The gray walls of the prolonged hallway were dyed red, deep scratches numerous on its surface. The white floor and the black ceiling that were once spotless, were now wrecked. Debris was everywhere, and pieces of flesh were strewn around.

There were six doors on the left and right side of the hall, and each of them was assigned a specific label. The door nearest to the elevator was labeled “C-101,” while the door at the end of the hall was labeled “C-107.”

However, the doors to C-101 and C-102 were broken, unveiling the room inside. C-101’s room was a garden with many plants, but flowers dominated the artificial outdoors. In the middle, a giant hive stood like a stone pillar, although it was now empty.

C-102’s room, on the other hand, contained a giant tank. It was supposed to be an aquarium housing countless critters, but it was now dry and the plants within dead.

The rest of the doors were left untouched, but it would soon change today.

On door C-107, a small area in the reinforced metallic door slowly crumbled, and a hole was soon punctured through.

Small cockroaches crawled through the hole, while tiny nymphs remained on the hole through the metal door. They chewed the metallic parts of the door, though they spat the little bits out without eating them.

It took them a few hours, but finally, a hole with a diameter of one foot was chewed out, and a giant cockroach went through it. The nymphs followed after it, climbing on top of its body and hiding under its elytra.

Soon, the hallway became empty again, but a hole was dug out in the ceiling, with the culprits hiding deep inside.

These cockroaches wouldn't be the last to escape the containment chambers, and the catalysts of calamity would be freed with enough time.

+++-+++-+++

Two weeks later.

“Sir Alex, sir Ven is asking for—”

“I don't wish to see him, nor any of the remaining Moonlights,” Alex cut the words of his assistant. Currently, he is recovering.

(note: I first called Alex and the other elite agents as “Eclipse,” but I misremembered and began calling them “Moonlight.” I'll keep calling them Moonlight to avoid further confusion.)

Two weeks ago, the Moonlight Agents and Chief were supposed to exterminate most of the captured Anomalies, but an accident happened. The Blue Pistol disobeyed Chief for the very first time, and Lion Statue used the opportunity to attack.

During the battle, Lion Statue used its ability to corrode its containment chamber and the ones next to it, freeing more Hybrid Anomalies.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

‘Three Moonlights died on the first day, but we managed to kill the Lion Statue at least.’

Among all the Hybrid Anomalies, Lion Statue was the most troublesome to deal with. While it was also the strongest Hybrid Anomaly, what made it deadly is its ability to corrode objects and turn living beings insane by gazing at them for too long.

‘The outbreak should've stopped at that, but one of the Colony Anomalies was somehow set free,’ Alex frowned. That was supposed to be impossible, because C-102 was deep underground along with the other Colony Anomalies.

The only reason C-101 was near Lion Statue when it first went on a rampage was because the organization was doing experiments with C-101.

‘There’s a traitor in the organization, but who?’

Alex had no clue where he should even begin. The entire organization was controlled by Chief, and no one can betray him even if they want to.

Even now, they are all following Chief's will, unable to break free.

‘Some people can break free of Chief's influence, but they'll become cursed to die within three days,’ Alex groaned. He had a friend once, it was during his early days in the organization.

He and his friend were great partners, and they captured the first Colony Anomaly, C-101.

Afterward, the Moonlight Agents were formed, with Alex and his friend being the first members.

‘At some point, Jimmuel grew dissatisfied with how Chief treated the Anomalies, betraying him by feeding C-101 the bodies of a few agents, alive.’

Alex sighed, a headache infesting his brain. After Jimmuel’s betrayal, he was gravely wounded by Chief, but Chief didn't kill him. Instead, Chief confiscated Jimmuel's weapon, Blue Pistol, and gave it to Dexter.

‘That snake Dexter. He didn't deserve to be in the Moonlight, he's too weak. I'm glad that he's dead now.’

Alex paused, before shaking his head.

‘Damn it, my mind is too muddled. I'm jumping from one topic to another,’ Alex fell back, feeling the soft cushion on his back. He might be stressed out near to death, but he still kept his bed as tidy as he could.

‘Right now, my job is figuring out who's the traitor. If I can find him, then maybe everything can be restored. Earth is not ready for a worldwide Anomaly outbreak.’

Alex gently closed his eyes…

BANG!

“SIR! TERRIBLE NEWS, C-101 and C-102 WERE SEEN ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF…”

“Oh god, fucking, DAMNED IT!”

Alex grabbed the nearby pillow, nearly throwing it to the bastard who ruined his sleep. Lately, Alex noticed that everyone was preventing him from getting a wink of sleep.

+++-+++-+++

On the other hand, in a three story tall apartment, an infestation began. The pests weren't ordinary insects, but rather a swarm of alien bugs.

They were Helzar's Spawns.

‘The glass around the garden suddenly broke a few days ago, draining the surrounding water out. Also, I'm pretty sure I saw the red Ant Queen escaping by digging a hole underground,’ Helzar felt weird. On one hand, he had to thank the Lava Queen Ant for helping him escape. On the other hand, the Lava Queen Ant is his enemy.

‘Oh well, the past is in the past. Right now, my job is to feast and continue feasting! The feeling of growing the Swarm is amazing,’ Helzar sighed.

Before, he couldn't imagine having a Swarm with tens of thousands of members, but today, he had long reached that goal!

‘I have more than a dozen Motherbugs now, and with all of them constantly laying eggs, rapid growth is to be expected.’

Helzar was living in paradise. In this apartment, many pests could be found. Ants, cockroaches, spiders, rats, and even snakes were hunted by the Spawns.

‘It’s time to start hunting humans. Yesterday, the Swarm brought in good news.’

Usually, the apartment was empty during the day, and during the night, the tenants living there would go home to sleep. Helzar wouldn't attack then, because if they did and their target attracted attention, then he would be exterminated no doubt.

‘There’s a guy living on the third floor, and he's not going out to work during the day.’

The person Helzar was referring to was a staff member at a nearby convenience store. He was chosen to work during night shifts, thus having to sleep during the day.

‘Today, I will have the Spawns cut open his throat and sever his head. I don't want him screaming, but I want his skull intact.’

Helzar, despite having accumulated more than ten thousand Spawns, was still only one centimeter big. He began suspecting that he might not grow any longer, but he refused to settle on his current form.

‘Spiritual Magic, as well as most types of magic, is the nemesis of monsters like me. However, soul contracts are compatible with monsters, along with witchcraft, voodoo, and other such forms of magic.’

Just as he was thinking, Zhar crawled next to Helzar. ‘Lord, the army of five thousand Spawns have reached their location. They can attack at any time,’ Zhar reported.

‘Go on, execute the plan,’ Helzar said, and Zhar nodded. Soon, Zhar left to inform the Spawns.

Currently, Helzar can no longer link with the entire Swarm. The amount of energy he can store in his body is too little to do so.

‘I want to try and use soul contracts, but there's one problem. Unless they practice the art of magic, not everyone has a soul to reap.’

Helzar made a wish to the stars last night. He wished that he was lucky today.