Chapter 150: The Compounds in the Woods
Chapter 150: The Compounds in the Woods
Dawn arrived quietly.
Too quietly.
The storm from the night before had washed the sky clean, leaving the world cold and pale beneath a gray sunrise. The forest around the estate still dripped with rain, and thin mist rolled between the trees like ghosts drifting through the branches.
Inside the war room, the atmosphere was anything but calm.
Maps covered the table.
Weapons lined the walls.
Equipment bags lay open on the floor.
Everyone moved with the quiet focus of people who knew they were walking into something dangerous.
Because this time, it wasn’t just about survival.
This time, we were going in to save people.
Children.
And that made everything heavier.
\---
Ethan stood beside the large digital screen, adjusting the final layers of the compound’s blueprint.
“This is the place,” he said, enlarging the image.
The facility appeared on the screen.
A large complex hidden deep in dense woodland.
High concrete walls.
Guard towers.
Electric fencing.
And several long buildings arranged in a rigid, military layout.
Elena stared at it.
“Wow.”
Callum whistled quietly.
“That’s not a compound.”
“That’s a fortress.”
Dominic nodded slowly.
“It was built after the First Laboratory was abandoned.”
Rhea leaned forward.
“For the hybrid program?”
Dominic’s voice was grim.
“Yes.”
He tapped one section of the blueprint.
“This building is the training wing.”
Another tap.
“Medical labs.”
Then another.
“Containment units.”
The word containment made my stomach twist.
Elena noticed.
“Let me guess,” she muttered.
“That’s where they keep the kids.”
Dominic nodded once.
“Yes.”
\---
The room grew quiet again.
Because now the target wasn’t just a location.
It was a place full of people who needed help.
And that made the mission far more complicated.
Echo spoke first.
“How many hybrids are stationed there?”
Dominic thought for a moment.
“At least twenty.”
Callum groaned.
“Fantastic.”
Elena crossed her arms.
“So we’re walking into a base with fifty guards and twenty hybrid soldiers.”
She looked at Aidan.
“You realize we’re basically volunteering for suicide, right?”
Aidan remained calm.
“We won’t fight them all.”
Ethan nodded.
“That’s where the tunnels come in.”
He switched the screen to a different view.
An underground layout appeared beneath the compound.
Old maintenance tunnels stretched like veins under the entire facility.
“These were built during the original construction,” Ethan explained.
“They were meant for plumbing, power lines, and waste systems.”
Elena grimaced.
“Please tell me we’re not crawling through sewer pipes.”
Ethan smirked.
“No sewer pipes.”
She sighed with relief.
“Just very old and very narrow access tunnels.”
She groaned again.
“Of course.”
\---
Aidan turned toward the group.
“We split into two teams.”
Callum raised an eyebrow.
“That sounds dangerous.”
“It is,” Aidan replied simply.
Then he pointed to the blueprint.
“Team one infiltrates through the tunnel entrance here.”
His finger rested on a spot along the outer forest perimeter.
“That team disables the internal security system.”
Echo nodded.
“Team two?”
“Extraction,” Aidan said.
He pointed toward the containment building.
“Once security goes down, we move the children out.”
Elena tilted her head.
“And the hybrids?”
Aidan’s voice hardened slightly.
“We avoid them if possible.”
Callum gave him a look.
“And if not?”
Aidan met his eyes.
“Then we deal with them.”
\---
Dominic had been silent for most of the planning.
But now he spoke.
“There’s something you should know.”
Everyone turned toward him.
“The compound commander is someone you won’t expect.”
Elena sighed.
“Please don’t say another creepy cult scientist.”
Dominic shook his head.
“No.”
His eyes moved to me.
“It’s someone from the old pack.”
The air in the room shifted instantly.
My chest tightened.
“What do you mean?”
Dominic’s expression darkened.
“His name is Marcus Hale.”
The name hit like a sudden punch.
Because I knew it.
We all did.
Callum cursed under his breath.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Elena looked confused.
“Who’s Marcus?”
Aidan answered quietly.
“He used to be one of our strongest warriors.”
Rhea frowned.
“I thought he died years ago.”
Dominic shook his head slowly.
“No.”
His voice carried a heavy weight.
“He joined the Creed.”
\---
The room exploded with reactions.
“What?!” Elena shouted.
“That traitor—” Callum began angrily.
Echo remained silent but her eyes had hardened.
Marcus Hale had once been a legend among the packs.
A warrior known for strength, discipline, and loyalty.
The idea that he now commanded a Creed compound…
It was almost impossible to process.
I spoke quietly.
“Why?”
Dominic hesitated.
Then he answered honestly.
“Because he believes the Creed is right.”
Aidan’s jaw tightened.
“About what?”
Dominic looked around the room.
“About evolution.”
Silence fell again.
“Marcus believes the supernatural world has been hiding in the shadows too long,” Dominic continued.
“He believes hybrids are the future.”
Elena rubbed her forehead.
“So he joined the bad guys to help build monster soldiers.”
Dominic didn’t argue.
“That’s basically it.”
\---
The conversation ended shortly after.
Because there was nothing else left to say.
The plan had been made.
The target chosen.
The risks accepted.
Now it was time to move.
\---
Two hours later we stood at the edge of the forest again.
But this time the air felt different.
Heavier.
More dangerous.
The compound lay somewhere beyond the dense trees ahead.
Hidden.
Waiting.
Ethan checked the GPS tracker on his wrist.
“Tunnel entrance is about two hundred meters ahead.”
Echo adjusted the strap of her blade sheath.
“Quiet from here.”
No one argued.
We moved through the forest like shadows.
Branches brushed against our jackets.
Leaves crunched softly beneath our boots.
The world felt unnaturally still.
Even the birds had gone quiet.
Finally Ethan raised his hand.
“There.”
Half buried beneath thick roots and moss was a rusted metal hatch.
The tunnel entrance.
Elena stared at it.
“Wow.”
Callum looked unimpressed.
“That looks like a horror movie entrance.”
Ethan pried it open carefully.
Cold air rushed out from the dark shaft below.
Echo peered inside.
“Clear.”
Elena sighed dramatically.
“Well.”
She grabbed a flashlight.
“Into the creepy underground death tunnel we go.”
\---
The descent took several minutes.
The tunnel smelled like rust and damp stone.
Water dripped from the ceiling in slow, steady drops.
Our flashlights cut narrow beams through the darkness.
The passageway twisted beneath the compound like a maze.
Every sound echoed.
Every movement felt too loud.
Eventually the tunnel widened into a larger maintenance corridor.
Ethan checked the map again.
“We’re directly under the security control room.”
Aidan nodded.
“Team one stops here.”
Echo, Ethan, and Callum prepared to break off.
Their job would be to disable the compound’s cameras, alarms, and gate systems.
Aidan turned to me.
“We’ll move to the containment building once security goes down.”
Dominic stepped forward quietly.
“I’ll guide you.”
Aidan gave him a careful look.
“Don’t make me regret trusting you.”
Dominic didn’t respond.
But his expression showed he understood.
\---
The teams separated.
Footsteps faded in opposite directions.
The tunnel grew quieter again.
For a few moments, it was just me, Aidan, Dominic, and Elena walking through the dark.
Elena finally whispered what had been on her mind.
“So… Marcus Hale.”
Dominic nodded.
“He’s dangerous.”
Elena snorted.
“That’s an understatement.”
Aidan glanced at Dominic.
“When was the last time you saw him?”
Dominic thought for a moment.
“Two years ago.”
“And?”
Dominic’s voice grew colder.
“He wasn’t the same man anymore.”
\---
Suddenly our earpieces crackled.
Ethan’s voice came through.
“We’re in position.”
Aidan replied quietly.
“Status?”
“Working on the system now.”
The seconds stretched painfully long.
Then—
“Security cameras offline.”
Aidan nodded.
“Good.”
Ethan continued.
“Alarm grid disabled.”
Elena grinned slightly.
“Oh this is going smoothly.”
Then Ethan said the words that changed everything.
“Wait… that’s strange.”
Aidan frowned.
“What?”
There was a pause.
Then Ethan’s voice came back, tight with concern.
“The containment cells are empty.”
My stomach dropped.
“What?”
“The kids aren’t here,” Ethan said.
The silence that followed was terrifying.
Because if the children weren’t in the containment wing…
Then where were they?
And why had the Creed moved them?
Dominic suddenly stopped walking.
His face had gone pale.
“No…”
Aidan noticed.
“What is it?”
Dominic looked at me slowly.
“They wouldn’t.”
“Wouldn’t what?” Elena asked.
Dominic’s voice was barely a whisper.
“They wouldn’t start the Ascension Protocol this early.”
My chest tightened.
“What does that mean?”
Dominic looked straight at me.
“It means the Creed may already be trying to create the next hybrid.”
The tunnel suddenly felt much smaller.
Much darker.
And far more dangerous than before.
Because if Dominic was right…
Then somewhere inside that compound…
Another experiment had already begun.