Subject 47

Victor's team quickly set up perimeter security

A series of monitors flickered to life, showing different areas of the lab. One of them focused on a specific chamber—one unlike the others. Inside, a figure stood motionless, their face obscured by a glass shield.

"Who's in there?" Mia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Victor walked over to the terminal and began typing, pulling up a record. "It's one of the last remaining test subjects. Subject 47. The records say they were a part of the Paragon project—a failed experiment."

"Failed?" Mia repeated, her stomach tightening. "How many of them are there?"

Victor's eyes darkened as he continued to scroll through the data. "Too many. The Paragon project was about creating enhanced humans—soldiers with abilities far beyond what any normal person could handle. But it was too unstable. Some survived, others didn't."

Mia stepped closer to the chamber, her heart pounding in her chest. "We need to free them," she said, her voice firm.

Alexander placed a hand on her shoulder, holding her back. "We don't know what's inside those chambers. It could be dangerous."

"But they're human," Mia countered, her eyes locked on the figure in the chamber. "They were forced into this. We can't just leave them here."

Victor sighed but nodded, reluctantly agreeing. "I'll open the chamber, but we need to be careful. We don't know how they'll react."

The team moved quickly to the chamber's control panel, deactivating the security systems. The glass door slid open with a soft hiss, revealing a tall, muscular figure inside. The man's face was pale, his eyes wide and unfocused, as if he had been trapped in this place for years without human contact.

"Subject 47, can you hear me?" Victor asked cautiously.

The man's head twitched, his eyes flickering with recognition. He took a step forward, but his movements were jerky, unnatural. His gaze landed on Mia, and for a moment, there was something almost human in his expression. But it quickly vanished, replaced by an eerie blankness.

Mia took a tentative step forward. "You're safe now. We're here to help you."

The man's lips parted, but the words that escaped sounded garbled, like he had forgotten how to speak properly. "Free... me..." he rasped.

Without hesitation, Mia stepped closer, her hand reaching out to him. "We will. But you have to trust us."

As the man stepped out of the pod, Mia saw the full extent of what had been done to him. His body was covered in scars, his skin unnaturally taut, and his eyes had a wild, unblinking intensity. But there was something else—a deep pain, a brokenness, that she could see behind the madness.

"He's been through hell," she whispered to Alexander. "We have to help him."

Victor nodded grimly. "He's one of the lucky ones. Most of them didn't survive the experiments."

Mia felt a pang of guilt wash over her, but she forced herself to focus. The Paragon project was no longer just an abstract threat. It was real. It had created people like this man—people who had been treated as nothing more than experiments.

And now, they were standing face-to-face with the consequences of Marco's ambitions.

Suddenly, the ground beneath them shook, and a loud siren began blaring throughout the lab. The lights flickered, then went out completely. Panic erupted in the room as the team scrambled to maintain control.

"What the hell is happening?" Alexander shouted, pulling Mia close.

Victor quickly ran to the terminal. "It's a fail-safe. Marco must have set it up. If the lab was compromised, everything goes into lockdown."

The emergency lights came on, casting the room in a red, eerie glow. Mia's heart raced. They were trapped.

"We need to get out of here," Alexander said, urgency in his voice. "Now."

But as they turned to make their exit, the doors slammed shut with a resounding crash, sealing them in. A voice echoed through the speakers—a voice Mia recognized all too well.

"Did you really think you could just walk in and destroy everything I've built?" Marco's voice was smug, cold, and filled with a twisted sense of satisfaction. "You've only just begun to understand the power of Project Paragon. And now, you'll see the true price of your interference."

The sound of heavy footsteps echoed through the hallways, followed by the unmistakable sound of metal doors opening. Mia's stomach dropped. It was too late. The lab was fully operational, and Marco had activated his final defense.

A series of figures emerged from the shadows—twisted, malformed versions of the experiments. They were faster, stronger, and more unpredictable than anything Mia had ever encountered. And they were coming for them.

Alexander grabbed Mia's arm, pulling her toward the exit. "We're not leaving without everyone. Let's move."

As they ran, the sound of the Paragon experiments closing in behind them echoed in the narrow hallways. The team fought fiercely, taking down the first wave of attackers, but it was clear that they were outnumbered and outmatched.

Mia's heart raced as she looked over her shoulder, fear gripping her chest. They were running out of time. The lab was collapsing around them, and Marco's creations were relentless.

But they couldn't stop now. They had to survive.