(Arc 1) The First Strike

The group of miners huddled in a tight circle in the dim maintenance bay, their faces lit only by the dull glow of a nearby work light. The tension was palpable, the air heavy with anticipation and fear. Kade leaned against the wall, gripping the handle of a makeshift spear—a length of steel pipe capped with a sharpened drill bit.

Renn crouched over a rough map scratched into the dusty floor, his blond hair falling over his eyes as he gestured to the marks with a piece of chalk. “Alright,” he said, his voice steady. “Let’s go over this one more time.”

“We start with the rigs,” Renn said, his tone clipped but steady. “Here’s us—the central platform. This is where the miners live, eat, and sleep.” He tapped the center of the map, then traced lines outward to four smaller areas. “And here are the shafts. Each one connects to the mining zones where the rigs are stored.”

“Two overseers per shaft, right?” Kade asked, trying to keep the nerves out of his voice.

“Yeah,” Renn confirmed. “They’re stationed by the control platforms. Same deal at the lift to the top—two guards there, too.”

Kade frowned. “So, eight guards total. Two of them right above us.”

A miner in the back muttered something under his breath, and Renn straightened, his eyes scanning the group. “I know what you’re thinking. Eight doesn’t sound like much, but here’s the thing—we don’t actually know how many overseers there are. We’ve never seen more than ten at once, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t more waiting for us to slip up.”

The group fell silent, the weight of Renn’s words sinking in. Kade’s stomach twisted, and he tightened his grip on his spear.

“That’s why we need to do this fast and quietly,” Renn continued, his tone firm.

“We start in the shafts,” he said. “We go down as if it’s a normal shift. A few of us get into the rigs. Then, before they realize what’s happening…” He mimed drilling into the ground. “We drop the platform out from under them.”

“And if that doesn’t kill them?” a miner near the front asked, his voice shaky.

“We jump them,” Renn replied, his voice hard. “The rigs are our best chance to pierce their armor, and once we’ve got their guns, we’ll head back up.”

Kade nodded slowly, but doubts lingered in his mind. “And the lift to the top? The one to the overseer quarters?”

Renn hesitated, his usual confidence flickering. “We need their access cards to use the lift. Once we’ve got them, we’ll figure it out as we go. We’ll be ready by then.”

The key is speed—no alarms, no hesitation. If we make too much noise, we’re done. If there are more of them than we thought, we’re done. But if we move fast, we can win this.”

The miners exchanged nervous glances, their fear evident, but so was their determination. Kade could see it in their faces—the anger that had been simmering for years, the longing for something better.

“This is our chance,” Renn said, his voice quiet but resolute. “If we don’t take it now, we’ll never get another one.”

Kade swallowed hard as the group began to disperse, each miner returning to their quarters to prepare. He felt Renn’s hand on his shoulder and turned to see his friend’s lopsided grin.

“You ready?” Renn asked.

Kade nodded, though his chest felt heavy. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

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The morning shift began like any other. Miners shuffled into lines, their movements sluggish and routine as they boarded the freight elevators that led to the shafts. Overseers stood at their usual posts, their mirrored visors giving nothing away.

Kade kept his head low as the elevator descended, his heart pounding. Around him, the others moved with a tension that hung thick in the air. Renn stood nearby, his face blank but his hands clenched tightly at his sides.

When the elevator reached the mining zone, the group dispersed into the cavern. The overseers watched from their control platform, their rifles slung casually over their shoulders. Kade glanced at Renn, who gave him a quick nod before heading toward the rigs.

One by one, the miners in on the plan suited up. The Core Rigs hissed and groaned as their operators climbed inside, the machines coming to life with a dull hum. Kade stayed near the edge of the cavern, his eyes darting between the overseers and the miners as he waited for the signal.

It came suddenly—a loud, grinding roar as the first rig moved forward. The drill arm spun violently, sparks flying as it slammed into the platform.

“What the—?” one of the overseers shouted, but his words were cut short as the platform buckled beneath him.

The miners moved as one. Those in rigs swung their drill arms at the overseers, while the rest swarmed them from below, armed with pipes, wrenches, and makeshift spears. Kade lunged forward, his heart racing as he joined the fray.

An overseer swung his rifle toward him, but before he could fire, one of the rigs barreled into him, the drill piercing through his armor with a sickening crunch. The other overseer raised his weapon, firing wildly into the crowd, but a miner tackled him from behind, wrenching the rifle from his hands.

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When it was over, the cavern was motionless, eerily silent now, save for the faint hum of the rigs powering down and the distant echoes of tools dropped in the struggle. Kade stood frozen, staring down at the motionless forms of the two overseers.

Their mirrored visors were cracked, blood smeared across the once-pristine armor. One of them lay crumpled awkwardly at the base of the platform, his body twisted in ways that didn’t seem possible. The other had been pinned under a rig’s drill arm, his chest plate caved in.

Kade’s breath caught in his throat. His hands trembled as he tightened his grip on the spear, the sharp metallic tang of blood mingling with the ever-present scent of dust and gas.

He’d seen injuries before—accidents in the mines, men crushed under collapsing rock—but this was different. These weren’t miners, and this wasn’t an accident. These men were dead, and Kade had helped put them there.

His stomach churned, bile rising in his throat as he stepped back. The world felt too bright, too sharp. The shouts of the other miners grew faint, muffled, as if he were underwater. His gaze remained fixed on the overseer pinned beneath the drill, the blood pooling around the cracked armor.

This was the first time Kade had ever seen anyone dead in such a way.

His spear slipped from his grasp, clattering to the ground.

“Kade!” Renn’s voice cut through the haze, sharp and urgent.

Kade blinked, snapping back to the present. Renn was at his side, his hand gripping Kade’s shoulder tightly. His blue eyes were wide, but not with fear—there was something fierce and steady in his gaze.

“Stay with me,” Renn said, his voice firm but not unkind. “I know it’s hard, but we don’t have time. We have to move.”

Kade nodded slowly, his chest tight as he forced himself to look away from the bodies. Renn’s grip eased, and he gestured toward one of the fallen overseers.

“Here,” Renn said, pulling a small access card from the overseer’s chest plate. He held it up, the card glinting faintly in the dim light. “We’ve got what we need. Let’s get to the elevator.”

Kade swallowed hard, his throat dry. He reached down to pick up his spear, his fingers brushing against the cold metal. The weight of what they’d done hung over him like a cloud, but Renn was already moving, his determination a steady anchor in the chaos.

With a shaky breath, Kade followed.

The miners moved quickly, loading the bulky rigs onto the freight elevator along with their newly acquired rifles. Kade climbed into the lift with Renn, his hands still trembling as he clutched a salvaged weapon.

As the lift began its slow ascent, a faint beep echoed from the control panel. Kade frowned, watching as a blinking message appeared on the screen: Access Code Required.

“What’s this?” Renn muttered, stepping forward. He punched in a few numbers at random, but the screen flashed red, accompanied by an angry buzz.

“Don’t!” Kade hissed. “If we guess wrong—”

Before he could finish, an alarm blared from the panel, the sound sharp and piercing.

“Great,” Renn muttered. “So much for surprise.”

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The miners barely had time to regroup before the remaining overseers descended on them. Energy bolts sizzled through the air, forcing the miners to scatter. Kade ducked behind a stack of crates, his heart racing as he tried to catch his breath.

“Fall back!” Renn shouted, waving the miners toward cover.

Kade moved carefully, keeping low as he made his way across the platform. The overseers had taken up positions near the central hub, their rifles firing in controlled bursts. One of the rigs charged forward, its drill arm swinging wildly, but the overseers were quicker, their coordinated fire bringing it down in a shower of sparks.

“Kade!” Renn’s voice rang out above the chaos.

Kade turned, spotting his friend crouched near the edge of the platform. Renn gestured toward the main lift in the distance, where a small group of miners was trying to hold their ground.

Kade nodded, gripping his weapon tightly as he made his way toward the lift. As he approached, his heart sank. Standing in front of the lift, his broad frame blocking the way, was his father.

“Dad?” Kade called out, his voice trembling.

His father turned slowly, his expression hard. Kade froze, his mind racing. The rifle in his hands suddenly felt heavy, useless.

“What are you doing here?” Kade demanded, his voice cracking.

“I could ask you the same thing,” his father replied, his tone low and cold. “Go back, Kade. Before you get yourself killed.”

“I can’t do that,” Kade said, stepping closer. “Why are you just standing there?”

His father’s jaw tightened, but before he could answer, Kade saw movement out of the corner of his eye. One of the overseers, standing right behind the corner, raised his rifle, the barrel aimed directly at Kade’s chest.