18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 497

The gasoline fire spread like wildfire, turning the base into a blazing furnace. Flames hungrily consumed the circuits and surveillance systems.

In some control room, over half of the large monitors flickered and then went dark.

The boss was about to blow a gasket, cursing up a storm. "Get me that damn wolf!"

Explosions, flames, scorching heat, thick smoke, suffocation...

Base members flooded in non-stop. They navigated through the inferno-some aiming to attack Stella and Jasper, others choking on the smoke, and a few making a break for the outside.

Unity had never been their thing; they were a ragtag bunch held together by selfish motives. None had expected to miss out on the spoils while taking all the hits.

No one in their right mind would put anything above their own life.

And now, with the boss's legs chopped off, who was left to cling to?

Not to mention, this wasn't even the real boss, just one of his many stand-ins-a sub-leader who'd gotten separated from the main fleet during a massive storm at sea.

Separated? Who knew the real story?

After all, this fleet was under the command of the China National Defense Department, specifically tasked with transporting critical tech assets.

Despite the boss's formidable military might, internal strife within the faction was intense. The two parties would have gladly seen each other dead, while the sea, air, and land branches wracked their brains to swindle budgets from the congressional bigwigs. How else could you explain the exorbitant price tags on coffee cups and toilets?

Each department was its own little kingdom, with heads so powerful they wouldn't even listen to the head of state.

So it was very possible that this stand-in boss had intentionally gone AWOL with valuable assets in tow.

After all, why let someone else play king when you can sit comfortably on the throne yourself?

As the saying goes, once one starts running, others follow.

In the chaos, Stella and Jasper switched outfits, making sure to don gas masks.

The base was a melting pot of ethnicities, with plenty of Eastern faces, so in the confusion, those with slower wits failed to recognize the two.

Those who did recognize them, were swiftly dealt with.

They nabbed a high-ranking guy, trembling like a leaf. "Please, don't kill me, they're on sublevel three."

a life-or-death moment, he spilled

members and holding cells, and the third was the plush digs of the high-ranking officials, complete with entertainment areas and an

incessantly from the smoke. "You need an iris scan to access

it and

believe me, I

only to be shot in the thigh by Jasper. He howled

to get to

another for fingerprints, then the iris

man didn't even know the password; he was just looking

he was useless, Stella raised her gun to send him

the man pleaded, his voice barely a whisper. "There are many people there; you might find

had

she demanded icily. "Take us

dared not play any tricks and

massive and divided into

innermost area was segregated by skin color and gender, while the outer section had individual cells. Union Base members would randomly pick prisoners for their cruel amusement when they were bored. Their games were diverse, involving physical, psychological, and verbal cruelty, all in the

prisoners never returned after being taken out for

the base, she found some members still indulging in their sick entertainment, with the

of the doors to

and bruised, cowering in a corner, clutching himself silently. Despite the chaos outside and the unlocked door,

spirit had been forever

skin hue, a familiar face, yet lifeless like

rose sharply, and she sent the man to his

believe in God, right? What God

deeper into the prison, guided by

room and flung the

her clothes torn and body stained with

was painfully clear what had transpired before their

Monsters!

me..." Seeing the newcomers masked, the woman's initial fear turned to desperate

all the more

her voice, Stella's numb expression flickered with complexity, obscured

expected to encounter

was emaciated, her eyes sunken, scars marring her face and

made it from the Goldbridge base to the Arctic, only

a moment, then turned to leave.