Geneva, Switzerland – The Underground City
The air was damp. The walls hummed with the quiet pulse of hidden technology.
Seojin crouched behind a steel pillar, heart pounding.
They had made it inside.
She glanced at Kade and Minji. Both had their guns drawn, their expressions tense.
The Hidden Faction's underground city was unlike anything they had ever seen. Built beneath the financial sector, it was a sprawling labyrinth of sleek corridors, high-tech surveillance, and guards who never blinked.
This wasn't just a hideout.
It was a fortress.
And somewhere inside, Phase Two was already being activated.
Kade scanned the corridor ahead. "Security's light," he muttered. "Too light."
Seojin narrowed her eyes. He was right. A facility this important should have been crawling with guards.
It wasn't.
Which meant…
"They know we're here," Minji whispered, voicing exactly what Seojin was thinking.
A chill ran down Seojin's spine. This was a trap.
She tapped her earpiece. "Nari, are you in?"
A few seconds of static—then Nari's voice came through.
"I'm inside their systems, but… something's wrong."
Seojin exchanged a look with Kade. "What do you mean?"
"I've never seen encryption like this. It's not just blocking me out—it's rewriting itself in real time. It's like… the system is alive."
Seojin's grip tightened on her gun. A self-evolving AI defense system.
That meant time was running out.
"Can you shut it down?" she asked.
"I can try," Nari said. "But you need to move. Fast."
Seojin turned to her team.
"We need to find the Phase Two mainframe and destroy it before they finish activation."
Kade nodded. "Then let's go."
They moved forward, deeper into the shadows.
The First Encounter
They had barely made it down the next corridor when a voice echoed through the intercom.
"You're too late."
The voice was cold, metallic, and inhuman.
Seojin froze.
The lights flickered. Then, suddenly—
The alarms screamed.
Doors slammed shut behind them. The corridor sealed off in every direction.
And out of the darkness…
They came.
The guards weren't human.
They were something else.
Their movements were too precise. Their expressions empty.
"Drones," Kade whispered. "They've already started Phase Two."
Seojin raised her gun. "Then we shut it down. Now."
The fight began.
The first drone lunged.
Seojin dodged, fired—a perfect shot to the head.
It didn't flinch.
No blood. No reaction.
Instead, the drone twisted its head unnaturally, its blank eyes locking onto her. Then, with inhuman speed, it struck.
Seojin barely managed to block. The impact sent her skidding backward.
These weren't just modified humans.
They were something far worse.
Kade tackled one to the ground, his knife flashing. "They don't feel pain—go for the joints!"
Minji fired two rounds at another drone's knees. It collapsed—but didn't stop moving.
Seojin's mind raced. How do you kill something that doesn't stop?
Then she saw it.
A small implant at the base of its neck.
"Nari!" she shouted into her earpiece. "They have control implants! Can you disable them remotely?"
A pause. Then Nari cursed. "Damn it—I need direct access to the mainframe!"
Seojin's pulse pounded.
They had no choice.
They had to reach the mainframe.
Seojin's mind worked fast. "Minji, Kade—cover me. I'll get to the control room."
Minji nodded. "We'll hold them off."
Kade smirked. "Just don't take too long."
Seojin ran.
Dodging, weaving—she sprinted through the chaos, heading straight for the control room at the end of the corridor.
She could hear her father's voice in her head:
"The real project was never about simple compliance. It was about something much bigger."
She had to stop it.
She had to end this.
The doors ahead loomed. The control room was just beyond.
And inside…
The true mastermind behind Phase Two was waiting.
End of Chapter 115