One wrong move, and they'd have every Arasaka security drone and guard raining hell on them. Starr's heart raced, each second feeling like an eternity as Byte worked to crack the system.
"Byte," she hissed into the comms, her eyes darting to the slowly rotating security cameras on the far side of the building. "We don't have a minute. You need to move faster."
"Almost… there," Byte replied, her voice tense but focused. Her fingers flew across her deck, the holographic interface illuminating her face as lines of code scrolled rapidly across the display.
Starr could feel the tension building in her body, the pressure of the moment weighing on her. She glanced over at Zeke, who had already taken position near the breach in the fence, his large frame blending into the shadows. The mercenary looked calm, completely unfazed by the chaos about to unfold. Reaver stood just behind her, silent as always, his eyes locked onto the building with the same steely determination she'd seen during their previous jobs together. His presence was unnerving, stirring up old memories and emotions Starr had buried long ago.
"Done," Byte said, exhaling in relief. "Security systems are offline. You've got a window, but it won't last long. Move."
Zeke was the first through the breach in the fence, his massive frame slipping through the shadows like a predator. Starr followed, keeping low and close to the ground, her eyes scanning for any signs of movement. Reaver was right behind her, his movements silent and calculated, like a ghost in the dark. Byte, still connected to her gear, stayed behind, controlling the security systems remotely to give them as much time as possible.
The team crossed the outer courtyard of the facility without a sound, slipping past deactivated turrets and drones. Starr's heart pounded as they neared the main entrance—a massive, reinforced door that looked impenetrable at first glance. But Byte had done her job well. The control panel on the door flickered, the electronic lock releasing with a soft click as the door slid open.
"We're in," Starr whispered into the comms, her voice barely audible.
"Good," Byte replied. "I'll keep monitoring the grid. If anything changes, I'll let you know."
Zeke and Starr entered first, moving into the long, dimly lit hallway that stretched out before them. The interior of The Mind Maze was a stark contrast to the cold, industrial exterior. The walls were lined with polished white panels, and faint blue lights pulsed along the floor, casting an eerie glow throughout the space. The air was sterile, almost too clean, a clear sign that whatever Arasaka was doing here was far from ordinary.
Reaver joined them, slipping into the hallway with a fluid motion, his eyes scanning the surroundings with the same sharp focus Starr remembered all too well. His presence behind her was distracting, but she couldn't afford to let it affect her concentration. Not here. Not now.
"Byte, which way?" Starr asked, her voice steady despite the tension thrumming in her veins.
"Take the first corridor on your left," Byte replied. "It'll lead you to the central labs. That's where the neural tech is stored. You'll have to move fast—there's a guard rotation coming up in ten minutes."
Starr motioned for Zeke to take the lead. He moved silently, his heavy footsteps barely making a sound on the smooth floor. Starr and Reaver followed close behind, their weapons drawn and ready.
The facility was eerily quiet, the hum of the machinery the only sound echoing through the halls. It was too quiet, and that made Starr uneasy. Arasaka wouldn't have left this place so lightly guarded, no matter how confident they were in their security systems. There had to be more here—something they hadn't accounted for.
As they rounded the corner, the hallway split off into two directions—one leading deeper into the labs, the other toward a set of elevators. Zeke stopped at the junction, glancing back at Starr for direction.
"This way," she whispered, pointing toward the lab corridor. "Stay close."
They moved forward, the blue lights on the floor pulsing softly beneath their feet. Each step felt heavier, the pressure of the mission building with every second. Starr could feel the weight of Reaver's presence behind her, his silent intensity making her hyper-aware of her every move. She pushed the thought away, focusing on the task at hand.
As they approached the door to the central labs, Byte's voice crackled through the comms. "Hold up. There's something wrong…"
"What is it?" Starr asked, her voice tense.
"Security feeds are glitching. Something's wrong with the system. It's like… it's fighting me. I can't tell if it's a countermeasure or—"
Suddenly, the lights in the hallway flickered, and a low hum filled the air. Starr's heart skipped a beat as she realized what was happening.
"Byte!" she hissed. "What the hell is going on?"
"I—I don't know," Byte stammered. "Something's overriding the system. It's… it's not Arasaka. It's something else."
The doors to the lab hissed open before Starr could respond, and a figure stepped into the hallway—a towering, humanoid machine with sleek, polished chrome plating. Its eyes glowed a menacing red, and its body moved with the fluid grace of something far more advanced than any security bot Starr had ever encountered.
"Shit," Zeke growled, raising his weapon. "That's not standard issue."
The machine's gaze locked onto them, its head tilting slightly as if assessing the threat. For a moment, everything was still, the tension in the air thick enough to cut with a knife.
Then it moved.
The machine launched itself forward with blinding speed, its movements a blur as it closed the distance between them in the blink of an eye. Zeke barely had time to react, his weapon firing off a single round before the machine slammed into him with the force of a freight train. Zeke was sent flying into the wall, the impact cracking the polished panels as his body hit the ground with a sickening thud.
"Zeke!" Starr shouted, but there was no time to check if he was alive. The machine was already turning toward her, its arm transforming into a sharp, gleaming blade.
Starr dodged to the side just as the blade sliced through the air where her head had been a moment before. Her heart raced as she drew her Malorian Overture, firing off two quick shots at the machine's exposed joints. The heavy-caliber rounds struck the machine's armor, but the impact barely left a dent.
"Reaver!" she shouted, ducking behind a console for cover as the machine advanced. "A little help here!"
Reaver was already moving, his own weapon drawn as he fired off a volley of shots at the machine's head. The bullets ricocheted off the chrome plating, but the machine flinched, its systems temporarily disoriented by the barrage. Reaver moved with lethal precision, closing the distance between them and the machine in a few quick strides.
Before the machine could recover, Reaver was on it, slashing at its exposed wiring with a mono-blade. Sparks flew as the blade cut through the machine's arm, severing one of its primary servos. The machine stumbled, its movements jerky and uncoordinated as it tried to recalibrate.
Starr seized the opportunity, rolling out from behind cover and taking aim at the machine's head. She fired off a final shot, the heavy round piercing through the machine's optical unit with a deafening crack. The machine convulsed, its systems sparking and glitching before it collapsed to the floor in a heap of twisted metal.
The hallway was silent again, the only sound the soft crackle of electricity from the destroyed machine.
Starr's chest heaved with adrenaline as she glanced over at Zeke. The mercenary was groaning, his body slumped against the wall, but he was alive. His armor had taken the brunt of the impact, but he wasn't walking away from this unscathed.
"Zeke," she called out, moving toward him. "You good?"
Zeke grunted, wincing as he pushed himself to his feet. "I'll live. That thing hits like a goddamn tank."
"What the hell was that?" Reaver asked, his voice tight with tension as he kicked the machine's limp body.
"That wasn't Arasaka tech," Starr muttered, her mind racing. "Byte, you picking up anything else like this?"
Byte's voice crackled through the comms, shaken but still focused. "I… I don't know. Whatever that thing was, it's not showing up on Arasaka's security grid. It's like it didn't exist."
"Well, it exists now," Zeke growled, wiping blood from