“Adrenaline is a lifestyle.”
We weave through the final row and burst out into the open.
The arena widens dramatically here.
And the sound changes.
A deep, resonant growl rolls across the terrain like distant thunder.
My stomach tightens.
“Bron,” I whisper.
“Yeah.”
“Look.”
The central containment enclosure towers ahead of us, its reinforced barriers humming with energy fields.
Inside it?—
Something massive shifts.
Scales scrape against steel.
A tail the size of a transport vehicle lashes against the barrier with enough force to make the structure vibrate.
The proto-beast.
Even from this distance it’s enormous.
Bron whistles softly.
“That’s a big lizard.”
“Focus.”
“Focused.”
The path ahead curves along the outer edge of the enclosure, a narrow route between the containment wall and a field of automated hazards.
Other couples are converging toward it from different directions.
“Traffic,” Bron mutters.
“Stay close.”
We sprint toward the entry point.
The first obstacle slams into motion the moment we approach.
Massive swinging gates sweep across the path like pendulums.
“Timing,” I say quickly.
“After the second swing.”
The gate whooshes past us.
