The recovery date matched the day the sky broke.
Johannes looked at the label.
"They found it after the impact. What made it so important for them to store it inside?"
"They found something," Tyrus corrected. "You have encountered this before."
The pressure behind his eyes sharpened.
He had noticed something faint after entering the quarters, though the dead growth surrounding the room and the remnants inside the chamber had made its origin difficult to separate.
Near the case, the sensation became clearer. It was familiar, but unpleasantly so.
"Do not open it. I am warning you."
Marcus looked toward him. "You sensed something, doctor?"
"Not just sensed. I recalled what the feeling is, but explaining it to you is... difficult. You better leave it there alone. Let the soldiers contain whatever is inside that thing."
Evelyn moved another step away from the case.
"He’s right. Do not open it, Marcus."
Tyrus looked toward her. His eyes flashed with curiosity.
Evelyn noticed. "You, what are you looking at?"
"A viable specimen," Tyrus gave a knowing smile.
"You—stay away from me, you freak!"
"Hmph," Tyrus shrugged.
His attention shifted back to the black container.
The pressure did not resemble ordinary sound. It rested behind his thoughts, weak enough that someone unfamiliar with it might mistake the sensation for exhaustion or unease.
He had made that mistake once. The feeling had returned inside the old Hive lair beneath Hans’s Main Base.
Tyrus had kept that observation to himself. There had been no carcass to harvest, but the lingering sensation almost kept him awake for days.
And then came the second Hive lair inside Westgate. He had kept the first observation to himself because there had been nothing to compare it against. The second Hive made it a pattern.
The black case gave that pattern a possible source.
Now, that same sensation surrounded him again. Different places, but the same pulse, albeit weaker.
Tyrus’s smile slowly faded.
The pressure did not just belong to the dead Broodmother. It continued leading back to some alien rock that fell from the sky.
"Tyrus?"
Johannes’s voice pulled his attention away from the container.
"Nothing. I just remembered a few of my experiments."
Johannes scrutinized the scientist’s expression. "A few experiments?"
"Not something you should worry about," Tyrus waved it off. "Back to the subject at hand, perhaps you’ve found what you were looking for?"
"Not all of them, but it’s more than enough."
"Oh. Well, that’s settled then. I’ll take my time harvesting more samples outside. If you need me to inspect something here scientifically, just shout my name."
Johannes watched him return through the narrow passage.
"He loses interest quickly."
"No," Marcus said. "He found something more interesting outside."
Evelyn glanced toward the chamber.
"That does not make me feel any better."
The assigned Engineer approached the black case once Tyrus had left.
His inspection drone remained above it while the multi-scanner tablet compared the readings against its stored signatures.
The process took several seconds.
"Signature match confirmed," the Engineer reported. "I will record the findings for the Commander and bring this container to him."
Johannes looked toward the evidence label again.
"You sound certain. What are you going to do with that? No, what does Golden Eagle have to do with it?"
"That isn’t something you need to concern yourself with, Agent Schandler."
The Engineer secured the container without opening it. The two soldiers followed as he carried it out through the narrow passage.
The passage fell quiet after the Engineer left with the container.
Johannes continued watching the entrance.
"He could have answered one question before leaving."
"He did," Marcus replied. "Golden Eagle needs it more than we do."
"A warning to stop asking questions, huh?"
"Leader, the Commander is different from what we had before."
"I know." Johannes exhaled. "I just don’t like being told something is confidential."
"We were never transparent about our own work either, leader."
Marcus laughed lightly.
"You fool. Did Tyrus infect you with his nonsense?"
"Impossible. I will always be loyal to Cell 12."
"Not the SAS?"
Marcus remained silent for a moment.
"The world is going to change. No, it already has. We aligned ourselves with him. There’s no going back now."
"You’re right." Johannes looked toward the chamber. "We should get back to work. Less talking."
"You boys are the ones talking too much!" Evelyn interjected.
"Weren’t you arguing with Tyrus just now?"
"Hmph. What do you know? He’s a jerk!"
Their laughter briefly filled the ruined quarters.
...
Night had settled over Highcross by the time they left the hidden quarters.
Cell 12 packed the operational records into sealed containers while the personal effects remained separated. Marcus secured the damaged receiver and its storage drive without attempting to access either one.
The Engineer completed another scan of the room before closing the concealed entrance.
Nothing near the corner where the black case had rested was removed.
Tyrus remained inside the Broodmother’s chamber for another hour. He collected several tissue samples from the outer growth and marked the sections that should remain untouched.
The main body stayed against the concrete support together with the equipment embedded beneath its shoulder.
South One would continue guarding the chamber.
Before leaving Highcross, Tyrus inspected the five marked recovery sites.
The Lasher, Screamer, and Leaper remained in larger sections. The Tank and Spitter remained separated fragment sets inside their designated recovery areas.
He approved one labeled sample set from each site. The main remains stayed beneath South One’s guard until the comparative examination determined what else could be moved.
The convoy left Highcross shortly afterward.
The Guardian APC led them through the secured western avenue. Both transport vehicles followed behind it, carrying Cell Eleven’s records, personal effects, the new specimens, and the recovered container.
Johannes watched the district disappear through the narrow armored window.
Temporary lights remained around the parking entrances. Soldiers occupied the intersections while recovery teams continued working between the cleared storefronts.
Highcross looked quieter than before.
It contained a six-person SAS cell that apparently became five enhanced infected and a Broodmother, together with financial records that reached through several banks, companies, and operations Cell 12 had never known existed.
Yet from the road, it remained another ruined commercial district.
Tyrus sat opposite him with his arms folded.
His eyes remained closed.
"Sleeping?" Johannes asked.
"Thinking."
"You normally do that aloud."
"I am trying something new."
Evelyn glanced toward him.
"Keep doing it. Sounds peaceful this way."
Tyrus opened one eye. "You sound mildly disappointed, my lady."
"I am enjoying the silence. And who is your damn lady?"
Marcus kept the sealed storage drive on his lap.
"Dr. Tyrus, your... choice of words. I have never took you for someone romantic."
"Oh, do you now?" Tyrus closed his eyes. "Joke’s on you. I actually had a girlfriend."
"Had?" Evelyn leaned over. "So what happened? She dumped you because you were too scientific?"
Tyrus remained silent. "Hmm. Well, let’s just say our paths diverged. In the most literal sense."
"Like what? You stayed in Grefort. She went where?" Evelyn thought for a moment. "The Capital City?"
"Well, at least you got a point right. That’s basically the story of my love life."
"How short-lived that is then."
Tyrus did not react.
The convoy continued toward Site Three.
...
The eastern gate opened before the Guardian APC reached the outer barrier.
Floodlights washed across its armor as it entered the departure lane. The first transport vehicle followed, then the second.
Hans waited beside the unloading area with Callum.
The Engineer had sent a brief message ahead of the convoy. It had contained little beyond a recovered object requiring the Commander’s personal attention.
That was enough to bring Hans outside.
The transport doors opened.
Johannes stepped down first, followed by Evelyn and Marcus. Tyrus came out last, carrying one sealed specimen case while two soldiers unloaded the others behind him.
Hans looked across them.
"Your expression tells me you found something."
"We found their quarters," Johannes answered. "SAS Field Cell Eleven."
"Cell Eleven?"
"Six operatives assigned to financial monitoring inside Highcross. Their work focused on the banks, corporate accounts, and the companies moving money through the district."
Hans glanced toward Marcus.
"Keep the records with your cell. Compare them against your own investigation and recover whatever remains inside the storage drive."
Marcus nodded.
"I will need better equipment."
"I’ll have a workstation prepared at the Main Base. Tell me where both investigations overlap once you finish."
Johannes looked toward the sealed containers.
"You do not want the records yourself?"
"You understand SAS operations better than I do. I only need whatever matters afterward."
"Understood."
Hans shifted his attention toward Tyrus.
"What remains unanswered?"
"Why their mutations separated so greatly." Tyrus glanced toward the specimen cases.
"The five aboveground developed different physical adaptations. The woman became something capable of connecting herself to the chamber, nearby infected, and the surrounding tissue."
"What do you need?"
"I need to compare material from all six bodies, the chamber samples, and their HELIX enhancements. Anything I say before then would only be an educated guess."
"Then do that."
"I need a proper laboratory. The Colony setup can preserve and compare tissue. It cannot test what changed them."
"You’ll get one soon."
Tyrus’s mouth twitched. You always say that.
"For now," Hans continued, "use what we have. I don’t need every observation. I need to know whether another HELIX group can end the same way."
"That is a much more interesting question." Tyrus gave him a faint smile. "I’ll send the preliminary findings once I have something worth reading, Commander."
Hans looked toward Johannes.
"Take your people and secure the records. You can begin the comparison tomorrow."
Johannes nodded.
"Commander."
He motioned Evelyn and Marcus toward the soldiers unloading Cell Eleven’s belongings. The three followed the containers toward the secured warehouse.
Tyrus remained long enough to watch them leave.
Hans noticed.
"Your samples are going the other way."
"I know."
"Then follow them. What are you waiting here for?"
Tyrus looked toward the black container for a moment before turning toward the temporary laboratory.
The assigned Engineer approached once the others had moved beyond the unloading lane. He carried the black case between both hands while the two soldiers remained behind him.
"Recovered from Cell Eleven’s quarters, Commander."
Hans studied the damaged evidence label.
"Let’s go inside."
The group entered Site Three’s Command Room.
Hans took a seat. He gestured at the Engineer.
The latter placed the case on the table.
"Is this confirmed?"
"Yes, Commander. The scanner points back to the fragments."
"Anyone inside the compartment during transport?"
"No, Commander. No symptoms were reported by the escort."
Hans looked toward Callum.
"Secure one of the empty loading rooms."
Callum left without another word.
The Engineer waited beside Hans while the remaining specimen cases moved through the unloading area. Nobody approached the black container.
Several minutes later, Callum returned.
"Room secured, Commander."
Hans followed them inside.
The loading room contained nothing except several empty pallets along the rear wall. Two soldiers remained outside before the door closed behind Hans, Callum, and the Engineer.
The Engineer placed the case on the floor.
Hans crouched beside it.
"Open it."
The Engineer released the outer locks, then withdrew with Callum.
Hans waited until the door closed before raising the lid.
A dark fragment rested inside the protective lining. Burned sections covered most of its surface, though a weak pink glow passed through several narrow cracks.
Hans recognized it immediately. The pressure reached toward his thoughts.
The System suppressed it before it could settle.
"This may explain what happened to Cell Eleven. They’ve kept something they should not have kept."
The fragment had been recovered on the day the sky broke and stored inside Cell Eleven’s quarters.
If the six operatives continued using the room afterward, they may have remained exposed to its pressure before or during infection.
HELIX had not made them immune. The fragment may have altered how the infection developed, but the room alone could not prove that.
Five had emerged as separate mobile mutations. The sixth had become the Broodmother.
Hans looked at the faint pink cracks running through the fragment.
Her mutation had been different. She had connected herself to the infected, spread her awareness through the chamber, and left enough psychic energy behind for Kimmy to absorb.
The fragment carried psychic pressure.
The Broodmother had carried psychic pressure.
Kimmy had taken that pressure into herself and reached Tier One.
Hans’s fingers remained against the stone.
Could Kimmy’s breakthrough have started here?
Perhaps the Broodmother had not created that energy herself. Her mutation may have only shaped what the fragment had already placed inside her.
A System prompt appeared before him.
------
[ Do you want to store this meteorite shard in the containment subspace? ]
------
Hans rejected the prompt.
He opened the loading room’s internal channel.
"Could this energy strengthen a HELIX superhuman without destroying them?"
"The available information cannot determine that, Commander," the Engineer answered from outside.
Hans looked toward the closed door.
"Could Tyrus study it with what he has now?"
"The Colony laboratory can compare the infected samples. It is not equipped for controlled exposure testing."
That matched what Tyrus had complained about since arriving at Site Three.
Hans looked back at the stone.
Kimmy had survived a related pressure, but she had absorbed only what remained after the Broodmother died. That was not the same as direct exposure to the shard.
That did not make the fragment safe.
It only meant the result did not have to end with another infected.
Hans placed his hand against it again.
------
[ Do you want to store this meteorite shard in the containment subspace? ]
------
"Store."
The fragment disappeared.
The pressure vanished with it.
"Add its recovery location and material signature to Tyrus’s report. He does not receive the fragment until we have a laboratory capable of containing it."
"Yes, Commander."
The Engineer closed the empty case.
Hans remained crouched for a moment.
Cell Eleven showed one possible result of prolonged exposure.
Kimmy showed that related psychic energy could change a HELIX superhuman without immediately destroying her.
Whether both belonged to the same process remained unanswered.
Tyrus would have to determine the difference.
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