Chapter 19 (Part 4)

Walking through the long tunnel, I kept glancing at the surveillance camera data. I had temporarily disabled the stealth mode of my suit to conserve energy. Even though the reactor could easily compensate for the power loss, I preferred not to burden the armor systems unnecessarily.

The tunnel was circular, connecting four sections. The first was a large warehouse. The second was designated as a rest area for the scientific staff. The third was the production unit where I needed to retrieve the nanofabricator under the AI's control. And the fourth section served as a passage for delivering goods. According to the map, the entrance was located aside from the dam and led from an old and long-abandoned mine where valuable minerals used to be extracted. The passage was guarded by Militech soldiers, and entry was strictly prohibited for ordinary bystanders.

"Approaching the necessary hangar," I informed my partner.

"I see. There are several guards inside. They're stationed at the control cabin, currently engrossed in a game of cards," came the response.

"Excellent. That means we can slip in without unnecessary noise and commotion," I replied, smiling beneath the mask of my helmet as I leisurely opened the hangar door. Sneaking inside, I quietly closed the door behind me and proceeded, acting as if nothing was out of the ordinary, following the markers set by Bartmoss.

The entrance to the production workshop was divided into two parts. There was a hangar for vehicles, followed immediately by the production unit where I was headed. Circling around the trucks, I decided to take a peek inside one of the open trailers just in case. As expected, there was nothing inside, so I continued on my way, occasionally glancing at the mini-map in the bottom right corner of my helmet's visor. The tactical helmet provided me with many necessary functions, and the map was one of them.

Hiding in one of the inconspicuous corners, I connected to the cameras, surveying the available space within their range. Currently, I was in a blind spot, so even if the image loop was disabled, no one would detect me. The door I needed, leading to the adjacent workshop, was twenty meters to my right. The entrance was a large iron door, and its hinges would make a lot of noise when opened. I needed to explore other options, and after scanning through the cameras, I seemed to have found a viable one. The control cabin held a path to a corridor that connected two zones. I reckoned I could momentarily distract the Militech soldiers with a sudden diversion and quietly slip inside.

Nodding to myself, I disconnected from the surveillance feed and headed towards the truck. Any minor disturbance would suffice to distract the guards; perhaps triggering the alarm in the vehicle would be enough to get the guys moving in the direction I wanted. Glancing at the cargo truck, reminiscent of an old-school Kamaz, I kicked one of its wheels with my armored boot. The alarm didn't take long to blare, resonating through the hangar with its unpleasant sound, drawing the attention of the startled guards. Mentally patting myself on the back, I quietly retreated from the scene, activating my mimicry and observing the disgruntled individuals emerging from the control cabin towards me. They didn't even bother to close the door behind them, which played right into my hands.

Sneaking inside, I swiftly pulled out a cable and connected it to the powered-on computer, whose monitor displayed the cameras connected to it. Raych quickly obtained access codes, this time gaining full control over the third pavilion. As if on cue, the door to the corridor I needed opened and promptly closed as soon as I passed through it, cutting me off from the outside world. Finding myself on the other side, I approached the window and glanced around once more. Below, there was a rather imposing sight of the slowly encroaching metallic entity, resembling more of a creature from the tales of H.P. Lovecraft than an advanced scientific development.

The Leviathan Project stood before me in all its terrifying glory, evoking mixed feelings within me. On one hand, it appeared impressively daunting; on the other, the cyber-monstrosity seemed like a product of someone's twisted imagination. The parts of the Leviathan's body were being created separately, presumably to be assembled on the surface afterward. It was a fairly reasonable approach, considering such a contraption couldn't be constructed far from prying eyes if done differently.

"A massive toy," Raych commented, acknowledging the creature's immense size.

"It's a pity that this toy will be irreparably broken today," I remarked with a smile.

Smirking, I made my way to the control room of the nanofabricator, located in the adjacent chamber. At the entrance stood an electronic lock of the third level, which differed from its counterparts with a more convoluted access method. First, I needed to swipe a special card, then pass through a DNA fingerprint scan, and finally, scan my retinal pattern. In short, it was a complete hassle. I connected a cable to the port next to the scanner and signaled to Bartmoss.

"Wait a few seconds, I'll unlock the door," the mentor replied promptly, and within a couple of tens of seconds, the locked door obediently swung open, allowing me inside.

"Not a bad room," I observed, surveying the space filled with a large number of computational servers that served as AI's working environment.

"For an AI of this level, it's even a bit excessive. Apparently, Militech decided to play it safe this time, unlike last time during the Fourth Corporate War when their AIs literally burned out due to a lack of computing power, unable to withstand the onslaught of cyber-attacks," Raych remarked.

"Either way, the corps will be several hundred million eddies poorer today," I shrugged, heading towards the pedestal in the middle of the room on which a cube containing the main processing core of the "Vega" AI was installed.

"Most likely, it has an additional level of protection. Just to be safe, use the chip first," Raych advised.

"And it won't harm the AI?"

"It shouldn't. I configured the virus to generate numerous irrational requests, overloading all the computing resources of the artificial intelligence."

"Let me guess, calculate the value of Pi?" I smirked as I connected the chip to the special socket in the cube and then carefully retrieved it.

"Now connect to the server and initiate the liquidation program. Although the main computing unit has been removed, the primary program can still operate using the remaining resources."

"Will do," I shrugged, carrying out the required actions. "Done, we're ready to go back."

"Cleanly executed, now we just need to leave the complex. I suggest we return the same way to avoid leaving any unnecessary traces. In any case, the seekers will try to trace your steps, and it's not recommended to attract extra attention," Raych advised.

"Agreed." As I prepared to leave the room, the door abruptly closed in front of me.

"Raych, what's this about?" I inquired.

"We have unexpected guests. I'll distract them now, so wait a moment." Raych's slightly tense voice made me slightly nervous. "Okay, you need to get out of here very quickly now."

After his words, the door opened, and I slipped outside, activating the light refraction system on my suit in advance. Although it consumed a fair amount of energy, my reactor allowed me to maintain "invisibility" effortlessly for several tens of minutes.

The doors outside were open, allowing me to exit without further hacking. I narrowly avoided colliding with the guards, brushing past them. Thankfully, the soles of my boots were equipped with a device that dampened vibrations, preventing sound from spreading upon contact with any surface. The system was developed for Max-Tac operatives, which I successfully integrated into my own gear, saving me both money and time.

Running through the hangar, I returned to the circular tunnel, catching a glimpse of approaching headlights in my peripheral vision. I needed to act fast, so I picked up speed and dashed towards the exit. Within a couple of minutes, I managed to reach the starting point, where a panel cover leaned against the wall. Quickly grabbing it, I squeezed through the narrow passage, making some noise but hardly concerned if anyone could hear. The sensors indicated that there was not a soul within a couple of dozen meters, besides myself. After replacing the cover, I immediately grabbed onto the ladder and swiftly climbed upwards. Unfortunately, ascending was taking much longer than descending, but even so, I managed to ascend quite quickly, covering several dozen meters in just a few seconds.

"Freedom," I exhaled involuntarily as I stepped outside. "Mentor, are you still connected to the internal system?"

"Wanna know who decided to show up at such a late hour?" Raych immediately grasped the essence of my question.

"Wouldn't hurt," I replied, transitioning into a run, responding to the hacker.

"The leaders of the Leviathan project decided to pay a visit to the lab unexpectedly."

"Can you connect me to the internal system through your port?"

"Wanna eavesdrop? Alright, a couple of seconds..."

New available connection detected...

Stable data transmission channel established...

***

After running a sufficient distance, I finally breathed a sigh of relief and decided to connect to the internal security system. Quickly finding the necessary camera, I immediately heard an annoyed male voice.

"What does this mean?!"

"We didn't see anything, sir. The sensors and cameras didn't detect anyone," one of the subordinates protested, it seemed.

"What are you talking about?! Do you even know how much this damn cube costs?!" The man raised his voice even louder. "If our squad gets turned in for parts, we won't even cover a hundredth of its cost!" Panic tinged his voice. "In short, either you find that damn AI right now, or we'll all be working for a bowl of rice for the next hundred years. What are you staring at, assholes? Get to work, damn it!"

Connection terminated.

***

"That's amusing," I suppressed a laugh itching to burst out.

"The most amusing part will be when they start explaining to Mr. Bill Drake where the AI disappeared," Bartmoss chuckled, sending me a rather old but still amusing picture of a monkey scratching its head.

"You know, I have a feeling you didn't just settle for a simple virus on their computer."

"Anything's possible," Raych openly laughed. "Anyway, they won't be able to trace us. I've removed all possible bugs, but just to be sure, double-check the cube before connecting it to a new server. And by the way, well done, Alex. For your age, you did really well."

"You led the whole operation, I merely followed your orders."

"In any case, I don't know many people who could pull off something like this at your age, even just following orders... When we get back, it's advisable for us to lay low and not draw too much attention online. Militech will be hunting for any possible lead, even the seemingly foolish ones."

"I'll get to calibrating the 'wanderer' then. My mimicry system needs some adjustments for low light conditions."

"End of transmission... Oh, and one more thing! Kiddo, don't forget to rest. Especially with such a beauty..."

Call ended - connection terminated.

"They're just teasing us!"