Trevor was in his room when the quakes occurred and, like everyone else, he had rushed out in panic to see what was going on. For Trevor, it was more confusion than panic, but regardless, a few minutes later, he found himself being huddled at the top of the laboratory by the guards while they went off to deal with the cause of the commotion.While waiting, Trevor observed his surroundings closely. He was at an emergency muster point located at the very top of the second level of the laboratory along with several other staff, including research and non-research personnel.Initially, when everything started, Trevor had tried wandering around to figure out what had happened. Along the way, he had witnessed the devastation that resulted from the shakes as walls cracked, ceilings collapsed, and the floor opened up below their feet, sometimes swallowing up unsuspecting victims into the dark underbelly of the levels below this one.When everything finally subsided, all that was left was ruin

Cale’s excitement from seeing Selene could barely be contained. He was swooning with elation at what her presence possibly implied for him. But not daring to jump to conclusions, Cale wanted to confirm he wasn’t seeing things.Ignoring Selene’s question, Cale turned his head the other way and came face to face with a pair of sturdy boots—the same ones the guards wore that Cale had become very familiar with.Trailing upwards with his eyes, Cale saw a pair of strong legs clad inside tight-fitting pants that exposed the slim but well-built proportions of their owner’s thighs and torso. Finally, moving past the minimal bosom and clearly defined pecs, Cale saw the face of the guard from whose back he had fallen off.Cale didn’t recognize the face immediately, and only after taking a moment did it come back to him who this person was. It was the female guard who had sacrificed herself to allow her comrades to escape Cale’s grasp before falling into his hands in the end.This had happened be

Krasin reached his office only to see his door left ajar. Moving closer without making a sound, he peeked in through the open doorway and saw something that left him frowning in disbelief.Krasin’s office was a mess, desks and chairs upended and hard drives storing digital logs and information strewn all over the floor like useless scrap littered the entire office, ruining the pristinely organized office, and in the middle of all this, three people were rummaging through the clutter in search of something.Krasin watching all this confirmed his earlier suspicion. These three were definitely opportunists seeking to use the chaos to search for ways to profit. They were probably looking for valuable pieces of scientific information that they could take with them, probably to sell for a quick buck.They could also be spies sent by rival forces to steal valuable information, but whatever the case, Krasin wasn’t interested in knowing who they were. He was only concerned about if he could de

“Aha, here it is!”It took a while, but after rummaging through the mess Hobbs, Jenkins, and Fazz had made, Krasin finally found what he was looking for. It was an ornate wooden piece carved in the shape of a dancing lady from ashburn elk, a rare tree species known for its fragrant, uplifting scent. It weighed no more than a few grams and was only as heavy as a bar of gold.That’s right, the key to the bomb that was strapped around Cale’s neck was nothing more than a paperweight that Krasin used to decorate his desk. But as far as disguises go, it was incredibly effective. Nobody would think that such an important item would be displayed gregariously for everybody to see.Feeling proud of his genius and with the key in his hand, Krasin’s confidence soared once more, and he suddenly had the urge to vent a little steam. So, turning to the three that were still helplessly sprawled on the floor of his office, Krasin spoke to them.“So, are you ready to speak yet?”Ugh!Hobbs, Fazz, and Je

Ignoring what Jenkins and Fazz said, Cale said to the female guard whose name was Anise,“Take me closer and set me down in front of him.”Complying, Anise carried Cale and set him down until he was kneeling in front of Krasin, not afraid that he would suddenly try to attack him.As Cale knelt before Krasin, as if sensing his presence, Krasin’s gaze shifted a little from staring blankly into space to staring blankly at Cale.“Be careful!”This sudden movement caused Anise and the others to be on alert, with Anise moving closer to protect Cale. But Cale simply shook his head, gesturing for them to calm down before focusing on Krasin once more.Just then, seeing Cale kneeling directly before him, Krasin seemed to regain some recollection of himself, allowing a bit of light to return to those murky eyes, yet the light remained dim, not allowing Krasin to completely regain his senses.Still, the little bit of sense Krasin regained allowed him to hoarsely whisper a few words that Cale had