10

Beyond the Veil: Kiran's Supernatural Hunt

Chapter 10: The Consequences

"Damn, this time we're really screwed." Gabriel had lost his composure. Looking at Edmund, he said with a firm and angry voice, "I told you, Colonel, his body wasn't ready to withstand the serum."

"He was a good guy, but he wasn't prepared to accept the treatment due to his weak body... With that dose, we used up one of the last two we had. How the hell do you respond to that?" Gabriel was quite agitated and upset, not because the serum had failed in Kiran's body or they had lost a dose of the HDW-37 serum, but because everyone was running out of time to find a suitable soldier for the future and security of the entire country, and opportunities were slipping away.

"I chose Kiran to undergo this test in the future. I took him in and made him a captain in the Armed Forces. When he left the army, he had given up on that idea for a long time. But when he was injured by a series of dark entities and survived the deadly HR-1 serum, I knew he could handle the HDW-37."

"That's a load of crap. You know damn well how the president is pressuring us to perfect the HDW-37 serum, but we're running out of time... We need our own force before handing over all authority over dark entities to the Light Association."

"You're wrong," said Edmund with a cold voice.

"Wrong? Edmund, did you lose your mind? He was lucky to survive the HR-1 variant, but you were blind to think he would survive this damn treatment, and I was stupid to believe you," said Gabriel, looking at Edmund.

With dark entities becoming stronger, faster, and more resistant than any creature in the animal kingdom, humans started experimenting to somehow surpass a simple, weak human. These doses of the HDW-37 serum were only intended for the most outstanding soldiers in special operations against corporeal supernatural beings, the strongest weapon humans could have. This time, Kiran met all the requirements to receive one of the doses.

But indeed, Kiran was badly injured, and it was a surprise that he hadn't died before reaching such extremes. However, the director of the NIS, who was aware of the terrible anomalies that had emerged in many countries around the world, was in a hurry to have a super soldier.

"He's awake," murmured Edmund, looking at where Kiran was.

"What?" asked Gabriel, bewildered. Not receiving an answer, he checked Kiran's situation with his own eyes. Seeing Johan sitting with slightly open eyes, his body trembled as he ordered over the radio frantically, "Have the medical team enter and stabilize Captain Kiran Jones."

After giving the order, numerous medics entered the room where Kiran was. The doctor, on the other hand, couldn't get up from the floor.

"Check his pulses!" "Insert an intravenous now!" The orders started to sound, and the military doctors quickly checked Kiran's situation.

"His pulse is accelerated, and his blood pressure is low!" shouted a doctor in the group.

Kiran's face was pale.

With a hoarse voice and blurry vision, he murmured, "Emma, let's go eat."

"Captain Jones, you'll be okay in a moment. Please don't speak to conserve strength!"

"His body shows signs of excessive blood loss; he needs a blood transfusion quickly."

"Quick, he needs oxygen!"

Boom! The door was quickly opened by Gabriel. Sweating, he quickly approached where they were treating Johan.

With heavy breathing, Gabriel asked, "How is he? Will he survive?"

"Sir, we don't have a definite answer about Captain Kiran's situation right now."

"We'll know when we finish giving him first aid and stabilize his body," replied a doctor focusing on Johan.

"Do everything possible to make him survive, damn it. You better not make a mistake, or we'll mess up the entire future of the army."

In a large meeting room, numerous high-ranking men were gathered, all of them sitting in silence around a table with microphones. Various types of military medals in their uniforms dazzled with their rank and military prestige.

"Well, now that everyone has arrived at the meeting, I would like to begin," said Gabriel at the front of everyone, ready to present the meeting's content.

After a moment, he pressed a button on the control in his hand, displaying the meeting content.

"Survival of Captain Kiran Jones!"

Gabriel looked at the others and said, "As you all know, lately, many dark entities have emerged throughout the country, and this has been increasing in the last three months for some strange reason we don't know."

"Having a treaty with AOL, the Shadow Guard Coalition organization, with authorization from the NIS, takes care of corporeal entities while they deal with the incorporeal. In this way, when we detect something abnormal, we trace the cause and carry out joint elimination operations with special teams of soldiers from the SGC and intelligence."

"We carried out the Konqo operation, an elite military team under the command of the National Intelligence Office."

"This is a secret dark entity task force that has been operating and successfully eliminating over fifty dark entities nationwide. And Kiran was the captain belonging to Konqo, the best field soldier against dark entities that we had."

"He successfully executed over thirty solo elimination missions nationwide, and this is what happened a few days ago."

Gabriel had explained Kiran's detailed record to the high-ranking officials; this was the first time they had all gathered and discussed such secretive matters.

"Seven days ago, in Seocho-gu, numerous strange noises were reported in a renovated apartment building. Two of our police officers were executed by an unknown beast when they went to check what was happening. This is the footage recovered from their cameras."

After describing the mission's situation, Gabriel displayed an image of a three-meter-high beast.

"The supernatural entity's body is covered in fur, and its face is practically human-like. Its arms reach below its knees with claws as sharp as a knife. We were able to locate it thanks to the screams it emitted at night."

"How come it didn't escape before the elimination team arrived?" asked an elder in the meeting.

Gabriel looked at the elder and responded, "From what we could analyze, this beast doesn't like to come out at night, and it's almost certain it regards the building as its home."

"I understand; you can continue..."

"After knowing it was an anomaly, we evacuated the nearest civilians. In the mission, Kiran was able to eliminate the Yuwei with only two casualties, but..."

"But?"

"But our research calculations were incorrect; there were three of these beasts in the building. After assassinating the first one, the remaining two went into a killing frenzy, murdering numerous elite militants from both flanks."

"After a fierce confrontation, one more was eliminated. The other fled outside and was pursued by Captain Kiran." Gabriel said, taking a pause.

"How is it possible he could follow it? Wasn't he injured in the raid?" asked a middle-aged woman.

"Captain Kiran used the HR-1 variant; thanks to it, he could hunt down the Yuwei and eliminate it successfully."

"A pity he died," said an elder with regret.

"You're wrong!" Gabriel looked at everyone in the room and said seriously, "Captain Johan survived the HR-1 variant; he is currently in recovery."

"How is that possible? Is there any progress with the HR-1 variant?" asked an elder as he stood up from his seat with an astonished face.

"No, but we studied Captain Kiran's body, and researchers estimate they could find and develop a solution for the HR-1 variant to be used without the carrier dying." Gabriel explained in detail.

"Something good within all the tragedy, damn anomalies..."

"Tell me, Director Gabriel, can you do your job better?" A voice that had never spoken in the meeting suddenly said.

"What?" Gabriel unconsciously asked, his gaze moving to where General Commander of the Armed Forces Evan Wright was sitting.

"For your damn inefficient work, more than twenty good elite soldiers died, and these are numbers that repeat every day. All you and your damn subordinates should do is do a good intelligence job... I am increasingly convinced of handing all authority over dark entities to the Light Association, as they do in other countries," Evan said with a voice that seemed to express no emotion.

"I'm very sorry, General; we will do a better job."

"Director, are you apologizing to me? Why don't you apologize to the numerous families of the soldiers who died a week ago, you damn son of a bitch?" Evan shouted angrily while hitting the table.

"General Evan, you have to consider that our personnel work twenty-four hours a day to keep the entire country protected from dark entities. Our activities of reviewing situations abroad have been stopped, but it's not enough."

Evan, as he stood up and walked towards the door, said, "Is that your excuse? Since dark entities started emerging in the country, hundreds of soldiers have died every week. Are soldiers a mockery to you?"

Gabriel apologized, saying, "I'm very sorry. I'll make sure this doesn't happen again."

Evan looked at Gabriel and left the room without saying anything more, carrying the burden of numerous soldiers who died because of those dark entities that no one in the world knew where they came from.

"For God's sake..."

"That's all for today; I'll make sure to keep you informed." Gabriel said as he closed the meeting.

"Make sure of Captain Kiran's recovery and reward him well," murmured another elder as he left.

"Understood, sir!"