Chapter 20

Sera Westbrook's POV

The supply station wasn't far. Two hours later, we reached the destination.

The supply station was half hidden in the folds of a hill. Rubble blocked half the entrance, leaving only a dark gap. Wind blew through the gap, carrying the smell of rust and damp. Taylor's drone circled low over the ground and sent the feed back to us.

The supply station had sealed crates, water barrels, and a row of ammunition boxes at the far end, their labels still clearly legible.

Kyle didn't speak right away. He closed his eyes and ran a neural resonance scan, only opening them a dozen or so seconds later, his voice flat. "There are about a dozen Eroded inside, mostly Grade C, no Grade B. There's a low-frequency noise deep underground. No idea what it is."

The tasks were assigned quickly. Cole would clear the entrance. Jax would push through the middle. Vera would handle the flank. Taylor stayed in the vehicle to pilot the drone, and Dorian monitored the data. I followed behind Kyle, ready to deal with any sudden situation.

Cole put one palm flat on the pile of rubble, and a force began moving through the soil. The gaps between the stones loosened first, then collapsed, and the entrance gradually widened until two people could walk side by side. Inside was pitch black. The emergency lights flickered a few times, then went out again.

Eroded burst out from behind the shelves, fast.

Jax held his ground, using earth-devouring to block the Eroded's advance. Vera dealt with the enemies on the flank, firelight flaring, swallowing the Eroded in an instant. Cole sealed the rear, pushing back every enemy that tried to circle around. I stayed behind Kyle, hand on the hilt of my blade, cutting down the Eroded's necks as I moved.

After clearing the outer ring, the team pushed deeper into the warehouse.

Jax counted as he walked, his voice getting louder. "Sealed water barrels, canned food, ammunition… there are ammo boxes over here!"

Taylor cut in. "My drone signal is heavily jammed. There's a low-frequency electronic signal under the warehouse floor. Be careful."

Kyle asked, "Where is the source of the low-frequency signal?"

Taylor said, "Right under your feet."

We followed the signal inward. The innermost room had a blast door that wasn't fully locked—it felt tight when we pushed it open. Inside stood a large military server, still running, its screen glowing green, its casing covered in rust. Thick cables ran out from the bottom of the rack and plunged straight into the ground, spreading out in all directions like roots.

When I saw that large military server, for some reason, my heart rate suddenly started racing.

I seemed to recognize it.

Jax leaned in for a closer look. "This thing is still running… no wonder the Eroded gathered here. They were probably drawn by the electronic noise."

Taylor spoke to us over the channel. "That server might have old data on it. I can extract it remotely, but you'll need to manually connect the backup power. It's on the side of the server."

Kyle frowned. "If we connect the power rashly, what are the risks?"

Taylor said, "The noise might get louder and louder. The Eroded will hear it and gather in greater numbers."

Dorian also came over the channel. "The Titan's supply reserves are fairly sufficient right now. Are you sure you want to take the risk for those supplies?"

Kyle turned to look at me. My heart rate slowly returned to normal. I met Kyle's eyes. "What is it?"

Had Kyle felt my heart rate spike?

Inside the warehouse, there was only the low hum of the fans and the sound of water dripping onto metal somewhere.

A few seconds later, Kyle said, "Connect the power."

Cole quickly connected the power, and Jax lit the port with a flashlight. The moment the power came on, the fans roared to life, the hum loud enough to hurt the ears, and Taylor began reading the data.

Kyle immediately sensed movement outside. "The Eroded are approaching. Stay safe."

The words had barely landed when a large number of Eroded poured in through the entrance and the cracks, far more than before.

Kyle used neural resonance to suppress the front row of Eroded, Vera released smoke to block sightlines, and Cole sealed the passage with stone slabs. Jax guarded the server port, using earth-devouring on every enemy that came at him.

Taylor's voice was anxious. "The data is copying. Just two more minutes. Hold on a little longer."

I stood beside Kyle, put my hand close to the ground, and released a stream of water. Because of the inhibitor's limits, the amount of water wasn't much—but if it was only for conducting electricity, it was enough.

The next second, I released the current and electrocuted most of the Eroded.

Just then, Taylor announced loudly, "Data extracted! We can go!"

At Kyle's order, we went around the Eroded, hauled the supplies, and ran like mad for the exit. The Eroded's reactions were slow—by the time they finally caught on, we were already far away.

We transferred all the goods onto the Titan. A quick inventory showed the supplies were plentiful—enough for us to live on for a long time.

Jax counted and called out the numbers as he went, and halfway through, he started laughing.

Vera dug a few bags of old-style dehydrated vegetables out of the bottom of a crate and smiled. "We're in for a treat tonight."

Before long, we had a proper meal.

After dinner, Kyle asked Taylor for the data report. Taylor answered while wiping his hands. "There's an encrypted file inside. The title is Chimera Sequence Sample Records. I'm decrypting it now—I'll tell you once I succeed."

In the third-deck medical bay, Dorian examined me. The instruments ran a full check, and the readings showed no obvious change. All of us let out a breath of relief.

I said, "I understand."

I looked at the reading on my wristband: GCI 90%.

At night, I sat by the window on the second floor, looking at my hands.

The green light of that server still seemed to hover in front of my eyes. The moment I pushed open that door and saw it, I'd felt an inexplicable familiarity. The rack model, the cable routing, the location of the backup power—all of it seemed like something I could have known without even looking.

But I couldn't find any corresponding image in my memory.

Just then, footsteps came across the deck. Kyle walked over and sat down beside me.

He didn't say anything—he just sat with me.

His reflection was in the glass, and mine was in the glass too.

He could feel my heartbeat.

When I saw that machine, my heart rate had spiked, and Kyle must have felt it too.

Maybe it was exactly because he sensed my heartbeat that he took the risk of connecting the power and having Taylor copy the data.

For some reason, a wave of melancholy came over me.

What exactly was my past hiding that couldn't bear the light of day?