The fall seemed endless. Metal roared against metal as the platform dropped through darkness, a mechanical heartbeat echoing through the shaft. Natalie clutched Ethan against her chest, her screams swallowed by the wind. Adrian wrapped his arm around her, bracing their impact as the platform slammed into something solid.
The lights flickered on.
They weren’t in a basement. They were under the city—miles beneath the streets, inside a vast metallic chamber that pulsed with faint blue light. Rows of glass tubes stretched into the distance, each one containing a human silhouette suspended in fluid.
Natalie staggered to her feet, trembling. “What… what is this place?”
Adrian’s eyes widened, horror dawning on his face. “It’s the Vault.”
Before she could speak, a voice echoed through the roo
