[h2][color=gray]HiveMind Underwater Research Facility, Abandoned Maintenance Rails[/color][/h2]
[@Lexisheeps], [@WhiteAngel25]

[hr]

[color=red][b]"GROOOOWWWWWGHHHHHHHHH!"[/b][/color]

The metallic screeching reached its peak as explosions ricocheted off the worn, dusted walls of the maintenance rails. As the last of the music faded into the distance, the air was filled with smoke and gun power, the remains of smoldering war. Drones lay haphazardly on the ground, some shattered like broken dolls, while others still tried to move, digital eyes flickering in and out of a conscious state.

And the source of the metallic screech was front and centre of the warfare - the Beast. The red shield it had summoned was cracked, and its glowing eye fluttered, unable to maintain the hologram due to the raucous onslaught of music, fire, and explosions.

Von Galoes stood there, wincing as if he had been physically struck, watching as the fire and grenades rained hellfire on his drones. His hologram, like petals falling from a peach tree, slowly scattered, his form diminishing. Before scattering, he gazed at Thierry, Nick, and his crew, Von's face still holding onto a wicked expression.

[b]"So, you finally figured it out, hm? Then perhaps I'll see you at the depths. Be warned, much has changed since the lower pits of the old facility were sealed off."[/b]

His gaze locked on to Subject #3, and he gave her a lethal glare. [b]"When I find you, Subject #3, feeling the cold grip of my fingers around your neck will be the least of your troubles."[/b]

Subject #3 visibly stiffened at this, hiding behind Stella and whimpering.

Satisfied, Von Galloes' face turned to Stells, who was singed a bit from protecting Subject #3. His eyes slightly softened as he spoke in a voice that approached disturbingly sweet. "[b]Your mother would be so proud."[/b]

The last of the petals fell, and the hologram disappeared, the room returning to a moderate level of lighting. The Beast seemed to whimper and retreat back into the depths of the maintenance rails, taking the vents as an escape route and quickly disappearing from sight.

Subject #3 seemed to relax a bit as Stella hugged her, returning the embrace. She could feel the empty hollowness around her throat. The phantom weight. The marks the collar had left behind were the only remnant of the lock over her voice. She was finally free to speak her mind.

Her eyes widened with realization, then she started up at Stella with gratitude. [b]"You... you've freed me. You've saved me."[/b]

[b]"You all... saved me."[/b] She said, slowly standing as she glanced up at Nick and his team. She looked at the defeated enemies in the room, the remnants of the bomb that had been around her neck, and her eyes welled up with tears. She hurriedly tried to wipe them, bowing slightly to avoid their gaze.

[b]"Th-thank you..."[/b] She whispered.

The door to the side was blown off its hinges, revealing flickering lights of the sealed part of the old facility. It had been a secret project between associates of The Louvre and The Ethereum, a testament to ancient powers and the desire to uncover the secrets buried here below the sea.

If Thierry had old schematics of the sealed-off facility, he would find much of it had remained the same. However, booby traps set in place by HiveMind would make much of it near impossible or highly risky to traverse. They would come across hallways filled with old contraptions, outdated dark energy devices, like containers and enhancers, plus miniature TRUMPET monitors to locate trace amounts of dark energy with pinpoint accuracy.

Observing these TRUMPET monitors would reveal a significant energy source deeper in the sealed part of the facility, leading to the [i]real[/i] site where dark energy was present, observable, and influential on its environment. The tapestry for an archaeologist to take foot and discover the source and intrigues of this strange, strange energy, how it affected people throughout time, and what that meant for Nick and Stella.