Ari took photos of the exploded centre, the broken furniture, and the pile of rubble in the centre decorated with what looked like heavily rusted wiring sticking out at odd angles. Rale made an interested noise when he received the images. She found another packet of notes and tucked it in her pockets without glancing at them.

She stood directly below the hole — well over a meter above her in the ceiling — and shone the light upwards. It was swallowed by the darkness. Behind her, the sound of machine whirring reached her ears. She stiffened.

Her eyes flew across the room. Broken shelves and tables. Piles of broken-down plastic. Rubble crunched. A stout figure loomed into the only doorway out of the chamber. Nowhere to hide. Nowhere to run.

She touched the battery necklace. She still had about seventy percent charge left. Not enough to take down a whole team of Peacekeepers, but perhaps stun them enough to run past them. She killed her light, drowning herself in black. Squinting, she could make out the tiniest trace of light from cracks in the far walls.

The dark shape moved further into the room, its outline barely visible in the darkness.

If she was caught now, there was no way she could wriggle her way out of it. Shon couldn't save her. Rale would sell her so far down the river she'd end up in the last generator of Area Eleven.

A red light swept across the room, followed by a beep.

Her heart stopped.

It wasn't a Peacekeeper.

Ari flicked her phone on. The white light landed on a steel head, its surface dented and scratched. It was a Central Administration cyborg, but a damaged one. Its face cover was removed, revealing wires and a circuit board. The infrared light followed the initial sweep of red. Ari's skin tingled from the energy, although she couldn't see it. The machine beeped again, scrutinising her. She'd only ever seen these from afar, searching through rubble scouting decrepit buildings. But they were damn good at finding students. She was in deep trouble.

She took one step backwards. The loose pebbles beneath her foot shifted and she stumbled. Turning, she sprinted.

The machine emitted jumbled noises as it gave chase. Ari almost dropped her phone. Fumbling, she gripped it again before crashing into a fallen bookcase. The wood collapsed, bringing up a rain of dust. Her phone jerked away from her and spun away. The cyborg fired a jerky limb, grasping hands opened wide — it was missing two fingers — striking Ari in the arm. It left a jagged cut. She yelped, scrambling to the side.

Why was it attacking her? These were for search and rescue!

The pain swept away all rational thought in a flurry. Ari reached in a panic for her phone and scooped the light source to her chest. Legs slammed onto the loose ground. Her ankles threatened to give way. Her heart rammed against her chest. Air ripped in and out of her lungs in tandem with the adrenaline searing her veins. The chilling sounds of whirring machinery trailed closely behind.

Movement caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. She skidded to a halt. Another red light scanned her from her right and a new cyborg lurched into view. She twisted and dashed in the other direction. The corridor stretched on forever. The bouncing light gave her little to see by; shadows leapt in and out of her way. There was no sense of time or direction. The path was neverending. Tears sprang to her eyes. She should never have come here. The machines pursued with relentless tenacity. The raised ground caught Ari's foot, sending her crashing to the ground and knocking the wind out of her. The light flickered. She gasped, the world spinning. She tasted the metallic tang of blood on her tongue.

Approaching beeps counted the time to her demise. With trembling hands, she took out her phone and shone it directly at the cyborgs, exposing their rusted features with exposed innards. They approached with a disturbing, twitching movement, hands raised before them like claws, ready to tear into her again. She touched her necklace and discharged a bolt of electricity, striking one squarely in the chest. She expected the circuit to overload, causing it to collapse.

Nothing happened. The charge faded. The cyborg continued to march towards her.

Ari's stomach dropped further when she realised she'd come a full circle and she was trapped in the room with the large burn again. The stairs to freedom lay behind the creatures before her. At her rear was nothing except charred ground and a hole in the ceiling. No windows. No doors.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

A hole in the ceiling.

She spun around and sprinted. She stuffed her phone inside her chest pocket, the light still on, when she reached the hole. One hand grasped the battery necklace. She drained it to at least a quarter and propelled herself upwards with a blast of energy.

Clanking machinery followed her, hot on her heels.

The hole was big enough for her to squeeze into. As her acceleration slowed, she jammed her elbows and toes into the wall around her. Some of it gave way. Her heart skipped a beat. But her joints kept her in place in the hole. Her limbs shook. Beeps and jangles came from below. The machines paused, scanners arching upwards and waiting for her to drop.

Ari swallowed, her head pounding. With careful hands, she grasped above her and pulled, steadily tugging herself upwards inch by inch. The light in her chest was at a difficult angle, but gave her enough to see by. Cocking her head upwards and squinting, she ignored the spasm of pain across her shoulder and continued to ascend. It didn't matter to her where this hole went, as long as she left that godforsaken basement.

Her muscles screamed with fatigue. Her head spinning, Ari willed herself on, inch by inch. She knew she was making minimal progress. Her desperate hands found a ledge and clung to the smooth surface. A vent? She pressed against the mound blocking it and groaned when it wouldn't budge. Her fingers brushed against more paper. Intrigue barely penetrating her fog of fatigue, she tugged it out and briefly scanned it. It was a student profile, pertaining information that were classified from March City citizens.

Noan, Rank E, Class 5-12.

Ari frowned. She did not recognise the gaunt features or the hungry eyes staring up at her from the profile, and yet they were in the same class.

A Metamorph with the ability termed 'Leech Life', Noan's exam record was unremarkable. He repeatedly failed his exams, re-sitting numerous theory and practical tests, and spent most of his time in remedial classes. His address was this very building.

Her thighs burnt from exhaustion. Her knee buckled and she gasped. Desperate fingers scrabbled against the walls as she slid; the papers tumbled down into the abyss. Her throat narrowing with fear, she forced her aching limbs upwards again until she found the mound blocking her path.

With a grunt, she discharged her necklace until almost nothing was left and punched into the pile of rubble. It gave way. Her mind blank and her muscles afire, Ari pulled herself horizontal at last.

For a few minutes, she lay with her face pressed against the cool metal in a daze. Her eyes crossed, staring but not seeing the light reflecting back at her from the rusted steel vent innards. Blood pumped in her ears. Her lungs still burned from the sprinting and screaming. She became aware of a dull throbbing and wet sensation in her shoulder. She winced as she pushed herself up. Logical thought slowly seeped back into her mind.

Noan certainly fitted the profile of a weak student willing to undergo illegal experimentation by the scientists to improve his ranking, as Rale had speculated. His repeated re-sits wouldn't bring in much credits. Ari wondered if he was the one who surged below.

By artificially altering abilities one was born with, students surged. And with every explosion being a failed experiment — would the scientists need replacements? Was that why they kidnapped Mina?

She felt sick. To modify such a core part of one's body was so immoral. To kidnap weak students for experimentation and turn them into bombs was repugnant.

"Rale?" She touched her ear and groaned. The earpiece was gone. As was her cap. She cursed. If the Peacekeepers raided that place, there would be evidence pinpointing her presence tonight. Those cyborgs would have signalled Central Administration already. She almost laughed at the absurdity of it. She'd barely escaped with her life — and now she worried about being caught by Peacekeepers!

Kicking the remain of the rubble out of her way, she crawled forward, mind-numbingly putting one arm before the other, one knee before the other.

As the distance between the mutilated cyborgs and her increased and the echoes of their eerie clinking and clanking quietened, Ari dared to have hope. The vent should lead to a centralised filter for this block of flats, which meant access to the outside.

"Search every room."

The unexpected human voice startled Ari. She halted, barely breathing. The voice echoed from further ahead. With a shaking hand, she switched off the phone light, suddenly realising she had lost signal when she was underground. Footsteps came from below. Rickety stairs groaned beneath moving bodies. She waited for the Peacekeepers to pass before peeking at her phone again. There were five missed calls.

Peacekeepers are here, she tapped at Rale.

His reply was instantaneous, They found you?

No. This place has cyborgs. Almost killed me. Hiding in a vent in the ceiling.

Did you get any footage?

Ari's mouth dropped.

They almost killed me, she tapped furiously. CA cyborgs attacked a student.

I can read. But did you?

She paused, and then gritted her teeth. No.

She could almost imagine the raised eyebrow, dangling his offer to help her find Mina before her. Suppressing a groan and trying to ignore the twinge of pain from the cut on her arm, Ari turned her body around and slid her way down another vent, hoping the rusted steel and loose screws wouldn't give way and let her plummet to her death. The crunching footsteps from the Peacekeepers came closer. Ari paused over a grate, spotting the bright white light from their torches coming down the corridor. It would be a suicide mission to go back down with both cyborgs and Peacekeepers roaming the halls.

They swept below Ari in three pairs. The torchlight hit yellow capes, the rippling material adjusting its tone so that the wearer blended into invisibility the moment the light swung away. The frontmost person pulled out a sleek gun that was very different from the stunning types Shon used. Her eyes widened. They were Investigators.

What were Investigators doing at this decrepit site?

Ari took a shaky photo of the Investigators before pushing ahead, following their movements. The Investigators spoke in low voices, the words indistinguishable. Fluid movements swept each doorway, clearing the rooms before moving ahead in organised formation. There were no signs of the cyborgs now. One Investigator paused to peer at the collapsed bookshelf Ari had slammed into earlier. Ari's breath caught in her throat. She could see Rale's earpiece on the ground next to the Investigator's boot. If he looked down...

"What's this—"

Just as he spotted the earpiece and bent down, his partner pulled out his gun.

"Who's there!" she barked.

The first Investigator straightened up, ignoring the earpiece, and pulled out his own gun too.

Ari saw nothing at first. Then she recognised the stuttering mechanical footsteps.

"A cyborg?" said the second Investigator. "But who deployed—"

"Something's not right."

The Investigators stiffened, their weapons pointing down the corridor.

"That doesn't look like one of the CA cyborgs," said the tall, broad-shouldered one at the top, squinting in the semi-darkness as the robot ambulated towards them. "Has it been modified...?"

"Doesn't act like one either," said the one at the front, taking a step forward. "Command Code, cease action!"

The cyborg stiffened — and then raced at them, body parts clanking.

The Investigators fired. The popping sounds echoed. Ari picked up her phone in time to start live stream to Rale.

Bullets created further dents on the machine's rusted face. Red light emitted from its eye area, scanning the Investigators. A stun shot struck its chest. Electricity crackled and coursed over its body. It stuttered for a second before resuming its assault as if nothing happened, just like when Ari attempted to overload it.

The shooter exclaimed in shock.

"We need backup!" one yelled into their communicator. "Hostile cyborgs. I repeat, hostile cyborgs!"

The rushing cyborg reached the first Investigator, who threw up a shimmering, silvery-blue shield. The shield splintered upon impact and the machine slammed into the student, pinning him down. The group scattered. The pinned Investigator yelled, covering his face.

"Get him out!" One student slammed his baton at the machine's neck, his hand glowing. A piece fell out of the machine's face, exposing more circuit board. The baton cracked under immense strength, but the cyborg continued tearing at the fallen student as if the attacks had no effect.

"We're trying!"

Another Investigator leapt on its back, her body crackling with electricity. Wrapping her arms around its neck, she discharged. The scent of singed hair filled the air. It was useless against the robot. A third one took her place, her whole body glowing crimson. Ari could feel the heat radiating from her even from this distance. But the machine barely reacted.

"No use!"

"I can't discharge here!" said another student. "This whole place will collapse."

More Investigators burst through the doorway. One hurled something at the group. Without a pause, they threw the net over the cyborg, covering their teammate.

"Turn on electromagnetic mode. Do it now!"

Can I go now? Ari typed.

Get me more, came Rale's reply. Ari blinked in disbelief. There was already so much controversial evidence. Did he really want her to stay and witness the entire slaughter?

A quiet hum radiated from the netting around the cyborg. The energy field around them made Ari's skin tingle. With a decrescendo whir, the robot keeled over. Panting, the group pulled it off the fallen Investigator, who was drenched in blood and barely conscious. Ari could almost hear Rale's excitement at seeing the gore. A student jerked her head up and gave an alarmed shout.

The second cyborg lurched towards them.

Enough? Ari typed.

OK, nice job.

Ari scooted back towards the exit. The screams and yells bounced off the walls. Her heart pounded; her sweaty palms slid against the steel shaft and pulled her aching body along. Dirty hair plastered to her face, poking at her eyes. The shaft ended in a grate and a flat wall, not the outside world. She pulled the grate aside and peered down. Darkness. She dropped down and climbed up the nearest stairs on trembling legs.

"Take it to them!" came a voice from the main door.

Ari slipped into the next doorway. Two Investigators rushed past her, holding a heavy weapon in their hands. Reinforcement awaited outside. Of course. She couldn't leave by the main entrance. More Investigators must be on their way. Perhaps even some high rankers. The sound of fighting and cries grew louder. Swallowing, she climbed the remaining steps until she reached the top. All the windows — the few this building had — were barred and the glass covered in dust and cracks. She could break a window and blast the bars. She touched her necklace. There might not be enough energy left.

Her foot caught on something and she almost tripped. Pointing her phone down at the ground, she made out a rope with a frayed end. She glanced up. A broken remnant dangled from a skylight — left open. Climbing onto a rickety barrier, she discharged a tiny bit of energy and jumped, grasping the dangling rope with bleeding arms. It struck her, as she climbed, how idiotic it would be if the half-decomposed rope snapped and she fell to her death then and there.

Exhausted limbs tugged her body out of the opening. She allowed five minutes to gain her breath before running and discharging the last of her battery, leaping over rooftops to put as much distance as she could between herself and the monstrous cacophony. What a horrific surprise in this so-called abandoned poor residencies.

Her energy levels bobbed up and down erratically. All her muscles screamed for rest and her lungs were aflame. Ari pushed on, her heart slamming against her ribs and the yells of the Investigators echoing in the back of her mind. Even though there was significant distance between her and the abandoned building, she could almost hear the clanking machine noises hot on her tail. But every time she turned around, all she saw were the flickering faint yellow-orange street lights of Area Nine lining the streets.

Distracted and exhausted, her next landing ended with a thump; she discharged too much energy and crashed to the floor of the rooftop. Tears sprang into her eyes as her bare arms scraped the rough surface. The world spun. For a fleeting moment, she thought she was in bed, warm and safe. Imagine the ruckus if she were caught past curfew now. At least the air was comfortingly warm. A surveillance probe would definitely catch her splayed out on the roof in the morning, though.

And, right then, she couldn't care less. The exhaustion overwhelmed her with a heavy bliss. Her muscles weighed like lead. Her eyes fluttered shut.