Location: Ironwood Caves, Underground Sector X-7 – Near Atlas Perimeter
The cold bit deep as they entered the maw of the Ironwood Caves. Giant stalactites hung like silent sentinels, and the echo of every footstep came back distorted—as though the mountain itself whispered secrets in return.
"We're in uncharted Dominion territory now," Victor murmured, using his torch to scan the walls. "These caves were once mining tunnels, but Dominion converted them into infiltration routes decades ago."
Zina pulled out a magnetic map disk and tossed it into the air. It flickered to life, projecting a 3D model of the labyrinth ahead. "We take the lower corridor. It bypasses the main sentry path and leads directly to Gate Delta."
Damien nodded, eyes alert. "No more surprises. We've lost too much already."
Nora walked just behind him, her expression unreadable. She hadn't spoken much since the crash—since learning the truth about her origin, her mother, and her value as the living key to Atlas.
Echo, with her injured arm slung in cloth and her face set with pain, kept scanning for surveillance. "Dominion's running passive scans here. They don't expect us to come from underground—but they're monitoring seismic shifts. No loud steps."
Suddenly, Victor stopped. "Everyone down."
They dropped to the ground just as two Dominion sentinels walked into view—mechanical, humanoid, with glowing visors and sound-sensitive protocols.
Damien slowly pulled a sonic dampener from his belt, activated it, and tossed it near the far wall. The device let out a low pulse that confused the drones' directional sensors.
The sentinels paused, turned toward the noise, and began walking away.
Once the coast was clear, they resumed.
---
Location: Gate Delta – Subsurface Atlas Access
The gate stood like a metal monolith embedded into the mountain wall. It was covered in rusted Dominion symbols and fitted with a biometric scanner that looked long out of use.
Victor approached, taking out the encrypted satchel. "This is it."
He handed the device to Nora. "Place your hand here. The system's ancient, but it still responds to Aegis-coding."
Nora hesitated.
Damien stepped forward. "We're with you."
Taking a breath, she placed her palm on the scanner.
Nothing happened.
Then a soft blue light blinked once.
Twice.
A ripple of energy pulsed from the scanner into the wall. The ground shook as ancient gears rotated.
"Aegis signature confirmed."
"Welcome, Heir of Protocol One."
The gate opened slowly, revealing a long passage lined with old Dominion tech—dusty consoles, long-dead lights, and a tunnel into the unknown.
Echo stared. "This wasn't just a military outpost. This was a control center."
Victor nodded. "And you're about to wake it up."
---
Location: Atlas Central Command – Still Dormant
Deep inside the Atlas facility, old systems stirred. Binary codes crawled across broken screens. A voice—calm, robotic, but eerily human—awoke from sleep.
> "Override sequence acknowledged."
"Aegis Key active. Domain Reset: Initiated."
"Awaiting full bearer entry…"
In the shadows of the command center, a figure stirred—one who had been waiting for years.
And now, the final players had entered the game.