The Shadowstrike team gathered around a holographic map projected from Cipher's wrist console. A ring of green iced-blue traced the Arctic gulf where their target floated. The freighter Leviathan sat somewhere beneath the swirling gray storm clouds. Shadow tapped coordinates on the display. "No mistake: this is our target."
Jade studied the hologram, flicking a strand of hair from her eyes. "According to satellite recon, it's refitted under deck for lab work. Should be crawling with guards." She frowned. "Does anyone else feel off? This never gets any easier."
Shadow surveyed the faces lit by the hologram's glow. Aside from Marcus grumbling a remark about foggy weather, everyone nodded grimly. Even now, they treated every mission as if it could be their last. Ingrid stepped closer. "Everyone double-check your gear. Expect heavy resistance and something else…"
"Illusions?" Marcus asked quietly, his voice low in the dim compartment.
Ingrid leveled him with a sharp look. "Don't test it. The intel says their upgraded serum can project phantoms directly into your mind. Make you question reality. Stick close and cover each other. Clear on signals?"
The crew moved like clockwork. Marcus secured his combat knife with a heavy clang. Eve zipped the last pocket of her pack, loading a tranquilizer pistol and extra medical vials. Jack was already tinkering with his drone's comm unit, humming about code echoes. The sense of restless anticipation was palpable – no one doubted how dangerous psychological warfare could be.
A low hum came through Shadow's earpiece. Captain Pierce's voice crackled in. "Shadow," she ordered, "you'll deploy via submersible on approach. Nearest harbor is off-grid. Infiltrate undetected."
Shadow relayed orders swiftly. The plan: sneak beneath the hull via diver suit, set breaching charges on the hull vents, then ascend into the ship. "It's still dark enough outside, but a storm's brewing. Use it."
Silence fell. As night deepened, the team dressed head to toe. Jack strapped on thermal optics; Jade double-checked the wires on her grappling rifle. Shadow handed Eve an ampoule. "Sleep agent?" she asked.
"Countermeasure, if we get a dose of their serum," Shadow replied. Eve tucked it carefully into her vest. Even in nightmares, being prepared for a mind-warping toxin was cold comfort.
Under the iron-gray dawn, the Leviathan loomed like a ghost ship on the horizon. Shadow gave the nod, and they slipped into the claustrophobic cockpit of a mini-submersible. The world above vanished as they submerged.
Beneath the waterline, the silhouettes of icebergs drifted past small portholes. Jack guided the craft, muscles tense at every sonar blip. Then a shockwave rattled the metal plates. An electric hum filled the cockpit – the enemy had detected them.
Alarmed, Ingrid barked orders. "We're detected! Switch to silent running."
Jack's eyes widened as he cut the engines. The sub's hull groaned but the sound faded. Outside, sonar pulses from a patrol boat gleamed through the dark.
"We'll have to approach on foot," Jack whispered, voice taut. "At 0300 hours, they change shifts on deck. We move then."
Shadow's mind raced. If Project Helix was real, maybe skull-cracking fights wouldn't be his greatest challenge. A deeper threat lurked – a traitor in the midst. Ever since Prague, Shadow couldn't shake the feeling of eyes on them from the inside. One of their own might be feeding intel to Mirage's handlers. He recalled Eve's strange look during the briefing — no, he shook it off. Trust was fragile, but breaking it now would shatter everything.
The sub's hatch popped open underwater near the hull. Cold water flooded in as Marcus and Jade slipped out first, their rocket-gloves igniting mini-thrusts. Shadow followed.
They landed on the slick steel deck under a curtain of rain. The Leviathan towered before them in silhouette, a dark shape cutting through night. Shadow raised his night-vision goggles. Through his lens, a maze of shipping containers and looming cranes came to life in green monochrome.
"Go slow," Ingrid murmured over comms. "Keep to the shadows."
The team moved silently. Jade launched her grappling bolt onto a higher platform. "Up here," she whispered. One by one, they climbed through steel latticework, rain obscuring their outlines.
Halfway across, the deck lights blinked on. Beams of light swept the metal expanse, catching the team in a strobe of headlights. Shadow froze. As the lights passed, he saw it – a pair of gray-blue eyes staring from within a control cabin.
"Targets spotted!" a voice hissed with a heavy accent. Machines groaned and boots crunched on the steel. The storm's wind snuffed out some lights, but a guard's shout cut through the dark.
Shadow nodded. The hide-and-seek was over. The job began.