Shinon and Malakai stood before the entrance to the secured storage room, the manager’s key clutched tightly in Malakai’s hand.

Thanks to Shinon’s retinal map, they successfully navigated the complicated corridors of the Eclipse’s supply point while evading any guards.

"Time of truth..." Malakai mumbled, breathing heavily.

With a cautious turn of the key, the heavy metal door creaked open, revealing the secrets hidden within. As the door swung open, they were met with a sight that left them both speechless.

The room was vast, and its shelves were lined with abundant resources. Weapons of various calibres were neatly stacked alongside crates of rations and medical supplies.

The sheer quantity of resources stored there was staggering, enough to sustain not one but three large settlements for several years. Just by looking at the scale of things, Shinon knew the Eclipse was planning something big.

’But what could possibly be worse than a zombie apocalypse?’ Shinon couldn’t help but be lost in his thoughts.

For what reason could the Eclipse have stockpiled an arsenal of weapons and provisions? He exchanged a bewildered glance with Malakai, who was equally perplexed by the discovery.

However, since Malakai had been a part of the Eclipse, he should have some clue about it. At least, that’s what Shinon thought before inquiring about the same.

"Why would the Eclipse hoard so much?" Shinon muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

"No idea. Besides, we are not here for all this," Malakai’s gaze was drawn to the bounty before them, but he remained focused on their primary objective. "We need to find the coded transmission device. It should be here somewhere."

Shinon wasn’t satisfied with his response but nodded, tearing his eyes away from the stockpiled supplies.

They couldn’t afford to be distracted by the Eclipse’s fetish of hoarding resources. Their mission was to retrieve the device that held the key to unravelling the organisation’s secrets. As long as they got their hands on the device, they could know all of Eclipse’s secrets.

Together, they began to search through the room. The shelves held an assortment of technology and equipment, making their task all the more challenging.

Given its importance, the coded transmission device had to be carefully concealed. Shinon wouldn’t be surprised if they had a secondary room within the locker to hide the device, but for now, they were locked into every nook and cranny of the room.

Time seemed to blur as they scoured the room. Minutes passed, but it felt like they had been in there for hours. Malakai’s determination was unwavering, and he meticulously examined every possible hiding spot.

But as frustration began to creep in, his fingers brushed against a small, inconspicuous device tucked away on a high shelf.

"Got it!"

Shinon watched as Malakai retrieved the coded transmission device, a sense of triumph washing over them. For a moment, Shinon was happy. They’d finally be able to get some information about the Eclipse and possibly his father.

But as Malakai secured the device in his bag, a subtle shift occurred in his behaviour. His demeanour changed, his expression hardening. A shadow of doubt crossed Shinon’s mind as they headed for the exit, but before he could voice his thoughts, Malakai made his move.

Malakai swiftly and unexpectedly pushed Shinon into the secured room, slamming the heavy metal door shut behind him. Panic surged through Shinon as he stared at Malakai through the small window in the door.

"Finally showing your true colours, huh? Fucking bastard!" Shinon’s voice was laced with desperation and anger.

"It was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up, Shinon. I realised it when you threatened me a while ago," Malakai met Shinon’s gaze, his expression cold and detached.

He continued, "You’re too strong, too much of a threat. I never planned on betraying you from the start, but this was the perfect moment to get rid of you."

Shinon’s mind raced as he grasped the gravity of the situation. He had been betrayed by someone whom he didn’t trust in the first place. That was the most humiliating thing about it.

He was almost certain Malakai would betray him, yet he fell for his trap. At that moment, Shinon couldn’t believe how foolish he had been. However, while Shinon struggled with the reality of his situation, Malakai made his next move.

Malakai calmly reached for the alarm button outside the secured room. His finger hovered over the button to summon the Eclipse soldiers.

"Start counting the remaining minutes of your life," Shinon’s voice trembled with rage, "I swear, by the time I’m done with you, you’ll be begging me to kill you!"

"Yeah, right," Malakai’s gaze remained unyielding as he scoffed. "First, think about how you will get out of here. Oh, and by the way, I’ll be sure to tell everyone in your settlement how you sacrificed yourself for the sake of the mission."

With a final push of the alarm button, the room filled with a blaring siren echoing through the facility. The Eclipse soldiers would be on high alert, converging on the secured room within moments.

Shinon pressed his palms against the cold metal door, his mind racing for a way out. He had been betrayed, but he refused to surrender. He had come too far, faced too many trials, to let it all end like this.

As the footsteps of Eclipse soldiers grew closer, Shinon knew that he had to rely on his own abilities and wits to escape the dire situation.

The fate of the survivors and the exposure of the Eclipse’s sinister plans still rested on his shoulders, and he was determined to see this mission through to the end.

***

Panic rippled through the facility as the blaring alarm echoed through the Eclipse’s supply point. Eclipse soldiers, awakened from their uneasy slumber, sprang into action.

At that moment, a realisation struck the manager – the key to the secured storage room was missing. Panic coursed through their veins as they frantically patted their pockets, their fingers trembling.

The key, the sole protection to safeguarding the Eclipse’s most valuable assets, had vanished.

"Seal off all exits! Find the intruders at all costs!" the manager barked orders to the soldiers.

The manager’s face contorted with fury. They knew the consequences of this security breach could be catastrophic.

Hundreds of guards armed to the teeth rushed toward the secured storage room, their weapons ready to confront the intruders.

The facility’s corridors were a cacophony of clanging boots and shouted orders as the Eclipse soldiers raced to the scene. Panic and adrenaline surged through their ranks as they braced for a confrontation with the unknown intruders.

As the guards reached the secured storage room, they found something strange: the room was locked from the outside. Seeing the room locked, they wondered if the manager had misplaced the key and was panicking without any reason.

Regardless of whether their manager had lost his mind, someone had triggered the alarm, and it wa their duty to check and ensure everything was alright.

Soon, the manager appeared there with spare keys, handing them over to the nearest guard and instructing them to open the locker.

The guard hesitantly unlocked the heavy metal door and swung it open while everyone else pointed their weapons at the gate, ready to fire.

They expected to find an intruder or something. However, their eyes widened in disbelief and rage as they took in the sight before them.

The secured storage room once filled to the brim with an abundance of weapons, rations, and medical supplies, now stood empty. The shelves were barren, the crates gone. It was as if a storm had swept through, leaving only a chilling emptiness in its wake.

"Find the intruders! They couldn’t have gotten far. Every resource in this room must be recovered!" The manager’s fury knew no bounds as they barked orders to their subordinates.

The guards rushed out of the storage room, their weapons ablaze. The Eclipse had stockpiled these resources with care and many sacrifices, and the thought of losing them was unfathomable.

As the Eclipse soldiers fanned out searching for the intruders, the silent facility became a hive of activity. Every corner was explored, and every floor was thoroughly examined.

The soldiers knew that the intruders couldn’t have gone far, not with the weight of the stolen resources slowing them down. They were relentless in their pursuit, but they couldn’t find anything.

Meanwhile, the manager stayed around the locker. Knowing very well that if he couldn’t find the resources... he would be a dead man.

But the question loomed large in his mind: How could anyone have emptied the secured storage room so swiftly and efficiently? It defied logic.

After all, there were tons of resources there that would take half a dozen trucks to transport from one place to the other. But they didn’t notice a single vehicle approaching them.

"No one would believe me, no matter how hard I try!" the manager bit his nails.

The minutes stretched into hours as the Eclipse soldiers scoured every inch of the facility. But they didn’t look at one place they should have... below their feet and inside the shadows.