Chapter 46

General Vic walked through the shattered remains of the military base, his heavy boots crunching against debris. The wrecked jeep, the scorched earth, and the acrid stench of burning oil hung in the air, its dull heat pressing against his skin. His face was grim, and the simmering anger beneath his expression made it burn even hotter.

Around him, soldiers worked tirelessly, carrying charred or broken bodies on stretchers. Some of the injured still groaned in agony, their cries adding to the cacophony of the post-battle disaster. It was a scene of utter devastation.

Yet as much as the destruction weighed on him, General Vic knew something far more personal: his career, his future, had been reduced to the same ruin as this base.

He paused as two soldiers passed him, carrying a stretcher bearing the broken remains of Brigadier General Cagle.

Cagle's body had been severed in two, his spine and waistbones exposed grotesquely. His face, twisted in rage and agony, bore the look of a man who couldn't rest even in death.

General Vic's expression darkened further as the stretcher passed. Behind him, Colonel Willife, blonde-haired and blue-eyed, stood stiffly like a porcelain doll, her face utterly blank.

The anger in Vic's chest surged, a firestorm of rage directed not only at Bardi but also at his own men's incompetence. His fists clenched.

This wasn't just about the death of soldiers. Sacrifices were expected for the nation, after all. No, it was something deeper. It was fury at how Bardi, the alien they had captured and controlled for so long, had slipped through their fingers. Their first tangible victory, their first real step toward leveraging extraterrestrial power was now in ashes.

Suddenly, a communications soldier jogged up to him, saluted sharply, and spoke, "General, we have news on Bardi's whereabouts."

Vic turned, his gaze like a storm cloud, his voice sharp. "Report."

The soldier didn't falter. "Sir, Bardi engaged in a battle near the Snake River. He flew the stolen Apache helicopter and managed to shoot down the Eagle fighter jet pursuing him."

The soldier hesitated for a fraction of a second before continuing. "When our teams arrived at the site, all they found were the wreckage of the helicopter and the jet. Preliminary assessment suggests Bardi may have fled upstream along the Snake River. Search efforts are underway."

General Vic's voice was a growl as he snapped, "Full search. I want every inch of that river combed."

The soldier saluted again and hurried off.

Vic's gaze swept over the smoldering ruins of the base. The charred, shattered buildings. The dying and maimed soldiers whose groans filled the air. The blackened rubble, once the pride of their operation.

A surge of fury roared within him.

This base was finished. Worse, his career as a general might not survive the fallout.

Almost 8,000 soldiers had perished here. If they had died fighting the Soviets, it could have been written off as noble sacrifice. But this? Death at the hands of an alien, one whose existence had been carefully concealed, would bring nothing but trouble.

Vic already saw the inevitable fallout. Questions. Investigations. He would have to spin this disaster, framing it as the unfortunate result of "experimental research" on enhanced soldiers. The alien angle could never come to light.

If he played it carefully, perhaps he could shift the narrative and salvage his position. Of course, it would mean giving up some of the technological advances they'd gained, trading them as bargaining chips to appease the higher-ups.

His thoughts shifted as his gaze landed on the only building left standing amidst the wreckage: the medical building.

Something clicked in his mind.

Straightening his uniform, he marched toward it, the sound of his boots heavy against the broken ground.

The sharp smell of formalin, disinfectant, and saline hit his nose as he entered. The chemical sting was so strong that his nostrils itched uncomfortably.

Wounded soldiers filled every corner of the building. Those too injured to move were laid out on stretchers. Others with minor injuries were draped in white cloth on either side of the entrance, receiving basic treatment.

Additional soldiers and medics had arrived from nearby bases, bringing supplies and assistance. Despite their efforts, the medical staff were overwhelmed by the sheer number of casualties.

The sound of bustling medics and the groans of the wounded created a chaotic symphony that would make anyone feel like they were in the heart of a battlefield hospital.

General Vic's expression grew darker as he took it all in, the chaos reflecting the failure of his operation.

Willife followed silently, her porcelain-doll face as blank as ever.

The medical building was small, only three stories high.

On the third floor, Jenny sat in a daze. Her eyes were bloodshot, the veins creeping across the whites, her pupils dry and burning. Her face looked hollow, devoid of hope. She had cried herself out, her tears long gone, leaving only despair in their place.

In her lap, she clutched a small red box. Her hands gripped it so tightly that her knuckles were pale and the veins beneath her skin bulged. Even after undergoing surgery to remove the bullet that had nearly ended her life, she had refused to let go of the box.

The box remained unopened.

Was it a ring inside? Or Bardi's heart? Or perhaps her own desperate hope—or despair?

When General Vic stepped into the room and saw her, his anger boiled over. It was almost unbearable.

Jenny's actions had directly allowed Bardi to escape. Her foolish infatuation with the alien, her willingness to help him bask in the sun, had undone everything.

She had been used, manipulated and in doing so, had brought ruin to the entire operation.

To Vic, Jenny bore 90% of the blame for this disaster.

The rest of the blame, of course, he would never assign to himself. He refused to consider how Bardi's year and three months of quiet observation, during which he studied every soldier's behavior, habits, and psychology, had been the real key to his escape.

It wasn't just Jenny's love that had facilitated Bardi's escape.

Each of them—the soldiers, the scientists, even General Vic himself—had their own flaws and limitations, and Bardi had exploited every one of them.

But General Vic didn't care to see it that way. As the one in command, he had every reason to push the blame onto his subordinates. If he declared someone wrong, then they were wrong.

The anger inside him surged like a volcanic eruption. His fingers twitched as he resisted the urge to draw his sidearm and shoot Jenny on the spot.

But he couldn't afford such a loss, not now.

Jenny's biological expertise was too valuable, more so than his anger or his need for vengeance. She had contributed immeasurably to the military's research, and there was still more she could do. That alone was enough to make him bury his fury, no matter how deep it ran.

Bardi had known this too. That was why he had left Jenny behind. Taking her during his escape would have risked her life in the chaotic air battle. But more importantly, he had calculated that Jenny's value to General Vic would protect her from retribution.

For General Vic, Jenny was irreplaceable a resource far more critical than even Slade or Bori. Losing her would be too great a blow, and so, no matter how enraged he was, he had no choice but to suppress his emotions.

Vic's cold gaze landed on Jenny, who sat clutching the red box as if her life depended on it. His voice, low and edged with barely restrained fury, rumbled from his throat: "Bardi deceived you. He deceived all of us."

At the mention of Bardi's name, Jenny's bloodshot eyes flickered with the faintest glimmer of recognition. Her lips pressed together tightly, trembling in pain, and her fingers clenched the box so hard that her knuckles were white.

"He's been using you," Vic said, his voice steeped in bitterness.

Jenny's eyes welled with fresh agony, the red veins in her sclera seeming to throb as her breath hitched.

"Using your love for him," Vic pressed, his tone harsh and merciless.

Her hands shook, her grip on the box faltering for a moment before tightening again.

"Using you to escape from here," he continued, each word delivered like a blade.

Jenny's entire body trembled uncontrollably now.

"To him, you're nothing more than a tool," Vic said, his voice cold and cutting. "Something to throw away once it's no longer useful."

Those words stabbed into Jenny like daggers, tearing at the fragile walls she had built around her heart. Images of Bardi flashed in her mind—the cold, emotionless look in his eyes as he aimed the gun at her and pulled the trigger.

Her body convulsed with the memory, and her mind screamed in anguish.

"Shut up!" she suddenly shrieked, her voice raw and broken. She shot up from the bed, glaring at Vic with furious, tearless eyes. Her teeth clenched so hard that her jaw ached.

But Vic's gaze remained fixed and unflinching, like ice. "Isn't it true?" he asked, his voice void of sympathy.

"He's destroyed everything about you," Vic went on. "Destroyed your love. And yet you still cling to him?"

Jenny froze, his words striking deep.

Do I still want him? she thought bitterly. How could I not?

Her love for Bardi was undeniable, no matter how much it hurt her.

Vic's words lingered in the air, twisting like black ink spilling into water. Her love, so pure and consuming, now felt tainted, its edges distorted by doubt and despair.

"We'll catch him," Vic continued, his tone shifting to calculated manipulation. "But we need your help."

Jenny stared at him, her lips parting slightly, as though caught between denial and reluctant agreement.

"He's your greatest biological specimen, isn't he?" Vic said, leaning in closer. "How could you let him escape? He belongs in a cage, where you can study him, where he'll be yours. Don't you want him back?"

Her bloodshot eyes widened, and her breath grew heavier. Her face twisted into something between rage and madness.

Her trembling hand moved to the wound beneath her collarbone. She pressed her fingers into the bullet scar, driving them deep into the tender flesh. Blood seeped out, staining the white bandages wrapped around her shoulder, but she didn't stop. The searing pain cut through the fog of her emotions, bringing a cruel, twisted clarity.

"Bardi..." she muttered, her voice low and venomous. Her face contorted with anger, her bloodshot eyes burning cold with hatred and longing.

Vic watched her with a carefully controlled expression, his cold gaze narrowing slightly.

"Get up," he ordered, his voice sharp and commanding. "You need to see him for what he truly is—a ruthless alien beast."

Jenny's crazed eyes snapped to him. "Shut up!" she screamed, her voice echoing through the room.

Without hesitation, she swung her legs off the bed and planted her bare feet on the cold floor.

She stormed out of the room, the small red box still clutched tightly in her hands.

***

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