He needed more.
Silas Moore adjusted the probe.
Slowly.
Carefully.
The fiber optic tip shifted—
Locking onto the monitor.
Data flooded the screen.
Too fast for normal eyes.
But Silas—
Was not normal.
He filtered.
Captured.
Stored.
Fragments:
Activity Index: 73%Stability: FluctuatingExternal Suppression Factor: Continuous InjectionTarget Gene Expression: Incomplete
Silas's pupils shrank.
Suppression factor.
Gene expression.
A connection formed instantly.
Levi Wynn's words—
"Side effects."
"Fusion instability."
So—
P-07 wasn't just an experiment.
It was—
unstable.
Or worse—
A tool.
A regulator.
Something designed—
To control something else.
Then—
BEEP.
A sharp alert.
One parameter—
Turned yellow.
A guard jumped up.
"What happened?"
"Suppression level dropped below threshold."
"Need to replenish."
He moved fast.
Opened a cold storage case.
Took out—
A metal ampoule.
Inside—
Dark purple fluid.
Viscous.
Almost alive.
He inserted it into a port.
Pressed.
The liquid flowed.
Into the system.
Into P-07.
The monitor—
Stabilized.
Green again.
The guard exhaled.
"…damn thing's creepy."
"Needs a shot every few hours…"
"or it starts acting up."
Silas's gaze hardened.
Acting up.
That meant—
It wasn't passive.
It reacted.
Maybe—
It resisted.
The implications stacked—
Fast.
Heavy.
Then—
Footsteps.
Voices.
Closer.
"Dr. Li."
The guards straightened instantly.
Silas withdrew the probe.
Silence.
Body compressed—
Into nothing.
No breath.
No sound.
The door opened.
Levi Wynn entered.
Behind him—
A researcher.
White coat.
Glasses.
Levi walked in—
Calm.
Elegant.
But when his eyes fell on the container—
Something changed.
Obsession.
Cold.
Burning.
"How is P-07?"
"Suppression restored."
"Activity stable at 73%."
Levi stepped closer.
He leaned in.
Watching.
His fingers tapped the glass.
Tap.
Tap.
"Seventy-three…"
"Not enough."
He straightened.
Turned.
"Before we reach Ark Harbor…"
"It must exceed eighty."
Silas froze.
Ark Harbor.
That was the destination.
Levi continued—
"Only then can it survive…"
"…the Reverse Flow procedure."
Silas's heart dropped.
Reverse Flow.
Not transformation.
Forced rewriting.
He looked at the researcher.
"Adjust the nutrient solution."
"Add Catalyst-7."
"Increase gradually."
"Monitor rejection."
The researcher hesitated.
"…Catalyst-7 may destabilize it further."
Levi didn't blink.
"Instability…"
"…is better than failure."
Cold.
Absolute.
"This is our closest attempt."
"No mistakes."
Silas's claws dug slightly into the metal.
Closest attempt.
Meaning—
There had been others.
Failed ones.
Then—
Levi asked:
"…What about the guest?"
Silas's entire body went still.
Guest?
There's more.
The researcher answered:
"The guest is secured in the Aquarium."
"Stable."
"But suppression demand is higher than expected."
Silas's mind raced.
Aquarium.
Another containment.
Another subject.
"And the messenger reports…"
"…unusual biological activity on board."
"Possibly linked to the 'guest.'"
Levi's gaze turned cold.
"Continue monitoring."
"Any anomaly…"
"…must be tracked."
He paused.
Then—
Spoke slowly.
"…including that husky."
Silas's blood ran cold.
"…and its companions."
Levi's voice dropped.
"If necessary…"
"…initiate cleanup."
Silence.
Heavy.
Final.
"Before we reach Ark Harbor…"
"…nothing can go wrong."
"Understood."
They left.
Door sealed.
The chamber returned—
To stillness.
But above—
Inside the vent—
Silas Moore remained frozen.
Eyes open.
Burning.
Because now—
This wasn't just about survival.
Or returning to human form.
This—
Was something far worse.
P-07.
The Guest.
Ark Harbor.
Reverse Flow.
A chain.
A system.
A plan.
And at the center of it—
Him.
The hunter—
Had finally seen—
The shape of the trap.
And it was bigger—
Than anything he imagined.