Chapter 43: Breaking the Lab
The control room hummed with quiet intensity as Lex worked to extract data from the terminal. Streams of code flickered across her tablet, illuminating her focused expression. Adam stood beside her, his mind racing as the system's earlier warning about Lab Sector 3 lingered. Victor and Marcus guarded the doorway, their eyes sharp and weapons ready.
"How much longer?" Victor asked, his tone low and steady.
Lex didn't look up. "A couple more minutes. They've got layers of encryption on this thing."
Marcus smirked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Let me guess—state-of-the-art Nexus security? Can't wait to see the budget they burned on that."
Lex shot him a quick glare. "If you'd like to try, be my guest."
Adam broke the tension. "System, how many guards are between us and Lab Sector 3?"
<GUARDS DETECTED: FOURTEEN. LOCATIONS: MAIN HALLWAY, EAST WING ENTRANCE, AND LAB SECTOR 3 ACCESS DOOR. RECOMMENDATION: USE DIVERSION OR AVOID MAIN PATHWAYS.>
Adam relayed the information, and Victor's brow furrowed. "Fourteen guards. That's tight. Lex, can you pull their patrol patterns from the terminal?"
Lex nodded, her fingers flying over the keyboard. "Already on it. Let me just—" She stopped abruptly, her screen flashing red. "Damn it. They've triggered a security lock. We've got company."
The distant sound of boots echoed down the hallway. Victor signaled for the group to move, his voice calm but urgent. "We can't stay here. Marcus, cover our exit. Lex, you're with Adam and me."
Lex disconnected her tablet, grumbling under her breath. "Just when it was getting fun."
The group slipped out of the control room, keeping to the shadows as they navigated the dimly lit corridors. Adam's heart raced as he heard the approaching guards, their voices sharp and commanding.
"This way," Victor whispered, leading them toward an unmarked side passage.
The hallway narrowed, the walls closing in as they moved deeper into the facility. The faint hum of machinery grew louder, mingling with the distant clatter of weapons and barked orders.
"System," Adam whispered, "what's the fastest route to Lab Sector 3?"
<RECOMMENDED PATH: MAINTENANCE SHAFT C-7. ACCESS VIA SIDE CORRIDOR 200 FEET AHEAD. PROBABILITY OF DETECTION: 12%.>
Adam gestured to Victor. "There's a maintenance shaft up ahead. It's the safest way in."
Victor nodded, adjusting their route. "Good. Let's move."
The maintenance shaft was cramped and dark, the air thick with the smell of grease and metal. Lex groaned as she climbed through, her tablet strapped securely to her back.
"This better be worth it," she muttered.
Marcus, bringing up the rear, chuckled. "Come on, Lex. Where's your sense of adventure?"
"Somewhere far away from this," she shot back.
They emerged into a narrow corridor just outside Lab Sector 3. The area was eerily quiet, the fluorescent lights flickering faintly overhead. Victor raised a hand, signaling for the group to halt.
"Adam, how many guards are in the lab?"
<GUARDS DETECTED: SIX. LOCATIONS: TWO AT ENTRANCE, FOUR INSIDE LAB SECTOR 3. RECOMMENDATION: NEUTRALIZE ENTRANCE GUARDS QUIETLY.>
"Six," Adam whispered. "Two at the entrance, four inside. We'll need to take out the ones at the door before going in."
Victor nodded, motioning for Marcus to move forward. Marcus unsheathed his knife, his movements silent and deliberate. In moments, the two guards at the entrance were down, their bodies carefully dragged out of sight.
Victor gestured for the group to follow. "Stay close. No mistakes."
Inside Lab Sector 3, the atmosphere shifted. The room was massive, lined with glowing consoles and sleek workstations. In the center stood a reinforced glass chamber housing a large, pulsating device that looked almost alive. Its surface shimmered with energy, casting strange patterns of light across the walls.
Lex's eyes widened. "What the hell is that?"
Victor approached the nearest console, his face grim. "Whatever it is, it's Nexus's latest project. And it's about to be ours."
Adam felt a shiver run down his spine. "System, what is the device in the lab?"
<IDENTIFYING... DEVICE: QUANTUM RESONANCE EMITTER. FUNCTION: ENERGY WEAPON PROTOTYPE WITH WIDE-RANGE CAPABILITIES. STATUS: ACTIVE. WARNING: HIGHLY UNSTABLE.>
"It's an energy weapon," Adam said. "But it's unstable. If it goes off, we're in trouble."
Lex was already at a nearby console, typing furiously. "I'm pulling the schematics now. If we're taking this thing, we need to know how to disable it first."
The sound of approaching footsteps snapped them back to the present. Victor motioned for everyone to take cover.
"They're coming," he said. "Lex, how fast can you work?"
"Faster if you stop talking," she muttered, her fingers flying over the keys.
Marcus readied his rifle, his eyes on the door. "I'll buy you some time."
The first wave of guards burst into the lab, their weapons drawn. Marcus opened fire, his shots precise and deadly. Victor joined him, covering Lex and Adam as they worked.
Adam's hands trembled as he secured charges to the base of the emitter. "System, what's the best way to disable the emitter without triggering a meltdown?"
<RECOMMENDATION: SEVER PRIMARY ENERGY CONDUITS BEFORE DETONATING CHARGES. ESTIMATED RISK OF MELTDOWN: 8%.>
"Sever the conduits first," Adam called out.
Victor nodded, moving to the back of the device. He used his knife to cut through a series of glowing cables, sparks flying as the emitter's hum began to fade.
"Conduits are down," Victor said. "Set the charges."
Adam secured the last explosive just as Lex shouted, "I've got the schematics! Let's go!"
The team retreated through the maintenance shaft as alarms blared throughout the facility. Behind them, the emitter's glow grew unstable, flickering wildly as the charges ticked down.
They emerged into the open air just as the lab erupted in a massive explosion, the shockwave shaking the ground beneath their feet.
Victor turned to the group, his expression unreadable. "It's done. Let's move before they regroup."
Adam glanced back at the smoke rising from the facility. The mission had been a success, but the unease in his chest lingered. This was just one battle in a much larger war—and Verdan was still out there, waiting for his next move.