"I know what's happening, and you're not going to like it," Ollie said.
The group gathered around him. No one said anything, and only their slight breathing could be heard.
"What is it?" Gale asked, dematerializing Weber back into storage space.
"It's the light," Ollie pointed at the fireball floating above Rachel's head. "This whole place is designed around it. And honestly, the most important person here right now isn't me, or Rachel, or the twins, or Lily. Gale, it's you."
"The rookie? No offense, but why him?" Kyle asked.
"Because he can see in the dark," Ollie said. "That's why."
"What does that have to do with anything? We're in a corridor full of creepy mannequin robots that don't move. You think a little night vision is going to solve our problem?" Clyde said.
"It's not just that they don't move," Ollie said. "I think they move only when there's complete darkness. Think about it. This place is designed to have zero light sources. There's nothing that looks like a lamp, a ceiling light, or anything that would give off light except those etchings, and I'm pretty sure those etchings themselves don't matter to these robots."
Rachel's eyes widened as she glanced at the fireball above her. "Every time we cross from one corridor to the next…"
"Exactly," Ollie said. "The fireball can't fit through the door. You have to put it out when we move between sections. That split second when there's no light, that's when these things are changing positions."
Kyle whistled. "That's why they're in different poses every time we enter a new section."
"And if my hunch is correct," Ollie said, "then they're probably vulnerable to damage only when they're animated. When there's light, they freeze and become indestructible, like we just saw when Rachel and Gale tried to damage them."
"But that doesn't explain the looping sequence. We've gone through at least three identical corridors now. There has to be more to it," Lily said.
"It does explain it," Rachel said. "We all have mental sigils from Lily, so this isn't a mental attack. If whatever's controlling these robots was stronger than a Harmonic or a Corrupted, it would've killed all of us by now. This is a real array formation trap, and I think the numbers would be the anchor points."
"What do the numbers mean?" Gale asked.
Ollie ran a hand through his hair. "Don't know for sure, but I'm betting they're important. Maybe it's the order we need to destroy them in, starting with zero and ending with eleven."
"We'd need to find zero first…" Gale looked beyond the hallway. "From what I've seen, it's positioned somewhere in the middle of the corridor beyond the two doors. But if it's there, we'd be surrounded by the other robots when Rachel turns off her light. How would the rest of you fight in total darkness?"
The group fell silent. Everyone already knew what Ollie was about to say.
"That's where people won't like it," Ollie said. "Gale's going to have to do everything. The rest of us will just try to avoid dying."
Kyle sighed.
"Lily can't shield us because her shields also give off a dim light, which would make the robots indestructible again. It's a race against time. Gale needs to find all twelve robots and destroy them as fast as possible before any of us get ripped apart," Ollie said.
"Fuck that!" Kyle and Clyde cursed in unison.
"That doesn't make any goddamn sense," Kyle pointed to the edge of where the fireball's light hit. "The light from Rachel's fireball doesn't even reach all the way down there. Those robots should be moving right now if it's just about darkness."
"That's the point," Ollie said. "It's not about direct illumination. It's about line of sight to any kind of light. If there's light anywhere in the corridor, all the robots freeze. It's all or nothing."
Gale felt his heart sink as he tried to materialize Weber Ballista, but stopped when even the beam it shot out cast a dim dark green light. Even that would be enough to freeze the robots. Turning to Rachel, he asked, "What do you think about all this?"
Rachel forced a smile as she looked at him. "I think it has to be done somehow. Someone's going to get injured, but we have enough syringe guns to patch people up afterwards. The alternative is staying here forever."
Kyle slammed his fist against the metal wall, the sound ringing through the corridor. "Fuck!"
"And don't use that dagger of yours either, Kyle," Ollie said. "Your blink dagger also produces a flash when you teleport to it. If my theory is right, these things stop the moment any source of light enters the corridor, and we'd have to reset the whole process by crossing through another doorway. No one can do anything that’ll create any form of light, and that’s basically everything." He turned to Rachel. "Turn off the fireball for just a second, then light it back up."
Rachel hesitated.
"Just do it," Ollie said. "I want to prove a point."
She nodded, and the fireball above her head dimmed, then vanished completely. For one full second, the corridor plunged into absolute darkness. No one moved. No sounds came from the robots. Then Rachel reignited the fireball, and light illuminated the area once again.
The robots remained exactly as they had been.
"See what I mean?" Ollie said. "The moment they see light, we’d need to reset. And I bet my arse that those things come back alive on the reset."
"So we're truly fucked," Clyde said.
"Pretty much," Ollie replied. "Let's head to the end of this corridor. I'd rather get this over with sooner rather than later."
The group moved once again. No one spoke as they walked. They reached the two doors on the left and right. Nothing could be seen through the windows. Soon enough, they reached the end of the wall with a single door in the middle and a rhombus and circle etched at the centre of it.
"Are we ready for this?" Ollie asked.
"Ready as we'd ever be," Kyle grumbled.
"Remember, use the gun syringe after the fight. Those things also give off a green light," Ollie said.
"Fine," Clyde said.
"Once we get through the door and Rachel's light dissipates, survive with your fucking life on the line," Ollie said firmly. "Don't fucking die."
Gale took a deep breath, standing in front of the door.
"On the count of 3, Gale opens the door and Rachel removes the fireball. Everyone moves in and the doors will close. Then survive." Ollie said. "Counting down now…"
"3."
"2."
"1."
"Go," he said, stepping through.
Touching the centre of the circle on the door, etchings pulsed once. Before the door could even open, the fireball died behind Gale. Darkness swallowed everything. Breath of the Void's tendrils shot out, feeding him information about his surroundings. Everyone filed through behind him, and the door slid shut with a heavy thud, sealing them into the corridor.
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For one heartbeat, silence.
Then it started.
A high-pitched wail tore through the corridor, like metal scraping against metal. More wails joined in, screams that couldn't possibly come from human throats nor any of the faceless robots that looked like they had a throat at all. In other words, something within the robots woke up.
Gale watched as the frozen mannequins jerked to life. Heads snapped toward the group. Arms that had been still for god knows how long began to move, joints grinding as they flexed metal fingers. The only good thing that came out of this was that they had no weapons.
No time to hesitate.
Breath of the Void seeped fully into him. Patterns spread across his skin, intricate lines and shapes from the crown of his head to the bottom of his feet. His perception shifted. The darkness beyond turned into a bright white room.
Weber materialized in his hand. Tendrils visually confirmed the robot marked with the number 0 first, positioned in the middle of the hallway by the 2 doors with a window. It moved sluggishly, like something breaking free of ice.
Gale dashed off, crossing the distance in two steps. He drove Weber straight through the robot's neck. The blade cut clean through the chrome, severing the head from the body. It collapsed, but no time to verify if it was dead.
A wet tearing sound came from near the entrance. Kyle screamed.
Tendrils searched for number 1. Found it at the far end of the corridor already fully mobile and running towards the others along with other unmarked robots. Gale jumped off the floor, planted his feet on the wall, and pushed down to pounce at number 1.
It saw him coming, pivoting, swinging an arm at his head. Gale managed to twist his body to duck, thrusting the Weber upward, but number 1 stepped back too fast. The blade missed its neck by a millimetre.
Metal fist connected with his ribs. Gale rolled with the impact, using the momentum to spin around. His swing that came around connected, passing through the robot's neck cleanly.
Two down.
Tendrils pulled his attention back to the entrance. Number two had Kyle pinned against the wall, metal hand buried in his stomach. Blood splattered across the robot's face as Kyle was winded.
Gale pushed off. In two strides, he crossed from where he was to the entrance's wall while swinging Weber in a horizontal arc. Edge met the robot's neck while it was busy with Kyle, causing the robot to fall and releasing Kyle, who slumped down to the floor.
"Stay alive," Gale said as he sent out tendrils to search for the next number.
Number three had Lily by the throat, lifting her off the ground. Her legs kicked uselessly as she clawed at the metal arm. Breath of the Void showed her face turning purple.
Gale jumped onto the wall again. Jump upwards to launch himself across to the middle of the corridor where Lily was. Both hands on Weber, arcing through number 3's waist. Lily dropped onto the floor, gasping for air.
Before he could check if she was okay, the tendrils pulled his attention elsewhere. Robot number four was beating Rachel relentlessly. Each punch made a crunch as it connected with her body. Her arms were up, blocking her face. She tried punching back, but without visual cues, she missed, and the opening just allowed another punch to hit her flank.
Rushing forward, Weber poised for a slice. Number four snapped its head in his direction. It ducked by his attack and pivoted with a leg that connected to Gale's stomach. The force pushed him back several steps.
It didn't hurt, though. For late Attuned robots, these weren't that strong. If the others were able to use their sight, these things wouldn't be a problem.
Three unmarked robots blocked his path to number four as if asking to be cut down. They formed a wall between him and the crunching sounds of Rachel's flesh. Behind them, Ollie shouted as more robots closed in on him.
Based on what Ollie said, if he tried to cut through the unmarked ones, they could fail this entire sequence and have to do this again. At their state, there was no second chance. The numbers had to be destroyed in order, and the unmarked ones had to be ignored. He couldn't phase through them either. Phasing himself would risk emitting light, also crashing the whole sequence.
Gale jumped up. In one push from the floor, he reached the ceiling, using that to vault downwards to Rachel's position. Blade connected with number 4's shoulder, missing its head. It staggered but spun towards him as a punch flew at his head.
Side step into a spin to cleanly slice off the neck, striking through and causing the robot to fall to the floor with a clang.
Rachel collapsed to the floor, her breathing shallow.
"It's almost done," Gale called out.
The robot marked with a number 5 scurried across the ceiling like a spider, leading a pack of four unmarked robots. They crossed from the far end of the hallway to the entrance of the corridor in seconds.
"Above you!" Gale shouted to the others.
The pack dropped onto the group. One landed squarely on Ollie's back, driving him to the floor. Another caught Rachel by the hair, yanking her head backward. The third and fourth pounced on Kyle and Clyde. Number five pounced down at Lily.
Gale pushed off the floor, rocketing towards number 5's trajectory. As he flew through the air, he twisted his body into a spin, Weber extended outwards.
The robot tried to dodge, jerking backward at the last moment. Weber cut through its waist, bisecting it cleanly. The top half tumbled away from the bottom, crashing to the floor.
Halfway there.
Gale's tendrils stretched out, searching for Number 6. He found it immediately in the middle of the corridor, partially hidden by the unmarked ones. It stood with both arms extended, fingers splayed open. Needles shot out from its fingers, thin metal needles.
Ollie cried out as several needles punctured his shoulders and thighs. Blood splattered across the metal as he thrashed, trying to pull them out.
"Fuck!" Clyde doubled over as needles struck his stomach. He staggered backward, collapsing against the wall.
Gale landed on the wall, changing his direction and launching towards Number 6.
It tracked his movement, adjusting its aim. Needles flew at him as he twisted mid-air, avoiding most of them, but one caught him by the thigh. Blood, warmth, and numbness spread from where it had hit him.
However, his trajectory was still true. Number 6 tried to dodge his attack, stepping sideways, though it was sluggish compared to the other robots. Weber's point crashed down on it, stabbing through the top of its forehead where the number was etched.
Six down.
Before he could celebrate, something slammed into his side. Robot Number 7 had caught him mid-air, driving its knee into his ribs. The impact sent him flying backwards, tumbling through the air toward the far end of the corridor.
Gale crashed into the floor, sliding several metres before coming to a stop. His vision swam from the impact. Tendrils shot out, feeding him information about his surroundings.
Number 8 stood to his right, already moving to attack the others. Rachel had managed to get back to her feet and was fending off two unmarked robots with kicks and punches. Kyle lay nearby, blood pooling around him as he tried to crawl toward Lily.
No time to check if they were okay. Gale slapped the floor with both palms, pushing himself upright. Needles made his movement sluggish from the numbness.
He launched himself back toward Number 7, which was stalking toward the wounded group members. Weber already poised for its neck.
The robot saw him coming and punched in his direction. Bad move. Weber sliced through the robot's arm, continuing through its shoulder. The limb fell away, and the robot stumbled forward, collapsing to the floor.
Seven down.
Number 8 had bypassed him completely, already at Rachel's position.
Throw.
The sword spun through the air like a spinning disk. Number 8 didn't see it coming. The blade caught it by the neck, decapitating it, then crashing onto the floor lifeless.
Eight down.
One step was all it took to reach Weber. The unmarked robots continued their assault on the group, but there were no numbered targets nearby. His tendrils shot out, searching the corridor.
At the far end, he saw them. Numbers 9 to 11 hung back, watching. They were the last of the sequence.
"Hang on!" Gale shouted. "I'm almost done!"
Dashing towards the far end of the corridor in four steps, he reached number 9's side. Its faceless robot face tilted to one side. Though it had no face, somehow, it looked like it had a smirk.
Gale attacked first. Horizontal slash. Number 9 bent backward, letting the blade pass harmlessly overhead. It straightened up and lashed out with a kick that caught Gale square in the face.
The impact knocked him flat on his back. Number 9 pounced, metal fingers reaching for his throat.
Gale shot both legs upward, catching the robot by its neck. With a violent twist of his hips, he wrenched the head clean off its body.
Nine down. Only two more to go.
Number 10 moved faster than the others. Before Gale could recover his footing, a metal foot slammed into his chest. The impact lifted him clean off the floor and sent him flying backward.
His back hit the wall. Blood sprayed from his mouth, spattering against his chin and neck. The taste of iron filled his mouth as he wiped the blood off his lips.
"Shit," he spat, a glob of blood.
The robot charged at him as unmarked robots swarmed the others. Kyle's pained shouts punctuated the darkness as Rachel's desperate curses cut through the chaos. Other than those two, the rest were already on the floor, just breathing.
Gale pushed off the wall. Pain lanced through his ribs, but he forced his body to respond. More blood dared to crawl up his throat as he forced it down. Weber shot outwards to number 10's neck.
It was fast. It pivoted to the right, though Gale had already calculated that. Weber altered to widen its edge, catching half of number 10's face.
Ten down.
Weber shortened back to its normal length. Tendrils shot forward once again, searching for number 11 that wasn't near him.
And there it was, standing over Lily's unconscious body, gripping her left arm while its foot was stomping down on her back. Its fingers dug into her sleeve, blood seeping out from the crushing force.
"Shit!" Gale shouted.
He was too far from Lily. His legs still fought the numbing effect of the needle.
The robot pushed its foot and pulled its grip on Lily's arm.
Gale hurled Weber through the air. The sword spun, whistling across the corridor in a perfect bee line to number 11's head. Weber struck true as number 11's head flew off, but it was too late.
Number 11 had already torn Lily's arm free. Blood erupted from the ragged stump, spraying across the floor.
"Rachel!" Gale screamed. "Turn on the lights! NOW! KYLE, HELP LILY."