The chamber doors slammed shut behind them.
Raya's breath was still shaky as she clung to Lengaza. His arms wrapped around her, tight enough to make sure she was real.
"You found me," he whispered. "I thought I'd lost you forever."
"You didn't," she breathed, pulling away to look into his eyes. "You didn't."
But before they could even begin to savor the moment—
BOOM.
A massive explosion rattled the walls, sending dust and debris into the air.
"We're not alone," Nyra hissed, pulling her sword free.
Lengaza's eyes narrowed.
He'd barely had a chance to process what had happened between him and Revenant when the sounds of footsteps echoed through the corridors.
The Collector had found them.
"Go. Now," Lengaza ordered. "We need to move fast."
Raya grabbed his hand. "Where?"
"Anywhere but here."
In the control room, the Collector watched them through the screens, his expression unreadable.
"They're still alive… how?"
His assistant adjusted the controls, tapping into the security feeds.
"They've breached Sector 5. The backdoor."
The Collector's lips curled into a smile. "No matter where they go, they'll never outrun what I've done to him."
Outside the facility, Lengaza led them down a narrow alley, his senses on high alert.
"I don't get it," Nyra said. "How did Revenant—?"
"Not exactly Revenant," Lengaza interrupted. "He's the part of me they forced out. The violent side of me. A weapon. And now—"
He stopped mid-sentence as his hand clenched into a fist, a sharp pain running through his chest.
"What's wrong?" Raya asked, her voice laced with worry.
Lengaza shook his head. "They didn't just erase my memories—they implanted something. A program. And it's starting to wake up."
Back at the Facility.
The Collector paced in the control room, his hands clasped behind his back. The screens flickered as his voice remained calm but chilling.
"Activate Protocol XIII. Prepare the full extraction team. We will not lose him again."
He turned to his assistant. "When he reaches the city's central network, it'll trigger everything. He will be the weapon I've been waiting for."
In the alley, Lengaza's breathing grew shallow.
"It's happening again," he muttered to himself. The pull was getting stronger, the need for destruction—power—growing inside him.
"Lengaza?" Raya's voice was soft, but there was fear there. Fear for him. Fear for them.
"I need to get control," he grunted, clutching his head. "I can't let it take over."
"We'll figure this out together," Raya said, her voice firm. "You're not alone. You won't be."
But Lengaza knew something.
The program inside him wasn't just waking up—it was spreading.
And soon, it wouldn't matter how far they ran.
Hours later, as they tried to make their way deeper into the city, a low hum echoed through the streets.
"We're being tracked," Nyra said, her eyes scanning the buildings. "We need to move. Fast."
Lengaza clenched his fists, the pressure in his chest growing stronger. "I know."
But it wasn't just the Collector after them anymore. Something inside him was coming to life—its own consciousness.
"They didn't just make me forget. They made me dangerous."
At the center of the city, the streets began to empty as the sky darkened. A low, almost mechanical noise echoed in the distance.
"What's happening?" Raya asked, looking up.
Lengaza didn't need to answer.
He could feel it.
The program was taking over. The urge to destroy surged like a tidal wave crashing inside him, and the pressure of it was unbearable.
"I can't stop it," he said, voice low, strained. "I can feel it taking over."
And then—
"Run!"
The first explosion rocked the street.
The Collector had arrived.