32. Hawk in the Speedrun (Desperately Seeking the Next Chapter at Midnight!!)

"Beep!"
"Beep!"
"Beep!"

The moment the piercing alarm echoed over the Quantico military base, soldiers on duty, those resting in their barracks, and even those who had made it into town for some downtime all wore identical expressions of shock and bewilderment.

The next second, they realized what was happening.

"Holy shit!"
"Battle stations!"
"Enemy attack!"
"Jesus Christ, what's going on?"
"Are the Japanese attacking again? No, wait, this is Quantico, not Pearl Harbor!"

Though stunned, the soldiers snapped into combat mode immediately. After all, this was Quantico—home to the Marine Corps base, not to mention the nearby FBI Academy and the Langley headquarters. Barely three seconds after the alarm sounded, the first soldier appeared, followed quickly by a second, then a third...

"Clatter!"
"Where?"
"The Gamma Laboratory."
"Fuck."

A lieutenant colonel, hearing that the former Gamma Laboratory was under siege, cursed, pulled on his uniform, and ran toward the door while dialing his phone. The call connected instantly.

"Hello!" A low voice came from the other end.
"General, the Gamma Laboratory has been breached."
"..."

On the other end, General Thaddeus Ross, who had just left the Pentagon and climbed into his car, froze upon hearing the report. Good grief. What had he just heard? The Gamma Laboratory was breached? How could that be? It was located right inside the Marine Corps base at Quantico. How the hell could someone break in there? Doubting the report, the General asked, "Say that again. Where was breached?"

"The Gamma Laboratory."
"Shit!" General Thaddeus Ross’s heart sank. "What’s going on?"

"The Rapid Response Force is already on the scene, and I'm on my way," the lieutenant colonel replied.

Thaddeus Ross took a deep breath, loosened his tie, and tapped the driver’s seat. "Quantico. Move!" The driver nodded, slammed on the accelerator, and pulled a high-speed stunt right under the noses of two Capitol Police officers nearby. The officers could only stare at each other in confusion.

Meanwhile, the base’s emergency response team had arrived at the tin-walled Gamma Laboratory. A deafening, rhythmic crashing sound echoed from within, and the secret research staff were scrambling out in a state of sheer terror. The moment they emerged, the arriving soldiers swarmed them, grabbing them like chickens and pushing them aside.

"What’s the situation inside? How many intruders? What do they want?"
"I don't know! I don't know anything!"
"Just one. He’s after the Gamma Stone."

The emergency response captain fell silent, staring at the staff member who had spoken. The other soldiers looked at the researcher in disbelief.

"Did you just say... one?"
"Yes, just one." The researcher’s face was still pale with horror. "But he’s not human. He shattered the wall with a single punch, and bullets couldn't even touch him. All the soldiers who opened fire on him are dead."

The men exchanged glances. At that moment, a soldier who had been helped out by the staff—looking injured but alive—chimed in: "Everything he said is true. There is only one intruder. He seems to be here for the Gamma Stone. Our bullets couldn't hit him, and he killed every soldier who fired at him in an instant."

"And you?" the captain asked, turning to the wounded soldier.
"Didn't you hear me?" The soldier, clearly on the verge of a mental breakdown, roared at the captain, "He killed everyone who fired at him!"

In reality, he had fired his weapon too, but his gun had jammed the moment he pulled the trigger. It was only because of that twist of fate that Hawk had spared his life, opting instead to shatter his leg and render him combat-ineffective. The other soldiers and armed staff, however, had not been so lucky. As Hawk had noted earlier, once the gates of slaughter were opened, killing was no longer a choice—it was merely a matter of numbers.

Yet, Hawk was still holding back.

He had already reached the basement of the Gamma Lab. The first thing he saw was the hole that had been excavated into the foundation. With a dull thud, Hawk, wearing a hood and a medical mask, leaped directly into the opening.

He found himself in a tunnel that had been dug out. The narrow path was littered with stone picks and other primitive tools. *Well, that’s remarkably crude,* he thought. Then again, it was likely intentional; the military wasn't exactly a unified front.

His gaze shifted to the stone walls on either side of the passage. Yes, this was the same stone he had seen in Dr. Connors' laboratory. Suddenly, a phoenix cry echoed within Hawk’s Cosmo, followed by a message:

*Devour.*
*Just leave the refining to me.*
*That’s simple enough.*

Hawk digested the information. He had originally thought he would have to moonlight as a miner to extract these stones, which had absorbed gamma radiation after the lab explosion for reasons unknown. Instead, he just needed to place his hands on them and ignite his Cosmo, allowing the Phoenix within his own Cosmo to absorb the Gamanium stored inside.

This was perfect. A look of satisfaction crossed Hawk’s face as he prepared to begin. But just as he moved to touch the walls, his gaze snapped toward the hole he had just jumped through.

Hawk threw a punch into the air toward the opening.

*BOOM!*

Under the force of his strike, the entrance to the basement collapsed instantly. The shockwave and dust swept through the shallow tunnel, but the debris couldn't touch a hair on Hawk’s head. He had done it simply to ensure no one from above would interrupt his work.

*Now then,* he thought, *time to get to work.*

Without hesitation, he placed his hands on the stone walls on either side.

The next second, his Cosmo erupted!

*Boom!*
*Boom!*
*Boom!*