Chapter 98 The Descent
The elevator to the sub-levels didn't hum; it screamed.
The heavy industrial cage rattled inside the shaft because it was descending at a speed which made my stomach feel like it was going to bring up its contents. The temperature increased with every floor we traveled upward. The atmosphere contained two types of heat which included the dry, crisp heat of the sun and the wet, suffocating heat of machinery and steam and compressed earth.
I held onto the heavy iron mace which Ryker had given to me. The metal mass felt cold against my hands which were perspiring. The design appeared to be rough and unrefined. The design appeared to be rough and unrefined. I was the Queen of the Terrarium who bore the Origin Stone which I used to enter the dark path with my club that resembled a weapon of prehistoric times.
Ryker commanded me to check my equipment because his voice broke through the elevator's loud mechanical elevator noise.
He stood by the gate, watching the numbers count down. Sub-Level 10. Sub-Level 11. He had removed his tactical vest to gain more speed because he chose to abandon his protective gear. He held his Star-Metal sword in his hand with its blade showing dull and grey colors which lacked the fire he normally used to create.
From the corner Vane declared that gear had been checked. "I look like a baked potato."
I looked at him. The whole torso and mechanical arm of Vane had been covered by Kael with a silver mesh that functions as EMP shielding fabric. The material made a crinkling sound whenever he moved his body. He looked ridiculous, but nobody was laughing. Vane demonstrated shivering movements which he made while he wore the mesh suit.
Ryder asked him to report how well they were receiving signals.
Vane said the loudness was coming from his head when he touched his head through the silver hood. "The situation resembles standing next to a radio tower which transmits unfiltered hatred. The static sound becomes increasingly loud as we approach the reactor. If this mesh fails, Ryker... you know what happens.
Ryker nodded his head while he accepted the explanation. "I already know the outcome of your transformation. I will have to execute you with extreme speed.
"Thanks," Vane said while he tried to smile. "I appreciate the way you work."
CLANG.
The elevator reached its lowest point. The impact force made the ceiling mesh lose its rust particles which snowed down to cover our shoulders with orange powder.
The gate slid open.
Our location did not exist as a hallway because we occupied a space which resembled a throat.
The maintenance tunnel for the fusion reactor consisted of a concrete and steel tube which measured ten feet in width and contained numerous huge pipes that extended along its interior walls and ceiling section. Steam hissed from leaky valves. The floor space contained metal grate which allowed me to hear water flowing beneath my feet or something that had a denser composition.
The location existed in complete darkness.
The emergency lights street at the present moment which showed sickly strobing red light. The shadows between the red light flashes displayed the presence of veins in hidden locations.
The area displayed a presence of veins.
Thick black tendrils resembled the roots of a dead tree as they extended along the pipes throughout the area. They created a slow pulse which transmitted black sludge from their bodies toward the reactor core.
I whispered to the room about what I had discovered inside. The Origin Stone in my chest gave a sharp throb because it detected the presence of the Void nearby. The object feels heavy.
The Baron and his elite guard awaited our arrival.
The red darkness revealed six gigantic wolves who showed their bristling fur. The wolves showed no signs of being proud North American predators. The wolves showed signs of being trapped by their surroundings. The animals showed signs of fear while they paced in narrow circles because their ears remained back and they produced soft whining sounds.
Baron used his human form to lean against the supporting beam. He appeared naked while he carried a heavy steel axe. His wild appearance made him look dangerous because his eyes shone with the red emergency light.
Baron used the scent from the area to describe that it smelled like a graveyard. "My pack is spooked. They can hear things in the walls."
"What kind of things" he asked. Ryker asked as he stepped past him to examine a cable bundle which was stored in that location.
Baron explained that the sound he heard sounded like metal scraping against other metal because it was similar to bigger rats making scratching noises.
The conduit touched a power device. The black rot had eaten through the rubber insulation, exposing the copper wire. The wire had lost its glowing blue appearance. The wire now appeared as dead black material.
"The Rot is drinking the current," Ryker confirmed. "We have approximately two hours until the reactor reaches its critical point. Move out. Baron, take point. Vane, stay in the center. Elara, watch our six."
Our group started to move forward.
The tunnel displayed a complete absence of space which created a claustrophobic environment throughout its entire length. The tunnel walls forced us to protractedly descend into the ground. The heat became oppressive. The heat made me sweat until my back became soaked, which left my shirt completely wet. The air in the environment carried a scent identical to ozone and copper, which resembled the stored aroma of a thunderstorm that had been bottled up.
Every hundred yards we passed a junction box or a ventilation fan. The entire area was covered in black web material. The Rot moved through its territory with deliberate control. The Rot traced the energy grid to reach its optimal hunting area.
Baron raised a fist to order everyone to stop.
The wolves froze. A low growl rippled through the pack.
At this point, we stopped walking through the tunnel which expanded into a pump room space. The red lights here had failed completely, leaving the room in pitch blackness.
Ryker whispered "Vane" to his companion. He used an explicit command to announce "Light" to his companion.
Vane raised his human hand which he had not injured to show the chemical flare he was carrying. He opened it.
HISSS.
The room became bright through the sudden release of white light.
And we saw them.
The creatures hung from the ceiling while other creatures crouched near the pumps. They were blocking the exit.
The beings belonged to neither Void Walkers nor mud monsters.
The maintenance crew which worked on the facility.
Or they had been.
The group consisted of five individuals who wore orange jumpsuits which had become mere tattered remnants. The Rot had fused them with the machinery they had been fixing.
The first man had a pressure gauge embedded in his chest which caused the needle to spin wildly. The second man had replaced his natural legs with a black pipe system which made him resemble an unnatural spider. Their faces were gone, replaced by smooth, black masks of hardened sludge.
The voice of Kael said "Techno-organic" which became a memory in my mind.
The creatures didn't scream. They clicked.
The man with the pipe-legs twitched while he turned his head to face the light from the flare.
Ryker yelled "Contact" at the top of his lungs.
The creatures dropped from the ceiling.
The creatures used their natural abilities to attain frightening speed through their combination of muscle strength with hydraulic power. The Spider-Man landed on a wolf, driving a sharpened pipe through its flank. The wolf yelped, snapping its jaws, but its teeth skittered off the metal fused to the creature's bone.
Ryker shouted "No guns" before he drew his sword to fight. "The weapons will provide them with new strength.
Ryker charged at his target without using any fire-related powers. He fought his opponent through direct physical strength.
He swung the Star-Metal sword two-handed. The blade struck Spider-Man in the midsection. The weapon cut through everything with a horrible sound of something breaking apart. Black sludge sprayed across the room.
The creature collapsed, its legs twitching as the hydraulic pressure failed.
The next creature who appeared was a woman with a rotary saw arm who came after me.
The saw wasn't powered, but the blade was sharp. She swung it at my head.
I ducked my body to avoid the blade which passed above my head.
I screamed "Back off" at the top of my lungs.
I swung the mace without performing any magical actions.
I put all my fear, all my revulsion into the swing. The creature's ribs were struck by the heavy iron head of the weapon.
CRACK.
It felt like hitting a bag of wet cement mixed with gravel. The creature stumbled back, wheezing black smoke.
I swung my weapon again after executing my first swing. I smashed its knee, shattering the fused metal joint. It fell. I brought the mace down on its skull.
The mask cracked. The creature went still.
I stood there, panting, my hands vibrating from the impact. The battle remained brutal in its execution. The battle existed without beauty. The battle existed without magical sparkles. The room contained only sweat blood and iron.
Baron shouted "Clear" from the front.
He was standing over two dead creatures, his axe buried in the chest of one. The wolves were licking their wounds. One wolf was down, bleeding black blood.
Baron ordered the pack to "Leave him" because "He’s infected."
The pack whined, nuzzling their fallen brother, but they obeyed. They backed away.
Ryker walked over to the fallen wolf. He knelt down.
"Go to the sky" were the last words spoken by Ryker before he used his dagger to execute the target.
He stood up, wiping the blade on his pants. He looked at Vane.
Vane was pressed against the wall, clutching his head. He hadn't fought. He was shaking violently.
Ryker inquired about Vane with the question "Vane?"
Vane gasped while saying "They were talking to me" which caused his eye to widen in terror behind the mesh. "They attacked me because I could hear them in the network. They were screaming, Ryker. They were screaming for help while their bodies tried to kill us."
I felt a chill go through me that had nothing to do with the cold. The Rot killed you, but it also made you live as a living monster.
"Block it out" Ryker commanded while he held Vane's shoulders. "Focus on my voice. You are not on the network. You are in the tunnel. You are with me."
Vane nodded, swallowing hard. "I’m with you. I’m with you."
Ryker said "We move" because "We're close to the main junction."
We proceeded to step over the crew bodies which we encountered. I tried not to look at the name tags on their jumpsuits. Miller. Sanchez. Zhou.
We pushed deeper.
The tunnel began to change. The concrete walls became invisible because they had been covered entirely with black resin which resembled the interior of a beehive. The air became more oppressive because it increased its temperature and showed signs of muggy conditions.
The noise level increased at the same rate as the sound volume.
THRUM. THRUM. THRUM.
The reactor created the sound which did not resemble a heartbeat but actually sounded like a reactor.
Ryker said "We're at the blast doors" when he turned the corner.
We stopped.
The blast door to the reactor core was a massive slab of tungsten and steel, designed to withstand a nuclear meltdown.
But it was open.
The door hadn't been forced. It had been dissolved. The metal section had a ten-foot-wide hole which allowed everything to escape. The metal section suffered from complete melting. The edges dripped black acid, which created a ten-foot-wide hole.
A Guardian stood in front of the hole.
It resided outside the range of human beings and wolf creatures.
It was a machine.
The building operated with an ancient construction mech. The building contained a twelve-foot loader system, which used hydraulic clamps to function as its manual operation. The Rot had completely taken over the machine. The chitinous black armor replaced all of the yellow paint. The cockpit became occupied by a black fluid which pulsated like a living organism.
The human head floated in the black fluid center like an embryo.
The being opened its eyes. They were black.
The mech announced "ACCESS DENIED" with the voice of a human gurgling sound combined with a distorted synthesizer sound.
Vane described the foreman as "That’s the foreman" in a tone that showed horror.
The mech raised its massive hydraulic arms. The clamps spun, transforming into drills.
The thing is made of solid steel according to Ryker. My mace won't dent it according to Ryker.
Ryker drew his sword. He looked at the massive machine blocking our path.
"Then we aim for the soft spots," Ryker said.