Chapter 450: Soul maiden’s hell.

Zyra pointed her finger straight at the older woman. The name tag on her lab coat said Dr. Eugene Musk. She was clearly the boss here because the others kept glancing at her as if they were waiting for her to say something that could get them out of the mess they were stuck in.

In Zyra’s books, that either made Eugene the first victim or the biggest human contributor and collaborator of the bad Somnivores. But she wouldn’t make the mistake of killing her before she got some answers.

"You over there," Zyra said, her voice sharp as glass. "Take me to where the soul maidens are. Now."

[Host, I have found them already,] the System chimed inside her head, popping up like an uninvited guest. A virtual map of the Silo appeared before her eyes.

[Follow the red arrows on the wall.]

Great, thanks for the heads-up, Zyra thought back, but she’s still leading us, there are a lot of things that she may have to explain. Besides, I don’t want others to question me on how I know exactly where to go.

Doctor Eugene did not scramble to her feet like Zyra expected. She continued to huddle, shivering like a scared mouse facing a hunter.

"Get up already and lead the way," Zyra snapped at her, pointing her gun at the women. "If you can’t do it, I can choose someone else. If I do that, then you are of no use to me. If you are of no use to me....." Deliberately, Zyra left the sentence unfinished.

Dr. Eugene immediately tried to stand up, but her legs were shaking like jelly. She almost tipped over and stumbled around like she had lost her sense of sight suddenly. She stepped on the other doctors, but none dared to even cry out.

Around them, Zyra’s team was holding their guns with eager white knuckles. They looked like they were ready to shoot anything or anyone that was going to cause trouble physically or verbally.

Just then, the wall slid open from the Western side. Another team walked in lead by Bullet who was wiping sweat from his forehead.

"All clear!" Bullet called out. "We checked the whole perimeter and secured the security room. No more hybrid knights. Just us and these terrified nerds."

[Host, I would tell you if there were any more threats.] Beauty said suddenly.

Zyra looked at Bullet and nodded once.

"Good," Zyra said and turned her attention to the doctor. "Move."

She shoved Dr. Eugene forward. She shuffled down a long, metallic corridor, her shoes squeaking on the floor. At the end of the hall, they stepped into an elevator that was hidden behind a thin wall. Unless one was familiar with the place, they would not be able to find it.

"Which floor are we going to?" Hunter asked sternly.

"It’s complicated." Dr. Eugene said with a shaky voice.

Hunter looked at the control panel, rubbing the back of his neck. "Which floor are we going to? There are only five buttons here just point to which one!

"We... we are going to the classified level," Eugene stammered, clutching the edges of her white coat like a shield. "Only five people in the entire facility even know it exists."

She reached out with two shaky fingers and pressed buttons 1 and 9 at the exact same time before presenting her work ID for scanning.

When they stepped inside, the elevator didn’t go up or down like a normal one. It started and then stopped. Then, with a loud clunk, it started rotating. Round and round it went for ten agonizing seconds, making everyone lose their balance.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" The grand elder yelled, grabbing the handrail. "Is this an elevator or a carnival ride? I’m gonna throw up!"

"Not on my shoes or face." Almeida muttered, keeping his eyes glued on the doctor.

The elevator jerked to a sudden stop. The heavy doors slid open.

When Zyra looked out, her heart sank straight to her boots. The sight was so horrible it almost knocked the wind right out of her. Zyra let out a sharp, horrified cry, clapping her hands over her mouth. She didn’t even know what was scarier or more disgusting. Her reaction mirrored that of her companions

Right in front of them were thousands of floating glass pods. Inside, tiny fetuses were growing in cloudy liquid_ some were newly formed embryos, while others were almost fully formed babies, kicking weakly.

And holding it all together were the women.

Hundreds of soul maidens were dangling in the air by their feet, suspended by cold iron clamps attached to ceiling tracks. Tubes were stuck into every part of their bodies. Some tubes forced oxygen into their lungs. Others sent nutrition to their bodies. Big, red-filled hoses drained blood straight out of their veins and pumped it directly into the baby pods.

"What am I looking at here..." Almeida stumbled forward, his boot catching on a cable. His face turned ghost white. "What kind of sick cruelty is this?!"

"WHAT IS THIS?!" the Grand Elder roared, his voice shaking the metal walls. His beard was trembling with pure rage.

One by one, they stepped out of the elevator, eyes wide in shock. Bullet turned around and vomited in the elevator.

Dr. Eugene lowered her head, wincing. "They... they are the soul maidens you are searching for. They are our bottomless blood banks. Without them, the hybrid babies cannot survive."

Hunter’s face turned bright red. Veins popped out on his neck. He stepped forward, clenching his fist so tight his knuckles turned white. "You disgusting monsters!" he bellowed, raising his hand to flatten her.

"We must take them down!" The grand elder suggested.

"Wait! Don’t touch anything!" Eugene shrieked, cowering on the floor. "If you yank those machines down, most of those women will die instantly! The tubes are transferring the only oxygen and nutrients keeping their hearts beating! You kill the system, you kill them!"

Hunter froze mid-swing, his hand trembling in mid-air. He let out a frustrated growl and kicked a metal trash can across the room instead.

"I can heal them!" Tessi spoke up, her voice small but full of hope as she stepped forward. "Those that are on the verge of death can be healed."

Zyra looked out over the endless sea of suspended maidens. Thousands of them. Most of them had their eyes closed, looking pale, drained, and half-dead. Tessi was strong, but healing thousands at once? It was impossible, even for her and yet she was stronger.

Zyra’s chest burned. She swallowed hard and turned to the doctor remembering why she was here. "Zena Scorpion. Where is she?"

Everyone went quiet. All eyes snapped back to Dr. Eugene.

The doctor’s lips trembled. She slowly raised a finger and pointed to the steel door on the far side of the room. "In... in the adjacent bay."

"Why? why is she not here with the others?" The grand elder asked as they moved.

"She is the feeding machine," Eugene explained, "These are manufactured hybrids. We harvested eggs from the Soul maidens and fertilized them, but the hatchlings were not as strong as Erik wanted. Until Zena."