Staring at the twin beams of searing heat vision shooting from Russell’s eyes, Dr.
Wilson couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming urge to dissect him.
Of course, that remained a pure fantasy.
Russell was no longer the defenseless test subject at his mercy; the dynamic between them had inverted completely.
Although neither of them had explicitly brought it up, Dr.
Wilson had known from the moment they struck their agreement that his future now depended entirely on Russell.
Still, as a biologist, Dr.
Wilson couldn’t suppress his profound curiosity toward the astonishing heat vision radiating from Russell’s eyes.
A biological phenomenon so extraordinary was unfolding right before him.
If he weren’t captivated, he wouldn’t deserve to call himself a biologist.
Unyielding curiosity toward the unknown was the shared hallmark of every true scientist.
Noticing the thought practically written across Dr.
Wilson’s face, Russell remarked offhandedly, “If there’s an opportunity in the future, I’ll let you study my eyes.”
With that, Russell took the lead and stepped out of the ruined main control room, which now differed little from a pile of rubble.
…
Under the direction of Dr.
Wilson’s assistant, the personnel inside the base had been clearly separated into two groups.
Those unwilling to leave were gathered in the main lobby, while those willing to depart stood behind Russell and Dr.
Wilson.
“Distribute the sedatives to them.”
Under the watchful eyes of Russell and the others, those refusing to leave drank sedatives potent enough to keep them asleep for a full day.
By the time they woke up, Russell’s group would be long gone.
Furthermore, with the main control room destroyed, they wouldn’t be able to contact Hydra headquarters immediately upon waking, buying the escapees ample time to disperse.
While preparing the sedatives, Dr.
Wilson had mentioned to Russell that he could easily make these people die painlessly in their sleep.
Russell understood that killing them all was the most effective way to cover their tracks.
Slain personnel and a detonated base meant Hydra headquarters would gain virtually no actionable intelligence upon arrival.
Besides, Hydra didn’t have much time left anyway.
Iron Man had already returned alive from the Mandarin—or more accurately, from Dr.
Killian.
That meant the final showdown between Hydra and SHIELD, along with the Helicarrier incident in Washington, D.C., wasn’t far off.
Under these circumstances, Russell saw even less reason to slaughter these people.
He might have transmigrated and gained the power of Abomination, the Dionysus Factor, and Superman’s heat vision, but at his core, he was still a well-educated, decent young man, not a bloodthirsty butcher.
Once the sedative-dosed staff in the lobby drifted off into deep sleep, Russell and his companions headed to the base hangar and boarded their prepped transport vehicles.
In addition to the five cargo trucks carrying laboratory equipment, Russell didn’t spare any of the hangar’s other assets.
They drove off with almost every functional ground vehicle, but what caught Russell’s attention most were the two Quinjets parked inside.
He didn’t know why Hydra had stashed two Quinjets at a mere research facility, but he certainly wasn’t complaining.
Not stopping there, Russell commandeered the armed Humvees and the helicopter, bringing everything along.
Among the twenty-one soldiers who had sided with them, several had undergone flight training, giving Russell plenty of capable pilots to fly the aircraft away.
Beyond vehicles, Russell ordered every weapon in the base packed up.
They didn’t even leave behind the three explosive shock collars that had previously bound their necks.
Five transport trucks, three armed Humvees, two Chevrolet SUVs, two Quinjets, and one Black Hawk helicopter.
Looking at this convoy—which resembled a small military expedition force—Russell couldn’t help worrying about how they would evade Hydra’s manhunt once they hit the road.
A convoy like this passing through any city would instantly attract local police attention.
“You don’t need to worry about that.
You’ll see once we get outside,” Dr.
Wilson said, stepping up to him as if reading his mind.
Since the doctor sounded so confident, Russell temporarily set his concerns aside.
When the convoy rolled out of the base’s main gates, Russell finally understood why Dr.
Wilson had spoken with such assurance.
The base had been constructed as a subterranean fortress.
Stepping outside marked the first time Russell saw the open sky of this world.
The weather was brilliant, bright sunshine illuminating a vast, cloudless blue expanse.
They were in the middle of a bleak, barren wasteland.
Scanning the horizon, there wasn’t a human soul to be found—not even a running animal.
“Driving from here to New York takes about two days.
By Quinjet, it takes just two hours,” Dr.
Wilson explained, pulling out a map.
“Jasper arranged a farm for us nearby.
We’ll set up camp there first to regroup before moving into New York.”
Russell glanced at the map in Dr.
Wilson’s hands, spotting the farm he mentioned.
It was located fairly close to New York without falling under its municipal jurisdiction—an ideal staging ground for a group that needed to keep a low profile.
“Alright.
Send the location coordinates to the drivers.
We’ll head over first.”
Russell and his immediate group weren’t riding in the ground vehicles; they were aboard one of the Quinjets.
With aircraft available, who would choose to sit in a truck?
After transmitting the farm’s location to the drivers, Russell and the others flew ahead in the Quinjets.
Since both Quinjets and the Black Hawk helicopter were flying on ahead, the task of escorting the ground convoy was left to the three armed Humvees.
In a remote wasteland like this, however, it was unlikely anyone would dare mess with a convoy armed to the teeth.
…
When Russell and his team touched down at the farm provided by Jasper, Russell felt increasingly convinced that recruiting Jasper had been the right call.
Having a seasoned insider on their side solved countless unforeseen headaches.
On the surface, the farm appeared entirely unremarkable.
But upon entering, Russell discovered it had been built to the exact specifications of a military bunker.
What looked like an ordinary countryside farm from the outside was actually a functional mini military base.
“Next time I see Jasper, remind me to give him a proper gift,” Russell remarked.
Only Allen, Hathaway, and Dr.
Wilson were standing beside him at the moment, so he didn’t need to worry about compromising Jasper’s identity.