The Neuro-Spire loomed like a spearhead driven into the earth—tall, obsidian, and pulsing with violet energy veins. Dozens of aerial sentries hovered above, and pulse turrets rotated on the outer walls. It was not just a prison—it was a factory of obedience.
Inside, cries of those being rewritten echoed down sterile corridors.
And outside, a predator crouched on the ridge, smiling.
---
Kiel observed the tower through a tactical scope relayed from Thorne's outpost. He watched as Dominion personnel ushered more prisoners into the Spire's entrance. At the core of the tower, the Warden waited—a massive hybrid, once human, now little more than a machine sculpted for violence.
"Designation: Warden Z-8," Seris muttered beside him, reading from the datapad. "Ex-Dominion general. Enhanced with triple-core neurolinks, adaptive shielding, and thermal pulse fists."
Kiel cracked his knuckles. "Sounds edible."
---
> [System Notice: Objective Marker Updated – Target: Warden Z-8]
Threat Level: Cataclysmic
Success Bonus: Predator Trait – Neural Override
---
Night fell like a curtain of darkness, and Kiel made his move.
He launched from the ridge with terrifying precision, gliding with winged grav-boots and landing on the outer turret wall like a phantom. The turret barely rotated before he ripped its core from its chassis.
Alarm klaxons screamed.
Good.
He sprinted across the wall, tore through guards with clean, surgical brutality, and launched himself into the upper floors through a reinforced window—glass shattering like frozen rain.
---
Inside, Dominion soldiers panicked.
"He's here!"
"Code Red! Apex inbound!"
Kiel didn't stop. His instincts locked onto the hybrid Warden in the lower levels, beneath the central core. The facility had hundreds of defenders, but they were ants swarming a fire.
Through heat, smoke, and screams, he carved his way downward.
---
When Kiel reached the Warden's chamber, the hybrid greeted him like an executioner.
"Apex anomaly detected. Commencing neural purge."
Warden Z-8 stood nearly three meters tall, encased in reactive armor that glowed with active neural pathways. His fists ignited with plasma arcs.
"Let's see who's really in charge," Kiel muttered.
The chamber shook as they clashed.
---
The Warden struck first—fist blazing, smashing through walls—but Kiel moved with unholy speed, ducking low and slashing upward with claws that hissed against the hybrid's armor. Sparks flew, and blood mixed with oil.
The Warden retaliated, grabbing Kiel mid-air and slamming him into the reactor wall, electrocuting him with a surge of ion energy.
> [System Alert: Core Stability at 71% – Adaptive Resistance Engaged]
Kiel growled, eyes glowing brighter, and bit into the Warden's arm.
Sparks exploded. The Warden howled.
Kiel ripped the limb free and drove it into the Warden's throat like a spear.
"Here's your purge," Kiel spat.
He twisted, and the Warden's body convulsed—neural sparks erupting from his skull as he collapsed, twitching violently.
---
> [System Update: Warden Z-8 Eliminated]
+ EXP Gained: 25,000
+ Predator Trait Acquired: Neural Override
(Temporarily assume control of one mechanical enemy per engagement)
---
Kiel staggered from the wreckage, smoke curling from his shoulders. The prison alarms stopped.
Seris arrived moments later, leading the freed captives. She looked at the mangled corpse of the Warden and then at Kiel.
"Every time I think you've hit your limit," she muttered, "you kill something bigger."
He didn't respond—just looked at the prisoners, many too broken to speak.
"Let's burn this place," Kiel growled.
They did. From the data vaults to the programming chairs. And when it was over, nothing remained of the Neuro-Spire except black ash.
---
In Varnhold, Commander Thorne watched the live feed end.
"That Apex... he's more than a weapon," he murmured. "He's a reckoning."