deia’s brows furrowed. "So you’re saying my hypothesis was correct? That they were kept in a controlled facility, pampered, and well taken care of?"
Joy nodded. "That’s what it looks like. Those young n may have never even breathed polluted air before."
deia narrowed her eyes. "Which ans ... there’s a chance they’ve only ever inhaled filtered air."
"Exactly," Joy confird. "And I believe the filtration system they used must have been extrely advanced, because their lungs are in pristine condition. Not a single sign of damage or irregularity."
They were healthy, too healthy for people raised in a dying world.
Lucian folded his arms, deep in thought. "If that’s the case, then it makes sense why they’re so easily overwheld. They’re reacting just like civilians on day one of the apocalypse, they panicked, fragile, unable to cope with the chaos around them."
"But, they must have known the world had collapsed, and they were trained to beco soldiers," deia murmured. "Hence, their fear ... it’s unnatural. It doesn’t make sense."
"It actually does," Joy interjected.
deia and Lucian both turned to her.
Joy’s expression darkened. "Even if their bodies are in perfect condition ... sothing is wrong with their brains."
Joy spread out her hand-drawn diagram, a detailed sketch of a human brain. A section in the center was circled in red ink.
"This is the amygdala," she began, tapping the circled area. "It’s the part of the brain that processes emotions and controls aggression."
deia and Lucian leaned in, their eyes narrowing as they studied the sketch.
"I found sothing embedded here," Joy continued. "A tiny, needle-like structure. This shouldn’t exist in a normal human brain."
"I believe it’s a chip implanted by the military, designed to regulate their emotions. If they experience extre stress or fear, the chip triggers their transformation into the Lost."
She paused for a mont before adding, "But that’s not all. The chip doesn’t just force them to change, but it also has the ability to stop the transformation."
Lucian’s jaw tensed. "Control."
"Exactly," Joy confird. "It manipulates their stress levels. If the chip suppresses their fear, they won’t fully lose themselves to the transformation. That’s why they can shift back into human form so quickly."
deia’s fingers curled into fists. It was basically the sa as her.
Her body had been on the verge of transforming before, but because she could control emotions better than the real deia could, her body had reverted.
The difference between staying human and becoming a monster wasn’t so irreversible infection.
It was the mind.
As long as a person has the ability to control their own mind, they wouldn’t turn into a monster.
"They did this on purpose." deia gritted her teeth. "If they really wanted to stop people from becoming the Lost, they could’ve developed a damn super antidepressant instead of a chip that controls their fear like they’re so kind of a robot."
Lucian exhaled sharply. "When that soldier turned, he ran straight for . Like it was an instinct." His eyes darkened. "I think They were designed to be weapons."
Not just monsters.
Controlled monsters.
They were designed to attack anyone near them, except for those who carried the sa chip in their brains.
"The military won’t be happy when they realize their precious weapon has disappeared," deia lowered her voice. "We wiped our tracks, but is that really enough to stop them from coming?"
"No." Lucian clenched his fists, taking a deep breath. "The chip is probably equipped with a tracker. We need to move them now, or the soldiers will co straight for the base."
deia’s eyes darkened. "We’ve been here for fifteen hours." Her voice sounded serious. "That ans ... they’re already on their way, aren’t they?"
A cold silence settled over the room.
Joy’s face was drained of color. "This is my fault. I should’ve told you sooner."
"No, it’s not," Lucian said firmly. "I don’t think we ever had a real chance to escape, not from the mont we stepped foot in this place."
Even before Joy examined the soldiers, they had already spent nine hours in the base. That was more than enough ti for the enemy to lock onto their location. If no one had attacked yet, it wasn’t because they didn’t know where they were. It was because they were waiting.
Joy swallowed hard. "Should I warn the others? Should we start evacuating now?"
deia caught her wrist before she could rush out. "Check on him first," she said, tilting her head toward Max, who lay motionless on the bed. "I don’t know if he has the sa chip as the others, but sothing’s wrong with his mories."
Joy didn’t hesitate. She moved swiftly, pressing her fingers to Max’s temple, scanning him with her ability. The room was deathly silent as they waited. Five minutes passed before she finally pulled back, shaking her head.
"He doesn’t have a chip."
deia frowned. "Are you sure? His mories are fractured. He doesn’t rember his past the way he should."
Joy t her gaze. "I’m sure. But maybe his mories were altered by a mutant ability? I’m not entirely certain, but I can sense a strange energy inside his brain."
Soone with the power to manipulate mories? That would be a huge problem.
If deia didn’t understand how they manipulate soone’s mind, she’d be walking straight into a trap. Fighting them would be a gamble, one she couldn’t afford to lose.
She didn’t fear losing a battle. She didn’t fear pain.
But losing her mories? Losing Lucian’s mories of her?
That thought alone sent a cold chill down her spine.
"Let’s not fight carelessly if they co here," said deia to Lucian.
Lucian nodded. "Okay."
After that, they imdiately gathered all the hunters in the hall, instructing them to stay alert to their surroundings. They also asked Nico to create a strong shield to protect the base.
deia stepped forward, her expression sharper than usual, her usual playful deanor replaced with cold determination. She swept her gaze across the room, eting the eyes of each hunter, ensuring they understood the weight of the situation.
"We don’t know exactly what’s coming," she said, "but we’re not going to sit around and wait for disaster to strike. From now on, we split up the responsibilities and prepare for the worst."
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