Kai stepped into the collapsed tunnel, his boots crunching on the debris scattered across the ground. Rubble and pipes intertwined with skeletal remains of cars, their rusted frames barely recognizable. Human skeletons, some still gripping the steering wheels of their vehicles, others sprawled in desperate positions, painted a grim picture of the chaos that had unfolded here. The air was heavy with dust, each step stirring up tiny clouds that danced in the dim light filtering through cracks in the structure above.
The tunnel groaned faintly, the weight of the world above pressing down. It was a symphony of desolation—creaking metal, the whistle of the wind through unseen gaps, and the faint hiss of sand shifting against the skeletal remains of the past.
As Kai moved deeper into the tunnel, he glanced around, his sharp eyes scanning for anything that might be a clue. Rubble and detritus told stories of collapse, of desperation, but nothing stood out as significant. Just more remnants of a forgotten time.
A sudden burst of static snapped Kai out of his thoughts. The sharp crackle echoed ominously through the collapsed tunnel, the sound unnervingly alive in the stillness. His hand darted to his sidearm, reflex taking over as he spun on his heel.
"I don't believe it!"
Kai's eyes narrowed, scanning for the source, only to realize it was the drone. It hovered in the thick, stale air, projecting a recording in a distorted, echoing voice. The voice was strained, frustrated, carrying a bitterness that cut through the static.
"Leyla actually went to Colonel Vaziri and got approval for her damn efficiency guidelines." The voice paused as if weighing its own words, a tone of disbelief seeping in. "All experiments will be carried out with the test subject fully active, to reduce irritation time. It's barbaric! I've explained this to the colonel."
Kai frowned. He leaned against a battered vehicle frame, listening intently. The recording's context wasn't immediately clear, but there was no mistaking the undertones: desperation, anger, and a hint of futility.
The voice continued, the distortion adding an eerie edge. "Just because the Eyebots don't have true AI doesn't mean they're just machines. I guess results are all that matter around here. Forget things like ethical procedures or humane treatment." The speaker's frustration simmered just below the surface, each word punctuated with a sharp bite.
Kai's eyes darted to the drone, which beeped softly, as though urging him to keep listening.
The voice softened slightly, a flicker of vulnerability creeping in. "I'm starting to have serious misgivings about leadership around here. At least I got you to talk to, Sahid."
The recording fizzled out, leaving a heavy silence in its wake. Kai stood motionless, processing the words. He didn't know who Sahid was, or what exactly Leyla's "efficiency guidelines" entailed, but the recording painted a grim picture of desperation and moral decay. The bitterness in the speaker's voice wasn't just anger; it was disillusionment.
Kai glanced at the drone, his expression unreadable. "Efficient barbarism. Now that's a slogan worth dying for," he muttered, his tone dry as dust.
The drone gave a soft beep, which might have been agreement—or just a coincidence. Either way, it floated a little closer, its lens adjusting as if studying him.
He crouched down, brushing away debris around his feet. "Fully active experiments," he repeated to himself, testing the phrase like a bitter pill on his tongue. Whoever recorded this hadn't just been a cog in the machine; they'd had a conscience. And it had been tearing them apart. Not that it had stopped anything. The skeletons scattered throughout the tunnel told him how well things had worked out.
Rising, Kai dusted off his hands and turned back to the drone. "Keep finding these recordings, and we might piece together a tragedy."
The drone bobbed in the air, seemingly unaffected by his sarcasm, and emitted another faint beep before resuming its usual hum.
Out of the corner of Kai's eye, a shadow moved against the pale light filtering through the broken rubble of the tunnel. He turned his head slowly, his instincts prickling, and froze.
A massive creature lumbered into view—a lizard walking on two legs, easily twenty feet tall. Its body was a nightmare of natural armor, covered in jagged spikes that jutted out from its back and tail like shards of black glass. The thing moved with a primal grace, each step shaking the ground ever so slightly. Its scales shimmered in the dim light, a sickly mix of green and obsidian.
The drone buzzed erratically, a sharp, panicked tone cutting through the oppressive silence. Kai didn't blame it. The creature's hissing breaths were guttural and harsh, a chorus of menace. Then came the roar—a bone-rattling, guttural sound that echoed down the ruined tunnel like the herald of an apocalypse.
The overpass stretched above Kai like a makeshift cavern, the only parts of it still standing precariously held up by the skeletons of ruined buildings. Rusted beams and crumbling concrete loomed overhead, casting jagged shadows over the desolate stretch of rubble and debris.
The drone darted closer to Kai, its beeps frantic now. "Yeah," he muttered under his breath, "I noticed."
Kai crouched low, his movements deliberate and measured as he approached the semi-truck ahead. The hulking vehicle had come to rest at an odd angle, its massive trailer wedged against a pile of rubble. On top of the semi's cab, a battered sedan perched precariously, its windows shattered and frame twisted from years of neglect. Between the semi and the surrounding debris, the hulking creature that had been stalking him was nowhere in sight.
He pressed his back against the cool metal of the semi, peeking cautiously around its edge. The creature had vanished. In its place was a desolate construction site, scattered with rusting equipment and piles of forgotten materials. A billboard loomed overhead, its faded paint barely legible through layers of grime and weathering. "Progress Built Here," it read, the irony not lost on Kai as the remains of "progress" now lay rotting in a tomb of its own creation.
The semi's trailer was open at the back, its doors hanging loosely on rusted hinges. Inside, faint light glinted off a few intact crates, their wood warped and splintered from exposure but still holding together. Kai's eyes flicked to the ground, scanning for tracks or signs of movement. A shallow claw mark dragged through the dirt near the trailer told him all he needed to know—the thing had been here recently, and it wasn't gone for good.
He moved toward the open trailer with careful precision, keeping his rifle trained ahead of him. The faint scent of rot and aged wood greeted him as he stepped into the semi's shadow. He climbed up into the trailer, his boots making only the faintest creak on the metal floor. Inside, the crates sat in neat rows, a stark contrast to the chaos outside.
Kai knelt by one of the crates, examining it closely. The lid was secured with heavy nails, but time had weakened the wood. A few solid strikes with the butt of his rifle cracked it open, revealing its contents—old military rations, the kind meant to last decades. He pulled out one of the tins, noting the faded label. "Stew - Beef and Vegetables" it read, though he doubted either description would be accurate after all this time.
The drone beeped softly, hovering just over his shoulder. It scanned the crate, its small display flashing. "Edible," it chirped in its usual monotone.
"Define edible."
Kai and the drone slipped out of the trailer, his movements fluid and silent, rifle at the ready. The oppressive silence of the area was broken only by the faint whistle of wind threading through the ruins. He scanned the surroundings, searching for any sign of the hulking predator. His eyes settled on an overturned dumpster not far from where he stood, its massive frame sprawled awkwardly amidst the debris. Blood streaked its rusted surface in dark, dried arcs, and a body lay crumpled at its base.
He moved closer, each step deliberate. The body was one of the marked men—scrap armor fashioned from road signs and metal plates, now battered and stained. A pistol lay loosely in his hand, its grip slick with blood. Kai knelt beside the corpse, noting the way the man's face was frozen in a grimace of terror, his body contorted from the force that had thrown him against the dumpster.
The drone hovered lower, emitting a faint hum as its small camera scanned the scene. "Cause of death: blunt force trauma," it droned in its neutral tone. "Probability of survival: zero."
Kai gave the drone a dry look. "That's insightful. Thanks for clarifying."
Ignoring the drone's beep of protest, he rifled through the man's belongings. In a pouch strapped to the man's belt, he found a folded piece of paper. Orders, scrawled in a hurried, uneven hand. They were written in a mix of Persian and English, detailing patrol instructions and warnings about "unknown hostiles." The language was vague, almost cryptic, but the mention of "Subhumaniod" caught Kai's eye.
"Guess they knew about the big guy," he muttered, tucking the paper into his pack. He continued searching the body, pulling out two flashbang grenades from another pouch. They were worn but appeared functional—likely scavenged from the same old caches most of these men relied on.
The drone hovered closer, its camera focusing on the flashbangs. "Devices operational. Detonation time approximately 1.5 seconds post-activation."
Kai rolled the grenade over in his hand, its weight a subtle reassurance. "Good to know," he muttered, his voice flat but tinged with contemplation. He tucked the grenade into his pack, the faint clink of metal against metal drowned out by the low hum of the drone hovering beside him.
"Shine a light inside the dumpster," Kai commanded, his gaze locked on the overturned container smeared with dried blood.
The drone beeped in acknowledgment, a small beam of light cutting through the murk as it directed its lens inside. The faint illumination revealed a hulking, lifeless form curled unnaturally within. It was the lizard creature. Spikes jutted from its back like jagged spears, and its once-fearsome eyes stared blankly into the abyss.
Kai crouched beside the dumpster, inspecting the scene with methodical precision. Deep gashes crisscrossed the creature's hide, and scorch marks marred its scaled chest. He reached out to touch the blood pooled around it, now dried to a dark crust.
Kai's hand hovered near one of the gashes, his brow furrowing slightly. "No weapons in sight that could've done this. At least, not from these marked men." He glanced at the corpses scattered nearby, their improvised armor and makeshift weapons clearly insufficient for such a kill. "Someone—or something—else."
He rose slowly, his eyes scanning the surrounding ruins. The overpass loomed overhead, its jagged remains resembling the ribs of some massive, long-dead beast. Sunlight filtered weakly through the cracks, casting fragmented shadows across the ground.
"Move," Kai said, motioning for the drone to follow as he slipped into the rubble.
The path ahead was a maze of collapsed walls and rusted vehicles, forcing Kai to navigate carefully. He stepped through a narrow gap in the debris, his footsteps muffled by the dust-covered ground.
Through the cracks, he spotted more marked men patrolling in the open. They moved with a mix of caution and unease, their eyes darting toward the darkened corners of the ruins. They didn't know he was there—but they feared something else.
Kai crouched low, observing. The men's armor was the same patchwork of scrap metal and scavenged materials, their weapons mismatched and poorly maintained. One of them carried a crude spear with jagged edges, while another had a rifle held together with duct tape and desperation.
Kai creeped further until he heard what sounded like fighting and the low growl and something heavy falling to the ground in a thud. There was a mound across from where Kai looked with green smoke coming out of it and on a piece of rubble to Kai's right there was a message.
'YOU CAN GO HOME MORITFEX."