"So, where has the experiment gotten to now?"
Gerald pointed to the monitor display in the command vehicle.
"We've moved that ghost mirror to the basement of a house, right here!"
Roy looked at the monitor display. Three cameras were aimed at the ghost mirror leaning against the wall. At the same time, countless cameras were filming inside and outside the house, basically covering every nook and cranny.
FEA's preparations were pretty thorough.
"Then, do we just have to sit tight and wait?"
"Yep, all we can do is wait, and all we have to do is wait."
This kind of aimless waiting was definitely a drag. Luckily, everyone there was pretty patient, and they just silently watched the monitor display.
At midnight, the ghost mirror in the basement started to change.
When a camera directly observes a mirror, you can get blurry, dim, or glaring reflections because of the light or the angle.
But at exactly 12:00, the surface of the ghost mirror on the monitor display became super clear, like it had instantly lost its reflective properties, turning from a mirror into a… portal?
This obvious change didn't escape the notice of the agents on site, naturally.
"Director Olin, you better come take a look at this!"
"What's going on?"
Gerald also noticed the anomaly, his brow furrowed.
"Go to level one alert! Send a FEAR team in to check out the mirror!"
Just then, Paxton spoke up suddenly.
"Director, I've got a better idea. Why don't we send in the special ops guys to take a look? It'd be safer that way."
Special ops? What special ops?
Roy looked at Gerald and Paxton with some curiosity, feeling like they were talking in riddles.
Gerald frowned at Paxton.
"Feltai, are you sure you want to test the special ops team at a time like this?"
Paxton gave a relaxed smile.
"Isn't this exactly the kind of situation the special ops team was created for? If we just send in FEAR operatives, the losses would be bigger if something goes wrong, right?"
Gerald thought for a moment, then answered Paxton.
"Alright, since you're so insistent on using the special ops team, Feltai, you're in charge of this."
Gerald's meaning was clear: if things went south, he'd pass the buck to Paxton. But the other guy just smiled slightly and didn't seem to care, looking very confident.
"Director, you can rest assured. I'll go make the arrangements right now."
Paxton left the command vehicle. At this point, Gerald also noticed Roy's curious gaze.
"Ahem! One of the main reasons Feltai was parachuted into Los Angeles was to test a secret research project from FEA headquarters. I can't tell you the specifics, but it's a pretty complicated deal."
Roy raised an eyebrow, guessing that the secret research was probably about robots or something that could replace FEAR operatives.
But Paxton being able to spearhead a project like this meant he must have a lot of pull at FEA headquarters. Roy figured he should watch his step around this guy in the future.
Just as he was thinking that, the scene on the monitor display changed again. A person walked out of the mirror.
This person looked just like Roy and the others, with two eyes, a nose, and a mouth. The clothes they were wearing were also completely normal.
Gerald was really surprised.
"Could the world in the mirror actually be a parallel universe?"
The idea of parallel universes had been around for a while, but so far, there hadn't been any solid proof of their existence.
At this moment, Gerald felt like he had found the doorway to a parallel universe.
But Roy felt like things weren't that simple, because under the night vision camera, the eyes of the person who came out of the mirror were glowing red.
Night vision cameras can pick up even faint light. Human eyes reflect light, so under night vision, people's eyes often give off a strange glow.
Most of the time it's white or green light because those colors are easier to capture in the dark.
But the red light in this person's eyes was a bit off, unless there was some kind of red light source where the ghost mirror was located that was reflecting off this person's eyes and then being picked up by the night vision camera.
The person observed the surroundings with a blank expression, cautiously checking out the basement.
You could tell that this person from the mirror world was being very careful, but they didn't spot the cameras that FEA had planted in the basement.
FEA had put in some effort to hide those cameras, otherwise, if this person realized they were being watched, they might get spooked and run.
Seemingly sure that the basement was safe, the person started to leave.
Maybe because the environment in the mirror world was basically the same as in this world, the person quickly found the light switch and turned it on, even in the dark, and then easily found their way to the first floor.
Judging by how familiar they were with the house, they might even be the owner of this house in the mirror world.
At this point, Paxton's so-called "secret forces" made their entrance.
Judging by their outfits, the secret forces' gear didn't seem that different from the official FEAR operatives' equipment, except that the secret forces were all wearing full-body suits, with no part of their bodies exposed.
And their movements looked a little stiff, not as fluid as normal people.
Could it really be robots?
Has FEA's technology gotten to this point?
"First Encounter Assault Recon (F.E.A.R.)! Hands behind your head, get down now!"
The special ops team's voice was also completely emotionless, but surprisingly, it wasn't a synthesized voice.
Faced with a dozen or so guns pointed at them, the person from the mirror world immediately put their hands behind their head and squatted down, not daring to resist at all.
The special ops team handcuffed the person and then started a quick search of their body to make sure they weren't carrying any weapons.
In the end, the special ops team only found a dagger on this person, no other weapons.
But Roy, looking through the view of one of the cameras, noticed that after this guy was restrained, the red light in his eyes seemed to be getting brighter.
"Mr. Olin, something doesn't look right! Check out this guy's eyes!"
With Roy's prompting, Gerald also noticed the problem and immediately picked up the walkie-talkie to contact Paxton.
"Feltai, the target's eyes look a little off!"
Just then, Roy was surprised to see the special ops team on the monitor display all freeze for a second, and one of them suddenly spoke.
"Eyes look off?"
What the heck? Did Paxton get the message that fast?
Or was the person leading the team Paxton Feltai himself?
Just as he was thinking that, the monitor display suddenly filled with static and the picture glitched out, so Roy and Gerald couldn't see anything clearly.
Immediately after that, intense gunfire erupted from the house where the ghost mirror was, sounding like the special ops team was opening fire.
"What's going on! Is it some kind of electronic interference?"
Gerald was so ticked off he wanted to give the monitors a good old-fashioned beatdown. Not being able to see the screen at a time like this was as frustrating as when you try to visit a sketchy website and it fails to load.
But this situation was pretty weird too. The cameras FEA used were way better in terms of image quality and clarity than any surveillance cameras you could buy on the market.
These were clearly military-grade products, so they shouldn't be that easy to jam, unless Commissioner Smith had taken a kickback.
"Mr. Olin, try the walkie-talkie!"
If it was electromagnetic interference, it would affect all electronic devices. If the walkie-talkie was also having problems, then there must be strong electromagnetic interference coming from the house where the ghost mirror was.
Gerald immediately realized this and picked up the walkie-talkie to contact Paxton.
"Feltai! Feltai! What's the situation on the ground?"
A piercing static sound came from the walkie-talkie, confirming that there was indeed some kind of strong electromagnetic interference affecting all the electronics in the house.
"Damn it! You, go find the Deputy Director right now! I need to know what the hell is going on! And you, immediately have the FEAR unit surround that house. Don't let anything get out of there!"
Since the electronic equipment was useless, they'd have to rely on manpower.
Luckily, there were plenty of agents who could run errands at the command vehicle. Gerald immediately got out of the car and started giving orders.
"Mr. Black, it looks like we have no choice but to go over there and see what's happening with our own eyes."
Roy didn't really care; after all, Gerald had already paid him.
Arriving around the house where the ghost mirror was located, the FEAR unit had completely surrounded the building.
Roy and Gerald were standing a bit further back. He even saw Saltana.
Because of her accomplishments recently, Gerald had reinstated Saltana to her original position as a FEA Senior Agent. She was now directing the FEAR operatives in setting up a defensive line.
At this point, the gunfire inside the house had stopped, and the whole house had gone quiet again.
But for some reason, Roy had an eerie feeling about this silence.
Gerald frowned, observing the house. He didn't order FEAR to go in and investigate; he was waiting for someone.
Not long after, Paxton walked over with a dark look on his face. You could tell this guy was in a really bad mood.
"Feltai, what the hell happened inside? Where did the electromagnetic interference come from?"
"Director, I wish I knew the answers to those questions myself! The person who came out of the mirror world is definitely not a normal human being. He not only interfered with the electronic equipment, but he also messed with my head…"
Paxton suddenly stopped talking, probably afraid of leaking some classified information.
"Let's talk somewhere else!"
Gerald glanced at Roy, then pulled Paxton over to a corner.
He was still an outsider after all. Roy had no choice but to go find his big sister for some comfort.
"Roy, don't move! There are people watching!"
"Sister Saltana, has your department figured out who leaked my information before?"
"You mean during the Amacham thing?"
"When else would I mean?"
Saltana straightened her clothes, then her expression quickly turned serious.
"You know the person too. It's Terrence Kaufman!"
Roy thought back for a moment, and an image of a bald, middle-aged man appeared in his mind. It was that FEA Senior Agent who had given Roy trouble during the Purification event.
"So it was that jerk!"
"That son of a gun had some connection to Amacham. He was the one who leaked the intel to Amacham. The Director originally wanted to deal with this guy, but he reacted really fast and threw his lot in with Paxton Feltai, so the whole thing just fizzled out. Look, that's him over there!"
Roy looked in the direction Saltana nodded, and sure enough, he saw some pretentious-looking guy in the distance secretly watching them.
"That son of a bitch is really lucky!"
"It's not luck, Roy. Some people just don't know how to do their jobs and only hold others back, but they're really good at picking sides, so they always manage to climb the ladder. It's unavoidable in any department. But don't worry, I'll help you take care of him!"
As an older sister, Saltana naturally wanted to help her little brother out.
But Roy declined Saltana's offer. She had just gotten her old job back, so it was better not to cause any trouble right away.
"Sister Saltana, I'll handle him myself. You don't need to help."
After saying that, Roy and Saltana heard Gerald and Paxton having a heated argument in the distance. Even from far away, they could hear a series of highly offensive insults.
After a while, Gerald stormed over, looking furious.
"Mr. Black, I'm afraid we're going to have to rely on you to go inside and check things out again this time."
Roy had actually been mentally prepared for this ever since the cameras and walkie-talkies went down. FEA's money wasn't that easy to come by.
"No problem. Just make sure to add the extra money we agreed on."
"If possible, please try to capture that otherworld human alive. FEA is willing to pay extra."
"I will!"
At this point, Paxton also walked over.
"Olin, I told you I could handle this myself. I don't need anyone's help!"
Well, now Paxton was even calling Gerald by his last name. They must have had a really bad fight just now.
"Damn it! You're the Deputy Director of FEA's Los Angeles branch, not a FEAR operative! Your job is to sit in command, not to lead the charge!"
Gerald actually didn't care if Paxton lived or died, but the other guy absolutely couldn't die on his watch, otherwise, what would headquarters think of him?
These were all political considerations. Gerald was able to reach this position as a Black man not just because of political correctness, unlike some people.
So, the Director and the Deputy Director started arguing in front of all the agents.
After arguing for a few minutes, Gerald realized that arguing like this was pointless.
"Feltai, since you insist on going inside to check things out yourself, then write down a statement yourself! I will not be responsible for your reckless choice!"
Paxton let out a deep breath.
"My choices are none of your responsibility, Gerald Olin!"
Roy watched this whole drama unfold with great interest, feeling like the trip was definitely worth it.
"Mr. Olin, does this mean I don't have to go?"
Gerald hesitated again and again, but finally shook his head.
"Mr. Black, we still have to rely on you for this!"
Saltana