The path ahead sloped into an old transport line—half-buried under frost and time. Frosted rails twisted through fractured stone, guiding the team through narrow channels of jagged rock and crumbled ferrocrete. Once, this route ferried supplies between outposts. Now, it carried only echoes.
The silence was broken only by the crunch of boots on frost and the occasional hum of static as old tech sputtered in its grave.
Arix walked near the front beside Calyx, his pulse steady but his grip tight on the scavenged blade strapped to his side. His body still felt unfamiliar, like his nerves hadn't fully accepted their new home. The system chimed softly as they walked:
> [Ambient Rift Energy: Low. Local Interference: Stable. Echo Fluctuation: Passive.]
"Don't fall behind," Calyx said without looking back.
"I'm not."
"Your steps are too quiet. Makes me nervous."
Arix glanced at her. "You want me to be louder?"
"I want to hear you breathe."
Kael snorted. "He's new. Leave the guy some tension."
Thorne grunted from the rear. "Quiet's good. Too much noise, you miss the warnings."
Arix wasn't sure if that was approval or criticism. Probably both.
The rail line widened into a broken courtyard—cracked platforms circled by toppled light pylons and scorched barricades. Snow blanketed the debris, but patches of blood-black ice peeked through in the corners. A hollow wind howled through broken gates, carrying with it the scent of scorched ozone and something coppery.
Calyx raised her fist.
The team stopped immediately.
Kael crouched, scanning. "I'm getting heat signatures up ahead. Sporadic. Might be scav drones, might be worse."
Selis knelt beside a half-buried corpse, her breath visible in the chill. "This one's fresh. Obsidian colors."
"Looks like he was torn open," Thorne muttered. "No clean kill."
Arix studied the scene. The snow near the body was melted, not just from blood—but heat. He knelt, brushing it aside. The stone beneath was etched with scorched lines—circular, like something had burned its way out of the ground.
> [Rift Distortion Detected. Origin Point: Below Current Elevation.]
"We're above something," Arix said.
Kael narrowed his eyes. "Vault breach?"
"No," Calyx replied. "Too contained. Something smaller. Fragment maybe."
They pressed on.
Past the courtyard, the tunnel dipped into a low cavern where frost formed crystalline arcs across the ceiling. The ground was rough, uneven—littered with shell casings and shattered crates. Dull emergency lights flickered, casting long shadows that danced with the movement of their boots.
The cold deepened here—not just physical, but emotional. Arix could feel it seeping into his bones. The System pinged again, quieter this time, like even the tech was wary of the space.
Selis kept close to Thorne. Kael stayed near the flank, pulse rifle at the ready. Calyx remained at Arix's side.
"You move like someone who's been through hell," she murmured.
Arix didn't answer.
"You remember anything yet?"
"Flashes," he said. "A war. Voices. Fire."
"That narrows it down," Kael muttered.
Calyx didn't smile, but her tone softened. "You don't hesitate when it counts. That says more than memory."
They passed through the cavern and emerged into an open basin surrounded by cliffs. The wind had picked up, slicing across the space like razors. Shattered pylons and old mech remains jutted from the snow like bones. At the center stood a towering obelisk—half-collapsed, marked with Vault glyphs. Riftlight shimmered faintly at its base, pulsing in slow rhythm.
> [Echo Fragment Detected. Proximity Lock: Acquired.]
Arix felt it in his chest—like a second heartbeat. His hand hovered near his weapon.
But they weren't alone.
Shapes moved at the edge of the cliffs—sleek, four-limbed, too fast for normal humans. Their eyes glowed faint violet. Obsidian Hunters.
"Contact," Kael said, raising his weapon.
Calyx dropped to one knee, aiming. "We hold here."
"Positions!" Thorne roared, taking point near a half-buried mech hull. Selis dropped into cover behind a fractured barricade.
Arix unsheathed his blade and moved to Calyx's flank.
The first creature leapt from the ledge, claws extended, shrieking. Kael fired—three bursts to the chest, one to the head. The body hit the snow hard.
But more came.
Six. Then eight.
They moved like wolves.
Calyx shot clean—two down. Thorne met one mid-charge, slamming it into the ground with a swing that cracked the earth.
Arix found his rhythm. His blade met flesh—sparks flew as he parried a strike, twisted, and cut deep. It wasn't elegant, but it was effective.
One of the creatures got close—too close. Arix pivoted and drove his blade into its throat, ripping free just as another lunged at his back.
Calyx stepped in, shot it clean through the skull.
Their eyes met for a breath. Then they moved again.
> [System Sync Accelerating – Combat Adaptation In Progress]
The Riftlight around the obelisk pulsed brighter.
Whatever was below them was waking up.