Chapter 21 – No Way Back
🕯️ Underground Safehouse – Sector 7 – 5:11 AM
The map Rin spread across the table wasn't just a blueprint... it was a death sentence.
An underground fortress. Three levels. Security tighter than any military compound. Automated defense systems. Bio-locks. Drone patrols. And at the very bottom... something marked only as:
> "Silo Zero – Restricted – Level Omega."
Daniel ran a shaking hand through his hair.
— "This... This isn't just a facility... it's a tomb. For anyone stupid enough to go in."
Liana leaned over, studying every line, every entrance.
— "Then we don't go in stupid. We go in prepared."
Rin folded her arms. Her amber eyes dark, unreadable.
— "Prepared won't be enough. What's down there... it's not human anymore. Whatever the Syndicate made... whatever they locked away..." She shook her head. "Even Specter was afraid of it."
Daniel snapped.
— "Wait. Hold up. You're telling me... even Specter... the walking nightmare that almost killed us twice... is scared of this?"
Rin's lips curved in a humorless smile.
— "Oh, sweetheart... Specter wasn't designed to fight this thing. He was designed to be a failsafe... in case this thing ever got loose."
Liana's grip tightened around the edge of the table.
— "And now... it's awake."
A long silence. The only sound was the soft hum of the tablet's fan and the ticking of the old wall clock.
Rin pointed to a service tunnel.
— "This. This is our way in. Maintenance shaft C-12. Off the grid. No cameras. But..." she hesitated.
— "But what?" Liana asked.
— "It runs right past the cryo-chambers. If even one unit detects movement..."
Daniel finished for her.
— "It's over."
---
🩸 Meanwhile – Blacksite Silo Zero – Cryo Bay
Inside the icy halls... the silence was broken by soft hissing.
One pod... opened. Steam poured out.
A figure stepped forward. Barefoot. Pale skin. Wires trailing from his spine. His eyes... hollow. Black. No light. No soul.
A voice echoed in his ear, mechanical, merciless:
> "Unit 01. Codename: Revenant Prime. Initiate hunt protocol."
His head tilted, cracking bones as he turned toward a monitor. On the screen: Liana. Daniel. Rin.
A smile. Twisted. Cold.
— "Targets acquired."
---
🔥 Back at the Safehouse
Daniel loaded a fresh magazine into his rifle.
— "So let me get this straight... We sneak into a place designed to kill anyone who thinks about breaking in, bypass an army of cloned assassins, and destroy... what, exactly?"
Rin tossed a USB drive toward him.
— "This. That terminal in Silo Zero contains the master key. The source code that runs the entire Specter program... and every operative tied to Protocol Zero. Destroy it... and you kill them all."
Liana's eyes narrowed.
— "Including Specter?"
Rin's voice dropped.
— "Especially Specter."
For a moment... a flicker of something passed through Liana's face. Doubt? Regret? Or something else...
Daniel noticed it.
— "You... You're hesitating. Why?"
Her fists clenched.
— "Because... if we pull this trigger... there's no going back."
Rin's gaze softened for the first time.
— "There was never going back, Liana."
---
⚠️ Siren Lights – Red Alert
A sudden BEEP. Daniel's tablet lit up.
> "INCOMING – Drone Strike Team – ETA 3 Minutes."
Rin cursed.
— "They found us!"
Liana kicked the table over, grabbed her gear.
— "Move. Now. Split. Rendezvous at point Echo-7."
Daniel checked his sidearm.
— "You ready?"
Rin smirked.
— "Born ready."
— "Then run."
---
💥 Explosion – Safehouse Breached
Walls shattered. Fire roared. Drones swarmed in. Red lasers cut through the smoke. Bullets screamed.
Liana dashed left, taking cover, firing three shots—each clean, precise. One drone exploded.
Daniel vaulted a broken beam, tossed a flashbang—BOOM—two enemies blinded. He dropped them both.
Rin spun mid-air, twin pistols blazing, sliding under gunfire. Her movements were liquid death. Beautiful. Ruthless.
But then—
CRASH.
The wall behind Daniel exploded inward. A figure stepped through the dust. Seven feet tall. Muscles like steel cables. Skin pale as death.
Eyes pitch black.
> "Target: Daniel Morgan. Priority: Terminate."
— "Oh... crap..." Daniel gasped.
---
⚰️ Final Scene – Cliffhanger
Liana sprinted toward Daniel, screaming—
— "Daniel, MOVE—"
But it was too late.
The Revenant Prime grabbed him by the throat. Lifted him clean off the ground. Bones creaked. Daniel kicked. Struggled. Face turning blue.
Liana raised her gun—fired—three shots to the head. Nothing. No effect.
Rin yelled—
— "It won't die! It won't—"
Suddenly—BLACK OUT.
TO BE CONTINUED...