After a tense negotiation finally came to an end, Zenos drove his pickup straight back into the toxic haze of the Outlands, leaving behind nothing but a quiet, unspoken deal with the alliance.
"Are we seriously supposed to trust that guy?"
Drago broke the silence, his voice tight with suspicion as his fists clenched at his sides.
"No. We can't. That man is anything but trustworthy."
Connor answered immediately, his sharp gaze fixed on the door Zenos had just walked out of.
"But we've already chosen to work with him…"
Edward murmured, lightly brushing a hand over his mask.
"Let's just hope we made the right call. Because if we didn't… this ends with all of us."
While the core leaders were still caught in the tension of their new alliance, Kelly and Murray moved forward with the plan without hesitation. They finished preparing weapons and supplies, ready to evacuate over fifty people from the underground base. The transport convoy was carefully concealed as it set its course for Biotope 3, just as planned, minimizing potential losses before the coming storm between the government and Out Law reached them.
"Hey! You coming with us or what, you walking illusion?"
Murray shouted at Darius, who was still standing off to the side, watching the convoy without making a move.
"Then let's go. You ready or not?"
Darius shot back, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.
"We've been waiting on you. Where's your gear?"
Murray pressed when he noticed the other man walking over empty-handed.
"Don't have any. I travel light."
With that, Darius hopped onto the vehicle without another word, ready to cloak the convoy in illusion for the entire journey.
"Take care of yourself, Kelly. If anything changes, let us know right away."
Chloe said her goodbye, the worry in her voice impossible to hide.
"Yeah… you all stay sharp too."
Kelly replied briefly before climbing into the driver's seat. The engine rumbled low as the transport trucks, carrying more than fifty lives, slowly pulled away from the underground base, setting out on the long road toward Biotope 3.
Through the drifting dust and dim light of a base that was already beginning to feel empty, only Connor, Drago, Edward, Chloe, and Jenkins remained. Five leaders were left behind to face the storm that would soon come crashing down on them.
"So… what do we do about our guest?"
Edward spoke up, breaking the silence after the evacuation convoy disappeared from view.
"When the fight starts, we let that parasite girl go. Keeping her around in the middle of chaos is just asking for trouble."
Connor answered, turning his gaze toward the young man.
"But you… What were you talking to her about for so long?"
Edward fell silent for a moment. Alicia's eyes surfaced in his mind, the way she had stared at him through the glass. Slowly, he began to recount everything he had learned. The brutal truth behind the experiments, the number of survivors who had escaped, the eleven who were still being held, and the origin of the parasite power that had given birth to these so-called superhumans.
He told them everything in careful detail… except for one thing he chose to keep to himself. Her final warning. Never trust anyone. Not even her.
"If what she said is true…"
Drago spoke up after listening, his voice heavy with tension.
"Then that colonel is holding onto pieces far more dangerous than us."
"I don't think so. Even if everything she said is true, I doubt he actually wants to rely on people like you."
Connor replied, his tone calm and measured.
"Yeah… from what I've gathered, Colonel Pierce isn't the type to care about test tubes or those insane experiments. What matters to him is whether the soldiers under his command are obedient. One hundred percent."
Jenkins added, adjusting the grip on his rifle.
"And the more he sees P-Type units who don't exactly fall in line with his whistle, the more he probably sees them as tools he was forced to take responsibility for in the first place."
"Right… if he really had other superhumans that were easier to control than the P-Type, why would he bother bringing in two hundred elite soldiers?"
Edward added, the pieces in his mind finally starting to come together.
"That means…"
Drago narrowed his eyes.
"Those two hundred troops are the real weapon he trusts. The P-Type… they're just showpieces. Disposable, the moment they stop being useful."
"So what you're saying is, we're about to go up against over two hundred soldiers who are ready to die for that colonel."
Chloe summed it up, her voice laced with sarcasm.
"If we could get her on our side, things would look a lot better."
Drago blurted it out without thinking.
"Who? You mean that parasite witch?"
Chloe snapped her head toward him, her eyes already darkening.
"Yeah… if she's willing to talk, her power could be useful to us."
Drago answered plainly, completely missing her reaction.
"Heh. If you like her that much, why don't you go bring her over yourself?"
Chloe shot back sharply, catching him completely off guard.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh, right, I forgot. You and she must have quite the bond, huh? Spending months together in that research facility… and you even took her parasite into your body. No wonder you're so attached."
She threw the words at him, anger barely contained, before turning on her heel and storming off.
"What's her problem…"
Drago scratched his head, completely baffled, before turning to the young man.
"Come on, Edward. Let's go talk to her. See where she stands. Right now, the situation isn't on anyone's side."
"Yeah… sure."
Edward nodded.
"I'm coming too."
Jenkins added, already moving to follow.
That left Connor standing alone in the middle of the meeting room. He watched as the others split off and headed toward their detained guest, his expression blank.
"What the hell… is there something I'm missing here?"
He muttered quietly to himself.
…..
The P-Type unit's quarters were wrapped in a heavy silence, broken only by the steady clink of metal against metal. Everyone was focused on their final preparations before the storm of war would break at dawn.
"Tomorrow, huh…"
Lewis muttered as he stretched his powerful limbs, the sharp crack of his joints echoing his readiness for the fight.
While the others checked their gear, Lloyd's attention was fixed on a new toy resting prominently on the table. He carefully wiped down the long, unfamiliar barrel, its design far removed from a standard sniper rifle.
"If Out Law is bold enough to open things up with heavy weapons, I don't see why we shouldn't have something heavier to welcome them with."
Colonel Pierce's voice cut in as he stepped up beside Lloyd, his eyes settling on the latest electromagnetic rifle the government had just delivered.
"It may fire slower than a standard rifle since it needs time to charge… but if you land a single shot at the right place, at the right moment, it's powerful enough to turn the entire battle around. Interesting, isn't it?"
The colonel spoke with a cold smile, one that reflected absolute confidence in this piece of killing technology.
"So… we're launching the assault on Out Law tomorrow, right?"
23 asked again, his tone calm but layered with intent as his eyes remained fixed on the tactical projection hovering at the center of the room.
"Yes. Our primary objective tomorrow is to wipe out the Out Law nest completely."
Colonel Pierce replied with unwavering certainty, carrying himself like a commander who had already seen victory within reach.
"As for that so-called alliance… we can ignore them for now. It's not worth wasting resources on them yet."
The atmosphere inside the P-Type quarters tightened to a level none of them had felt before. Their recent defeat at the hands of Zenos still lingered like a scar, a constant reminder. They all understood now that overwhelming power alone was no guarantee of victory when facing a mercenary with monstrous combat skill and superior tactics.
There was no idle chatter, no mocking laughter toward their enemies like before. Lewis quietly polished his metal gauntlets. Lloyd checked and rechecked the targeting system of his electromagnetic rifle. Meanwhile, 23 sat sharpening his blade, his eyes as cold as ice.
On the battlefield that awaited them at dawn, everyone knew one thing. A single misstep could mean death. And this time… there would be no room left for even the slightest mistake.