Infinite - Volume 1

Chapter 14: You're Not Walking Into This Alone

A heavy silence dropped over the room.

"Forty-five days?" Evan repeated, setting his fork down with a sharp clink. "That's not enough time. Do we even know what they're planning?"

Robot Buddy shook its head. "No. Clark's just a puppet. He was never given the full scope. We only have puzzle pieces."

Kyra leaned forward, tension lining her brow. "So what do we do? Wait and hope the rest shows up?"

"I think we need a recon mission," Robot Buddy said, without flinching. "There's a facility-remote, buried beneath a mountain range. I've seen it in his memories. There may be answers there."

Evan blinked. "A recon mission? Are you serious? That's suicide. We don't even know what's waiting for us in there."

"Exactly," Kyra muttered, crossing her arms. "We sneak into some secret lab and what-pray they don't have motion sensors? What happens when we get caught? You think they're going to let us walk out?"

Robot Buddy's lens adjusted, then projected a 3D model of the facility in midair. Long corridors, guard rotations, pressure sensors. "I understand the risk. But if we don't act, we walk into this war blind. With Evan's teleportation, we stay mobile. We're not going in to fight-we're going in to learn."

Evan rubbed his hands together, thinking. "And what if it's a trap? Or worse-what if we get cornered and can't teleport out in time?"

Kyra sighed. "I don't like it. I don't like any of this. We've come too far to die chasing shadows."

"I get it," Robot Buddy said calmly. "But every minute we sit here is a minute they're preparing. You're not walking into this alone. You'll have me, and Evan. Three minds. Three skill sets. One objective."

Kyra glanced down, processing. "Even if we pull this off, what happens if the data we find is encrypted or worthless?"

"Then we try again," Robot Buddy said. "Or we prepare better. But walking into battle blind isn't an option."

Evan looked to Kyra, and she met his eyes-hers were tight with fear, but not weakness.

"I don't want to lose you," she said softly. "Either of you."

"We won't let that happen," Robot Buddy replied.

Kyra let out a slow breath. "If we're doing this, we need to plan it down to the second. No hero moves. No bullshit. We go in. We get out."

"Exactly," Evan said. "Calculated risk. No room for error."

Robot Buddy hovered a little closer. "You're both incredibly capable. But I won't sugarcoat it-this will be dangerous. Still... it could give us the edge we need to stop whatever's coming."

Kyra stood, pushing her chair back. "Then let's do it. We play it smart, we don't rush anything, and if it feels off, we pull out."

Evan rose with her. "Agreed. If we're going in, we're doing it together. And we're coming out."

"Good," Robot Buddy said with a flick of light across its visor. "Then let's get to work."

The underground base buzzed with low, electric hums, the kind that settled deep in your chest like a warning. Fluorescent lights flickered overhead, casting a pale glow over the metallic walls. The air was cold, sterile, and carried the sharp scent of coolant and ionized steel-no windows, no sun, just machines and tension.

Robot Buddy zipped around them, collecting gear at breakneck speed. Its mechanical arms worked with surgical precision, loading weapons, gadgets, and emergency supplies into a compact black duffel. "Telemetry synced. Surveillance suppressed for at least twenty minutes. This is our shot," it said, its usual playfulness absent.