Panting, tired, scared. All these emotions and ideas whirling around within him. So much running in these empty alien halls, except they weren't empty. Things lurk here. Things crafted by a madman. And, it was so dark. Sometimes the only light he had would flicker out; plunging him into the inky abyss. It was in those moments that his faint breaths felt like roaring to his ears. A siren call for all that meant him harm, or saw him food.



He took a shuddering breath. The door behind his scaled back was thick, solid. It would protect him- for now. The room he was in was moderately warm, compared to the harsh cool of the rest of this maze of metal and rust. But most importantly, it had light. A lone fixture in the ceiling provided buzzing illumination, bathing the room with a worn yellow glow.



It was dim, but it was enough. It kept the all-consuming darkness at bay, and that was all he needed. He wasn't sure how he found this room. The hallways twisted around too much for proper navigation. But it didn't matter. This was his bubble of safety for the moment.



He stopped bracing against the metal slab of a door, feeling moderately confident of its ability to keep outside things out. Carefully, cautiously, he edged his ways through this small room. It was mostly barren, except an array of unknown machinery alongside one wall. That was one theme this place had, was its mysterious mechanical components. Nowhere else has he ever seen such things. He wasn't sure if that was for better or for worse yet.



There was a large black panel in the middle of this array, with a subtle red blinking light. It was below a small protruding piece of metal. Perhaps foolishly, he traced his claw around the thing and accidentally flicked the switch down with a resounding click. Freezing in place, he watched as the red light stopped blinking, before defusing to a vibrant green.



With a sizzling crackle, the black panel began to light up; turning into a solid blue. He found himself growing lightheaded, so he forced himself to take a breath. As nothing immediately bad happened, he let himself calm down slightly. That's when a dragon's face appeared on the glowing blue panel. It was just a floating dragon's head, of what appeared to be a hybrid between a skywing and an icewing. There was no body below the neck. The most notable thing was the absolutely neon green eyes. The irises were far too bright to be natural.



It seemed contained within the panel, but it turned to face him. He got the distinct feeling of being analyzed.



"Hi there!" It spoke to him, and he had no idea how to react. The Draconic it spoke seemed slightly off. Pronunciation especially.



"Hello?" It spoke again after he remained quiet. It then began to blare out a long list of words in ever-changing dialects and languages before returning back to Draconic.



"Well, you're obviously alive. And conscious. How strange." Finally, he was broken from his frightened reverie, and blurted out;



"What are you?"



"What am I? Well, at least you're speaking now. Well back to the matter on claw. I'm the Warden! Specifically Warden 6. I make sure everything is properly contained and the staff at- Huh. That's strange." The talking head seemed to pause, and then frowned.



"Question, dragon. Well, questions. One, why are you not in any of my logs, two, why can't I access the main server, and three, why does my internal clock say it's been over 5000 years since I was last online. 5362 years and 127 days to be exact. Wait, ignore my questions, question three answers both. New question; Who are you?"



"Uh- Ant" He was currently in minor shock, his mind trying to process all the information that was just tossed at him. This place wasn't just old. It was ancient, a relic of a past all those that are alive have forgotten.



"Okay, Ant, good news for you! Protocol states you're the new warden. Now keep in mind you're a warden, while I am the Warden. There's a difference. Moving on, that means you get to help me get this place running again. If the limited info I have indicates anything, it's this place is in shambles."



"But-"



"No buts! By entering this Facility you've agreed to all forms necessary, including the ones that allow me to name you a warden. Now Ant, we must get to work straight away!"



His head was spinning. He didn't what to do.



"I'm sorry, but I'm trying to escape this place."



The dragon head paused again. It blinked. Then blinked again.



"Escape? But that would indicate you are trapped in here- question. Are you trapped in here?"



"Yes, it's a maze and things are hunting me!"



"A maze means that security measures have been enacted. The facility is quite straightforward otherwise. And what exactly is hunting you, Ant"



He became quiet. Memories flashed by, and he found himself shaking.



"Ant? Ant? Are you alright?"



"I don't wanna be here, I don't wanna be here, I don't wanna be here, I don't w-" He kept mumbling to himself over and over, a repeating mantra of fear.



"Ant, I'm here to help, but you must tell me what is hunting you."



"Them."



"What is them?"



"The monsters." He took deep breath after deep breath, trying to calm down, but the image of flashing metal teeth and rending claws wouldn't leave him.



The Warden seemed to realize that asking for information was pointless.



"Okay, so there are monsters roaming the Facility."



Between breaths, Ant said yes.



"I see. I will assist you in your escape from this place. However, certain things will have to be done first. You'll be incapable of leaving otherwise."



Ant, finally back to a state of relative calm, nodded. Something clanked, and a tray popped from within the console that the head was based from. On it was a smooth, tiny ball made from an unknown dark material.



"I need you to put that into your ear. It'll allow for communications outside of you being directly next to me."



Ant, having not much choice beyond trusting the Warden, delicately picked up the orb, and pushed it into his right ear. The orb expanded slightly, and then was firmly in. Now, he heard a near-constant low thrum.



"Testing, testing" Ant couldn't help himself, he jumped. It was like the Warden spoke directly into his right ear. It wasn't painfully loud, but it was greatly surprising.



"My, you're a jumpy one." Ant didn't appreciate the amused tone.



"Well, now it is time for you to do the first step. Find food"



"Why?" As he asked, his stomach growled.



"Because all signs point to you not eating during your time here. And there is no food in here. At least, not the edible kind."



The Warden's words brought to painful focus the pit in Ant's stomach that he has been ignoring.



"I am going to open the door now. And I want you to take a left. Okay?"



"...Okay"



"Great! Opening the door now." The Warden's voice faded, and Ant turned around to face the door as it slid open with a creaking hiss. Hesitantly, he grasped the doorframe with his claws, and peaked out, looking towards the left. He mustered his own courage and left the room of safety fully. He nodded to himself



And thus he began his search for food in a place that was over 5000 years old.



He could do this. At least the Warden thought he could.

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