Ashes of Our Flame
by RapwizzyDebaron
Episode 26: "Into the Dragon's Den"
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The warehouse stood like a corpse at the edge of the city.
Rusty, wide, and silent, it crouched behind layers of neglect and shadows. From the outside, it looked like just another abandoned building—but inside, it pulsed with hidden life.
Armed guards patrolled the perimeter in silent pairs, their boots crunching the gravel like bones. Security lights flickered overhead. Drones buzzed softly in the misty air.
Kara stared through the binoculars from a rooftop across the street.
"He's in there," she murmured.
Tessa's voice crackled through the comms. "Confirmed. Multiple heat signatures. Top floor has an isolated signature—likely Marcus."
Adrian stepped back from the edge, jaw clenched. "This ends tonight."
Ronan loaded his rifle with a calm that came from years of blood and war. "No backup. No second chances."
Kara nodded. "We hit hard. We hit fast. No survivors."
Adrian checked the chamber of his sidearm. "We take him alive."
Kara blinked. "Why?"
"Because dead, he's a martyr. Alive, he's a monster exposed."
For a moment, the only sound was the whisper of rain.
Then Ronan smirked. "I've got charges on the north gate. We go in through the side loading bay. Tessa, you're our eyes."
"Copy that," Tessa replied. "I'll jam their comms in 3… 2… now."
---
They moved like shadows through the storm.
The loading bay door creaked as it slid open. The inside was a mix of metal crates, flickering lights, and tension.
Adrian led the way, silenced pistol raised. Kara followed close behind, her dagger gleaming like lightning in the dark. Ronan covered their rear, eyes scanning every corner.
Two guards appeared around the bend.
One bullet.
One body.
No sound.
Kara disabled the second with brutal efficiency—one twist, one drop.
They climbed the staircase to the top floor, avoiding cameras, stepping over greed-soaked floors.
Tessa guided them through the earpieces. "Turn left. One guard outside the office. Armed."
Adrian crept forward.
The man guarding the office barely had time to reach for his weapon before Kara was on him. She slammed his head into the wall, and he collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
Adrian pushed the door open slowly.
And there he was.
Marcus Vale.
Sitting calmly in a leather chair, hands folded, eyes burning with the cold fire of a man who believed he still owned the world.
He didn't flinch.
He didn't speak.
He smiled.
Adrian stepped inside, gun raised. "It's over."
Marcus tilted his head. "Is it? Because to me, it feels like the beginning."
Kara entered, eyes scanning the room.
Ronan secured the hallway behind them.
Marcus stood slowly, no fear in his movements.
"Your mother used to beg me to spare you," he said, voice smooth like poison. "She thought you were good. She was wrong."
Adrian's jaw tightened. "You killed her."
Marcus shrugged. "I gave her a choice. She chose loyalty. A foolish trait."
Adrian took a step forward. "You've hurt too many. Burned too many lives. It ends here."
Marcus's smile faltered for the first time.
"I built this city. I gave it order. And you—" he pointed at Adrian, voice rising— "you want chaos. You think truth saves people? No. Power does."
Kara stepped beside Adrian. "Then let the world see the truth. Let them see the monster you really are."
Adrian pulled a small camera from his jacket and placed it on the desk, facing Marcus.
"We're live," he said.
Marcus's face twisted.
Adrian turned to Kara. "Get the files."
She nodded and moved to the cabinet in the corner.
Marcus lunged.
Too fast.
Adrian reacted, but not fast enough—Marcus knocked the gun from his hand and tackled him across the room.
The two men crashed into the shelves, documents and blood flying.
Kara shouted, drawing her weapon, but Marcus used Adrian as a shield.
"Do it!" Adrian grunted. "Take the shot!"
Kara hesitated—then Ronan stormed in, rifle aimed.
Marcus roared and shoved Adrian into Kara.
Ronan fired.
The bullet hit Marcus in the leg.
He screamed and crumpled to the floor.
Blood pooled under him as he clawed for something beneath his desk—a detonator.
Adrian dove forward, slamming his fist into Marcus's face, then prying the device from his hand.
Breathless silence.
Then Kara opened the cabinet and found what they came for—ledgers, documents, files of blackmail, recordings of confessions.
Evidence that could collapse an empire.
Adrian dragged Marcus to his feet, blood dripping from his temple.
"We walk out with you," Adrian growled, "or not at all."
---
The footage streamed across every screen in the city.
Marcus Vale, bleeding and bound, screaming obscenities while the world watched.
The testimonies.
The documents.
The truth.
It was undeniable.
Within hours, the government was forced to act.
Marcus was taken into federal custody—his assets frozen, his allies scattering like rats from a sinking ship.
The people flooded the streets—not in fear, but in celebration.
Banners waved.
Fists raised.
For the first time in years, the city breathed.
---
Back at the safehouse, Adrian sat on the balcony, watching the skyline.
Kara joined him, two cups of tea in hand.
"We did it," she said softly.
Adrian nodded. "For now."
"You don't believe it's over?"
He stared at the night. "There's always another flame."
She leaned her head on his shoulder. "Then we'll fight them. Together."
Tessa burst out of the kitchen with a grin. "We're trending in seventeen countries."
Ronan grunted from the couch. "I'm trending in back pain."
They laughed, the sound unfamiliar but welcome.
It wasn't peace.
But it was
hope.
And for the first time, Adrian felt the fire inside him burn for something other than revenge.
It burned for tomorrow.
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To be continued…
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