Location: Tavara – Safehouse Omega, Outskirts of Velmont City
The storm had moved on, but its residue lingered in the air. Inside the dimly lit safehouse—more bunker than home—everyone sat in a circle, tension thick in the silence. Damien stood at the window, watching the distant skyline as if reading its movements.
Nora, nursing a bruised arm, leaned against a filing cabinet. Zina and Logan sat across from each other, their weapons dismantled for maintenance on the table between them. No one spoke for several minutes. The hum of a distant generator was the only sound.
"We're running low on time," Damien finally said, voice sharp but measured. "Kael's already mobilizing. That breach wasn't his first move—it was his warning."
Logan, eyes tired but alert, nodded. "Then what's next? What's our counterstrike?"
Zina glanced at Damien. "We could pull the Aegis Protocol. Activate all the deep-cover allies who've gone dark. Some are exiled. Some retired. But all loyal."
Damien didn't hesitate. "Do it. Bring them in."
---
Location: Tavara – Serpent Directive HQ, Underground War Room
Kael stared at the massive tactical map, red lines spreading like veins across Tavara. His elite officers stood stiff, awaiting orders. But Kael was silent, lost in thought.
"They're going to pull the Aegis Protocol," his aide said.
Kael raised a brow. "Good. Let them gather their ghosts. It'll make their destruction all the more spectacular."
He turned, eyes gleaming with something more than hatred—obsession. "Damien thinks he's winning. He doesn't realize that I don't need to defeat him in the field. I just need to isolate him from what he protects."
---
Location: Safehouse Omega – Later That Night
The silence was shattered by the arrival of a black transport vehicle. Logan rose first, rifle slung but hand ready. Damien approached the door slowly, verifying three biometric pings.
It opened to reveal two figures. One was General Navarro—retired but feared in global intelligence circles. The other, a tech specialist known only as Echo, wore a sleek suit with glowing digital cuffs.
"Long time, Damien," Navarro said gruffly.
"Too long," Damien replied, offering a nod.
Echo, a woman with sharp eyes and a scar running across her right cheek, smiled. "Looks like you finally decided to use your emergency tokens. We're here for the endgame, aren't we?"
Nora stepped forward. "We need more than brute force. We need intel on Project Dominion."
Echo's smile faded. "Then you'll need to plug into the Citadel Vault."
Zina froze. "You mean the off-grid server deep in the Yaltara Desert? That vault hasn't been accessed in over a decade."
Navarro added, "And the last person who tried went insane. That vault isn't just guarded—it's alive."
Damien turned to Nora. "We'll go there."
She frowned. "Just us?"
"No," Damien said quietly. "We take the ghosts. All of them."
---
Location: Unknown – An Observer Watches
In a room wreathed in candlelight and advanced surveillance screens, an old man whispered to himself, watching both Damien's and Kael's moves.
"The game begins again. History repeats, only bloodier."
Behind him, a masked figure knelt. "Shall we interfere?"
The old man tapped a chess piece on the table—a black knight.
"Not yet. Let them exhaust their pieces first."