--
The passage was dark—oppressively so—save for the narrow beam of the torch cutting through it, giving us just enough visibility to keep moving.
Tremors shook the ground at uneven intervals, each one followed by distant, muffled gunshots that grew more frequent the farther we advanced.
Silence lingered, broken only by the crunching sounds of our footsteps as we navigated through the dust covered floor of the narrow corridor.
"Why are you suddenly taking the lead?" the voice behind me murmured, stopping me mid-stride.
I turned, lifting the torch toward her. The light caught the curved blade hanging at her side before rising to her mask. Even through it, I felt her eyes fixed on me.
"Look," I said quietly, "I know you're suspicious. And you're right to be. But this isn't the time to act on whatever's going through your head."
I didn't wait for her response. Instead, I turned forward and kept walking, my voice echoing faintly off the walls.
"If you think you're better off on your own," I added, "then go ahead. We can part ways here."
I kept moving, completely ignoring the fox behind me.
{'Sir, that action appears to have been highly reckless.'}
'Yeah, I know… but we've got more pressing issues right now.'
Nox fell silent as I took another turn, carefully retracing the path she'd led me through earlier. It wasn't long before the beam of my torch landed on the ladder we had originally descended. I let the light trail upward along the rungs, then shifted it toward the dark passage stretching ahead.
"Hey!" I called out. "Besides this ladder, is there any other way back to the surface?"
Silence hung in the air before a soft voice finally answered.
"Yes. Multiple routes… but most of their exits are sealed. The only one I can think of is through the ventilation system, but navigating it without a map is nearly impossible."
She stepped closer, coming into the light beam.
"I'm not sure how or why, but you seem to know more than the average person about what's going on. And you're far too calm for someone in this situation."
She paused, a faint breath escaping her mask.
"So… I'm willing to form a partnership."
{'Caution is advised, sir, as her willingness to cooperate indicates manipulative intent.'}
My expression didn't shift as I studied her mask with mild intrigue. Then I replied Nox silently, 'Yeah… yeah, I know.'
I turned back to the ladder, whispering softly, "Looks like this is our best option."
Gripping the first rung, I started to climb. The metal creaked softly under my weight as I ascended into the dark.
...
I had just reached the top when I called down, "Hey, is the cover obstructed above?"
Her voice drifted up from below. "No, it shouldn't be."
--
--
A faint shift in the floor caught the eye as an otherwise inconspicuous panel nudged upward, paused, and then slowly lifted. A dirt-smudged hand pushed it open the rest of the way.
A bag came up first, tossed out onto the ground with a dull thud. A man followed, climbing out with slow, deliberate movements. The moment he cleared the opening, he dropped into a crouch, eyes scanning the area with practiced caution.
"Everywhere's quiet," I muttered, my gaze still scanning the surroundings.
A small sound followed as the fox lady also climbed out. Though a little dusty, she looked far better off than I did.
She tilted her head at me, studying me in silence.
"What?" I asked, turning toward her dim outline.
"Are you trying to be sneaky or something?" she asked, her tone genuinely curious.
My eyelids twitched.
I took a slow breath, ignoring her mockery as I reached for my bag. When I turned back to her, she was staring into empty space—definitely checking her status.
"Well, would you mind leading us out of here, Miss Secret Agent?" I said, putting extra weight on the last two words. "We could really use your expertise."
Her focus shifted, drifting from the empty air to my face. She held the stare a moment, then simply adjusted her bag strap and walked past me without a word.
I smirked slightly, watching her fading silhouette for a heartbeat before slipping into a quiet follow.
We left the spot and continued forward in silence. The gunshots and tremors had stopped some time ago, but the stillness that followed was far more unsettling.
We hadn't gone more than five minutes before we both froze at the same moment.
Blood.
The unmistakable coppery scent hung heavy in the air. Now that we were farther from the back of the warehouse, the smell was thick enough to taste.
I stepped closer to the fox lady but without turning, she lifted a hand to her side and gave the air a slow, controlled pat—her silent signal to move softer and stay alert. I gave a brief, unseen nod, then fell into a step behind her as we both moved forward in silence.
We took a few more turns… and then the scene unfolded before us.
Corpses...
A trail of them, strewn across half the main walkway, turning the path ahead into a grotesque corridor of the dead.
The fox lady slowed to a halt at the edge of the carnage, her steps cautious. I moved up beside her, though my attention stayed on the corpses.
They weren't just dead—they'd been devoured.
Limbs bent at impossible angles. Flesh torn away. Clothes shredded. Blood smeared across the concrete like someone had dragged a soaked brush in wild, desperate strokes. And every corpse shared the same disturbing detail: a massive cavity in the chest, or a missing head. Some skulls were half-eaten, others severed cleanly. Hearts and brains—gone.
"What on earth… did this?" she whispered, barely audible.
I didn't answer. Instead, I crouched beside the nearest body, studying the damage more closely.
{'This is likely a level two… or three, sir.'}
Nox's voice echoed quietly in my mind.
'Yeah, most likely,' I replied. 'But that's not the real question.'
My gaze drifted down the line of butchered corpses, each one worse than the last.
'The real question is… how did it level up this fast?'