The Infiltration
The morning sun cast a soft golden glow across the grounds of Girls' Fountain College, a well-respected school nestled on the edge of the city. Students moved about their routines with the innocence only youth could possess, unaware that danger had already stepped through their gates.
At precisely 9:37 a.m., six unknown men filtered through the security checkpoint at the entrance. Their appearances were varied, one wore a maintenance worker's uniform, another posed as a janitor, and a few dressed in the casual attire of IT personnel or catering staff. Their different disguises were calculated, designed to avoid suspicion.
The officers stationed at the gate, tasked with ensuring the school's safety, paused the group.
"Hold on," one of the guards said, stepping in front of them. "Who are you people?"
The man leading the group, a tall, sharp-eyed figure named Virgo, stepped forward with a confident smile. "New hires," he said smoothly. "We just got transferred in from the main office. Some admin changes, I guess. Got our duties sent in yesterday."
The guards exchanged brief looks. With no immediate alarms ringing and the men showing proper but forged ID tags, they waved them through.
Once inside the school compound, Virgo gathered the group behind one of the garden sheds.
"Alright, we got through," he whispered, his voice low and firm. "Everyone knows the plan. Split up. Take your positions around the building. Set the bombs. Once everything's in place, we alert each other and move."
He paused, then turned to one of the men, Marcus, a brutish man with a scar across his chin and eyes that gleamed with menace.
"And don't forget," Marcus added. "The governor wants that girl alive, the one he mentioned. We find her. Plus, we grab a few others for the trafficking network. He's paying good money for this."
Without another word, they split up. Each man moved like a shadow, planting explosives in locker rooms, staff lounges, and under stairwells. The school bustled on, clueless.
Virgo passed one of the classrooms on the ground floor. As he moved, something made him slow down. Through the open window, his eyes landed on a girl sitting alone at her desk, eating a sandwich and humming to herself. Something about her face clicked in his memory, a photo he had studied the night before. The governor had sent it.
"That's her…" Virgo murmured. "That's the girl."
He quickly slipped the bomb from under his coat and tucked it inside a nearby trash bin just outside the classroom, then stepped in casually.
The room was empty of teachers, most had gone for their break. Only a few scattered students remained, chatting or eating quietly. Virgo approached the girl slowly, his demeanor disarming.
"Hey there, little one," he said with a friendly smile.
The girl ignored him at first, just like her father, a police detective, had always taught her.
"Hey, I'm talking to you," he said again, this time a bit firmer.
She turned her head, her eyes wary. "I don't know you. My daddy said I shouldn't talk to strangers."
Virgo squatted to her level. "You're smart. That's good. But I'm not a stranger, sweetheart. I'm your dad's friend. He's outside, actually. The guards won't let him in, so he asked me to come get you. He's waiting by the gate."
The girl's defenses softened slightly. "Really?"
"Really. Come on, let's go surprise him."
Just as the girl stood to follow, Virgo's phone buzzed in his pocket. He answered quickly.
It was Marcus.
"We need to leave. The timers are running. Bombs are set."
Virgo's eyes flickered. "What about the others?"
"They're collecting the girls. We are moving now."
"I'm coming with the target," Virgo said before hanging up.
As he turned to leave with the girl, the classroom door creaked open. A teacher stepped in, Miss Florence, known for her strict nature. Her eyes landed immediately on Virgo, whose appearance didn't match any of the usual staff.
"I haven't seen you before," she said, narrowing her eyes.
Virgo's face darkened. Without hesitation, he pulled a pistol from under his coat and fired. The sound of the gunshot shattered the peace like glass. Miss Florence collapsed in a pool of blood, lifeless.
Screams followed. Chaos erupted across the school as teachers and students scrambled in panic. The school security, alerted by the gunfire, rushed toward the scene.
Then came the first explosion.
The ground shook. Glass shattered. Smoke engulfed the corridors. Blood splattered across the walls.
Virgo grabbed the girl roughly. "Move it, you little brat!"
"No! Let go of me! You're a bad man!" she screamed, struggling as tears streamed down her face. "Daddy! Daddy!"
Virgo threw her over his shoulder, firing wildly at anyone in his path, teachers, students, guards. The hallway became a battlefield.
Elsewhere on campus, Marcus and the others corralled terrified girls, shoving them into vans parked behind the auditorium. Some screamed, others froze in fear, too shocked to run.
Unbeknownst to the attackers, in an office near the rear stairwell, a teacher lay bleeding under her desk. Shrapnel from the explosion had torn into her side, but she was still conscious. Weak and trembling, she reached for her phone. It had been thrown to the far side of her desk. With desperate effort, she dragged herself across the floor and gripped the phone.
She dialed.
The line connected.
"Please…" she croaked. "Help us… there was an explosion. The intruders… they're taking the girls. So many are hurt. Dead… Please… It's Girls' Fountain College… help…help…"
Her voice faded as she passed out, the phone slipping from her blood-streaked fingers.
Outside, a bloodied school guard limped into the open, raising a pistol at Marcus.
"Stop… right there…"
Marcus turned, unfazed. He fired once. The guard dropped.
"Move!" he shouted to the others. "Load them in!"
As they rushed out of the campus grounds, Virgo's voice crackled over Marcus's phone.
"The van's at the rendezvous point. Where are you?"
Marcus replied as he sprinted toward the gate, dragging two sobbing girls behind him.
"On our way now."
Smoke curled above the campus. Sirens could be heard in the far distance. But for now, the attackers were getting away, leaving behind fire, screams, and the beginning of a dark mystery that would soon grip the nation.
...…
"A call just came in, we need to move!" an officer shouted as he burst into the briefing room at the Metropolitan Police Headquarters. "Explosion reported at Girls' Fountain College. Multiple casualties confirmed."
The words hadn't even finished landing when Detective Charles, sitting at a far corner of the room, shot to his feet.
"Wait, what school did you say?" he asked sharply, his voice catching.
The officer looked back, unaware of the storm he'd just triggered. "Girls' Fountain College."
Charles went pale.
"That's my daughter's school," he muttered, already reaching for his badge and sprinting out of the room.
He didn't wait for protocol. He didn't wait for backup. He simply ran, through the hall, down the stairs, bursting through the front doors of the station and into his unmarked car. Within seconds, tires screeched and the vehicle sped off, the siren wailing in sync with his rising panic.
.....
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the school grounds, Virgo was pacing beside the van, nerves on edge. Time was slipping. Sirens were growing louder.
"Pick up… pick up," he hissed into the phone, but there was no response.
Suddenly, crashing through the alley that led behind the auditorium, Marcus and two others appeared, dragging frightened, gagged girls behind them.
"Wait! Don't leave us!" Marcus shouted.
Virgo cursed under his breath, then threw the van door open. "Get them in! Now!"
The girls were tossed into the back like sacks of grain. One tried to scream through her gag, but Marcus struck her lightly with the butt of his gun.
"No noise. You'll live longer."
As soon as the door slammed shut, Virgo told the driver to shift, insisting he would be the one to drive, he jumped into the driver's seat, tires spinning on gravel as they tore away just moments before flashing police lights reached the scene.