Convoy (4)

Jin stood up straight, the wind cutting into his face as they traversed at insane speed. He shielded his eyes, almost blinded by the intense wind pressure.

Even standing got difficult as the wind almost pushed him off of the carrier, only his strength as a Cypher let him stay standing.

"God damn it," he cursed, feeling the carrier accelerate even further.

"It's 330 kilometers per hour. You guys barely have ten minutes left, and even that is doubtful," Thirteen informed him through the earpiece. Despite his efforts, his voice betrayed a note of strain.

"Fuck… should I go all out?" Jin muttered to himself.

The moment he asked this, Thirteen cut him off in anger. "Don't you dare do that, it's not worth it!" he shouted from the control room, making Anna look at him with raised eyebrows, but he couldn't care less.

"Tsk…" Jin clicked his tongue in frustration as he looked ahead. The wind was getting too strong for him to stand straight.

While he tried his best to remain on his feet, Silas was not as strong and was struggling to avoid falling off. Grasping the edge of the carrier, Silas was slowly but steadily climbing forward.

"You're going to fall that way. Don't try to get into the seat of the car. I'll try to slow the convoy!" shouted Jin into his earpiece. The wind pressure made his voice barely audible.

"I— c— he— ou—" Silas's response was equally fragmented, the roaring wind and the ever-increasing speed of the convoy making communication nearly impossible.

'This goddamn job,' Jin cursed before his muscles tensed with intense electric currents running through them.

This was one of the few tricks that Jin had developed during his years of training, honing his ability to create new techniques, something that most Cyphers had to do.

One of these was Voltage Vines, and now he utilized Electric Empowerment.

The technique allowed him to envelop his body in lightning currents, granting him increased physical strength. With this, he was faster and stronger.

Thanks to the technique, his back straightened once more as if the wind's pressure ceased to affect him. Standing tall, he walked confidently on the back of the carrier, looking down into the pit of the vehicle.

With his body still engulfed in electric currents, he shaped the electricity near his hand into the form of a claw. The claw crackled around his hand as he crouched down confidently.

'Let's get you guys out of your cute little shell,' Jin chuckled, anticipating the havoc he was about to wreak on the two Genesis soldiers in the driver's seat.

His claw struck down on the top of the car, instantly piercing it.

"What the hell?!" screamed the driver, nearly losing control of the speeding carrier in his panic.

The claws pierced even further.

"Wanna come out of your shell?" Jin asked, his voice barely audible over the roaring wind.

But he got an answer to his question anyway as he ripped into the metal with full force. Using the power of his lightning, he tore the roof off cleanly, leaving the two Genesis workers staring at him in terror.

"Terrorist Cypher freak!" screamed the Genesis worker in terror, swiftly reaching for the gun in his glove box.

As he opened it, he wasn't able to retrieve the weapon. His neck tightened, and his breathing became difficult.

The driver could do nothing other than stare at his coworker in terror as Jin's hand grasped his neck.

"Can't—breathe—"

Jin's grip remained firm as he lifted the worker from his seat.

The seatbelt held momentarily, but with one powerful yank, Jin ripped him out, the seatbelt snapping, and the worker's body instantly going limp.

Even amid the roaring wind as they sped down the streets at over 340 km per hour, the sound of breaking bones was unmistakable in the driving pit.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT?!" screamed the driver, horrified, witnessing his coworker's body being tossed out with a single hand as Jin jumped into the pit.

Taking the seat, Jin sat comfortably beside the Genesis worker.

"I don't want to kill you... so please, kindly stop this carrier," Jin asked honestly.

He did not want to claim another life needlessly.

With a loud gulp, the driver slowed down the carrier. From 340 km per hour, the carrier gradually decelerated before coming to a complete stop.

As a result, the cars managed to catch up to the carrier. The yellow team leader stopped his car right beside the carrier while the red car continued to speed through the streets.

Their next target was the middle carrier, the same one Silas was trying to stop.

"Please, open the back of the carrier," Jin asked.

The driver pressed buttons on a holographic screen that appeared in the middle of the carrier. As it materialized, Jin aimed his electric claws at the driver's neck.

"Slowly... I don't want to hurt you, just don't do anything sudden," Jin warned.

"...the same way you didn't hurt my friend?" the driver inquired, tears welling in his eyes.

"I had no other choice... and I'll have to do the same if you continue to waste my time," Jin reluctantly threatened.

'Just do it, you dumbass. I really don't want to kill anymore.'

The driver remained silent, pressing a few more buttons slowly under Jin's threat. The back of the carrier opened up, revealing crates of Cyphon in the rear.

The leader of the yellow team stepped out of his car and walked up to the back. They swiftly removed the Cyphon crates, rushing back to their car with the stolen loot.

"Okay... thank you for your cooperation. Please leave the car," Jin asked the driver, still reluctant to kill him.

The driver silently unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door of the carrier, leaving it entirely.

'Sorry that you had to go through this…' Jin didn't say it out loud, but he felt a pang of guilt for what he had to do. However, he couldn't stop, not now.

Switching to the driver's seat, Jin grasped the wheel of the carrier. The holographic screen appeared before him.

"Squad leader, are you done?" Jin called out, his voice steady.

He didn't remember the squad leader's name, even if it had been told to him. Names were becoming increasingly forgettable for him, deemed unimportant amidst the chaos.

"We're done, Jin. We took every crate of Cyphon. What are you going to do next?" the squad leader asked.

"I'm going after Silas with the carrier. Get out of here," Jin instructed, his voice firm as he stomped on the accelerator.

His carrier sped up to maximum speed, but after the stop, there was little chance of catching up to the carrier Silas was trying to break into.

"Silas, what's your status?" Jin asked through the open channel for the operation.

"I'm in. I broke into the carrier. Don't worry, the Red team is packing up the loot. We're almost done here," Silas informed him, only to be interrupted by Anna.

"Not quite. Five mercs are on their way from the Ninth District. And worse, one is coming from the Second," she said, her voice tense.

Then Thirteen spoke up, his tone grave. "Jin... the merc from the Second District is a Number."

Jin froze, as did the rest of the team.

"A Number, here?!" Natalie muttered in disbelief, her hands shaking as she gripped the wheel.

"Which one?" Jin asked, his tone laced with hidden rage.

"Number Nine..." Thirteen murmured, the strain in his voice more evident than ever.

"This operation is done. Everybody falls back and disappears from the radars. Anna will try to hide our signals," Natalie ordered, getting up hurriedly from her high sniper position.

"I'm staying. Everyone else gets back. I'll try to get Silas!" Jin said. Before Thirteen could protest, the call was cut.

Slamming on the accelerator, he pushed the carrier to its limits.

"A Number, after all these years..." Jin muttered to himself, his grip tightening around the wheel.

"I'm going to rip out that mechanical spine of yours!"