Chapter 1 CHAPTER 1 — THE PROBABILITY OF SURVIVAL

"Ren, left flank! Lian, stay on my six!" I shouted, boots splashing through knee-deep black water as we pushed deeper into the flooded transit hub.

"Copy that, boss!" Ren growled back, his axe already raised. The feral edge in his voice cut sharper than usual today. "These bastards are crawling out faster than expected."

Lian’s lighter footsteps splashed behind me. "I’m feeling them… they’re scared, but something’s pushing them forward. Wei, this doesn’t feel right."

"Keep talking, both of you," I said, eyes scanning the half-submerged tunnel ahead. Twisted rebar and collapsed concrete formed a jagged maze under the flickering emergency lights that somehow still worked after seven years of hell. "Zhao Yun, give me numbers."

Zhao Yun’s calm voice came through the squad comms, steady as always. "Gate stability at seventy-eight percent. Probability of swarm eruption in the next forty seconds: sixty-three percent. Recommend you adjust positions now, sir."

I didn’t need to adjust much. The threads were already there in my mind, faint golden lines of possibility I could tug if I had to. I moved left, shoulder brushing a slimy pillar, and signaled Ren to push ahead. He took the lead without hesitation, muscles coiled like he was born for this shit.

"Easy for you to say, Yun," Ren laughed roughly, kicking aside a piece of floating debris. "You’re back there with your screens while I’m the one getting teeth in my face. Lian, you sensing anything stronger?"

Lian’s voice stayed soft but focused. "They’re angry… hungry. But it’s coordinated. Like they’re waiting for something."

I kept my breathing even. "Then we don’t give them the chance. Seal team, stay tight. This mid-tier Gate isn’t walking away from us today."

The air grew heavier, thick with that rotten-sulfur stink that always leaked from active Gates. Water lapped at our waists now. My rifle felt solid in my hands, but I knew the real work would come from the Thread if things went south. I hated pulling it. Every time felt like borrowing time I couldn’t afford to repay.

"Contact!" Ren yelled.

A dozen low-tier hell beasts burst from the flooded side tunnels, twisted things that used to be rats or dogs, now all spikes and glowing red eyes. Not deadly alone, but the way they moved, fanning out to split us… that was new.

"Break formation on purpose!" I ordered. "Ren, draw the left group! Lian, support him with emotion push if they swarm! Zhao Yun, call the fluctuations!"

Ren charged with a roar. "Come on, you ugly fucks!" His axe swung in a wide arc, cleaving two beasts clean in half. Black blood sprayed across the water. "That all you got?"

Lian moved in sync, her voice cutting through the chaos. "Ren, the big one on your right is building rage. I’m trying to dampen it… Wei, they’re pushing us toward the Gate chamber!"

"I see it," I snapped, firing short bursts that dropped two more. The recoil felt good. Real. The threads shimmered in my vision, probability lines showing where the next wave would hit. I gave one a small tug, shifting the swarm’s path just enough that three of them veered straight into Ren’s reach instead of flanking Lian.

"Got them!" Ren shouted triumphantly as his axe came down again. "Thanks for the setup, boss. Feels like you’re reading their minds today."

Zhao Yun’s voice stayed level. "Gate output stable but anomalous. Energy signature not matching previous mid-tier patterns. Probability of escalation just jumped to forty-one percent."

"Talk to me, Yun," I said, reloading on the move while water sloshed around us. "What’s wrong with it?"

"It’s too quiet, sir. Too controlled. Like it’s holding back on purpose."

Lian’s breathing came faster now. "I feel it too. There’s something underneath the hunger… almost like anticipation. Wei, are you okay? Your presence just flickered for a second."

"I’m fine," I lied, pushing forward. The squad needed me steady. They always did. "Focus on the seal. We’re close."

We rounded the final collapsed escalator, descending into the main hub chamber. The Gate hovered there, a swirling violet tear in reality, pulsing slowly above the flooded tracks. Tendrils of dark energy reached out like fingers testing the air.

Ren wiped blood from his face. "Ugly son of a bitch. How long till we can slap the seal on it?"

"Two minutes if we keep them off me," I replied, already moving into position. "Lian, keep the beasts calm enough for me to work. Zhao Yun, monitor the Thread cost."

"Understood," Zhao Yun said. "Minor adjustment recommended. Current survival probability for full squad: eighty-nine percent."

I reached for the Thread. Just a light pull this time. A minor redirect to bunch the remaining beasts together so Ren could finish them. The familiar warmth bloomed behind my eyes, then the cold ache in my joints that always followed. I aged hours for this. Maybe a day. Worth it.

The swarm surged again, perfectly timed.

"Here they come!" Ren bellowed, laughing like a madman as he met the charge. "You coordinated this shit just for me? I’m flattered!"

"Ren, left!" Lian called out urgently. "Two breaking through… I’m pushing calm at them but they’re resisting hard!"

I adjusted again. Another tug. The beasts stumbled, giving Ren the opening he needed. His axe sang through the air.

"Nice one!" he shouted back. "Lian, you’re a lifesaver. Wei, whatever you’re doing, keep doing it. We’ve got this."

The last beast fell with a wet shriek, its body sliding into the dark water. Silence settled over the chamber except for our heavy breathing and the low hum of the Gate.

I lowered my rifle, shoulders tight. "Good work. Seal team, move in. Let’s end this."

That’s when it hit.

A soft voice, warm and achingly familiar, whispered right behind my thoughts.

“…you’re using it more often now.”

I froze mid-step, water rippling around my legs. My heart slammed against my ribs. That voice. Mei-Ling. Not the faint echo I’d dismissed for three years. This was clear. Close. Too close.

The others were already moving toward the Gate, talking over each other.

"Zhao Yun, confirm readings," Ren called out. "We actually pulled this off clean for once."

"Probability models held," Zhao Yun replied. "Though the anomaly is still concerning. Captain, your thoughts?"

Lian turned back toward me. "Wei? You coming?"

I couldn’t answer right away. The voice lingered in my head like a touch I’d buried long ago.