Odyssey Of Survival-Chapter 185 - Suppression Gas

Nate pushed the door open without hesitation, stepping inside with Alice and Sera right behind him. They had to move fast—very fast. The guards outside wouldn't stay down for long, and once their unconscious bodies were discovered, the entire facility would be on high alert.

The three of them found themselves standing in a long, sterile white hallway that stretched endlessly in both directions. The fluorescent lights above flickered slightly, casting an eerie glow over the space. White doors lined both sides of the hallway, each one equipped with an observation window. The entire place felt cold and calculated, like a facility designed to break people rather than house them.

As Nate advanced cautiously, he peered through the first observation glass. His breath hitched. Inside, strapped tightly to a steel-framed bed, was Ray. He wasn't just restrained—thick metallic cuffs bound his wrists and ankles, and an intravenous line was inserted into his arm, feeding a strange, murky liquid into his veins. His face was pale, his body unmoving, and his breathing shallow.

Nate's mind raced. Whatever was being pumped into Ray's system had to be related to that bullet Jack had fired at him earlier. Was this how they subdued people like them? How did they even know about this substance? Who the hell created it? But there was no time to think. Right now, they had one goal: get their people out.

Suddenly, Jack's voice came through the comms, an excited shout of victory. "Yes! I'm in! I finally cracked their system."

Jack's voice was filled with exhilaration, but there was also an underlying layer of tension. "Damn… I've never seen a system this complex before. I mean, I knew these guys were serious, but this is next-level encryption. Whoever built this was playing on a whole other field. Good thing my brain plays at a higher level."

Nate didn't have time to ask for details. "Jack, can you unlock the doors?"

"Working on it. I can override their security, but it might take a second. Keep moving, I'll let you know when you can bust them out."

Just as Nate nodded in response, another voice suddenly cut through the comms—Bella's.

"Oh no…"

Nate immediately tensed. "Bella, what is it?"

Bella's voice was sharp, urgent. "You need to get out of there. Right now."

Sera, standing beside Nate, frowned. "What? Why? We just got in."

Bella's tone was filled with frustration. "You don't get it. They know you're there."

Nate's stomach dropped. "How?"

Jack's voice returned, grim now. "They knew the second you stepped on those damn stairs. They've been watching you since you entered. There were hidden security cameras all over, ones I didn't detect at first because they were masked as part of the facility's infrastructure."

Alice cursed under her breath. "So we were walking into a trap this whole time?"

Jack sighed. "It's worse than that. The second I hacked their system, I tripped a silent alarm. It wasn't just a normal defense mechanism—whoever designed this system set it up so that any intrusion attempt would automatically alert them."

Nate clenched his fists. "How long do we have before—"

His words were cut off by a sudden crackling sound through their comms. Jack's voice distorted, then disappeared altogether. The connection was severed.

Jack's panicked voice echoed one last time before everything cut off. "What the hell? That's not—"

Silence.

Nate tried adjusting the earpiece, tapping the small device as if that would somehow reconnect them. Nothing. No static, no interference—just complete radio silence.

Alice's eyes darted toward him. "What's wrong?"

"Our comms are jammed," Nate muttered, his jaw tightening. "We're on our own now."

Sera exhaled sharply, rolling her shoulders. "Figures. Can't make things easy, can they?"

Nate's mind worked quickly. They needed a new plan. If the enemy knew they were here, reinforcements would already be on their way. Their only advantage now was speed. They had to break Ray out and find the others before they were overwhelmed.

Alice took a deep breath and flexed her fingers, her eyes flickering toward the observation window where Ray lay motionless. "So, what's the plan, Nate?"

He turned back to her, his expression dark with determination. "Same as before. We find everybody, and we get the hell out. No matter what."

Sera nodded. "And if they try to stop us?"

Nate's eyes gleamed dangerously. "Then we remind them why they should have left us alone."

Without another word, he stepped forward, his hand pressing against the cold steel of the door's control panel. If they were walking into hell, then they would just have to burn their way back out.

Nate didn't hesitate as he stepped into Ray's room. They had already been discovered—there was no use in holding back anymore. As he rushed to unstrap Ray from the bed, the door to the hallway burst open.

A flood of at least fifty armed men stormed inside, their rifles already raised. They didn't ask questions. The moment they saw Alice and Sera, they opened fire.

Alice reacted instantly, throwing up an ice wall in front of them as the bullets pelted against it. The ice held strong, but the sheer force of the barrage sent cracks spiraling across its surface.

Sera didn't wait. She melted into her shadow form, slipping through the cracks in the floor and walls like an inky phantom. The room darkened unnaturally as her presence filled every corner, stretching around the soldiers like a predator preparing to pounce.

Then, the screaming began.

The soldiers flailed, their weapons useless against the unseen force that coiled around them like living darkness. Their voices turned from shouts of alarm to agonized shrieks, cut off one by one until silence reigned. When the shadows withdrew, only withered husks of men remained, collapsed across the floor like discarded ragdolls.

Alice let out a breath, shaking her head. "You are terrifying, Sera."

Sera reappeared, stumbling slightly as she pressed a hand to her forehead. "It's… getting worse," she muttered.

Alice frowned, feeling her own strength waning. A dull ache throbbed behind her eyes, her limbs heavy, her ice forming sluggishly. Then it hit her—the air had changed.

"They're releasing that gas again," Alice said, her voice tight.

Nate, who had just finished pulling Ray from the restraints, felt it too. His grip tightened on Ray's body as a wave of exhaustion washed over him. He gritted his teeth, trying to summon his power. Nothing happened.

He clenched his fists. No matter how hard he focused, the energy remained dormant, completely suppressed. He had relied on his enhanced strength for so long that suddenly feeling ordinary sent a jolt of panic through him.

More footsteps echoed in the hallway. Reinforcements were coming.

"This is bad," Sera said, forcing herself upright despite the growing headache. "We need to—"

"Break everyone out," Nate cut in. He set the unconscious Ray down gently against the wall. "Jack already unlocked the doors before he got kicked out of their system. You two go. Get everyone out of their cells and lead them out of here."

Alice hesitated. "What about you?"

Nate turned toward the door. The approaching footsteps were getting louder. Heavy boots, disciplined movements. These weren't just random grunts.

"I'll handle them," Nate said firmly.

Alice glanced at Sera, but the other girl simply nodded. There was no time to argue.

"Be careful," Alice said before grabbing Sera's arm and heading for the open cells.

Nate exhaled, cracking his knuckles. He could no longer rely on his powers, but that just meant he had to switch to a different strategy—one he hadn't used in a long time.

The moment the soldiers rounded the corner, Nate launched forward, closing the distance between them before they could raise their guns.

If they wanted to fight, he'd give them one.

Nate barely hesitated as he grabbed the soldier closest to him, yanking him forward with a sharp pull. The man barely had time to react before Nate twisted his wrist, forcing the gun out of his hands. Without a second thought, Nate spun the weapon around and pulled the trigger. A rapid burst of gunfire tore through the soldier's chest, sending him crumpling to the floor. The sound of bullets echoed through the white hallway, drowning out the distant shouts of more incoming reinforcements.

The moment the body hit the ground, another barrage of gunfire erupted from the other soldiers. Nate barely had time to react before he pulled the lifeless body up, using it as a temporary shield. The bullets slammed into the corpse with brutal force, jerking it violently in his grasp. Despite the added weight, Nate kept moving, using the momentum to charge forward.

As soon as he closed the gap between himself and the nearest soldier, he swung the body with all his strength, slamming it into the enemy. The impact sent the man sprawling backward, his gun clattering against the floor. Nate didn't hesitate. He stepped forward and kicked the fallen gun away, making sure it was out of reach. Then, with deadly precision, he raised his stolen weapon and fired. A single shot to the head ended the man instantly. His body twitched before going completely still, a small pool of blood forming beneath him.

The other soldiers didn't falter. They adjusted quickly, turning their weapons on Nate again. He dove to the side just as another wave of bullets rained down, narrowly avoiding getting hit. Landing on one knee, he quickly turned his weapon toward them and fired in return. The hallway became a chaotic storm of gunfire, echoing endlessly through the underground facility.