The lingering silence in the Alpha's chamber was a stark contrast to the deafening battle that had just transpired. The other anomalies, now headless, shambled aimlessly or lay inert, stripped of their terrifying coordination. Ethan, despite his injuries, felt a profound sense of grim satisfaction. The nightmare was broken.
"The secure research vault," Ethan rasped, pushing himself up with his good arm. His left arm hung uselessly, a constant throb of pain radiating from the deep lacerations.
Anya, after doing a quick but thorough job of bandaging Ethan's arm and reinforcing his ribs, turned back to the tablet. "According to these schematics, it's directly off this main chamber. Probably designed as a last-ditch effort to preserve the research if containment failed."
Jax, his own arm tightly bandaged, surveyed the remnants of the Alpha. "Think there's anything else like it down here? Or anything that might come for us?"
Anya shook her head. "The Alpha was the Prime. The source. Without its psychic network, these mutations revert to basic, uncoordinated infected. There might be some stragglers, but nothing like what we just faced."
They cautiously moved towards a section of the circular chamber where a massive, armored door was partially hidden behind a collapsed section of reinforced concrete. Unlike the vault door the Alpha had emerged from, this one looked intact, though its electronic lock panel was smashed.
"Looks like Bravo Company tried to get in here," Jax noted, pointing to scorch marks and axe gashes on the steel. "Or tried to keep something in."
Anya scanned the tablet again. "The logs indicate this vault also housed Project Chimera's 'living archive' – cryo-preserved samples of early mutations, genetic data banks, and perhaps even the original viral strain."
Ethan's blood ran cold. "We can't leave that. Not even a trace."
"Agreed," Anya said grimly. "We destroy it all. Fire, explosives, whatever it takes."
Getting through the door was a challenge. It was designed to withstand a breach. Jax, with his knowledge of demolitions and heavy equipment, discovered a series of emergency manual overrides hidden behind a steel panel. It took precious minutes of grunting, leveraging crowbars, and straining against heavy gears, but slowly, agonizingly, the thick steel door began to grind open.
The room beyond was cold, sterile, and eerily intact. Glass tubes filled with cloudy, viscous liquids lined shelves, alongside massive server racks humming with a faint power source. Cryo-chambers, filled with what looked like frozen, distorted biological specimens, hummed softly in the corners. This was the true heart of Project Chimera.
**\[Sub-Objective Complete: Locate Project Chimera's primary research data. Experience Gained: 75 EXP.]**
**\[Current Experience: 175/600.]**
**\[New Sub-Objective: Destroy all Project Chimera research materials and biological samples. Reward: 150 EXP.]**
"Alright," Anya said, her voice resolute. "Jax, check for any stable explosives from our pack. Ethan, help me rig a controlled fire, anything we can find to accelerate the burn. We incinerate everything."
They worked meticulously, their movements swift and purposeful despite their injuries. Jax found a small block of C4 plastic explosive and some detonators in their demolition kit. Anya started pulling out server drives, dousing them with high-proof alcohol salvaged from the lab above. Ethan, gritting his teeth against the pain in his arm and ribs, helped stack research papers and other flammable materials in the center of the room.
"Make sure nothing survives," Ethan muttered, watching a cryo-chamber filled with a frozen, grotesque form. The thought of this research ever falling into the wrong hands, of this nightmare being unleashed again, was unbearable.
Once they had set the charges and created piles of flammable materials, Anya pulled them back. "Alright. We detonate the C4, then hit the igniters for the fire. That should ensure total destruction. Let's get clear."
They retreated quickly back into the main chamber, then into the access shaft. Jax set the timer on the C4, Anya confirmed the igniters were ready, and Ethan watched as the light of the lab dimmed, replaced by the ominous glow of the charges.
A muffled *BOOM!* reverberated through the facility, shaking the very ground beneath them. Moments later, a faint orange glow flickered from below, followed by the distant crackle of fire, growing steadily. The smoke would eventually be an issue, but for now, they celebrated a grim victory.
**\[Sub-Objective Complete: Destroy all Project Chimera research materials and biological samples. Experience Gained: 150 EXP.]**
**\[Current Experience: 325/600.]**
Project Chimera was finally, irrevocably, destroyed. The Alpha was gone. The nightmare of Sierra One was finished. Now, they just had to escape the mountain and get back to The Haven.