CURSED LYCAN
The Apex subjects moved like water. Fluid. Synchronized. Impossibly fast.
Sera barely got her blade up in time to block the first attack. The force drove her back three steps. These things were strong. Way stronger than corrupted lycans.
Kael shifted. The beast erupted, meeting two Apex subjects head-on. His claws raked across one's chest. It barely bled. Just smiled and countered with a punch that sent Kael crashing through a wall.
"They don't feel pain!" Marcus shouted, firing silver rounds into an Apex subject. The bullets hit. Didn't slow it down.
"Then we don't fight them!" Sera rolled under an attack, came up slashing. "We go for the head! Apex One!"
The enhanced human stood watching. Evaluating. Like this was all just data.
Kira and two other lycans charged it. Apex One moved. Casual. Easy. Caught Kira mid-leap by the throat. Threw her into the other two. They went down in a heap.
"Interesting," Apex One said. "Lycan physiology allows for impressive bursts of speed, but recovery time is suboptimal. Doctor Cross will want these metrics."
It pulled out a tablet. Started typing notes.
While its own soldiers fought and died.
Sera saw the opening. Ran. Low and fast. Her blade aimed for Apex One's spine.
It turned at the last second. Caught her wrist. Squeezed.
Bones ground together. Sera gasped. Dropped the blade.
"Sera Blackwood. Age twenty-eight. Hunter classification: elite. Bonded to Kael Thorne via ancient blood magic." Apex One's grip tightened. "Your pain threshold is impressive. Most humans would've passed out by now."
"Go to hell."
"Anatomically impossible. But I appreciate the sentiment."
Kael's roar shook the factory. He'd recovered. Was tearing through Apex subjects with renewed fury. But there were too many. And they were learning. Adapting to his patterns.
Through the blood bond, Sera felt his exhaustion. His frustration.
They were losing.
Apex One lifted Sera off the ground by her broken wrist. "Doctor Cross wants you alive. Both of you. The blood bond is unprecedented. Worth studying. But if you continue to resist, I'm authorized to use lethal force on your companions."
As if to demonstrate, an Apex subject grabbed Marcus. Started crushing his ribs.
"Stop!" Sera shouted. "Stop, I'll cooperate!"
Apex One tilted its head. "Smart choice."
It dropped her. Sera collapsed, cradling her wrist.
"Kael!" Apex One called. "Cease fighting or I terminate the human female."
Kael froze. Looked at Sera. At the Apex subject holding something sharp against her throat.
He shifted back to human. Raised his hands.
"Good," Apex One said. "You're both more valuable compliant."
The Apex subjects moved in. Restraints appeared. High-tech. Glowing with the same energy as the paralysis devices.
They were trapped.
"Transport them to Lab Seven," Apex One ordered. "Doctor Cross is waiting."
"No!" Kira struggled against three Apex subjects holding her. "Fight! Don't let them—"
One of them hit her. Hard. She went limp.
Sera and Kael were dragged toward a vehicle. Black. Unmarked. Behind them, their team was being subdued. Captured.
They'd walked right into it.
The vehicle interior was sterile. White. Sera and Kael sat across from Apex One, restrained and helpless.
"Why?" Sera asked. Her wrist throbbed. "Why create you? What's the point?"
"Evolution," Apex One replied. "Lycans are superior to humans in strength and healing. Humans are superior in adaptability and reason. Doctor Cross combined the best of both. Eliminated the weaknesses."
"You're not evolution. You're a lab experiment."
"All evolution is experimentation. I'm just more controlled." It studied them. "You interest Doctor Cross. The bond you share. It breaks curses. Provides unprecedented magical resistance. She wants to replicate it."
"The bond can't be replicated," Kael said. "It's unique to us."
"Everything can be replicated. Given time and proper resources." Apex One's smile was unsettling. "Doctor Cross has both."
They drove for hours. Sera tried to track their direction through the windows, but the glass was tinted. Blacked out. No way to tell where they were going.
Through the blood bond, she felt Kael's steady presence. His determination.
We'll get out of this, she thought at him.
She didn't know if he could hear her thoughts through the bond. They'd never tested it. But his eyes met hers. And he nodded slightly.
He'd heard her.
The vehicle stopped. They were pulled out into underground parking. A facility. Massive. Modern. Nothing like Valeria's makeshift operations.
This was corporate. Professional. Funded by people with serious money.
Doctor Helena Cross waited in the main lab. She looked exactly like her photo. Professional. Pleasant. Except her eyes. Her eyes had that same unsettling awareness as Apex One.
"Finally," she said. "The bonded pair. I've been waiting to meet you."
"Can't say the feeling's mutual," Sera replied.
Helena laughed. "I like you. Valeria said you were stubborn. She wasn't wrong." She approached Kael. Studied him like he was a specimen. "The last Bloodmoon alpha. Your bloodline is remarkable. Ancient magic woven into your very DNA. And this curse. This beautiful, terrible curse that should've destroyed you."
"But didn't," Kael said.
"Because of her." Helena turned to Sera. "The bond. It's extraordinary. Ancient blood magic mixed with genuine emotional connection. It creates a magical resonance that actively fights corruption. Fights curses. Fights anything that tries to alter its participants."
"You can't have it," Sera said.
"I don't need to have it. I just need to understand it. Replicate its effects." Helena gestured. Scientists moved forward with equipment. Needles. Scanners. "This won't hurt. Much."
"Touch her and I'll kill you," Kael growled.
"You'll try. And fail. But I admire the sentiment." Helena nodded to Apex One. "Sedate them. Begin extraction."
"No!" Sera fought against the restraints. Useless.
A needle pierced her arm. Cold flooded her system. Her vision blurred.
The last thing she saw was Kael's silver eyes. Desperate. Angry.
Then nothing.
Sera woke strapped to a table. White room. Medical equipment everywhere. Her head pounded. Her wrist was bandaged. Set. They'd fixed it while she was unconscious.
How considerate.
Through the blood bond, she felt Kael. Close. Maybe next room. Also restrained.
The door opened. Helena entered with a tablet.
"Good. You're awake. We've completed the initial scans. The results are fascinating." She showed Sera a screen. Images of her body. Her blood. Things she didn't understand. "The bond creates a unique magical signature in both participants. Like a fingerprint. Completely individual."
"Great. Can I go now?"
"No. Because we've discovered something else." Helena swiped to another image. "The bond is growing. Evolving. Every day you're connected, it gets stronger. More integrated. Eventually, it'll reach a state we're calling 'complete synchronization.'"
"What does that mean?"
"It means you'll be able to share more than just presence and emotion. You'll share thoughts. Memories. Even physical sensations." Helena's eyes gleamed. "Imagine feeling everything your partner feels. Being truly one person in two bodies."
The idea was terrifying. And intimate. And wrong.
"You're insane," Sera said.
"I'm visionary. There's a difference." Helena set down the tablet. "I'm going to replicate this bond. Create it artificially between Apex subjects. Imagine an army where every soldier is perfectly synchronized with every other. No miscommunication. No hesitation. Perfect coordination."
"It won't work."
"Why not?"
"Because the bond needs something you can't replicate in a lab. It needs trust. Connection. Love." Sera met her eyes. "Your Apex subjects don't have that. They're just meat puppets following orders."
Helena's smile faded. "Love is just brain chemistry. Oxytocin. Dopamine. Serotonin. All measurable. All replicable."
"Keep telling yourself that."
Helena left. Sera was alone with the beeping machines and her racing thoughts.
They had to escape. Had to warn people about Helena's plans. Had to stop this before she created an army of perfectly synchronized super soldiers.
But how?
Through the bond, she reached for Kael.
Can you hear me?
Silence. Then, faintly.
Sera?
Her heart leaped. They'd never communicated like this before. But the bond was growing. Just like Helena said.
I'm here. You okay?
Drugged. Restrained. You?
Same. We need to get out.
Working on it. The restraints are electronic. If I can short-circuit them—
An alarm blared. Red lights flashed.
Sera's door burst open. Not Helena. Not Apex subjects.
Marcus.
He was bleeding. Limping. But free.
"Come on!" He rushed to her table. Started working on her restraints. "Security breach. Someone's attacking the facility."
"Who?"
"Don't know. Don't care. This is our chance." The restraints released. Sera sat up. Dizzy but functional.
They ran to the next room. Found Kael. Marcus freed him while Sera kept watch.
"Where are the others?" Kael asked. "Kira and the team?"
"Holding cells. Basement level. We need to move fast. Whoever's attacking won't last long against Apex subjects."
They ran through corridors. Following Marcus's lead. Sera grabbed a weapon from a fallen guard. Felt better armed.
They reached the holding cells. Found their team. Battered but alive. Kira had a black eye and a split lip but was standing.
"About time," she said.
They freed everyone. Ten total. Not much of a rescue party but it'd have to do.
"Exit's this way," Marcus said.
They turned a corner. Stopped.
Fifty Apex subjects blocked their path.
And behind them, Helena. Apex One beside her.
"Going somewhere?" Helena asked.
Before anyone could answer, the ceiling exploded.
A figure dropped through. Massive. Covered in scars. Moving with impossible grace.
It looked like an Apex subject. But different. Older. More refined.
And its eyes. Its eyes were aware. Angry. Human.
"Apex Zero," Helena breathed. "That's impossible. You were terminated."
The figure spoke. Its voice was rough. Unused. "You tried. Failed. I survived. And I've been hunting you ever since."
It turned to Sera and Kael. "I'm the prototype. The first test subject. Before Helena perfected the process. Before she removed conscience and free will." It looked at Helena with pure hate. "I'm here to end this. All of it."
"You can't," Helena said. "You're one subject. I have fifty."
"Then let's see who's really Apex."
Apex Zero charged.
And hell broke loose.