Jake watched Johnny being escorted toward HQ. The two guards were on either side of him to make sure he didn’t make an attempt to flee. Johnny walked with an air of obedience, projecting calmness to show he meant no trouble.
However, Jake knew that this outward compliance was a mask for something far more dangerous. Since he was compliant and wasn’t resisting, the guards were lulled into a false sense of security and didn’t restrain Johnny. They didn’t even bother to hold him. It was surely going to cost them dearly.
Either his obedience had them fooled or they believed all the workers, including Johnny, were frightened into complete submission, being too afraid to rebel. With his hands and legs free, Johnny had a golden opportunity to turn the tables and attack his captors. The only question was: when exactly was he going to make his move?
Just wait until you’re inside HQ, Jake thought. Upon entering HQ and discovering the massacre he had caused within, the two guards would undoubtedly be taken aback. For a moment, they might even forget about Johnny, giving him a perfect opportunity to act.
There were two bodies of guards sprawled near the entrance door, with their weapons lying on the floor nearby. If Johnny acted quickly, he could break away from the guards, grab one of the guns, and use it to kill his captors. What to do next was another question.
The door to the security control room on the second floor was left wide open, so if Johnny developed some hacking skills, he might try to hack into the computer and change the behavior of the turrets to direct them to kill all the guards within the base.
While Johnny was being led to HQ, the gathering of guards near the inactive ammo-producing machine was being dispersed by two of the base’s sub-bosses, Dominic and Patrick, who were loudly berating them to stop loafing around and get back to work. The guards, clearly reluctant, were beginning to scatter in different directions, dragging their feet as they returned to their duties.
Minh stood a short distance away, observing the scene unfold with a detached interest. He hadn’t bothered to approach the dormant ammo-producing machine, likely because he was confident that Dominic and Patrick could manage the situation without his assistance.
Stepping forward, Patrick retrieved a full mana crystal from his rucksack. With an expert flick of his wrist, he inserted the crystal into the designated slot and entered a sequence of commands into the control panel. Almost immediately, the machine whirred to life, humming and vibrating as it resumed its production cycle.
The two guards escorting Johnny to HQ almost reached their destination, and that was when Johnny decided to finally make his move. Having no idea what awaited him inside HQ, he must have thought he had much better chances of breaking away from his captors outside than within HQ’s walls.
In a swift and powerful motion, he threw his body to the side, colliding with the guard on his left. The bandit staggered back, struggling to regain his balance, giving Johnny the opportunity to seize the sidearm strapped to the man’s hip. Pulling the pistol from its holster, he gripped it tightly in both hands.
With surprising agility, Johnny leaped aside when the other guard tried to grab him. Dodging the guard’s reaching hands, he pointed the stolen handgun at the guard’s legs and popped off a few hasty shots. Screaming in agony, the bandit toppled to the ground.
Johnny wheeled to face the other guard and fired at him as well, hitting the bandit in the chest and sending him crashing to the ground. Both men were still alive, but Johnny didn’t bother to finish them off. Instead, he spun and raced across the base.
Unfortunately, he didn’t get far. The gunshots echoing throughout the base alerted everyone. The guards quickly noticed Johnny sprinting across the compound and tracked him with the barrels of their weapons. While some hesitated to fire, concerned about hitting their own teammates in the process, those with a clear shot at Johnny took aim and pulled the triggers.
The chattering of automatic fire reverberated through the air as rounds zipped past Johnny. Most of them missed him completely since he was running fast, presenting a very hard target to hit. However, he wasn’t able to evade every shot. He stumbled when a bullet struck him, its impact knocking him off balance.
Another one hit him in one shoulder, spinning him around and whipping him to the ground. Nearby shots kicked up sprays of dirt, each one creeping closer to where Johnny lay. Desperate to escape, he attempted to crawl for cover, but then more rounds drilled into his body.
Dominic yelled at his men to stop firing because they needed him alive. However, the cacophony of multiple automatic weapons being fired at the same time drowned out his voice. It wasn’t until several seconds later that the gunfire finally ceased.
Johnny lay sprawled on his back, bleeding from numerous bullet wounds. Dominic shouted at his men to administer stims to the mortally wounded worker, but by the time they reached him, it was too late—Johnny was already dead.
Jake felt an unpleasant sensation rising inside him. He had never experienced anything like it before in his life as a mutant, and for a moment, he struggled to understand what was wrong with him. Then it dawned on him—he was feeling sadness. To his surprise, Johnny’s death shook him, leaving him feeling mournful. He realized he had been rooting for Johnny, hoping he would escape, even though he knew the chances were literally nonexistent. Now that Johnny was gone, a wave of frustration washed over him, which surprised him greatly. It was the first time he had felt sadness as a mutant. It came as a big surprise because he had previously thought such emotions were long gone due to his mutant nature.
Then came the anger. Jake slowly rose to his feet, positioning himself at the very edge of the rooftop, glaring down at the bandit base ten stories below. He understood anger—after all, it was the very first emotion he had ever experienced as a mutant and one he had occasionally felt ever since. Jake knew he couldn’t have helped Johnny escape, but that realization brought little comfort. His anger quickly escalated into wrath. At that moment, all he wanted was to take one step forward, drop to the ground, and charge at the bandit base. He wanted to kill all the bandits within the perimeter walls one by one, ripping off limb after limb.
That feeling of wrath threatened to consume him, and Jake had to summon every ounce of willpower to remain still. He knew that he wasn’t in a condition to fight at the moment as his mana reserves were nearly depleted. He had just enough to maintain his Cloak, but it was far from sufficient for a tough fight. He also had to remind himself that the turrets protecting the base were extremely powerful. Even one of them could do a number on him, and if all of them opened fire at the same time, he would be done for in no time flat.
So Jake forced himself to stay at the edge of the roof instead of doing something he might regret. Resisting the urge to act impulsively, he kept staring at the base below and saw that the pickup truck drawing near had picked up speed. Its occupants must have heard the gunfire erupting from within the perimeter walls and were hurrying to see what the commotion was all about.
The vehicle slowed as it reached the gap where the gates had once stood. After executing a turn, the pickup truck pulled into the base and almost immediately came to a halt. Miller and the two bandits he had taken with him jumped out of the vehicle and strode toward the guards who had gathered around Johnny’s lifeless body.
Jake remained standing at the edge of the roof, his gaze fixed on the unfolding scene below. He was eager to witness Miller’s reaction upon discovering what had taken place inside HQ while he was away.