Across the world, all the television and social media channel operators were suddenly struggling to gain back control over their channels.
All their systems had been hijacked in the blink of an eye and every television set and social media page in the world was currently displaying the same image.
"What's happening?!" a director of a prominent TV station shouted as he entered the production room for the channel.
"We're not sure, sir. Our systems have been hacked and we are not able to gain back control. Even shutting it down does not stop the broadcast", an engineer reported.
Unable to do anything about the situation, they could only keep quiet and observe.
Millions across the world could only stare at their screens while sitting at the edge of their seats, curious and in anticipation for whatever they were being forcefully shown at that moment.
......
"What the hell are they talking about?" the commander of the combat units asked a soldier next to him. "I don't know sir. I suspect they are planning their next action", the soldier surmised.
"Commander! What are you doing? Shouldn't you be taking them down already?", Evangeline yelled as she approached him; her assistant in tow. "Ma'am, you both can't be out here…it's dangerous!" the commander shouted back to them.
"Shut up! I don't pay you to give me orders!" Evangeline bit back as she raised her head to gaze upon their attackers.
"What kind of Metas are they? I've never seen any like these before…especially those two", Evangeline asked pointing to the two-winged members of the attacking force.
"I don't know ma'am; I've never seen any like this. I suspect they have a strength class greater than the two who escaped", the commander replied trying to push down the urge to curse out loud.
"Whatever…prepare your men for battle. We must capture them no matter the sacrifices we need to make", Evangeline said with conviction. She then turned to the invaders and shouted, "I don't know who you are but if you know what's good for you, you will surrender and allow yourselves to be captured".
Silence permeated the space between the two opposing parties as no one reacted to her words. Even the world was currently quiet as the millions watching the encounter waited with bated breaths to see what will happen next.
"Who's the chick?" Sylvester asked the two brothers. "She's Evangeline E'çlaire. She is the head scientist of the entire Institute…basically the director", Thomas answered.
"Is that so…You are quite brazen to stand before us like this. Do you believe in your defenses that much?!" Samuel asked Evangeline directly, shocking her.
"I have no reason to fear the likes of you. Each and every one of you inferior creatures is beneath us humans. I'll make you regret going against the superior race", Evangeline declared loudly and arrogantly.
The atmosphere grew heavy as all the soldiers felt a heavy pressure bearing down on them, more so on Evangeline.
"Calm down Cathy…restrain your bloodlust", Samuel instructed as it was revealed that Catherina had let her blood lust loose due to her anger.
"She's really pissing me off. I want to rip that mouth off her face", she replied amidst gritted teeth.
"Don't worry…we'll get this over with soon", Samuel said as he descended a few feet and stared at the large force before him. "To you members of this evil organization who believe themselves to be the superior race, we the 'Guardians' are your reckoning. Prepare to have your names scrubbed from the annals of history. Your fates end here", he declared in a commanding tone.
"Guardians…ha! Don't make me laugh. We'll show you the superiority of human intelligence. We'll experiment on as many Metas as we like and wipe them off our world…no one will stop us. No one will know your name after this is over", Evangeline declared arrogantly.
"I hate to burst your bubble missy but…you've already gone viral", Delgato said as he held up a three-dimensional projection of a live news story showing a live feed of their confrontation.
Evangeline's jaw fell in shock as Delgato flipped to different channels all showing the same live feed.
"You have been exposed to the world. You can no longer hide in the shadows…kidnapping and conducting inhumane experiments on innocent Meta humans. You are a cancer that must be removed. We 'Guardians' will forever put an end to all your atrocities", Sylvia declared from the side.
Seeing all the work she had put in to keep her institute secret from the world crumbling down, Evangeline almost had an aneurysm. She turned to the stunned commander with crazed eyes and shouted, "Kill them! Kill them all!!"
"But ma'am, we are currently exposed. If we attack, more of our technology will be revealed to the world", the commander rebutted.
"I don't give a damn! Just do what you are paid to do or I'll kill you myself", she threatened.
.......
"The hell is that crazy bitch doing?! How could she allow the institute to be discovered so easily", a large man sitting in a spacious office asked his assistant as they watched the live feed on a large screen television in front of them.
"Who are these 'Guardians'? How did they manage to track the Institute's location? We've spent millions on security and anti-tracking and cloaking systems. Did they have an inside man?" the man asked again.
"Well sir, on that point…our spy in the institute reported that a few months ago, two of the high-grade specimens broke out and managed to escape. Mercenaries were deployed to capture them but they were apparently unsuccessful. I surmise that these 'Guardians' rescued them and extracted the institute's location in order to launch their offensive", the assistant informed.
"Those idiots…can't even do anything right", the man cursed. "Should we send reinforcements…sir?" the assistant asked.
"No! It's already too late. Sever all links between us and erase any and all evidence of us ever being connected to them. Make sure they cannot trace anything back to us…the members of Evergreen Conglomerate", the man instructed as the assistant nodded and exited the room.
All over the world, organizations that were also in cahoots with the institute were frantically trying to find a way to interrupt the broadcasts but every attempt failed.
Seeing this, they decided to follow in his footsteps, cutting all ties with the institute and erasing their tracks; assured that they were safe from the 'Guardians' persecution. They were not, of course, as Lisia already had these records safely tucked away in her databases, but they were non the wiser.
The rest of the world could only watch, shocked over the massive inhumane secret being laid bare before them today.