For a split second, time felt frozen.
The door behind us shook gently, as if someone… or something… was pushing against it without urgency. Like it knew we couldn't escape for long.
The window pulsed brighter, humming like a high-voltage line.
Mira gripped my arm so tightly it hurt. "Aren—pick something! Door? Window? What do we do?!"
The shadow's voice cracked with urgency:
"Window leads to the Collector outside.
Door leads to the Collectors inside."
I stared at it. "That doesn't help!"
"You didn't let me finish."
Another THUMP hit the door—this time the frame shook.
The shadow pointed toward my desk.
Or more accurately—under it.
"Your building has old Echo tunnels. Hidden. Abandoned. But still there. They run beneath the district."
"Echo tunnels?" Mira whispered. "Those are illegal to use!"
"Illegal," I said, "but useful."
The shadow lowered its form.
"One of the tunnels touches your room."
My heart jumped. "Where?!"
It pointed again—this time clearly.
"Under the floor panel beneath the desk."
Mira's eyes widened. "There's no way you knew that."
"Didn't," I muttered, "but I'm not arguing with free escape."
Another mechanical voice spoke from behind the door:
"Citizen Aren Hale. This is your final warning."
Mira whispered, "We need to move. Now."
We rushed to the desk. I dropped to my knees and slid my fingers along the wooden tiles. One tile felt slightly loose.
I pressed down.
Click.
A faint rectangular outline lit up—dim, but visible. An old maintenance hatch.
"A hidden tunnel…" Mira breathed.
I lifted the panel. Cold air rushed out, carrying a whispery hum like distant voices echoing from below.
A narrow drop. Just deep enough to climb down.
"I'm going first," I said.
"No, I am," Mira argued. "You barely know what you're doing."
The shadow interrupted softly.
"Neither of you should go first."
We both stared at it.
"What? Why?" I asked.
"Because I can sense the safest route. Let me enter first. I will guide you."
I hesitated… then nodded.
The shadow slid forward like smoke, drifting into the tunnel entrance.
No noise.
Just a faint streak of darkness.
Then—
BOOM.
The door jolted violently. Dust rattled from the ceiling.
The voice outside repeated:
"Extraction commencing."
Mira's eyes widened. "AREN—GO!"
I swung my legs into the hatch, lowered myself, and landed on a metal grate floor beneath. Mira followed immediately.
As soon as she landed beside me, I pulled the hatch shut.
Everything went dark—
—until the shadow reappeared in front of us, faint but visible.
"This way."
We started moving through the narrow corridor. Pipes lined the ceiling, buzzing softly with Echo currents. The air felt cool but strangely charged, like a storm waiting to break.
"Where does this tunnel lead?" Mira whispered.
"Away from the Collectors," the shadow replied.
"But not out of danger."
Mira shot me a look. "Comforting."
We continued deeper. The tunnel split into two paths: one left, one right.
The shadow paused.
"Left is safer… but slower.
Right is faster… but unstable."
More choices.
I took a breath. "We choose—"
But before I could finish, a faint metallic clank echoed behind us in the darkness.
Mira froze. "Aren… someone else is in the tunnels."
The shadow tensed, its form sharpening like a blade.
"Not someone."
A new sound echoed—
Soft footfalls.
Too rhythmic.
Too precise.
"A Collector followed you."
My blood ran cold.
"Then we go right!" I whispered.
Mira nodded. "Right. Fast."
We sprinted into the right tunnel, the shadow gliding beside us.
As we ran, the corridor lights flickered violently, reacting to the Echo disturbance behind us.
The metal floor trembled.
The air tightened.
The shadow's voice dropped to a harsh whisper:
"Aren… whatever happens—don't stop running."
I didn't plan to.
But ahead of us…
…the tunnel suddenly opened into a vast chamber glowing faint blue.
And inside the chamber—
Something massive stirred.
---