The gunfire continued to ring out as Elena and her team fought for their lives against the advancing horde of infected SCP-4038-1. Dr. Milton, his face contorted with fear and determination, fired round after round into the writhing mass of elongated tongues and twisted bodies.

"We need to fall back!" One of the security personnel shouted over the deafening sound of gunfire as he retreated down a side corridor with Elena close behind him. Dr. Hernandez and their other security guard continued to hold their ground, firing at the advancing horde in an attempt to buy them time to escape.

"Dr. Hernandez!" Elena called out over her shoulder as she ran, her heart pounding in her chest as she watched the scene unfold behind her. "We need to regroup and find a way out of here!" She could see the fear in Dr. Hernandez's eyes as she continued to fight off the infected individuals, but there was no time for further discussion—their only hope lay in making it back to Site-44 before their containment suits failed.

As they rounded a corner and entered another corridor, Elena could see that their path was blocked by yet more infected SCP-4038-1. She turned to the security personnel with her, his face streaked with sweat and blood as he raised his weapon once more to fend off the advancing horde.

"We're surrounded," he said grimly, firing wildly into the mass of infected individuals as they closed in on their position. "We need to find another way out." Elena glanced back down the corridor from which they'd come, only to see that Dr. Hernandez and her other security guard had fallen—their bodies twisted and contorted by SCP-4038's effects as they joined the ranks of the infected.

"We have to keep moving," Elena said firmly, taking charge of the situation as she led her remaining teammate down yet another corridor in search of an escape route. The air grew thicker with each step, and Elena could feel her lungs burning from lack of oxygen as they ran deeper into the Backrooms.

"We're running out of time," their security personnel said breathlessly as he fell in step behind Elena, his weapon clutched tightly in one hand. "The suits won't hold much longer." Elena nodded solemnly, her eyes scanning the dimly lit corridors for any sign of an exit or a way to contact Site-44 for assistance.

"We need to find another checkpoint or a way out," she said urgently as they rounded yet another corner, only to be met with more infected SCP-4038-1. "There has to be something we can do!" She shouted over the sound of gunfire and the moaning of the infected individuals as they closed in on their position once more.

Desperate for a solution, Elena scanned her surroundings frantically, searching for anything that might help them escape from this nightmare. Her eyes fell upon a small metal panel mounted to one wall—it bore an unfamiliar symbol and what appeared to be a series of buttons and switches. She hesitated only briefly before rushing over to the panel and throwing the switch marked "EMERGENCY EXIT."

A bright flash of light filled the corridor as an exit portal opened before them, revealing a narrow tunnel that led back toward Site-44. Elena grabbed her remaining teammate's hand and pulled him through the portal just as it began to close behind them. The world around them shifted once more—the dimly lit corridors of the Backrooms were replaced by the familiar sterile environment of Site-44, and Elena breathed a sigh of relief as she collapsed onto the floor.

"We made it," she whispered, her voice barely audible over her labored breathing. The security personnel nodded weakly before collapsing beside her, his face pale with exhaustion and fear as he stared up at the ceiling above them. Elena knew that their ordeal was far from over—the Backrooms had claimed another victim in the form of Drs. Hernandez and their other security guard, and SCP-4038's infection continued to spread through her research team like a deadly wildfire.

As she watched her remaining teammate being rushed off to medical for treatment, Elena knew that they had only bought themselves a little more time—the Infinite Descent would not be stopped so easily.