The cavern trembled slightly as hundreds of Rift Parasites crawled across the stone floor like a living tide of black bodies and glowing eyes. Their hooked limbs scraped against the cavern walls while their needle-like mouths opened and closed with faint clicking sounds.
At the center of the cavern towered the Parasite Queen.
Her enormous spider-like body clung to the cavern walls, thick legs embedded into the rock like anchors. Purple Rift veins pulsed across her massive abdomen while dozens of smaller parasites crawled across her armored surface.
Kai Ren stood frozen near the tunnel entrance.
Behind him, footsteps echoed again.
The Gene Hunter had arrived.
Kai's instincts screamed danger from both directions.
The system interface flickered rapidly in front of his vision.
Emergency Alert
Host Position: Between Two Apex Threats
Threat One: Gene Hunter (Human)
Threat Two: Rift Parasite Queen
Recommended Action: Immediate Evacuation
Kai exhaled slowly.
Evacuation was impossible.
The tunnel behind him was already blocked by the approaching Gene Hunter. The cavern ahead was controlled by the Parasite Queen and her swarm.
There was only one option.
Survive.
The Queen noticed him first.
Her enormous body shifted slightly as several glowing eyes turned toward the tunnel entrance. A low, vibrating screech echoed through the cavern, sending a ripple of movement across the parasite swarm.
Hundreds of smaller creatures began crawling toward Kai.
At the same moment, the Gene Hunter stepped into the cavern behind him.
The man stopped when he saw the massive creature dominating the chamber.
For the first time since Kai had encountered him, the hunter's calm expression shifted slightly.
"Impressive," he muttered.
The Queen screeched again.
The swarm attacked.
Dozens of Rift Parasites rushed forward across the ground while others dropped from the cavern ceiling like falling blades.
Kai moved instantly.
He grabbed a broken crystal fragment from the ground and smashed the first parasite mid-air before kicking another creature away from his leg. The small monsters were fast, but his enhanced reflexes allowed him to react before they could latch onto him.
Behind him, the Gene Hunter activated his plasma blade again.
The glowing weapon sliced through the swarm effortlessly, cutting several parasites apart in a single movement.
The cavern filled with the sound of claws scraping across stone.
The Queen's enormous body shifted again.
This time she attacked.
One massive leg struck the ground near Kai with explosive force, cracking the stone floor.
Kai jumped aside just before the impact.
The Queen's attention shifted toward the hunter next.
Her massive body lunged downward as her fangs snapped toward him.
The Gene Hunter moved with terrifying speed.
He dashed forward instead of retreating, running along the cavern wall before leaping upward toward the Queen's head.
His plasma blade flashed.
The strike sliced across one of the Queen's armored legs.
Dark fluid sprayed across the stone.
The Queen shrieked violently.
Kai watched the fight unfold while crushing another parasite beneath his boot.
The hunter was strong.
Far stronger than Kai.
But even he was struggling against the massive creature.
The Queen's legs moved like giant spears, slamming into the cavern floor repeatedly while the swarm continued attacking everything nearby.
Kai's mind raced.
He couldn't defeat the Gene Hunter.
But maybe the Queen could.
The system reacted.
New Mission Generated
Objective: Survive Parasite Queen Encounter
Optional Objective: Let Enemies Eliminate Each Other
Reward: Unknown
Kai moved quickly toward the edge of the cavern, avoiding both the swarm and the massive creature fighting the hunter.
The Gene Hunter continued attacking the Queen with precise strikes. Each movement of his plasma blade left glowing wounds across the monster's armored body.
But the Queen was adapting.
One of her massive legs suddenly struck downward, smashing the hunter into the cavern floor.
The ground cracked beneath the impact.
Kai's eyes widened slightly.
But the hunter rose immediately.
His armor had absorbed most of the damage.
The man looked up at the Queen calmly, as if studying her movements.
Then he glanced toward Kai.
"Still alive?" he said quietly.
Kai didn't answer.
Another parasite leaped toward him, and Kai grabbed the creature mid-air before smashing it against the cavern wall.
The hunter's expression returned to neutral.
"Good," he said. "I'd rather not lose my target yet."
The Queen screeched again, furious.
Her massive body shifted as dozens of parasites detached from her back and rushed toward both men.
The swarm thickened.
Kai began retreating slowly toward a narrow crack in the cavern wall. If he could reach the deeper tunnel, he might escape while the hunter and Queen fought each other.
But the system suddenly flashed again.
Warning
New Gene Signature Detected
Location: Parasite Queen Core
Classification: Elite Gene
Kai's gaze snapped toward the massive creature.
The Queen contained an Elite gene.
Far stronger than the ones he had collected so far.
If he could devour it…
His evolution would accelerate dramatically.
But reaching the Queen while fighting the Gene Hunter was nearly impossible.
The hunter seemed to notice Kai's attention.
He smiled faintly.
"You're thinking about the gene core."
Kai remained silent.
The hunter continued fighting the Queen while speaking calmly.
"You're not the first scavenger to dream about power."
His blade flashed again, cutting through several parasites.
"But you're definitely the most interesting one."
The Queen lunged again, her fangs striking toward the hunter's chest.
He blocked with the plasma blade and rolled aside as the massive creature slammed into the ground.
The cavern shook violently.
Kai noticed something important.
The Queen's abdomen.
The glowing Rift veins were brighter there.
That was likely where the gene core was located.
Kai's mind calculated rapidly.
If the hunter weakened the Queen enough…
Kai might be able to steal the kill.
But the risk was enormous.
The hunter was watching him constantly.
The battle intensified.
The Gene Hunter began targeting the Queen's legs, cutting through the armored joints with rapid strikes. One massive limb collapsed under the damage.
The Queen shrieked in pain.
Her movements slowed slightly.
Kai's heart rate increased.
Opportunity.
The hunter stepped back briefly as the wounded Queen thrashed wildly across the cavern.
Kai moved.
He sprinted forward across the cavern floor.
The hunter's eyes followed him instantly.
But the swarm of parasites attacked again at that exact moment.
Dozens of creatures rushed toward the hunter, forcing him to defend himself.
Kai reached the Queen's body.
He climbed across the creature's armored shell and drove his knife toward the glowing Rift veins along her abdomen.
The blade struck deep.
The Queen shrieked violently.
The cavern trembled.
Kai stabbed again.
And again.
The glowing veins cracked open as Rift energy burst outward from the wound.
The Queen collapsed.
Her massive body struck the ground with a thunderous crash.
Silence spread through the cavern.
The system appeared immediately.
Parasite Queen Eliminated
Elite Gene Detected
Rift Parasite Queen Gene Available
Kai's eyes widened slightly.
He had done it.
But before he could activate the devour command, the Gene Hunter stepped forward calmly.
The man looked down at the massive corpse.
Then at Kai.
The plasma blade hummed softly in his hand.
"You're smarter than I expected," the hunter said quietly.
Kai slowly tightened his grip on the knife.
The system flashed again.
Threat Level Updated
Enemy Combat Probability: 4%
Four percent.
Even worse.
The hunter took another step forward.
"But the artifact still belongs to Helix Corporation."
Kai remained silent.
The cavern was quiet now.
The swarm had scattered.
Only the massive corpse of the Queen remained between them.
The hunter raised his blade slightly.
"Now," he said calmly, "we finish this."
The system suddenly flashed red.
Emergency Alert
New Entity Entering Cavern
Power Level: Unknown
Both Kai and the Gene Hunter turned toward the tunnel entrance.
Heavy footsteps echoed slowly through the darkness.
Then a deep voice spoke from the shadows.
"So this is where the signal ended."
A new figure stepped into the purple light of the cavern.
Unlike the hunter, this man wore no armor.
But the moment he appeared…
The system issued a warning Kai had never seen before.
Extreme Threat Detected
Enemy Rank: Gene Elite
Survival Probability: 0.3%