Shadows Among Us

The safehouse felt colder somehow, despite the hum of the city outside. Neon lights bled through the cracked windows, casting fractured patterns on the concrete floor — a reminder that even light could be broken.

Aeris stood at the center of the room, eyes scanning a digital grid of their contacts, each node flickering like a fragile heartbeat.

Kael leaned against the wall, arms crossed, muscles tense as a predator on edge.

Vex paced slowly, their visor dimmed but their gaze sharp, flicking through data streams and communications logs.

"We've narrowed it down to a handful," Aeris said, voice steady but tight. "Someone with access to our network… someone close."

Kael's jaw tightened. "Close enough to betray us."

Vex stopped pacing, voice low. "We can't trust anyone fully — not until we find out who."

Suddenly, the holo-screen flashed — a new message, encrypted but urgent.

Aeris tapped rapidly, fingers flying. The message revealed a meeting point — a trap or a lead, they couldn't tell.

Kael's eyes darkened. "We split up. Aeris and I take the west side, Vex covers the east."

Aeris nodded, adrenaline coiling tight. "And we stay connected. No surprises."

Outside, the rain had started again, soft at first but growing into a relentless curtain, blurring the lines between friend and foe, truth and deception.

In the city of shadows, trust was the deadliest game of all.