The warehouse was a fortress.
Nestled in the industrial maze of South London, it looked like just another converted depot. But Shepherd's scans told a different story — one of reinforced concrete, lead-lined walls, quantum lock servers, and an armored bay door that hadn't been opened in over a decade.
"Looks quiet," Roman said, peeking through a pair of binoculars. "Too quiet. This is the part where something blows up."
"Not if we're smart," Tej replied, tapping on his tablet. "I've hacked their perimeter. We've got a ten-minute blackout window on their cameras and auto-turrets."
"And after ten minutes?" Han asked.
"After ten minutes," Tej said, "we hope we're not still here."
Dom looked around the group. "You all know what's at stake. Shaw's got Letty. He's building something that can change the world if we let him finish it. This is our shot."
Shepherd stood off to the side with Lockdown's remote tether clipped to his wrist. He didn't say much. But his mind was racing. The energy signatures in the warehouse weren't just exotic — they were familiar. Some of the same harmonics he'd encountered near the AllSpark back on Earth-1.
He had no proof yet, but something told him Shaw's tech supplier wasn't from this world. And that made this mission personal.
The crew split into teams.
Dom, Brian, and Shepherd would breach the side wall using a mini-tunnel bore Tej had borrowed from MI6.
Roman and Tej would loop to the roof and cut comms.
Gisele and Han would disable the electric perimeter and provide extraction.
Everything went according to plan — until they entered the vault room.
Inside were crates labeled with military serials, half-assembled drones, magnetic drive engines, and a centerpiece: a compact fusion core housed in black titanium. Dom reached for it — and the lights snapped on.
Shaw's voice echoed through hidden speakers. "Toretto. Always on time."
Then the roof exploded.
Cables dropped, and Shaw's crew descended like vultures — black-clad, armored, fast. Letty was among them, her face unreadable as she fired a shot near Dom's feet to pin him.
Brian tackled one of the soldiers. Roman and Tej ducked as suppressive fire lit up the gantries. Gisele rolled across the floor, narrowly dodging a falling beam.
Shepherd's eyes flashed blue as he tapped the Lockdown tether.
"Online."
From outside, the custom vehicle roared through a side alley and launched into the warehouse with perfect timing. Shepherd caught the fusion pulse rifle from the glovebox mid-air and used the car as cover to press forward.
"Suppressing right side!" he called out, laying down clean bursts of energy fire — non-lethal, but potent.
Dom charged at Shaw. Their fists met like colliding planets. But the fight was short. Shaw wasn't here to win — just delay. He threw a smoke pellet and disappeared with the fusion core, Letty covering his escape.
They were gone in sixty seconds.
Later, in the underground garage, bruised and furious, the crew regrouped.
"We had it," Brian said. "We were right there."
"He knew we were coming," Gisele muttered.
Tej nodded grimly. "Only way that happens is if he's got access to military intel."
"Or something better," Shepherd added. He stood beside Lockdown, who was repairing minor damage. "That fusion core was built with materials not from this world."
"You sure?" Dom asked.
"I don't guess about tech," Shepherd replied. "Shaw might be working with a supplier even the government doesn't know about."
"Something off-books?" Han asked.
"Something off-Earth."
The room fell silent.
Dom didn't ask for more. "Then we find out what it is and end it."
Two days later, they had a lead.
Interpol picked up chatter about a weapons convoy moving through downtown London. Shaw's name came up — and so did Letty's. It was a trap. Everyone knew it. But it was one they were ready to spring.
The team armed up.
Brian locked and loaded. Tej rigged EMPs to the cars. Han and Gisele suited up in armored bikes. Roman complained, but still geared up with the rest.
And Shepherd — he linked Lockdown's systems into their comms, creating an encrypted battlefield network that let them coordinate in real time.
The plan was simple: intercept the convoy before it reached the chunnel.
But nothing went as planned.
When the team intercepted the convoy, Shaw's real weapon emerged — a custom-built flip car, wedge-shaped and bulletproof, capable of launching police cruisers into the air like toys.
Roman screamed as his borrowed Mustang was tossed thirty feet into the air.
"Okay, that is not street legal!"
Brian weaved through traffic, trying to box Shaw in. Dom chased Letty, refusing to let her go again. Shepherd followed the convoy in Lockdown, scanning the enemy vehicle's architecture.
It was laced with alloy he recognized. The same alien composite he'd seen in Transformium back on Earth-1.
"Confirmed," Shepherd muttered. "This isn't from here."
Suddenly, Letty swerved into Dom's car, slamming him off-course. They collided again under an overpass, metal screeching. Dom refused to fight her.
"Letty," he shouted. "It's me!"
She didn't flinch.
She fired a round that barely missed his head — then flipped her car around and vanished.
Dom cursed and slammed the wheel.
Up ahead, Shepherd saw Shaw's flip car lining up to launch another interceptor truck. He accelerated, came up beside it, and yanked the custom tether device off his wrist. With one toss, it latched to the enemy vehicle and Lockdown went to work.
Within seconds, the flip car's systems began to fail — its hydraulics buckled, and it veered sideways, crashing against the median wall.
But Shaw was already gone.
Back at base, Dom punched a wall.
"We keep losing ground."
"No," Shepherd said. "We're closing in. Next time, he won't get away."
Dom turned to him. "You said Shaw's tech wasn't from here. Could it be… from your world?"
"Possibly. Maybe even stolen from the same suppliers I've seen meddling in other universes."
Dom raised an eyebrow. "You gonna tell me the truth about you one day?"
"Maybe. When it matters."
"Fair enough."
That night, Dom sat alone, looking at an old photo of Letty.
Shepherd approached. "She's in there. I saw it."
Dom nodded. "That's what keeps me going."
Shepherd looked up. "What if this goes bigger than just Shaw?"
Dom met his eyes. "Then we hit harder."
And the engines kept revving in the dark.