After what felt like a journey down the Earth itself, the elevator opened, revealing a vast, underground area. It was partially built, with blackened steel supporting the bumpy, earthen walls that stretched out beneath the world's surface.
The first step outside the elevator made him pause as an awful stench greeted him like a putrid visitor.
"Woah…Smell that?" May asked, scrunching her nose before covering it.
"Yeah," Shin answered, unbothered. "That's the smell of death. No doubt about it."
"Not just the smell," Haoyu said, walking down the hollow, metal steps.
On the ground level, the source of the awful stench was discovered in the form of bodies left scattered. Seven looked around, finding a crushed corpse left atop a table alongside computer equipment.
It wasn't the only of its kind; other bodies were left on the ground, mangled and unrecognizable. By the flattened state of the researchers, it looked like they had been crushed by a hydraulic press.
At the end of the dim chamber, a giant, steel door with multiple layers of shielding stood unmoving. It could easily be mistaken for a wall in its size.
"Not opening, huh?" Seven wondered, tapping on the frame of the steel.
"I'll check for a way to get it open," Haoyu announced.
Alexander knelt by one unfortunate victim with a scrunched expression, "Horrible."
"What could've done this?" Seven questioned, turning away from the mangled mess as he shook his head.
"A Regenerator?" Lily questioned, standing beside him as she peeked at the horrific remnants left.
Shin dismissed the idea, "Nope, can't be—or, well, it shouldn't be. They tend to cut their victims apart and consume them. This is…not that."
"Any theories, Haoyu?" Alexander asked, looking towards the drone standing near a row of computers.
The metallic figure was checking each system, connecting into them before responding, "…There's no data on any creature that kills via crushing—or, rather, flattening."
"Can't say I've seen anything like this either," May added, kneeling down to inspect one of the bodies.
It was a bit surprising to Seven, seeing the ease at which the others observed the horrific sights, as though it was a normal occurrence. While it didn't make his own stomach turn, it was still an unsettling discovery for him.
He walked around the room while Haoyu was downloading data from the computers, checking it out.
"What is this place, anyway?" Seven asked.
"Seems like this is where all of the real research was done," Alexander responded.
"…Ah," Haoyu suddenly emitted.
The sound of surprise from the remote-operated figure brought the attention of everybody else. Haoyu withdrew his infiltrating cables into his arm, turning to face the others.
"What is it? Did you find any data on what they were working on down here?" Shin asked.
Haoyu typed into his arm, causing the colossal door to let out a hum, "I did—it's in there."
The titanium bars retracted from the fortress of a door, unlocking each mechanism as it began to rise. What was unveiled, existing beyond the threshold, was a vast base hidden further in the underground, expanding deeper into the earth.
"Holy shit…" May remarked.
"What is all of this?" Shin questioned in disbelief.
What stood dormant was a colossal mass of black steel, built in a humanoid shape. It was connected to the power sources, anchored to the secret development area, yet looked ready to awaken at any moment.
"A giant robot?" Seven observed, looking up.
From the point he stood when passing into the vast, multi-layer chamber, the head of the colossus was at his level.
"The Erebus," Haoyu declared, stepping towards the edge of the base floor. "This is what the people stationed here dedicated their lives to. A weapon to combat the Fulminare."
Seven stepped closer alongside Alexander, peering over the edge. It seemed there were a dozen floors to the vertical chamber, each bridging to a different section of the colossal weapon's body.
A constant hum filled the air as the maze of tubes that connected to the giant vibrated.
"How the hell did they build something like this?" Shin questioned. "It couldn't have been done in just a couple years."
"Don't doubt the ingenuity of the human race," Haoyu corrected. "Sixty-three meters. Nuclear powered. Heavy artillery…The specs of the Erebus are impressive."
"Alright, we've found it, so…what now? Can't exactly bring something this big back with us, can we?" Alexander said, tapping his chin.
"You and Seven can probably lug it out," Lily suggested with a laugh.
"Directly above this chamber is the ocean. In the logs, it seems that the tunnel above was never constructed," Haoyu explained.
"Meaning?" Seven asked.
"Meaning getting Erebus out of here results in flooding this facility," Haoyu answered succinctly.
"Can we even do that?" May asked.
"…It would require rerouting power to Erebus and removing the anchors. I'm going to connect with HQ; Seven, Alexander—you two will need to remove the anchors. They're not only locking Erebus in place, but blocking off its ability to receive any signal," Haoyu explained.
The idea was put into place as the eyes of the newcomer looked towards the massive, steel rings around Erebus. A single one was undoubtedly over a ton, leaving the job only to the two men beyond the peak of humanity.
Alexander gave a thumbs-up, "I'll take the right side then. Good with the left, Seven?"
"Got it," Seven nodded.
He quickly headed over, navigating the circular-built chamber. Beneath his feet, the steel flooring echoed as he looked towards the first anchor.
It was connected to the colossus' neck, locked on like a serpent's jaws.
'Something like this being built…It's hard to believe. Still, it could be an amazing weapon for mankind,' he thought.
With quick steps, he moved faster than any Olympic sprinter, sprinting close to the edge where the mechanical anchor was set. He grabbed a hold of the thick steel, giving it one, swift tug as it popped right off.
"That's one," he mumbled.
Moments later, on the other side, Alexander pulled off another clasp. Seven sprinted, finding the steps descending to the lower floor halfway across the platforms.
As soon as his feet met the flooring of the next level, he discovered the regretful sight—
"Shit."
More of the crushed bodies were left as nothing more than red imprints on the ground. It seemed they were pulverized further than those above, left unrecognizable.
He didn't let it slow him down as he quickly sprinted towards the clasp on the steel giant's bicep.
No hesitation stopped him from grabbing ahold of it, pulling the grasp away—
The moment he unanchored the metal hold, his instincts flared up like a blaring alarm in his head. Every cell in that moment urged him to do one thing—"move."
He threw himself to the side, rolling quickly as a force slammed down at the spot he once stood. Catching himself on his feet, he looked back, finding the ground caved in behind him.
'What…was that?' He questioned.
It was one more glance out of the corner of his eye that found it; the inhuman presence. A being of silver flesh, devoid of a bottom half as hovered over the ground watched him with its set of three, colorful eyes.
[Lifeform registered.] ["Junon"]
[Classification: Medium Superhuman, Stage Five | Threat Level: Disaster Magnitude 5.0]