Izuku let out a tense breath as the Centipede's camera edged out the details of the lab. A long hallway greeted him, layers of dust from two centuries of inactivity covered everything. Izuku sent the Centipede forward, watching as the hallway led to a security gate.
"They definitely didn't fool around." Izuku muttered as R and Bs began working along the hallway. The lone R approached and slid the card into the security gate's card reader. A garbled message played on the loudspeaker, the years leaving it useless. Izuku had his A.I. journey farther in, slowly hacking into the security gate.
Then the door opened and Izuku almost jumped back.
A pile of skeletons slumped down in front of the drone. Dust was thrown up as Izuku used the Centipede's other scanners see just far the pile went. If All For One's data was to be believed, all five openings to the lab were like this.
From both historical text and All For One's data the Sapia Laboratory had been lost due to an earthquake rather than the destruction caused by the Third World War.
The earthquake had hit while the lab was still fully staffed. The tunnels and elevator leading out of it were all damaged. The people inside were trapped, some killed by the falling debris, some suffocated, others just starved. Izuku looked back at his scanners. The entire area was filled with carbon dioxide, they all suffocated.
He took another moment of silence as the R and Bs began carefully removing the skeletons. These were scientists, people that he respected, and not just them. There were security, custodians, other people that simply worked there. He shed tears as the last of the skeletons were removed.
He took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair. He was going to see this scene again, far too many times. This Laboratory may be a time capsule of lost technology, but it was also a mass grave. "Best, give them a burial." Izuku muttered as he sent a command to the R and Bs.
He had the Centipede continue onwards, deeper into the maze of metal doors and hallways. Izuku felt like he was playing a horror game, the night vision on the Centipede's camera being the only way he could see anything in the Lab. Every bit of dust and scattered metal just told another story of disaster as the lab was trapped by the earthquake.
His phone pinged as one of his screens changed. Izuku looked over, seeing a proper layout of the Laboratory displayed on screen. It had six level, some with rooms that stretched across multiple levels. There was a large elevator in the center of the Laboratory, big enough for a team of Brick Units to fit on it. Each level had a fire escape that quickly led to the five tunnels that connected the Lab to the rest of the world. Each tunnel led to a separate elevator with an emergency staircase next to it.
The lab was comprised of a five hallway system that traveled between the exit locations and the central elevator, rooms dotted each segment with a uniform style. Izuku now knew what each room was used for and what he could find in there.
He had the Centipede stop and turn to the right. A large door stood in its path with the words "Augemtics Testing area" faded on a sign next to it. The R Unit accompanying the Centipede stalked up the wall and slid the card into the reader on the door. A pair of B Units followed along, removing the door from the entryway once it finished sliding open. The Centipede stalked forward, scanning the room.
Various monitors and a room split off by protective material lay in disarray. Izuku glanced back at the layout display, narrowing his eyes as he did so. There was a small access hatch in the room that could be travelled directly towards the main power room. He had the Centipede trudge onwards, its scanners on to find the hatch.
Then he saw another skeleton. This one looming over another with its hands around the other's throat. Izuku just looked it over with a winge. The choker had a pair of metallic legs that ran down from his thighs and an outer frame that ran along the rest of his body. The choked was dressed in only a torn up lab coat and slacks. There was a piece of jagged metal that was poking through the chocker's left ribcage.
Izuku sighed, letting out an unsteady breath as he realized what he had just found. "This is even worse." he lamented as he had the Centipede look elsewhere. He can have the R and Bs deal with that cadaver. He was happy to finally find the hatch buried under a set of rotting papers. A small group of R Units quick to start cutting it open.
He had the Centipede leave the room quickly after that. He could let the A.I. pilfer any information that remained in the system. Hopefully by the time the Centipede reaches the elevator the R Units will have gotten to the generator room.
He had the drone continue onwards, briefly darting his eyes to the other screens as new data continued to be fed in. There was so much he could do with it, but that was for later. He has to make sure that his villain identity and his civilian self can't be connected after all.
Then he heard something shift.
His eyes darted across the screen, desperate to find the source. The Centipede was unaffected but Izuku would prefer to be cautious. The lab has been slowly crushed by two hundred years of piling dirt and rock, he didn't want it collapsing on the lab after he just reached it.
Then the Centipede continued on its journey. It switched its night vision out for its front mounted flash lights as it found itself face to face with a large pile of dirt. Izuku cursed as he looked at it from his monitor. He sent commands to the nearby Issue Units to begin digging through it immediately.
He could feel his stress building alongside his fear as he had the Centipede turn back. He turned back to the display, looking over the whole setup of the lab to see any access point. The fire escapes were currently useless due to them being ladders rather than stairs. There were few access vents or internal tunnels in the lab that he could take advantage of. He had hoped to see the whole lab, but it's going to take time to secure it properly.
He sighed before he opened another door, not bothering to read what was inside.
Only to jump back as something flashed across the screen for a second, just to disappear afterwards.
Izuku took off his helmet and rubbed his eyes. Had... Had he just seen something else moving down there? Was there some sort of nightmarish thing scouring the lab as its territory. He looked back at his screen, shock growing as the Centipede's scanner showed slight damage on the left side.
"Just like a horror movie." Izuku muttered as he looked over at the tunnel that led to the lab. He sent out a command and a pair of Brick Units moved to stand guard at the tunnel. He then returned to the Centipede, sending a command to all present R and B Units at the same time.
The Centipede walked forward, its camera and lights illuminating the place. It was some sort of robotics lab. Izuku could see that the lab was multiple stories, a small transparent guard the only means to keep someone from falling three stories down. Desks and Monitors lay scattered on the floor as a lone skeleton reclined in hmthe only chair.
"Not touching that." Izuku muttered as he had the Centipede continue onwards. The area past the rail was an expansive robotics lab that far outpaced Izuku's own facilities. Even decrepit and falling apart it held a regal nature that make Izuku smile. Oh what he'd do once he had this place up and running.
He took little notice as the Centipede scanned the room. A new layout being projected on a separate monitor as Izuku took it all in. This was apparently one of three such labs that the facility held. Izuku could see all the conveyor belts, the carefully placed machinery, all purpose built to aid in creating a better tomorrow for everyone.
He was about to have it continue onwards when he noticed a small glow in the corner of the camera. He had the Centipede turn back and magnify the area with the glow. As R and B Units began to trail into the room the glow seemed to move.
Then it leapt upwards.
Izuku let out a silent breath as a Machine landed next to the Centipede. It was a box that stood on four legs, designed to resemble the legs of a grasshopper. There was a set of arms near the thing's "head", which was a large camera with a glowing dot next to it. It approached the Centipede as Izuku held his breath with apt attention.
The Machine swung forth, striking the drone and sending it back. Izuku took command as he watched the machine tear into the nearby R and B Units like a rabid dog. Its limbs smashing the construction Droids into little pieces with little effort. Izuku scrambled to send commands as the machine rushed the Centipede.
Izuku fired the laser, only for the machine to dodge. It slammed into the Centipede and began bashing it with its hind legs. Izuku could only watch on it horror as his machine was violently torn to pieces. Only the camera remaining unharmed.
It was then that an Issue Model walked into the room. The machine turned, seemingly ready to strike again. The camera feed glitched for a second as Izuku watched the Issue Model fry the machine with a direct bolt of electricity. The machine lay dying, its light flickering as more R and B Units flooded the room.
Izuku just watched as both the machine and what remained of the Centipede were carried out. He typed in a final set of commands before he turned off the Centipede's feed. He leaned back, letting the sudden sudden series of events sink in.
He had just encountered old tech. That old tech just kicked his tech's ass. It was only thanks to his specialized weaponry that the machine was stopped in time. He stood up, letting the R and Bs get back to their mission around the Laboratory.
He had something to take apart, to see how it ticked.