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17. A Terrifying Guess

"Quick, open fire!"

The soldiers were in a state of extreme tension, the fear of the monsters was making them jumpy at any sound. The sudden blackout was the final straw. This abrupt darkness shattered the soldiers' remaining sanity.

Without their vision, the soldiers grew agitated and began firing wildly in all directions, indifferent to the risk of friendly fire. The muzzle flashes provided them with a semblance of safety. Unlike the soldiers, most of the beastly mutants had night vision. As natural predators, night vision was a basic ability.

For them, the sudden power outage was just a brief flicker of darkness. As soon as their eyes adjusted, they could see their surroundings clearly. Soon, the backup power activated the emergency lights, dimly illuminating the passageway. However, the weak lighting was insufficient for soldiers.

But it was too late.

One of the soldiers at the front regained his vision just in time to see a massive claw snap at him. In the next instant, he was overpowered by a great force, and with a cold slash to his throat, he lost consciousness.

"They're charging!"

"Open fire! Open fire!"

"I don't want to die, please, stop!"

"Kill them, kill them... ahhh!!!"

Alex hid in a corner on the second floor, knowing the plan had succeeded. Pietro had sabotaged the power supply. From a distance, Alex observed the "horror movie scene." The dim environment also affected his vision, but he could clearly see the flickers of light near the door to the first floor, the muzzle flashes of gunfire.

Alongside the flashes came the sounds of bullets firing and colliding, and the hellish screams and roars of battle. The horrific scene was enough to make even Alex reluctant to get closer. Ignoring the front lines, Alex casually opened a nearby cell. Inside was a young man huddled in a corner, his eyes filled with fear as he looked at Alex.

"Don't, don't kill me!" the boy screamed, trying to retreat further into the corner.

"What's your name?" Alex asked coldly, his tone devoid of emotion.

The boy covered his head, not daring to look directly at Alex. He stared at Alex's blood-stained boots instead, stammering, "I-I'm John, John Proudstar."

There were many characters named John in the comics, and Alex couldn't remember them all. He considered this mutant a minor character who never appeared in the comics.

"I have a task for you. Take these keys and release the other mutants. The power supply is destroyed, and the electric barriers are down. Everyone can escape now."

Alex tossed the keys in front of John. Seeing no reaction, Alex drew his gun. "Maybe I wasn't clear. You have two choices: take the keys and do as I say, or I shoot you right now."

"I'll do it, I'll do it!" John lunged forward, grabbing the keys. "Don't kill me, I'll do it right now."

Without any further reaction, Alex stepped aside. John was surprisingly efficient, using his enhanced speed and strength to unlock the cells much faster than Alex could. With the task of unlocking outsourced, Alex felt a weight lifted from him. Unlocking cells in the dark was pure torture.

Meanwhile, the battle at the front had ended. All the soldiers were dead. The dark environment was perfect for these creatures to hunt. Nightcrawler, with every teleport, killed a soldier, becoming a grim reaper for them.

Perhaps the beasts had their fill, or they were eager to escape their long imprisonment. After killing the guards, they rushed to the first floor without delay.

Alex followed them silently. The guards inside were just appetizers; he needed the mutants to clear out the soldiers outside. The guards wouldn't stand idly by as the mutants escaped. They couldn't catch the swift Pietro, but they could block the rampaging beasts.

Sure enough, upon reaching the first floor, Alex found it nearly empty. Most of the mutants had already fled in the chaos, with only a few powerless ones left in their cells, like the now-blind Cyclops.

The mutants that charged out, were met by bullets and cannon fire. In this facility, weapons were plentiful. Thousands of soldiers stood ready, attempting to exterminate the mutants on the spot. However, among the mutant prisoners, there were two who could teleport like Nightcrawler. Against this ability, firearms and cannons were useless.

The soldiers quickly realized the mutants were more powerful than expected, especially when an old man with telekinesis flipped a tank. The battlefield descended into chaos, with deafening sounds all around. Alex tried to stay in the shadows, avoiding attention. The plan had succeeded; it was time to leave.

But then, a communication officer caught Alex's attention.

"Report! We need reinforcements. An assassin has released most of the mutant prisoners. They've broken our formation. We need backup!"

Assassin?

The term made Alex stop.

His plan was to release the prisoners. He didn't care what they called him, but "assassin" made him pause. An assassin usually has a target, someone significant enough to warrant assassination. Assassins and their targets are symbiotic; an assassin's presence implies a valuable target.

Similarly, a place worth an assassin's visit must have a notable target.

This term from the soldier indicated a major problem. There had to be someone here worth assassinating, a person with great influence, likely a high-ranking official commanding the troops.

Only such a person would qualify as an assassination target.

Initially, Alex thought the soldier referred to Warden Fisk. But Fisk was just the warden, not high-ranking enough to command the army. Plus, he was already dead.

The only possible answer was...

Recalling the secretive construction of the mutant prison and the strict confidentiality, along with the president's long absence...

Alex's eyes widened in realization.

President X was here!

...…..

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