"Wait," Viktor whispered, his arm blocking Elena from moving forward. They crouched in the darkness of the utility tunnel, listening to the sounds of pursuit echoing behind them.

  The tunnel forked ahead – one path continuing straight, the other branching left. Viktor closed his eyes briefly, mentally mapping the complex's yout. When he opened them, he pointed left.

  "That way. It loops around to the lower maintenance level."

  Elena nodded, conserving breath. They'd been moving quickly for nearly ten minutes, navigating the maze-like infrastructure beneath the research facility. The tight spaces and limited visibility would have been disorienting without Viktor's intimate knowledge of the building's design.

  As they prepared to move again, the sounds of pursuit grew fainter – Keller's team spreading out to search multiple routes.

  "They're splitting up," Viktor murmured. "That gives us a chance."

  They moved cautiously down the left branch, Viktor leading the way. The tunnel narrowed until they were forced to proceed in single file, their shoulders occasionally brushing the damp concrete walls. Emergency lighting cast weak red pools every twenty feet, barely enough for Elena to see by, though Viktor moved with predatory certainty through the gloom.

  "Step exactly where I step," he instructed softly. "Some of these floor panels are loose. Sound travels in these tunnels."

  Elena carefully pced her feet in Viktor's footprints, moving with deliberate precision. The stealth techniques he'd taught her during their journey to the boratory now became vital survival skills. Heel-toe pcement to minimize noise, controlled breathing, staying low when passing beneath ventition ducts.

  The tunnel eventually opened into a rger junction area with multiple access doors. Viktor paused, listening intently, then pointed to a heavy metal door marked "Level B3 - Primary Systems."

  "Through there. It connects to the original building's foundation infrastructure. Keller may not know about it – it wasn't in the main blueprints."

  Elena raised an eyebrow. "But you know about it?"

  "I helped design the security protocols," Viktor reminded her. "That included knowing all potential access points and vulnerabilities."

  He approached the door cautiously, testing the handle. It turned with a muted click, and he eased it open just enough to peer through. After a moment, he beckoned Elena forward.

  Beyond the door y a massive chamber filled with hulking machinery – the facility's main electrical and water systems. Huge pipes ran along the ceiling, while generators and transformers created a maze of industrial equipment. The space was dimly lit by scattered emergency lights, creating deep shadows between the machinery.

  "Stay close," Viktor murmured. "This area's easy to get lost in."

  They moved deeper into the mechanical forest, ducking beneath pipes and squeezing between equipment units. The ambient noise – the hum of emergency power systems and the occasional hiss of steam releases – provided welcome cover for their movements.

  They were halfway across the chamber when Viktor suddenly froze, raising his hand in the stop signal they'd practiced. Elena immediately went still, controlling her breathing as he'd taught her.

  Through a gap in the equipment, she spotted movement – a figure moving methodically through the chamber, checking behind machinery and in corners. The figure moved with the fluid grace that marked the turned, but with less control than Keller's group had shown – head swiveling erratically, movements slightly too quick, predatory instincts not yet fully banced by human thought.

  "Newly turned," Viktor breathed, his lips close to Elena's ear. "Probably stationed here as a perimeter guard."

  "Can we go around?" Elena whispered back.

  Viktor shook his head minutely. "Not without backtracking. The only other exit is straight ahead."

  They watched as the vampire guard continued its patrol, moving in a rough circuit of the chamber. Its pattern was predictable but thorough, eventually bringing it closer to their position.

  "When it passes that transformer," Viktor whispered, indicating a rge piece of equipment about fifteen feet away, "we move. Stay low, stay quiet, don't stop until you reach the exit door on the far wall."

  Elena nodded, tension building in her muscles as she prepared to move.

  The guard approached the designated point, head turning away from their position as it examined a dark corner. Viktor squeezed Elena's hand once – their signal to go.

  They slipped from their hiding pce, moving in perfect synchronization. Elena focused entirely on pcing her feet silently, keeping her body low, following Viktor's path exactly as they wound through the machinery. The exit door came into view – a rectangle of darker shadow against the far wall.

  They were twenty feet from freedom when a cng rang out – Elena's backpack had brushed against a pipe, sending a metal tool cttering to the floor.

  The vampire guard's head snapped toward the sound with preternatural speed. It dropped into a crouch, nostrils fring as it scented the air.

  "Run," Viktor urged, pushing Elena ahead of him. "Now!"

  They abandoned stealth for speed, sprinting toward the exit. Behind them, the guard let out a piercing shriek – not words, but a predatory call that would alert others to prey.

  Viktor reached the door first, yanking it open and shoving Elena through. She stumbled into another corridor as Viktor turned to face the oncoming guard.

  The vampire lunged with frightening speed, but Viktor sidestepped with practiced precision, using the attacker's momentum against it. The move demonstrated the difference between newly turned and Viktor's more controlled state – one all predatory instinct, the other combining those instincts with tactical thought.

  But the guard was stronger than it appeared, recovering quickly and spinning back toward Viktor. In its hand was something Elena hadn't noticed before – a short, specialized weapon that resembled a cross between a baton and a syringe.

  "Viktor, it's armed!" she called out.

  Viktor dove to the side as the guard stabbed forward with the weapon. He countered with a swift strike to the guard's knee, temporarily buckling its leg. The brief advantage allowed him to deliver a powerful blow to its sternum, driving it back several feet.

  Elena held the door open, ready for Viktor's retreat. "Come on!"

  The guard recovered faster than expected, lunging again with inhuman speed. This time, its weapon found its mark, plunging into Viktor's shoulder. Viktor grunted in pain but managed to twist away, breaking the contact before the guard could fully depress the plunger. With a powerful kick, he sent the guard crashing into a bank of electrical equipment.

  Viktor staggered backward through the door, and Elena smmed it shut behind him. Together they shoved a nearby metal cart against it as a temporary barricade.

  "Are you okay?" Elena asked urgently, noticing Viktor's pained expression.

  "We need to keep moving," he said instead of answering, already limping down the corridor. "That shriek will bring others."

  They continued at a fast pace, Viktor slightly hunched, one hand pressed to his shoulder where the weapon had struck him. The corridor sloped downward, taking them deeper beneath the facility. Emergency lights became more sporadic, plunging sections into complete darkness that Viktor navigated by memory and enhanced senses, guiding Elena with quiet instructions.

  Behind them, sounds of pursuit grew louder – doors opening, voices calling, footsteps on metal stairs.

  "Here," Viktor said suddenly, turning into a narrow side passage almost invisible in the shadows. The passage ended in a small maintenance access point – little more than a crawlspace with a metal pte covering it.

  Viktor removed the pte with his good arm, revealing a dark opening. "Through here. It leads to the secondary cooling system tunnels. Most people don't even know they exist."

  Elena crawled through first, emerging into a narrow tunnel just tall enough to crouch in. Viktor followed with noticeably less grace than usual, repcing the access pte behind them.

  The tunnel was pitch bck and smelled of mildew and stagnant water. Elena fumbled in her pack and produced a small fshlight – one of the emergency items they'd packed days ago for their original journey to the b.

  In the narrow beam, she could see they were in a long concrete tunnel with rge pipes running along one wall. Water dripped steadily from joints and seams, creating small puddles on the floor.

  "This way," Viktor said, pointing ahead. "These tunnels run the entire length of the facility, with access points at regur intervals."

  They moved forward, spshing through shallow puddles. Elena kept the fshlight beam low to minimize the risk of it being seen through any grates or vents. As they progressed, she noticed Viktor's movements becoming increasingly bored.

  "You need to let me look at that wound," she said as Viktor stumbled slightly.

  "Not yet," he insisted. "We need more distance first."

  After what felt like hours but was likely only twenty minutes of careful navigation, Viktor finally paused at a junction where their tunnel intersected with a slightly rger one.

  "There's a maintenance office nearby," he said, voice tight with controlled pain. "Should be secure enough for a brief stop."

  He led them down the new tunnel until they reached a metal door set into the concrete wall. Unlike most doors they'd passed, this one had no markings or identification – just a simple key lock.

  Viktor produced a small tool from his pocket – part of the emergency kit they'd assembled – and worked on the lock with surprising dexterity despite his injury. After a moment, it clicked open.

  Beyond y a small room with utilitarian furnishings – a desk, filing cabinet, and workbench along one wall. Dusty safety equipment hung on hooks, and faded technical diagrams covered another wall. The room had clearly been undisturbed since the outbreak.

  Elena secured the door behind them while Viktor lowered himself onto a metal stool, finally allowing his pain to show on his face.

  "Let me see," she said, approaching him with professional concern.

  Viktor removed his hand from his shoulder, revealing a wound unlike any Elena had seen before. Instead of a clean puncture, the injury site was surrounded by discolored veins spreading outward like dark tree roots. The area around the wound wasn't healing as vampire injuries normally would.

  "What kind of weapon was that?" she asked, setting her pack down to look for their first aid supplies.

  "Some kind of specialized weapon," Viktor expined through gritted teeth. "Something Keller's group must have developed since the outbreak. The military had theoretical designs for controlling 'hostile biological agents,' but nothing this targeted."

  "What does it do exactly?" Elena examined the wound carefully, medical training kicking in despite the unusual nature of the injury.

  "Specialized compound that disrupts the healing process," Viktor expined. "Also inhibits some vampire abilities temporarily. They were designing it when everything went to hell – looks like Keller's team continued the research."

  Elena opened their limited first aid kit, assessing what might be useful for a non-human wound. "How bad is it?"

  "Bad enough," Viktor admitted, which told Elena more than a detailed expnation would have. He rarely acknowledged pain or weakness. "The compound interferes with cellur regeneration. It won't kill me, but it's... extremely unpleasant."

  Elena cleaned the wound area as best she could, noting how Viktor's normally rapid healing was completely absent. The injury looked worryingly simir to how a human wound might appear if infected.

  "The good news is they didn't get a full dose into me," Viktor said, watching her work. "The bad news is even a partial dose is extremely effective."

  "How long until it wears off?"

  "Hours. Maybe a day." He winced as she applied antiseptic. "Depends on how much entered my system."

  As Elena continued treating the wound, she noticed Viktor's eyes – the pupils dited more than usual, with a tinge of red beginning to show around the iris. A sign of hunger, she'd learned, or physical stress.

  "The injury will accelerate blood need," Viktor said, noticing her observation. "Another feature of the weapon's design. Weakens and creates hunger simultaneously."

  "Efficient," Elena commented grimly, securing a bandage over the wound. It wouldn't help with healing, but it might prevent further contamination.

  "Keller's work," Viktor said darkly. "Always brilliant, rarely ethical."

  Once the wound was dressed, Elena took stock of their situation. They'd escaped immediate danger but were deep beneath the research facility with an injured vampire and limited supplies. Viktor's condition would worsen before it improved, and Keller's team would be methodically searching every possible escape route.

  "We should rest here for a bit," she decided. "You need to conserve strength, and they'll be expecting us to keep moving."

  Viktor nodded, too drained to argue. He moved from the stool to the floor, leaning back against the wall. Elena settled beside him, her shoulder lightly touching his uninjured one – a small comfort in their dire circumstances.

  "You did well back there," Viktor said after a moment of silence. "The silent movement techniques. The quick thinking."

  "I had a good teacher," Elena replied. "Though I wish I hadn't hit that pipe."

  "Happened to me during my first month turned," Viktor admitted. "Knocked over an entire shelf trying to move silently. Still learning to judge my own strength."

  The small shared confession created a moment of normalcy amid their crisis. Elena found herself smiling despite everything.

  "So," she said, "what's the pn once you've rested?"

  Viktor closed his eyes briefly, thinking. "These maintenance tunnels eventually connect to the storm drainage system. From there, we can reach the old subway maintenance tunnels. It's a complex route, but Keller's less likely to anticipate it."

  "And after that?"

  "One problem at a time," Viktor said, his voice weaker than before. "First, we get clear of the facility. Then we find somewhere to regroup, figure out our next move."

  Elena nodded, not pressing further. She could see the effort it took for him to maintain focus through the pain.

  "Try to rest," she said. "I'll keep watch."

  Viktor's eyes met hers, a hint of vulnerability showing through his usual controlled expression. "If I... if the hunger becomes too intense, you need to keep your distance. The inhibitor affects control as well as healing."

  The warning hung between them – a reminder of the predator that always lurked beneath Viktor's scientific exterior, currently brought closer to the surface by his injury.

  "I trust you," Elena said simply.

  Viktor's expression suggested he thought her trust might be mispced, but he was too exhausted to argue. He closed his eyes, body tense with pain but gradually rexing as he forced himself into a recovery state.

  Elena watched him for a moment, then turned her attention to securing their temporary sanctuary. She positioned herself near the door, fshlight off to preserve batteries, ears straining for any sound of pursuit.

  In the darkness of the maintenance office, surrounded by the distant dripping of water and the faint hum of emergency systems, she allowed herself to process what had happened. Their research was in Keller's hands. Their sanctuary was compromised. They were on the run with limited supplies and Viktor was injured.

  Yet amid the direness of their situation, Elena found herself strangely calm. They had survived. They had knowledge Keller didn't – at least not yet. And most importantly, they had each other. The scientist and the vampire, an unlikely partnership that somehow worked when everything else in the world had fallen apart.

  She checked Viktor's bandage in the brief light of her fshlight, noting with concern the dark veins spreading slightly beyond the dressing. The weapon's effects were continuing even without the full dose. His face was paler than usual, with a sheen of sweat that vampires typically didn't experience.

  They would need to move again soon, before his condition deteriorated further. But for now, this moment of retive safety was precious – a chance to gather strength for the challenges ahead.

  Outside their hiding pce, somewhere in the vast maze of tunnels beneath the research facility, Keller's hunters continued their search. Elena could almost feel them moving through the darkness, drawing ever closer to their prey.

  She pced her hand on Viktor's uninjured shoulder, a gesture of reassurance for herself as much as for him. Whatever came next, they would face it together.