Grimm stared into the barrel of the future. Adrian Kessler's silhouette, bathed in pale moonlight, was an omen made flesh—calm, poised, inevitable.
"Drop your weapons," Kessler said, his tone not a demand but a prophecy. "This doesn't have to end in blood."
Grimm's rifle remained tight in his grip. Around him, Tanya, Bull, and Reyes stood frozen, their breathing sharp in the cold air. They were outnumbered. Surrounded. Behind Kessler, Helix operatives fanned out like wolves, their weapons trained with surgical precision.
"You're still chasing ghosts," Kessler said. "Still clinging to an order that no longer exists."
Grimm took a slow step forward, his gaze unblinking. "You sold us out. You buried your own people to protect your goddamn algorithm."
Kessler's expression didn't change. "I evolved. You stagnated."
"You murdered my team."
Kessler gave a faint nod. "And yet, here you are. Alive. Determined. Predictable. That's why you were removed from the equation—why Phantom marked you obsolete."
"You're not a savior," Tanya growled. "You're a tyrant in a tailored suit."
Kessler turned his gaze to her, mildly amused. "And you, Volkova. Always the rebel. Still thinking in terms of nations and betrayals. The world outgrew your loyalties."
Reyes stepped beside Grimm, holding up a small device—jagged, pulsing with light. "Transmission's still active," he whispered. "I linked it to the uplink node at the outpost. Even if we die, the intel gets out."
Kessler's eyes narrowed. "So that's the game. Expose me."
Grimm tilted his head. "You built a system to erase threats before they happen. We just made you one."
For the first time, Kessler looked displeased.
He raised his hand—and gunfire erupted.
Tanya rolled into cover, her sniper rifle up in a flash. Bull charged forward, hurling a flashbang that burst into a searing white flare. Grimm moved like instinct, dropping two Helix operatives with surgical shots. Reyes dove behind rubble, triggering the first failsafe on his data transmitter.
Chaos.
Kessler fell back behind his escort, barking orders in code. The Helix soldiers advanced, systematic, relentless. It was a tactical slaughterhouse—but the team fought like cornered lions.
Bull's shotgun roared, shredding armor at close range. Tanya picked off enemies with ruthless efficiency, her bullets cutting through helmets like paper. Grimm, center of the storm, was a ghost in motion—here, gone, lethal.
Reyes called out, "The link's holding, but if they hit the relay—"
"We die anyway," Grimm replied grimly.
Kessler's voice cut through the gunfire. "Enough!"
A new figure emerged—taller, bulkier, armored like a walking tank. Kessler's enforcer. Codename: WRAITH.
The giant moved without urgency, as if immune to time. His face was obscured by a full helmet with a mirrored visor that reflected the fire and chaos around him. A modified LMG spun in his hands.
"Target: Mercer," WRAITH growled.
He opened fire.
Grimm barely dodged as bullets shredded the stone beside him. Tanya attempted to flank but was forced back by suppressive fire. Bull engaged head-on, but WRAITH caught him mid-charge and slammed him into a wall like a ragdoll.
Blood sprayed.
"Bull!" Grimm shouted, running to his side.
"I'm good," Bull coughed, teeth gritted, though he was clearly bleeding from the ribs.
WRAITH turned toward them, gun rising again—but Tanya loosed a shot that sparked off his helmet, buying Grimm precious seconds.
Reyes activated the second failsafe. "Link's complete! Uploading now!"
Kessler's voice rang out, desperate now. "Kill the signal!"
WRAITH charged Grimm, dropping his weapon for hand-to-hand. Grimm met him head-on. The two collided in a brutal clash of fists, knees, and elbows—raw, ugly violence. WRAITH was stronger, but Grimm was faster, more precise. He ducked a hammer punch and drove a combat knife into the enforcer's side. Sparks flew—armor plating.
WRAITH retaliated with a headbutt that staggered Grimm. The world tilted. Blood filled his mouth. But he didn't go down.
He couldn't.
"You think you're the future?" Grimm spat, driving his knife again into the enforcer's side. "You're just another piece of someone else's game."
With a roar, he yanked a grenade from WRAITH's belt and rolled back as it exploded point-blank. The shockwave hurled them both apart.
Smoke. Screams. Static.
Tanya dragged Grimm back behind cover. Reyes shouted over the noise, "Signal's out! Transmission confirmed!"
Kessler's expression turned to ice.
"Retreat," he ordered his remaining soldiers. "We're done here."
"No!" Grimm shouted, rising to pursue.
But they were already gone—fading into smoke and shadow, a ghost squad disappearing into the void they'd created.
Silence settled.
Only the crackle of fires remained.
Reyes fell to his knees, exhausted. Tanya checked on Bull, who gave a weak thumbs-up, still breathing. Grimm stood in the ruins of what was supposed to be their last stand.
"They'll know now," Reyes said. "The world. The black sites. Phantom. All of it."
Grimm looked toward the horizon, toward the darkness Kessler had vanished into. "Knowing is just the first battle."
He turned back to his team.
"The war's just begun."