The countdown was invisible,but every second felt like a drumbeat under the floor.
Thirty seconds.
Twenty-nine.
APEX pulsed a warning through Kayden's skull—steady, clipped, urgent.
"Omega team approaching.Trajectory direct.Distance: 48 meters."
Kayden inhaled sharply.
"Alex—Phin—we have to move. Now."
Alex was already at his side, shoulder under Kayden's arm.
"I've got him. Don't try to run on your own."
Phineas darted toward the hall, stun baton raised like it would stop a military unit.
"Follow me! Or follow APEX! Or follow fate! I DON'T CARE, JUST MOVE!"
Kayden forced his feet under himself.
His legs trembled.His ribs pulsed with leftover resonance.His vision blurred around the edges.
But he stood.
Barely.
APEX whispered:
"Motor function unstable.Do not exceed pace threshold."
Kayden whispered back under his breath:
"I don't care about your threshold. We're leaving."
Alex grinned despite the panic.
"That's the Kayden I know."
The moment they crossed the doorway—
the sprint began.
Alex dragged Kayden forward,Phineas leading at a frantic pace,boots slapping against tile.
Behind them, alarms morphed into a harsher tone.
WEEEOOO— WEEEOOO—OMEGA PROTOCOL LIVE
Kayden's stomach dropped.
That alarm wasn't for SRD.
It was for him.
The corridor lights strobed violently,bathing them in red,then white,then red again.
Alex cursed under his breath.
"They're trying to disorient us. Keep going!"
Phineas was already fumbling with his stolen wrist-mod.
"Come on—come on—give me ANYTHING—Map, door override, friendly ghost, ANYTHING—"
The mod sparked once.
Then twice.
Then—
A pathway illuminated across the floor.A glowing line.Soft white.Leading left.
Alex paled.
"That's not SRD."
Kayden's pulse spiked.
"That's her."
Phineas yelped.
"NOPE. NO THANK YOU. REJECT. IGNORE. WE DON'T FOLLOW COSMIC LIGHT TRAILS—"
Kayden shook his head.
"Then we don't follow her.We follow APEX."
APEX answered instantly:
"Right corridor.Emergency stairwell."
Phineas turned right so hard he nearly wiped out.
Kayden staggered.Alex caught him before he hit the floor.
"You okay?!"
Kayden nodded weakly.
"Keep going…"
They ran.
Past shattered wall panels from the resonance blast.Past unconscious guards and sparking consoles.Down a off-white corridor that smelled like metal and ozone.
Kayden's breaths came ragged.
His ribs hurt.His skull throbbed.His legs threatened to fold.
APEX whispered:
"Functional degradation: moderate.Operator, reduce exertion."
Kayden hissed:
"I'M TRYING—"
Alex tightened his grip.
"Kayden, listen.If you fall, I'm carrying you."
Kayden blinked rapidly—not at the threat.At the memory.
Not memory.
A vision.
Himself—older, colder,standing over Alex's fallen body.
His breath hitched.
"Alex—don't let go."
"I won't."
Phineas skidded to a halt.
"STAIRS!"
A heavy steel door loomed ahead, marked in yellow:
SECTOR TRANSFER – EMERGENCY ACCESS
Alex rushed to it, shoulder first—
THUD—!
"Locked!"
APEX pulsed urgently.
"Access panel: left."
Phineas dove for it, ripping off the panel cover and exposing wires.
"Oh great. My favorite. Bomb-defusing time, but for DOORS!"
Alex glanced over his shoulder.
"Phineas. Speed."
"YES, ALEX, I KNOW!"
Kayden's breath stuttered as the lights behind them shifted—
Red.Red.Then white.
APEX spoke sharply:
"Omega team: 18 meters."
Kayden stiffened.
"They're coming."
Alex planted his feet.
"We're not letting them get close."
He picked up a fallen baton, twisting it in his grip.
Kayden reached out weakly.
"Alex—don't—you can't fight Omega—"
Alex glared at him.
"Watch me."
Phineas's hands flew across the wires.
Sparks burst.
A panel beeped.
"COME ON COME ON—GIVE ME SOMETHING—"
The lights behind them flickered again.
Footsteps.Heavy.Coordinated.
Kayden's heart started sprinting faster than his legs ever could.
APEX whispered:
"Operator—if Omega reaches visual contact,Agent extraction becomes inevitable."
Kayden's breath froze.
The memory of her presence—the bending lights,the frozen air,the expectation—hit him like a punch.
No.He wasn't ready to face her again.He wasn't ready to walk through that slit of light.
He whispered, trembling:
"I'm not going with her…"
Alex kept one arm around him.
"You're not. I won't let you."
Phineas screamed triumphantly:
"YES—YES—DOOR OPENING—HURRY!"
The steel door clicked—twitched—slid open an inch.
Alex shoved his shoulder into it.
"Kayden—move!"
Kayden forced his legs forward,every step a fight against gravity and pain.
He crossed the threshold—
And the moment his foot hit the stairwell floor—he felt it.
A presence.
A pressure.
Like the Agent's gaze had turned toward him again.
Not here.
Not physically.
But aware.
APEX confirmed it:
"Agent attention: regained."
Kayden staggered.
"No—no no no—she's tracking us again—"
Alex grabbed his face.
"Look at me.We're not stopping.You hear me?We're not. Stopping."
Kayden's breathing steadied.
Barely.
APEX's hum steadied with him.
Phineas slammed the stairwell door shut.
Behind them—something heavy crashed into the hall.
Boots.Orders.Gunfire hitting the door.
Alex's voice rose over the chaos.
"PHIN—MOVE!"
They sprinted down the stairs—
Three boys,one half-conscious,two terrified,all running from a government kill-teamand a cosmic entity who thought Kayden belonged to her.
Kayden whispered as his knees gave out and Alex pulled him up:
"I'm scared…"
Alex answered without hesitation.
"So am I."
Phineas yelled from below:
"GOOD NEWS—FLOOR PLAN SAYS WE HAVE THREE MORE LEVELS TO NOT DIE ON!"
APEX hummed:
"Operator.Maintain consciousness.Your survival depends on it."
Kayden whispered:
"…I'm trying."
He didn't know if he meant staying awake—
Or staying himself.
But he kept moving.