Chapter 392: The war room is active!!
Sterling Security Base, Star Harbor
The war room beneath Sterling Security was unusually crowded.
Not physically.
Most of the people involved were separated by hundreds, even thousands of kilometers.
Yet every large display surrounding the room carried a familiar face.
Operators occupied the rows of desks behind Miles, quietly monitoring encrypted communication channels, satellite feeds, surveillance footage, financial networks, and several secure databases.
Nobody spoke louder than necessary.
The atmosphere itself made it clear that this was not an ordinary security briefing.
Miles sat at the center table with a cup of coffee in his hand.
Charles occupied the seat beside him.
On the largest screen was Grandmaster Lucian.
Connected through other secured channels were several of the elites associated with the Ancient Warrior Order.
Darius.
Reina.
Aerin.
Marina.
And Ren, whose connection was being routed separately from New York.
Monica had joined remotely from the Soul Tower.
Commander Ray represented Graveyard.
And sitting inside another secured government facility was General Wilfred Wraithbourne.
One of the very few government officials Miles was still willing to trust completely.
Wilfred looked around at the collection of faces appearing across his monitors.
Then his attention settled on Miles.
"Child."
Miles raised his eyes.
Wilfred folded his hands.
"Didn’t you just get married?"
Charles almost smiled.
Wilfred continued.
"Why are we holding what looks like some underground conference?"
Commander Ray nodded in agreement.
"The General has a point, son."
His expression became serious.
"If there is something happening in the underworld, tell us."
"But don’t start involving yourself in every problem again."
Miles sighed.
He lifted the coffee cup, took one sip, and placed it carefully on the table.
"I appreciate everyone joining."
The casual atmosphere disappeared instantly.
Miles looked around the screens.
"Today I am going to tell you about what I believe is currently the greatest hidden threat in the world."
Wilfred’s expression changed.
Miles continued.
"A threat that could change the course of governments without the general public even realizing anything has happened."
Nobody interrupted him.
"And by the time ordinary people understand what has changed..."
Miles paused.
"It may already be too late."
Wilfred leaned forward.
"Something that big?"
Commander Ray’s eyes sharpened.
Monica stopped typing.
Charles remained completely still beside Miles.
Miles nodded.
"I know every person in this meeting has heard of a secret organization that operates internationally."
His voice became colder.
"Criminals for hire."
"Information brokers."
"Assassins."
"Smugglers."
"People who sell their services to anyone capable of paying."
A slight silence followed.
"The WEB."
The name alone changed the atmosphere.
Lucian lowered his eyes.
Wilfred frowned.
"Them?"
His voice carried clear contempt.
"Those are ants we have been unable to eliminate only because the Norwegian government keeps protecting their ground."
Ray looked toward Wilfred.
"Sounds like they aren’t ants anymore."
Miles nodded.
"They haven’t been for a long time."
He touched the console.
A corporate logo appeared on one of the displays.
HORIZON BIOTECH
Miles continued.
"For decades, the WEB has been secretly building toward something under the protection of this company."
Wilfred stared at the logo.
"Horizon Biotech?"
"Yes."
"Aren’t they government approved in almost every major country?"
"Exactly."
Miles enlarged the company’s global operations map.
Research centers appeared throughout Europe.
North America.
Asia.
Several smaller nations.
Medical partnerships.
University collaborations.
Government contracts.
Research funding.
Miles pointed toward the map.
"Under the name of pharmaceutical research, medical development, and international cooperation, they have spent years planting people."
"Agencies."
"Government departments."
"Regulatory institutions."
"International organizations."
"Security divisions."
"Private corporations."
The room became quieter with every sentence.
Wilfred’s face hardened.
"What is the goal?"
Miles looked directly into the camera.
"Total control."
Silence.
Nobody reacted immediately.
It sounded almost absurd.
Too enormous.
Too ambitious.
Yet nobody sitting in that meeting dismissed it.
They knew Miles.
If he had gathered this many people and used words like total control, he already had evidence.
Lucian slowly looked down.
His expression carried something heavier than surprise.
Guilt.
Miles noticed but continued.
"So if anyone here is planning to tell me to stand down..."
His eyes moved toward Ray.
Then Wilfred.
"And ignore something that could eventually affect every person I care about..."
His voice became firm.
"No."
"I am not standing down."
Ray said nothing.
Miles continued.
"I have spent most of my life fighting other people’s wars."
"This one is different."
"My family lives in this country."
"My wife lives here."
"My younger siblings live here."
"My parents."
"My grandparents."
"My friends."
He leaned back slightly.
"If someone is secretly preparing to control the system they live under, then it becomes my problem too."
His gaze became cold.
"I will eliminate the WEB before they gain control of this country."
Wilfred studied him silently.
Then Miles added another sentence.
"And that is also what the President wants."
Wilfred’s eyes widened.
"What?"
Miles nodded.
"He personally sent me information."
A copy of several sections of the letter appeared on the secured display.
Miles did not show everything.
Only what was necessary.
"He couldn’t send it through normal government channels."
Ray immediately understood.
"Compromised?"
Miles nodded.
"Even the Secret Service may be compromised."
Wilfred’s hand slowly tightened into a fist.
Ray’s expression darkened considerably.
That changed everything.
This was no longer the speculation of an underground operative.
The President himself was uncertain about the people surrounding him.
Ray finally spoke.
"Graveyard was with you before."
His voice carried the same certainty it had carried throughout Miles’ childhood.
"And the Graveyard is with you now."
Miles looked toward him.
Ray gave a small nod.
"Whatever you need."
General Wilfred followed.
"I am with you as well."
Then his expression became more formal.
"Honorary General."
Miles smiled faintly.
"Thank you."
He looked toward the screen displaying Lucian.
"There is another thing."
Several people followed his gaze.
"I know some of you are already familiar with Grandmaster Lucian."
Lucian remained silent.
Miles continued.
"But very few people know his complete identity."
Monica frowned slightly.
Even she looked curious now.
Miles spoke calmly.
"Let me formally introduce him."
He gestured toward the screen.
"Lucian Winslow."
"Former resident of Norway."
"Grandmaster."
"And..."
Miles paused.
"The founder of the WEB."
For perhaps the first time since the meeting began, genuine shock swept through almost every channel.
Monica’s eyes widened.
"What do you mean, founder, Boss?"
Wilfred almost stood from his chair.
"Lucian?"
He stared at the elderly man on the screen.
"What the hell is going on?"
Commander Ray’s expression also changed.
Darius remained silent, but even his eyes sharpened.
Reina looked toward Lucian.
Marina folded her arms.
Aerin’s face became serious.
Miles raised a hand.
"Listen to him."
Everyone slowly became quiet.
Lucian remained silent for several moments.
The old man looked unusually tired.
Then finally he spoke.
"I know this is surprising."
His voice lacked the authority he usually carried.
Instead, there was regret.
"But believe me when I tell you that the WEB I created was never supposed to become what it is today."
Wilfred said nothing.
Lucian continued.
"It was supposed to create change."
"Education for children who could not afford it."
"Food for those who slept hungry."
"Protection for orphans who had nobody."
"Opportunities for people the system ignored."
His eyes became distant.
"But I made one mistake."
The entire meeting listened.
"I trusted the wrong person."
Lucian explained his past.
How the WEB began.
How he once believed an organization operating outside rigid structures could help those ignored by governments.
How his adopted son, Bjorn Vik, gradually developed a different philosophy.
Rules were not protection to Bjorn.
They were chains.
Governments were not institutions to improve.
They were systems to overcome.
Then came betrayal.
Lucian’s assassination.
His disappearance.
Bjorn’s takeover.
The WEB’s transformation.
Criminal contracts.
Political manipulation.
Illegal networks.
Decades of expansion.
When Lucian finally spoke about Thea, his voice became heavier.
"I planted someone inside."
A photograph of Thea appeared on the screen.
"Thea Vik."
"My spy."
Monica slowly leaned back.
Only now was she understanding how deeply this situation reached.
Wilfred rubbed his forehead.
"That is..."
He exhaled.
"Messed up."
Miles nodded.
"And there is more."
Every face turned toward him again.
Miles pressed another control.
News footage appeared.
Smoke.
Emergency vehicles.
Police barricades.
The United Nations Headquarters in New York.
"The recent blast near the UN Headquarters was not an accident."
Wilfred stared at the footage.
"It was them?"
"Yes."
Miles changed the image.
"They used the explosion as a distraction."
Another image appeared.
The armored vehicle.
"They extracted classified documents."
Wilfred’s face became increasingly serious.
Miles continued.
"Those documents were then used to blackmail the Secretary-General."
Ray’s eyes narrowed.
Miles looked around.
"And now the Secretary-General is missing."
Wilfred almost shouted.
"What?"
Miles remained calm.
"He was abducted."
"According to the information we have, he is being held inside Horizon Biotech’s New York Headquarters."
Wilfred stared at Miles.
"How the hell is this not national news?"
Miles gave him a long look.
"What do you think, General?"
The question itself answered everything.
Wilfred slowly leaned back.
Miles continued.
"Like I said."
"This is not a threat to one country."
"It’s a threat to every government."
He changed the screen again.
A world map appeared.
Several locations were highlighted.
"We analyzed unusual activity in smaller countries."
"Policy changes."
"Sudden appointments."
"Unusual transfers."
"Officials disappearing."
"People with no meaningful political history suddenly gaining influence."
"Individually, none of these things look significant."
He looked toward Wilfred.
"Together, they form a pattern."
Wilfred understood.
"They are already moving."
Miles nodded.
"Yes."
The room became silent.
Miles pointed toward the United Nations symbol.
"Now imagine they gain enough influence over the Secretary-General."
His finger moved across several international institutions.
"Then imagine they compromise representatives from enough countries."
Ray’s expression darkened.
Miles continued.
"Decisions made inside the UN influence sanctions."
"Peacekeeping."
"International recognition."
"Humanitarian intervention."
"Trade."
"Security."
"War."
His hand dropped.
"If someone quietly gains enough influence there, they don’t need to conquer countries."
"They can manipulate the decisions countries are forced to make."
Wilfred immediately spoke.
"Then we act before that happens."
Ray looked toward Miles.
"How?"
Miles paused.
"Thea Vik."
Her photograph returned.
"The adopted daughter of Bjorn Vik."
"The spy Grandmaster Lucian planted inside the organization."
Wilfred frowned.
"Didn’t she just turn against us?"
Miles looked toward him.
"What makes you say that?"
"She commanded the operation."
"The UN blast."
"The heist."
"If she is operating Horizon Biotech herself, what if she already sold all of you to the WEB?"
Lucian visibly tensed.
Miles shook his head.
"She won’t."
Wilfred narrowed his eyes.
"You’re certain?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Miles answered calmly.
"Her younger sister."
Another photograph appeared.
Ivy.
Miles continued.
"Ivy is being raised under the protection of the Winslow family."
"Thea entered this arrangement because she wanted Ivy to have a normal life."
"That was the reason she agreed to become a spy in the first place."
Wilfred immediately looked uncomfortable.
"Are you suggesting we use the little girl?"
Miles’ expression changed instantly.
"No."
The answer came sharp enough to silence the room.
"We will never use Ivy."
Lucian looked toward Miles.
Miles continued.
"She doesn’t even know what is happening to her sister."
"And she will not know."
"Ivy remains outside this conflict."
Wilfred nodded.
"Good."
Miles then looked toward the other screens.
"Now..."
"There are several people in this meeting who have been sitting quietly."
The attention shifted.
Darius and others,
Miles deliberately avoided explaining the Ancient Warrior Order.
There were still secrets that did not belong in government databases.
"Darius."
"Reina."
"Ren."
"Aerin."
"Marina."
"They are among my most trusted allies."
Wilfred looked at the unfamiliar faces more carefully.
Miles continued.
"They are field experts."
A slight smile appeared.
"They can do things ordinary people cannot."
Reina raised an eyebrow at his deliberately vague introduction.
Marina almost smiled.
Darius remained completely expressionless.
Wilfred looked suspicious.
"What exactly does that mean?"
Miles ignored the question.
"That’s not important."
Ray chuckled quietly.
Wilfred sighed.
Miles continued.
"What matters is that one of them is already operating in New York."
His eyes moved toward Ren’s channel.
"Ren."
Ren gave a small nod.
Miles looked toward the others.
"Until this morning, he was inside Horizon Biotech Headquarters."
Wilfred stared.
"Inside?"
"Yes."
Miles pressed several buttons.
The main screen went black.
Then one image appeared.
A corridor.
Another.
A laboratory.
A storage section.
An elevator.
A security room.
More feeds appeared until the entire wall was divided into live surveillance windows.
Wilfred slowly leaned forward.
"What am I looking at?"
"Horizon Biotech."
Several operators behind Miles began synchronizing the feeds.
Miles continued.
"Ren is a master of disguise."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"He didn’t just enter the headquarters."
"He bugged their surveillance system."
Charles looked toward the live feeds.
Miles continued.
"They are using their own cameras to monitor internal operations."
"We are now watching those same cameras."
Wilfred became silent.
One feed showed several armed men moving through a corridor.
Another showed crates being transported.
Another showed personnel wearing identical wrist devices.
A fourth camera showed men stationed near a reinforced doorway.
Wilfred’s expression changed.
"Damn."
He leaned closer.
"This doesn’t look like a research facility."
His eyes followed one armed guard.
"Those are modern rifles."
Commander Ray studied another feed.
"And those men move like trained personnel."
Charles nodded.
"They are."
Ray looked toward Miles.
"So what are we planning?"
Miles said nothing for several seconds.
He watched the live footage.
Somewhere inside that building was the Secretary-General.
Somewhere inside was Thea.
A woman who appeared to have taken complete control of the headquarters.
Then Miles leaned forward.
"Let’s talk to Thea."
Monica blinked.
"Huh?"
Several people looked at him.
Even Lucian immediately raised his head.
Miles calmly picked up his coffee again.
"Enough guessing."
His eyes remained fixed on the surveillance screens.
"If we want to know what game she is playing..."
He took a slow sip.
"...we ask the Princess herself."