126
126
MAGNUS
Even with everything that had been done to clear off the smoke, it just seemed like none of it worked because the room still stank of smoke and burned plaster.
And I was taking the brunt of it because I wasn't putting on a mask, unlike everyone moving around me now.
The sharp scent kept crawling at the back of my throat. But I wasn't leaving the room anytime soon unless something really important needed my attention. I was still trying to determine the cause from the sight alone. The cracks were what bothered me most, because the only thing that could make it crack that way was an extreme force.
Taking a couple of steps forward and pushing through the men in my way, I ran a hand over the surface. The wall still felt warm even now, hours after it had happened. Whatever hit here wasn't small. It wasn't ordinary either.
No weapon I knew could leave a mark like this. Not without leaving behind shrapnel or burn marks in a wider spread. But it looked like it was focused on this particular spot.
Controlled.
Aimed.
Those were just the words to describe it.
My jaw tightened as I turned and started to walk back. The men who'd been working to discern what had happened there were watching me now, as if waiting for me to speak.
But I was just about as clueless as they were. I spoke to them anyway. “
Whatever struck here had to be very strong. And by strong I mean stronger than anything natural. So in case you're all very confused about discerning what happened here, don't be, because it's mysterious to me too."
Most of them nodded, before they started talking among themselves. But I added.
"I want you all to keep searching though. I don't care how long it takes. But I want every corner of this room, every corner of the hallway outside and every goddamn inch of this hospital searched before we can give up and dismiss it as just mysterious. There has to be a reason behind it. So find me something. Anything. I want a clue as to what the hell happened in this room."
The men, quiet now, nodded and quickly spread out again to continue combing the room.
Their head, an averagely built, Beta-specied, middle-aged man stepped forward after a few minutes. He was carrying a clipboard, and papers that rattled slightly in his hands.
"Alpha," he said in that tone that was both sharp and professional. “We have done a quick sweep about the extent of the damage. And the good news is that the damage was contained. Only a few exams around this one were affected. Electrical systems flickered for some time but came back online. But nothing structural was compromised."
I studied him for a moment, thinking about what he had just said to me. That meant the damage came from this room, from Ariadne or my brother. I gave a slow nod after thinking.
"So you're basically saying that it's isolated."
"Yes, sir."
The detail had my gut twisting.
Isolated.
Controlled.
Exactly what I had thought.
That wasn't an accident. That was intent. Before I could respond, the door creaked open again and one of the guards walked to me. Stopping in front of me, he motioned towards the hallway and announced.
"Alpha," he said carefully. "The IT man is here. He wants to speak to you and he says it's urgent."
I gestured for the man to be brought in. He waved the man over, he walked in somewhat nervously. His eyes darted to the damage and then back to me.
He swallowed hard.
"You wanted me?" I asked in a calm but cold voice. "Yes, Alpha."
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "I think I found something. But before I tell you, I'd like to ask for a favor."
My jaw clenched. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Your brother threatened that he would come after me if the footage got aired so please keep it away from him."
"You won't tell me what to do, young man. What did you find." I growled at him, forcing him to cower instantly in fear.
"I found a piece of the footage."
My lips pulled into a slow smile at the good news. This was really good news. "Is that so?"
He gave a quick nod.
"And how exactly," I asked, stepping toward him, "did you manage that? My brother destroyed the recordings. He made sure I saw him do it."
The man shifted nervously but forced himself to answer. "What he destroyed wasn't the backup. Those ones were empty. The files he wiped were surface-level. I traced the secondary storage and it wasn't touched."
Smart.
I couldn't help the chuckle that ripped out of my throat right after. It was a sharp, mirthless sound. Callan always thought he was smarter than everyone else in the room, especially how he had figured out I was going to see the footage and had gone before everyone to destroy it all. He thought he had erased everything, but he didn't even know where to look.
"Good Job," I said, before clapping the man on the shoulder. He flinched at the contact. "Now... show me."
He hesitated, then his mouth opened like he was going to say something, but it closed soon after as he licked his lips nervously.
"There's something strange about the footage though." He admitted.
Fuck!
Now there was a catch.
My smile faded and then I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Strange how?" He shifted again, clutching his fingers tighter. "It would be better if you saw it yourself. I really don't know how to explain it to you."
For some reason, my pulse picked. I didn't know if it was because of the chance of seeing what had happened and knowing I was right. Whatever it was, I could already feel deep down that it was important.
I just hoped that it would be able to give me the proof that I needed, and maybe answer the question about Ariadne and how he made me feel. I'd walked right past his room earlier and seeing him in Callan's arms filled me with so much anger.
I held myself back from walking into the room and stopping them but even as I forced myself to walk past the door and pretend like nothing happened, I could still feel the fury boiling deep inside me. I just hoped that it was the ultimate proof to put Callan back in his place.
Proof to expose what that boy in the bed was hiding. And, boy, I couldn't wait to see the look on my brother’s face when I showed him what I had found. Snapping out of my thoughts, I ordered the man to lead the way back to the control room.
When we got to the room, he gestured towards the sit in the middle of the monitors on the walls. But he dropped a laptop on top of the table as I leaned back, folding my arms across my chest. After that his fingers flew across the keys, then the screen flickered before the footage came up.
Shifting, I leaned forward and narrowed my eyes at what I was seeing. The room came into view. The camera angle showed the bed, the machines and the corner of the wall where the blast would later hit. I swallowed, already feeling my body throb with so much anticipation.
And that's when Ariadne moved. I quickly focused my eyes back on his frame. He was on the bed, talking to Callan but his voice was so low.
"Can you raise the volume?" I asked. "That's the highest. They were almost whispering." The IT guy said.
Almost whispering.
Meaning whatever they were talking about was very serious. Did it have to do with the blast that would later happen. That's when Ariadne suddenly shifted in the bed, and then his hand flew to his chest. His face twisted into a grimace of pain.
And then a low sound escaped his lips. It was a groan, but despite how low it sounded, for some reason it made the hair on my neck rise. He started to jerk violently after that, grabbing his bed next and then his mouth opened again in another broken moan.
The struggle went on for another twenty seconds or so before suddenly, something flickered right across the screen and then the screen cut to black. Static hissed for a moment before a banging sound ripped through.
The room started to shake right after, then the camera came back to life. I heard a scream but it was from outside the room. Ariadne was still laying on the bed, looking pretty confused about what had happened.
Meaning that I hadn't seen anything that would suggest the blast came from him or from Callan. I had only seen her grab him head and chest. That didn't mean anything. It could have happened because of anything, maybe because of the poison she was still recuperating from.
But what if it wasn't? I frowned, and understood why the IT guy had suggested that I come see this myself.
"What the hell was that? Play it again."
He shook his head quickly and said. "That's all there is. That's when it cuts off. I'm sorry."
My fists were already clenched tight as I tried to hold back my anger.
"Why?" My voice snapped sharper than I intended.
He swallowed hard. "Alpha... the system log says every camera in the building went offline at that exact second. It wasn't a normal outage. Something overloaded the circuits. Something with very high energy output. It....it looks like a surge. A discharge of extreme power."