#### **Chapter 35: Ninety Seconds to Midnight**
The main control room of the bunker was a circle of Cold War-era consoles and monitors, a stark contrast to the holographic interfaces Kuro was used to. But the core infrastructure was sound: a geothermal power source, a direct, shielded fiber-optic uplink, and reinforced concrete walls that could withstand a direct nuclear strike.
Kuro plugged his system into the mainframe, his modern technology breathing life into the old war machine. Screens flickered on, displaying the StarLink constellation as a web of light encircling the globe. "The ghost key is in place," he announced, his voice echoing in the vast, cold room. "I have a clean connection. We are ready."
Renji stood guard at the entrance, a rifle held at a low ready, his eyes scanning the single road that led to their fortress. "How long until The Director knows where we are?"
"The moment I hit 'enter,'" Kuro replied. "The broadcast itself is the flare that will light up our position on her map. From that point, the clock starts."
Hikari placed a hand on Kuro's shoulder. "Do it."
Kuro took a deep breath. His fingers hovered over the keyboard. This was it. The culmination of their lives, their fight, their parents' legacy. He typed the final command.
**[EXECUTE: CHIMERA_SEQUENCE_OMEGA]**
He hit enter.
A cascade of code flooded the main screen. Around the world, thousands of satellites simultaneously pivoted, their broadcast arrays re-routing to focus on a new set of coordinates—every known and suspected W.A.O. research facility, cloning lab, and black site on the planet.
A countdown appeared on the screen: **90 SECONDS.**
The broadcast began. An invisible, silent wave of data, the ghost of their mother's last hope, began to saturate the globe.
In his Swiss villa, Alistair Finch's laptop pinged with a final message from Brenda_CAT_Unit. It was a single image of a majestic Lykoi cat with the caption: *"Stardust is free! ✨"*
Then, every alarm in the bunker blared at once. A red dot appeared on their local threat map, moving up the mountain pass at incredible speed.
"Incoming," Renji's voice was grim. "Multiple vehicles. They're here."
The countdown continued: **60 SECONDS.**
The war for the future had begun, and they were at ground zero.