The Unwelcome Dawn

Chapter Five

The bunker buzzed with frenetic energy, the air thick with urgency. In the days following the disruption of the Babylon nexus, the world's situation had grown more dire. Reports of new creature sightings arrived hourly, each more chilling than the last. Entire cities had gone dark—communications severed, emergency broadcasts reduced to static. It was clear that humanity was not just facing an invasion; it was teetering on the brink of an apocalypse.

Alice, Ben, and Dr. Morris had barely rested since returning. Each day brought new preparations, new information, and new dangers. The military had thrown its full weight behind their efforts to locate and neutralize the other gateways. But as the map of potential nexus sites unfolded, it became painfully obvious just how monumental the task before them was.

There were at least a dozen confirmed sites scattered across the globe, with many more suspected locations yet to be verified. Some were situated in densely populated areas, others in remote and treacherous terrains. Each site was a potential time bomb, a point of convergence where the barriers between worlds grew thin, and the creatures' influence intensified.

In the heart of the bunker's command center, a massive digital map displayed the network of known and suspected nexuses. Red dots marked active sites, where energy spikes and seismic activity indicated imminent danger. Yellow dots showed locations where teams had been dispatched, while green dots represented sealed or collapsed nexuses, with Babylon being the lone entry on that list.

"That's not enough," Major Carter said, his voice a low growl as he surveyed the map. "We need more boots on the ground, more teams securing these sites. We're stretched too thin, and these creatures are gaining ground."

Alice stood beside him, feeling the weight of the situation bearing down on her. "How many teams can we field?" she asked.

"Four, for now," Carter replied, his tone edged with frustration. "Most of the world's resources are tied up in crisis management, evacuations, and containment efforts. We've got specialized units handling the worst of it, but we need more time. We're losing it faster than we can hold onto it."

Dr. Morris stepped forward, tapping a few commands into the tablet she held. The map zoomed in on a particular region in South America, where a large red dot pulsed ominously over the dense jungles of the Amazon. "The next target should be here," she said. "This site is showing significant energy fluctuations, even more intense than what we saw at Babylon. If the creatures are trying to open a major rift, it could be happening here."

Ben frowned, leaning heavily on his crutches. "The Amazon? That's a lot of ground to cover. How are we even supposed to find the exact spot in the middle of all that?"

Dr. Morris adjusted her glasses, her expression somber. "We've narrowed it down to a general area using satellite scans, seismic data, and ancient records that describe a lost city deep in the jungle. The legends call it Tepui Xalba—the City of Stone Gods. It was said to be a place of great power, where the gods themselves walked the Earth. If there's a nexus there, it might be linked to those myths."

Alice felt a shiver run down her spine. Another ancient city, another buried secret. "So, we go there, find the nexus, and shut it down before they open it."

Carter folded his arms across his chest, his jaw set. "Easier said than done. The jungle's dense, and the terrain is unforgiving. We'll be dealing with extreme heat, hostile wildlife, and—if the energy disturbances are as bad as we think—possibly more than one creature in the area. This isn't just a search-and-destroy mission. It's a race against time."

"We've faced worse," Ben said, his voice resolute despite the uncertainty that gripped them all. "If we could shut down Babylon, we can do it again."

Dr. Morris hesitated, then nodded. "I'm coming with you," she said. "I have a better understanding of the energy fields now, and I might be able to use that knowledge to pinpoint the exact location of the nexus. Besides, we'll need to perform another disruption ritual like we did last time, and I'm the only one who knows how to configure the equipment."