⚫ Chapter 5: Shadows Never Sleep
🕯️ Verdale City – Industrial District, 5:13 AM
The city never sleeps... neither do the shadows hunting within it.
Liana's boots pounded against the wet concrete as she and Daniel darted through the maze of abandoned warehouses. Sirens echoed far away — not for them. Not yet.
Her mind was still spinning.
Her father... Elias Morgan. Founder of the Zero Syndicate. The monster hiding behind her childhood memories.
But there was no time to break. No time to process.
Because now... Specter was awake.
---
💀 The Hunt Begins
"Faster, Daniel!" Liana snapped, scanning rooftops, corners, anything that might give away a sniper's position.
Daniel grimaced, breathing hard. "I swear... your definition of cardio... is a war crime."
She ignored the joke. Her instincts were screaming — a feeling honed by years in the shadows. Something was wrong.
A low hum vibrated through the air — almost mechanical. She grabbed Daniel's collar, yanked him back.
— FWOOOM.
A drone missile streaked past where Daniel had been standing — BOOM. It exploded into a fireball, sending debris flying.
"Holy—" Daniel ducked. "He's using drones now?!"
"Specter doesn't play fair," Liana hissed. "He plays to win."
Above them — twin drones zipped in silent formation. Sleek. Military-grade. Thermal scanners blinking.
Liana pulled out a signal jammer, slammed it against the wall. Crackle. The drones glitched, spiraled, and crashed into the rooftop.
But it wouldn't stop him for long.
---
🔥 Unknown Location – Specter's POV
Through a wall of monitors, Specter watched. Silent. Calculating. His breathing was mechanical — filtered through the skull mask fused to his face.
— "Resistance noted," a robotic voice echoed in his earpiece.
— "Adjusting parameters: Lethal Force — Authorized. No Survivors."
His gloved hand moved. A button pressed.
> Command: Deploy Unit-09 – Hunter-Class Operative.
---
💣 Warehouse District – Seconds Later
Liana spun as a metal shutter behind them slammed open — from the dark, a figure emerged.
Massive. Over six-foot-four.
Black tactical armor. Red glowing visor. Arms that looked like they could crush concrete.
"Please tell me that's not what I think it is," Daniel muttered.
"Hunter-Class," Liana confirmed, drawing her weapons. "Military-grade assassin unit. Built for one purpose..."
The machine stepped forward.
"TERMINATE." Its voice was metallic, soulless.
— RATATATATAT.
It opened fire with an auto-cannon. Bullets tore through crates, shattering wood, sending splinters everywhere.
Liana ducked, slid behind a forklift, fired back — ping, ping, ping — the bullets bounced harmlessly off its armor.
Daniel cursed, threw a stun grenade. BOOM — FLASH. The machine staggered — just for a second.
"MOVE!" Liana shouted.
They sprinted. The Hunter stomped after them, its steps shaking the ground.
Suddenly — a metal cable shot from its arm — wrapped around Daniel's leg. He hit the ground hard.
— "DANIEL!" Liana screamed.
She spun, sprinted back. Slid under the machine's legs, slicing the cable with her blade. Sparks flew.
Daniel scrambled free. "Remind me again why I didn't stay retired?!"
The machine pivoted — charged. But Liana was faster. She vaulted onto a shipping container, planted explosives, then dove off.
— BOOOOM.
The explosion ripped through the machine — blew its left arm clean off. Sparks. Fire.
But it was still standing.
"Are you freaking kidding me?!" Daniel yelled.
"Yeah..." Liana loaded her last clip. "They don't build 'em like they used to... they build 'em worse."
---
🩸 Escape or Die
A siren in the distance. Not police. Not emergency.
Daniel's face went pale. "...Do you hear that?"
A low rumble. Engines. Multiple.
Liana peeked out. Black SUVs. No plates. Armed mercs in tactical gear pouring out.
"Specter sent reinforcements," she hissed. "We can't stay."
Daniel checked his ammo. "Out."
She glanced around. No exits. No cover.
Then... her eyes landed on a maintenance hatch. Rusted. Small. Tight.
"Down," she ordered.
"You're kidding."
"Move or die, Daniel."
Together, they pried it open — a vertical shaft into darkness.
"Ladies first," Daniel grimaced.
She kicked him in. "Gentleman my ass."
Then she followed — the hatch slammed shut just as gunfire rained over it.
---
💀 Meanwhile – Specter's Command Center
The handler's voice came over the comms.
— "Targets escaped into Sub-Level Echo. Tracking... compromised. Deploying Phase Two."
Specter didn't react. Didn't speak. Just stared at the screen.
Then he did something strange.
He reached... and pulled a small, worn photo from his pocket.
A photo of a little girl... and a woman. Smiling. A family.
Specter stared at it. Long. Silent.
Then crushed it in his hand.
> "No past. No mercy."
He stood. Armed himself.
— "Prepare the extraction team. I'm finishing this... personally."
---
⚠️ End of Chapter 5
🩸 Next Chapter Preview:
Trapped deep underground, Liana and Daniel stumble upon something hidden for decades — an old Syndicate bunker. But what they find inside... wasn't meant to be found. Files. Experiments. And someone... someone who was never supposed to wake up.