide-eyed. "This place… it's a core. A power nexus."
"For what?"
"I don't know. But it's old. Maybe even pre-war."
Kia scanned the space, tense. "So where's Lucian?"
Before Jace could answer, the tracker blinked red then went dark.
"What the no no no..." He smacked it, but it didn't respond.
Then a voice echoed from the platform.
"Kia..."
They froze.
"Kia... help me..."
It was Lucian.
Kia sprinted forward. "Lucian?!"
"Kia wait!" Jace shouted.
But Kia was already on the platform. The voice grew louder, more desperate. Yet no one was there.
The lights flickered. Whispering returned. Not Lucian's voice this time. Many voices, layered, chanting, surrounding them. The crystals pulsed red.
Jace shouted something, but Kia couldn't hear. The world spun.
Images slammed into his mind. Lucian strapped to a machine, wires piercing his skin, his eyes glowing red like the crystals.
Then darkness.
A searing pain struck Kia's chest. He dropped to his knees, gasping. Jace caught him.
"Kia?!"
Kia shook his head, breath ragged. "I saw him. They're feeding off him. Using him."
Jace looked pale. "That platform it's a converter. They're extracting energy from him. The mark it's not just a tracker. It's a power source."
Kia stood shakily. "Then we're stopping it."
"The signal's back," Jace said, checking the tracker. "Weak. But enough. He's close."
They moved fast, through tight tunnels and rusted vents. Hours passed.
Then they entered a vast underground cavern.
Cages lined the far wall. Figures moved within. Silent. Hunched. Not all of them were human.
And at the center was Lucian.
Strapped to a tall frame, wires wrapped around his limbs, his body limp. His chest rose and fell barely.
Standing beside him was a woman.
Kia froze. "There he is."
Jace narrowed his eyes. "And there's the one who took him."
The woman turned slowly.
She looked changed. Taller. Her veins glowed faint red, pulsing with energy.
"You came," she said, voice deep, calm. "I was hoping you would."
Kia stepped forward. "Let him go."
"Can't. He's part of it now. The city lives through him. Through his pain. Through his gift."
"He's not a battery!" Jace shouted. "He's a person!"
She tilted her head. "He chose this."
"You're lying," Kia snapped. "Lucian would never"
"He didn't know what he was. But I do. And now, so will you."
She raised her hand.
The ground trembled.
From the shadows, creatures emerged. Like the one from the tunnels. Dozens of them.
Kia raised his pipe. Jace powered his baton.
"This is it," Kia said, locking eyes on Lucian. "We're getting him back."
Jace nodded. "No matter what."