Ripples in New York and the Shadow of an Internal Purge

At five thirty in the morning, the base's wake-up call had yet to sound. Lin Xiao opened his eyes to find the room shrouded in darkness. He looked toward the folding bed in the corner—Nightingale was curled up there, her blanket pulled to her chin, breathing evenly. Su Ying sat in a chair with her eyes closed, but Lin Xiao knew she was awake. He quietly rose and walked to the door, placing his hand on the handle. The metal was cold. He needed to get breakfast for all three of them from the mess hall without drawing suspicion. But just as he was about to turn the handle, footsteps sounded in the corridor—not the heavy boots of a patrolman, but lighter, faster steps approaching this room. The footsteps stopped outside the door. Then came a knock. Not a coded signal, but an ordinary knock carrying a certain official air: knock, knock, knock.

Lin Xiao's hand froze on the doorknob.

Su Ying opened her eyes. Her body did not move, but her right hand had already slid to her waist—where a dagger was hidden. Nightingale's breathing changed. She was awake, but she made no sound.

Knock, knock, knock.

The knocking came again, heavier than before.

Lin Xiao took a deep breath, turned the handle, and pulled open the door.

Wolf stood outside.

He wore the base's gray training uniform, his hair damp as though he had just washed his face. His eyes were bloodshot, but his gaze was bright. Seeing Lin Xiao, he lowered his voice. "Captain, something's happened."

Lin Xiao stepped aside to let him in, then shut the door.

Tension filled the room. Nightingale sat up on the folding bed, her blanket slipping to her waist and revealing the ill-fitting base training uniform she wore—one Su Ying had found for her last night. Her eyes remained fixed on Wolf, while her fingers curled slightly beneath the blanket.

"What is it?" Lin Xiao asked.

Wolf glanced at Nightingale, then at Lin Xiao, seemingly hesitating over whether to speak in front of a stranger. Lin Xiao nodded, signaling for him to continue.

"That anomalous data packet," Wolf said. "I traced it further."

He pulled a folded sheet of paper from his pocket and unfolded it. It contained a hand-drawn waveform chart in pencil and densely packed notes. Lin Xiao took it and examined it by the faint light filtering in through the window. The handwriting was messy, but it was clear Wolf had been up all night.

"The signal's final jump coordinates," Wolf said, pointing at a spot on the paper. "Last night, I used one of the base's backup servers to trace it backward. Multiple layers of encryption interfered, but I still caught several key nodes. The final traceable node was in Manhattan, New York. The precise coordinates... are here."

He tapped a number with the tip of his pencil: 40.7128° N, 74.0060° N.

Lin Xiao stared at the string of numbers.

New York.

Several names instantly flashed through his mind: Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., who should be in some office at the Triskelion right now, studying global threat assessment reports. Tony Stark, Iron Man, tinkering with his newest armor in the top-floor laboratory of Stark Tower. And Captain America—though he was still frozen beneath Arctic ice, S.H.I.E.L.D. already knew his location and was planning a recovery operation.

But the encryption style of a "private or special project"...

Lin Xiao recalled what Nightingale had said last night. That encryption protocol was not standard S.H.I.E.L.D. equipment, but something privately commissioned by certain high-ranking figures or special project teams. That meant the party intercepting his anonymous report might not be S.H.I.E.L.D. itself, but someone within the organization—or a small group.

"What about the encryption signature?" Lin Xiao asked.

"Just as Nightingale said," Wolf replied. "A nonstandard protocol, multilayered nesting, with a self-destruct mechanism. When I tried to crack the third layer, it triggered an alarm, and I cut the connection immediately." He paused. "Protection at that level isn't something ordinary intelligence officers can access."

Lin Xiao folded the paper and slipped it into his pocket.

The New York coordinates were like a stone dropped into the lake of his heart, sending ripples outward. His small move—that anonymous report—had actually drawn the attention of some powerful figure. It was both a risk and an opportunity. The risk was that his identity might already have been exposed, or at least marked as "suspicious." The opportunity was that if he could identify the other party and their intentions, perhaps he could establish some kind of... connection.

But there was something more urgent to deal with first.

Lin Xiao looked at Nightingale.

"You said both sides are hunting you," he said, "because you stole sensitive data. What exactly was it?"

Nightingale rose from the folding bed. Her movements were somewhat stiff, likely because her wound still hurt. She walked to the table and pulled a black USB drive from the inner pocket of her battered jacket. It was tiny, no larger than a thumbnail, with no markings on its surface.

"In here," she said, "is what I stole from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s peripheral servers. Part of it is records of communications regarding internal factional struggles within S.H.I.E.L.D.—the conflict between Director Fury and the World Security Council, Deputy Director Pierce's expansion of power, and the competition for resources between departments. The other part... is an early version of Hydra's infiltration list."

The room fell silent for several seconds.

Su Ying's breathing became very soft. Wolf's eyes widened.

"Hydra's infiltration list?" Lin Xiao repeated calmly.

"Yes," Nightingale said. "It's not the complete list, only data from the early investigation stage. Someone inside S.H.I.E.L.D.—I'm not sure who—has been secretly investigating abnormal personnel movements and resource allocations within the organization. They compiled a preliminary list of suspects, around thirty-seven people spread across various departments. That list was encrypted and stored on a Level Three clearance server. It took me two months to crack it."

She placed the USB drive on the table.

The metal drive gleamed coldly in the dim light.

"This is my proof of allegiance," Nightingale said. "But it isn't everything."

She walked to the window, lifted one corner of the blinds, and looked outside. Morning light was beginning to spill over the horizon, painting the sky in intertwined shades of dark blue and orange-red. The base's outline appeared and disappeared through the morning mist, like a sleeping beast.

"While I was on the run," Nightingale said with her back to them, "I intercepted an internal Hydra communication. It used one of their own encrypted channels, but I have the tools to crack it."

She turned around and pulled an old phone from another pocket in her jacket. Its screen was cracked, but it still worked. She pressed several buttons, opened an audio file, and hit play.

A man's voice came through the phone's speaker. It had been encrypted, making it sound electronically synthesized, but the coldness and authority in its tone could not be concealed.

"...The recent string of setbacks has severely affected the organization's progress efficiency. The Fletcher faction's conservative stance is obstructing necessary steps in evolution. Experimental progress is lagging, resource allocation is unreasonable, and internal discipline is lax. This situation must be corrected."

Another voice spoke, similarly processed but younger. "What do you mean?"

"Purge."

The first voice spoke.

The word echoed through the room, carrying an icy weight.

"Operation codename: Purge," the voice continued. "Objective: eliminate all unstable elements within the organization. This includes, but is not limited to, conservative members who openly oppose the advancement of experiments, neutral personnel with suspicious contact with external forces, and all new personnel displaying disloyalty or inadequate capability. The operation will begin soon. The exact time is yet to be determined. Leaders of every sector will receive purge lists."

The audio ended there.

Nightingale turned off the phone, and silence once again settled over the room.

Lin Xiao felt his heartbeat quicken. He looked at Su Ying. Her face was cold, her eyes sharp as blades. Wolf's breathing had grown heavy, and his fingers unconsciously clenched.

"When did you intercept this communication?" Lin Xiao asked.

"Three days ago," Nightingale said. "The day after I escaped S.H.I.E.L.D.'s pursuit. The source couldn't be pinpointed, but signal-strength analysis indicates that the sender was near this base—within a fifty-kilometer radius."

She walked to the table and picked up the USB drive.

"I saved the communication's encryption digest in here too," she said. "Along with several key points I analyzed. First, the purge wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision. The upper ranks of the radical faction have been planning it for a long time. Second, its targets are clearly aimed at the Fletcher faction—those old-school Hydra members at this base who oppose human experimentation and extreme methods. Third..."

She paused and looked at Lin Xiao.

"The purge list likely includes every new recruit considered 'suspicious' or 'disobedient.'"

Lin Xiao understood what she meant.

What position did his squad—the Third Action Squad—hold within the base? They were a group of newcomers with unclear backgrounds, whose behavior was utterly incompatible with that of traditional Hydra soldiers. Su Ying, a former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, had suddenly appeared at the base and been taken into Lin Xiao's squad. And now there was Nightingale, a hacker hunted by both sides.

To the radical faction's leadership, all of them were "unstable elements."

All targets that needed to be "purged."

"When will they strike?" Su Ying asked coldly.

"I'm not sure," Nightingale said. "But the communication mentioned 'soon.' Based on Hydra's usual patterns, 'soon' generally means within seven to ten days. And..." She looked out the window. "You should be able to feel the atmosphere in the base too."

Lin Xiao certainly could.

Over the past few days, patrol frequency had increased. Certain previously loose management rules were suddenly being strictly enforced. Several mid-ranking officers from the conservative faction had been reassigned for vague reasons. Soldiers in the mess hall kept their voices low when talking, their eyes filled with wariness.

Taken separately, these details might not mean much. But together, they were signs of an approaching storm.

"We need more information," Lin Xiao said. "The exact contents of the purge list, the specific time of the operation, and who will carry it out."

"I can try," Nightingale said, "but I need equipment. I lost my laptop while I was fleeing. Right now, I only have this phone and that USB drive. And..." She glanced at Wolf. "The base network is physically isolated. External signals can't easily get in."

Wolf immediately said, "I have a way. The communications center has a backup server. Its clearance isn't high, but it can access the internal network. I can take you there, but we'll need to avoid surveillance."

Lin Xiao considered it for a few seconds.

The risk was enormous. If Nightingale's identity was exposed, not only would she die, the entire squad would be implicated. But if they did nothing and waited for the purge to begin, they might not even get a chance to resist.

"Su Ying," he said, "go make preparations. We need a safe house, not inside the base, but not too far away either. If things get out of control, we need an escape route."

Su Ying nodded. "There's an abandoned radar station three kilometers east of the base. It was built during the Soviet Union era, with two underground shelter levels. I scouted it yesterday. The structure is still mostly intact, and it has a backup power connection."

"Good," Lin Xiao said. "This afternoon, you and Wolf will set it up. Take the necessary supplies and equipment."

He looked at Nightingale.

"You stay in this room today. Don't go outside. Wolf will bring you a backup computer and the necessary tools. First, try to crack the complete contents of that communication. At the same time, monitor internal network traffic in the base and see whether there are any unusual data transfers—especially anything connected to Operation Purge."

Nightingale nodded. "Understood."

Lin Xiao walked to the table and picked up the USB drive. The metal casing was cold, heavy in his hand. The information stored inside might determine whether they lived or died.

He handed the USB drive to Wolf.

"Make a backup," he said. "Keep it physically isolated. Don't connect it to any network."

Wolf took the USB drive and carefully placed it in an inner pocket.

The morning light grew brighter, shining through the gaps in the blinds and casting long, narrow patches across the floor. They slowly moved with the passing time, like a silent countdown.

Lin Xiao walked to the window and looked out at the base.

Walls, watchtowers, training grounds, warehouses, laboratories... On the surface, this enormous facility was a Hydra outpost. In reality, it was a battlefield for power struggles. Conservatives and radicals, old guard and new blood, loyalists and opportunists... all kinds of forces intertwined and collided here.

And he and his squad stood at the center of that battlefield.

"Captain," Wolf suddenly said, "those New York coordinates... are we still going to keep investigating them?"

Lin Xiao was silent for a moment.

The ripples in New York were still spreading, but the shadow before him had already closed in. The threat of an internal purge was imminent. He had to deal with it first.

"Put it aside for now," he said. "We deal with what's in front of us first."

He turned to look at the other three in the room.

Su Ying stood by the door, her body taut like a blade ready to be drawn. Wolf gripped the USB drive in his pocket, his gaze resolute. Nightingale sat at the edge of the folding bed, lightly tapping her fingers against her knee—the habitual gesture of a hacker thinking.

These three were now his core team.

And the people he most needed to protect.

"During the day," Lin Xiao said, "everything proceeds as usual. I'll attend the morning tactical briefing. Su Ying goes to the training grounds. Wolf reports for duty at the communications center. Nightingale stays here. At eight tonight, we'll meet here and share whatever information we've gathered."

He paused.

"Remember, trust no one. Every person in this base could be an executor on the purge list—or a target on it."

The three of them nodded at once.

The wake-up call sounded outside.

Its low, drawn-out notes pierced the morning mist and echoed across the base. It was the signal to assemble and the declaration of a new day. But to Lin Xiao, it sounded more like a warning—time was running out.

He pulled open the door and walked out.

Footsteps already echoed through the corridor as soldiers emerged from their rooms and headed toward the mess hall. The air was filled with the scent of breakfast—oatmeal porridge, dark bread, and the bitter smell of cheap coffee.

Lin Xiao blended into the crowd and headed toward the briefing room.

His face was expressionless, but his mind was racing.

The New York coordinates, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s private project, Hydra's purge operation... These clues formed a net that was slowly tightening around him. Before it closed completely, he had to find a way through.

The briefing room was already full. Fletcher sat at the head of the long table, his expression grim. Several officers from the radical faction sat on the other side, whispering among themselves. Lin Xiao found a seat in the corner, opened his notebook, and pretended to take notes.

Fletcher began speaking about raising the base's security level and adjusting the recent training schedule. But his gaze occasionally swept over everyone present, as though assessing something.

Lin Xiao kept his head lowered and observed from the corner of his eye.

He noticed that several mid-ranking officers from the conservative faction had not been notified to attend the meeting. Meanwhile, there were noticeably more people seated on the radical faction's side than usual.

It was a signal.

The purge operation might already have begun.

After the meeting, Lin Xiao did not leave immediately. He waited until the crowd had dispersed before slowly rising and walking toward the door. There, he ran into a radical-faction second lieutenant—a young man named Klaus, who was usually arrogant and overbearing.

Klaus glanced at Lin Xiao, the corner of his mouth curling into a half-smile.

"Captain Lin," he said, "your squad has been very active lately."

Lin Xiao stopped walking. "Just routine training."

"Is that so?" Klaus stepped closer and lowered his voice. "I heard you took in a woman of unknown origin. And that you've been spending quite a bit of time with a technical soldier."

Lin Xiao's heartbeat remained steady, and his expression did not change.

"Base regulations allow squad captains to recruit suitable personnel," he said. "As for the technical soldier, that's normal work-related coordination."

Klaus stared at him for several seconds, then smiled.

"I hope so," he said. "After all, these are extraordinary times. The higher-ups take... discipline issues very seriously."

He patted Lin Xiao on the shoulder, neither too hard nor too lightly, then turned and left.

Lin Xiao remained where he was, watching Klaus's back disappear around the corner.

That pat on the shoulder did not feel like a friendly gesture. It felt more like a... mark.

As if he were saying: I noticed you.

Lin Xiao took a deep breath and headed toward the squad office.

The corridor lights were dim, the bulbs humming with electrical current. Paint peeled from the walls, exposing dark red brick beneath. The air carried a musty smell mixed with the harsh sting of disinfectant.

He pushed open the office door.

Nightingale was still sitting by the folding bed. An old laptop sat in front of her—the backup equipment Wolf had left behind. Screen light reflected across her face, making her expression seem focused and calm.

"How is it?" Lin Xiao asked.

Nightingale looked up.

"I cracked the full contents of that communication," she said. "The purge list... is longer than we imagined."

She turned the computer screen toward Lin Xiao.

A list appeared on the screen, containing more than fifty names. Behind each one were their department, position, and "reason for purge." Lin Xiao scanned through it quickly and saw several familiar names—all mid-ranking officers from the conservative faction.

Then, near the end of the list, he saw his own name.

Lin Xiao, Captain of the Third Action Squad. Reason for purge: abnormal behavioral patterns, suspicious contact with external forces, possible double agent.

Below it was Su Ying's name.

Su Ying, member of the Third Action Squad. Reason for purge: former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, loyalty questionable, possible infiltrator.

And... Nightingale.

Codename Nightingale. Reason for purge: hacker, stole organizational secrets, wanted by both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra, high-risk factor.

Lin Xiao stared at the screen, feeling a chill rise up his spine.

At the bottom of the list was a line of small text:

"Execution time: within 72 hours. Executing unit: Special Elimination Squad. Order source: direct authorization from senior leadership."

Seventy-two hours.

Three days.

The storm was truly coming.