Two armed guards snapped to attention and saluted as Stryker approached the secure checkpoint.
Stryker didn't waste a single word.
One of them quickly keyed in the override. The thick metal door slid open, and Stryker strode in without hesitation.
Inside the large chamber, five people stood waiting.
Three white men, one Black man—and a white woman.
If Wolverine were here, he'd instantly recognize the woman.
It was Silver Fox—the woman he believed to be dead.
And just like her, the other four individuals in the room were all mutants.
That's right—this was Stryker's new mutant team, the one he had secretly assembled for extreme operations.
"Stryker, I've done everything you asked," Silver Fox said coldly as she stepped forward.
Her eyes locked onto him.
"Now it's time you released my sister."
She hadn't betrayed Logan willingly.
She was forced into this—for one reason: her sister was being held hostage.
"Kayla, now isn't the time."
Stryker brushed right past her without even slowing down, all his focus fixed on the four men ahead.
"Stryker," said one of them—a burly white man with a slick pompadour and dark sunglasses, arms crossed.
"Sirens blaring, and now you show up? Sounds like you've got a problem on your hands."
"Something your men couldn't handle?"
The shorter man beside him popped his gum and chimed in.
"Business as usual," said the Black man lounging nearby with a smirk.
"He always calls us when his goons get wiped out."
"Now, now, gentlemen."
A calm voice rose from a corner of the room.
A slim man—quiet, refined, almost bookish—closed the paperback in his hands and stood up.
The moment he did, the other three fell silent and stepped aside, clearing a path for him.
It was clear who the real leader was.
But he was the one everyone feared.
"Don't misunderstand us, Stryker," the refined man said as he stepped forward.
"We're not judging you."
He smiled—thin, eerie.
There was a manic gleam in his eyes.
"We're just… excited."
"This means we get to enjoy bloodshed again."
"Listen carefully, all of you," Stryker said seriously, sweeping his eyes over the team.
"This intruder is unlike anyone you've faced before."
"I know you've completed dozens of high-risk missions. I know you've survived hellish conditions and impossible odds."
"But this time—this might be the most dangerous mission of your lives."
"Stay sharp. This is not someone to take lightly."
The tone in his voice was deadly serious—so much so that even this hardened crew faltered for a moment.
The hell kind of person could scare Stryker this much?
"You're overreacting, old man," Pompadour muttered with a scoff.
"Most dangerous?" the leader grinned again, licking his lips in a disturbingly gleeful way.
"God, I hope he doesn't disappoint me."
The Black mutant and the gum-chewing short guy didn't say much, but their expressions said it all:
Stryker's warning didn't seem to register.
Only Silver Fox remained indifferent.
She stared at Stryker and said icily, "Whoever this is, it has nothing to do with me. That wasn't part of our deal."
Stryker's gaze sharpened.
"Kayla, perhaps I've been too lenient with you. Maybe you've mistaken that for me being reasonable."
His voice dropped to a dangerous tone.
"Don't forget—I still have your sister."
Silver Fox fell silent.
He had her by the throat—and he knew it.
"Good luck, gentlemen," Stryker said, turning to leave.
Without sparing another glance at Kayla, he exited the room.
As he walked down the corridor, he muttered inwardly:
"Hopefully they can at least buy me enough time to finish launching X-11."
Because deep down, Stryker never believed they could win.
Anyone who could rip through his entire base in two minutes—that wasn't someone you could "defeat."
That was someone you used everything to delay.
If these guys knew what Stryker really thought of their chances, they'd be pissed.
But they didn't know.
After Stryker left, the "leader" straightened his collar, grinning from ear to ear.
The other mutants followed him out confidently, striding down the corridor, eager to face the man who had Stryker shaking in his boots.
They were dying to know who this "monster" was.
Silver Fox hesitated for a moment, then sighed and followed.
She didn't dare disobey—her sister's life was still hanging in the balance.
Besides, Stryker knew her powers.
If she didn't make contact with her target, her abilities were basically useless.
And someone like Alex… wasn't exactly "easy to approach."
They hadn't walked far down the corridor before—
A massive steel gate on the left exploded open.
A young man stepped out from the smoke and shadow.
Immediately, all eyes turned to him.
The room fell silent.
Their expressions turned puzzled.
They stared in disbelief.
He was barely out of his teens.
No way this was the guy who scared Stryker out of his mind.
"This kid?" the short mutant muttered, looking around at his teammates.
"This is who made Stryker pee his pants?"
The rest of the group looked at each other, eyes full of doubt.
There had to be a mistake.
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