Chapter 51

The atmosphere was getting tense around Jhonny and his team. The door in front of them seemed immovable despite all their efforts. Alice was behind that door, and every second that passed felt like a needle piercing deep into Jhonny's mind. Alice's earlier screams still echoed in their heads, but now it was getting quieter, making them even more anxious. They knew time was not on their side.

Fredy, with his security scanner, tried once again to attach the tentacle slime they had retrieved from the forest earlier. On the doors of the other alien bases, the combination of the slime and the scanning device managed to open access. This time, however, the door remained silent, giving no response whatsoever.

"Why isn't it working?" Fredy muttered in frustration. He checked his device once more, making sure all the parameters were correct. But nothing had changed.

Jhonny punched the wall hard, making his right hand throb from the blow. "We have to get this door open," he hissed in an angry tone. "Alice is in there, and she might be in danger."

"Don't panic, Jhonny," Denada said calmly, even though she was tense herself. "We'll find a way. We just need to think more clearly."

Jhonny punched the wall hard, making his right hand throb from the blow. "We have to get this door open," he hissed in an angry tone. "Alice is in there, and she might be in danger."

"Don't panic, Jhonny," Denada said calmly, even though she was tense herself. "We'll find a way. We just need to think more clearly."

Rian, who had been quietly examining the door, scrutinized every crack and surface of the metal door. There was no keyhole or locking system in sight, everything seemed sealed. "This might be more sophisticated than we thought. The security system here is not just an ordinary mechanism," he said quietly.

Fredy nodded. "Yes, I agree. The tentacle slime probably only works for the outer doors. This is definitely more complicated."

Jhonny exhaled roughly, trying to calm himself down. But the image of Alice in a state of injury or worse continued to haunt him. He couldn't let failure be an option this time.

"I have a system-breaking virus tool," Jhonny said suddenly. He pulled out a small device from his uniform pocket. "It can hack into the security system and destroy it from the inside. We've used this on previous missions."

Fredy looked at the device with hope. "Alright, let's try it. At least this still has a chance of working."

Jhonny knelt down in front of the door panel and pressed the device against a nearby metal surface. He pressed a few buttons on the device, entering the necessary codes to start the hacking process. The device began to vibrate gently, and a small green light came on, signaling the process had begun.

They all waited in silence, hoping it would succeed in opening the door that confined Alice. But after a few minutes, nothing happened. The green light on the device turned red, signaling failure.

"No!" exclaimed Jhonny, kicking the door in frustration. "Why isn't it working?"

Fredy examined the device and shook his head slowly. "It seems the security system here is too strong. The destructive virus is not enough to penetrate it."

"Then we'll use crude methods," Rian muttered as he took out a large hammer-shaped tool from his bag. It was a magnetic sledgehammer they used to smash through heavy metal doors or mechanical barriers.

"This should work," Rian said confidently. "This hammer is strong enough to crack any metal surface. If the virus doesn't work, we'll force this door open."

Without saying much more, Rian set up the tool and began swinging the magnetic sledgehammer at the door. A loud bang echoed through the hallway as the hammer struck the metal of the door repeatedly. Jhonny and the others backed away slightly, giving Rian room to work.

But after several hits, the door still showed no signs of damage. No cracks, no scratches, no evidence that the hammer had any effect on the strong door.

"This can't be," Rian complained with a heavy sigh. "This hammer can shatter steel, but this door seems to be made of something stronger than anything we've ever encountered."

"We've run out of ways," Denada hissed, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "What do we do now?"

Jhonny stood transfixed, his eyes staring intently at the door. His thoughts were mixed, between fear for Alice's fate and their helplessness to open it. Every second was more painful, every second felt like Alice was stepping into a danger she couldn't prevent.

"There's one more way," Jhonny said hoarsely. "We use explosives. We blow up this door."

"Are you sure it's safe?" asked Fredy in an anxious tone. "We don't know what's behind this door. What if the explosion hurts Alice?"

Jhonny was silent for a moment, contemplating Fredy's words. He wanted to save Alice, but he also didn't want to risk jeopardizing his wife's life. "You're right," Jhonny said finally, feeling trapped in a dilemma.

They were all silent, trying to figure out another way, when suddenly there was a scream from the direction of the hallway they had just traveled. The sound echoed panic, and within seconds, was followed by another scream, this time longer and more terrifying.

"What is it?" asked Denada in a tone full of anxiety.

Rian turned her gaze back, towards the dark hallway they had just left. "It... it's coming from the direction of those pregnant women," he replied quietly, his voice trembling slightly.

The screams continued, growing more numerous and more intense. The voices were filled with pain and fear, as if something very bad was happening.

Fredy swallowed, his body suddenly feeling cold. "We should check over there."

"No," Jhonny replied firmly. "We can't leave Alice. Our focus is on freeing her."

"But we can't ignore that, Jhonny!" argued Denada, pointing down the hallway. "There's something wrong. Something bad is happening."

Jhonny clenched his fists tightly, wrestling with the mounting anxiety and anger. He knew they couldn't let anything distract from their primary mission, but the sound of the screams was too terrifying to ignore.

The screams suddenly stopped, leaving a tense silence. They all stood rigid, waiting, listening. No one moved, no one dared to speak.

Denada let out a long breath, her face paled. "Whatever happened, it's not good."

"We have to be vigilant," Rian said, his voice low. "This might be a sign that there's something bigger and more dangerous than we think in this place."

Jhonny nodded slowly, a deeper fear beginning to creep into his heart. He felt quite sorry for the women in the hallway who were carrying strange creature babies in their stomachs, Jhonny wanted to help them but the current situation was not possible because he himself was also confused about what to do in a situation like this. He couldn't afford to waste energy and ammunition if it wasn't accompanied by a careful plan, it might not save the women there, but instead Alice and Denada would suffer the same fate as them.