Global Awakening: Apocalypse Ender's Chronicle

As soon as Shane finished speaking, the two Bloodforged Automatons suddenly moved.

Sandara was the first to attack.

Her body swiftly moved as she raised her bow and released an arrow directly toward Shane!

The projectile moved so quickly, but Cloud predicted the attack immediately. Thanks to that, Shane raised his hand and deflected it with a burst of energy.

Then, it was at this point that he noticed something.

Since Sandara was still an Archer, there might be a chance that she could still recover! Perhaps she was just brainwashed, and they could do something about it!

”Don’t kill them!” Shane immediately shouted. He had no time to explain, but the others understood what he wanted to happen.

Max, who had already rushed forward, stopped himself from striking the two directly.

”Then how are we supposed to stop them?”

”Just disable their bodies!”

The order immediately changed the way everyone fought.

Instead of targeting their heads or mechanical cores, they began focusing on their limbs and movements. Jillian played a series of melodies that weakened the two Bloodforged Automatons, while Lyra also stored her guns and threw several talismans around the chamber instead, creating barriers that restricted their movement.

Sylas suddenly appeared behind Max and swung his blade.

Max blocked the attack with his mechanical arm, but the impact forced him several steps backward.

”He’s still this strong?”

Max gritted his teeth before grabbing Sylas’s arm.

”Sorry about this!”

He then twisted the arm and slammed Sylas into the floor without damaging his mechanical core.

Boom!

At almost the same time, Sandara attempted to escape through the opening behind her.

However, Minerva immediately intercepted her.

”You’re not getting away!”

A spiritual barrier appeared in front of Sandara, forcing her to change direction. She immediately fired another arrow, but Tundra detonated a small bomb beneath her feet.

BOOM!

The explosion didn’t injure her, but it threw her off balance long enough for Lyra’s talismans to wrap around her body.

Just like that, Sandara struggled violently against the restraints.

Shane immediately moved forward.

”Careful! Don’t damage her!”

”I’ve got her!”

Max rushed over and helped restrain Sandara while Shane used his energy to reinforce the bindings.

After several more seconds, both Bloodforged Automatons were finally immobilized.

The chamber became quiet.

Shane immediately approached Sandara and confirmed that her eyes were still glowing red...

”Sandara...”

There was no response.

Shane then turned toward Sylas.

The Legendary Elf was similarly restrained, his mechanical body completely still while his eyes continued tracking everyone around him.

”They’re still conscious, right?” Minerva asked.

Shane’s expression changed.

”That’s what I was thinking.”

He immediately looked toward Cloud.

”Can you examine their brains?”

[ I can attempt to establish a connection with their mechanical systems. ]

”Do it.”

Cloud remained silent for several seconds.

Then its voice returned.

[ Their biological brain structures remain largely intact. ]

Everyone immediately became hopeful.

”So they’re still themselves?” Travis asked.

[ I cannot confirm that. Their memories and consciousness may have been altered, suppressed, or partially damaged. However, their brains have not been completely replaced. ]

Shane clenched his fists.

”Then there’s still a chance.”

His eyes turned toward the two restrained figures.

”Cloud, find a way to connect to their mechanical systems without damaging their biological components.”

[ Understood. ]

Shane took a deep breath.

”We’re bringing them back...”

Even if their bodies had been transformed into Bloodforged Automatons, their brains were still intact.

As long as their consciousness remained inside those bodies, Shane refused to believe that they were lost forever.

As for destroying the First Citadel, he decided that it would happen once they were able to confirm whether they could still recover or not.

For now, they had to find the laboratory where they operated on the two to become like this...

***

Shane immediately ordered Cloud to begin tracking the paths taken by Sylas and Sandara before they had been transformed.

[ I will attempt to reconstruct their movements using the remaining traces in the facility’s systems. ]

”Do it.”

While Cloud worked, Shane looked around the enormous chamber. The Representative was nowhere to be seen.

”Where did that machine go?”

Nobody had noticed it leaving.

One moment, the Representative had been standing near the center of the chamber, and now there was no trace of it.

”Cloud, where is the Representative?”

[ I cannot detect its current location. ]

Shane frowned.

”Did it leave through one of the hidden passages?”

[ Unknown. The Representative’s connection to the First Citadel appears to have been interrupted. ]

That answer made Shane even more suspicious.

The machine had been strangely calm throughout their battle, and now that they had captured Sylas and Sandara, it had simply disappeared.

”Forget it for now. Find their trail first.”

[ Understood. ]

Several seconds later, Cloud finally responded.

[ I have located residual energy signatures matching both Sylas and Sandara. ]

Shane immediately looked toward the wall.

”Where?”

[ Their paths separated shortly after they were captured. Both routes eventually converge at a deeper section of the First Citadel. ]

A holographic map appeared through Shane’s wristwatch, but most of it remained incomplete because of the facility’s interference.

Only a faint route could be seen.

”They were taken there?”

[ Most likely. I have also detected traces of medical equipment and biological energy along the route. ]

Travis pushed his glasses up.

”Then that might be the laboratory.”

Shane nodded in agreement.

”Lead the way.”

The group immediately began moving.

Unlike before, Shane no longer cared about avoiding damage to the First Citadel. If the facility stood between them and the laboratory, they would simply break through it.

They followed Cloud’s reconstructed route through several corridors, occasionally finding traces left behind by the two missing members.

Soon, they noticed a broken arrow, a small piece of Sylas’s cloak, and several drops of blood that had already dried against the metallic floor.

Every discovery made Shane’s expression darker.

”They were dragged through here,” Minerva said quietly.

Shane nodded...

Eventually, Cloud suddenly stopped.

[ Master. ]

Shane looked toward his wristwatch.

”What is it?”

[ We have reached the location where their trails converge. ]

Everyone immediately became alert...

Shane looked ahead and saw a massive metallic door blocking the corridor.

Unlike the other doors they had encountered, this one had no visible weapons or defensive mechanisms.

There was only a single symbol engraved in its center.

Cloud analyzed it for several seconds before it gave a conclusion.

[ Master, I believe we have found the laboratory. ]