Barbie spent several minutes reducing the Dushanbe airport terminal to ruins but still couldn't find any trace of Aeolus.
At this point, the increasingly impatient "God" finally spoke up: "If we can't catch him alive, then execute him remotely!"
Hearing this, Barbie's expression stiffened.
Though she had just angrily demolished the entire airport terminal, that didn't mean she actually wanted to kill Aeolus.
She had only wanted to use the threat of spatial fragmentation to force him out.
After all, Aeolus was Barbie's subordinate, and the two had worked together for a long time—it was impossible for there to be no bond between them.
She had hoped Aeolus would repent and turn back from his misguided path, refusing to follow Luoshu to the bitter end.
Even if Aeolus remained as stubborn as Jianjia, the worst outcome would be capturing and containing him in Area-13—it wasn't necessarily a death sentence.
But "God" had clearly run out of patience and now wanted to execute Aeolus outright.
As for remote execution, this was a measure implemented by the Foundation to control the reality benders of MTF-Omega-12.
Without such measures, the Foundation would have a hard time ensuring that the Mobile Task Force members of Achilles' Heel would obediently work for them or restraining their actions in the field.
Every member of the Mobile Task Force Achilles' Heel had a remotely detonatable bomb implanted in their skull—even commanders like Barbie were no exception.
According to protocol, any unauthorized departure from Area-13 or unsanctioned use of reality-bending abilities would be grounds for execution.
As for someone like Aeolus, who had openly defected? That went without saying.
"God" had to make an example of him!
He said to Barbie, "No more hesitation. Notify Area-13 immediately and have them carry out the remote execution protocol! Even if we can't extract information about Luoshu from Aeolus, we can't leave him alive to aid the enemy!"
Barbie nodded painfully, raised her wrist, and contacted the chief commander of Achilles' Heel, Omega-12-C-001, via her personal tactical terminal: "Boss, it has been confirmed that Omega-12-C-019 Aeolus has defected. In accordance with protocol, I request remote execution!"
"Request approved!"
While Barbie was struggling with her decision, inside the Gulfstream G700, Aeolus was also discussing the matter with Luoshu.
"So there's a bomb in your head that could be detonated at any moment? I thought the treatment for Achilles' Heel was supposed to be great, with private jets for travel. Who knew it was all a gilded facade? Your situation isn't much better than mine as a D-class personnel!"
Luoshu sighed deeply.
The Foundation preached protection, but their actions were all about execution! That "P" in SCP probably didn't stand for "Protect" but "Put to death"...
Aeolus laughed awkwardly in response.
They were all risking their lives as laborers for the Foundation—no need to rub salt in each other's wounds.
The fact that they could still joke around at this moment wasn't because Aeolus had made peace with death, but because he wasn't afraid of remote execution.
That's right—while remote execution might be a threat to most members of Achilles' Heel, it didn't affect Aeolus.
As a reality bender, his inverse distortion ability wasn't just useful for espionage and ambushes—it also provided strong anti-tracking capabilities.
When Aeolus lowered his personal Hume level, his entire being entered a special state between reality and illusion.
On the surface, he became a "small transparent," making it impossible for others to notice him.
But on a deeper level, all tracking methods struggled to lock onto him.
Luoshu had experienced this firsthand.
Earlier, when they first arrived at the Dushanbe airport terminal, he had tried to use SCP-096's long-range tracking ability to locate Aeolus but kept getting a "target not found" result.
How could you track someone who barely existed in reality?
The same logic applied to the Foundation's remote execution of reality benders in Achilles' Heel. They needed satellite positioning to send the corresponding wireless signal and activate the bomb chip implanted in the Mobile Task Force member's skull.
But right now, the Foundation's satellites couldn't lock onto Aeolus's location—where would they send the signal?
A global indiscriminate broadcast?
Unfortunately, the Foundation's satellites didn't have signal transmitters powerful enough for that.
Even if the Foundation somehow managed to send a global signal, there was still the question of whether the bomb chip in Aeolus's skull could receive it.
After understanding the principle behind Aeolus's resistance to remote execution, Luoshu still wasn't entirely reassured.
"But you can't maintain an inverse distortion state forever, right? The moment you drop it, they'll find you. Where exactly is that bomb implanted? Let me see if I can remove it for you."
Aeolus pointed to the back of his head.
Pushing aside the hair in that spot revealed a coin-sized bald patch—the exact location where the bomb chip was implanted.
Luoshu pressed his hand against the spot and activated his Mechanical Animation ability.
The bomb chip was activated.
Self-destruct signal receiver!
Self-destruct detonator!
Done!
"Problem solved. We'll find a chance to remove the chip later and eliminate the risk for good."
While Aeolus's situation was resolved, "God" was grinding his teeth in frustration.
According to feedback from Area-13, the Foundation's satellites couldn't lock onto Aeolus—the remote execution had failed!
"God's" face had been thoroughly slapped by Luoshu today.
After nearly twenty hours of effort, they had achieved nothing and even stirred up diplomatic trouble.
By now, Tajikistan's military had surrounded the airport, ready to engage the "terrorists" who had destroyed the terminal.