Novels by Mc - Xav

Ethan dumped Valerius’s unconscious body on the floor of the new, temporary safe house. It was a dusty warehouse. Linda walked in. She had a cut on her forehead but was otherwise unharmed. She looked at Valerius, then at Ethan. “You captured him.” “Kael’s team?” Ethan asked. “They arrived just in time. We lost the clinic, but we’re intact.” She looked at him with a new respect. “You really expected to see him.” “He taught me everything I know.” Ethan poured a bucket of cold water on Valerius’s face. The man sputtered awake. He coughed, looking around the warehouse. His eyes landed on Ethan. Hatred burned in them. “You lost,” Ethan said simply. “This is a setback. Nothing more,” Valerius spat. “Where is the main Ares facility? The real one.” Valerius laughed. “You think I’ll tell you?” Linda stepped forward. She held a syringe. “You will. This is actually stimulating the nerves. It lowers everything. Makes the subject very… talkative. It’s found in your own research.” Valeri

Ethan stood frozen. The image of Linda’s clinic burning was seared into his mind.Kael grabbed his arm. “Sir! We have to go! The EMP!”Valerius smiled. “What will it be, my boy? Your new protector? Or your futile revenge?”Ethan’s eyes met Valerius’s. The confusion and anger coalesced into a single, sharp point of focus. He made a decision.“Kael,” Ethan said, his voice low. “Get to the extraction point. Now.”“But sir—”“That’s an order!”Kael hesitated, then nodded. He turned and ran, his men covering his retreat.Valerius looked pleased. “A wise choice. Now, drop your weapon.”Ethan slowly bent down to place his gun on the floor. But he never took his eyes off Valerius. “You misunderstood. I’m not surrendering.”“Then she dies.”“You’re a strategist, Valerius. You taught me that. You taught me to always have a counter-move.”“And what is yours?” Valerius sneered.“Linda isn’t at the clinic.”On the monitor, the feed of the burning clinic flickered. A new group of figures emerged fr

The chemical complex was a fortress. Fences, guards, sniper nests.Ethan and his team observed from the distance. They had a plan. A frontal assault would be suicidal. They would take advantage of the chaos."The key is the main reactor," Ethan pointed to the diagram. "We cause a controlled overload. It will produce an EMP pulse, taking out their power and electronics. In the darkness and pandemonium, we strike.""And Valerius?" Kael asked."He'll come. He can't resist. He'll have to see me. To brag."They came in under the cover of a storm. Rain pounded against their approach, concealing them. Ethan and Kael snuck in through a waste pipe.Inside, the plant was a maze of pipes and catwalks. They moved towards the central reactor core.They reached the control room. Two technicians were inside. Ethan slipped in silently. He incapacitated them before they could scream. “Override the cooling sequence,” Ethan ordered Kael. “Initiate a core overload. Set the timer for ten minutes.” Kael

The data that were retrieved in the raid were a goldmine. Linda worked her way through it on her screens."This is bigger than I was thinking," she said. "The Ares Project is finished. They have built a primary processing facility. It's here." She pointed on a map. "The deactivated Grey Corporation chemical plant.""Heavily guarded?" Ethan asked."The worst. But not the worst problem." She brought up a file. It was encrypted with the highest level of security. "This file has 'VALERIUS' on it. Ring a bell?"Ethan froze. The name struck him in the stomach. A face flashed before his eyes. A firm, kindly face. A man smiling, clapping him on the back. A profound, abiding sense of trust and camaraderie. Then the same face, twisted in betrayal on Kalgar Pass."Valerius," Ethan breathed. "My tutor. He… he was there.""Information available indicates he wasn't there just for pleasure," Linda said, speaking in a firm tone. "He's the architect. Director of the whole Syndicate."The room fell sil

One week later, Ethan stood in Linda’s underground clinic. It was more like a command center. Monitors showed blueprints and security feeds.Kael stood beside him. “The target is a research lab on the outskirts. Level 3 security. They’re holding the primary blood samples there.”Ethan studied the plans. His mind processed the information like a machine. “Here. The ventilation system. It’s the weak point.”“That’s a tight fit, sir.”“It’s our way in.”Linda approached. “The blood samples are key. Without them, their research is set back months. But the data servers are the real prize. They’re in the central server room. Get the data, and we learn everything.”Ethan nodded. “Kael, you have the team ready?”“Five men. The best. They remember you. They’re ready.”“Good. We move tonight.”Under the cover of darkness, two vans pulled up near an unmarked industrial building. Ethan, Kael, and five other operatives moved like shadows.“Comms check,” Ethan said into his headset. His voice was c

Kael's face cracked into a fierce grin. "Aye, sir! They've been anticipating this." He immediately produced a small, locked comms device and began tapping in a coded message.Ethan faced Linda. "This Ares Project. Where is it?"We don't know where," Linda admitted. "It's a mobile laboratory. It moves to be avoided. But we do know who runs it. A scientist named Dr. Aris.""Yes, can we find him?""Yes, possibly," Kael said, looking up from his device. "We have some of our old contacts in their supply chain. We can apply pressure. Get them to spill."."Good," Ethan answered. His head was clear now, his mind focused on one thing. "We need a plan. We can't just rush in. ""First, we get you to my main clinic," Linda insisted. "Your body is still recovering. The brainwashing they used is strong. Your memories can be unstable. Your body can turn against you at the wrong moment."Ethan folded his hand in. He did experience deep tiredness in his bones. "How long will that take?" "No more than