A cave-in silence accompanied his question.

Time seemed to be passing at breakneck speed, letting the tension stretch as far as my fear. The air pressure was extremely high, constantly being amped by the energy that was discharging off of the both of us with every heartbeat that seemed to pound on my ribcage and send chills through my body.

Five….

My knuckles turned white around the handle of my shotgun.

Four…

I took a shuddering breath that echoed silently around the metal walls of the tunnel, sending pulses of adrenaline through my body.

Three…

I took a needled capsule of bright blue liquid out of my coat pocket, and injected it into a large vain in my neck.

Two….

The drug a was taking effect already. My muscles tightened. My fears were put on hold. I could feel the power spreading like searing napalm inside me. I felt….invincible.

One.

I whipped around, and blasted a slug off. The fight had begun.