Naomi's eyes fluttered open at the sharp, distant staccato of gunfire, each crack reverberating harshly through the sterile room. Her vision swam briefly before resolving on the stark white ceiling, the antiseptic smell stinging her senses anew. Slowly, painfully, she sat up, her body protesting with every movement.
Her wounds had been tended, at least partially, her torso wrapped snugly in clean white bandages stained faintly with old blood. Naomi's breath caught sharply as she took in the room once more, eyes narrowing on the figure standing calmly at the terminal, fingers dancing across the keyboard with methodical precision.
Nikodemus.
Without turning around, he spoke, his voice eerily calm, almost affectionate. "Awake again, my little wolf? How was your nap? You did always love your naps."
His casual indifference was maddening, the familiarity of his tone cutting deeper than outright cruelty ever could. Naomi's fists tightened at her sides, anger sparking anew.
Another burst of distant gunfire echoed faintly through the facility walls, causing her heart to twist painfully.
Nikodemus continued softly, almost conversationally, still not bothering to look back at her. "Seems like your friends are having a bit of a struggle out there. I can't imagine they'll last much longer."
Naomi's patience shattered. Desperately, she reached out with her power, tendrils of her mind extending violently toward Nikodemus, trying to seize him, force him to acknowledge her, to confront her. Yet her power grasped futilely at empty air, slipping and dissipating around him as though his real mind were somewhere different, somewhere miles away.
A cold sense of dread pooled in Naomi's stomach, confusion twisting sharply within her. Why couldn't she grab him, control him? Just where was he really?
Nikodemus tutted softly, finally glancing slightly over his shoulder, eyes distant yet oddly amused. "Ah, I'm afraid that won't work, sweetheart. You see, I'm not really in the room with you. Not really here at all, for that matter."
Naomi's composure cracked, the pressure of everything she'd endured finally bursting from her in a torrent of anguish and fury.
"What does that mean?" she screamed, voice raw and trembling. "What does any of this mean? How could you do this to me? Do you even know how hard it's been, living with this… this curse? This 'power'? I can't have genuine connections! Eli was the only person who truly loved me before all of this, and now I've scared him off too! How could—"
A fresh wave of pain exploded through her, sharp and blinding. Naomi doubled over, clutching her side, voice dying in a strangled gasp as hot tears blurred her vision.
Nikodemus's tone turned almost gentle, admonishing softly from afar. "It's in your best interest to calm down. Your wounds are still fresh."
With shaking fingers, Naomi pulled her hand away from her side, wincing at the crimson that painted her fingertips, less than before, but the sight of it still turned her stomach. Gritting her teeth, she steadied herself, voice dropping dangerously quiet, seething with barely controlled rage.
"You still didn't answer any of my questions."
For the first time, Nikodemus stopped typing, straightening slightly and finally turning halfway toward her. His expression was unreadable, distant, clinical. "What does it mean? It means science, Naomi. What else did you expect? I've always been a man of science, creating solutions to problems. Your brother's death, my own weakness…you. Just to name a few."
He moved to another nearby terminal, resuming his typing with renewed vigor, speaking almost absently now. "You've surprised me or rather, Roe has disappointed me. I intended for that rat to keep you preoccupied until I was finished here. Evidently, I overestimated his competence."
Naomi's stomach churned, fury and disbelief tightening her throat as she pushed herself forward, cutting him off sharply. "Hey! Ignoring that absolutely fucked-up thing you just said, finished with what? What the hell are you even doing down here?"
Another muffled burst of gunfire punctuated her words, accompanied by faint, frantic shouts from beyond the laboratory doors. Naomi felt her chest tighten, worry briefly flickering beneath her anger.
Nikodemus paused abruptly, stiffening slightly at the renewed sounds of conflict, then sighed heavily, irritation clear in his voice. "I have less time than I thought. Persistent… unfortunate."
He turned toward her fully at last, meeting her furious gaze with a detached, almost hollow stare, his voice dropping to a colder register. "Your brother Shane's death, it changed me, Naomi. Redoubled my efforts. When he died in that useless war, I vowed no one would ever truly be lost again. I created a way for soldiers or really, anyone, to use a proxy. To inhabit a body like I am now, to be anywhere, from anywhere."
His words hung heavily between them, sterile and sharp as the clinical white walls that surrounded them, cold and detached, void of the warmth or compassion she so desperately needed.
And in that chilling emptiness, Naomi finally began to understand the terrifying depths of what Nikodemus had become.
Her mind swirled chaotically, trying desperately to make sense of it all, the experiments, Rat City, the twisted puppetry of Nikodemus. Her voice came out raw, wounded, a whisper tinged with anguish.
"It still doesn't make any sense," she rasped, struggling for breath. "Why here, why Rat City, why the Rat King? Why any of it?"
Nikodemus chuckled softly, a cold sound utterly devoid of empathy. "Simple. Free test subjects, no restrictions on my experiments, no government oversight, no red tape." His tone was flat, as if Naomi should've already understood something so obvious.
A surge of anger overwhelmed Naomi's pain, propelling her forward unsteadily. "I don't care about the science, you asshole!" she cried out, stumbling toward him. Each step felt like fire, blood seeping fresh and hot from her side. Her voice cracked with desperation, "What's your big stupid plan with all of this, killing us all? Destroying everything?"
Nikodemus paused briefly, fingers frozen mid-motion, before calmly resuming his work. His voice grew distant, uninterested. "I'm leaving. Taking all of my research with me. This place… has nothing left for me now."
His words cut Naomi deeply, slicing through her defenses with brutal precision. Despite everything, a part of her still felt connected to this monster, once her father, now something monstrous and cold. The heartbreak surged up, drowning her anger, replacing it with despair. Her knees buckled, sending her crashing to the sterile white floor.
As Naomi collapsed, she felt a storm within her, a wave of power surging outward uncontrollably. The boundaries of her consciousness shattered, flooding outward like a tidal wave. Her awareness expanded beyond her body, she felt Castin, Matias, Vance, and Lorne just outside, their pulses racing. She sensed Kiernan and Garret, distant but still alive, felt the cold emptiness of the mech suits waiting motionlessly. She even could feel Rivets back on the boat, feel his nervous energy.
Nikodemus finally stopped typing, frozen rigidly as her power crashed through him. Far away, wherever the real Nikodemus truly was, he felt it too, a shiver of fear rippling through his distant mind and interrupting his connection to the vessel below.
"Little Wolf," he hissed, voice strained with barely contained fury. "Whatever you're doing, stop it! You cursed little animal!"
Outside, Castin and the others sensed a sudden shift. The previously relentless Nikodemus copies abruptly halted mid-motion, rigid and unmoving.
Castin quickly raised his fist, signaling the team to hold fire. Vance cautiously peered over the battered terminal they'd used for cover, its metal frame riddled with dents and scorch marks.
"Hey guys," Vance said tentatively, confusion giving way to cautious optimism. "I think they ran outta juice! Look!"
He grabbed a nearby keyboard, hurled it at one of the frozen figures, and watched as it collided loudly with its head. The Nikodemus collapsed, its form shattering into a cascade of metallic scales scattering across the polished floor. The other figures stood motionless, lifeless.
Castin sprang to his feet immediately, determination flaring. "Let's move! We've got to get that door open!"
They rushed toward the imposing doors, only to be halted by the familiar robotic voice: "No biological matches detected. Access denied."
Matias let out an aggravated growl, "Son of a bitch!"
Lorne, examining the control panel closely, noticed something, a retinal scanner. He snapped to attention. "Hey, this thing's got some kind of eye scanner. I've got an idea. Someone help me out."
He darted toward the nearest Nikodemus figure, gesturing sharply at Vance, who grimaced deeply. "Oh come on! Why do I have to touch the creepy scientist freak?!"
Vance reluctantly joined him, and together they dragged the lifeless shape of Nikodemus toward the retinal scanner. The robotic voice responded promptly: "Retinal match, welcome Nikodemus."
Lorne allowed himself a satisfied grin, mumbling under his breath, "Hell yeah, baby."
The doors slid smoothly open, revealing Naomi's still form sprawled across the pristine white floor. Nikodemus stood rigid by the terminal, face twisted with barely contained fury.
He spoke through gritted teeth, voice shaking with restrained rage. "Computer, reroute power to this single unit."
The voice echoed mechanically, "Rerouting."
Nikodemus resumed his typing with cold efficiency, muttering bitterly. "Fine, take her. You are all useless to me."
Matias stepped forward, eyes blazing. "What did you do to her? Why isn't she moving?"
For the first time, genuine anger sparked visibly in Nikodemus's expression. "Certainly you mean what did she do to me. She nearly ruined everything just now!"
Naomi lay motionless, her physical body merely a vessel for the overwhelming torrent of her power. As her consciousness stretched beyond the room, latching onto something tangible, something huge and familiar. A distant rumble began, vibrating softly through the facility's foundations.
Nikodemus's fingers halted abruptly, his typing finally complete. His voice dripped with detached resignation. "Seems like our time is nearing an end here."
The familiar robotic voice echoed from unseen speakers, toneless yet oddly mocking. "Data upload complete, syncing biometric upload… Error, multiple life signs in vicinity."
The distant rumbling surged closer, rattling equipment and reverberating through the walls. Anxiety flickered in Vance's eyes as he raised his voice, barely audible over the increasing noise. "Guys, I don't think any of this is good and I've gotten pretty damn good at guessing when things are bad!"
Nikodemus let out a frustrated growl, eyes blazing with a sudden, monstrous determination. The segmented scales from the fallen Nikodemus clones outside the room surged inward like liquid metal, swirling around him in a vortex of reflective shards. Piece by piece, the scales fused onto him, his form swelling grotesquely, rapidly becoming something massive and terrifying.
The robotic voice chimed again, a note of alarm in its synthetic cadence. "Host connection overclock detected, warning, connection unstable."
Nikodemus roared, a distorted and booming sound that rattled the walls. His rapidly expanding form loomed dangerously large within the confined space, his features stretching and distorting into an unnatural, metallic visage.
"Sorry about this, Little Wolf," he bellowed, voice layered with harsh digital echoes, "but my plans are worth more than any one life."
Castin braced himself, weapon raised defiantly, his voice sharp with dark humor as he shouted over the growing chaos. "Yeah, Vance! Looks like you were right!"
But just as Nikodemus lunged forward, the cacophony ceased abruptly. A heartbeat of silence hung thickly in the air, filled with dreadful anticipation. Nikodemus froze mid-step, confused by the sudden stillness.
Before anyone could react, the massive, clawed arm of the remaining mech tore violently through the laboratory wall, colliding directly into Nikodemus's enlarged form. Metal scales shattered explosively, cascading outward as debris and sparks filled the chamber, plunging the group into a haze of smoke and confusion.
In the brief silence that followed, the mechanical voice spoke again, a faint note of irony discernible beneath its cold monotone. "Connection terminated."
Matias was the first to regain his footing, blinking away smoke and dust, barking urgently into the gloom. "Report! Is everyone okay?"
One by one, the others answered, Castin, then Lorne, followed by Vance. The smoke began to thin, revealing Naomi standing unsteadily amidst the rubble, eyes glassy yet fierce.
Castin rushed to her side, relief and fear mingling sharply in his voice. "Naomi, you're okay?"
She didn't turn to face him, her gaze locked forward, intensity radiating from her even through the pain. "We're not done yet," she said flatly, her tone cold with certainty. "He's still here."
As if summoned by her words, the robotic voice rang out once more, ominously matter-of-fact. "Connection reestablished."
The scattered scales stirred violently, surging together like iron filings drawn to a magnet. They rapidly reformed into Nikodemus, now battered and missing an arm, but no less furious. His voice crackled with barely contained rage as he turned to the terminal.
"Have it your way, then! I'll bury you all!"
He rapidly keyed in a series of commands, desperation and fury driving his movements. The robotic voice responded immediately, ominously compliant. "Self-destruct command enabled, unlocking additional terminal, please key in password."
A small keyboard slid from beneath a hidden panel, awaiting input. Nikodemus's remaining hand shot forward, trembling fingertips mere inches from their goal. But just as he began to type, his entire body froze rigidly.
The mechanical voice stuttered erratically, as though caught between opposing forces. "Connection unstable… connection secure… connection unstable… connection secure."
Nikodemus strained visibly, fighting an unseen force for every centimeter, movements slow and agonizing. Across the room, Naomi's eyes blazed fiercely, a bead of sweat tracing its way down her pale face, teeth gritted in desperate concentration.
She called out, voice ragged with strain. "I can only hold him for so long. You have to get out of here!"
Castin's reply was immediate, raw and determined. "No way we're leaving you behind! I could never forgive myself."
Naomi knew the truth in his words, knew the stubbornness in all of them. Her voice softened slightly, resolve mingling with resignation. "I'll hold him off as long as I can but I can't promise we'll make it out."
Castin shook his head, eyes unyielding. "It's gotta be all of us or none of us."
Naomi met his gaze for the first time, seeing the strength and resolve mirrored in each of her friends' faces: Matias, Lorne, and Vance each nodded solemnly, steadying her resolve and solidifying her choice.
Without another word, they surged forward, Castin in the lead, Naomi leaning heavily on Matias in a desperate half-run, half-limp. The facility shook around them, groaning under the distant movements of Naomi's remotely controlled mech.
Matias barked between ragged breaths, "You're bringing that thing too?"
Naomi said nothing, only nodded grimly, her gaze distant with concentration.
They sprinted through the ruined central hall, terminals and chairs scattered wildly from the earlier chaos, a stark preview of the devastation that awaited the compound should Nikodemus succeed.
Bursting from the main doors, they found the outer compound deceptively calm, the toppled husks of the earlier mech suits lying still and silent in the distance. If not for the looming threat and the hulking mech suit now lumbering faithfully behind them, Castin might've believed nothing had changed.
Vance shouted above the thunderous footsteps of the mech, urgency sharp in his voice. "We've gotta get back to Kiernan and Garret!"
As they hurried across the cavernous space, Matias glanced at Naomi, concern heavy in his tone. "You holding in there, kid? Not too much longer now, we're gonna make it."
Naomi's reply was silent, her jaw tight as she fought to maintain control over everything, giving a single determined nod.
Finally they reached the small building, the mech slowed to an obedient halt behind them.
Castin's chest heaved, adrenaline pulsing hotly through his veins as he scrambled into the cramped room where Kiernan still hovered anxiously over Garret. Kiernan's eyes flashed upward, relief briefly flickering in his tired gaze.
"Garret, look," Kiernan began urgently, "the cavalry's finally—"
"Kiernan," Castin cut in sharply, voice grim and strained, "Garret, I'm sorry, but things are about to get hairy."
Before Kiernan could respond, the cold, mechanical voice filled every corner of the compound, its calm tone a stark contrast to the mounting panic:
"Self-destruct protocol activated. Please evacuate immediately. Ten minutes remaining."
Vance groaned aloud, frustration clear in his eyes. "Aw hell, it just never stops with this guy."