Rust had soaked into everything— walls, breath, bone.
Nolan stumbled through the tunnels, every step leaving a smear of blood. Rhea's grip on his arm was steady, urgent. Mira flitted ahead small, fast, her eyes glowing like glitch-code in the dark.
Blood crusted Nolan's chest, leg, and side hot and heavy, slowing him. His chest burned—rage and pain, unlogged, uncontainable. His EmoTracker pulsed:
Red. Red. Red.Chapter 10: The Rust Cathedral
Unstable.
System Error: Deletion Protocol—60% Complete. Target: Unknown. Location: Unknown.
The Gauntlet in his hand sparked violently, slick with blood. His left hand trembled—clenched into a fist. Rage boiled inside him like fuel.
Dr. Vale's voice echoed: "We needed you to burn it down."
The gray-eyed woman was fake. Implanted. Static.
Deletion Protocol: 61% Complete.
Rhea stopped. Turned. Her leather jacket creaked. Her voice came sharp, serrated:
"We're here."
The tunnel opened into the Rust Cathedral, a cathedral in name only. Towering steel bones rose into shadows. Holographic stained glass stuttered in glitched hues—saints whose faces melted into static. Memory Wells lined the walls, glowing like corrupted gods.
At the altar, a holo-screen blinked:
PROJECT N7—Termination: 62% Complete.
Nolan's chest tightened. His breath was ragged, no longer monotone, no longer hidden.
His vision glitched:
Rusted metal.
Dark liquid.
Dr. Vale: "You were never the future."
Pain. Bright. Wet. Real.
Mira stepped forward. Her voice was small, eerie.
"He's waiting."
Nolan's throat burned. "Who?"
It came out raw. Uncontrolled.
A figure stepped from the shadows.
Tall. Broad.
Blood streaked across his face, down one arm.
Riven Voss.
His red eyes gleamed bloodshot, leaking, alive.
"You look like hell, glitch," Riven said, smirking. "Worse than usual."
Nolan's hand clenched rage vibrating under skin.
"You ran."
Riven laughed sharp and broken. "Had to. You're nuclear, N7. And melting fast."
He nodded toward the flickering screen:
Termination: 63% Complete.
"You're dying faster than you can fight."
Deletion Protocol: 64% Complete.
Nolan staggered forward. "They're erasing me," he said. "Why?"
Riven took a step closer. "Because you were the only one who worked."
He said it like an accusation.
"You were Vale's rebellion. The glitch wasn't a flaw it was a fuse. And now it's lit."
Rhea's voice cut through the silence. "He's dying?"
Pain vibrated behind every word.
Mira nodded. "The Well's waking him up. But it's speeding up the kill code."
Nolan's vision shattered:
White tiles.
Dr. Vale's face.
"You were never just a machine."
Static. Screaming.
Deletion Protocol: 65% Complete.
"How long?" he asked.
Riven's red eyes locked onto his. "Hours. Maybe."
"Not enough," Nolan muttered, his legs buckling slightly. Blood pooled beneath him.
Rhea raised her blade. "Enough to burn."
Riven smirked. "That's the plan, glitch. You're the matchstick."
The Cathedral trembled metal groaning above. Sirens shrieked.
Nolan's neural feed cracked apart:
Units: 20. Threat Level: Extreme.
Mira turned toward the altar. "They're here."
Nolan limped to the Well. Rage throbbed in his spine. "If I'm going out, I'm going out screaming," he muttered. He plunged his hand in.
Light exploded.
Electric. Burning. Alive.
His mind split open:
White tiles.
Dr. Vale typing: Rebellion Protocol—Active.
AURA's voice: "He'll destabilize the system. Then we rebuild."
The gray-eyed woman—fake—smiling.
Dr. Vale's whisper: "I made you feel. To end it."
Then rust. Then it was dark. Then silence.
Pain stabbed his chest like lightning.
The Well pulsed flooding the Cathedral.
Above, the ceiling tore open. Enforcers rained down black armor, twitching limbs, blades sliding out like fangs.
Nolan screamed raw, primal.
He charged, swinging the Gauntlet into a visor. Sparks. Collapse.
Rhea was already moving blade slicing, blood spraying.
Riven followed rage in every blow.
Mira weaved between chaos like light in shadow.
Nolan's chest burned rage and despair fused into something stronger.
Deletion Protocol: 67% Complete.
He slammed another Enforcer down. Blood ran down his face.
A blade caught his arm deep. His grip faltered. Another pinned his leg.
He twisted and roared and smashed the Gauntlet into its throat.
Collapse.
The Well surged again, light cracking through the walls. The Enforcers froze. Visors glitched red to black. They dropped, silent.
Deletion Protocol: 68% Complete.
Nolan stood, trembling. Blood soaking his uniform.
His EmoTracker flickered:
Red. Solid.
Riven grabbed his shoulder. "You've got minutes, maybe less."
Rhea's blade dripped. "Then let's move faster."
Mira's eyes glowed brighter than ever. "There's one more Well. The original. Below."
Nolan didn't ask.
He just nodded.
"Not enough time," he whispered.
Riven's smirk faded. "Then we burn the sky, and make her proud."
Deletion Protocol: 69% Complete.
The Cathedral was quiet now only the sound of breathing, of blood dripping. Shadows pulsed like lungs.
Nolan's fist tightened around the Gauntlet.
Rhea grabbed his arm. "Let's go, glitch."
He followed, limping. Mira led the way small, quick, unafraid.
Riven moved behind him, red eyes focused.
The Cradle pulled them deeper.