The constant metallic sound of resonating cylinders filled Elysian's laboratory, where living circuits pulsed in measured rhythms, like synthetic heartbeats. The air smelled of ionized metal, mixed with traces of nanocode oil and condensed EVP particles. In the center of the room, standing before a holographic panel that danced between dimensions, Elysian was immersed in the cold calculation of probabilities.
Codes scrambled in blue spirals around him. Each equation simulated infinite variations of the Remnant's next step. His eyes, empty as the vastness of space, reflected only logic. No emotion, no hesitation. Only necessity.
"...if the Autonomous pattern is truly replicable..." he murmured, twirling his finger in the air. The code obeyed, restructuring itself. "...then the next move will be predictable."
He entered one last formula. A three-dimensional map appeared, revealing the ancient underground base where he and Echo had defeated Cinder Knight. The structure was nearly intact. Now, devoid of enemies, it would be ideal for what he needed.
Without another word, Elysian flicked off the panel and left the lab. His footsteps echoed through the base's glassy corridors until he passed through the doors to the command room.
Inside, Avelar stood at a strategic projection table next to Nyx and Echo. The three of them watched holographic fragments of the previous mission.
"...the blind spot appeared seconds before the dissonance field activated," Nyx explained. "If it had lasted three more seconds, the team would have suffered a loss."
"And they still say these prototypes have been refined," Echo muttered sarcastically. "It's like sending rats to bite a wolf." Noticing Elysian's arrival, Avelar looked up and crossed his arms. "You took a while, Elysian. Were you in the lab?"
"Refining the next move," he replied nonchalantly. "I'll need Hana, Nikolai... and also Leo and Amara." Nyx raised an eyebrow. "Four arms at once?"
"This operation requires synergy between specific skills. And I want to see for myself how far they've all evolved," Elysian said, turning to Avelar. "You already granted me that authority in the last meeting."
"And it still stands," Avelar confirmed firmly. "As long as you coordinate them personally." Echo leaned against the console, smirking. "It'll be fun to see how Leo and Amara react to this."
It wasn't long before the four arms were gathered in the room. Hana, always serene, greeted Elysian with a subtle nod. Nikolai, hands in his pockets, gave an almost bored smile. As for Leo and Amara... the tension was palpable.
"With all due respect," Leo began, crossing his arms. "We prefer to work with Seraphina. We've always been part of her unit."
Amara nodded. "We understand her authority, but... it's not the same without her. And frankly, we think this plan lacks tactical room for retreat in the event of structural collapse."
Hana exchanged a look with Nikolai, who whispered quietly. "They're jealous," he said sarcastically. "Or maybe it's because dear Pandemonium has a crush on our Oblivion Sage."
"Focus, Nikolai," Hana murmured, though the corner of her mouth almost curled into a smile. Leo continued. "Seraphina has always known how to balance strategy with instinct. You, with all due respect, seem to see it all as numbers."
Elysian watched them for a second. Her eyes held no judgment, just silence. Then he said, "I don't need your trust. I need your competence. You are arms for a reason, and as long as I'm leading this mission, my orders are law." Leo and Amara looked at each other, still unsatisfied.
"But..." Elysian added, her voice now almost imperceptibly more human, "...I would never give orders that put any of you at unnecessary risk. My job is to ensure the perfect execution of the plan, and that includes everyone's survival."
The silence that followed was thick. Amara was the first to sigh, looking away. "Fine. If you're going to lead us... then prove to us you're not leading us into a trap."
"It will be done," Elysian replied simply. Moments later, the five of them stood before the dimensional platform. Echo was programming the portal with a calm that belied her colossal strength.
"East base of structural ruins... location of Cinder Knight..." she murmured, adjusting the parameters. "Activate in 3… 2… Ta-da~" The vortex opened with a gravitational distortion. "Thank you, Echo," Elysian said unexpectedly.
Echo blinked in surprise. "Wow. The robot said 'thank you'? Write that down, it'll go down in the records." He had already passed through the portal before she could finish her joke. "Cold and fast," she said, laughing. "Seraphina definitely has a unique type."
Passing through the distortion, the group arrived at the forgotten base, now silent and empty. The architecture was a scar from the previous confrontation: twisted walls, energy marks everywhere, and partially collapsed corridors. But it was stable. And perfect for what Elysian had in mind.
"Gather in the central hall," Elysian ordered. "The operation begins in thirty minutes."
Leo, though still suspicious, observed the place carefully. "I still don't understand why we came back here…" Amara simply walked forward, eyes alert. "Because he wants to control every variable," she murmured. "And this place… it's predictable."
Silence reigned again, but something stirred on the horizon of the base. Echoes of power, fragments of a new confrontation. What would come next would test each of them.
The abandoned structure of the underground base stretched like a forgotten metal skeleton beneath the earth. Exposed pipes and walls cracked by time created a claustrophobic and airless atmosphere. Elysian, positioned at a high point in the eastern sector of the facility, activated with a simple mental gesture the network of microdrones that hovered throughout the base.
His eyes, now connected to the aerial automatons' vision, glowed an ethereal red, reflecting the real-time data. His mind leaped from drone to drone, analyzing structures, scanning energy frequencies, and detecting thermal variations with surgical precision.
As he expanded his consciousness throughout most of the complex, his arms—Hana Mori, Nikolai Petrov, Leo Grayson, and Amara Patel, spread across different wings of the base, sweeping deserted corridors and ancient storage rooms.
In the central sector, Hana and Nikolai walked side by side, alert. The metallic sound of their footsteps echoed on the worn floor, until Leo and Amara's voices, coming from an adjacent sector, echoed through the integrated communicators.
"Hey, Hana, Nikolai," Leo called out casually. "What's it like... to be in Elysian's arms? It must be intense, right?" Hana chuckled, keeping her eyes focused ahead. "Intense is an understatement," she replied. "Being with Elysian demands... everything. Body, mind, soul. He never says it in so many words, but he always expects us to be better than we were the day before."
"It sounds exhausting," Amara commented, crossing her arms as she examined a wall pockmarked with ancient projectiles.
"Could be," Nikolai admitted, his voice calm and deep. "But it's also liberating. He doesn't want soldiers, he wants survivors. Fighters. People so strong they'll never lose what they love again... like he did."
Hana nodded seriously. "He trains us to be invincible. Because he knows what it's like to be weak when it matters most." For a moment, the comm was silent. Their sincerity pierced the metallic coldness of the base. "And you?" Hana returned the question. "What's it like being by Seraphina's side?"
"It's... comfortable," Amara said, a small smile in her voice. "She cares. She trains us personally, even when she's tired. She scolds us, but she never ignores the pain. It's... human, you know?" Leo added: "She talks a lot about Elysian, actually. Much more than we'd like to hear, sometimes."
"Really?" Hana asked with a brief laugh. "So you're jealous?"
"It's not jealous!" Amara protested. "It's just... it's strange. It seems like she has a silent obsession with him. Like she's always... in debt. Or feeling something she doesn't want to admit."
"But you guys don't like our big brother, Elysian?" Hana teased with her usual nickname, deliberately pausing. "What's your problem with him?"
"It's not that we don't like him," Leo said. "It's just... he's hard to read. Cold. Too reserved. It seems like he's erased any trace of feeling, as if he's turned off his heart."
Nikolai hesitated for a moment before interjecting. "That part is true. Elysian... is abdicated from emotions. But not because he chose to be. He became that way."
"Has he always been like this?" Amara asked curiously. "No." Nikolai stared at a panel lying on the floor, as if searching for words in the rusted metal. "You know he was the one who recruited Seraphina, right?"
"We know," they both replied in unison.
"But what you might not know... is that he found her when they were both seven. He... saved her. From what, I never knew. Not even Seraphina talks about it. But ever since then, she's had this look... every time she talks about him. A look that mixes gratitude and something more."
"Something else..." Amara murmured, as if fitting a piece that didn't quite fit. The sudden sound of the communicator vibrating cut through the moment.
"I found something." Elysian's voice rang through the comms, calm and direct. "Sector D-17. Hidden room behind a collapsed corridor. Advanced technology, beyond what one would expect from a base like this. Coordinates sent." The four looked at each other, the atmosphere now more tense.
Minutes later, everyone stood before a wall that had previously seemed unremarkable. Elysian was already waiting beside an open space, created by one of the drones that had removed ancient plates. Ahead, a room slowly revealed itself: lit by a pale blue glow, with smooth, polished titanium walls and integrated screens that pulsed with binary codes in ancient languages.
"Come in. Search everything," Elysian said, without taking her eyes off the screens. "I want to understand what's powering this structure."
The four arms entered side by side. Nikolai used his ability to try to decode parts of the system, while Hana ran her fingers over identification plates and energy catalysts. Leo walked to a metal bench, where physical files were stored in hidden drawers.
"Um... guys?" Leo held up a small pad of papers, yellowed and sealed with the emblem of a secret project. "This seems important. It contains data about... the Androids. Codes, stages of evolution..."
"Don't touch them yet," Elysian warned immediately over the open channel. "This room may be protected with automatic defensive protocols. We need to scan it first..." But it was too late. Leo had pulled out the first sheaf of documents. A sharp click echoed through the room.
From the ceiling and side walls, compartments began to open in sequence. Beams of red light streaked across the room, and the mechanical sound of servo motors activating sounded like the roar of an ancient system awakening.
Dozens of automatons began to emerge. They had silver and black bodies, red eyes, and adaptive limbs with retractable blades. Some floated, others walked with multiple limbs, all with a clear purpose: to eliminate intruders.
Elysian took a few steps back and activated a personal defense field, positioning herself near the entrance. "This is an opportunity." He declared unhurriedly as the automatons began to move. "All of you... deal with it. I want to see how you respond under real pressure."
"You're kidding, right?" Leo growled irritably, taking two steps back as he saw the automatons activating.
"This isn't a simulation!" Amara exclaimed, already channeling her shimmering energy around her body. Hana, beside her, activated her Ethereal Frame, causing translucent armor to appear over her skin, its circuitry glowing a purplish pink.
"He would never put us through something we couldn't handle." She said firmly. "This is a test. As always. Trust me."
Nikolai, his eyes already glowing neon blue, summoned lines of code that materialized in the form of energetic constructs around him. "And if it's a test..." he added, "Then let's show what we're made of."
Leo and Amara exchanged glances. The automatons were now just a few feet away. "Okay..." Leo murmured. "I just hope this doesn't become our tombstone." And then, together, the four of them formed up in formation. The machines advanced immediately.