The Voice Beneath the Ground
[Location: Nova Academy – Training Zone Edge | Morning, 07:54 AM]
The skies above Nova Academy were dim and heavy—not from weather, but from something deeper.Everyone could feel it.Something was stirring beneath the surface.
I stood near the perimeter of the training zone with Kael, Ryn, and Nala.Today's mission?Investigate a sudden spike in wild Core resonance.
The instructors called it "a minor anomaly."
I wasn't buying it.
"Minor anomalies don't usually make the Academy's sensors scream like electrocuted chickens," I muttered, sipping my tea.
I leaned slightly closer to Ryn and whispered,
"Clarice just sent a report.Old-version signal trace. Came from Valdheim's supply route."
"So someone's using your stuff again?"
"Yeah. And not for fun this time.I can tolerate stolen code...But stealing the design name? That's personal."
Kael jogged up, arms full of snacks.
"Brought supplies! Could be a long mission. You want peanut bread, Der?"
"If something explodes underground, I'm blaming your carbs."
"It's just peanut—"
"Peanuts produce gas. Technically, still explosive."
[Location: Abandoned Core Conduit – Sector Access Tunnel]
We entered an old underground path.Once used for Core energy distribution.Now officially sealed.
Of course, the weird signal came from here.
Kael gagged.
"Ugh. This place stinks."
"That's not the place," I replied."That's the smell of mutilated history."
Ryn's scanner lit up.
"There's active Core resonance. Unstable."
"Sounds like Valdheim's ex-relationship. Still burning. Still toxic."
Kael wheezed with laughter.
"Der, I swear—you need a comedy gig one day."
"I'll stand-up if the pay's good. High tier only."
[Location: Resonance Epicenter – Old Facility Gate]
We reached a massive steel door marked with the faded Valdheim insignia.The Core energy behind it?Heavy. Dense.
"This used to be an old research facility," I muttered. "Didn't think it still had power."
The door slid open.
Inside—Old Core tanks, twisted wires, dust...
And something else.
A creature.
Half-Metavore. Half-machine. Fully wrong.
Nala raised her weapon instantly.
"That's a hybrid form."
Its red eyes flared.
It screamed.
Then it attacked.
Kael yelled while running for his life.
"DEREN! This isn't in the training module!"
"YEAH! I WROTE THAT MODULE—AND THIS WASN'T IN IT!"
I yanked a small energy-net launcher from my bag—modded just last night.
I fired.
It missed.
And struck Kael.
ZAAAAAP.
Kael dropped like sizzling shrimp.
"AAARGH! DEREN! WHO ARE YOU AIMING AT?!"
"Hey, don't stand in my shot lane!"
Ryn and Nala moved in.Precise strikes—one blade, one shot.I activated my second device—triggered the detonator.
"Beep."
"…Eh?"
BOOM.
Smoke filled the room.The creature reeled.But still stood.
Ryn lunged, driving his blade into an exposed circuit.Nala followed up—one shot, straight through the eye.
The creature collapsed.Burning.
Kael whimpered on the floor.
"I... demand... emotional compensation…"
I knelt beside him, untangling the net.
"You'll get a spiritual reward. Growth."
"I'm traumatized."
"Spiritual, then."
[Location: Underground Lab – Aftermath]
With the area secured, I approached the hybrid's remains.I examined its back—where the Core rig was embedded.
Fake markings.
Sloppy design.
"This is a bad ripoff. Someone tried recreating old Eidolon hybrid tech… and failed."
I stood.
Annoyed.
"I hate it when my designs get plagiarized... and turned into ugly monsters. No sense of aesthetics."
Kael, still groaning, looked up.
"You care about style when something's trying to kill us?!"
"Not all death has to be ugly."
[Location: Academy Surface – Post-Mission Debrief]
Tessan stood waiting.
"Brief report?"
"Unstable Core source. Old Valdheim facility.Low-tier hybrid tech based on designs from... confidential sources."
Tessan's eyes narrowed.
"And that source... is you?"
I shrugged.
"I said confidential.If it is me, then I'm doing a great job keeping it secret."
Tessan massaged his temple.
"Go to Evaluation Room. Now."
"Can I sleep there?" I asked Ryn.
Kael raised a shaky hand.
"Carry me... if you must..."
Ryn just chuckled.
[Closing Scene – Location: Eidolon HQ – Clarice's Terminal]
Clarice studied the latest mission report.
"The bait worked. They're trying to revive Echo-7 designs… and failing."
She tapped a button.The display shut down.
"Deren... the underworld's getting too close to the surface.Time to change the rules."