The transition from the chaotic conduit back to the main Auction Hall was less a return and more a violent expulsion. Kai hit the polished obsidian floor hard, the impact jarring through his already aching bones. Beside him, Elira landed with a grunt of pain, her injured arm taking the brunt of the fall.
For a disorienting second, the familiar, oppressive thrum of the Hall, the pulsing crimson light, the faint scent of ozone and desperation, felt almost welcoming after the terrifying void of the nexus and the damp decay of the sub-levels. But the illusion of safety shattered instantly.
Hovering above them, descending with silent, mechanical menace, was the armored hunter. Its blue visor pulsed steadily, fixed on them, its gauntlets still glowing with residual energy from the interrupted attack. It had followed them through whatever spatial distortion Silas had used to eject them from the collapsing nexus, its directive clear: *Capture fragment AND catalyst. Lethal force authorized.*
The sudden appearance of two participants tumbling from the non-existent ceiling, immediately followed by a heavily armed, unknown entity, brought the ongoing auction to a stunned halt. Gasps rippled through the assembled crowd. Participants scrambled back, creating a wide circle around Kai, Elira, and the descending hunter, their faces a mixture of fear, confusion, and morbid curiosity. This was unscheduled, unsanctioned – a dangerous deviation from the Hall's rigid protocols.
Even the robed Auctioneer on the central platform paused, its usual resonant voice falling silent. Its hooded head turned slowly, regarding the descending hunter with an unnerving stillness. Did the Hall's master of ceremonies have authority over Silas's remote-controlled enforcer?
"Get up!" Elira hissed, pushing herself painfully to her feet, pulling Kai with her. Her face was grim, her eyes darting between the hunter and the Auctioneer, assessing the rapidly evolving tactical situation.
"Can you fight?" Kai asked, his mind still reeling from the conduit transit and the lingering echoes of the Architect's knowledge.
"Have to," she gritted out, gripping her single blade, her knuckles white.
The hunter landed softly on the obsidian floor, perhaps ten yards away. It didn't pause, didn't hesitate. Its programming, now under Silas's direct control, was absolute. It raised its gauntlets, targeting them again.
But before it could fire, the Auctioneer finally acted. It didn't speak, but raised one slender, robed arm.
A wave of invisible force slammed into the hunter. Not an attack, but a powerful, binding pressure. The hunter froze mid-motion, its limbs locked, its energy weapons sputtering and dying. It strained against the unseen bonds, servos whining in protest, but it was held fast.
*"Unsanctioned entity detected,"* the Auctioneer's resonant voice finally boomed, amplified, cutting through the stunned silence of the Hall. *"Unauthorized weaponry discharged. Violation of Auction Protocol 7. Entity will be contained."*
The obsidian floor beneath the hunter rippled. Chains of pure shadow erupted, wrapping around the armored figure, binding it further, pulling it down towards the floor despite its struggles.
Relief, sharp and unexpected, washed over Kai. The Auctioneer, the embodiment of the Hall's rules, was intervening.
But Silas hadn't accounted for this? Or had he?
The hunter stopped struggling abruptly. Its blue visor flickered, then glowed with intense red light.
*"Silas Override acknowledged,"* the synthesized voice stated, flat and cold, somehow cutting through the Auctioneer's binding force. *"Protocol 7 immunity asserted. Directive stands. Neutralize targets."*
The shadowy chains *snapped*. The invisible pressure binding the hunter vanished. It straightened up, unharmed, its red visor burning like a malevolent eye.
Silas had anticipated the Hall's automated defenses. He had override codes. The hunter wasn't just immune; it operated outside the established rules that governed everyone else.
The Auctioneer remained silent, its hooded head tilted as if processing this unprecedented violation. The crowd murmured, fear turning into panic. If the Hall's own rules could be overridden, what safety did anyone have?
The hunter ignored the Auctioneer, ignored the crowd. Its sole focus returned to Kai and Elira. It raised its gauntlets again.
"Split up!" Elira yelled, shoving Kai in one direction while she darted the other way, trying to present multiple targets.
The hunter hesitated for only a fraction of a second, its internal targeting systems likely reassessing. It chose Kai.
A beam of concussive energy shot towards him. He dove sideways, the beam hitting the obsidian floor where he'd stood, blasting a shallow crater, sending shards skittering across the surface.
He scrambled behind a cluster of terrified participants, using them as unwilling shields. The hunter didn't fire again immediately, likely constrained by protocols against excessive collateral damage to potential bidders, but it began advancing purposefully, parting the crowd like a predator wading through sheep.
Kai risked a glance for Elira. She was using the chaos, weaving through the panicked crowd, trying to circle around, perhaps seeking a flanking position or an escape route Kai couldn't see.
He needed to do something, not just run. The Architect's knowledge… *Override Sigma* had worked, briefly. His command resonance was recognized. Could he issue other commands? Could he disable the hunter directly?
He focused, trying to recall the security protocols, the command hierarchy he'd glimpsed. *Hunter units… subordinate to Sector Overseer… Silas designation… Prime Architect override requires resonance key AND confirmation sequence…* It was too complex, too fragmented. He didn't have the full picture, only dangerous pieces.
Using his resonance again felt risky. It had worked once, but Silas had overridden it easily. Trying again might just confirm his identity further, painting an even bigger target on his back.
The hunter was closer now, easily pushing aside anyone in its path. Kai could see the intricate details on its dark armor, the faint hum emanating from its power core.
He looked desperately towards the Auctioneer. The robed figure hadn't moved, hadn't reacted further after its containment attempt failed. Was it powerless? Or was it simply… observing, letting events unfold according to some deeper, inscrutable plan?
No help there. He looked at the crowd – fearful, self-interested, unlikely to intervene.
He was on his own. Except… maybe not entirely.
He still had the Echo of Fear. It hadn't worked well against the Architect, and likely wouldn't faze the hunter's core programming. But what about its *perception*? Could he disrupt its targeting systems? Overload its sensory input?
It was a long shot. He focused, not on projecting a specific fear, but on generating pure psychic *static*. A blast of chaotic emotional noise, formless dread, unfocused panic, directed straight at the hunter's visored face.
The hunter faltered for a split second as the psychic static hit it. Its visor flickered, cycling through diagnostic readouts. *"Sensory interference detected… emotional spectrum anomaly… filtering…"*
It wasn't incapacitated, but it was momentarily distracted, its targeting systems struggling to filter the noise.
That split second was all Elira needed.
She burst from the crowd behind the hunter, her single blade flashing. She didn't aim for the heavy armor plating, but for a thinner spot at the back of the knee joint she must have identified earlier. Her strike was precise, brutal.
The blade sank in with a grating screech of metal on metal. The hunter stumbled, its leg buckling slightly. It spun, swatting Elira away with contemptuous ease, sending her skidding across the floor, but the damage was done. Its movement was hampered.
It turned back to Kai, its red visor burning with cold fury. *"Catalyst interference registered. Eliminating secondary target first."*
It raised its gauntlet, aiming directly at the downed Elira.
Before it could fire, the Auctioneer spoke again, its voice resonating with undeniable power, shaking the very floor.
*"Cease hostility. New lot presented for Emergency Auction."*
Everyone froze. Even the hunter paused its attack, its programming perhaps forced to acknowledge a direct, Hall-sanctioned event.
From the obsidian floor between the hunter and Elira, a new item materialized, bathed in a spotlight of intense white light. It wasn't an orb or a token. It was a contract, shimmering parchment bound in dark leather, pulsing with faint energy.
*"Lot: Temporary Sanctuary Pact,"* the Auctioneer announced. *"Grants bearer and one designated companion immunity from targeted pursuit within the Main Hall for one cycle. All external tracking signals scrambled. All hunter protocols temporarily suspended within Hall boundaries."* The Auctioneer paused. *"Bidding starts at… one hundred Soul Units."*
One hundred units. Kai had sixty-eight. Elira had maybe three. It was impossible.
But the effect was immediate. The hunter lowered its weapon, its visor shifting back to blue, its stance relaxing slightly. It couldn't attack while the Pact was being auctioned; its protocols were temporarily suspended by the Hall's direct intervention.
It was a reprieve, bought by the Auctioneer's intervention. But why? Why offer sanctuary now? And who could possibly afford the starting bid?
Kai looked at Elira, who stared at the Pact with wide, disbelieving eyes. Then his gaze swept the crowd. Most looked away, unwilling or unable to bid. But one figure stepped forward from the edge of the circle, his jumpsuit immaculate, his expression calm, almost serene.
The clean man who had bid against them for the Pathway Token.
"One hundred units," the man said clearly, his voice steady.
The hunter remained still. The Auctioneer waited.
No one else bid. No one else *could* bid, or dared to.
*"One hundred, going once…"*
*"Twice…"*
*"Sold! Temporary Sanctuary Pact awarded."*
The shimmering contract floated towards the clean man. He accepted it calmly. The white spotlight vanished.
The hunter immediately straightened, its visor snapping back to red, locking onto Kai and Elira again. The Pact hadn't been awarded to *them*. The auction was over. The suspension was lifted.
But as the hunter raised its weapons, the clean man stepped directly into its path, holding up the Pact.
"Pact invoked," the man stated calmly. "I designate these two" – he gestured towards Kai and Elira – "as my companions under sanctuary."
The hunter froze again, its red visor flickering. *"Acknowledged. Sanctuary Pact active. Target designations Kai and Elira temporarily suspended within Hall boundaries. Standing by."*
It lowered its weapons, standing utterly still, a dormant threat waiting for the Pact to expire.
Kai stared at the clean man, utterly bewildered. Why? Why spend a hundred units – a fortune in this place – to protect two strangers?
The man turned, meeting Kai's gaze. His eyes were a pale, clear grey, and held an unnerving calmness, a depth that hinted at knowledge far beyond that of a typical participant.
"You seem to attract trouble, Kai, fragment of the Architect," the man said softly, his voice barely audible over the renewed murmur of the crowd. "My employers have… an interest in your survival. For now."
Employers? Who was this man? And who did he work for?
The sanctuary was temporary. The hunter waited. And they had just acquired a new, unknown player in their deadly game.