Reever stood at the base of the huge tree, quietly studying the small manhole hidden among its thick roots. Even though he had already seen it through his drone feed, seeing it in person felt different. The opening was narrow and easy to miss. Moss covered its edges, and there were faint scrape marks on the wood and soil around it, left behind by Zombots climbing out one after another.
He lowered himself slowly, taking one last look around the silent forest. The air felt heavy, but calm. Since this was a secret mission, the thing hiding inside this maze had no idea that he was coming. It believed he was still wandering somewhere far away, chasing shadows. That made this the perfect moment to go in.
Without thinking twice, Reever jumped into the hole.
Instead of darkness swallowing him, he landed in a tunnel softly lit by glowing algae. The walls were coated in a smooth layer of green light, bright enough to see clearly but not harsh on the eyes. The algae pulsed gently, giving the impression that the maze breathed slowly. Reever touched the wall. The surface felt slightly warm, almost like the heat from a living body, though he knew it was just the temperature of the underground.
The tunnel stretched ahead and split into several branching paths. This place was truly a maze, twisted and complicated. Some tunnels were tall and wide, while others narrowed until only one shoulder could fit through at a time. The walls changed shape as they continued, forming strange patterns like roots, ribs, or tunnel webs.
Reever studied the paths carefully. Thanks to the drones he had sent earlier, he already knew the general direction he needed to take. The drones had managed to map a portion of the upper layout before getting destroyed. That gave him the advantage of knowing which starting route he should follow.
But the deeper parts remained uncertain. He could not see how long each turn would stretch, whether it would rise, drop, twist, or loop back. He did not know what traps or tight spaces might lie ahead. Even with the information he had, the rest relied on luck and constant adjustments in thinking.
"It is just as we thought," B said calmly. "You know the direction, but not the form."
"I know," A answered. "It is enough for now. As long as we keep moving, we will figure out the rest."
He stepped forward. His footsteps echoed lightly through the tunnels. The air grew warmer as he went deeper, carrying a faint mechanical hum from far below. The sound was not threatening, just a reminder that something in this maze was working, building, or moving.
At a wide chamber, the tunnel split into three openings. Reever crouched for a moment and pressed his palm against the wall. It vibrated softly, sending small pulses through his hand. He tried to match the vibrations with the drones' last recordings.
"This should be the middle path," A said.
"Then we follow it," B replied.
Reever moved into the middle corridor. The glowing algae thickened on the walls, forming brighter streaks that illuminated the way like guiding lines. The tunnel curved gently to the right, then dipped downward. The air picked up a faint metallic smell, almost like the scent of broken circuits after a long fight.
He tightened his grip on his weapon and continued forward, step by step, deeper into the maze that was never meant for humans or bots to walk easily. He knew he was close now. Close to the source. Close to the thing that had filled the forest with endless Zombots.
He kept walking, silent and steady, determined to reach the heart of this hidden world.
Reever continued walking through the glowing tunnel, expecting it to bend or split again at any moment. But it never did. The path stayed straight, stretching deeper and deeper underground. After two hours, he slowed a little, wondering if the drones had misread the distance. After four hours, he checked the map in his mind again. Everything still matched.
By the sixth hour, even Reever found himself confused. The tunnel showed no sign of ending. The walls looked the same, the algae pulsed the same, and the ground carried the same soft vibration. It felt like walking through an endless throat.
"A, did we take a wrong turn?" B asked calmly.
"No," A replied. "This is the path the drone recorded. It is just longer than expected."
They continued. Step after step. Hour after hour.
Four more hours passed before Reever finally saw a faint glow that did not belong to the algae. It was brighter and steadier, hinting at an open space ahead. His body reacted immediately. He stopped walking and crouched low, checking his surroundings.
He activated his suit's camouflage and waited until the phase shimmer covered him completely. The armor shifted its colors until Reever blended with the walls. His footsteps became soundless as he slowly approached the end of the tunnel.
A soft hum grew louder the closer he got. Not the hum of a single bot, but the hum of many, all working at the same time.
Reever reached the edge of the tunnel and leaned forward slightly.
What he saw made him freeze.
The space ahead was enormous, much larger than he expected. It stretched out like a hidden underground world, supported by massive root-like pillars. And in the air, countless bots floated in different stages of fusion. Arms, legs, circuits, plates, wires, cores, and metal frames hovered in the air like pieces held by invisible hands. Each part slowly rotated, merged, or connected to another piece.
It was as if the maze itself had become a giant workshop.
The number of bots being fused was unbelievable. Countless was the only word he could think of. They floated from wall to wall, arranged in layers like shelves of living machines. Each group seemed to assemble itself without any physical builder nearby.
Reever scanned the whole chamber once more.
The thing responsible for all this was nowhere to be seen. No shadow, no movement, no sign of a controlling figure. Everything moved as if controlled by some automatic process. Almost like the environment itself was the one combining the bots.
He stood there, completely still, watching the endless floating parts moving together, forming new bodies without a single hand touching them.
Whatever this place was, it was far more advanced and far more dangerous than he expected.