SSS Alpha Ranking: Limitless Soccer Cultivation After A Century-Chapter 118: THE WARNING IN THE DARK

The elevator rattled as it sank deeper beneath Veridion, metal scraping metal in a slow descent that made every second feel longer than it should. The cage was cramped, lit only by a lone bulb that couldn't decide whether to stay alive or die on them. Its flickering painted strange shadows on everyone's faces.

Blaze braced an arm on the rail, trying to steady the shaking in his hands. The surge he'd released upstairs still buzzed through him, like electricity trapped in his bones. His breathing wasn't steady yet. Every inhale felt sharp.

Aya stood across from him, eyes soft but watchful. She didn't crowd him with pity. She never did. But she kept him in her peripheral vision like she was ready to step in at any moment.

Scarlet had her tablet against her chest, half-broken from earlier but still somehow working. Kenji kept checking the corners of the elevator, muttering under his breath. Diego was stretching his shoulders like he was preparing for a fight, not an escape. Mikhail clutched his spear tighter than usual, jaw set like carved stone.

Lionel, calm in a way that was almost unnatural in a moment like this, kept scanning the darkness below them.

"We should've gone out the third-level fire escape," Kenji said quietly, more talking to himself than anyone else.

Scarlet shook her head. "Aurion had drones waiting there. They were expecting that one."

Diego scoffed. "So instead we take the haunted basement elevator. Perfect."

Nobody laughed, nothing seems funny as at that moment, so many things had happened to some many people and things didn't go as planned after the galactic cup competition, they expected things to be better not worse.

The elevator reached the bottom with a heavy metallic thud. The gate slid open with a screech that echoed down the long tunnel ahead.

Everything down here smelled damp, old, and forgotten.

Mikhail was first out. "Stay tight. Watch everything."

They moved.

Their footsteps echoed along the long corridor, and every sound felt amplified. The emergency lights overhead glowed in soft pulses, not enough to see clearly, just enough to make the darkness feel alive.

Blaze kept close to Aya. He didn't trust his knees completely yet. The adrenaline was fading, and the hollow exhaustion underneath was worse than he expected.

They made it maybe fifty meters before Blaze's comm buzzed.

Jason shouldn't have been able to reach him down here.

Blaze slowed and lifted a hand for the group to wait. Aya turned toward him.

"What is it?"

He didn't answer yet; he tapped the message open.

Two distorted words whispered through the speaker.

"Don't trust."

Aya's eyes sharpened. "Don't trust who?"

"I don't know," Blaze admitted.

Zara leaned in from behind him. "That's not helpful."

Diego frowned. "Did he say anything else?"

"No."

Scarlet tried accessing the message log. "He's using a low-frequency burst line. Aurion shouldn't be able to trace it but… if he sent it, he's desperate."

Before Blaze could respond, the tunnel lights ahead flickered once, twice, then died completely.

Darkness swallowed them.

A low electronic hum rose from somewhere deeper in the tunnels.

Lionel whispered, "Get behind me."

Kenji clenched his fists. "Please tell me that isn't drones."

Scarlet listened closely. "No. That sound's heavier. Sweep-class units."

Diego whispered sharply, "Sweep? You mean—"

Scarlet nodded grimly. "Not recon. Elimination protocol."

Mikhail tightened his grip. "Move."

They sprinted into the dark. No one spoke now. Their breaths were loud, too loud.

A soft hiss drifted down the tunnel behind them.

Aya lifted her shirt to cover her mouth. "Gas venting."

Scarlet's voice shook. "Not gas. Tracking mist. It attaches to heat signatures. If it marks us, drones home in automatically."

Zara muttered, fear cracking her usual confidence. "They're flushing us out like rats."

Kenji swore under his breath. "Run!"

They bolted through the dark as the mist seeped forward, glowing faint blue. Blaze could feel it brushing the air behind him.

Diego threw his shoulder into a metal hatch, forcing it open. "In here, now!"

They squeezed into the side corridor, stumbling over old piping and abandoned repair crates. Blaze slammed the hatch shut behind him.

Lionel led them through the narrow passage. "Stay low. Watch the vents."

The pipes overhead creaked with every step. The deeper they went, the colder it became. The old maintenance lights flickered weakly, barely illuminating the way.

Scarlet kept tapping at her tablet even though it was struggling to stay alive.

Kenji whispered, "Please tell me you have a map."

She shook her head. "Everything down here is redacted."

A heavy hum echoed again, closer than before.

Diego exhaled shakily. "They're sending drones into the side routes too."

Aya grabbed Blaze's wrist. "Can you release another surge?"

Blaze shook his head. "Not safely. If I do it in here, I'll bring the tunnels down."

Kenji muttered, "Fantastic. So either we get gassed or crushed."

They reached a junction. Three tunnels split off in different directions. None had lights.

Lionel scanned them. "Scarlet?"

"Nothing," she said. "All off-grid."

"Then we choose the least stupid option," Diego said.

Before anyone could argue, Blaze's comm buzzed again.

Another message from Jason.

One word.

"Left."

Blaze didn't hesitate. "Jason says go left."

Lionel nodded. "Then that's our route."

They sprinted down the left corridor. The air changed almost immediately. It smelled… clean.

Too clean.

Aya stopped abruptly. "This isn't abandoned."

Scarlet touched the wall. "It's been sealed off. Recently."

Diego muttered, "Feels wrong in here."

They stepped into a wider room. It was long, lined with tall glass cylinders—the kind you saw in movies about labs that shouldn't exist.

Most were cracked. Some were shattered. Others were just empty shells.

A low chill crawled up Blaze's spine.

Scarlet forced her tablet to project data from the console. The text glitched, then stabilized.

AURION EXPERIMENTAL DIVISION — SUBJECT VAULT A2

Aya's voice was barely a whisper. "A testing wing…"

Kenji swallowed. "For what?"

Before anyone could say a word, the metal door behind them slammed shut.

Locking.

Bolting.

Diego ran back and tried to pry it open. "It's sealed tight!"

Scarlet pushed past him and slammed her tablet into the control panel. Sparks flew. "I can't override it. They locked it remotely."

Zara stepped closer to Blaze. "Why lock us in here specifically?"

Before he could answer, speakers crackled to life overhead.

A voice filtered through. Cold. Flat. Unhuman.

"Welcome back, Subject Six."

Blaze froze.

Aya's eyes widened. "Subject what?" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

The voice continued without hesitation.

"Collection protocol initiated. Remaining Titans will be sedated and prepared for transport."

Lionel stepped forward, towering over Blaze protectively. "You've got the wrong person."

The voice ignored him.

"Sedation sequence commencing."

Vents slid open along the ceiling.

Clear gas hissed out.

Aya grabbed Blaze's arm. "We have to move. Now."

Scarlet's fingers flew over the panel again. "Come on… come on—"

The vents roared louder.

Kenji covered his nose. "This stuff is strong."

Zara coughed. "It's already making my eyes sting."

Mikhail staggered slightly. "We won't last long…"

Lionel steadied Blaze. "Whatever you did earlier, do it again."

"I can't control it," Blaze whispered. "I don't even know what triggers it."

Aya cupped his face, forcing him to meet her eyes. "Listen to me. We can't get out of here without you. Whatever they did to you, whatever they called you—it doesn't matter. You choose what you are. Not them."

His pulse pounded.

The gas thickened.

His knees buckled.

The voice echoed through the chamber like a cold verdict.

"Sedation progressing."

Something in Blaze snapped loose.

A pressure he'd been ignoring tore free.

The room exploded with energy.

Glass shattered. Cylinders burst apart. Metal groaned. The vents ripped free from the ceiling. Sparks rained from broken wiring. A shockwave cracked the floor beneath them.

Everyone hit the ground as debris flew past.

When the dust finally settled, the gas had stopped. The vents were destroyed. The door was cracked open from the force.

Scarlet groaned. "Ow…"

Diego sat up slowly. "Someone check if I still have all my limbs."

Zara coughed hard, waving dust from her face.

Aya crawled to Blaze. He was on his knees, panting hard, arms shaking violently.

She touched his shoulder gently. "You did it."

He didn't answer.

His eyes were fixed on the shattered door.

On the broken vault.

On the remnants of the room they'd locked him in before he ever knew what he was.

Aya followed his gaze, her expression softening. "Blaze… hey. Look at me."

He swallowed hard.

"I wasn't just a target," he whispered. "I was theirs."

Lionel walked up beside him. "Not anymore."

Scarlet stood, brushing dust off her jacket. "We need to move before Aurion sends something worse."

Zara nodded. "Yeah. This place won't stay empty for long."

Aya offered Blaze her hand.

He took it.

But even as they stepped through the broken door, Blaze felt a pit settle inside him.

Not fear.

Not confusion.

Recognition.

Aurion didn't just want him.

They believed he belonged to them.