False Gods | The Prime Archives #3 ✓

thirty-three

Chase woke up underwater.

His eyes snapped open. Pieces of charred metal and crumbling concrete tumbled past him in slow motion as they sunk to the bottom of the flood sublevel of The Acropolis. He felt his chest nearly explode out of his chest once he realized he was going straight down with them.

Water had been pouring down from the massive waterfall cascading around the mountain for half an hour now. He could still see the streams of freezing water gushing toward him. Chase swam upward, dodging debris as he made his way to the top. He broke through the surface and took in as much air as possible. Water spilled out his mouth as he panted like a dog. Whipping his head around through the darkness, he searched for any sign of the others.

Shaking his head, he waded through the water. It was about fifteen to twenty feet deep. Nothing to stand on. Nothing to keep him from drowning. Gulping, he focused on staying afloat. He wasn't a terrible swimmer, but he wasn't exactly Michael Phelps either. The sharp pain reverberating throughout his body every few seconds wasn't helping him focus.

As he swam, his mind went back to right before he woke up in the water.

They had been fighting Orion—and they had been losing. Oscar had summoned some sort of fire avatar that Chase had never seen him use before, but even that wasn't enough to take down Orion.

When the ground fell from beneath their feet, Chase thought that was the end for them. The next level of The Acropolis under the lab was several stories down. A fall like that should've meant instant death. As he rocketed through the air like a meteor, he closed his eyes prayed for what must've been the first time in years.

But it wasn't the end. At least, not for him.

His impervious skin and durable bones likely kept him from shattering to pieces once he hit the water. As for the others... He gulped and squeezed his eyes shut. He desperately hoped they managed to survive. But the twisting feeling in his gut suggested otherwise.

With his arms and legs burning, he pushed through the water until he came across a piece of the destroyed lab serving as an island in the sea of destruction around him. After pulling himself onto the massive slab, he laid on his back to catch his breath.

He stared up at the remains of the lab—or what was left of it. Sparking wires, exposed piping which brought even more water upon them, and whatever was left of the room stared down at him. The bright sun above seemed like a distant memory. The clouds in the blue sky seemed like they were frozen in place.

Chase blinked. His brain went silent for a moment.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he forced himself to climb back to his feet. He had to find his friends. If they were still alive, they wouldn't be for much longer. It was up to him to save them. He glanced down at his attire; his mission suit was torn and tattered in multiple places. A piercing ache reverberated throughout his body, but he was still in one piece. He had lost his sword to the water, but his holo-shield was still operational.

Things could've been worse.

As he developed his next plan of action, he heard someone coughing off to the side. His entire body went rigid. Activating his holo-shield, he turned and cautiously approached the area where the sound was coming.

Once he got closer, he lowered his shield.

It was the doctor. The one who created Orion.

Much to his surprise, she was still alive. The woman was draped over a set of monitors and computers that had been fully submerged. Somehow, they were still slightly operational. Blood stained her white lab coat and speckled her straw-colored hair. She paid Chase no mind as he approached her.