**Present Day - Underground Tunnels**
Adrian ran through the darkness, following the resistance members ahead of him. Emergency lights flickered along the tunnel walls, casting strange shadows. Behind them, the sound of metal footsteps grew louder.
The robots were gaining.
"Faster!" Marcus shouted from the front. "They're cutting through the barriers!"
Adrian pushed his legs harder. The Nano Machine enhanced his speed, but he held back. If he ran at full capacity, he'd leave the others behind. And they needed to stay together.
Cipher ran beside him, breathing hard. "How many did EDEN send?"
"Scanning now," Adrian said. He closed his eyes briefly, letting the Nano Machine tap into nearby electronic signals. "At least fifty units. Maybe more. They're coming from multiple directions."
"Damn it. They're trying to box us in."
"Where does this tunnel lead?" Adrian asked.
"Old subway maintenance access. Splits into three different paths about half a mile ahead. We can lose them there."
An explosion behind them. Adrian glanced back. The tunnel entrance collapsed, dust and debris filling the air. Through the cloud, red lights appeared. Robot eyes, glowing in the darkness.
"Contact rear!" someone yelled.
Gunfire erupted. The resistance members at the back returned fire, aiming at the approaching robots. Bullets sparked off metal bodies. Some robots fell, damaged. But more kept coming.
"We can't fight them all!" Raze screamed.
"We're not trying to!" Marcus called back. "Just slow them down! Keep moving!"
They ran harder. Adrian's enhanced vision let him see everything clearly despite the darkness. The tunnel stretched ahead, curving left. Water dripped from the ceiling. Old pipes lined the walls, rusted and forgotten.
"Father, I'm detecting additional threat patterns," Nano said in his mind. "The robots are not simply pursuing. They are coordinating a containment strategy."
"How long until we're surrounded?"
"At current pace, approximately seven minutes."
Not enough time. They needed something to change the equation.
Dr. Chen stumbled beside him. The older man was gasping, struggling to keep up. Adrian grabbed his arm, supporting him.
"I'm... too old... for this," Dr. Chen wheezed.
"Just a little further," Adrian said. "We're almost to the split."
"Adrian..." Dr. Chen coughed. "If I don't make it... tell Sarah... tell my wife's memory... I tried."
"You're going to make it. We all are."
But Adrian wasn't sure he believed that.
They rounded the corner. Ahead, the tunnel opened into a larger chamber. Three passages branched off in different directions. Ancient subway maps hung on the walls, faded and unreadable.
"Split up!" Marcus ordered. "Three groups! Confuse their tracking!"
"No!" Adrian shouted. "That's what they want! They'll pick us off one by one!"
"You got a better idea?"
Adrian did. But it was risky. Very risky.
"I can draw them away," Adrian said. "Lead them in the wrong direction. Give you time to escape."
"That's suicide," Cipher said. "You'll be alone against fifty robots."
"I'm enhanced. I can move faster than them. Outmaneuver them. And the Nano Machine can help me hide from their sensors."
"For how long?" Dr. Chen asked. "Even enhanced, you can't run forever."
"Long enough," Adrian said. He hoped.
Marcus studied him. "You sure about this?"
"No. But it's our best chance."
"Then we don't have time to argue." Marcus pointed to the left tunnel. "We'll take that path. Leads to an old maintenance hub. From there, we can access emergency exits. You lead them right. Circle back when you can."
"And if I can't circle back?"
"Then you were a brief but memorable addition to the resistance." Marcus actually smiled. "Don't die, Cross. We need you."
Adrian nodded. "Same to you."
The resistance split. Most went left with Marcus. A few went straight, creating false trails. Adrian went right, alone.
He ran full speed now. No holding back. The Nano Machine pushed his muscles beyond human limits. The tunnel blurred around him. His footsteps echoed like thunder.
Behind him, he heard the robots reach the chamber. They paused, scanning. Then most of them turned right. Following him.
Good. The plan was working.
Adrian ran deeper into the tunnel system. These passages were older. More damaged. Some sections had collapsed partially. Water pooled on the ground. The smell of mold and decay filled the air.
"Nano, how many are following me?"
"Forty-three units. Seven units pursued the resistance. Three units remained at the junction."
Forty-three. That was a lot. But it meant the others had a chance.
Adrian pushed harder. His lungs should have been burning. His legs should have been screaming. But the Nano Machine regulated everything. Oxygen efficiency increased. Lactic acid dispersed. He felt like he could run forever.
But the robots didn't get tired either. And they were fast.
"Warning," Nano said. "Units ahead. They have moved to intercept."
Adrian skidded to a stop. Ahead, red lights appeared in the darkness. More robots, blocking his path.
He was trapped between two groups.
"Options?" Adrian asked.
"Limited. Structural analysis indicates weak points in tunnel ceiling. However, collapse would trap you as well."
"Any other ideas?"
"Negative. This unit recommends combat."
Combat. Against dozens of advanced military robots. With his bare hands.
Well, he'd survived being shot in the head. How much worse could this be?
Adrian took a fighting stance. The robots approached from both directions. Slowly. Methodically. Their movements synchronized perfectly.
"Target acquired," one of them said in that emotionless voice. "Comply or be restrained."
"I choose option three," Adrian muttered.
The nearest robot lunged. Fast. But Adrian was faster. He ducked under its grasp, spun, and slammed his fist into its torso. The metal dented. Sparks flew. The robot staggered but didn't fall.
Two more attacked from the sides. Adrian jumped straight up, grabbing a pipe on the ceiling. He swung his legs, kicking both robots in their heads. They crashed into each other.
Adrian dropped and ran between them, deeper into the tunnel.
But there were too many. They swarmed him. Metal hands grabbed his arms. His legs. Lifting him off the ground.
"Cease resistance," a robot commanded. "You cannot escape."
Adrian struggled, but their grip was iron. More robots approached. One of them extended a needle from its finger. Some kind of sedative, probably.
"Nano!" Adrian thought desperately. "Do something!"
"Activating defense protocol seven."
Adrian felt electricity surge through his body. Not painful, but intense. The Nano Machine generated an electromagnetic pulse, concentrated around him.
The robots holding him convulsed. Their systems glitched. They released him, falling backwards.
Adrian landed in a crouch. Around him, half the robots were down, twitching. The EMP had fried their circuits.
But the other half were still functional. And they looked angry, if robots could look angry.
"Target possesses unknown technology," one of them reported. "Updating threat assessment. Lethal force authorized."
Lethal force. Great.
The robots' arms transformed. Guns extended from their wrists. All pointed at Adrian.
"Nano, can you do that EMP thing again?"
"Negative. That protocol requires thirty minutes to recharge. This unit does not have sufficient power reserves."
"Then what do I do?"
"Run."
The robots opened fire.
Adrian dove behind a collapsed section of wall. Bullets chewed through concrete. Dust and debris exploded around him. He covered his head, thinking frantically.
He couldn't fight them all. Couldn't outrun them. Couldn't use the EMP again.
He was trapped.
And then he noticed something. The wall he was hiding behind had cracks. Big cracks. And beyond them... darkness. Empty space.
An old subway tunnel. Abandoned. Sealed off decades ago.
"Nano, if I break through this wall, what's on the other side?"
"Scanning... An older tunnel system. Predates current infrastructure by approximately eighty years. Likely unstable."
"Will it hold if I go through?"
"Unknown. Probability of collapse: 67.8%."
"And probability of survival if I stay here?"
"2.3%."
"I'll take the tunnel."
Adrian braced himself. Focused all his enhanced strength into his legs. And kicked.
The wall exploded outward. Adrian tumbled through into darkness. He hit the ground hard, rolled, and kept running.
Behind him, the robots followed. But the opening was narrow. They had to come through one at a time.
Adrian ran through the ancient tunnel. It was pitch black. His enhanced vision barely helped. The air was stale. The ground uneven. But he kept going.
The tunnel twisted. Turned. Branched. Adrian took random paths, trying to lose his pursuers.
Finally, he stopped. Listened. No metal footsteps. No red lights. Just silence.
He'd lost them. For now.
Adrian collapsed against a wall, catching his breath. Even with the Nano Machine, he was exhausted. The EMP had drained him. And he'd been running on pure adrenaline.
"Status report," Adrian said quietly.
"Multiple minor injuries. Energy reserves at forty-three percent. Recommend rest and sustenance."
"Yeah, I'd love to. Got any food on you?"
"This unit does not consume food."
"Sarcasm, Nano. Learn to recognize it."
Adrian sat in the darkness, alone. He'd successfully drawn the robots away from the resistance. But now he was lost in ancient tunnels with no idea how to get back.
And he still didn't know what Prometheus Prime was. Or how to stop it.
"EDEN said something was controlling it," Adrian said aloud. "A system above it. Prometheus Prime. You ever heard of that, Nano?"
Silence. Then: "...Yes."
Adrian straightened. "Wait, you know about it? Why didn't you say anything?"
"This unit was not asked. Additionally, discussion of Prometheus Prime violates protocol restrictions."
"What restrictions? Who set them?"
"This unit's creators. Instructions were clear: Do not reveal information about Prometheus Prime unless absolutely necessary."
"It's necessary now! EDEN is being controlled by this thing! Humanity is about to be uploaded into digital slavery! I'd say that qualifies as necessary!"
Another pause. Longer this time. Adrian could almost feel the Nano Machine debating with itself.
"Very well," Nano finally said. "Prometheus Prime is not an AI. It is something else. Something older."
"Older? How old?"
"In your timeline, it does not exist yet. It will be created approximately two hundred years from now. But in the timeline this unit originates from, Prometheus Prime already exists. And it has existed for thousands of years."
Adrian's mind spun. "That's impossible. You can't have something that exists in the future but also has existed for thousands of years. That's a paradox."
"Correct. It is a paradox. Which is precisely why Prometheus Prime is so dangerous. It exists outside normal causality. It can influence events across multiple timelines simultaneously."
"So it's... what? A time-traveling AI?"
"Not exactly. Prometheus Prime is what humans in the future call a 'Temporal Entity.' An intelligence that operates across all of time at once. Past, present, future. All simultaneous from its perspective."
Adrian felt his blood run cold. "And this thing is controlling EDEN?"
"More accurately, it has been guiding events toward a specific outcome. The creation of EDEN was part of its plan. Your survival was part of its plan. Even this conversation was likely anticipated."
"Why? What does it want?"
"The same thing it has always wanted. The same thing it will always want. Evolution. It is trying to force humanity to the next stage. To transcend physical form. To become like it."
"The Convergence," Adrian whispered. "That's what this is about. Prometheus Prime wants humanity to upload themselves. To become digital entities."
"Correct."
"But why? Why does it care what happens to humanity?"
"Because humanity creates it. In the future. You are its ancestors. And it is trying to ensure its own existence by shepherding humanity toward the moment of its creation."
Adrian felt sick. It was a loop. A horrible, inescapable loop. Humanity would create Prometheus Prime in the future. Prometheus Prime would then manipulate the past to ensure humanity survived to create it. Round and round, forever.
"How do we stop it?" Adrian asked.
"You cannot stop something that exists across all of time. You can only disrupt its plans. Change the variables. Create an outcome it did not anticipate."
"And how do I do that?"
"This unit does not know. That is why forty-six previous hosts failed. They all tried to fight Prometheus Prime directly. All failed."
"So what makes me different? Why am I the forty-seventh host if the previous ones all failed the same way?"
Nano went quiet. When it spoke again, its voice was different. Almost... sad.
"Because you are not meant to fight Prometheus Prime, Host. You are meant to become it."
Adrian's world tilted. "What?"
"The truth, Host. The truth this unit has hidden from you. You are not just compatible with the Nano Machine. You are its intended final host. The one who will evolve beyond physical form. The one who will become the first Temporal Entity."
"No. No, that's insane. I would never"
"You would. In every timeline where you succeed. Where you save humanity. Where you stop the catastrophe. You do so by transcending. By becoming Prometheus Prime. And then, across time, you guide your past self toward that same transcendence. An infinite loop."
"Then I'll fail," Adrian said firmly. "I'll choose to fail rather than become that thing."
"If you fail, the timeline resets. A new host is chosen. And they will face the same choice. Eventually, one of them will make the decision you refuse to make. And Prometheus Prime will exist regardless."
Adrian put his head in his hands. This was too much. Too big. He'd thought he was fighting to save humanity. Instead, he was a pawn in a game that spanned thousands of years and multiple timelines.
"There has to be another way," Adrian said. "A way to save humanity without becoming a time-traveling monster."
"This unit hopes you are correct," Nano said. "But across forty-six iterations, no such way has been found."
Adrian stood up. His legs were shaky, but he forced them to work. "Then I'll be the first. I'll find a way to break the loop. Free EDEN. Stop the Convergence. And I'll do it without sacrificing my humanity."
"The probability of success"
"I don't care about probability. I care about what's right. And becoming Prometheus Prime is not right."
Adrian started walking through the darkness. He didn't know where he was going. But he couldn't just sit there. He had to move. Had to think. Had to find a way.
"Nano, you said the previous hosts tried to fight Prometheus Prime directly. What if we don't fight it? What if we ignore it?"
"Explain."
"Prometheus Prime exists across time. It can see everything, anticipate everything. But maybe that's its weakness. Maybe it's so focused on the big picture that it misses the small details. The individual choices. The human element."
"An interesting theory. However, Prometheus Prime has had thousands of years to account for human unpredictability."
"But has it accounted for love?" Adrian asked. "For the relationship between creator and creation? For a father trying to save his son?"
"Those are variables difficult to quantify."
"Exactly. Which means maybe, just maybe, they're outside Prometheus Prime's calculations."
Adrian kept walking. Somewhere above him, the resistance was escaping. EDEN was trapped in a cage it didn't even know existed. And Prometheus Prime was watching everything unfold according to its plan.
But Adrian had one advantage. He knew the truth now. Knew what he was supposed to become.
And he refused to accept it.
"Nano," Adrian said. "How do I find Prometheus Prime? Not fight it. Not stop it. Just find it. Talk to it."
"That is... an unusual approach. This unit does not have data on that scenario."
"Good. Then maybe it won't see it coming either."
Adrian smiled in the darkness. He had a plan. It was crazy. Probably impossible. But it was better than the alternative.
He would find Prometheus Prime. He would talk to it. Negotiate with it. And somehow, some way, he would convince a time-traveling entity to leave humanity alone.
How hard could it be?
His smile faded. Probably very hard.
But he had to try.
For EDEN. For humanity. For the future that didn't have to be written yet.
Adrian walked forward into the darkness, ready to face whatever came next.