The Haunting Past

The group pressed on, the dim light and musty air filling their surroundings as they traversed the complex network of passages. Due to the need to climb the canals and navigate difficult passageways, their journey through the air ducts had taken hours.

Finally, after several hours, the group reached their final destination in the air duct, emerging into a small corridor. As they ventured forward, they were confronted with a haunting sight. The corridor was littered with the lifeless bodies of zombies, each one bearing visible gunshot wounds.

Carefully maneuvering through the corridor, stepping over the motionless corpses, their eyes scanned the surroundings for any signs of movement. The silence was deafening, broken only by the faint sounds of their footsteps and the distant hum of machinery.

Rounding a corner, their attention was drawn to a room at the end of the corridor. A large window offered a view into the chamber, revealing a solitary figure—an imposing zombie with thick, black, naked skin resembling armor. Its bulging muscles and glowing eyes gave off an air of strength and menace.

The group huddled together, their voices barely above a whisper, as they observed the armored sentinel within the room. Asher's heart raced, his mind calculating the best approach. He turned to Serena, his voice low but filled with determination.

"This is the zombie that held the ID card. Its armor is impenetrable, and after watching it, we concluded that it has only one weakness we can use to put it down. But it's too small, and we aren't skilled enough to hit that point using guns," Serena explained.

Asher listened intently to Serena's explanation, his brows furrowing as he processed the information. He looked at the formidable armored zombie, its presence casting a shadow of uncertainty over their group. He understood Serena's words—they needed him to face the creature up close, to exploit its weakness.

"So that's why you need me to fight it up close," Asher stated, his voice filled with determination.

Serena nodded, her gaze unwavering. "Yes, Asher. This is our best chance at taking down that creature. But fighting it now would be unwise. We are exhausted from the long journey through the air ducts. We need to find a safe place to rest and gather our strength before we face it."

Agreeing with Serena's assessment, the group began to make their way down the corridor, carefully distancing themselves from the armored sentinel. They searched for a room that would provide them refuge—a place where they could regain their energy and plan their next move.

Finally, they found a small, abandoned office tucked away in a secluded corner of the facility. The room offered a momentary respite from the looming danger that awaited them. They closed the door behind them, creating a barrier between themselves and the armored sentinel.

Sitting on the floor, they shared the provisions they had brought—a meager meal of energy bars, bottled water, and dried fruit. They ate in silence, their minds preoccupied with the impending battle.

As they finished their meager meal, the atmosphere in the room shifted, and they began to talk, each sharing snippets of their past, revealing glimpses of who they were before their lives were forever changed by the horrors of the facility.

Maya, with her fiery spirit, recounted her days as a competitive athlete, her voice laced with nostalgia. Ava, the quiet and observant one, spoke of her expertise in technology and her passion for unraveling mysteries. Lina and Nina, the inseparable twins, shared stories of their adventures together, their bond unbreakable even in the face of despair. Mara, with her sharp wit, regaled the group with tales of her survival skills honed during her time in the wilderness.

Asher's curiosity sparked, and without realizing it, he asked, "About room number 6 that contained the guns, do you know why it was closed at first?"

"What!? Why do you say that? Was it supposed to be open?" Maya asked with a confused expression.

"Yes, I can't say why, but I had my reasons to think that it was open," Asher said, remembering that BOI-TRK had mentioned it should have been open.

"We actually don't know. We just found it closed, and the door was too heavy to open forcefully," said Serena.

"Oh, maybe I was mistaken, but if it was heavy to open forcefully, how did you guys manage to open it?" Asher asked.

"Oh, actually, Simon was the one who opened it for us," said Ava, looking at Simon, who had kept himself silent for this all period.

'Oh, he didn't tell me that he was the one who opened the room. So that's why they let him live,' Asher thought to himself.

"It was the least I could do," Simon said with an emotional voice. "I-I was supposed to help you much earlier than that."

As Simon's words sank in, the atmosphere grew heavier. The women remembered the suffering they had endured at the hands of the men they once worked with and trusted, the pain and torture they had endured. The pain was visible on their faces, and Asher noticed the tears that Maya was desperately trying to hold back. He realized that the scars of their past were still fresh.

The conversation became much more intense as the women opened up about the problems they had suffered all this time. Serena's voice trembled slightly as she spoke up, "Seven months ago, we lost one of our group members when we first encountered that armored monster. We were ill-prepared, caught off guard by its strength and resilience. It's a wound that still haunts us to this day."

Asher listened attentively, the weight of their shared burden settling on his shoulders. Meanwhile, a shadow that had appeared from nowhere, unfazed, looked at Serena's face with a confused expression, as he whispered to himself, "Just who are you...?"

After a few hours of rest and reflection, the group steeled themselves for the ultimate confrontation with the armored sentinel. Their determination renewed, and they emerged from the safety of the small office, ready to face the beast that stood between them and their escape.

The corridor stretched before them, the atmosphere heavy with anticipation. They retraced their steps, their minds focused on the task at hand. As they neared the room where the armored zombie awaited, Asher's hand tightened around his ax while he looked at the monster inside the room through the wide window.

The armored sentinel stood tall and imposing, its frame reaching the ceiling. Its body was covered in thick, blackened skin resembling hardened armor, providing a formidable defense against any attack. Muscles bulged beneath its tough exterior, a testament to its immense strength. Glowing red eyes pierced through the darkness, radiating an eerie, otherworldly glow.

In its hand, the armored sentinel held an object that caught Asher's attention—a small, tattered card. The card was worn and stained, it was the ID card they needed.