"He isn't merely assembling an army to conquer the world; he's orchestrating another apocalypse," Michael murmured in disbelief, his thoughts swirling in utter chaos at that moment. He was astonished, his mind teeming with vivid images and forecasts of the chaos that could ensue if the contents of this room were unleashed upon the world.
"This is alarming. I don't know about you all, but witnessing this, I instantly envisioned another apocalypse. This is no joking matter." Bai's expression had become completely serious; he couldn't muster a smile. All he could think about was the loss of innocent lives around the world, and this sentiment was echoed by
the rest of the team.
"So, these mother worms are the ones that produce the little worms, this is the hive mind." Racheal's demeanor was filled with seriousness; everyone in the room grasped the gravity of the situation.
"Looks like these ones are being stored. Does this mean....." Henry muttered, then paused on one empty canister, his eyes darting to the others as a chilling realization crossed all their minds.
"Does this mean that just one mother worm was sufficient to create all this chaos?" Micheal pondered, articulating the thought that had taken hold of their minds, and immediately their expressions shifted to one of horror. If one mother worm could completely devastate such a fortified area, what would occur if the hundreds of worms present were unleashed into the world? The mere thought was wild to consider, yet they all understood it was a reality.
"The more we discover, the more bewildering the situation appears. This was certainly not concocted overnight; it must have required extensive time, effort, and planning. I find myself pondering how long it took to bring something like this into existence," Hei remarked, taking a deep breath. To execute a plan of this magnitude, he could only ponder the time and effort required to meticulously devise such a comprehensive strategy.
"I believe this could give us an accurate estimate of how much time it took," Michael replied, gesturing for the team to gather around him, where another surprising sight awaited. A sizable corkboard was mounted on the wall above a table, displaying photos of each team member alongside various details linked to additional photos, notes, and a thread.
"Yoshi's photo isn't here," Racheal pointed out, leading the team to that realization.
"It's likely because he wasn't brought to light until just a few days ago," Henry suggested with a shrug.
"Huh, October 13th, 2014—wasn't that the day the apocalypse began? That date is marked for all of us, along with a specific location. I was at my friend's place in Chicago, Illinois. What about the rest of you?" Michael observed and swiftly asked, his mind racing to unravel this mystery.
"We were also in the U.S. I had just gotten out of prison. I remember my brother picked me up that evening. We were driving to our apartment when it happened. That was in Stateville, Illinois," Bai replied with a nod, confirming the location on the board.
"Yes, I recall that we had to drive the car into a weapons store to arm ourselves. What about you two?" Hei also confirmed it before turning to the other two.
"I was working late at a construction site. The guys and I had just finished up and were enjoying a few drinks at the bar when it happened. I was in Evanston, Illinois," Henry replied before turning to Racheal.
"I was studying at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, Rockford, Illinois," Racheal stated, prompting a moment of silence from the team, who reflected on their recent findings.
"So, we were all in Illinois, just cities away from each other when it happened. It doesn't seem like a coincidence," Michael chirped after a few seconds of silence. He drew everyone's attention to the board, where all the team members' names and pictures had been connected to one point with threads. Written beneath this point were the words, 'First report.'
Exchanging glances, the team reached a silent consensus that the report in question must pertain to the walkman resting on the table. Bai picked it up, selected the first recording, and played it, placing it back on the table as everyone focused on the report.
"Cough, I believe I'm audible. Good. My current state of happiness cannot be described in words. I've finally located them, the six of them after so many years. Imagine my surprise when I heard that one of them was actually able to assimilate completely with their bloodline. The rest have all assimilated partially, but even this has granted them unimaginable powers: darkness and light, fire and body morphing abilities. These are no meager abilities. And him, oh hohoho, his is even more extraordinary; he possesses lightning and mimicry. I'm sure they don't realize what they have within them, so for now, I'll just study and initiate the beginning stage for the plan. My skin crawls at the thought of meeting them one day, hahaha." An aged voice sounded from the walkman, causing the group to instantly frown, especially after hearing what was said. The creepy laugh at the end only exacerbated the situation.
"What was that all about?" Henry remarked, clearly perplexed by what he had just heard.
"Where's the ring you found?" Michael suddenly inquired, glancing at Hei, who frowned in deep thought.
"Yoshi, it was with Yoshi. You told him to keep it; maybe he could discover something about it," Hei replied with a sigh, reflecting on his teammate's demise.
Micheal frowned deeply, his eyes scrunched in thought as he murmured, "Hmm."
"Wow, Mike, it seems you had quite the history earlier in your life," Bai commented, gazing at the file pinned to the board beneath Michael's section. This document outlined the offenses he had committed before turning 20, which included disorderly conduct, multiple counts of assault, shoplifting, attacking an officer, resisting arrest, carrying a loaded unregistered weapon, vandalism, and underage drinking.
The group shared knowing looks, contemplating whether the Micheal in front of them was the same as the one from that time. Hei was on the verge of making a humorous remark when he caught sight of the expression on Micheal's face; the grief and sadness etched deep within his eyes were unmistakable at a single glance.
"Yeah, after my Mum died, I kind of spiralled out of control. Good thing my dad was there to bail me out of trouble each time," Michael replied, lowering his gaze to the ground. His eyes seemed lost, and he appeared to be in a great deal of pain, but he quickly shook his head and turned back to the board where a list of charges could also be seen for the others. Nevertheless, the total offenses attributed to the others did not match those of Michael, yet the group chose to refrain from discussing the issue. They turned their attention to the next item on the board.
"October 15th, 2016, November 20th, 2016, February 19th, 2017, July 30th, 2017..." Michael exclaimed as he pointed to the dates on the board, his expression one of disbelief. Beneath the dates, the words 'second report' were inscribed.
"Do you recognize the dates?" Henry inquired with curiosity.
"Yes, I was assigned with my team for missions on those dates. Does that ring a bell for you all?" Michael responded, then asked the others, who shook their heads.
"Let's discover what makes these dates so unique" Racheal said as she picked up the walkman and played the next recording, then placed it back on the table for everyone to hear.
"Hahaha, it's him! I knew I had picked the right one. Micheal is truly special, the man known as the undefeated El Panthera. I discovered the reason he hasn't failed a single mission..." A voice rang out, causing the entire team to stop and look at Micheal, whose eyes remained fixed on the walkman.
"I successfully obtained the reports and modified the contents to ensure that the truth remains hidden from others. I possess the original records." After adding these words, the recording ceased, leaving the team in a state of confusion regarding his statements.
"I believe he was alluding to these reports," Bai remarked, gesturing toward the folders positioned on the table.
"Let's see, I recall this as my fifth mission," Michael responded with a calm demeanor, leaving the group curious about how he maintained his composure after what he had just heard. Micheal swiftly grabbed the first folder and laid it open on the table for everyone to observe.
The folder included the subsequent mission details:
Mission Title: Alpha Jungle
A faction of guerrilla forces has established their base in the Hatma Jungles of Northern Africa. Your team is tasked with neutralizing this threat and rescuing any hostages. If no hostages are present, you are advised to destroy the base; however, if there are hostages, proceed with caution.
Location: Hatma Jungle.
The subsequent section of the report included elements such as the Mission summary, SITREP, Operational details, Intelligence report, and Annexes. As the team examined the report in search of clues, they suddenly observed that Micheal's hands were trembling. Racheal, standing closest to him, was the first to notice and spoke up, up, drawing the others' attention to this detail.
"That's impossible.....that's.....no, that can't be right," Michael muttered in shock, his eyes fixated on a specific section of the report, the SITREP section, particularly the part detailing the casualties.
"Huh, you're right. There must be something wrong. How can it say the team was wiped out in an explosion when... you're still alive?" Henry remarked, pausing as a wild thought crossed his mind before he continued.
"I recall that the remainder of my teammates perished in an explosion, but...." Michael began, hesitating momentarily, his brow furrowing in contemplation. He then picked up the walkman and played the next recording.
"It is truly fascinating that he has managed to unlock so much of his potential within such a short while. When I first read the report, I was shocked, because few people manage to get so far without inadvertently getting killed. But him, his case is special. The medical reports that I also acquired explained that he was clinically dead for 3 hours after they found his body. Doctors also reported the time of death to be 4 hours before his body was found. A crazy fact too was that although he had burns all over his body, he wasn't torn apart by the explosion like his friends. And something even crazier about this whole thing was that he woke up 7 hours later like it was nothing; he had no memory of...bzzzz." Just as the voice from the walkman spoke out, it suddenly paused and was replaced by static.
"Micheal.....calm down," Bai quickly said, noticing Micheal's hair and eyes pulsing with lightning as they often did during his episodes.
"Sorry," Michael replied in a low voice, after which the static ceased and the voice reemerged.
"...the higher-ups concealed it so effectively that even his father was unaware. Regardless, it appears he successfully accessed the realm of the Lightning cat, hahaha, such a formidable ability to evade death. Michael is truly fortunate," The voice remarked before falling silent, concluding the recording. Silence swiftly enveloped the entire room. Not a single team member spoke; they remained silent, pondering what thoughts were occupying Michael's mind, because he appeared to be at the heart of it all.
In an instant, Micheal reached for another file, scanning it with intensity. His eyes widened in shock as he tossed it aside, only to grab another and delve into its contents. It appeared he encountered the same information, prompting him to shake his head in disbelief before discarding it as well. He continued this pattern, moving from file to file until he had read through them all. The rest of the team silently observed him, equally perplexed, unsure of what words might soothe his agitation.
"No.....no.....that's.....that's impossible, NOOO!" Michael exclaimed, shaking his head as he stepped back, pointing to the files he had just read, his eyes filled with confusion and disbelief.
"Micheal...." Racheal said, but she quickly froze, sensing the energy pulsing from him. It was reminiscent of what they had felt back when they were underground, just before he had annihilated that entire horde of Scrapers.
"Everything I thought I knew just crumbled right before my eyes. I honestly don't know what's real anymore. A part of me tells me that he's trying to confuse me, but there's also that nagging feeling that keeps insisting that I know he's right. Who am I?" As the energy dissipated as quickly as it had come, Michael suddenly returned to his usual self, his emotions pouring out through his words, revealing that he seemed to be experiencing a mental breakdown.
"Look Mike, I don't know what's going on, and neither does anyone else, so I can't assure you that everything will be fine. From what I can see, we may have walked into a trap. However, think back to everything we've faced since the beginning; we never gave up, we kept fighting, and here we are now. You can't let this shake your confidence, because that's exactly what that sociopathic villain wants. Remember, it's just like before—we'll get through this as a team. But right now, we need you; your team needs you." Hei took a deep breath and stepped forward, trying to calm Michael's mind, his eyes filled with sympathy for Michael, who appeared completely lost in that moment.
"This time is different. For the first time, I don't know. Ever since the beginning, it's been a huge chess game between the one who did all this and me, and for once, he finally beat me. I can't think of what comes next; everything I thought I knew has been a lie. Didn't you hear the recording? He knows more about me than I know about myself," Michael replied, shaking his head in defeat. He had ultimately recognized that the villain was more cunning.
"Don't tell me you actually believe what he just said. He's trying to mess with your head, Mike. Snap out of it; you're the captain, for God's sake!" Hei yelled at Michael, who snapped back at him in agitation.
"Captain? Don't you dare give me that rubbish about me being the captain. You stand here pretending to care, but you're all just scared. I can sense the fear you have towards me from far away, so don't pretend—it's over. There's nothing we can do now; whatever you think of, he's already considered a countermeasure. I bet we can't even blow this place up... just leave me alone. I'm just tired of everything," Michael replied, his eyes clouded with pain. As soon as he finished speaking, he pivoted and made his way to the wall, his hands encircling the rear of his neck.
"Micheal, please..." Racheal stepped forward, attempting to console him, but as she took only two steps, she instinctively ducked, feeling a powerful surge of energy emanating from Micheal. The others perceived this promptly and swiftly jumped aside.
"I said leave me alone!" Micheal pivoted and swung his hand forward, unleashing a powerful bolt of lightning toward Racheal, who had already ducked. The bolt shot in a straight path, striking the control panel behind them.
When the control panel was struck, the bolt of lightning appeared to cause significant damage, as the entire base was enveloped in darkness for a brief moment before power was restored, illuminating the facility once more.
"Did I...no...no...no...I'm so...I didn't..." Michael stepped back in horror at the realization of what he had just done. His eyes flickered with emotion as he glanced down at his hands, which sparkled continuously with lightning. He then looked at his teammates, who retreated, backing away from him while studying him warily.
"I'm sorry, guys please..." Michael stepped forward with an apology but paused after noticing the frightened expressions on his team's faces. He understood that he had become an even greater threat to them than the mastermind. Realizing this, he closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh. When he opened his eyes, tears glistened at the corners, and he turned to leave. However, he barely made it to the door before it sealed shut, trapping them inside. Before they could grasp the situation, vents opened, releasing a whitish gas into the room, causing their helmets to automatically disconnect and transform into necklaces.
"It might be poison; activate your helmets!" Michael shouted to the others, who attempted to comply but were met with shock. No matter how hard they tried, their necklaces remained unresponsive to their commands.
'Dammit,' Michael cursed in his mind, searching for an escape. No matter how hard he tried, a solution eluded him. He attempted to use his lightning to fry the control panel but quickly realized his ability was suppressed. It had to be the smoke. He glanced at the others, seeing them slumped on the ground, unconscious. Before he could approach them to try to wake them, his vision blurred, and in an instant, his body gave way. He fell to the ground, losing consciousness and fading into the dark emptiness.