Chapter 53: Breach Protocol

"They aren’t resisting." That was the first mistake the Foundation made.

Felix, Darius, Lena, Ethan, Kai, Juno... all of them followed instructions without protest as they were escorted down a separate corridor, away from the primary containment wing.

No cuffs, they weren’t force, they were just like a presence following them.

Guards on both sides. Cameras tracking every step.

"Quarantine classification," one of the staff said as they approached a sealed section. "Uninfected subjects. Preliminary screening."

Felix’s eyes flicked to the ceiling, ’Three cameras in this hallway alone....Thermal sensors embedded in the walls and even pressure-sensitive flooring, where are we going that needs so much security.’ He memorized all of it.

They entered the room. It wasn’t small but it wasn’t comfortable either.

White walls with reinforced glass on one side, tables and chairs bolted to the ground. A small shelf stocked with sealed food packs, bottled water, and...strangely enough books.

Observation disguised as hospitality.

The door sealed behind them with a heavy, final sound.

Click, "Lock engaged." The door chimed.

Darius exhaled sharply. "Yeah... this is bad."

Felix didn’t respond.He was already counting, ’Cameras....Four in the corners, one directly above the door, one behind the glass.

Six huh....Minimum.

Possibly more hidden.’

"They’re watching everything," Lena muttered.

"No," Felix said quietly, "They’re recording everything...There’s a difference."

Hours passed. Then a day, then another.

Routine settled in, the kind designed to make people forget they were being studied.

Food was delivered through a slot, no direct contact.

Medical scans conducted through automated systems.

Every reaction was monitored, every movement cataloged and then it started.

Reina....At first, it was nothing, a slight cough which was barely noticeable.

Ethan glanced at her once. "You good?"

"I’m fine," she replied.

She wasn’t and Felix noticed immediately, ’Subtle temperature shift, breathing pattern slightly off and micro-tension in her hands.

She is sick, not with Mark 8 but something else.’

Felix walks up to the couch she was sitting on sat next to her and said, "Are you okay...Reina?"

Reina smiled, "Of course you noticed" she laughed slightly, "No need to worry I think I just have a cold."

Felix and Reina continued to talk.

Day Three came.

Reina stood near the table, staring at one of the apples they had been given.

She reached out and touched it, ’Nothing happened huh.’

She frowned slightly, "...Strange."

Felix was watching her movements.

"Whats strange?" Darius asked.

"Nothing," she said as she stepped back.

Minutes passed.

Then Kai noticed first, "Yo... that apple..."

Everyone turned.

The surface of the apple had changed. It was wrinkling and darkening. Like time had suddenly accelerated.

"...What the hell?" Lena whispered.

The apple collapsed inward slowly, its structure breaking down unnaturally fast, as if something had eaten through it from the inside.

Silence.

Felix’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Raina.

She looked back at him

Understanding hit both of them at the same time, "...You touched it," Felix said.

Raina didn’t deny it. A cough escaped her, sharper this time.

The cameras shifted slightly, zooming in...focusing on the room, watching them.

Within minutes, alarms didn’t sound because this wasn’t panic.

This was confirmation. The door opened.

Guards entered immediately, "Step away from her," one of them ordered.

Darius hesitated. "Wait, what..."

"Now." The guards pestered.

Felix stepped back first, not out of fear but out of awareness.

They weren’t here to argue. Reina was already being surrounded.

Her expression stayed calm, "...So that’s what this is," she murmured.

"Subject identified," a voice echoed through the room. "Mark 8 activation confirmed."

Lena’s face went pale. "No...she was fine..."

"She’s infected," Felix said quietly. Reina’s eyes flicked to him, "...Not just infected."

The guards moved in, "Come with us."

She didn’t resist but as they led her away, her gaze lingered on Felix.

"Watch everything," she said softly.

Then she was gone as the door sealed again.

Silence came about again...it was heavy and thick.

"...We’re next," Ethan said.

Felix shook his head slightly, "No," he said, "They already decided."

Five days past. That’s how long it took.

Five days of observation, five days of nothing happening, no new infections, no symptoms, no changes. Just them waiting, watching and studying.

Until the conclusion became clear. Only one of them had transitioned.

"Reina."

Which meant the rest were expendable or manageable or even both.

"They’re going to move us," Felix said.

Darius looked at him. "You sure?"

"Yes." Felix continued.

"How?" Darius asked.

"Because we’re no longer interesting," Felix replied. "And that’s when people like them either discard you... or repurpose you."

Darius leaned back against the wall, running a hand through his hair, "...So what, we just wait for that?"

Felix looked at him, "No," he said, "We leave."

Darius stared at him for a second, "...You’re serious."

Felix’s expression didn’t change, "My visa expires in six days," he said.

"...What?" Darius asked in confusion.

"If I get to the airport before then, I can force a jurisdiction transfer," Felix continued. "They won’t be able to legally detain me outside their controlled zone."

"That’s insane," Lena said.

"It’s a loophole," Felix corrected.

Kai frowned. "And you think they’ll just let you walk out?"

"No," Felix said, "That’s why we don’t walk."

Silence.

Darius leaned forward slightly, "...You’ve been planning this."

Felix didn’t deny it, "Since Day One."

He stood, walking slowly toward the center of the room, "Everything here is controlled," he said. "Cameras, doors, air systems, schedules."

"So we’re screwed," Ethan muttered.

"No," Felix said, "We use it."

They all looked at him now. Even Lena and Kai.

"...Explain," Darius said.

Felix’s eyes sharpened, "Step one," he said, "We become predictable."

They didn’t question it because it made sense in the current situation.

For the next two days, they followed routine perfectly.

Eat at the same time, sit in the same spots, sleep in the same positions. Talk less and move less, become data that’s consistent, expected and boring.

The cameras adjusted. The monitoring eased slightly.

Not removed, but only reduced slightly because the system had learned them and labeled them as low-risk.

That was the opening.

"Step two," Felix said quietly on the fourth night, "We create noise."

Darius frowned. "What kind of noise?"

"System noise," Felix replied. He pointed upward slightly, "The cameras track movement patterns. But they also track anomalies."

"So we act crazy?" Kai asked.

"No," Felix said, "We act inconsistent."

It started small. A chair moved slightly out of position.

Then returned.

Someone pacing at irregular intervals then stopping abruptly.

Sleeping at odd hours...breaking the pattern, not enough to trigger intervention.

Just enough to confuse the system, to overload its predictive model.

"Step three," Felix said, "We force a manual check."

Lena blinked. "Why would we want that?"

"Because automated systems are perfect," Felix said, "...Humans aren’t."

The opportunity came sooner than expected.

Ethan collapsed, not fully but enough to be convincing

The system flagged it, " Vitals irregular...Movement partten unreadable."

The door opened. Two guards came in with one medic.

Exactly what Felix had wanted.

Everything slowed for mere moments Felix watched as he counted, ’Three people, ...One door cycle with four seconds open and one and a half seconds to close.’

Security focus on Ethan. Not on the others.

There he didn’t move at least not yet because this wasn’t the escape.

This was the test, to test the timing, the confirmation and if the system worked exactly the way he predicted.

Of which it did which meant the plan he was devising could work.

"Final step," Felix said that night, "We leave during a transfer."

Darius frowned. "Transfer to where?"

Felix’s eyes darkened slightly, "Anywhere that isn’t here."

The next day, it happened. Orders came through, "Prepare subjects for relocation."

Felix exhaled slowly, ’Right on time.’

They were escorted out with the same formation, same guards and to his surprise no different route.

This corridor was wider, more secure and even more dangerous to him if he tried to leave.

Felix’s mind raced, counting...Mapping the place and memorizing it, ’ three turns...Two checkpoints and one elevator.’ he realized.

Inside the elevator, the tension spiked, this was it. There were no second chances.

Felix glanced at Darius just once.

Darius nodded slightly, ’Understood.’ he pondered as he received Felix’s message.

The doors opened on a new level, it was less controlled but with more traffic, more movement around, more chaos. This was perfect.

Felix stepped forward then moved fast. Too fast.

His hand struck the nearest guard’s throat before the man could react.

Darius followed instantly, slamming into the second guard.

Chaos erupted. Alarms were triggered, "Containment breach—!"

Felix grabbed the access card from a guard. Turned around and ran.

"MOVE!" he shouted.

They didn’t hesitate, they all ran.

The facility responded immediately. Doors were locking, paths sealing and security deploying.

This wasn’t a building. It was a system and they had just declared war on it.

Felix didn’t stop, didn’t slow down either. He moved like he had already seen this a hundred times.

’Left corridor...Down stairwell, through the maintenance access point.’

He knew all this because he had watched, because he had learned and because he refused to stay.

"Exit is this way!" he shouted.

They followed him but not all of them did. Some fell behind, some started hesitating.

That was the cost of it all.

They burst outside, fresh air hit like a shock. "Freedom..." This word was in most of their minds.

They were almost free.

"Split!" Felix ordered. Darius grabbed his arm. "Where are we going?!"

"Airport," Felix said, "Now!"

They ran and they stole a vehicle on their way but they didn’t care whose it was, didn’t care how it was. They just moved.

The city blurred behind them...Time compressed as the distance shrank.

Hope rose for each and every one of them.

The airport came into view. It was massive and oddly crowded by civilians.

"It’s safe here right." Leah asked.

It was supposed to be.

They made it inside, blended in with the other people or at least they almost did.

Felix’s breathing slowed, ’We made it.’

Then, "Stop."

The voice cut through everything. It was cold, controlled and had the dominance of the final verdict.

Felix turned. A man stood there. He was dressed simply but it felt wrong to him.

They seemed too still, too aware.

"Cain Foundation....They caught us." Kai said.

Darius froze in place, "...No," he whispered.

Felix’s eyes sharpened.

"You’re not leaving," the man said calmly.

Darius stepped back.

Felix didn’t he calculated the distance, timing and probability of escaping and they were low.

"...Run," Felix said quietly.

"What?" Darius said.

"Run!," Felix repeated loud enough for the people he was with to him and they all tried

The man moved...too fast for Darius he didn’t even get a chance.

He was taken immediately the others were also hunted down slowly until they were all caught.

Felix didn’t look back, he ran for his freedom, through the crowd, through the intense noise, through everything that seemed like a risk.

He didn’t stop moving ahead. He didn’t hesitate, didn’t think because thinking gets you caught and Felix Ainst?

He wasn’t getting caught at least not here, not when he can taste his freedom.