novelnext Chapter 116 Forced Compromise, the Truth Revealed by the Strange Man
Chapter 116 Forced Compromise, the Truth Revealed by the Strange Man
Chapter 116 Forced Compromise, the Truth Revealed by the Strange Man
"I don't care who you are, hand over my people."
McCa stared at Strucker, his tone icy and his eyes filled with threat.
But Strucker remained calm and said slowly, "Don't be so agitated. Perhaps we can sit down and have a proper talk."
"We have nothing to talk about!"
Victor's eyes burned with rage, his claws extended, and he pounced directly at Strucker, his entire being radiating murderous intent.
Whoosh!
boom.
Strucker reacted quickly, easily dodging Victor's lunge with a sidestep.
Seeing this, Victor rolled over and landed, about to pounce on him again.
"Victor, calm down!"
Logan quickly stepped forward and grabbed Victor's shoulder to stop him from attacking, while keeping his eyes fixed on Strucker.
The professor and his team have likely been captured by this guy, so we can't kill him yet.
Strucker, seeing the fierce glint in their eyes, remained unperturbed by Victor's attack and smiled, saying, "I understand your current agitation, but please calm down and let's have a proper chat."
Logan frowned and demanded, "Where are the professors?"
Right now, his biggest concern is the safety of the professors.
"Don't worry, they're fine."
Strucker smiled and waved behind him. A soldier in the distance, seeing this, immediately ran up with a tablet and handed it to Strucker.
Strucker smiled and handed the tablet to Logan, saying with a smile, "If you're willing to cooperate, I guarantee they'll live very comfortably. Of course, if you refuse, then I'm sorry, I'll have to revoke the preferential treatment I'm giving them."
Logan took the tablet with a furrowed brow; it displayed a video.
Upon opening the video, one sees the professor and Caliban both wearing collars around their necks, imprisoned in a closed room. The large room contains only two beds, and the two of them are sitting on the edge of the beds.
The professor remained calm, sitting on the bed with a serene expression.
Caliban, on the other hand, was clearly terrified, looking around in a panic and muttering something under his breath.
Logan frowned as he looked at the two of them.
Strucker smiled and said, "Look, I didn't harm them. I even gave them enough food to keep them warm. This is the greatest kindness I can show. I hope you won't let my kindness go to waste."
He paused, then added calmly, "If you have let me down, then I can only apologize. Although I feel a little reluctant to use torture on a wise man in his nineties, it is only a matter of inner remorse. I will not show any mercy."
"Guess how long Charles can endure torture at his age. I guess ten minutes, or even less. After all, many guys younger than him can't even last half an hour in our cells. Ten minutes might be Charles's limit."
Strucker squinted at Logan and the others. "The choice is yours: whether you want them safe or to suffer."
Logan, his face grim, handed the tablet back and demanded, "What do you want?!"
"I hope you can do me a favor."
Strucker smiled and said, "Of course, it may be a little dangerous, but you are all veterans with extensive combat experience. I believe this favor will be a very simple matter for you."
Logan frowned.
He knew that what Stricker was talking about was definitely not simple. After all, Hydra's power was incredibly terrifying. Unless it was something particularly difficult, they wouldn't need anyone else's help; they could handle it themselves.
For Strucker to use hostages to blackmail Logan and his team, it must be something extraordinary, even dangerous.
"What's wrong?"
Logan asked in a calm voice.
Strucker smiled. "It's simple. Just bring me one thing back from the Middle East. Don't worry, I can guarantee that Charles and the others will be safe and sound until you complete your mission. Once you hand it over to me, I'll make sure they're back among you alive and kicking."
He paused, then his eyes suddenly turned dangerous. "If you refuse or the mission fails, then I'm sorry, I can't guarantee Charles and the others' safety. However, I can leave the bodies to you. I believe you will be heartbroken when you see those riddled corpses."
"Damn it!"
Victor's eyes still burned with murderous intent. "We will never work for Hydra!"
After saying that, he told Logan, "Capture him and use him to get Charles and the others back!"
As he spoke, Victor extended his claws again, trying to grab Strucker.
But Strucker just smiled faintly. "You can try. Hydra never accepts threats, even if it concerns my life."
After saying that, he turned to look at McCain and said with a smile, "Now, let your leader decide. I'd rather hear your leader's answer than yours."
McCa fell silent, his face dark.
If they agree, they will have to carry out a mission that is obviously extremely dangerous, and if they agree, they may all die in the Middle East.
If they refuse, Charles and his group will be completely ruined, including everyone else in the shelter.
For a moment, McCain was also caught in a dilemma.
He turned to look at Logan, wanting to ask for Logan's opinion.
Logan paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "We can't abandon a single person in the shelter!"
Although the mission may be dangerous, Logan is willing to take the risk if it concerns the professors!
"Logan..."
Victor looked at him, his brow furrowed, wanting to say something, but Logan stopped him.
He knew Victor's plan: capture Strucker and threaten the Hydra agents to release him.
This tactic might work on others, but it seems rather naive on Hydra. They are a bunch of lunatics, and such an action would not only fail to win back the professor and his group, but might even put them in direct danger.
The key is still in Strucker's hands, and they can't afford to take any risks.
Any conflict will only harm the professors.
Although they were very unwilling, they had no choice but to agree.
"We can help you."
After Logan nodded, McCa continued, "But after completing the mission, you must ensure the safety of everyone else in the shelter and release them!"
"A wise choice."
Strucker smiled and nodded, casting an appreciative glance at them. He then waved and took a file folder from a soldier beside him, handing it to Logan and his men.
"This is the location and details of the mission. I'm only giving you one week. We'll meet here in a week. If I don't see you there, then I'm sorry, but I'll bury those people's bodies here for you."
He spoke to the crowd in a harmless manner, saying, "I wish you all the best."
After saying that, he turned and walked into the forest. Inside the farm, dozens of Hydra soldiers ran out and followed him, leaving the farm with Hydra corpses scattered all over the ground.
Watching their retreating figures, everyone's eyes turned cold, and they clenched their fists tightly.
It's extremely unpleasant to be threatened when someone finds your weakness!
"Those damn bastards!"
Victor angrily swung his fist at the tree trunk beside him, his eyes flashing with cold light.
If it weren't for Charles and the others being in this guy's hands, he would have definitely torn this guy to pieces!
The people around him all had gloomy expressions.
"How did Hydra manage to find this place?!"
Marcus spoke with a gloomy face. He wasn't surprised that the shelter had been discovered, but he was puzzled as to why Hydra had found it and why they had come after them.
He wouldn't have been so surprised if it were the picket line or S.H.I.E.L.D., since they have a history of conflict.
But why would Hydra members come?!
It should be noted that they had rarely had any dealings with Hydra before!
"There is no absolutely safe place in this world for us."
McCa sighed helplessly. As mutants, they possess abilities that others admire, but they also have to endure more suffering, especially in the current situation where anyone could potentially become their enemy.
After shaking his head helplessly, Maika turned to Moira and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I didn't expect this to happen."
Moira nodded helplessly. "I understand. After all, it's not your fault that you're being targeted."
After she finished speaking, she looked at the farm, which was now surrounded by corpses and the remains of Hydra soldiers everywhere.
"Is this farm still habitable?"
She needed to settle her own people before she could consider other things for Mackay and the others.
McCa nodded, his hands flashing with golden light as he used his abilities to create a large pit. Without a word, he threw all the remains of the Hydra into it, then covered the pit with soil. McCa also used his abilities to renovate all the blood-stained soil, covering it with a new layer of earth.
"Alright, let's invite them up."
Having done all that, McCa breathed a sigh of relief and went into the shelter.
Moira followed Logan and the others back to the convoy, picked everyone up, and temporarily settled them at the farm.
It was already evening, and everyone began preparing dinner on the farm. Smoke slowly rose from the chimneys, but the atmosphere was unusually oppressive.
Soon, Moira's people had dinner ready.
One of Moira's men personally carried two meals to Logan and Victor.
"Dinner's ready, have something to eat." He looked at the two people with furrowed brows and spoke carefully.
Logan and Victor glanced at him, shook their heads, and pushed the food back. "Let the others eat. We're not hungry."
After saying that, Logan looked up and scanned the room. He noticed that McCa wasn't in the makeshift restaurant. He frowned, then got up and walked towards McCa's office.
Victor immediately stood up and silently followed Logan.
The two knocked on McCain's office door and entered, only to find that they weren't the only ones who had no appetite; Marcus and Moira were also there. They sat in McCain's office with sullen expressions, no one speaking, and the atmosphere was extremely oppressive.
After all, such a big thing had happened, and everyone in the shelter was in imminent danger, so Marcos and the others naturally couldn't eat.
After all, they had been at the farm for a long time and had a deeper bond with the other people on the farm, so they were naturally very worried about their safety.
As for Moira, she was also thinking of helping Macka and the others, since Macka had just helped them escape, and this was her way of repaying him.
Logan and Victor sat down on the sofa, and everyone looked at each other in silence. The only sound in the office was breathing.
In the silence, McCa opened the documents left by Strucker, glanced through them, took a deep breath, and broke the deadlock. "The documents say that Hydra has arranged everything, and we can take the plane they arranged to the mission location tomorrow afternoon."
It's clear that Strucker is extremely anxious about that thing in the Middle East, not even giving Logan and his team any time to prepare; they're leaving tomorrow afternoon.
Logan took the documents from McCain and glanced at them briefly before looking up at McCain. "I suggest we have someone keep an eye on Hydra's movements. Maybe we can find out where Charles and the others are being held."
After all, there were over a hundred mutants on the farm, and Logan didn't believe they could all be moved away in a short time.
Based on his guess, the professor and his colleagues were most likely being held in this vicinity.
If they could find their hiding place, that would be ideal, at least ensuring that even if the mission failed, they would still have a chance to rescue Charles and the others.
Faced with Logan's suggestion, McCa fell silent for a while before speaking: "Under the worst circumstances, we'd better not provoke Hydra. Those guys are a bunch of lunatics, and no one can guarantee what they'll do. If they find out we're trying to locate them, they might harm our people."
After all, they are Hydra; keeping promises is just wishful thinking for them.
Victor glared at Mackay and sneered, "Stop being such a coward, okay? Our continued restraint will only embolden those guys!"
"Don't act impulsively."
Marcus, standing to the side, shook his head and said, "Micah's words make sense. Hydra now holds other people's lives in its hands, so we should be more cautious about everything we do."
He didn't want anything to happen to anyone in the shelter.
In his eyes, everyone in the shelter was family!
"I think you should focus on the Hydra mission. If the mission fails, Strucker will definitely not let your people go."
Moira spoke, pointing to the documents in Logan's hand, and then added, "You helped me, and now that you're in danger, I should help you too. I'll go with you on this mission."
She wasn't the kind of person who would forget kindness. Right now, McCain and his team were short-handed, and her joining them was indeed a great help to them.
"grateful."
McCa nodded his thanks to Moira; he did need other people's help now.
After speaking, he paused, took a deep breath, and said, "This operation will be carried out by the five of us present. The rest of you should stay on the farm for now. After all, too many people will make us too conspicuous, which would be disadvantageous for us."
Although there were more than a hundred people brought by Moira on the farm, not many of them were capable of fighting, so someone had to stay behind to protect their safety.
Everyone nodded in agreement, and Moira added, "I'll have my men keep an eye out for any Hydra activity nearby, just in case. If we can find out where your people are being held, that would be great. If not, we can only hope that Hydra will keep their promise."
After a moment of silence, McCain nodded. "Okay, tell them to be careful."
……
At night, Logan and Victor sat outside, with roast meat and wine on the table in front of them.
They hadn't eaten dinner, and the mealtime had long passed; there was hardly anything left in the makeshift canteen.
The roasted meat was made by Victor from a wild rabbit he caught in the woods. It wouldn't normally be enough for them, but they weren't really in the mood for food right now, just wanting to fill their stomachs a little.
The two sat facing each other at the table, clinking glasses, but there was no joy in drinking; both wore worried expressions.
The professor and Caliban were in danger at any moment, which made both of them extremely worried.
Even Victor was feeling bad at that moment.
He hadn't known the professor for very long, but he liked the kind old man very much, and being with them gave him a sense of home.
Just as the two were lost in thought, a pebble suddenly flew rapidly towards them from the woods.
"who!"
Logan sensed the stones coming at him, his spirits lifted, and he swatted them away while turning his head to look into the woods.
A familiar figure flashed past in the woods.
Although it was late at night, Logan still recognized the man as the eccentric Hans.
Clearly, that guy seemed to want to say something to me again.
Without saying a word, Logan suddenly stood up and chased after them into the woods.
Victor, on the other side, was taken aback, looking at Logan's retreating figure with a puzzled expression, but still chased after him and asked, "Where are you going? Wait for me."
As he grew older, his senses were no longer as sharp as Logan's, and he failed to detect Hans's whereabouts.
Logan and Victor soon stopped deep in the woods, where Hans stood not far away.
"Sheep thief."
Victor then noticed Hans's figure, frowned and muttered something, but did not make a move immediately.
Logan had previously told them that Hans would be looking for him.
Hans stood before the two men, his expression calm, and asked, "Were all the people from the shelter captured by Hydra?"
Logan frowned, staring into Hans's eyes.
He felt that this guy seemed to know everything. The farm had just been attacked, and he had only just returned, yet this guy had already arrived.
Upon hearing this, Victor flew into a rage, coldly rebuking, "How do you know about this! Are you in league with Hydra?!"
"Calm down, Victor!"
Logan patted Victor on the shoulder, then turned to Hans, frowning, and asked, "Do you know something?"
He didn't believe Hans had come to him just to make sarcastic remarks; perhaps Hans knew something secret.
Hans nodded silently. "I'll show you a video first, and you'll understand after you watch it."
After saying that, he took out his phone, walked in front of Logan and the other man, and started playing a video.
Upon seeing the video, Victor and Logan were first stunned, then their pupils contracted sharply, and their expressions suddenly became serious. The content of the video could only be described as shocking!
(End of this chapter)