LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 5: The Discovery.
September 2184. Bunker 02. Team 2.
The air in the bunker felt wrong—stale, heavy with an oppressive silence that clung to their senses. As Team 1 progressed with their search, Team 2 had just breached a new section. They moved with precision, weapons at the ready, scanning every inch as they advanced into what looked like a living space. Rows of steel bed frames lined the room, their rusting metal echoing the bunker's forgotten age. In pairs, they cleared the area, backed to each other, alert to any movement. The sound of boots scraping against the cold concrete was the only break in the stillness.
"This is Team 1... requesting a progress report."
One of the SEAF operatives keyed his radio, voice low but steady, maintaining the discipline drilled into them.
"Team 2 here. We've entered a living area—bunk beds, nightstands—nothing useful or unusual so far. Anything on your end?"
"Found some papers that don't paint a good picture. Be on guard. Something could be lurking here, and it's dangerous."
The tone from Team 1 was grave, cutting through the radio's static with a chilling urgency.
"Hostile?" one of the SEAF soldiers questioned, his grip tightening on his rifle.
"Just trust me. You said you found a spent turret and shell casings earlier. That thing wasn't shooting at nothing. Stay sharp."
Team 2 knew what that meant: whatever happened here hadn't ended peacefully, and there was a chance something dangerous was still in the shadows. The room suddenly felt colder, more threatening. They moved with more caution, some now peeking under the beds or rummaging through the nightstands.
"Copy that. We'll stay on alert. You watch yourselves too. We'll report if we find anything."
A soft murmur followed. "Great... in a deep, dark bunker with something that might kill us."
"Shut it," another SEAF snapped. "No panic. If we hit trouble, we fall back. That's why I brought extra grenades."
The man tapped his belt where several grenades hung, their metallic weight a small comfort against the unknown. It wasn't much, but it might give them a chance if things went south.
"Anything?" someone asked, rifling through another nightstand.
"Nothing. No personal belongings, no signs of a hasty departure. My guess is whatever hit this place didn't give them time to grab anything. They left with just the clothes on their backs."
"That tracks," another soldier muttered, glancing around the eerie emptiness. "Alright, weapons up. We move out. Anything moves, and it's not us? We shoot to kill."
They weren't Helldivers, but the SEAF wasn't green. They readied themselves, forming up in the center of the room, weapons aimed forward as they pushed toward the open door ahead. Flashlights flickered to life, their beams cutting through the murk, illuminating a hallway that seemed to plunge deeper into the earth. It was quiet, too quiet. The team advanced, hugging the walls, the weight of unseen eyes pressing down on them.
They entered another room—larger, cavernous. The team's footsteps echoed as they fanned out, sweeping the area with their lights. It looked like an assembly hall, big enough to house dozens, maybe more.
"Lot of blind spots here," someone said, his voice low as the group noted how the darkness swallowed their lights. They'd have to go deeper.
"Same as before—two by two. Call out if you find anything," their leader ordered. "Stay sharp."
"Yes, sir."
The team split into pairs, eyes scanning every inch of the room. The tension gnawed at them. The emptiness felt... wrong. They saw the scars of battle—bullet holes, shattered debris, spent shell casings—but no bodies. No signs of life or death, just the remnants of a fight that had long since ended.
A sudden shout echoed across the room, breaking the quiet. "Ahh!"
The team tensed, weapons raised. One of the soldiers stood on the far-left side, staring at the ground.
"You alright? What is it?" the leader asked, moving toward him.
"Almost tripped over... this." The soldier gestured to the floor. "Looks like a cable, but... sir, you need to see this."
The rest of the team gathered around, their lights tracing the strange object. It stretched along the floor, thick, dark, and grotesque. It wasn't just a cable. It had a waxy, unnatural texture—a disturbing blend of metal and organic tissue.
"What the hell is this?"
The lights followed the cable, leading them to something at its end. Five objects hung suspended in the air.
"Is that... a hand?"
The team advanced cautiously, their lights revealing the grisly truth. A human hand, still fresh, was fused into the end of the tentacle-like structure. Flesh and wires intertwined, creating a nightmarish fusion of man and machine. Worse still, there was no sign of decay. By all accounts, it should have rotted long ago, but the flesh looked disturbingly healthy.
"Team 2, come in," the radio crackled.
"This is Team 2. What's your status?"
"Sir... I don't know what I'm looking at, but there's a human hand attached to some kind of metal tentacle."
A long pause.
"Come again?"
"You heard right. It's fresh. No decay. But it's attached to... something unnatural."
"Alright. We're on our way. Stay put, and don't engage unless necessary. If you see or hear anything... get out of there."
"Understood."
The team couldn't tear their eyes away from the grotesque sight before them. This wasn't normal. Something about this place... it was wrong. A chill settled over them as two members moved to follow the tentacle's path further.
"What the hell happened here?" one muttered.
"First those trenches... now this. This place is cursed."
Just as the group around the hand began to discuss their next move, a pair of soldiers following the tentacle froze, their lights trembling.
"Hey, what's wrong?"
The rest of the team approached, and the sight before them stopped them cold. At the end of the tentacle was a writhing mass—a horrific amalgamation of blood-red flesh, human bones, and organs twisted into a monstrous entity. Rib cages, limbs, and skulls jutted out at odd angles, fused in a grotesque heap. Some skulls had their mouths open in silent screams as if the people they once were had died in unimaginable agony.
"Oh my..." one soldier whispered, horrified.
This was no ordinary death. It was a violation of nature itself—a grotesque fusion of man and machine, life and death, all twisted together into something monstrous.
"What in the name of Super Earth is this?" Jason muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. "Are those... human limbs?"
"Yeah..." another soldier said, voice shaking. "I think we just found out what happened to the people here."
The team stood in stunned silence, unsure of what they were facing, but one thing was clear—this place held a horror far beyond what they had anticipated.
Edited thanks to ELE73CH.