Ch 62: The Hunt Begins

Mira crouched behind the shattered concrete wall, scanning the now-empty meeting point through her rifle's scope. Rhael Varis had escaped. That complicated things.

Her comm unit crackled to life.

"Mira, report. Target status?"

She recognized the voice—her handler for this job, a man who went by Dorian.

"Varis got away," she admitted, keeping her voice even.

A pause. Then, "Unexpected. Proceed with pursuit. He cannot leave the district."

Easier said than done.

Tracking the Target

Mira moved quickly, stepping over the bodies of the two mercenaries who had ambushed her. Their gear was standard but high quality. Professional killers. Not resistance fighters. That meant someone else wanted her dead.

But first, she had a job to finish.

Varis and his lieutenants wouldn't have fled blindly. They had a planned escape route—but where?

She studied the factory grounds. The resistance had set up shop here for months, meaning they had multiple exit strategies.

Then, she saw it—a faint dust trail leading to a nearby tunnel entrance, partially concealed by scrap metal. A vehicle had passed through recently.

Mira smirked. Got you.

Into the Underground

The tunnel was dark and narrow, reinforced with rusted metal beams. It smelled of oil, sweat, and desperation.

She moved fast, her silenced pistol raised. Footsteps echoed ahead—hurried, uneven.

Varis and his people weren't running confidently. They were panicking.

Mira slowed, listening. Her senses sharpened.

Four sets of footsteps. Varis, plus three others.

She advanced, keeping her profile low. Ahead, faint lights flickered—the end of the tunnel.

They were heading for a vehicle.

Not happening.

Ambush in the Dark

Mira positioned herself near a rusted support beam and steadied her pistol.

The moment Varis' group stepped into the light, she fired.

The first shot hit the lead lieutenant in the leg, sending him crashing forward.

Chaos erupted.

One of the others turned, raising a rifle—Mira dropped him with two quick shots to the chest.

Varis dove for cover, shouting orders.

Mira exhaled, moving swiftly. She had one shot at this before they regrouped.

She rushed forward, throwing a smoke grenade into their midst. The tunnel filled with thick, choking vapor.

Varis' remaining bodyguard fired blindly. Mira sidestepped, closing the gap. A quick slash with her knife, and the last man went down.

That left only Varis.

The Final Confrontation

The smoke cleared just enough for Mira to see Varis scrambling toward the vehicle.

She raised her pistol. "Don't."

Varis froze, hands up. His breath was ragged, his face lined with exhaustion. Not a soldier. A leader.

"Who hired you?" he asked.

Mira ignored the question. "Get away from the vehicle."

Varis exhaled, stepping back. "You don't even know why you're here, do you?"

She kept her aim steady. "I know enough."

"Do you?" Varis' eyes were sharp now, studying her. "You're just following orders. Like a good soldier. But ask yourself—who benefits from my death?"

Mira hesitated.

He saw it. "They don't want me dead because I'm dangerous. They want me dead because I know too much. About the war. About the cities beyond the Consortium. About what's coming."

Mira frowned. What's coming?

Varis took another step back. "You have a choice. Kill me and get paid. Or listen, and learn what they don't want you to know."

Mira didn't hesitate.

She pulled the trigger.

One shot.

Varis staggered, eyes widening in shock. A clean bullet hole in his forehead. He slumped backward, dead before he hit the ground.

The silence that followed was absolute.

No final words. No drawn-out moral debates. Just another job completed.

Mira exhaled slowly, lowering her pistol. No hesitation. No regrets.

She quickly searched Varis' body, taking anything of value—a data chip, a few encrypted documents, a weapon she didn't need. Nothing groundbreaking, but she wasn't paid to investigate.

She wiped her prints from the scene, then activated her comm unit.

"Target neutralized."

Dorian's response was immediate. "Understood. Payment will be processed. Exfil point remains the same."

Mira took one last look at Varis' lifeless body.

Then, she turned and walked away.

Another contract. Another kill.

And yet, for some reason, it didn't feel as satisfying as it should have.