Wraith

Essex Corporation, underground base.

"Obadiah Apocalypse" returned to his private laboratory and slowly sat down on the enormous, complex Gene Conduction Device. Countless cables and pipes converged from every direction like pilgrims paying homage.

"Sir, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has filed a formal lawsuit against us. They suspect we were involved in the previous Island Bridge Incident." Ms. Reyes followed behind him and reported respectfully.

"Ignore them." Obadiah closed his eyes, his voice utterly calm. "They have no evidence. The 'me' sitting outside is best at handling these tedious trivialities. Leave it to him."

As he spoke, he slowly took out several prepared genetic samples. Invisible telekinesis supported them, suspending them in the air one by one.

His gaze swept across the test tubes. After a brief moment of thought, one of them slowly descended at Obadiah's command, a name clearly marked on it.

Miles Zero.

Then, invisible telekinesis lifted the test tube and slowly inserted it into the final slot of the device.

Oklahoma, Wachino Mountains.

Amid the roar of powerful wind pressure, the Blackbird slowly descended into a secluded valley concealed by dense forest.

Miles and the others filed out and quickly slipped into the woods.

A few minutes later, led by Aurora, they reached a rocky outcrop and looked out at the research facility several kilometers away, sealed off layer upon layer by military forces.

Aegis Bioscience Research Center.

"Madeleine, do you remember this place?" Miles asked Madeleine softly.

"...No." Madeleine shook her head, her face pale. "I rarely left the laboratory. On the night I lost control, I only remember having a nightmare. I dreamed about that woman... and then I don't remember anything."

"The woman Jossen's hypnosis made you see?" Miles pondered. "I originally thought she might have been the physical manifestation of your nightmare, but now it seems... there may be another reason?"

"I..." Madeleine clutched her head in pain. "I can't remember... I'm sorry."

"It's all right. Leave this place to me."

Miles stopped pressing her and instead closed his eyes, spreading out his Telepathy.

A moment later, he opened his eyes again.

"Bad news. It's another damned Psychic Shielding Device. It seems Ritts and those military people really do value this place." Miles paused, then added, "Of course, the good news is that there are currently no signs of any Super Leeches nearby."

"Are we preparing to infiltrate directly?" Laura asked as she extended her claws.

Warpath Prosta, standing nearby, also clenched his fists, clearly ready to move.

"No. We have a better candidate." Miles shook his head, stopping the two who were about to charge out. His gaze shifted to another person in the group. "Charlotte, it's up to you."

"No problem."

Wraith Charlotte gave Miles an OK sign, then found a comfortable position and lay down on the ground.

"Watch over my body for me."

After saying that, Charlotte's body went limp, and she fell into a deep sleep.

At the same time, an invisible astral form rose from her body. Without the slightest hesitation, it transformed into a streak of light and shot toward the heavily guarded research center.

"Charlotte's ability is Astral Roaming. She can turn her consciousness into an astral form, move freely, and possess other people," Miles explained to Prosta. "The Psychic Shielding Device can only target Telepathy. It can't block a 'consciousness ghost' like Charlotte."

"Under circumstances like these, Charlotte is the best spy we have."

A patrolling soldier, who had been holding a gun and dozing outside the perimeter wall, suddenly stirred. After confirming no one was around, he quietly left his post.

More than ten minutes later, the soldier arrived behind the rocks where Miles and the others were hiding.

"Miles."

He spoke in exactly Charlotte's tone. "I found the shielding device. Should I find a chance to blow it up directly?"

"Don't rush, Charlotte. The situation is special right now. It would be best if no one discovered this operation."

As Miles spoke, he removed the X Terminal from Charlotte's sleeping body nearby and handed it to the possessed soldier. "The terminal has a dedicated encrypted signal frequency. Aurora also enhanced the data decryption capabilities of the remote program. Take it with you, find a way to infiltrate the research center, and act according to Aurora's and my instructions."

"Understood." The soldier gave an OK sign.

"Uh..." Moonstar Dani looked at the soldier possessed by Charlotte, then at Charlotte's body lying on the ground. "Seriously, Charlotte... doesn't it feel strange to look at your own body like this?"

"Actually, it's fine." The soldier thought for a moment before answering. "Just think of it as looking in a mirror... What feels a little uncomfortable is the astral state when I'm not possessing someone. I can't physically interact with the outside world, and since I have no mass, it even feels like I'm running around naked, like some kind of pervert..."

"That sounds disgusting..." Dani looked utterly repulsed.

Seeing this, the soldier helplessly shrugged at her, then took the terminal and left.

Soon, he returned to his original post and casually tossed the sophisticated device into a toolbox, mixing it with military wrenches and screwdrivers so it looked completely inconspicuous.

After finishing all that, he lay down on the desk and began dozing off.

Not long afterward, an officer walked over. He had just noticed the soldier neglecting his duty, frowned, and approached to reprimand him.

As he drew close, the invisible astral form left the soldier's body and plunged straight into the officer!

The officer's body suddenly stiffened, and his eyes became vacant.

Charlotte had possessed him.

"..."

The officer possessed by Charlotte regained a normal expression, walked calmly to the toolbox, took out the terminal, and slipped it into his pocket.

Then he returned to the dozing soldier and casually slapped him awake.

The sleeping soldier woke groggily. When he saw the face before him, he jolted in fright and instinctively stood to salute.

"G-Good day, sir!"

After being possessed by Charlotte, most ordinary people retained no memories of the possession.

The officer put on a stern face, looked the soldier up and down, and said casually, "You're losing this month's allowance."

"Huh?" The soldier froze, then smiled helplessly. "You still love joking around, Mr. Jossen. Since when did we ever have an allowance?"

"..."

"Mr. Jossen," possessed by Charlotte, twitched slightly.

"Beep beep..."

Not long afterward, Miles's terminal received a communication request.

Blue light flickered. In the three-dimensional projection, a military researcher wearing a yellow sterile research suit appeared before them as a hologram.

"Miles, I'm already in the data center, but the situation is troublesome." Charlotte's voice came from the researcher's mouth. "The research center is under full lockdown. Most of the data servers here have been shut down and can't be operated."

"Understood. Wait a moment." Miles nodded, then said, "Aurora, can you hear me?"

"What do you need, Miles?" Aurora's voice sounded. This time, it came from her mainframe body in the underground base beneath Xavier Institute.

"Investigate the superior department and faction of this garrison force."

Just a few seconds later, Aurora sent back information. "The current force belongs to the Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects and Special Assets Command. It is a cooperating department under the ATHENA office..."

"...I knew it. That woman Ritts is behind this again." Miles snorted coldly, then said, "Aurora, crack their communications network and issue them an order in the name of the Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects and Special Assets Command. Have them conduct a 'data asset inventory audit.' Can you do it?"

"Three minutes." Aurora's answer was concise and efficient.

"Data asset inventory?"

Colonel Mitterrand gave a quiet sound of surprise.

As the person currently in charge of the garrison at the Aegis Bioscience Research Center, Colonel Mitterrand looked at the latest directive from the Pentagon. Though he did not understand his superiors' intentions, he still dutifully prepared to carry it out.

"Hack? Hack!"

Colonel Mitterrand called over his adjutant and relayed the order from above.

Under the maintenance staff's operation, the indicator lights on rows of cold server cabinets deep within the research center, silent as a graveyard, lit up one after another. The server clusters in the vast computer room let out a violent hum in unison.

It worked?

The researcher possessed by Charlotte mingled among the crowd, silently marveling at the ingenuity of Miles and Aurora. Then she quietly slipped away to a secluded corner, took out the terminal again, and reported to Miles.

"Miles, all the servers are up. What do I do next?"

"Aurora's remote program is already cracking their central control system. She'll filter and back up all the important data onto a certain hard drive. Follow Aurora's instructions and find a way to bring that hard drive out!"

"Got it!"

The "audit operation" continued for over half an hour.

Finally, amid anxious waiting, Charlotte saw the words "Transfer Complete" appear on the terminal screen. She immediately pulled a hard drive from the server cabinet beside her.

But at that moment, a cold voice suddenly sounded behind her, making every hair on her body stand on end.

"What are you doing?"

Charlotte controlled the researcher's body and slowly, stiffly turned around.

Behind her stood a figure with eyes as sharp as knives, staring straight into hers.

Colonel Mitterrand.

"Don't move!!"

The next moment, several soldiers rushed in from both sides, their black gun barrels aimed at her. Before she could react, a tremendous force slammed her to the ground, pressing her cheek hard against the icy floor.

"A spy?"

Colonel Mitterrand muttered to himself. He took the hard drive and terminal from a subordinate, and just as he was about to say something, his body suddenly stiffened again!

Charlotte had possessed him.

At the same time, the researcher who had still been struggling moments ago instantly lost consciousness and passed out.

"What happened? Why did he faint?"

"Get a doctor!"

The scene immediately descended into chaos. The soldiers hurriedly carried the unconscious researcher away, and no one noticed anything unusual about their commander.

Watching the "spy" caught red-handed being taken away by the soldiers, Colonel Mitterrand's expression twisted as he did everything he could to hide his abnormality.

"Sir, what's wrong?" the adjutant beside him asked carefully. He noticed Colonel Mitterrand did not look well.

"Nothing. I just didn't sleep well last night."

Colonel Mitterrand brushed him off. "Let's go. I need to report what happened here to our superiors as soon as possible."

Not long afterward, Colonel Mitterrand left the research facility alone, carrying the hard drive and terminal.

Along the way, his steps alternated between quick and slow, and his body occasionally staggered as if he were drunk. His expression shifted between twisted and pained.

"This guy is really hard to deal with..." Charlotte gritted her teeth and muttered through Colonel Mitterrand's body.

Unlike the others, Colonel Mitterrand's will was incredibly strong. Charlotte found it difficult to completely suppress his consciousness, causing the series of abnormalities from before.

But fortunately... she had finally brought the data out. Now she only needed to hand this hard drive over to Miles...

Bang!

A piercing gunshot rang out, kicking up a cloud of dust from the concrete beside her feet.

"Sir, where are you going?"

Charlotte's body stiffened. She slowly raised her hands and turned around.

Not far away, her adjutant Hack was aiming a gun at her with a solemn expression. Behind him stood a squad of heavily armed soldiers.

"Sir, please stop." Hack looked at her seriously. "Under military regulations, your behavior is suspected of leaking top-level military secrets. Please come back with me."

She had been exposed!

Without hesitation, Charlotte controlled Mitterrand's body, turned, and sprinted toward the forest beside them!

Bang!!

Another gunshot rang out.

Charlotte felt a sharp pain explode in her left knee. Her entire body pitched forward uncontrollably, and the hard drive and terminal flew from her hands, rolling far across the ground.

"Sir, I'm sorry..."

Hack was about to step forward when he saw the soldier closest to the hard drive tremble strangely the instant he picked it up.

Then the soldier suddenly ran off like a madman, clutching the hard drive!

"Something's wrong!" Adjutant Hack suddenly realized something and pointed at the soldier. "Catch him!"

Another chaotic chase began. The possessed soldier was soon hit by bullets as well, crying out as he fell to the ground.

But at that moment, two unfamiliar figures suddenly sprang out from the forest nearby!

Clang!

A sharp metallic scrape rang out. Steel claws sprang from Laura's hand, and she lunged like lightning, instantly tackling the closest soldier!

Another person had just begun turning his gun when he saw a flash of cold light rapidly fill his vision!

"Ugh!"

"Argh!!"

Screams rose one after another. This was not a battle at all, but a one-sided slaughter. Laura and Prosta were like tigers among sheep, taking down the entire squad in the blink of an eye.

"Mutants... they're mutants!"

Adjutant Hack's expression changed drastically. Just as he was about to take out his communicator to report in, his body suddenly stiffened against his will.

A cold, unfamiliar will forcibly squeezed into his mind and took control of everything.

Then, with vacant eyes, he bent down, trembling as he picked up the hard drive and terminal from the ground. He began walking slowly toward the bushes ahead.

And before him, Miles slowly emerged from behind the bushes and walked toward him.

A few minutes later, the Blackbird took off again and entered stealth mode.

"I erased their memories of the past hour. No one will know we were here for the time being." As Miles spoke, he inserted the hard drive into the Blackbird's read-write slot, then closed his eyes.

On the console screen, massive amounts of data once again flowed like a waterfall, rapidly streaming past as Miles filtered and organized it piece by piece.

"You'd better pray there's something useful in there, Miles." Charlotte, clutching her leg beside him, asked weakly. "Damn it, do you know how many times I got shot?"

"There's a saying in my homeland: 'Pain is proof that a warrior is alive.'" Prosta suddenly spoke.

"Shit, you weren't the one getting shot!"

"I get shot often too."

"Don't compare me to you. I don't have a reinforced body like yours," Charlotte said helplessly.

"They weren't shooting your real body. Do you still feel pain?" Dani asked curiously.

"Yes." Charlotte nodded. "Once, when I possessed someone else, one of my legs got blown off. After returning to my real body, I couldn't walk properly for days."

"That's an amazing ability," Dani murmured to herself, then asked, "So while you're in your Wraith state, can you pass through walls and other obstacles easily?"

"I can. I can even fly around."

"Uh..." Dani thought for a moment and was about to say something when activity came from Miles's side.

"Charlotte, nice work!"

Miles opened his eyes and slowly said, "I've got a lead..."

Then blue light lit up before them once more, forming a three-dimensional holographic model.

"I compared all encrypted data exchange records from the research center, especially those suspected of being connected to Dr. Stasis. The organizations and facilities that remain in contact with the research center and may be harboring Stasis are these..."

A three-dimensional world map appeared on the screen before them, marked with dozens of blinking points of light.

"That many?" Charlotte frowned.

"Don't worry," Miles continued. "Combined with Aurora's investigation at the network level, most of them are only temporary collaborations. What I'm mainly looking for are places with long-term, deep cooperation with Dr. Stasis—or even places that belong to him, like safe houses..."

"He'll most likely keep things as secret as possible, but personal account information, financial transaction records, and supply movements are all data that truly exist..."

As soon as he finished speaking, ninety percent of the points on the map went dark.

"Then Aurora can conduct infiltrative investigations of these locations through the network, looking for traces of Dr. Stasis..."

Very quickly, the remaining points of light began going out one by one.

In the end, only a single point of light remained on the vast map.

"California, the Alameda Secret Research Center!"