The minecart slowly decelerated until it finally came to a stop.
Raine immediately reached out a hand to Dahlia, who was still recovering from vomiting moments earlier. "You good?"
Dahlia nodded, covering her mouth with one hand as she slowly straightened herself. "After this, I'm going home..." she muttered. "I can't... I can't take this anymore."
Raine gave her a concerned look. "Let's get you situated first. Don't make any rash decisions."
"Yeah, yeah. Sure." Dahlia took a shaky breath, her eyes briefly drifting back toward the cavern they'd just passed through. "I've been through hell, Raine." Her voice was quieter now. "We've all been through hell..."
She swallowed.
"But this..." Her gaze hardened as she looked ahead. "This is a different kind of hell."
Raine didn't say anything. She simply placed a hand against Dahlia's back and gave it a gentle pat.
One by one, the others climbed out of the minecarts.
Adeline was the last to step off. She turned toward the armed men waiting nearby. "Lead the way."
The men immediately began walking.
Their movements were eerily synchronized—each step falling into perfect rhythm, their expressions vacant as they marched deeper into the underground facility.
~~~
The group continued down the long tunnel, their footsteps echoing against the concrete walls.
After several moments of silence, Lysander finally spoke. "That cavern..." His gaze remained fixed ahead. "Why do you participate in the annihilation of your own race?"
Dan continued whistling casually as he walked, his hands tucked into his pockets. "Well..." He shrugged. "It's either that or this."
Lysander glanced at him. "Have you no shame? No pity for your own kind?"
Dan's lips curled into a faint smirk. "Humans have always been capable of this kind of cruelty." His tone remained almost casual. "It just took an apocalypse to happen for everyone to drop the mask they call 'morality'."
Lysander was silent for a moment.
Then he nodded.
Dan glanced toward him. "My turn."
Lysander looked over.
"Y'all seem different from the other Skindrifters I've met." Dan's eyes narrowed with curiosity. "What's going on with y'all? Some kind of mutation? New variant?"
Lysander's expression remained unreadable. "There's more to the universe than meets the eye. Dan." His voice was calm. "Every corner holds a mystery no species can always solve."
He looked toward Dan. "I suggest you stop peeking through every door."
A pause.
"Eventually, one of them will get you killed."
Dan gave him a smug grin. "Yeah. I ain't dying easily."
They continued walking.
For several moments, only their footsteps filled the tunnel.
Then Dan spoke again. "What do you mean, no species can always solve?"
Lysander glanced at him.
Dan continued before he could answer. "Does that mean there's others out there? Some kind of alien or extraterrestrial life?"
Lysander looked at him. "Define extraterrestrial life."
Dan took a breath, trying to find the words. "I don't know..." He gestured vaguely with his hands. "Green skin. Big black eyes. Skinny alien thingy?"
Lysander raised an eyebrow.
"You know. The kind that abducts people, flies around in UFOs..." Dan paused. "Puts a probe up your ass."
Lysander actually chuckled. "Keep that door closed, Dan." He looked ahead again. "The less you know, the safer you are."
Dan suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh, man. You make me laugh."
Lysander glanced at him.
"Safe?" Dan shook his head, still laughing. "I ain't safe. No one's safe." His laughter slowly faded. "Fuck, hell. Safe ain't a word anyone throws around anymore." He looked down the endless tunnel ahead. "The government failed to keep us safe."
A pause.
"Nowhere's safe."
Lysander didn't answer.
Instead, after a moment, he asked, "This apocalypse... how did it start?"
Dan shrugged. "No idea." He continued walking. "One afternoon, I was sitting in a meeting with the board of directors. Next thing I know, everyone's eating each other."
He shook his head. "World ended."
A quiet sigh escaped him.
"I've heard some rumors, though. Don't know if they're true."
Lysander glanced at him. "Will there ever be a cure?"
Dan snorted. "Hell if I know." He shoved his hands deeper into his pockets. "Every person we caught, we'd interrogate them. Ask what their old jobs were. We found doctors, nurses, teachers, soldiers, garbage collectors..."
He paused.
"But no scientists."
Lysander's expression tightened slightly.
"Last I heard, everyone at the CDC killed themselves." He fell silent for a moment before continuing. "I've heard of VIRA Complex. Supposedly one of the biggest research facilities in the country. We figured if anyone could've found a cure, it'd be the people working there."
Lysander glanced at him. "And?"
Dan shrugged. "We looked for it."
"Found it?"
Dan shook his head. "Found a fucking sinkhole."
A pause.
Lysander's eyes narrowed. "A sinkhole?"
Dan nodded. "Yep."
Kair, who was walking just a step behind Lysander, leaned closer and whispered into his ear, "They might be leading us into a trap."
Lysander gave a subtle nod of acknowledgement before looking toward Dan. He walked beside Dan for several moments before finally asking, "Do you ever wish everything had gone differently?"
"Nope." Dan didn't even hesitate. A grin slowly formed across his face. "I like it better now. 'Fore all this, my life was boring as fuck."
"What about your family?"
The question wiped the grin from Dan's face.
He stopped walking.
For a moment, he remained silent with his back toward Lysander before turning around. "I ain't got no family."
Lysander studied him. There was something in Dan's eyes that didn't belong to the man he had been pretending to be since they entered the tunnels. "Ah..." he murmured. "That cruelty in your eyes. Is that really you?"
Dan's expression hardened.
"Or is it just a defense mechanism?"
The gun was out before anyone had time to react.
The Sirens immediately shifted into position, hands tightening around their weapons, but Lysander remained where he was. Dan's pistol was aimed directly at his chest.
"You talk a lot," Dan said. "I don't like it."
"You are controlled by your emotions, Dan."
Lysander's calmness only seemed to irritate him further.
"I ain't controlled by shit."
He kept the gun trained on Lysander as the armed men raised their own weapons, ready for whatever happened next. The Sirens responded in kind, steel sliding free as the tension between both sides thickened.
Dan gave a short, irritated laugh. "Nah. I just don't like all the fucking bickering."
Lysander stepped toward him.
The barrel followed him.
Another step.
Dan's finger rested against the trigger, but Lysander continued until the muzzle was pressed against his forehead. Instead of showing fear, he leaned slightly toward the weapon, his eyes fixed on Dan's.
"Your impatience. Your immorality. Your arrogance." His voice remained almost disturbingly calm. "They will get you killed."
Dan's mouth curled into a mocking grin. "I'm the one with the gun against your head." He pressed the barrel harder against Lysander's forehead. "I suggest you shut the fuck up."
For the first time, something predatory flickered across Lysander's face. His pupils narrowed into slits. "Then pull the trigger."
Kair stared at him in disbelief. "Sander... the hell are you doing, man?"
Lysander didn't take his eyes off Dan. "Learning."
Dan muttered, "Learning? Learning what?"
Lysander's eyes remained fixed on him, but before he could answer, a burst of static crackled from the radio attached to Dan's vest.
"Boss! Delta Team—"
The transmission broke apart in a harsh burst of interference.
KRRRCHHHK.
For a brief moment, the static cleared.
"There's more! There's—"
The transmission died.
Dan's expression changed. He lowered the gun slightly and immediately reached for his radio. "Delta Team, this is Dan. What's your status? Over."
Nothing came through.
He waited, listening to the faint hiss of static.
"Delta Team, I need an update. Over."
Again, silence.
The atmosphere in the tunnel changed.
Dan slowly lowered the radio and looked toward the men. Whatever amusement had been on his face moments earlier was gone. "Two of you. Check it out."
Two of the armed men exchanged a glance before nodding.
They turned and began making their way back through the tunnel, their footsteps gradually fading into the distance.
Dan watched them disappear before looking back at Lysander.
Dan lowered the radio and looked at the Sirens.
Lysander's expression barely changed. A faint smile touched his lips. "Take us to the girl."
Dan straightened, staring at him for a moment before letting out a quiet chuckle. "No."
Lysander's smile remained. "Take us to the girl."
"I just said no." Dan's amusement faded. "She's mine." His gaze moved across the Sirens. "All of you are."
A sharp whistle escaped his lips.
The armed men moved immediately.
Warren met the first man before he could raise his rifle. His blade struck the weapon hard enough to wrench it from the soldier's hands, sending it skidding across the concrete. Warren drove forward immediately, his shoulder slamming into the man's chest and throwing him against the wall.
Another rifle swung toward him.
Warren turned.
Corina intercepted the soldier before he could fire. Her hand closed around the barrel, wrenching it sideways as the rifle discharged into the ceiling. She twisted the weapon free and drove her knee into the man's stomach. He doubled over, gasping, before she shoved him aside.
A third soldier rushed Declan.
Declan slipped around him, caught his arm, and used the man's momentum against him. The soldier hit the ground hard enough to knock the breath from his lungs.
For a moment, the soldiers were being pushed backward.
Then the rifles opened fire.
The tunnel erupted.
Muzzle flashes stuttered through the darkness, illuminating the walls in violent bursts. Gunshots thundered through the confined space, each report magnified by the concrete around them.
Warren ducked as a round tore through the air above his head.
Another struck the wall beside him, showering his face with fragments of concrete.
Declan twisted away from a burst of gunfire, but one round caught his upper arm.
He stumbled and blood immediately spread across his sleeve.
"Declan!"
"I'm fine!"
He pressed a hand against the wound and forced himself back into the fight.
Another soldier fired.
Warren's blade struck the rifle aside just before the shot could reach him. He drove the soldier backward, but another rifle appeared behind the man's shoulder.
The shot came before Warren could turn. The bullet tore into his hip making his leg buckle.
Corina lunged toward him, knocking the second soldier's rifle away before he could fire again.
Another shot cracked.
Corina jerked sideways as a bullet had grazed her ribs. She pressed a hand against her side, staring briefly at the blood coating her fingers.
Then another soldier rushed her.
Her blade flashed, then abruptly turned in her grip. The hilt caught him across the side of the head, and he dropped.
The tunnel became a storm of movement.
The Sirens fought through it, blades flashing between bursts of gunfire. Soldiers stumbled over fallen weapons and one another, struggling to maintain their formation as the narrow passage turned every body into an obstacle.
A soldier fired from behind another man.
Warren caught the rifle with his blade and shoved it upward.
The shot struck the ceiling.
Corina drove her shoulder into another soldier, sending him crashing against the wall.
Declan seized a rifle and ripped it from its owner's hands.
For every soldier knocked down, another stepped forward.
The gunfire never stopped.
Lysander moved aside and another soldier swung at him. He caught the man's wrist and shoved him away.
Then Dan charged.
Lysander turned.
The butt of Dan's gun came toward his head.
He barely had time to react.
Crack.
Pain exploded across his skull and his balance disappeared.
The floor rushed beneath him as his knees gave way. The tunnel tilted violently, his vision darkening at the edges.
The last thing he saw was Dan standing over him.
Then everything disappeared.
Dan remained there for several seconds, breathing heavily as he looked down at Lysander's motionless body.
Then he smiled.
He turned toward one of his men. "Lock 'em up."
The man nodded.
They began moving through the aftermath of the fight. A couple of them tended to their injured comrades, helping those who were still able to walk. Others turned their attention toward the unconscious Sirens scattered across the tunnel.
One of the men crouched beside Lysander and reached for his sword.
The moment his fingers touched the weapon, it dissolved.
The blade collapsed into liquid, seeping through his hand before spilling onto the floor and disappearing into the cracks.
The man recoiled violently. "What the...?" He stared at the empty space where the sword had been, his face caught somewhere between shock and disbelief. "Boss."
Dan was still trying to get through on his radio. "Delta Team, this is Dan. Come in. What's your status?"
Static answered him.
"Delta Team, do you copy?"
Nothing.
The man's voice came again, more urgently this time. "Boss!"
Dan finally turned toward him. "What?"
The man pointed shakily toward the floor.
Dan followed his finger.
His expression changed.
The man who had been collecting the weapons stood frozen beside Lysander, staring at the puddle of water spreading across the concrete.
Dan approached slowly. He crouched and reached for another sword lying beside one of the fallen Sirens.
The moment his fingers closed around it, the weapon liquefied.
Water slipped between his fingers and splashed onto the floor.
Dan stared at his empty hand. "What the fuck?!"
He looked toward the unconscious Sirens, then back at the puddle of water spreading across the floor. He nudged Lysander's side with his boot, watching the unconscious Siren for any reaction. "What just happened? Is that a Skindrifter thing?" Confusion crept into his voice as he stared at the water. "What the hell was that?"
The soldier shook his head nervously. "I-I don't know, boss."
Dan remained silent for a moment, his eyes lingering on Lysander before he finally straightened. "Stay here. Tie them up real tight, and don't take your eyes off them."
Without waiting for a response, Dan hurried down the tunnel, leaving the men behind to secure the unconscious Sirens.
Dan hopped into the minecart and sent it rattling back along the rails. Several minutes passed before the cavern finally opened up around him again, revealing the countless cages stacked across its towering walls.
He lifted the radio attached to his vest. "Flood the prison with lights, Kit. Over."
A few seconds later, the generators roared to life. One section of the cavern illuminated, followed by another farther above it, then another, until layer after layer of harsh artificial light washed over the underground prison.
Dan stepped onto the platform of a caged lifting elevator and pulled the gate shut behind him. The machinery groaned as the platform began to rise. He watched the levels pass until he reached the seventeenth layer, then brought the lift to a stop and pushed open the small metal gate.
He stepped out and continued along the narrow walkway, one hand resting casually against the gun secured to his belt. The distant cries and murmurs of the prisoners echoed through the cavern as he passed the rows of cages.
Eventually, he stopped.
Above one of the cells, a faded metal sign read:
17-A
Inside sat an old woman with white hair, kneeling on the cold floor with her hands clasped tightly together. Her fingers trembled as she rubbed her palms against one another, repeating the same motion over and over as though desperately trying to pray.
Her body rocked back and forth.
Her eyelids twitched beneath her closed eyes, and the skin around her fingernails had been torn raw. Thin trails of blood ran from beneath several of her nails and stained her trembling fingers.
Dan approached the bars and knocked against them with his knuckles. "Hey, you."
The woman didn't respond.
She continued rocking.
Dan frowned and knocked again, harder this time. "Hey." Dan struck the bars with the barrel of his gun.
The woman immediately opened her eyes. Her left eye were clouded white with thick cataracts, leaving only the faintest suggestion of pupils beneath them.
Dan smiled. "Yeah... you. How you liking your new home, huh?"
The woman suddenly crawled toward him, reaching through the bars with both hands.
Dan quickly stepped aside, and her fingers grasped at empty air. He backed away and leaned against the railing, watching her scramble toward the bars.
"Yeah, you crazy bitch." His smile widened. "Still think prayer's gonna save you?"
The woman let out a low chuckle. "Prayers have never failed me." Her voice trembled with conviction. "Prayers have never failed me!"
She suddenly lunged against the bars, gripping them with both hands and rattling them violently. Her mouth opened in a guttural growl, her movements almost animalistic as she shook the cage.
Dan watched with an amused expression. "God, I could kill you right now." He tilted his head. "If it weren't for me, you'd already be dead."
"Then kill me!" she screamed. "FUCKING KILL ME, YOU MONSTER!"
She seized the bars again and shook them, her body jerking violently as though she were trying to tear the cage apart.
Dan's expression remained smug. "Since you got here, you've kept mumbling 'bout an angel rising from the deep and slaughtering us all." He paused, studying her. "That some kind of metaphor, or you mean somethin' else?"
The woman suddenly stopped. Her hands remained wrapped around the bars as she became completely still. The frantic movement disappeared from her face, replaced by an eerie blankness.
Then she smiled.
"My prayers have been answered."
Dan's smile faded slightly.
"The Gods haven't forsaken me." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "My prayers have been answered." She began laughing.
At first it was quiet.
Then louder.
And louder.
Soon her laughter echoed throughout the cavern, carrying between the rows of cages.
Dan's jaw tightened. "Shut the fuck up."
She only laughed harder.
He stepped toward the cage. "Enough."
The woman continued laughing.
Dan's fist suddenly shot through the bars and struck her across the face.
Her head snapped sideways. She staggered backward and collapsed onto the floor. For a moment, she lay still.
Then she began laughing again.
Dan stared at her in disbelief.
The woman slowly pushed herself onto her knees. Blood streamed from her nose as she lifted her clouded eyes toward him. "You're gonna die."
Dan's expression hardened.
"You're gonna die."
"Fucking shut it."
"You're gonna die." She rocked back and forth on her knees, her bloody face twisting into a smile. "You're gonna die. You're gonna die. You're gonna die."
"Shut up."
"You're gonna die and rot in hell!"
Dan raised his gun. "Shut your fucking mouth."
The woman laughed. "May the angels of the seas carve out every inch of your nerves and grind up every piece of your soul!"
Dan's finger tightened around the trigger. "Shut up!"
She threw her head back and laughed again. "You're gonna die!"
Dan's arm trembled as he kept the gun trained on her.
The woman's laughter echoed through the cavern. Then she yelled again. "You're gonna die..."
Dan's expression finally broke.
He pulled the trigger.
The gunshot thundered through the cavern.
The woman's body collapsed backward, and the laughter stopped.
For several seconds, Dan remained standing there with the gun still pointed at her.
Only the echo of the shot remained.
Then he slowly lowered the weapon and stared through the bars at the motionless woman as he breathed heavily. "Fucking lunatic."