The descent into the underground complex was a series of grated steps, some of them rusted in places. The steps spiraled downwards, bordered by railings made of an unfamiliar material to Sam.
The slaves led the way, with overseers keeping them in line. This was a standard procedure for exploring unknown complexes, known as the "Lockpicker" strategy.
In such operations, slaves went ahead to absorb any potential security measures still active in the complex, as their lives were considered less valuable than those of the overseers.
Sam was mildly surprised to see that some lamps were still lit, although there was no real reason for astonishment. Even the slaves knew that the technology of the ancients was astonishingly advanced, so it wasn't too strange that electricity still flowed through the building. Some of the ancient generators were even used on many space stations today.
Of course, the seniors had shared this information with him as well.
"This place isn't too bad; it actually feels a bit secure," remarked the Monkey, inspecting the metallic walls of the descent.
The descent didn't take too long, but even so, Sam could appreciate the scale of the operation. In ten minutes, they had descended, which meant the complex was buried quite deep—perhaps a hundred meters or more.
'In a shelter like this, surviving a nuclear war wouldn't be so bad.'
When they reached the bottom, they were greeted by metal doors identical to those on the surface. The Fifth immediately started trying to break through them, prompting a reasonable question from Sam.
'How does she even know how to hack ancient security systems? Or has the passage of time reduced their security levels?'
The door seemed to be a solid metal wall, with a couple of indentations where a handle might have been. The girl skillfully inserted her hand into one of these indentations and did something inside.
'Maybe there are wires in there? It reminds me of a thief trying to short-circuit wires in a car to start it. Maybe it's the same principle here?'
After a minute, a click signaled that the door was open, allowing them all to enter.
They found themselves in a fairly small room that resembled a checkpoint. On either side were conveyor belts with what looked like suitcases on them.
The group moved forward until they reached two large inspection points. On either side were x-ray machines designed to check the contents of the suitcases, with conveyor lines leading directly to them.
'Looks like airport security,' Sam noted to himself.
Between the x-ray machines were two magnetic frames with metal detectors, designed to detect any metallic objects on individuals passing through.
The slaves went first, and naturally, the frames reacted with an unpleasant noise. However, no turrets dropped from the ceiling. The overseers followed and instructed everyone to proceed.
Ahead lay a long corridor. No doors or anything were visible, but there was another interesting detail: torn red-and-white caution tape was visible on the sides of the doors.
'That's definitely not a good sign.'
Sam glanced back at his companions. They all looked fairly alert; it seemed that underground, where it was slightly cool, they were much more comfortable than under the blazing sun. This was especially noticeable with the Octopus, both the slave and the overseer. Their skin had taken on a more vibrant purple hue, as opposed to their usual pale color.
"Well? Why are you standing around? Move it!" barked the Monkey, nudging 34, who was trailing behind the other slaves.
There was nothing to do but proceed into the corridor of uncertainty.
Sam wasn't particularly scared by the sight of the abandoned complex; he was more interested in why it had been abandoned in the first place. So far, it wasn't even clear what the complex was specifically built for.
The walk down the corridor didn't take long, but they encountered some unsettling sights along the way. The first were skeletons—corpses in lab coats lay limply on the ground, and their bones suggested they were not human but rather humanoid. There were also bodies of people in overalls, not like Sam's or the other slaves', but more like industrial work suits.
The overseers also wore overalls, but theirs didn't have any identifying numbers on the back, which might have indicated who they were.
Closer to the end of the corridor, there was a door in the wall. Above it was a dusty screen that flickered occasionally. Since Sam's translator was set only for vocal speech, he couldn't decipher the flickering text on the screen.
The overseers ordered everyone to stop and consider whether they should investigate the area, but ultimately decided to continue forward. At the end of the corridor awaited a massive metal door, slightly ajar, but even through it, the enormity of what lay beyond was clear.
Behind the door, it was evident what kind of underground complex this was.
It was an enormous factory.
'Things are getting more interesting,' Sam thought, a smile spreading across his face.
"Alright, we won't all fit through this door. I, the Fifth, and Seventy-Two will go ahead. The rest stay here with my partner."
Everyone nodded silently, except for the Octopus overseer, who decided to speak up.
"Then we'll check this door while you're inside. Try to find a way to open it fully."
The Monkey nodded and shoved Sam forward, causing him to bump his nose against the door.
"What are you standing around for? Move it!"
Sam grimaced, cursing through the pain, but soon squeezed through. The Fifth followed, and then the Monkey. The others couldn't fit through the door since it was only slightly ajar.
Sam shot a hateful glance at the Monkey, who only smirked.
'Just wait, you'll be singing a different tune soon… You'll all get what's coming to you.'
Soon, Sam turned his gaze away and began surveying the giant factory. Ahead were numerous manufacturing machines, many of which looked quite rusted. Sam had never been to a factory before, so he couldn't determine what the different machines did, but he noticed the Fifth's eyes lighting up with curiosity.
"First, we need to find a room where we can open these doors. Go ahead and navigate around these... things."
The Monkey clearly didn't know what factories looked like. This could work to Sam's advantage. Together, they decided to navigate around the machines, avoiding them in a circle. Fortunately, there were still some recognizable markings on the floor. Sam also noticed a smell.
It smelled like industrial oil—a scent he had once encountered but couldn't place. It reminded him of his past life, but again, he couldn't recall ever being in a factory.
He didn't dwell on the thought and continued on.
On the sides were various rooms with transparent glass arches. They housed different equipment that Sam assumed were for researching new components to improve the workshop's operations.
His gaze darted around, studying the mysterious complex—the workshop—spotting fascinating machines that intrigued him. But his curiosity paled compared to the relentless Fifth, whom the Monkey had already scolded for straying too far while examining different machines.
'She must be a natural-born engineer. It's a shame she was born a slave.'
In the end, their search didn't yield much success when they realized they had made a complete circuit. They noticed some locked doors, but there was no way through as they were equipped with special panels that apparently required keycards for access.
Suddenly, they heard a strange scraping noise and noticed the door they had passed earlier. In front of it stood the slaves and overseer, holding something that resembled a card, and Sam immediately understood.
"Oh, brother, how did you manage that?" the Monkey asked with genuine interest as he approached his comrade.
The Octopus handed him the card, which he examined from various angles.
"We found this thing on one of the bodies in that room. It seemed like a changing room, so we got lucky."
The Monkey grinned widely and pocketed the card.
"Perfect, we've found a couple of locked doors here, so this will come in handy."
Together, they continued to explore the complex.