Chapter 205: HYDRA’s Baron Strucker
The cold wind blew through the falling snow. In the civilian district of Novi Grad, the capital of Sokovia, the second-floor office of the main building of Petrovac Charity Shelter was brightly lit.
It shut out the biting cold and desolation beyond the window.
The old wooden floor was covered in worn marks, with years of dust gathered in the cracks. Everywhere, there was a sense of poverty and decay, no different from the turbulent, bleak city outside.
In the corner of the room, dry firewood crackled inside the stone fireplace.
Warm air slowly spread through the office, driving away the bone-deep chill and giving the simple room a trace of warmth.
This was the shelter director's office.
Yet at this moment, there was no ease here at all. Only solemnity remained.
Domino sat on a chair by the long table, holding a steaming cup of hot water. She took a sip, but the freshly boiled water didn't burn her mouth at all.
A bit of heat like that couldn't harm someone with a physique at her level.
Even so, her mind was clearly elsewhere.
A female Raven soldier, dressed in an ordinary black turtleneck sweater, leaned against an old wooden table by the wall. Her fingertips traced the hand-drawn terrain map and encrypted intelligence reports spread across it. The pages were densely covered with official Sokovian script and red tactical markings.
None of this had been gathered by Domino and the others.
Instead, it was the result of investigations conducted by the shelter's director and the organization's operatives embedded in Sokovia.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
At that moment, knocking came from outside the door. No one inside the office looked surprised.
"Come in," said the golden buzz-cut Astartes in a deep voice. He was the highest commander on-site.
With a creak, the wooden door opened, and an elderly man walked in.
He was the director of this shelter.
At the same time, he was also an offline contact the organization had developed in Sokovia long ago.
Fomir Petrovac.
This old man was a legend.
Born in Sokovia, he had once been a government official of considerable status and wealth. But, dissatisfied with the country's corruption, he had openly called for reform.
Unfortunately, after enduring one interest-driven war after another between the rebels and the government—and after losing his wife and child in the fighting—he saw through everything and resigned from the government in despair.
He then founded this shelter, which had now stood for thirty years.
Over those three decades, he had taken in countless orphans displaced by war.
Living in the shadows, Fomir was powerless to change many things. All he could do was what little lay within his power.
Unfortunately, the country was rotten from top to bottom, and the shelter had long struggled to stay afloat. Then, half a year ago, someone came to see him. After a long conversation, Fomir caught a glimpse of hope.
Because of that, he chose without hesitation to become one of the organization's underground contacts.
The wise old man had contacted several people he trusted in advance and launched investigations into Sokovia. To his surprise, they had truly uncovered something.
And then they waited until Domino and the others arrived.
"Director Fomir."
Everyone respected Fomir. Rightfully so.
Fomir carried a tray with some simple Sokovian Eastern European food on it. In the past, he would not have been willing to eat such things himself.
But now, he was wholeheartedly willing to use them to host Domino and the others.
The shelter did not lack money or food now. However, in this damned environment, the shelter could not openly show that it was well-off.
Otherwise, greedy eyes would come for it.
Especially the government and the gangs.
"Eat something," Fomir said.
His wrinkled, weathered face looked much rosier now. After hope arrived, he no longer had to worry over firewood, rice, oil, and salt.
His mood had been quite good recently.
Especially after seeing Domino and the others arrive.
After bringing them the food, Fomir did not ask any questions. Instead, he chose to leave.
He had some understanding of the people funding him, though not much.
But as long as he knew they were not the Sokovian government or those American capitalists, that was enough.
He trusted his eyes, and he trusted his instincts.
In a chaotic place like Sokovia, being willing to fund an orphanage already represented many things in itself.
All he had was hope.
Domino and the others exchanged a glance. They did not let down the kind old director's goodwill, sitting down at the square table and beginning to eat.
Although the food was a little rough, everyone ate heartily.
After they finished, the buzz-cut Astartes squad commander spoke, laying out the sorted intelligence in a calm, orderly manner.
"From the intelligence gathered by Director Fermir and our own people — cross-referenced through trace analysis and mapped against the confirmed marker points we've locked within Sokovia's borders — we can say with reasonable certainty that these locations correspond directly to HYDRA base sites."
After saying that, he stood up, took the hand-drawn map from the table by the wall, and spread it open across the square table.
Standing there, he bent down and tapped the map. His finger landed on the most eye-catching red mark, located in the mountainous highland northwest of the capital. His tone was calm and certain.
"This base is located in an ancient mountaintop fortress twelve kilometers northwest of Novi Grad. It was modified using the original mountain strata."
"It is equipped with a double-layer mountain blast-proof structure and a circular anti-air firepower network."
"The surrounding satellite defenses form a ring-shaped protective formation, fully locking down all entry and exit routes."
"The underground bunker in the abandoned industrial zone east of Novi Grad serves as an arms storage and field reorganization point. It stores large quantities of HYDRA-standard light weapons, experimental consumables, and field combat supplies."
"Next is this checkpoint in the river valley outside the southwest suburbs. It handles intelligence screening across the entire territory, personnel monitoring, and border interception. It is the base's external eyes."
"Then there is the hidden station in the underground mezzanine of the city's government district. It has deeply infiltrated Sokovia's civil service system and is responsible for bribing officials, covering up experimental traces, and laundering HYDRA activity records."
"Finally, there is the dark bunker at the abandoned heating station on the edge of the slums. It serves as a temporary support point for housing the wounded, transferring personnel, and emergency evacuation."
At the right moment, a Raven soldier spoke, adding key tactical intelligence and completing the chain of clues.
"All strongholds share one encrypted frequency communication link. The mountaintop fortress main base serves as the signal core, while the other satellite stations transmit in layered relays. There are no external redundant signals, making it extremely well hidden."
"Personnel rotation, material transport, and intelligence transfer at each point all follow fixed time gaps and dedicated secret routes, forming a closed-loop defense system. Conventional reconnaissance and raids cannot break through this layered defense at all."
An Astartes added in a deep voice, his tone heavy and cold. "Trace analysis confirms that all recent abnormal population disappearances, covert armed movements, and unofficial energy consumption inside the country point to this network."
The commander looked at the dense intelligence markings, a cold light flashing in his eyes.
"The clues form a complete closed loop, but it is still not enough. Domino, pay a visit to our finance officer and those officials. I need more confirmation of this intelligence before reporting it to headquarters."
"Yes, sir." Domino grinned.
...
Read Advanced Chapters on : /cw/OblivionTL
~ Every 100 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]