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."

life-or-death moment, he spilled

mid-ranking members and holding cells, and the third was the plush digs

man coughed incessantly from the smoke. "You need an iris scan

buy it and

don't believe me, I can take you

man led them through a maze of corridors, trying to escape at one point, only to be shot in the thigh by Jasper. He howled in pain,

to get

for fingerprints, then the iris scan, and finally a

the password; he

raised her gun

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

Ivans had mentioned and the Belarus survivors they had

icily.

not play any tricks and obediently led

prison was massive and divided

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 pursuit of their twisted

being taken out for

some members still indulging in their sick entertainment, with the

of

survivor, battered and bruised, cowering in a corner, clutching himself silently. Despite the chaos outside and the unlocked door, he showed no desire to

spirit had been

face, yet lifeless like

to his God with a swift stroke of her

right? What God would condone such

continued deeper into the prison, guided

and

the bed, her clothes torn and body stained

was painfully clear what had

Monsters!

help me..." Seeing the newcomers masked, the woman's

her belly appear all the more

expression flickered with complexity, obscured

she never expected to encounter

sunken, scars marring her

Goldbridge base to the Arctic, only to end up imprisoned

she studied Julia's face for a moment,