The tunnel erupted into chaos, the sentinel bots’ synchronized hum rising to a menacing whine that echoed off the slick concrete walls. Their blue sensors locked onto Killy, Lane, and Kimmy, glowing red as they surged forward, metal legs clicking on the stone floor in a staccato rhythm of death. The air was heavy with mold and the Ascendancy tech’s heartbeat, a menacing pulse that seemed to quicken with the bots’ advance. Faint emergency lights flickered overhead, casting eerie shadows that danced like specters in the cramped passage.
Killy’s Trident emitter hummed, the nanobots enveloping his hand and wrist in a gauntlet of shimmering energy, superheating the air into a blue plasma blade that hissed with power. He thrust the blade forward, the plasma searing through the lead bot’s front legs, melting the metal in a shower of sparks, the bot collapsing in a smoking heap. “Spread out—don’t let them flank us!” he shouted, his voice steady but edged with the grim weight of the kids’ safety—Clay, Nora, Reese, Junior—driving him forward. He pivoted, eyes scanning the remaining five bots, their movements eerily coordinated, a testament to the Ascendancy’s networked AI.
Lane, a few feet back, focused his Trident’s nanobots, the emitter on his wrist glowing as they formed a plasma dart, a glowing green projectile the size of a dagger, suspended in the air by charged molecules. He launched it at a bot’s sensor core, the dart piercing the glowing red eye with a crackle of energy, frying its circuits. The bot veered into the tunnel wall, crumpling in a heap of smoking metal. “Easier said than done in a coffin like this,” Lane quipped, his gray eyes flashing with humor that didn’t reach his tense jaw. He prepped another dart, considering a plasma burst to take out multiple bots, but hesitated—the tunnel’s groaning ceiling warned of collapse, a risk he simply couldn’t ignore.
Kimmy’s Trident pulsed, the nanobots forming a gauntlet around her hand, the air igniting into a plasma blade that flickered as she parried a bot’s snapping jaws, the plasma sizzling against its metal frame. She dodged another lunge, her shoulder slamming into the damp wall, the impact jarring her. “I’m trying, Barnes!” she snapped, her cybernetic eye pulsing red with frustration. Her years of training demanded control, precision—everything Killy’s “light switch” approach wasn’t. The nanobots’ hum in her mind was a chaotic buzz, urging her to let go, but years of drills held her back.
The remaining three bots closed in, their AI adapting, movements growing more precise. One feinted at Killy, drawing his thrust, while another lunged at Kimmy from the side, its jaws snapping at her leg. She kicked it off, the bot skittering back, but not before its teeth tore a gash in her calf, her blood mixing with the tunnel’s damp floor. Pain seared through her, sharpening her focus, but before they could regroup, the bots emitted a high-pitched signal—a distress call that echoed through the passage like a scream.
Heavier footsteps rumbled from deeper in the tunnel, a rhythmic thud that vibrated through the stone. Two clankers emerged from the darkness, each the size of a small car, their spider-like legs scraping the walls, plasma turrets on their backs whirring as they locked onto the trio. Their reinforced plating gleamed under the flickering lights, a stark contrast to the sentinel bots’ sleek agility. The clankers fired, green plasma bolts sizzling through the air in rapid succession, forcing Killy, Lane, and Kimmy to dive behind a pile of rubble, the bolts scorching the walls with a hiss of molten concrete.
“Great, just what we needed,” Lane muttered, peeking over the rubble as the clankers advanced, their turrets tracking with relentless precision. Small ports on their frames opened, releasing nanobot swarm projectiles—tiny drones buzzing toward the team, their micro-stingers crackling with electricity. Killy swept his plasma blade through the swarm, the nanobots frying on contact with a series of pops, but a few stung his arm, sending sharp jolts through his nerves, his grip on the emitter tightening.
Kimmy’s frustration boiled over as a swarm buzzed toward her, the stingers grazing her cheek, leaving a burning welt. She thought of Killy’s words—flip it on, let it do its thing—and a memory flashed through her mind: Ascendancy trainers barking orders, demanding perfection, their drills a cage she’d never fully escaped. But here, in this tunnel, with death buzzing at her face, she let go. She focused her anger into the Trident, the nanobots responding with a surge of energy. The gauntlet reshaped, the air igniting into jagged green plasma spikes that crackled like a porcupine’s quills, extending from her fist in a deadly array.
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She charged the nearest clanker, dodging a plasma bolt that singed her sleeve, the heat stinging her skin. With a roar, she drove her spiked fist into the clanker’s core, the plasma spikes searing through its plating, melting the metal with a screech. Sparks exploded, the clanker’s systems overloading in a shower of electricity, its legs buckling as it collapsed with a metallic groan, smoke billowing from its shattered frame. Kimmy stumbled back, panting, her cybernetic eye flaring with triumph. “Got you, you bastard,” she growled, the nanobots’ hum in her mind almost comforting, a stark contrast to the rigidity of her training.
Lane, still crouched behind the rubble, grinned despite the chaos, his gray eyes glinting. “Killy’s a bad influence on you—I like it.” He focused his Trident, the nanobots forming a thin, crackling cord of plasma—a whip that glowed green in the dim light. He hesitated for a split second, considering a plasma burst, but the tunnel’s groaning ceiling stopped him—too risky, a cave-in would put a very quick stop to their mission. Killy nodded, his respect for Kimmy growing, but his focus zeroed in on the remaining clanker, its turret whirring for another shot. “One down, one to go!” he shouted, the emitter in his hand humming with readiness.
The fight had destabilized the tunnel further, and a crack split the ceiling above, dust and small rocks raining down. A larger chunk fell, nearly crushing Lane, who rolled out of the way just in time, Sprocket squeaking, “Bad rock! Bad rock!” The debris formed a temporary barrier, separating the team from the remaining clanker and sentinel bots, but also trapped them in a narrower section of the tunnel, the walls pressing in tighter, the air growing colder.
Killy’s head throbbed suddenly, a psychic hum cutting through the chaos—a whisper in his mind, “You’ll be mine soon,” accompanied by a flash of the Lattice kids’ faces: Clay’s wide eyes, Nora’s clenched jaw. The Shill’s presence was a cold weight, but Killy shook it off, focusing on the fight. He gestured to Lane, who nodded, understanding the plan. Killy focused his Trident, the nanobots forming a shimmering plasma shield that deflected a plasma bolt from the clanker, the impact jarring his arm through the gauntlet. Lane seized the opening, lashing his plasma whip around the clanker’s turret, the charged cord wrapping tight and yanking it off balance with a crackle of energy. The turret misfired, scorching the ceiling, and Killy drove his plasma blade forward, the superheated air searing into the clanker’s core, frying its systems. The machine collapsed with a final, shuddering groan, its nanobot swarm powering down.
Kimmy dispatched the last sentinel bot, her plasma blade burning through its core, the bot’s red sensor fading to black. The tunnel fell silent, save for the drip of water and their ragged breathing, adrenaline still pumping through their veins. The air was thick with the acrid scent of burnt metal and ozone, scorch marks marring the walls, rubble scattered across the floor. Kimmy tore a strip of fabric from her sleeve, binding the gash on her calf, her movements efficient but pained, her jaw set against the sting. Lane adjusted his Trident emitter, his caution lingering as he eyed the ceiling, muttering, “We’re one bad move from a cave-in.”
Killy checked the comms, but the kids’ signal was faint, Junior’s voice crackling through: “More coming, Killy… be careful.” The interference was worse now, Ascendancy countermeasures isolating them further, a growing concern after the clearer signals earlier. He turned to Lane and Kimmy, his voice low but firm, sweat beading on his brow. “We’re the only shot the world has against the Ascendancy. If I go down, if I’m caught, you leave me—promise. You keep fighting, no matter what.”
Lane hesitated, his jaw tightening, gray eyes reflecting a mix of respect and reluctance, but he nodded, understanding the stakes. Kimmy’s cybernetic eye pulsed, her expression conflicted—she wasn’t fully on board with Killy, but she respected his resolve, a trait she’d seen in the Lattice room during his break-in. “Fine,” she muttered, “but don’t expect me to cry over you, Barnes.” Sprocket, still perched on Lane’s shoulder, tilted his head, his tail glowing a soft yellow, his voice a worried squeak. “Killy not get caught,” he said, his small paws fidgeting, the idea of losing Killy clearly distressing him.
Killy’s gaze softened for a moment, but his tone grew firmer, the weight of his words pressing down like the tunnel walls around them. “I’m serious, Sprocket. Don’t let them stop fighting. Don’t let them forget about those kids.” Sprocket’s tail dimmed, the little bot taken aback by Killy’s intensity, his cybernetic ears twitching as he processed the command. After a beat, he nodded, his voice small but resolute, “Promise.” Killy turned to Lane and Kimmy, his eyes hard, the kids’ faces flashing through his mind—Clay’s fierce voice, Nora’s steady calm. “I want to hear it from the two of you as well,” he said, his voice a quiet demand, the tunnel’s silence amplifying the gravity of his request.
