Chapter 6 - Emergency Protocol Zero
Red emergency floodlights snapped on instantly, bathing the concrete corridor in a dystopian crimson glow. Sirens wailed overhead, their piercing shriek bouncing off the reinforced walls as smoke began to billow from the ventilation ducts near the end of the cell block. Elena didn't panic; her training during her months of covert investigation had prepared her for contingencies like this. Dominic drew his sidearm instantly, positioning himself between Elena and the open corridor.
"That wasn't a structural failure," Dominic said sharply, his eyes scanning the shadows. "That was a localized breach in the lower subterranean levels."
Elena unclipped her encrypted radio from her belt, tapping the channel override to connect with the federal marshals stationed outside.
"Control, this is Elena Vance. Report status on perimeter security."
Only static hissed through the speaker, followed by a distorted voice shouting orders over heavy gunfire in the distance.
Dominic grabbed Elena’s arm, pulling her toward the stairwell shelter.
"The entire facility is being scrubbed. Someone on the inside is wiping the servers."
Julian’s frantic screaming echoed from his cell down the hall as the electronic locks flickered and failed, all the cell doors popping open simultaneously with a loud, synchronized click.
Inmates began pouring out into the corridor, confused and panicked by the sudden darkness and alarms.
Elena pushed past a disoriented prisoner, her eyes locked on the heavy steel door at the end of the hall that led to the central data archives.
"If those servers go down, the clinical trial evidence burns with them," Elena said, her voice cutting through the rising chaos.
Dominic checked his ammunition magazine with a quick, practiced click.
"Then we beat them to the server room before the fire suppression system floods the basement with nitrogen."
They sprinted down the smoke-filled hallway, dodging panicked guards and fleeing inmates until they reached the blast doors of the data center, which were already half-crushed by an explosive charge.
Inside the smoke-filled room, a figure in a black tactical uniform was frantically hacking at the master terminal with a crowbar, trying to shatter the primary hard drive array.
Elena drew her service weapon, leveling it squarely at the intruder's chest without a moment of hesitation.
"Step away from the console, or the next round goes through your spine."
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The intruder slowly turned around, dropping the crowbar to reveal the pale, scarred face of Marcus, Julian’s former head of corporate security, who smirked through the soot.
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