Nowhere Is Safe

The city streets blurred past as Alex, Evelyn, and Jax ran, their breaths ragged.

Jax panted, "Okay… I officially regret helping you."

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "You always say that."

Behind them, the Hunter hadn't pursued—yet. But Alex knew it wouldn't stop.

"We need somewhere safe," he said.

Evelyn nodded. "Rigs has a backup hideout. Underground, untraceable."

Jax groaned. "You mean the rat-infested bunker? Great. Can't wait."

They turned a corner—and froze.

A police drone hovered overhead.

Alex grabbed Evelyn's arm. "We need to stay out of sight."

Jax sighed. "Oh, now we're worried about the law?"

Evelyn dragged him into a dark alley. The drone scanned the street, then flew off.

Jax exhaled. "Okay, so just to summarize: we're being hunted by a killer robot, chased by mystery assassins, and now the cops might be on us?"

Alex groaned. "Yeah. That about covers it."

The Safehouse

Rigs wasn't thrilled to see them.

"Seriously?" he groaned, leading them into a dimly lit bunker beneath an abandoned warehouse. "Every time you show up, my life expectancy drops."

Evelyn smirked. "Good to see you too."

Rigs sighed and sat at his desk. "Alright, spill. What nightmare are we dealing with now?"

Jax pulled up the files. "Something called Project Paradox. Some very powerful people are after it—and after Alex."

Rigs frowned. "Paradox? That sounds familiar…" He started typing. "Give me a few minutes."

Alex exhaled. "Good. We need answers."

But before Rigs could respond—

BANG!

The door slammed open.

A figure stepped inside.

Not the Hunter.

Someone else.

A new threat.

And they were smiling.

"Wow," the stranger said. "Took me forever to track you guys down."

They cracked their knuckles.

"But now? Let's have some fun."