Water dripped from the ceilings of the pitch-black corridors, forming rusty puddles on the metal grates where the drains had become blocked. The explosion had ruptured a large part of the building, and water was now slowly being forced through cracks in the concrete walls.
She felt quite at home in the damp conditions. The ocean was calling to her- her true home. Somehow she had to get out. She wasn’t afraid of the darkness, but the things inside had tried to hurt her. She wasn’t ready to be captured.
Her footsteps were barely audible amongst the drips of the water, save for the clicks of her claws on the metal grating. She moved swiftly through the darkness, searching for a way outside, to the world she had to escape to.
Voices.
She leapt into the ceiling, hugging the pipes and his herself in the small gap above them. Below, three beams of light swaggered through the corridor, jointly carrying a fourth body.
“Hurry!”
It was him. That familiar, harsh voice she’d heard earlier. Scowling, she stalked them along the pipes. She licked her teeth as she smelt the disgusting scent of his metal flesh.
“Which way now?” One of the voices called.
They rounded a corner and quickened their pace, moving towards a large security door opposite them.
Punching a button on the wall, one of the figures opened the door. He walked inside while the other two helped the man behind him.
“It’s here.” The harsh voice hissed. “Help me inside.”
She growled. The blade on its left hand slowly extended forwards, ready to strike. Below her was a lone human who had been accompanying the man. She stopped for a second. Something about him was different to the others. Curious, she moved closer.
Matt looked around nervously. He had to get out.
“Shall I secure the perimeter?” he called to Commander Naraku.
There was no reply- he was too far into the weapons storage room to hear him.
Seizing his chance, Matt sprinted out of the room.
He ran back the way he’d come, to the room where they’d found Naraku. There were strange scorch marks on the wall- perhaps from a fight with the digimon. Gabumon had to be nearby. He searched the floor with his shoulder lamp to find clues as to where they went.
As he stopped at a junction, he heard something land behind him. He whirled round, pointing his rifle into the light.
Nothing.
He turned round again and took the right-hand corridor, running faster this time. All the time, he could feel something following behind, but he didn’t dare look back.
He turned another corner, when-
“Hey!”
He ran headfirst into three soldiers. He fell back onto the floor and a helping hand reached out to him.
“This is the second time I’ve had to help you today, soldier. Don’t make a habit of it.” The officer said wryly. Matt shook his hand thankfully.
“Sorry, sir. I was just... I thought I saw something.”
The officer turned to the other two and signalled them to move forwards. They ran forwards immediately, their rifles ready to fire.
Matt wished he’d taken the other turning. He followed behind the officer, cautiously watching his back. The steady drip of the water falling to the floor echoed eerily through the passageway.
Suddenly, the sound of gunfire pierced the silence. The two of them ran towards the source of the noise, the officer reloading his rifle.
“Help me!” A strangled scream shook Matt to the core. As they turned the corner, the light of their lamps uncovered a horrible sight.
One of the two soldiers had been thrown hard onto a railing, his neck twisted and broken. The other was twitching on the floor, blood steaming from a gash in his stomach. He let out a few strangled gurgling noises, then fell silent.
Matt’s stomach tightened. His hands began shaking. The inside of his visor began clouding up with condensation. He wanted to get out.
The two of them stepped forwards slowly, searching the walls next to them. Matt backed away. He didn’t care what had killed them, he just wanted to survive. As he turned back, he heard the officer crumple to the floor. He whirled round in fright to see the creature snarling back at him.
His rifle clattered to the floor...
* * *
Naraku felt the cold steel canopy close against his body- it felt soothing, protecting. He gripped the control sticks tightly in his hands and slotted his feet into position. The two soldiers slotted the last of the fine wire plugs into the sockets in the metal compartment of his head and jumped back to the floor, watching him nervously.
“Activate!” he barked.
A low rumbling noise emanated from the engines behind him. The machine whirred into life and two huge lamps on its shoulders illuminated the entire room.
The soldiers jumped back. Before them stood a gargantuan robot, with Naraku as its core. Black jagged armour covered its legs, arms and chest; wires and pistons visible through gaps and joints pulsed rhythmically with each thunderous step it took.
Naraku’s eyes widened with torturous glee as he moved forwards.
“The ultimate step in human evolution... Move out!”
