Story 1292: Countdown Serum

The Core Spire’s entrance sealed shut behind them with a hollow thoom—like a vault locking in the last hour of a dying era.

Inside, it was pitch black.

Until the lights pulsed on, one by one, revealing a spiral hallway of clean, sterile steel. No blood. No debris. It felt… preserved. Controlled.

A voice echoed from above.

“Welcome, Subjects. You’ve entered Phase Zero of Countdown Protocol.

Please proceed. You are now on borrowed time.”

The lights began to tick, blinking in slow rhythm—like a heartbeat. Or a countdown.

“What the hell is Countdown Protocol?” Shade muttered, weapon raised.

H-13 scanned the walls. “It was VIREX’s emergency reset initiative. If infection reached irreversible saturation… a last-option serum would trigger across all neural-linked carriers.”

Juno paused. “You mean… a cure?”

“No,” H-13 replied. “A purge. Engineered to burn the virus—and the host—with it.”

Axen’s face went pale. “You mean a city-wide suicide switch.”