Certainty settled like a cold weight in Elias's stomach. He couldn't precisely explain what had triggered his suspicion—perhaps something in her voice, a subtle dissonance that most would overlook—but his survival had long depended on noticing what others missed.
"Formation, now!" Keldric commanded, the Oathkeeper blazing with ethereal blue-white flame. The Commander's Voice pendant pulsed in perfect rhythm with his heartbeat, mirroring the subtle throbbing of the gem in Sable Kiss's pommel. The ornate horn materialized in his hand as he brought it to his lips and exhaled.
Elias braced himself for a resounding blast but heard nothing—absolute silence where sound should have been. He shot Keldric a bewildered look, but the former Sentinel's attention had already shifted to positioning the group.
Sable Kiss hummed with anticipation in Elias's palm as he moved into position with the others. Once everyone had settled into formation, he noticed something peculiar. The other chosen ones began to sway almost imperceptibly in time with one another, their breathing synchronizing into a single, rhythmic pattern. Their stances shifted subtly, minute adjustments creating a seamless defensive perimeter. Whatever connection Keldric had established through Commander's Voice, Elias remained outside it.
He didn't dwell on the exclusion; his pain and exhaustion demanded his full attention, the still-healing wounds across his body pulsing with each heartbeat.
Maren's eyes had taken on a distant quality as she adjusted to the Veil of Whispers. "They're almost here," she murmured, her voice simultaneously present and elsewhere. "Her group consists of twenty-four people, I think."
"Twenty-four?" Darius questioned, Truth Seeker glowing faintly in his grip. "How are there so many?"
Etta's gaze remained fixed on the darkness, her eyes wide and unblinking. "She evacuated the Medical Bay," she said with sudden realization. "She must have all the patients with her."
The ship shuddered violently beneath them—the most severe tremor yet. Unlike previous instances, this wasn't the result of a section being scuttled. The vessel had abruptly ceased acceleration. The sudden decrease in speed tilted the entire structure, causing everyone to struggle for balance.
They managed to stay upright, adjusting their stances as the craft settled back into stability. The monitor flickered once again, the countdown mercilessly continuing:
0:02:30
Through the gloom of failing emergency lights, where control panels toggled erratically between life and death, where arctic air penetrated the compromised hull with knife-like precision, they heard the approaching group. Ragged breathing. Hurried footsteps. The unmistakable sounds of desperate retreat from a relentless predator.
Lyara was the first to emerge from the darkness, Guardian's Mantle shimmering around her shoulders like liquid starlight, Mercy's Edge radiating brilliant blue illumination that pierced the shadows. She guided the medical personnel forward with practiced efficiency, followed by Maris and several injured crew members. Their faces were etched with exhaustion and fear; their clothing was torn and stained with evidence of their desperate journey.
Keldric drew a deep breath, the freezing air burning his lungs. "Lyara," he called out, voice steady despite the circumstances, "we've prepared. Get within the protection of our formation!"
Lyara and her group were already moving quickly, given their burden of injured, but upon hearing Keldric's command, their pace increased further. Hope was a powerful motivator; a dose at the right time could bring one back from the brink of total exhaustion.
Elias tightened his grip on Sable Kiss, the blade responding with eager anticipation. His quicksilver gray eyes never left Lyara's face. He needed her knowledge now more than ever. The Maw had been infiltrated by the corruption, according to Tavin. Elias needed to know what it would take for him to survive this already ruthless trial, with a terrifying new variable added.
"What is the situation?" Keldric went right to essential matters. "Maren detected that something is pursuing you. Any helpful information?"
Lyara looked exhausted. Maintaining the Guardian's Mantle had drained her entirely. She could barely stand after reaching the relative safety of the surrounding Chosen Ones. "The ship's head surgeon has become a true monstrosity. He has consumed numerous crew members, and his corruption has made him powerful."
She looked down the hall. "He consumed the girl who was with us; she..." Her voice faltered. "She willingly let it absorb her body into itself."
The already rancid stench of corruption grew more potent, and the moisture in the air began to freeze, falling to the ground like snow. From the depths of the darkness, a mutilated figure appeared, monstrous and disfigured. What had once been human had transformed into a grotesque hybrid of surgical precision and corrupted malevolence—multiple arms extended from the torso, each ending in different medical tools fused with obsidian. Three mouths opened in unison, speaking in a series of voices that sent chills down their spines.
"My patients, all gathered together!" The abomination's laugh was otherworldly, indescribable in human terms. "All specimens must be prepared for surgery to merge the entities into one being."
The entity moved with unsettling ease, gliding along the walls and ceiling. The surgical tools shimmered in the red light; tar consumed the floor like acid, dripping everywhere.
"Get the wounded to the bridge, now!" Keldric ordered, stepping forward with Oathkeeper raised. His gaze hardened. "We'll hold it here."
The medical personnel began rushing through the formation of the Chosen Ones, with Keldric in the center, Darius and Rehala on his flanks. Lyara moved to join them at the front, while Maris guided the last of the wounded through.
Maren, Etta, and Nira were behind the four leaders of the group. Etta and Nira still had not found their artifacts, so they were defenseless and wouldn't be much help.
Elias was in the very back of the group, as usual.
As the monster slowly lurched forward, approaching the group with caution, unlike the corrupted beasts so far, Nira began to feel a presence at the outskirts of her thoughts. Faint inklings of something greater, some calling meant for her soul.
Without warning, she broke from the group, rushing down the hall toward a damaged system console.
Half the group turned as one, except Elias, so he was the only one to see the beast move.
The lurching creature suddenly disappeared into a haze, moving with unfathomable speed.
"Look out!" Elias screamed.
Lyara reacted immediately, Guardian's Mantle flaring to life, spawning a protective barrier that blocked the entire hallway. The amalgamation of bodies slammed into the barrier, and Lyara went limp. The strain on her body was too much; she had been keeping the shield going for too long.
The rest of the group also felt the impact on the field, though nowhere near as heavily as Lyara. Each one was wincing in pain.
The barrier faded into sparks of light, but it had been enough. Once again focused on the mass of limbs and bodies, the cohort started to move with uncanny coordination. The symphony of clashing metal echoed through the chamber. Elias was the only one who did not move fluidly with the others. He barely moved at all. He was still reeling from pain, his mind numb and slow.
As the group desperately fought against the surgeon's bestial form, Nira reached the control station. She went for a panel that was loose and hanging from the console, and pulled with all of her might. When it finally gave way, she reached inside and ripped the intercom module from inside.
The group was losing its battle against the surgeon. Scalpels pierced the forearm of Keldric and Maren's leg. Lyara had been thrown across the room by a vicious kick, her unconscious form lying on the floor.
A beautiful sound emanated from the box Nira now held in her hand, like the soothing song from a harp. It began to lose its form, turning into liquid gold that flowed with a life of its own. The swimming gold took the shape of a long curved sword, but the blade remained molten, circulating from tip to hilt over and over. The hilt was ornate silver, inlaid with gold that created a beautiful pattern that made one think of sound, if it could be seen.
As her delicate fingers closed around the tapestry of silver and gold, a new symphony resonated from the river of gold. The crystalline formation on the walls twitched and lost some of its perfect organization.
The crystals on the wall weren't the only things affected.
Obsidian cracked on the villainous creature, two of its limbs separating at the crystalline joints, clattering to the floor. Its movements became momentarily disoriented as Keldric thrust the Oathkeeper into the lower portion of its abdomen.
The creature recoiled, creating distance from the humans that threatened its life. "Adaptation in progress. Recalibrating auditory receptors." Three distinct voices slightly out of sync hissed from the grotesque mouths.
Nira's eyes went wide. "It can disrupt the corruption's communication and formation!" She began to swing the blade, and echoes of sound waves sliced through the air, causing the corruption to quake and crack everywhere it struck. Each impact slowed the movement of the tendrils lining the walls and floor, a creeping mass of vines inching its way to the bridge with purpose and certainty.
Elias watched all of this unfold as he recovered his strength. Sable Kiss rested firmly in his palm, pulsating with thirst and desire. The blade's desire to feed was insatiable, the grip frosting over as a ghastly cold emanated from it. Mourning Coil was also stirring to life, tendrils stretching forth of their own accord.
No, you may not do as you please.
With that commanding thought, the tendrils receded once again, back to the coil on his wrist. He couldn't heal anyone, period. No one in this room was worth dying over.
The battle intensified, and Maren cast sigils of both protection and violence. Although the effect of each was barely noticeable. Etta had retreated to the bridge with the rest of the wounded and medical crew. Maris was returning from the bridge, having escorted the last of the injured to safety. Mercy's Teeth was drawn and ready to strike. The group was closing in on the surgical nightmare before them, but none of them noticed what Elias saw: corruption was closing in. While Nira was slowing the expanse of tendrils to the bridge, she failed to slow the creeping jungle that was enclosing the Chosen Ones from all sides.
Captain Markov's voice echoed through the ship once more. "Initiating final bridge security protocols, all personnel report to the bridge immediately. Bridge access will be locked in thirty seconds."
Suddenly, the entire group moved as one, an orchestrated retreat coordinated to perfection. Maren and Keldric carried the bulk of the task, alternating attacks to slow down the monstrous form as the rest escaped to the illusion of safety offered by the bridge.
Elias couldn't help but wonder at how this ragtag group of strangers moved with such practiced precision. This group had only met each other three days ago. He was the first to reach the bridge with Etta.
In her grasp was a double-headed warhammer, the haft crafted from polished ironwood, three feet in length. Ornate etchings that moved as if they were alive ran along the length of the handle. The dual striking heads were composed of something that resembled smoke, constantly flowing, wisps circling the air.
She must have found it on the bridge. Hopefully, all the missing artifacts are there.
Maren and Keldric were barely holding on, their coordinated attacks no longer as effective as they had been. The surgeon was adapting to them, learning their attacks and patterns. A bone saw sliced through the air, grazing Maren's forehead, causing blood to run into her eye. Several limbs descended upon Keldric, Oathkeeper biting into his shoulder as it stood between the surgeon's utensils, the force driving him to his knees.
Etta lunged, swinging the Echo Hammer with all of her might as it crashed into the chest of the uppermost body of the stitched-together tapestry of crew members. The hammer pulsed, releasing a wave of powerful energy that hurled the surgeon through the air, causing it to crash into the wall with tremendous force.
As Keldric and Maren rushed to the bridge thanks to the reprieve, they retrieved Lyara's unconscious form and carried it inside.
"Close the doors," Elena Markov calmly ordered, the door closing on its own. "The final protocols must be completed."
The bridge was drowning in darkness, without a single light source to illuminate the space. Everyone gathered inside watched as the form of limbs and torsos rose from the floor and rushed the closing gate.
THUD
The door closed with finality, and the beast crashed against it with mad fury.
A holographic image appeared in front of them as they stared at the bridge access that was now closed.
0:01:30
The red light from the clock that was counting down filled the room.
The chosen ones turned to face the Captain, and they all stopped, eyes wide with shock.
Elias's face grew cold and rigid. I was right.