Hurried steps echoed through the halls of the Vault.

Reed's chest felt tight, shoulders aching from carrying the weight of knowledge.

She had one goal in her mind, playing on repeat like a broken record.

Radio

Call

Laine

The screams would persist, tearing through her mind while she walked.

Nothing mattered.

Nothing but Laine.

Soon, she made it to the Radio Room door, pulling them open with force.

Isabella's head snapped towards her, the woman sitting curled in the spin chair by the console. She looked like a gargoyle, her eyes open wide in surprise while she crouched in her seat. Her mouth opened, but words never passed her throat before Reed interjected.

"Out now..." The woman commanded.

Isabella's eyebrows went up, bloody nails tightening around her knees.

"Wha-"

"I told you to get out-" Anger was sipping from Reed's soul, poisoning every word that left her mouth.

Isabella shuddered, sliding out of her seat. With her legs shaky and head hanging low, Isa readjusted the blanket around her shoulders, dragging her feet while she passed by the other scientist. She wouldn't look at her, keeping her eyes fixed on her feet.

Reed's heart clenched at the sight.

She didn't mean to...

"Isa..." she tried, but the apology didn't quite form on her tongue.

The woman glanced at her, dark eyes glistening in the dark.

She muttered something in Spanish, shaking her shoulders before disappearing into the corridor's darkness. She then slid the doors shut behind her.

Reed was alone...

"Fuck..." she mumbled, rubbing the bridge of her nose.

But she didn't have time to dwell on Isabella's feelings, her eyes involuntarily travelling towards the Radio.

You can do this... Deep breaths...

She held her breath, feeling the burning rage consume her soul.

Reed practically leapt towards the console, smashing her fist against the activation button.

Her digits closed around the microphone, pulling it closer to her.

"I know you can see me you son of a bitch..." she hissed, glaring at the screen.

"Who are you?" she gritted out.

Silence.... Not even a crackle would escape from the radio speaker.

She gripped the microphone tighter.

"I know you can hear me... Answer me!"

But the eerie silence remained.

Reed could hear her own heartbeat echo in her ears, like a war drum.

"Fuck!" she cursed, letting her fist collide with the console in a fit of pure despair.

It was toying with her...

She jumped as the console turned on, colourful lights blinding her. Amongst the crackling of the radio, a cold mocking laugh spilled from the speakers.

"Impatient, are we?"

"Fuck you-"

"Careful now..." the voice growled before continuing.

"Let's not make this thing get ugly... I, for one, am impressed with your skills... For a second there, I thought you wouldn't make it-"

"Who are you?" Reed barked, feeling her patience run thin.

Another wave of laughter washed over her like cold water.

"Oh... Reed, Reed, Reed..." The voice went dangerously low.

"I think you already know the answer to that..." it whispered.

The woman felt her nails dig into the meat of her palm.

It could stalk them... Observe them from their base without stepping their foot inside... The cameras inside were down anyway...

Whatever it was, couldn't be an Oxford crewmate...

She knew... It felt like she had always known, on some subconscious level... But with the notes, it was obvious...

"The Visitor...." She muttered, her eyes downcast.

She was talking to the hellish creature lurking outside... The executioner who so cruelly stripped them of a sense of security and was slowly poisoning their lives.

Waves of fear washed over her like cold salt water, drying her mouth and making her eyes sting.

Her hand hovered above the activation button...

She could end it right there and then... Just turn off the console and pretend she never...

Sweat collected at her brow and palms, muscles spasming while her heart thrummed in her ears. It was just one button away... She didn't have to deal with it...

She squeezed her eyes shut letting her digits graze the button.

The crackling stopped, and an eerie silence filled the room as if death itself had stepped into the chamber, killing the console's lights with its presence.

It was quiet... Still...

She exhaled shakily, feeling her chest loosen just enough to ease the dull ache.

Breathe... Just breathe...

A startled cry escaped Reed's lips when the console suddenly came to life, the crackling spilling from the speakers like a growling of hellhounds.

"Do not..." The Visitor rasped from the other side.

"Do... Not... Ever... Do... That... Again... Do you hear me?"

"I... I am sorry-"

"Do not test my patience nor my generosity... I can always just let them sink this pathetic excuse of a shelter... Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes... I do..."

"No... No, you don't... You can't begin to phantom just how much I am risking here-"

The volume began to rise, painful ringing digging into Reed's ears like a stinging wasp. The crackling filled the room, louder and louder, drowning her thoughts. She couldn't decipher what the creature was saying, hearing only angry growls and high-pitched whines of the unstable radio line.

"S-stop... I can't-" she couldn't hear herself speak.

Her hands instinctively rose to her ears to shield them from the assaulting cacophony of noises.

"Stop! Please, stop!" she whaled, squeezing her eyes shut as the pressure around her temples grew stronger. Surely... Surely her eardrums would burst.

"S-s-stop... I-it hurts-"

The crackling abruptly cut, granting Reed a few minutes of silence before the voice returned, much quieter this time.

"Do not test me again... We both invested way too much to back down... You know what I am talking about..."

She did know.

Bryan...

"What do you want?" she muttered, feeling her nails dig into the meat of her forearms.

She couldn't fight against it, forced to listen to the monster outside.

"I want to make a deal."

Reed paused.

A deal? With her?

What could she possibly have that the creature wanted?

"I don't... I don't understand-"

"You want to get out of here, don't you? I can make that happen..."

Had she been standing, Reed would surely have tumbled to the ground.

Never, in a million years, had she expected the creature to offer her escape.

Was that a trick?

After everything it had done, it just wanted to let her go.

"You don't seem convinced..." the creature muttered before continuing.

"What if I told you I could grant you and your friend a safe passage out of here? That I could cure you both and send you on your merry way out? How does that sound-"

"How?" she gritted out.

Reed's fists tightened.

Her guts boiled with the mixture of fear and anger.

This was her safety they were talking about, and the creature's nonchalant approach made Reed want to scream. It wasn't just some game... It was her life...

"How would you get us out?" she repeated.

"Forth floor, second corridor, door DX46... You have seen the pictures, right?"

"I don't understand-"

"Tell me, Rowan... Just what do you think is the structure in the middle of this? The very centre?" it asked, artificial sweetness dripping from its tongue.

"I don't know..."

"Oh, come on... Don't tell me I fried Lily's brain for nothing... Really think about it..."

A shiver ran down her spine.

Fried?

She tried to recall the black and white photos...

The weird structure... Project Melanie...

"It's an experiment facility, Reed... Isn't that obvious?" The creature seemed exasperated with her silence, sighing at her lack of knowledge.

Reed wanted to protest, to defend her actions but she knew better than to anger the Visitor.

"Project Melanie Facility... And right there among the debris waits the last functional escape pod... Isn't that extraordinary? After all this time?"

"I..." Reed didn't know what to say.

It felt as if the creature was dumping information onto her like it was common knowledge. Was the oil rig some sort of facility, like a research facility?

It had pods? How was it functional?

How did it even know it was functional?

"I... W-why should I believe you?" she stammered out, hurt colouring her words.

"Y-you have killed my... You almost killed me-" but the growl of the Visitor interrupted her.

"I have never killed anybody... Never... You don't know me... You don't know anything about what is happening... What I am going through... What we are going through-"The high-pitched ringing returned, piercing Reed's eardrums with the sharpness of thousands of swords.

Her palms clamped against her ears, desperate to keep the noise out.

"You... You are hurting me..."

The noise stopped.

Reed's head was spinning, stomach turning from the perceived motion.

"I apologise-" the voice muttered, sounding somewhat dejected.

"Do you think it's easy?" Reed asked quietly, her palms still covering her ears.

"I... I don't understand what is going on... I have been doing nothing more than just trying to endure whatever is thrown at me... I do not understand anything that you are talking about... I... I have so many questions..." she paused, looking at her lap.

Her heart skipped a beat.

"I... I don't care if you sink this whole place... be my guest... But... If you want me to trade favours with you, you will have to shut up and answer my questions-"

"You have some nerve talking to me like that-"

"I am tired Laine... You want to kill me? Sure, go ahead... I have nothing to lose-"

There was something so satisfying about standing up to the creature.

Sure, it was bigger than her, stronger than her and yet... There must have been something that the Visitor really wanted to get from her, otherwise, it wouldn't go through the trouble of buttering her up as Laine or other "mysterious" circumstances it had been referring to.

She had leverage and she knew it, but it didn't stop her hands from shaking.

The silence between them stretched uncomfortably, making Reed question her own judgment.

She rubbed her hands together, smoothing her thumb over the skin of her palm.

Had she overstepped? Make a move too fast?

What if she was replaceable to that thing?

What if she had assumed wrong?

Her chest felt tight, squeezing the air out of her lungs with every passing second.

She was wrong... She must have been...

Her imagination ran wild, the phantom groaning of metal filling her thoughts.

Was that it?

Had she finally bitten off more than she could chew?

A sigh spilling out of the speaker made her jump in her seat.

"What... what do you want to know?"

"Everything... What is this place? How do we get out exactly? How... how does that work? Who are you-"

"That is quite a lot of questions, don't you think?"

"Humour me... How are you getting us out?"

There was a pause.

"I... will create the perfect circumstances for you to cross from here to the Facility in your little suits and take the spare pod..."

"How?"

"I have my ways-"

"I will hang up... Answer me."

"I... I will cause a rotation that will bring the facility closer to the Vault and direct you to the pod..."

"What do you mean? How will you move it?"

"You have seen the reef move, haven't you? I can do that again-"

"I am not sure I follow-"

"Don't you get it?" The creature bellowed.

Reed flinched at the sudden rasp, curling into herself.

Don't... Don't be scared...

"This whole place? It's all connected... One big system..."

Reed's heart sank.

"Y-you mean the moving reef-"

"There are no reefs here... Everything, and I mean it, everything out there is just part of what we are. The kelp, the rocks... Think about it like muscles and skeleton..."

"You... You keep saying "we" and "I"... Are there more Visitors? Was it a different one that attacked us?"

"It's hard to explain-"

"Try me..."

"I... There is one Visitor-"

"So you are the one who attacked us-"

"Can you stop interrupting me?! You wanted answers... I am giving them..." The creature growled.

Reed hadn't even noticed how tense she was until she leaned against the backrest.

"I... I am not sure what I... We are... I don't even remember who I used to be... I don't know my name or what I looked like... Not anymore at least..."

"You... You used to be a person?"

"Yes... I was a man... I think..."

"So... What happened?"

Reed's palms felt clammy, eyes glued to the microphone.

"I don't know..."

What?

"That's it? You don't know?"

"I don't remember anything from before... Just... Pain and darkness... And then I woke up, tangled with more than a hundred people in this sorry excuse of a body-"

"I don't understand-"

"We are all wrapped into it together... Women, men, children... All part of the system that houses us under the watchful eye of Melanie..."

"So you are not Melanie-"

"No.... If I was... This place wouldn't be left standing..."

"What do you mean?"

A wet, raspy laugh echoed through the speaker, a familiar sense of dread washing over her.

"Do you know how this feels? Being locked inside of a twisted body with hundreds of others, not even knowing who you used to be? Sitting still while Melanie keeps us chained to her for eternity... I can't move... I can't do anything... This is a prison, Reed... Nothing more..."

"Wait... So, Melanie... Is she the thing outside?"

"Yes... She is every rock, fish, plant and whatever you can find here... She controls all..."

"But not you?"

"How do I explain this... Um... Think of me as a ghost... A person without a body who watches everything play out... That's how I can observe you through the eyes of the Visitor-"

"Something doesn't make sense... You said you can grant us a safe passage, but you said you have no control over the stuff that has been happening... So tell me... Just how exactly do you plan to get us out?"

There was a long pause, the voice having been gone so long Reed thought he disconnected.

"Hello, are you-"

"I am here..." the voice growled before continuing.

"I... At first, I couldn't do anything... I just sat in the backseat and watched Melanie devour every living creature that entered the zone... Whales, squids, fish... You name it... All swam into the gullet and didn't even know when Melanie made it a part of the system... Ate away their flesh and bones until nothing was left..."

"S-so that's what happens after you have contact with the water? S-she assimilates you?"

"Dissolves your flesh and bones with one goal in mind... To grow and survive... She doesn't even let you die... Not until she is finished with absorption..."

Reed's guts were bubbling with nausea at the mere thought... Was Alex a part of the... System?

"But you see..." The voice continued.

"The day you have taken samples... when you let her taste your blood, everything has changed... She became restless... I would see your faces flash through my mind and then I saw... a light... The first time I tried to grasp it I saw... a white room... like and inside of a fridge... It lasted only a few seconds, but ever since then... I could reach you through the radio, hell, I could even take control for once... The point is... Melanie is slipping, and with the arrival of the Oxford team, it seems there are too many of us. The timing couldn't be better..."

"So, what is the catch? What do you want in return?"

The creature paused again, weighing it's words.

"It all is connected to Melanie... She is the very core of this horrid place that we are all trapped in... All I ask is you put an end to it..."

"End?"

"I want you to kill her."

Reed jumped out of her seat, eyes glued to the microphone.

Was he serious?

Her knees shook under her, bated breath escaping her lips.

"What?" she asked, unable to string up any other question.

"This... here? This is torture... I am locked here... in pain... Melanie won't release me or the others... Not until she is dead..."

"I... I am sorry... This is impossible... I... You want me to kill the thing outside?!"

"In a way... I want you to destroy the core... Once it's done, the whole place will fall apart, including the Visitor outside..."

"And how will I do that?"

"I... The core is in the Facility... somewhere... I have never seen it myself but I know it's there-"

"No, that doesn't answer my question! How do you expect me to kill this... This thing?"

"That is your job to figure it out... I am offering a passage, that is it..."

Reed closed her mouth, her arms travelling up her biceps only to slam their nails painfully on the skin. It all felt like too much... A deal with the devil...

The creature clearly knew more than it let on, changing the story and Reed knew better not to cross the limit of questions she could ask... It was clear the Visitor if she could even call him that, was getting increasingly irritated with every inquiry she sent his way.

"Why do we need a passage? You just told me where the capsule is-"

"Aren't you clever..." the creature hissed before continuing.

"Except for the fact that currently, the facility has rotated away from your little base... Not to mention the second you step out from the Vault you will be out in the open... I doubt Melanie will let you go this time..."

"You mean, back in the kelp-"

"Let's just say your friend timed his assimilation perfectly... But, the point stands. Without me, you will never reach the centre... I can hide you from her sight... So, what do you say?"

"You don't expect me just to agree with so little information? I have no guarantee-"

"Do not be ungrateful... I have entertained you enough, don't you think?"

"No, you just vaguely answered a bunch of questions and expected me not to notice. You haven't said once what Melanie is, or the facility, or the illness-"

"And will that knowledge make you magically get out of here?"

"No, but perhaps it will make me want to trust you a bit more."

"Have you perhaps considered that I don't know the answers to everything?"

"No, because we both know that you keep changing the story! What is the fucking core? Who is Melanie? Why should I fucking trust you-" Reed couldn't keep her voice down.

This didn't make any sense... Her mind couldn't comprehend the amount of information she was being fed. All of this was so confusing...

Was Laine truthful?

It felt like the walls were closing in on her, her head aching from overstimulation.

So much data...

The phantom whistle of the radio echoed through her brain, sharp pain rippling through the back of her head.

"Suit yourself... I doubt there is any other way out of here but feel free to try..."

What?

"No, wait-"

"You know where to find me if you change your mind..."

No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No!

The room went silent, the lights turning off.

Laine was gone.

Reed sat by the console, curled up in the spinning chair like a child in time out. Her blank green eyes lost their glimmer, leaving the hue of her irises matte.

She stared at the microphone, eyes unblinking.

He would return... Surely he would... He needed her... Right?

The regret settled in the pit of her stomach, wrapping itself around the base of her spine like an insidious serpent.

She had tried to contact him, but Laine wouldn't return... Not after her outburst...

She didn't know why she had done that... Just fly off the handle like that with no control.

Was it a sign of depression? Possibly... Who wouldn't develop mental problems after being shut in these conditions for so long?

She adjusted her knees, tucking them under her chin.

There it was... Their only chance to escape... And Reed blew it...

The worst part was the uncertainty of just how much of a screw-up the whole situation was.

Was Laine honest with her? Did he truly not know everything about this place?

Maybe Reed had saved them from being cheated by the hell's spawn outside?

The corner of her mouth tugged upwards for a split second.

Wishful thinking... Being a hero...

In truth, it was more likely that Reed had scared off the only person capable of rescuing them...

Her stomach churned at the thought.

Should she try again? Maybe he would pick up this time?

She stretched out her hand, reaching for the button before she stopped, letting her arm hang loosely in the air.

No... No, there was no point...

But would he be back?

Another hour had passed since their parting and there was no sign of Laine returning.

Her guts twisted uncomfortably, her muscles stiff from sitting in the chair for so long.

Was she overestimating just how valuable she was?

Think Reed... Think... What did he tell you?

Noctis was something akin to a giant hivemind, controlling all life forms by infecting them with its cells, all because of a mysterious Melanie... Some sort of dominant presence within a structure...

Melanie would assimilate just about anything or anybody to get bigger... Including Reed if she waits long enough for the illness to set in...

Her heart skipped a beat at the thought.

She glanced at the Radio...

Should she call out?

No... No, he needed her... He would be back...

Her heart was hammering in her chest, her lungs heaving.

She wanted to lounge at the console and smash those dim lights with her fists like tiny bugs.

No... No... No... If Diane taught her anything, it was not to come crawling back...

She wouldn't... She wouldn't give Laine the satisfaction...

She would not lose to him...

Or would she?

The hours dragged themselves across the watch on the console, sluggishly passing one after another. She sat there, her position unchanged, yet it seemed that with every passing minute her heart just beat faster and faster.

The exhaustion had passed completely, letting guilt and anger wrestle over dominance deep in her soul while her outer shell sat unmoving. But amongst the destruction these two recked deep within her, a new contender had risen from the ashes, perhaps the most dangerous yet.

Fear...

What if he wouldn't come back?

What then?

Would Reed just sit there, and wait for the infection to eat her body until there was nothing left?

She was taught not to beg and she had followed that advice religiously throughout her life.

She didn't beg Bell to take her back...

She didn't beg Diane to let her live in the house after the world came crashing down.

She didn't beg Muriel for the job... Just like she didn't beg the GOI...

It was the iron rule...

Never to beg for anything.

She had been stripped of everything else...

Safety.

Control.

Innocence.

Couldn't she hold on to that one last thing?

The one last rule that made Reed who she was...

But was protecting her pride worth pushing the helping hand away?

When would an opportunity like this arise again?

The answer was no...

And yet she clung to the very last thing she had left, like a child unable to pick their battles.

This was not the time to nurse her ego and yet she couldn't help but perceive it as a test of will.

One was going to cave in...

Her head was spinning, feeling heavy as if liquid lead was sloshing around her skull.

In just a few hours Reed had learned more than she bargained for and now had to deal with the consequences...

I could get you out...

I could get all of you out...

Perhaps it was all a lie... Just a trick to lure them out... But she let her imagination wander, the spinning room filling with the warmth of the phantom sunlight. Her eyelids slid shut, allowing her to indulge in the sweet sound of leaves rustling and the delicate rattling of rain echoing through her memories. She could feel the sun rays on her skin... The tickle of the sea breeze filled her nostrils.

Home... It felt like home...

It felt like sitting on the porch with Ruth, eating pie while watching the sunset after school.

Or like a first bike ride, when the speed of the wind around you makes you feel like you are flying... Or like a touch of her mother, back when she was kinder and softer...

She opens her eyes.

The sensations were gone, leaving her alone in the stuffy room.

Hollow.

Unfeeling.

Her anger simmered down, leaving her soul in a state of desolation.

She could have those back... All of it...

Everything that she loved about her life, no matter how miserable it seemed at the time...

She could have all of those back... She could swallow her pride and get it all back.

She glanced at the microphone.

It was within her reach... All she needed to do was let it go...

It felt as if the chain around her neck had been broken, slipping from her shoulders.

All you have to do is just ask...

The microphone clicked on with a single push of a button.

"Laine?" her voice came out raspy and barely audible.

Silence.

"Laine... I want to talk..."

Yet again, she was greeted with silence.

The words felt bitter on her tongue.

"P-please... Please answer..."

The radio remained quiet, not even a peep coming from the speakers.

Reed hung her head low, feeling dejection wrap around her like tentacles.

Had she completely blown it?

One last time... Try one last time...

"P-Please... I... Please come back... I... I am begging you..."

The sudden flash of the radio lightbulbs made Reed flinch.

"Changed your mind?" A Raspy voice spilt from the speakers.

"I... I don't-"

"Don't waste my time-"

"No! Wait!" she screamed, successfully silencing the creature.

The air felt still, not even bubbles of air disturbing the silence between them.

"Wait..." she mumbled before continuing.

"I will do it-"

"Great-"

"But... I need to know everything-"

"Haven't you asked me enough questions-"

"I will do it, but I need to know how this will go down... Exactly how it will..." she sighed, her frame tensing at the image of the Visitor behind her eyes.

"I... I want to know the plan... How will you get us there?" She repeated.

A sigh rang through the air.

"I will align the facility with your base. It should be about an hour and a half of walking from here in your little suits... I will create a path that will safely lead you straight to the place and away from the Visitor's sight. You will be completely hidden from Melanie." The creature paused.

"And?"

"And then it's all in your hands. You enter the facility, go where I told you and kill her..."

"You still didn't tell me how."

"Because I don't know... You have to figure it out and honestly? I don't care how you do it..."

"But I don't even know what to-"

"I have already told you-"

"Okay! Okay... Just... I will figure something out..."

But unbeknownst to the creature, a new, perhaps even riskier plan began brewing within her mind. It was obvious the creature wasn't keen on explaining, seemingly getting irritated by every question Reed had asked it so far... But what was clear was that it couldn't or didn't want to step into the facility... Reed could easily just try to use the pod without killing Melanie, couldn't she?

Surely it was on the table...

"So... Let me get this straight... You will lead us to the facility and from there we are alone?"

"Precisely..."

"And how will you lead us?"

"Through the voice communicators... Been listening in for quite some time... I will direct you."

Reed closed her mouth.

Listening in?

Her insides squeezed unpleasantly... She felt violated...

All this time he had been listening to them?

She shuddered, feeling a sudden chill run through her body.

The front of her head burned with persistent pain.

"I think I know what is going on through that little head of yours..." The voice whispered.

Reed blinked, her hand travelling to rest against her aching forehead.

"What?" she muttered quietly, squeezing her eyes shut to combat the stinging.

"I think you are thinking of double-crossing the old Laine here..."

"No! I don't... Wait..." she hissed, words coming out slurred due to the haziness encompassing her like sticky black oil.

"I'll have you know... The pod won't work unless Melanie is dead... They will destroy it the second you activate it-"

She couldn't focus on words, palms pressing against her head.

What is happening?

She hissed, feeling her eyes water.

Something warm trickled down her upper lip, tasting like copper on her tongue.

She opened her eyes, her vision blurry.

Nosebleed?

Her shaky hands swiped the slick liquid, feeling the warmth coat her fingers.

She looked down.

Black... She was bleeding black...

"My, My... Well, I'll be damned..." The creature rasped.