Chapter 1 – Run

  Run.

  That was the only thought in Oscar’s mind as his feet slammed against the cold metal floor.

  Red emergency lights flashed across the hallway while alarms screamed throughout the facility.

  “ATTENTION ALL UNITS. ACP-1 HAS ESCAPED CONFINEMENT. APPREHEND IMMEDIATELY.”

  Oscar didn’t dare look back.

  Looking back meant slowing down.

  And slowing down meant dying.

  His lungs burned with every breath as pain surged through his body.

  The experiments had left him broken in ways he didn’t fully understand yet.

  His skin felt like it was on fire as unstable energy leaked from the cracks forming along his hands.

  His Core was unstable.

  But none of that mattered right now.

  If they caught him again—

  He might not be Oscar anymore.

  Footsteps echoed in the distance.

  They were getting closer.

  Oscar turned sharply around a corner, nearly slamming into the wall as his body struggled to keep up with his mind.

  More footsteps followed.

  Guards.

  Too many of them.

  “They went down this corridor!”

  Oscar’s heart pounded violently in his chest.

  No. No. No. No.

  His eyes darted around desperately.

  Then—

  A hand suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him into a nearby room.

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  His mouth was covered.

  Oscar clenched his fist, ready to strike—

  until he saw who it was.

  He froze.

  “…Baron?”

  Baron grinned slightly.

  “You didn’t think I’d let you leave without me, did you?”

  “I’m sorry, Baron… I can’t stay here.”

  “Neither can I.”

  “They’re everywhere,” Oscar whispered.

  Baron nodded.

  “They probably sent more guards once they realized I escaped too.”

  Oscar’s chest tightened.

  Now he wasn’t just protecting himself.

  He was protecting Baron.

  “They’ll kill us if they catch us again.”

  Baron smiled.

  “Not if we leave first.”

  Oscar blinked.

  “Leave? How?”

  Baron pointed down the corridor.

  “There’s a maintenance tunnel two floors down.”

  They rushed to the door.

  It wouldn’t budge.

  “Damn it, it’s locked!” Oscar said, panic rising in his voice.

  Baron smirked.

  “Not for long.”

  He flashed a keycard.

  Oscar stared at him.

  “How the hell did you get that?”

  Baron shrugged.

  “A magician never reveals his secrets. You know that.”

  They both knew what happened to failed experiments.

  They had seen them taken away.

  They had seen the ones that never returned.

  The new ACP subjects were considered the successful ones.

  But that didn’t mean they were safe.

  Neither of them wanted to be next.

  “Let’s go,” Oscar said.

  The door slid open.

  They sprinted down the corridor.

  Glass windows lined the walls beside them.

  Behind the glass were rooms where failed experiments had been taken.

  Rooms where they were killed.

  They couldn’t stop now.

  Then—

  Guards appeared at the end of the hallway.

  Oscar noticed something in one guard’s hand.

  “We have to run!”

  Oscar smashed through a nearby wall.

  They burst into the stairwell and sprinted toward the exit.

  But just as they reached the door—

  A Guardian activated his Core.

  A wall of corrupted energy erupted between them.

  The two were split apart.

  Oscar on one side.

  Baron on the other.

  “BARON, NO!”

  Baron slammed his hand against the corrupted barrier.

  “It might be over for me… but it isn’t for you!”

  Oscar struck the wall with rapid blows.

  Again.

  And again.

  But he was far too weak to break through.

  “JUST GO, OSCAR!”

  “YOU’RE GOING TO SAVE ME!”

  Oscar’s voice trembled.

  “I can’t lose you too!”

  Baron shouted back.

  “I WON’T DIE! I KNOW YOU’LL SAVE ME!”

  Oscar froze.

  Then—

  He ran.

  And he never once looked back. Oscar didn’t know where he was going.He only knew one thing. If he stopped running now…He would die.