Chapter 18 - The Leviathan Wakes
“Step away from the console, Elias,” I commanded, my rifle aimed directly at the center of his chest. “It’s over.” “Your mainland team was neutralized, and the backup code is gone.” Thorne let out a long, theatrical sigh, tapping a final sequence onto the black tablet in his hands. “I told you, Evelyn, you always underestimate the scope of the operation,” Thorne said smoothly. “I didn't need the authorization code to arm the weapon.” “I just needed it to set the timer.” He pressed a heavy red icon on the tablet’s screen. Instantly, the massive seismic core in the center of the room glowed with a blinding, radioactive blue light. A deep, mechanical hum vibrated through the floor plates, shaking the very foundation of the facility. “Without the authorization code, the system defaults to an immediate manual override,” Thorne explained, his eyes burning with fanaticism. “The core is now in a runaway state.” “In exactly five minutes, it will discharge a kinetic shockwave directly into the tectonic fault line.” Nathan stepped forward, his face a mask of pure, lethal fury. “Turn it off,” Nathan ordered, racking the slide of his rifle for emphasis. “I can't,” Thorne smiled, tossing the black tablet onto the floor and crushing it under the heel of his boot. “I just destroyed the only physical interface capable of aborting the sequence.” “We are all going to die down here, Evelyn.” “But our deaths will reshape the world.” The control room shook violently as the core began to draw power from the facility’s thermal reactors. Red warning lights flashed furiously across every monitor. “Admiral, we have to evacuate,” Nathan shouted over the deafening roar of the machines. “There’s nothing we can do here!” I lowered my rifle, staring at the glowing, pulsating core. Decades of tactical training and high-stress problem-solving raced through my mind in a fraction of a second. “Thorne assumes the system is closed,” I muttered to myself, my eyes darting toward the massive bundle of fiber-optic cables running from the core into the wall. “He destroyed the physical interface, but the core is still drawing power from the main grid.” I sprinted toward the primary power junction box bolted to the far wall. “Nathan, cover him!” I yelled, dropping my rifle and pulling a heavy titanium combat knife from my boot. Thorne finally looked panicked, realizing what I was about to do. He lunged forward, pulling a hidden sidearm from his jacket. “Stop her!” Thorne screamed. Before Thorne could even raise the weapon, Nathan fired a single, precise shot. The bullet struck Thorne in the shoulder, spinning him violently to the ground. I jammed the heavy combat knife directly into the primary power junction box, bypassing the safety locks and exposing the main thermal conduit cables.
