The loud alarm rang through the whole East sector. Facility 09 stood on top of the isolated hill. Eerie red lights illuminated the windows. Inside, the alarm was even louder.
Eclipse jerked up from her rigor mortis-induced sleep and looked around her cell in confusion. Other test subjects reacted the same way. What was happening?
Arieth ran through the darkness. The walls were crumbling. The lights flickered on and off. She rounded a corner, almost hitting a group of guards.
"Dr. Arieth, it's not safe out here! You have to get away!"
"Don't tell me what to do, idiot!" Arieth shouted, already moving. She tripped over a wire. A loud gasp escaped her lips as she flew into a wall. She rubbed her head and slowly got to her feet. Pain shot up her right leg as she limped toward the cell.
She let out a sharp gasp and clutched her hand. "She's gone?!" she whispered, looking around. The room, once a cell, now looked like… nothing.
The com in her ear sparked. A voice came through, hazy.
"Sir?" she hesitated.
"Arieth. Where are you?" Dr. Krell's voice was sharp and worried. "Arieth!"
"Sir," Arieth said, her voice shaking. Her legs gave way, and she fell among the rubble.
"Arieth, what are you saying?"
"Sir, she's not there."
"What?!"
"She's escaped. Nyx is not in her cell," Arieth shouted. Her voice shook as she sighed. Her heart raced.
"Nyx has escaped!"
"Shit!" Krell cursed, slamming the computer. The large screen, supposed to feed live camera footage, showed nothing—every camera was disconnected. How? His office was one of the most secure places in the facility, several feet underground. If she broke out of there, what's stopping her from…?
He glanced at the metal door. Still lodged in place. Good. At least she wasn't here yet. Nyx had broken out, which meant…
"All guards, move to Test Subject CS-12's cell on the upper level! I repeat: all guards to the upper level, cell CS-12!" he screamed into the intercom.
Cold sweat ran down his face. Damp hair stuck to his forehead. Now that she was out, the priority was getting her away from her brother.
The guards' boots pounded like a uniformed gallop. Fear was written on their faces, even through heavy armor. Could it be true? Nyx had escaped.
They entered a broken corridor. The ceiling had collapsed, and rubble constantly fell. Darkness surrounded them, pierced only by the red, eerie lights. They walked hesitantly until a dark figure appeared ahead.
"Who's that?" one guard whispered to their leader.
"Show yourself!" the leader shouted.
The figure stepped forward. For a moment, they thought it was a cursed shadow—but it was only a girl. Their blood ran cold.
"Shit," muttered the guard. He stepped back.
Nyx stared at the dozen or so guards in front of her. Their faces twisted in fear, then they forced themselves to stand firm. The leader cocked his electric gun.
Nyx's jet-black hair fell into her face, covering her silver eyes. She tilted her head slowly and took a small, halting step forward.
"Test Subject AM-09!" the leader shouted, his voice dry and husky with fear. "I order you back to your cell!"
"Cell?" Nyx mouthed, blinking. A cell…? She stopped mid-step, glanced at the chaos she'd caused, and hummed. Another small step.
The guards retreated slightly.
"Test Subject AM-09, this is your last warning! Return to the cell!" the leader barked, stronger now. He misread the situation—she wasn't intimidated by numbers.
Nyx closed the distance. His comrades wavered.
"Sir?!" they shouted.
He sighed. "Shoot her."
Bullets flew. They passed right through her, hitting the walls instead.
"Wh-wha… what, what the hell?" one guard murmured.
Nyx sighed. "Waste of time."
A light-blue glow appeared beneath her feet, spreading silently toward the guards. It formed a spotlight under them.
The world seemed to freeze. The leader looked confused.
One guard fell to his knees, dropping his gun with a clatter. It slid across the floor, stopping at Nyx's feet. She looked down, bored.
"What's the point?" he muttered.
Another's shoulders slumped. "We'll just die anyway."
Some guards crumpled, pounding their heads silently.
"What did you do? What… did you… do?"
"Making them see reality," Nyx drawled, walking past him.
More footsteps approached. One guard lunged. Nyx caught his hand, glared, and threw him through the ceiling. Rubble fell. Dust rose, choking the air.
"Please, get out of my way. I'm not here to fight you."
A man swung a bat. She tilted her head; it fell aside. She gave him a quick shoulder to the jaw. He hit the floor. Nyx's leg smashed into another guard's gut, sending him flying into the wall.
One tried to make her slip. She caught his arm. He winced as the bone cracked.
"What are—"
She used his arm to drag him down, holding his head just inches from the ground. A sharp slam followed. Blood oozed.
A flash of light made her glance up. Another guard aimed an energy ball—powerful, but controlled. Nyx looked unimpressed.
"Move," he said, chuckling. "Or you lose your head. Try me."
Nyx appeared in front of him. He recoiled.
"What the hell?"
Her hand brushed him. Nothing happened—then an explosion of blood. He fell, half his upper body gone.
The remaining guards' faces twisted in horror. Blood rained down. They crawled backward, terrified.
Nyx turned to the two left.
"Are you going to get in my way, too?"
"No!" they shook their heads and ran.
"She's a monster," one panted.
"Yeah," said the other, patting his uniform. Something squishy stuck to his hand.
"Huh… what's this?" It was an eye. He gagged and backed into a corner, vomiting.
A nearby camera swiveled. Red lights bathed the scene.
"Hey! Hurry! We have to get out of here!" one guard shouted.
Highest Level – Test Subject CS-12 Cell
In the highest level of Facility 09, there was the most secure cell housing Test Subject CS-12. The guards lined up around the cell and the elevator leading to it. Their faces were grim. One guard shielded his eyes from the blinding lights.
"Does it have to be this bright?"
"Yes. It's protocol. Without the lights, we'll all die."
"Then why are we here?" he grumbled. The alarm still hadn't stopped.
"You've got a problem, ask Krell. I don't like this any more than you. Keep quiet. It's better up here than in all that chaos," another guard muttered.
Nex leaned against the wall of his cell. The lights here were ten times brighter than those below. His eyes closed in concentration. He had heard the chaos downstairs. It made him smile. She got out. Good.
A calm voice trailed into his mind, like a whisper. He opened his eyes, which were pure black. They blinked, then returned to a startling blue.
"You there."
He grinned. Outside the cell, the lights began to flicker.
"What the hell?" a guard said, cold sweat running down his face. The lights flickered on and off for several seconds. Electricity surged, then they went out entirely.
"Shit," the older guard muttered. Silence. Then faint, eerie noises echoed.
"What's that?" the other whispered.
The noises grew louder.
"Run!" he shouted. Black spikes jerked from every surface, skewering them in seconds. One was pierced through the head, hanging lifelessly. Blood dripped from the spike. All were dead in less than a second.
Nex emerged from the shadows. He himself looked like smoke, slowly taking shape. He knelt on one leg, the last pieces of shadow peeling from his face. A spike pierced a man's thigh. Nex smiled.
"Excuse me. Can you tell me where my sister is?"
"Monsters like you don't get family," the man coughed. Blood spurted from his mouth.
"G-go to hell."
"Unfortunately, you're the one dying," Nex said grimly.