The hallway of the science building was a tunnel of absolute silence. They moved like wraiths, their soft-soled shoes making almost no sound on the linoleum floor. Kai led the way, his saber in one hand, his senses on a razor's edge. The world felt different now, sharper. His increased Agility didn't just make him faster; it heightened his perception, making every distant sound, every flicker of shadow, seem crystal clear.
They reached the shattered lobby doors. Outside, the pre-dawn light cast the ash-covered quad in a monochrome, ghostly gray. The air was still and cold. In the distance, the last of the five-Collector patrol disappeared around the corner of the humanities building. The rhythmic thump... clank of their march faded into nothing.
The clock had started.
"Now," Kai breathed, and they moved.
They didn't run, not at first. They moved in a low, swift crouch, a tight triangle formation, darting from the cover of the science building's entrance to the first large, concrete planter. The ash on the ground crunched under their feet, the sound seeming deafeningly loud in the oppressive silence.
Thirty seconds gone.
From the planter, they dashed to the overturned, burned-out shell of a campus security cart. Kai's eyes were locked on the far corner of the quad, the spot where the next patrol would appear. Nothing yet. Elara moved with a predator's grace, her two sabers held low and ready. Ben, despite his lack of physical prowess, kept pace, clutching the satchel of his "persuasive deterrents" to his chest.
Sixty seconds gone.
They reached the central statue, the halfway point. They were exposed here, in the very center of the quad. It was another thirty yards of open ground to the student union building's covered entrance.
That's when it happened. A loose piece of metal facade, weakened by some earlier explosion, chose that exact moment to break free from the roof of the burning library's ruin. It wasn't a large piece, but it fell from a great height, whistling through the air before crashing onto the stone plaza with a loud, echoing CLANG that shattered the morning's silence.
Every muscle in Kai's body went rigid. Far off to their right, he heard an answering sound: a low, grinding whir, and the heavy, unmistakable thump of a Collector patrol changing direction to investigate the noise. They had been heard. The next patrol was coming, and it was coming faster than they had anticipated.
Their ninety-second window had just slammed shut.
"Run!" Kai yelled, his voice a harsh bark.
All pretense of stealth was gone. They sprinted, their lungs burning in the cold, ash-filled air. Kai pushed his Agility to its limit, his legs pumping, the world blurring slightly at the edges of his vision. He could hear the thudding of the approaching patrol getting closer, closer.
They reached the steps of the student union building. The glass doors were completely shattered, leaving a dark, gaping maw. Elara was right behind him, but Ben was starting to fall back, his breathing a ragged, desperate pant.
A Collector appeared from around the corner, its form a hulking silhouette of scrap metal and rebar against the lightening sky. Its single purple eye fixed on them, a low, mechanical growl emitting from its core. It raised an arm made from a bent street lamp and charged.
"Ben, get inside!" Elara screamed, spinning to face the threat. She raised her twin blades, her stance perfect, ready to sell her life to buy him a few more seconds.
But Kai was already moving. He wasn't going to fight it. He was going to delay it. "Ben, your bag! Now!"
Ben, understanding instantly, fumbled in his satchel and tossed one of the thick glass flasks to Kai. Device Gamma. The glue bomb.
The Collector was twenty yards away and closing fast. Kai didn't have time to aim properly. He just planted his feet, spun, and hurled the flask at the ground directly in the monster's path.
The glass shattered on the concrete, and the viscous fluid inside spread out in a wide, clear pool. The chemical reaction was instantaneous. The liquid flash-hardened with a faint cracking sound, turning into a sheet of impossibly strong, clear resin.
The Collector, in its mindless, forward charge, ran right into it. Its heavy feet became instantly, immovably bonded to the ground. Its momentum sent its upper body lurching forward, and it fell flat on its face with a crash of grinding metal, its legs still stuck fast fifty feet away. It was trapped, thrashing uselessly like a fly on flypaper.
Kai didn't wait to admire their handiwork. He grabbed Ben by the arm and hauled him up the last few steps and through the broken doors. Elara was right behind them, and together they plunged into the deep, welcoming shadows of the student union building.
They pressed themselves into the darkness of the entrance hall, their hearts hammering against their ribs, as the rest of the Collector patrol stomped past, their purple eyes scanning the quad, completely oblivious to the three ghosts who had vanished from sight.