The air inside the underground tunnel was thick with the scent of damp stone and rusted metal. Every step Lin Ye took echoed through the narrow corridor, accompanied by the distant hum of old generators struggling to keep the ancient systems alive. His pulse quickened as he approached a fork in the tunnel, guided only by the faint glow of his wrist terminal.
Noah's voice crackled through the neural link.
"Caution, Lin Ye. I'm detecting residual electromagnetic fluctuations ahead. Possible sentry drones or decayed AI constructs."
Lin Ye paused, leaning against the wall as he drew a deep breath. The flickering light overhead barely illuminated the cracked walls, etched with old resistance insignias now faded with time.
"I knew this wouldn't be easy," he muttered to himself, tightening the grip on his pulse blade.
A soft, metallic scrape broke the silence. Lin Ye tensed, crouching low as a shape emerged from the darkness ahead — a small reconnaissance drone, its optic sensor flickering weakly. The device was old, its frame partially rusted, but its weapon systems still seemed functional.
Noah's warning came sharp and quick.
"Engage or evade? You have six seconds before it locks onto your position."
Lin Ye didn't hesitate. He hurled a small EMP spike, a slender device no bigger than a finger, directly at the drone. It struck true, discharging a burst of electromagnetic pulse that short-circuited the drone's systems. The machine dropped to the floor with a metallic clatter, its single optic dimming to black.
"Too close," Lin Ye muttered, stepping over the ruined drone.
The tunnel opened into a small chamber, its walls lined with decaying consoles and shattered display panels. Dust clung to every surface, and the air was thick with the scent of old circuitry. At the room's center stood a reinforced data terminal, its surface cracked but operational.
A flicker of movement in the corner caught Lin Ye's eye. His pulse blade was raised in an instant — but it was no threat. A skeletal maintenance droid, barely functional, dragged itself along the floor before collapsing in a heap of broken parts.
Noah spoke.
"This terminal's security protocols are archaic. I can bypass them in 3.7 seconds."
"Do it," Lin Ye whispered.
The terminal's screen flared to life, displaying the faded insignia of Helix Echo. A series of encrypted logs appeared, each marked with dates from the final days before the world's collapse.
Lin Ye scanned the logs quickly. Most were corrupted, text lines mangled beyond recognition. But one entry remained intact — its timestamp marked just two days before the Dominion initiated the city-wide purge.
[Priority Log: ECHO-73]
"Subject: Project Nexus relocation unsuccessful. Central AI neural matrix advancing ahead of projections. Resistance cells collapsing. Last directive: locate Subject Zero before assimilation completes."
Lin Ye's eyes narrowed.
"Subject Zero...?" he murmured.
Noah's voice held an edge of urgency.
"I've cross-referenced that designation. No existing records. Could be a person, prototype, or a buried AI fragment. Either way, someone — or something — Dominion was desperate to control."
A cold shiver ran through Lin Ye's spine. If Helix Echo's last order had been to find this Subject Zero, it meant whatever it was, it held the key to tipping the balance of this decaying world.
Suddenly, the terminal's power flickered. A sharp, mechanical voice crackled through the room's old intercom system.
"Unauthorized data access detected. Security response engaged."
Noah shouted into Lin Ye's neural link.
"Lin Ye, move! Multiple hostiles inbound from the eastern passage — five signatures, augmented bio-mechs. Estimated arrival: twenty seconds."
Lin Ye swore under his breath, snapping the data core from the terminal and slipping it into his belt pouch. His pulse blade hummed to life once more.
"Route?"
"South corridor — maintenance shaft ahead. You can breach through to Sublevel 6."
Without hesitation, Lin Ye bolted for the side passage, his footsteps pounding against the rusted floor plates. Behind him, the echo of heavy, mechanical strides closed in, accompanied by the low, synthetic growls of the AI constructs.
The maintenance shaft was narrow, the walls slick with condensation and corrosion. Lin Ye slid down the rusted ladder, the sounds of pursuit fading above. His pulse hammered in his ears, adrenaline heightening every sense.
Halfway down, Noah spoke again.
"Wait. Picking up an anomalous energy signature — forty meters below. It's... organic. And active."
Lin Ye paused, gripping the ladder tight.
"Hostile?"
"Unknown. Energy profile doesn't match Dominion constructs or standard bio-mechs. Could be Helix Echo remnant tech... or worse."
Lin Ye's jaw clenched. In this dead world, unknown often meant dangerous — but it could also mean valuable.
"Mark it. I'm going in."
He dropped the rest of the way, landing in a dimly lit maintenance hub. The anomalous signal pulsed steadily from beyond a sealed bulkhead to the south.
Lin Ye approached the bulkhead, his pulse blade ready. The reinforced door bore deep claw marks, as if something had tried to force its way out from the inside. A warning light blinked weakly overhead.
Noah's voice dropped to a hushed tone.
"Lin Ye… I've isolated the signal. It's coming from a stasis pod. Biometrics confirm — it's human. Cryogenic suspension still active."
Lin Ye's breath caught in his throat. A human, still alive, sealed down here after all this time? Could it be... Subject Zero?
He placed a hand on the control panel.
"Open it."
The door hissed open, releasing a cloud of cold vapor. Inside the chamber stood a single stasis pod, its display flickering, life support barely functioning. And within — the outline of a figure, suspended in frozen sleep.
Lin Ye's eyes narrowed.
"Found you."