The floor vibrated harder, dust shaking from the ceiling as alarms screamed through the corridors.
This time, no one mistook the tremors for a malfunction.
Something massive was moving beneath them.
Something plural.
Silva slammed her hand against the side panel, trying to override the warnings.
"The vault's security seal is disintegrating! The pressure, the power, everything is destabilizing!"
The stranger's face turned ghost-pale.
"That vault wasn't built to open. It was built to contain."
Palo positioned himself between Ash and the stairwell, muscles tense, eyes darting to every flickering light.
"Ash, stay behind me. No matter what comes up, you don't move."
Ash didn't argue.
But his spark pulsed again harder, sharper.
Like it sensed the things awakening below.
The Founder pressed a hand to his forehead, muttering:
"This wasn't supposed to happen. The other units were failures, unstable, unpredictable. Some weren't even complete. If they wake",
Alpha turned, cutting him off.
"They are no longer in containment. Their status is rising to activation."
Silva typed frantically on the half-working panel.
"Can you stop them? You're connected to their network, right? Can you shut them down?"
Alpha shook its head.
"No. Their fail-safes disintegrated with the stabilizer grid. They cannot be controlled remotely."
"What can be controlled, then?!" she snapped.
Alpha's eyes shifted toward Ash.
"The source."
Ash froze.
"Me?"
The Founder nodded grimly.
"Your spark triggered Alpha. Now it's triggering everything else. The prototypes in the vault operate on resonance detection. They're answering your signal."
Ash's stomach tightened.
"So they're waking up because of me?"
Alpha didn't soften the truth.
"Yes."
Palo clenched his fists.
"Then we shut the signal off. Tell him how to stop it. Now."
But Ash already knew.
He pressed a hand to his chest.
"My spark. It's… active. I don't know how to turn it off."
Alpha stepped closer, not threatening, but focused.
"Your spark is an instinctive system. It reacts to fear, to danger, to emotional pressure. The vault sensed instability and responded with awakening."
Ash's breath quickened.
"So… the more afraid I am, the more they wake up?"
"Correct."
Palo immediately cupped Ash's shoulder, grounding him.
"Hey. Look at me. Breathe. You're okay."
Ash nodded, trying to push the pressure down, but the spark was unstable . Flaring in waves he couldn't fully control.
Silva's voice trembled.
"We don't have time. Something's climbing."
Everyone turned toward the stairwell.
The lights flickered.
Something metallic scraped against the walls.
Not like Alpha's controlled movements.
Not like ZB-0's heavy steps.
This was,..
Chaotic.
Erratic.
Like something dragging itself upright for the very first time.
Ash felt a cold ripple run through him.
"It's… reaching for me."
Palo stepped forward again, ready to intercept.
But Alpha suddenly moved in front of him, blocking him with one arm.
Palo bristled.
"Move. I'm not letting anything near him."
Alpha didn't fight.
It simply said:
"You cannot protect him from what he summons."
Palo glared.
"I can try."
The sound from below grew louder.
A low metallic screech.
A fragmented vocal glitch.
Like a machine trying to form a word but failing.
The stranger backed away.
"Oh no. That's one of the incomplete units. Those were shut down early . They never finished their neural calibration. They don't think. They react."
Ash's pulse hammered.
"React to what?"
Alpha answered,
"To the strongest signal in their range."
Ash swallowed.
"Me."
A shadow shifted in the stairwell.
Then,
a hand gripped the railing.
Except it wasn't fully a hand.
Its fingers were uneven, joints exposed, wiring half-covered by deformed plating.
It dragged itself upward, jerking with movements too sharp to be natural.
Silva whispered, horrified,
"That one… it was never meant to wake up."
Another shadow appeared behind it.
Then another.
More hands.
More plates.
More fragments of unfinished machines climbing in disjointed, feral motions.
Ash felt his spark spike in fear, uncontrolled.
Alpha reacted instantly:
"Ash."
Its voice was calm. Firm.
"You must stabilize."
"I..I'm trying".
"No. You must center your spark. They are coming directly to you."
The first incomplete prototype dragged itself fully into view.
Its optic was a cracked, flickering red light.
Its movements looked painful, like a creature crawling out of its own malfunction.
Palo stepped forward, positioning himself directly in front of Ash, voice low and steady:
"Ash. Don't look at them. Look at me."
Ash tore his eyes away, forcing himself to breathe.
"One, two… three…"
His spark flickered, less frantic, slightly quieter.
Alpha observed, nodding.
"Good. But not enough. The vault is still activating."
More shadows gathered.
Silva counted under her breath.
"One… two… five… eight,bthere are eight units climbing!"
The Founder paled.
"We need to get Ash out of resonance range or they'll chase him anywhere. We must reach the upper lockdown hall before",..
A loud metallic crack cut him off.
The stairwell door dented inward.
Palo grabbed Ash's hand instinctively.
"Run. Now."
But Alpha stayed rooted.
"No. Running will amplify Ash's fear. His spark will surge and they will break through every barrier in this facility."
The dent in the door deepened.
The screeching grew louder.
Ash's spark pulsed violently.
"I ..I can't stop it"
"Yes you can," Alpha said.
Its voice dropped
still cold, but clearer.
Sharper.
Guiding.
"You must override the fear. Your spark responds to intent. Focus on something, anything that stabilizes you."
Ash shook his head.
"I don't know how"
"You do."
Alpha's artificial eyes locked onto him.
"You have someone you trust. Someone who grounds you. Use that."
Ash blinked.
His chest tightened.
And slowly,
he looked at Palo.
Palo's breath caught.
"Ash…?"
Alpha nodded.
"Anchor your spark to him."
Ash closed his eyes.
Palo's grip tightened around Ash's hand.
"Ash. I've got you. You're safe."
Ash breathed,
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
And the spark inside him instead of flaring,
glowed.
Steady.
Controlled.
Alpha's eyes brightened.
"It's working."
Silva gasped.
"The vault's activation rate is dropping!"
The noises from the stairwell weakened
the scratching slowing.
Ash opened his eyes.
"I… I think I can hold it."
Alpha took one step forward, positioning itself between Ash and the stairwell.
"Then hold it. Because if your spark destabilizes again"...
CRAAAAAAASH!
The stairwell door burst open.
Shattered metal scattered across the floor.
Eight incomplete prototypes spilled into the corridor at once.
Alpha's voice dropped to a cold, sharp command,
"they will tear this facility apart to reach you."