Kill to evolve: A system that demands blood
Chapter 42: Escaped through hidden platform.

Chapter 42: Escaped through hidden platform.

Chapter 42

The lab was chaos.

Gunfire echoed off the walls. Sparks shot from severed cables above, and the air stank of burnt circuitry and something far worse, boiling biofluid. Clones twitched and spasmed on the floor, their mechanical bodies attempting to reboot, but the connection was gone. And Mila’s fingers danced across the cracked terminal, her brows furrowed in concentration.

Ronan, barely standing with Karla’s support, stared at the wreckage around him. His mind struggled to process it all. His system had somehow sent a message. Meaning his system wasn’t completely under the boss’s control...and more than anything....the system had protected him once again. But still, it refused to turn on, something was wrong.

"The guards. There were dozens outside. Armed to the teeth. How the hell did you guys even make it this far?" Ronan asked.

Karla’s mouth twitched into a smirk, though her eyes stayed sharp, scanning the area. "Taken care of."

"What does that even mean?" he asked, blinking through the haze. Those guys were so many, no way they could have taken care of them all without making noise that would have alerted the boss.

She didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she adjusted his weight against her side, then glanced toward the hallway they’d come from. "Let’s just say Myles finally got to test that sonic disruptor he’s been begging Nathaniel to approve."

"Oh, it worked," Myles called out without turning. "Most of them won’t be hearing again, if they’re even breathing."

"Not to mention Dez’s little EMP gifts," Karla added, finally meeting Ronan’s eyes. "They never saw us coming. You’ve got a good team, even if you do everything in your power to make us bury you early."

Ronan grunted, half in pain, half in disbelief. "Remind me to hug you later."

"You try it, I break your ribs."

Dez laughed from across the room. "Is this really the time for flirting?"

"I’m not flirting," Karla snapped.

"Then what do you call carrying an injured guy while whispering sweet threats?" Dez chuckled, firing another blast at a twitching clone that tried to crawl away.

"You call it saving his dumb ass," Karla muttered, half-dragging Ronan behind a flipped console for cover.

Suddenly, Mila cursed. "The suppression field’s core isn’t just digital, it’s physically wired to the sublevel’s generator. If I shut it down remotely, it’ll trigger a fail-safe. I need someone to manually cut the link or it’ll reboot in thirty seconds."

Siena didn’t hesitate. "Myles. Karla. Go."

Karla hesitated, glancing at Ronan.

"I’ll stay with him," Siena said firmly, stepping forward. "Go."

Without another word, Karla handed Ronan off to Siena and sprinted toward the emergency stairwell with Myles.

Ronan, now barely upright, watched them go with gritted teeth. "They can do it?"

"They’re the best we’ve got," Siena said simply. "You? You just focus on not dying."

He nodded faintly, though his body wanted to fold in on itself. "Fair enough." His system not being available to heal him was a big fall back, and not just that...it felt like he wasn’t whole without the system, he felt like something was missing.

A harsh screech blared from overhead—feedback—and the boss’s voice returned, wild and cracked. "You think you’ve won? You have no idea what’s coming. You’re ants chewing at the base of a god."

Dez tilted his cannon toward the ceiling. "You done?"

"Do you think this facility is the only one?" the boss continued, ignoring him. "Do you think I poured decades of research into one location? This is just a fraction. A test. The real work has already begun. You’ve lost. And don’t think you can end me so easily."

Mila’s voice cut in, cold and sharp. "Save the trash talk. We’re not here to kill you—just taking you to straight to HQ. But without those tubes? You might not make it that far."

A moment later, the lights flickered violently, then died completely.

A low boom rumbled from below, then silence.

Myles’s voice crackled through the comms. "Core is down. Suppression field’s dead for good."

Karla chimed in next. "We’re heading back up, what’s the status up there? Is Ronan still breathing?"

"Boss is still talking like he’s relevant," Dez muttered. "But the clones are down, the system’s crashing, and I’m bored."

"And don’t worry, your boyfriend is safe." He added sarcastically.

"I promise to kick you in the balls when return." Karla threatened before the comms disconnected.

Ronan exhaled slowly, everything in him aching. But for the first time since he’d walked into this nightmare, the grip on his chest eased.

Right then, a low whir hummed through the lab.

Mila’s head snapped up. "That sound wasn’t here before."

From the far end of the room, a hidden panel behind the wreckage groaned open. Steam hissed out. A platform began to rise, slow but steady—carrying a sealed, reinforced pod with it. Faint green lights flickered along its edges.

"What the hell—" Ronan started, struggling to stay upright.

Mila cursed under her breath and ran back to the terminal. "It’s an emergency evac system. He’s wired in. The pod’s feeding him power directly through those tubes."

Inside the pod, the boss was strapped upright, still connected to the tubes in his spine and chest. His face looked worse—pale, sweat-slick, but his eyes were open. Watching them. Smirking.

"You think I didn’t plan for this?" his voice crackled through a nearby speaker. "This lab is a just one of my many ones. You’ve won nothing."

Dez raised his weapon. "Permission to blow that tin coffin to hell?"

Mila didn’t even look up. "You won’t get through the shell in time. It’s locking."

The pod’s lights glowed brighter. Metal clamps snapped into place around the boss’s limbs. He was locked in, protected. A second later, the pod started lowering again.

Karla’s voice came through the comms. "Status?!"

"The bastard’s escaping," Siena growled. "Hidden platform, fully shielded. We can’t stop it."

The platform sealed with a loud clang, leaving behind only smoke and silence.

For a moment, no one spoke.

Then Ronan muttered, voice cold."There’s no need to panic, I’m the one he wants, so he’ll definitely return."

"That’s exactly what we need to talk about, what the hell does he want you for?" Karla voice cut through.