Well, Dead Space Remake comes out tomorrow! Going to be busy distracted by that.
But before that, new chapter!
Chapter 19: Power from the Sun
"Our two remaining runners, Clark and Stross. Along with our dimension travelling guests, Sora and Kairi." Tiedemann calmy looks over the comm call, unphased by the glare he received from said people. Ellie cocks an eyebrow at what Tiedeman implied with Sora and Kairi but focuses on keeping her Cutter up, letting its light illuminate the room. "I knew it was only a matter of time before you reached the transit hub. You will find the train inoperable."
"Are you insane?" Isaac questions with anger. "You cut off power to life support! There may be other survivors over here!"
"The public sector is already beyond acceptable recovery conditions." Tiedemann quickly dismisses. Isaac growls in anger at seeing Tiedeman's indifference to the Necromorph outbreak. And he was not alone.
"And whose fault was that in the first place?" Kairi asks. "It's because of you that those Markers were built in the first place! This wouldn't have happened if you were blind by greed!"
"I chose to have that Marker built so that Titan Station would have a source of infinite energy." Tiedmann shoots back, unflinching. "I knew what the risks were and deemed them adequate. The Unitologists are the ones who started this."
"Then what about the portal you made me and Kairi build?" Sora asks accusingly. "Was that also your plan? Invade our universe and ravage our worlds?"
"Yes." Tiedmann replies, not even bothering to avoid it. "Anything to see Titan Station's integrity and continued existence." Sora and Kairi growl in anger. Seeing him being so dismissive and unconcerned about what he was playing with was all too familiar to them.
"And was all THIS in your plans!?" Isaac shouts while throwing his left arm around him. Tiedmann looks at them with no emotion before shaking his head dismissively.
"Regardless of what you think, I can't allow you to escape. And the two of you should have been dead long ago." He ends, staring directly at the couple before ending the call abruptly. As the room plunged back into darkness, something large suddenly landed in the room. The sound shook and reverberated around. A sound that Isaac, Sora and Kairi knew all too well.
"BRUTE!" Sora cries in alarm as the lumbering Necromorph charges at them through the darkness, smashing through glass decorations in its path. With a roar of hunger, it charges at the trio, who dive out of the way, leaving it to smash into a store behind them. Ellie brings her cutter up and fires on the Brute, only to be shocked as her shots do nothing to the beast's armoured arms.
"Ellie! Look out!" Kairi shouts before firing her Seeker Rifle. To her left, she heard the round smash into a person's arm, the sound of bone breaking and fleshing tearing uncomfortably close, alerting her to a Slasher sneaking up on her from the side. Along with several others, forcing her attention away from the Brute.
While Kairi was busy helping Ellie against the Slashers suddenly appearing from nowhere, Sora and Isaac wrangled with a furious Brute. Normally, it wouldn't be so bad. But that was when Sora and Kairi could still use their Keyblades! Now, the Brute was showing just how much of a threat it was. It even managed to shoot a pod out like what the Guardians did on the Ishimura, along with gouts of acid from its mouth.
Damn it! If I still had my Keyblade, this wouldn't be so hard! Sora inwardly shouts as he dodges another charge from the Brute. Just as it charges past him, Sora raises his left arm and blasts the Brute with Stasis, slowing it down and revealing its weak points behind its armoured shoulders. Oh. I forgot I could still do that. Sora sheepishly thinks before firing his Cutter at the Brute's left arm. Switching to his Pulse Rifle, Isaac opens up on its right arm, dismembering it in sync with Sora. The Brute turns to them angrily as the Statis wears off, blasting acid at them as it roars in its death throws before collapsing to the ground.
"Isaac! Sora! Are you two alright?" Ellie asks from above, the horde of Slashers dealt with. The two nod at Ellie, their helmets barely visible in the low lights. "Kairi helped me with the ones attacking me, and I think that's all of them. For now, anyway… But I have some questions that need answering. Why did Tiedmann turn off the power? What did you do to piss him off, and why did he call Sora and Kairi 'dimension travellers'?" The three look between them, faces concealed before Isaac gives a big sigh.
"Ellie…What I am about to tell you will sound crazy, but it is true." He says before breathing deeply. "This is not our first time fighting these Necromorphs. The three of us are survivors of another outbreak that took out a colony and ship. And the cause of it all was a Marker."
"A Marker? Do you mean those stupid objects those Unitologist nutjobs worship? Are they real?" Ellie asks with disbelief.
"Unfortunately, yes, but they are not what they think they are." Isaac admits with anger. "All of this is caused by these Markers. Hallucinations, dementia, turning people into Necromorphs, everything is because of these stupid objects!" He shouts angrily before Sora and Kairi place a hand on him to calm him down.
"While we managed to escape and destroy that Marker, we didn't escape unharmed." Kairi takes over. "Somehow, the Marker had implanted something into our minds. Codes and patterns that Tiedmann used to make his own Marker. Well, at least from Isaac's brain, anyway."
"What do you mean?" Ellie asks with narrow yet concerned eyes.
"Like Tiedmann said, we are not from this place." Sora takes over with reluctance. "Actually, we aren't from this universe at all. We came here against our will, forced into this with no knowledge. And somehow, the Marker realised that. Instead of making me and Kairi make a Marker, it was trying to have us make a portal to our own universe. To spread and take over like what it's doing now."
"Which is why we need to get to the Government Sector." Isaac chimes in, his anger abated. "That's where both the Marker and Portal are located. We and Stross are the only ones that can destroy it." Ellie looks between them with a look, before turning back to Isaac and shaking her head slowly.
"You are a group of strange people, Isaac." She says slowly.
"Please, Ellie. Will you help us?"
"Well, considering that we are about to die from a lack of oxygen or a horde of these things tearing us apart, I think I better." She quips with a smirk. While their helmets hid their faces, Isaac, Sora and Kairi had huge, relieved smiles on their faces.
"Thank you, Ellie. But first, we need power. Without it, we have no air and no trams. The Sprawl has to have backups somewhere." Ellie looks around in deep thought while Stross walks past her, hugging himself. Then suddenly, Ellie looks up through the glass ceiling above them before pointing up.
"The Solar Panels! They were originally used before the Station moved onto different sources of energy. But they've been mothballed for years! I don't even know if they will still work."
"It's better than nothing." Kairi replies before looking around. "But how do we get there?"
"Don't worry about that. I'll send a route to your RiG. I can take care of the collection panels." Ellie replies before bringing her Cutter up. Picking up a few spare packs, Isaac chucks them up to Ellie, who catches them with ease.
"I'm more used to using the Pulse Rifle. You could use the ammo more than me." He says. Ellie gives a thankful nod before moving off with Stross while Isaac and the others move through the only door not knocked out by the power outage. As they move down the corridor, they encounter some mines that had been placed, baring their way. Nothing that chucking a few items into didn't fix. But while they moved down, they could hear the moans of a person who had been turned into a Guardian.
Sure enough, reaching the bottom, they find a poor soul who had become one. Screaming in pain as it fires a blob at them. While Isaac dealt with the pod, Kairi used her Flamethrower on the Guardian, burning off its attack tentacles and bringing the soul peace.
Leaving behind the remains, they step into an elevator, taking them to the Solar Array.
"Do you plan for this to happen?!" Riku asks in anger while pointing to the portal. Everyone in the room glared at the Master of Masters as he loungers on a deck chair as though he was getting a tan. The MoM looks to Riku before shrugging his shoulders uncaringly.
"It was in my projections. Why do you care?" He asks dismissively. That was the breaking point, as Riku summons Braveheart and leaps at the MoM in anger. Only for his Key to strike on an invisible shield before it flings him back with equal force. "Didn't I already say that you couldn't harm me? Or are your ears filled with wax?" He asks, exasperated. Riku growls as Xion helps him up, yet says nothing back.
"But you will still answer our questions." Yen Sid reminds with coldness in his voice. "Did you plan for these, 'Markers', to escape to our realm?" Yen Sid's eyes narrow as he glares at the MoM. The MoM seems to ponder his query before standing up.
"Well, I suppose I could tell you." He says cryptically. "To answer your question, yes, I DO have a plan if the Markers find their way here. What it is, I can't tell you. As for your other question, I can't really say."
"What other question?" Naminé asks with a hint of fear. The MoM looks at her with his hooded gaze before chuckling at her.
"Why, the question that should be the most obvious, little witch. Why are Sora and Kairi's Keyblades not coming to them? And how will they regain them? I know you are all thinking that." He says, earning some shocked looks while narrowed glares from others. "But sorry to say, my lips are sealed. Don't want to ruin the surprise now, do we?"
"Stross doesn't seem to be holding up well. Do you think keeping him with Ellie was a good idea?" Kairi asks as they exit the lift. After a brief call with Ellie, they could hear Stross mumbling to himself in the background, his sanity slipping.
"Unfortunately, Stross knows how we can stop the Marker. We need him alive. As much as I hate to bag Ellie with him, we don't have a choice." Isaac replies as they enter a circular room filled with suits. One, in particular, catches Isaac's attention as he walks past it, taking an identification chip with him.
"If only we still had our Keys. One of us could have flowed to her level to help keep an eye on Stross." Sora laments. "We don't even have Flowmotion available to us either." That caught Isaac's ear. So far, this was the first time they mentioned this 'Flowmotion'. Whatever it was, it sounded useful. But considering that they were shackled, as it were, asking about it now would probably be a bad idea.
Shelving that question for later, Isaac led the couple down a descending path, past the body of an Engineer who tried to escape, only to have died as he reached the exit door. Beyond lay a tunnel similar to what they saw in the Ishimura's Engineer deck when they refuelled the engines, which now felt like a lifetime ago. Walking down, passing above a vast void, they come to a security door blocking their way forward.
The Docking Pod is off the mag-rail. An Engineering work order has been issued.
"Terrific…" Isaac mumbles while Sora and Kairi visibly sigh. Isaac turns to their left while opening up a comm, walking to a door leading into the shaft for repairs. "Ellie, we ran into a snag. The Lift to the Array is floating at the bottom of the shaft. It's disconnected from the mag-rail."
"That figures." Ellie replies with equal annoyance. "Guess it was a fool's hope to think we could get through this without a snag, huh?"
"Don't we know it? Don't worry. We'll handle it. Just stay safe." He ends the call just as they leave a small corridor, entering a room where the artificial gravity ends. Only to find the way out blocked by debris. "It's just one thing after another, isn't it?" He asks rhetorically. While Kairi pats him on the arm, Sora looks over the rubble before seeing something like a tailpipe with a valve on the end. Curiosity getting the better of him, Sora aims his cutter at it before firing, smashing the valve off.
The moment it was freed, a blast of hot air erupted from the valve, pushing the rubble away and clearing the exit for them. With a hidden smug look on his face, he turns back to Isaac and Kairi. "Problem solved." He says simply. Isaac chuckles at him before walking past, patting him on the shoulder as he activates the flight system on his armour. Sora and Kairi do the same, following Isaac into the shaft. The size was vast and deep, with a glass window stretching from the bottom to the top, revealing the blackness of space before them. Down at the very bottom was a large cylinder, slightly out of place.
"That's the Docking Pod. We need to push it up so that it re-attaches to the mag-rail." Isaac points to the four glowing orbs around them near the top. "Once that's done, we can head back to the lift and head up to the Array. Seeing how that debris had a booster jet on it, I wouldn't be surprised if they already placed some on the Pod."
"And to activate them, we just need to shoot them, right?" Kairi asks, her hands gripping the Seeker Rifle. Isaac nods at her before using the thrusters on his suit to propel him down, followed closely by the couple. Reaching the bottom, they find the torn remains of the Engineers sent to fix the pod, with two thrusters already placed on the bottom.
With a signal to Kairi, she and Isaac fired on the thrusters, activating them and sending the Pod up to the roof, where the mag-rail activates and connects to the Pod, locking it in place. With a nod of satisfaction, the three head back to the entrance while Isaac activates a call to Ellie. "Ellie, we've got the elevator working again. We're heading up to the array. How's Stross doing?"
"Hear for yourself." Ellie replies back, both irritated and concerned. Over the call, they could hear Stross rambling and muttering to himself while his feet could be heard pacing around. "Can you hear the shit he's speaking?"
"It's the dementia, Ellie." Kairi replies with concern. "The Marker is feeding him false images and phantoms. He's trying to fight back, but his will is weakening. The sooner we destroy the Marker, the soon he will be free of them."
"This is going to be trouble, I know it." Ellie replies calmly. "I'll still keep an eye on him. I've got a bad feeling about this, though." With that, Ellie ends the call as the three enter the entrance corridor. With silence, the three head back to the elevator, a large hexagonal space with windows for walls. With Isaac activating the lift, Sora and Kairi gaze out the windows as the pod races upwards. Soon, they were greeted by the sight of the Sprawl, its buildings vast and deep, lights still on while others slowly blink out and die.
"We will arrive at the array soon. Best rest as much as possible. We're in for a hard time when we get there." Isaac says as he looks over his Cutter and Rifle. Sora and Kairi nod, before going over their own tools until one of the glass windows is broken from the outside. Turning to the source as the air was sucked out of the pod, they were shocked to see a Tripod clinging to the pod, lashing out with its tongue. Kairi brings her Seeker Rifle up and snipes at one of the appendages, snapping it off and forcing the Tripod to lose its grip.
But it was not alone. Soon, more appeared around the pod, each bursting through the windows and lashing out at the group. Forced back towards the door, Sora and Isaac focused on the two Tripods on either side of the door while Kairi focused on the ones on the far side. All the while, Isaac's air sunk lower and lower. Just as the sight of Saturn and its rings filled the windows before them, they entered a tunnel as the pod began to slow down.
Arriving at…Solar Array Sigma zero five.
"Well, that went well." Isaac grumbles as he reloads his rifle. "How are you two doing?" He looks at the couple as they reload their tools, glancing at the pouches on their hips.
"I'm okay for now. But I could use a few more packs." Sora admits as the pod comes to a stop.
"I'm the same as Sora. I'll switch to the Flamethrower for a bit until we find a store." Kairi adds on, placing the Seeker Rifle on her back and removing the Flamethrower from her hip. Isaac nods before opening the door. The landing area was a large room with a catwalk around the pod, wall vents circling around. Walking around, avoiding the Cysts lying on the ground and walls, the three enter a large room overlooking a section of the array. Several birds suddenly flew past the trio as they walked through, startling them briefly. Sora and Kairi almost mistook them for Hookbat Heartless before realising they were too small. Bird cages hung around the room, with some holding Sparrows looking at the three with curiosity.
Walking to the centre, a hologram suddenly appears before the windows. It was a woman in a skin-tight suit, holding her hands in front of her and looking blankly ahead.
Welcome to Solar Array Sigma-zero-five. Proper identification is required. Please wait here. Watchman…Howard Phillips will be with you shortly.
"Looks like the Array A.I. is still working." Isaac comments as the figure vanishes. Glancing around, he could see the tell-tale signs of Necromorphs ravaging the area. "Something tells me Howard won't be coming to see us anytime soon."
"I think we found him." Sora calls out from his right. Isaac was surprised to see Sora and Kairi approaching him with a dead body held in Kairi's stasis.
"Not to sound unthankful, but why are you bringing his body with you?" Isaac questions. The two glance at each other before looking at the far left, where a door and scanner lay.
"Call it a hunch, but something tells me we won't be getting through that door without him." Kairi says glumly, motioning her head to the door. Isaac gives it a glance before sighing audibly. Nodding to them, Isaac follows the couple as Kairi holds the corpse before the door. As expected, a scanner is activated, flowing over the dead body. A few seconds pass before an audible ding echoes through the room.
RiG authorization recognised. Greetings, Station watchman Howard Phillips. I hope you slept well.
"If only you knew…." Isaac says under his breath as the door opens for them. They walk through, thinking they have a clear road to the array until the access tunnel goes dark. At the same time, defensive trip mines activate throughout the tunnel.
Unauthorized visitors detected. Auto-defences activate. Station watchman Howard Phillips, please provide verbal access codes to authorise your guests.
"Of course, it wouldn't be easy." Sora says in annoyance. Not wanting to spend time blocked by an A.I., who was only doing their job, Isaac grabs a nearby container with Kinesis and throws it into the trip mines, triggering them and clearing the path. Rushing forward before more could be activated, they enter a large room with a second floor and container above them.
Spotting another room on the far side, Isaac and co rush towards it, only for more trip mines to activate, trapping them in the centre of the room. Then, two Leapers attacked them from the sides, only to leap into the trip mines, freeing them. Not commenting on the outcome, Isaac rushes into the room and rips off a control panel. At the same time, Sora and Kairi stay outside, ready to fight any more Necro's that what them dead.
Attention watchman Howard Phillips. Unauthorized engagement of access lift detected. Please respond.
"Isaac, can you please turn her off?" Kairi asks as the A.I. continues to speak out in its monotone voice.
"Sorry, I don't have access to her from here. We need to go deeper." He replies, finishing his rewiring of the lift controls and exiting the room. "Let's keep going. No doubt Tiedmann is onto us by now." Walking past the flickering hologram of the A.I., the trio move to the lift leading to the second floor. Heading to the left, Isaac activates his Kinesis to move a cargo crate out of the way, allowing a bridge to fall and continue the catwalk. Only for a trip mine to activate, blocking the way.
Clark. I know the three of you are up there. Understand even if you survive long enough to restore power, there is no escape. All routes in and out of the Government Sector are being monitored. Give up, Clark.
"Oh shut up, you glory hog!" Kairi shouts at the ceiling as Isaac Kinesis a box into the trip mine. "None of this would happen if you weren't so close-minded!"
"Don't bother Kairi. He's not worth it." Sora says, patting her on the shoulder before walking over the bridge. Sighing deeply, Kairi follows him and Isaac into another tunnel, the hologram of the A.I. looking at them within with hands on her hips. If A.I.s could feel, then this one would be pissed off.
Purging life support.
Within a moment, the air is vented out of the tunnel, enveloping them in an eerie blue light. But the three are undeterred, Sora and Kairi not needing to worry about onboard air, while Isaac had plenty in his tanks. Of course, he responded by ripping another panel of the wall and hot wiring it to re-establish air in the tunnel. They couldn't help but admire the A.I.'s determination to stop them. But they were soon entering the Computer Mainframe. Walking past the circuitry, spinning fans and hologram projects, the three were growing closer to their goals until Tiedmann decided to interfere again.
Computer, this is Director Tiedmann. Disable all Solar Array functions immediately. I'm sorry, Clark. I know what the three of you are trying to do, and I cannot allow you to succeed. There is too much at stake.
"What the hell are you talking about!? You CANNOT control the Marker! It controls you! Can't you hear me, Tiedmann!?" Isaac yells angrily as the Mainframe lockdown, trapping the three of them inside. "Shit! Just what the hell is Tiedmann talking about? 'Too much at stake'? Is he crazy?!"
"We can worry about that when we get out of here. Ellie and Stross are still trapped in the Sprawl." Kairi reminds Isaac, who takes a moment to calm down. "We have to shut down this A.I. What do we do, Isaac? Computer programming is not our strong point." Isaac glances between them before looking at the two locked rooms on their sides. Each where data bank rooms that allowed access to the central core. And between the two was a maintenance shaft that could switch between them. It gave Isaac an idea.
"Kairi, you and I will use the maintenance shaft to move into the data rooms and remove the cores with Kinesis. Once that's done, the central core will open, allowing us to destroy the fuses that power the A.I. We take those out and remove the lockdown." While Kairi ponders on Isaac's plan, Isaac looks at Sora with a grim look. "Sora, you will need to stay here. I have no doubt that those Necro's are coming. We need you to hold them back." He pulls the Pulse Rifle off his back and hands it to Sora. "Use this."
Sora looks at the rifle before gently picking it up and feeling the weight. With a silent nod, he faces the central core as Isaac and Kairi use the shaft to move to the data cores. Once there, They began pulling off the wall panels, angering the A.I.
Unauthorized access to the computer mainframe is a violation of Titan Civil Code. Replace all panels and back away from the fuse board.
But Isaac and Kairi continue on, unphased by the A.I. For Sora, he was starting to get bored waiting until he heard several vents breaking in his room. Soon, coming from both sides were Several Slashers, some dressed in civilian clothes and others naked, charging at him with hunger in their eyes.
Thinking quickly, he fires a grenade at one of the groups before firing at the legs of the second. He then switches to his Cutter, dismembering the limbs of the second group before doing the same to any legless stragglers of the first.
Warning. You are now in violation of multiple subsections of the Titan Civil Code. Stand clear of all machinery immediately.
"Oh, shut up already, you ones and zeros." Isaac says grumpily as a console appears before him and Kairi in their respective rooms. Activating his, Kairi looks through the glass doors and windows and mimics Isaac's movements, deactivating the security around the central core.
Mainframe containment compromised. Security has been notified. Warning. Mainframe circuits are extremely fragile. Please step away. Damaging mainframe circuits will cause lapses in programming. For your safety, step away from the circuits.
As the central wall revolves around, several electrified pillars reveal themselves in a supercooled room, white air floating around the pillars, keeping them cold. Sora looks behind him, seeing Isaac and Kairi leave the maintenance shaft before handing Isaac his rifle back. He nods at him, reloading the gun before aiming with it, the blue lines aimed directly at the central pillar. Without a word, Isaac fires a grenade off, destroying all five circuits in one go.
Automated functions – offline. Lockouts – offline. Station reverting to manual operating only. ANTI – offline…
As the A.I.s hologram flickers out, its voice distorting as it shuts down, the lights within the core reactivate as the red locks on the doors revert to blue. Soon, the humming of the mainframe ends, pitching the room into silence for the first time it was activated. With deep breaths of relief, the three proceed to the final tunnel exit leading to the array. But the moment they open the door, a figure jumps on Isaac. Startled, he flings his body around, almost hitting Sora and Kairi before throwing the figure into the hallway. The motion-based lights reveal that only a dead body had fallen on Isaac.
"Not. A. Word." Isaac mutters to the couple, each placing a finger where their mouths would be. Satisfied, Isaac opens a video comm to Ellie. "Ellie, we're on our way to the Array. We'll have to align them manually. How are you doing?"
"Fine, for the most part. But Stross isn't doing too great." She replies, showing Stross shaking figure in the video. Muttering to himself about a needle, that it was too dark and that he needed to breathe for air. "Other than that, things are quiet down here. Too quiet for my liking. Please hurry up, Isaac."
"Copy that." Ending the call, Isaac and co enter another room, similar to the one where Isaac had to hack the lift. Thankfully, the entrance to the Solar Array was on the same level as theirs. Unfortunately, the door was locked. After ripping off another wall panel, at which Isaac muttered at how annoying it was starting to become, he hotwired the door open as Sora and Kairi stood guard. Soon, they enter a long corridor leading up to the next room. But just as Isaac opened the door, the dementia returned again.
How do you do it? How do you hold it all inside, your face never betraying your pain? No one would ever know the guilt you feel – never know the dark thoughts you keep.
Marker-Nicole taunts the trio as she sits in a chair before them, the deformed Keyblades spinning ominously behind her. With a scream, she vanishes again, leaving the three alone in a surveillance pod with three chairs. On three holo screens, it showed the status of three arrays, two of which were out of alignment. While a fourth asked if they wanted to move up to arrange them. Clicking yes, the pod ascends to the arrays, stopping once it reaches the level of the arrays.
With no words between them, Isaac, after making sure he had several cans of air and taking a deep breath, opens the door to the void of space. Walking out, they could see one of the Solar Arrays in front of them while Saturn loomed behind it.
"So, is that Saturn?" Sora asks as the trio floats in space for a moment. They were thankful the Keyblade Armour managed to retain the ability to communicate with Isaac in the vacuum of space. "It looks huge."
"Saturn is the second largest planet in the Solar System, Sora. Jupiter is about 11.5 times as large as Earth, while Saturn is 9.5. It is also one of two planets with rings around it, the other being Neptune." Isaac reveals this to the couple. "Just so you know, there is no land on Saturn. It's just one giant ball of gas floating in space." Isaac could only imagine the shock on the two's faces when he said those words. But as much as he wanted to enjoy the view of Saturn and the stars behind it, time was against them.
Thankfully, one of the panels that needed to be moved was in front of them, with the tell-tale signs of light hitting it. Floating over to it with the thrusters on their boots and backs, they quickly align the array to the one in front of it, restoring the connection.
"Okay, Ellie, we got one of the arrays up. How's it looking on your end?" Isaac asks as the trio move to the second one. They noticed a pod of flesh had begun to grow on top of the Solar Array, but thankfully it had not grown any appendages yet.
"We're just approaching the panel. Something is covering it. Just give me a minute to…oh god."
"Ellie? What's wrong?" Isaac asks, worried at the sudden change in her tone.
"There's hun- thousands of them! Their breaking apart! Stross! RUN!" Ellie cries in fear before ending the call abruptly. Isaac tries to call her again but receives nothing but static. He didn't even notice Sora and Kairi re-aligning the last Array until the central device suddenly activated behind him.
"Isaac? What's wrong?" Sora asks as he and Kairi float up to him.
"Ellie and Stross are being chased by a horde in the thousands! We have to get down there now!" He cries before using his jets to take him to the pod, just as Ellie activates a video comm to Isaac.
"Holy shit! Isaac! We had just got to the transport tube when the beam hit! Isaac, those things are heading to the Transport hub! They're wrecking everything in their path! You'll never make it!"
"We'll be there! We'll be there!" Isaac shouts as he straps into one of the chairs. "Strap in! These will give us a boost, but we will need our onboard jets to take us the rest of the way! Really wish we had your gliders right about now…."
Sora and Kairi, unsure what Isaac meant about the chairs, strapped themselves in any way. They were about to find out as the chairs suddenly lifted them into the air before pointing them directly at the floor. Doors opened up as thrusters on the back of the chairs ignited, telling the couple what was about to happen. Before they could get a word out, the chairs rocketed the three out and down toward the Sprawl.
Soon, they were ejected from the chairs as their onboard jets ignited, propelling them towards the Sprawl, chasing after Isaac.
But debris from the Sprawl blocked their path, forcing them to dodge tram cars, pieces of buildings and even destroyed ships before having to fly through a tiny hole in a large slab of rock and metal. The couple glance towards Isaac, seeing his air counter slipping further and further down, going below 30 seconds of air left.
Just before it looked like he would run out of air, Isaac smashed through a glass roof, with the couple following closely behind. Reorienting themselves, their boots ignited again, slowing their descent before they landed on the floor with a crash. Without pausing for breath, the three rush to their feet and sprint out of the room they are in, finding themselves back at the Transport Hub.
A glance upward showed Ellie and Stross had arrived, with undoubtedly a horde of Necromorphs on their tails. But before they could get to the hub, it suddenly exploded in a ball of fire. "Now what!" Sora yells as their only chance of escape goes up in flames. Scanning around, Isaac noticed the nearby CEC factory nearby.
"Ellie! Can you get the door to the CEC factory to open on your end!? We need to get out of here!"
"Are you crazy!? I just fought my way out of there!" She shouts back both in anger and shock that Isaac suggested it.
"We don't have a choice! It's either that, or we get slaughtered by a horde of Necromorphs!" Kairi shouts back just as a roar echoes around them. Shouting a curse, Ellie drags Stross to the CEC entrance on her level as Isaac leads Sora and Kairi to the entrance on theirs. Just as the transport hub was thrown into a vacuum, a horde of Necromorphs flooded the lobby. The Ubermorph Hunter leading the charge.