The Black Fang Ambush

The tension in the air was thick.

Sitting in my underground hideout, I methodically checked the magazine of my Glock 19, making sure each round was properly loaded. Fifteen in the mag, one in the chamber.

A loaded shotgun leaned against the metal workbench, next to the half-finished turret system. The blueprint for my riot armor was spread out on the table, unfinished. I had no more time to work on it.

The Black Fangs were moving.

I'd intercepted one of their radios after killing their men at the security office. They didn't know exactly where I was yet, but they were closing in.

That meant one thing.

I had to hit them before they hit me.

I stepped outside into the cold air, my SUV parked a block away from the subway entrance. The streets were eerily quiet—the calm before the storm.

I adjusted the bulletproof vest under my jacket and pulled on my reinforced combat gloves.

I had two objectives tonight.

✔ Locate their nearest hideout.✔ Kill them before they regroup.

The radio I took was still active, their men calling in locations. I had traced their main gathering spot—an abandoned boxing gym near the city's west side.

I climbed into the armored SUV, turned the key, and the engine rumbled to life.

Time to start hunting.

The gym looked like a rotting corpse.

The neon sign was dead, the windows were boarded up, and the metal door was tagged with spray-painted gang symbols.

I counted four guards outside—two smoking near the entrance, one sitting on a busted-up motorcycle, and another pacing with a sawed-off shotgun.

Inside? Probably more.

I took a deep breath. No hesitation. No fear.

I wasn't here to talk.

I pulled a homemade flashbang from my belt—a modified firecracker filled with magnesium powder and scrap metal.

I struck the fuse and lobbed it over the fence.

BOOM!

The bright flash turned night into day, followed by a thunderous crack.

The guards outside were blinded, stunned, stumbling backward.

I moved.

The first guard barely had time to react before I drove my knife into his throat, slicing through his trachea. Hot blood sprayed over my hand as he collapsed, gasping and twitching.

I yanked the knife free.

The second guy was blinking, disoriented from the blast. I grabbed his wrist, twisting it violently—CRACK!—before jamming my Glock under his chin and pulling the trigger.

BANG!

His head snapped back, brain matter splattering the wall behind him.

The third guy—the one on the motorcycle—was already reaching for his gun.

Too slow.

I grabbed my stun baton, flicked the switch, and slammed it into his ribs.

BZZZT!

He convulsed violently, his screams muffled by the crackling electricity as he collapsed, smoke rising from his twitching body.

The fourth man—the one with the shotgun—finally snapped out of his daze and lifted his weapon.

I dove to the side—

BOOM!

The shotgun blast tore through the air where I had been standing, spraying the pavement with shrapnel.

I rolled behind a concrete pillar, heart pounding.

Idiot. Should've shot me when you had the chance.

I pulled out my Arc Stun Baton, gripping it tightly.

I didn't shoot.

I wanted this one up close.

The moment I heard him reload, I lunged.

Before he could react, I slammed the baton into his gut.

BZZZZT!

The electricity arched through his body, making him seize violently. His shotgun clattered to the ground as he convulsed, eyes rolling back.

I grabbed the back of his head and slammed it into the wall.

CRACK.

His body slumped to the ground, blood pooling beneath his crushed skull.

Four down.

I stepped over the corpses and pushed through the entrance doors of the gym.

The inside was dimly lit, the air thick with cigarette smoke, sweat, and the metallic scent of blood.

A dozen Black Fang members were inside—drinking, talking, counting stacks of cash.

I pulled the pin on a homemade tear gas grenade and tossed it through the door.

PSSSSHHH!

Thick white smoke filled the gym in seconds.

Chaos erupted.

I rushed inside.

The first guy I saw was wheezing, rubbing his eyes.

I put two rounds in his chest—BANG! BANG!—and he crumpled.

Another gang member—a massive guy with a crowbar—charged through the smoke, swinging wildly.

I ducked under his first swing, grabbed his wrist, and jammed my shock gauntlet into his ribs.

BZZT!

The electricity cooked him from the inside out. He let out a gargled scream before I snapped his neck.

More gunfire erupted.

Bullets whizzed past my head, shattering the mirrors lining the gym walls.

I slid behind a weightlifting bench and fired blindly into the smoke.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

One guy screamed, clutching his stomach as he collapsed.

Another tried to run.

I grabbed a metal barbell plate from the ground and hurled it like a discus.

THUNK!

It caved in the back of his skull, sending him sprawling face-first onto the mat.

The smoke was beginning to clear, and I counted three left.

One was crawling toward a shotgun.

I stomped on his wrist, shattering the bones. He screamed.

I grabbed the shotgun before he could, flipped it around, and fired point-blank into his chest.

His body jerked violently, then went still.

The last two were trying to get to the back exit.

I wasn't going to let them.

I grabbed a weighted jump rope from the floor and whipped it around one guy's neck.

He choked, struggling, hands clawing at his throat.

I yanked hard, twisting my body.

His neck snapped like a twig.

The last guy dropped his gun and fell to his knees, hands raised.

"Wait—wait—PLEASE, I GIVE UP—"

I shot him in the face.

The gym was quiet now.

The only sound was the dripping of blood onto the mats.

I stood in the center of the carnage, my breath steady.

Twelve bodies.

I checked my gear.

✔ One magazine left in my Glock.✔ Arc Baton still fully charged.✔ No injuries.

I stepped over the corpses, heading toward the Black Fang stash room.

Inside, I found exactly what I was looking for.

✔ Stacks of cash.✔ Ammunition crates.✔ Military-grade body armor.✔ Blueprints for their next attack.

They had been planning to ambush me at my old apartment.

Good thing I got to them first.

I packed everything I could carry into a duffel bag and walked outside.

The streets were still empty.

The only sign of what had happened was the blood seeping under the gym door.

I climbed into the SUV, started the engine, and drove off.

The Black Fangs weren't finished.

But after tonight?

They'd know exactly who they were dealing with.