The Dawn of the New World

Expecting to be heading back towards the exit, they instead went further into the pyramid and deeper still. By the time they realized what had happened, there was no time to turn around.

*Huff*Huff*Huff*

*Bang*

Hao Xuan's chest heaved up and down as he punched the door in front of him out of frustration. Behind him, most of the barbarians were in much worse conditions. Burak was carrying Isak on his back but he himself was low on internal energy, not to mention the numerous physical wounds that ailed him.

"Another one?" he asked from the back, getting a powerless nod from Hao Xuan.

They had been running for over 15 minutes and even though they had lost the vast majority of the tree creatures in the neverending hallways of the pyramid, the same could be said for them as well.

Hao Xuan moved to the side panel on the wall and cleared away the organic webbing that covered it. This particular console was in much better condition so Hao Xuan could easily navigate it. He tapped on the top right symbol which showed his location in relation to the exit.

They had somehow already entered the second of the five floors of the pyramid. There were no stairs or even slopes that went down so how this happened was beyond him.

'Baracus, can you find me a safe route out of here?'

Hao Xuan called up the only being that could help him in this situation and he activated with a soft noise without delay.

*Beep*

'Calculating...'

The images on the glass panel started changing, showing hundreds of different hallways interconnected with one another. A few seconds later the images came to a stop and Baracus explained what he had found.

'There is only one path that leads out of the facility.'

The images changed, now showing a single highlighted route. It led back from where they had come from. But before Hao Xuan could ask about its safety, numerous red dots popped up in and around the last three hallways of the selected route.

'These are the other lifeforms that can be detected within the limited range of the plotted course.'

There were more than 50 of them and the numbers only increased within the few seconds Hao Xuan had spent staring at the console. More and more of them were flooding in and sooner rather than later, they would find this place as well.

Not to mention all of these were only in the last hallways from Hao Xuan's current position.

"Damn it," Hao Xuan cursed out loud by accident.

'So what then? What can we do now?' he asked helplessly.

The images changed along with the perspective, showing two new routes, only these ones went further in, not out.

The first route highlighted. It was much shorter leading to a lit-up area on the 3D map one floor below although it took quite a few twists and turns.

'This section still has power. You could try to go there and redirect the power manually to create a new pathway out of the pyramid. But there is no guarantee that will work. It is also unknown what exactly is in that section still drawing power.'

Then the second route lit up. This one was much longer but almost in a straight line as compared to the other one, going down anti-clockwise around the middle section.

'This path leads directly to the facility's center where the main control panel lies. If there is enough power, I will be able to redirect it to create a straight route leading out of the facility.'

There were a few red dots roaming about in both of the routes just in the detection range of the sensors, so it was difficult to say which one was safer overall.

The first one was closer and but there was no telling what was in there or if it would even be able able to redirect the power as needed.

The second on the other hand most probably would be able to solve their problems. The only problem was that it was located in the heart of the pyramid.

Hao Xuan looked at the worn-out barbarians and then at the numerous red dots that were closing in on them on the panel. Instead of telling Burak or anyone else, Hao Xuan made the choice for them.

'The second one. We don't have the liberty to keep trying different things.'

'Affirmative.'

Baracus downloaded the map and synced it with the most recent changes of the pathways. The downloaded one obviously won't be able to tell if there are any other creatures nearby but at least Hao Xuan would know the right path.

Baracus unlocked the door and Hao Xuan opened it himself. The barbarians only noticed when they heard the settling noises.

*Claaaaaang*

"Go!" Hao Xuan gestured towards the barbarians who all looked at Burak.

Burak met Hao Xuan's gaze for a second or two and gave a silent nod of approval for them to move in. Burak and Isak were the last of the barbarians to step into the roaring darkness followed by Hao Xuan.

He was the only one holding the door ajar so when he let go, it closed by itself behind them with a loud bang.