The Spoils of War

As the private jet cruised over Swiss airspace, the system's familiar chime echoed in Surya's mind.

"Mission Accomplished: Berlin Operation Successfully Completed."

"Hidden mission: London Operation Successfully Completed."

A digital interface projected in front of his eyes, displaying the rewards he had earned.

Primary Rewards (Berlin Mission):

Molecular Mimicry – Grants the ability to flawlessly alter physical features, including fingerprints, retina patterns, vocal cords, and even body structure, ensuring undetectable disguises.

Bonus Rewards (London Mission):

High-Grade Safehouse Network – Fully equipped safehouses in major global cities, including Geneva, Hong Kong, and Dubai.

Surya smirked as he absorbed the information. The system never failed to impress. With these upgrades, his mission against the Architect had just gained another layer of efficiency.

"System, integrate all upgrades immediately."

"Integration in progress… Estimated completion: 10 minutes."

Surya exhaled and turned his gaze toward the cockpit. Geneva was just minutes away, and with these new tools at his disposal, the hunt for Alaric—and ultimately the Architect—was about to begin.

Arrival in Geneva

Surya arrived in Geneva with his squad, stepping off a private transport into the cold Swiss air. The mission had to be executed swiftly—before Project Enigma caught wind of his movements.

"System, scan for any movements related to Eclipse or Alaric."

A brief silence, then the system responded.

"Cross-referencing all intelligence feeds. No direct mentions of Alaric. However, an encrypted signal matching Eclipse's frequency was transmitted from a secured location in Geneva's financial district six hours ago. Signal was received by an unidentified node."

Surya's eyes darkened. A blind transmission? That meant Eclipse wasn't just operating in Geneva—it was actively coordinating something.

"What about Alaric? Any personal transactions, movements, or anomalies?"

" "Alaric has initiated a full digital wipe. His credit card logs, transaction history, and any traceable assets have been erased from financial networks. Only a few fragmented records remain, likely due to redundancy in older banking systems."

Viper, the sniper, checked his rifle. "That means he's running. He's either going off-grid completely or preparing for a counterattack."

Surya's eyes flickered with calculation. "We need another way in. System, check Alaric's last remaining financial ties—any secondary accounts, corporate holdings, or assets that haven't been wiped yet."

The system processed for a moment before responding. "One anomalous record remains. A dormant offshore account linked to an investment firm in Zurich. No withdrawals, no transactions—except for a security verification ping two hours ago."

Surya's lips curled into a smile. "He's closing everything, but that account is still alive. Which means it serves a purpose."

Chameleon nodded. "That could be his escape fund or a holding account for a final transaction."

Surya stood, locking eyes with his squad. "Then we make our move. We track that account, and we find out where Alaric is planning to go next. Time to remind him that ghosts can be hunted."

"Change of plans. We're focusing on Alaric first. Then, we move to the financial district."