The Ravager let out a mechanical growl as its optics flickered, shifting from red to a calming blue. Max smirked, patting the side of its armored plating.
"Good boy," he muttered. "Now, let's put you to work."
With a silent command through his cyberware interface, the Ravager turned its attention toward the bunker entrance. If there were more machines inside, having a heavy hitter on his side would be invaluable.
Max motioned for the Stalker to remain in stealth mode while he and his newly tamed Ravager moved forward. The bunker doors were rusted shut, but that wasn't a problem. With another command, the Ravager slammed its massive claws against the metal, forcing the entrance open with a screeching groan.
Dust and stale air rushed out from within. Max activated his visor, switching to night vision as he stepped inside. The bunker was dimly lit, its walls lined with old-world technology, long since abandoned.
His visor scanned the area, detecting faint power signatures deeper within. "Something's still running down here..." he muttered.
As he took another step, his motion sensor pinged.
Multiple hostiles detected.
Max barely had time to react before red optics flared to life in the darkness. A chorus of mechanical screeches echoed through the bunker as a swarm of corrupted machines rushed toward him.
"Well, this just got interesting," he smirked, drawing his weapons. "Let's see what you're made of, big guy."
The Ravager roared in response, charging forward to meet the enemy.
Max wasted no time, dodging to the side as the first wave of corrupted machines lunged at him. They were smaller than the Ravager but quick—Scrappers, their jagged metal bodies covered in pulsing red corruption.
The Ravager let out a deep growl before pouncing, its powerful claws raking through the nearest Scrapper and sending it crashing into a wall. Sparks flew as the machine twitched before shutting down completely.
Max drew his modified bow and fired an explosive arrow into the cluster of enemies. The blast sent metal shards flying, knocking several Scrappers off their feet. But more kept coming, their glowing red optics cutting through the darkness.
"Of course, it wouldn't be that easy," Max muttered.
He switched to his wrist-mounted shock launcher, firing a pulse that temporarily disabled two of the incoming Scrappers. Taking advantage of the opening, he sprinted forward, his spear crackling with energy as he drove it straight into the core of one of the disabled machines.
The Stalker, still cloaked, struck from the shadows, tearing into another Scrapper with precision. Meanwhile, the Ravager held the line, taking on multiple machines at once, its powerful frame shrugging off their attacks.
Max ducked under a leaping Scrapper, slicing through its legs as it passed overhead. The machine crashed to the ground, struggling to get back up before the Stalker finished it off with a swift strike.
As the last of the enemies fell, the bunker fell silent once more, save for the faint hum of machinery deeper inside.
Max exhaled, wiping sweat from his brow. "That was fun," he said with a smirk, patting the Ravager. "You're a keeper."
He turned his attention to the corridor ahead, where the faint glow of active terminals beckoned him forward.
"Now, let's see what was so important that they left all this security behind," he mused, stepping deeper into the bunker.
Max moved cautiously through the dimly lit corridor, his Ravager following close behind while the Stalker remained cloaked, scanning for further threats. The deeper he went, the more the air felt heavy—stale, filled with the scent of rust and old circuitry.
His visor picked up faint power signatures ahead. Whatever was still running inside this place had been left undisturbed for years, maybe even decades.
Reaching the main chamber, he found a massive circular room lined with old-world consoles, their screens flickering weakly. At the center of the room stood a large, reinforced server core, pulsing faintly with blue energy.
Max approached one of the active terminals and began tapping through the interface. The system was locked behind layers of encryption, but nothing he hadn't cracked before.
"Alright, let's see what secrets you've got," he muttered, fingers moving swiftly across the controls.
Lines of code scrolled across the screen, decrypting bit by bit. Then, something unexpected popped up.
Project Titan – Classified Level Omega
Max narrowed his eyes. "Titan? Never heard of that before."
He dove deeper, bypassing security protocols until fragments of old files began appearing. Blueprints, research logs, and scattered video feeds—what little he could access painted a disturbing picture.
It wasn't just another ruin. This facility had been developing something big.
A low growl from the Ravager snapped Max out of his focus. His motion scanner pinged again—something was moving outside the chamber.
He quickly downloaded the data he could before shutting down the console. As he turned to leave, the room trembled slightly, dust falling from the ceiling.
Max frowned. "That's never a good sign."
The moment he stepped back into the corridor, red warning lights flickered on.
Security Protocol Engaged. Threat Level: Critical.
A deep, mechanical roar echoed through the facility.
Max's grip tightened around his weapon. "Oh, great," he muttered. "What the hell did I just wake up?"
The ground trembled beneath Max's feet as the distant roar grew louder, reverberating through the walls like a coming storm. His visor flashed multiple warnings—something big was approaching, and fast.
The Ravager beside him let out a warning growl, its optics shifting as it detected the incoming threat. The Stalker, still cloaked, adjusted its posture, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
Max clenched his jaw. Time to move.
He sprinted back toward the entrance, his boots kicking up dust as emergency sirens blared to life. The once-silent bunker now felt like a death trap, red emergency lights flashing along the walls, casting eerie shadows.
Then, a deafening boom shook the facility.
A section of the corridor ahead collapsed, sending debris and dust into the air. Max skidded to a stop, coughing as he raised a hand to shield his eyes. Through the settling dust, a hulking silhouette emerged—a massive war machine, its frame covered in thick armor plating with glowing red corruption seeping through its joints.
Max's visor auto-identified it.
***
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It's 22 chaps ahead