Novels by ChaaaN

“I need you to bridge the two red leads,” Anastasia’s voice crackled through the comms, cold and precise, stripping away the tension of the moment with sheer professional utility. “Do not cut the blue wire. If you cut the blue, the surge will fry the local node and trigger a hard lockdown. We’ll be buried in steel before we even get the door to crack.”Silas wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his tactical glove, his eyes squinting against the dim glow of his work light. “Red leads. Bridge them. And if I spark the bypass, does the camera loop hold?”“The loop will hold for exactly one hundred and eighty seconds. If we aren’t inside the service lift by then, we’re dead in the water,” she replied. Her voice dropped a register, betraying a rare flicker of nerves. “Silas, the encryption is shifting. I’m seeing Riven’s signature protocol in the background. He knows something is poking at his firewall.”Silas didn't hesitate. He stripped the insulation from the cables with hi

"Steady enough to snap your neck if you’re playing me, Anastasia," Silas muttered, his thumb resting near the safety of his sidearm."If I were playing you, we’d be three miles away, watching this place burn from a safe distance," she snapped, pulling a sleek, matte-black handheld device from her coat. She didn't look at him; her eyes were locked on the security camera swiveling toward the loading bay entrance. "The junction box is behind the third row of crates. Move."Silas didn't waste time on a retort. He lunged into the shadows of the shipping containers, his footsteps silent on the damp concrete. The air here was heavy with the smell of brine, diesel, and the underlying, sickening ozone scent of the gala’s high-powered electrical grid. He reached the junction box and ripped the housing cover off, the metal groaning in protest."Talk to me," Silas hissed into his comms, his voice low and jagged. "I'm looking at the relay. It’s a mess of fiber-optics and copper. How much juice do

"Smart is what got us into this mess, Anastasia," Silas growled, his eyes scanning the perimeter of the Grand Jakarta Hotel. The building loomed like a monolithic tombstone against the humid night sky. "Get your hand off me. We have twenty minutes before the guard shift rotates at the loading bay."Anastasia didn't move. Her fingers tightened on his collar, her knuckles white. "If you charge through that front lobby with your gun drawn, you aren't a hero. You’re a statistic. We have one shot to get inside the service corridors, and if you trip the silent alarm, Riven moves Dorian to a secondary location before we even hit the freight elevator."Silas stared at her, his pulse drumming against his eardrums. "Do you have the bypass codes or not?"She reached into her coat, pulling out a small, unassuming black drive. "I have them. But they’re encrypted with a rolling algorithm. I need you to hold the comms interference at the junction box while I mirror the gate’s signal. Are you steady

“Silas! Stop for one damn second!”The shout echoed through the rain-slicked labyrinth of shipping containers, but Silas didn’t slow his pace. His boots crunched over gravel and glass, his mind a jagged loop of Dorian’s bloodied face and the cold, mocking vibrato of Riven’s voice.A heavy hand caught his shoulder, spinning him around. He reached for his holster by instinct, but Anastasia was faster, her palm slamming against his chest to pin him against a rusted wall. She was pale, her breath coming in shallow hitches, but her eyes were like flints.“You go in there like this, you’re just delivering him a second body,” she hissed.“He’s got Dorian, Anastasia! He’s probably breaking his fingers right now because I didn’t move fast enough!” Silas roared, shoving her hand away. “I’m not sitting around making a plan while my partner bleeds out!”“I’m not asking you to wait! I’m asking you to be smart!” She winced, clutching her bandaged side, but didn't back down. “Look at yourself. You’r

“No, Celine,” Silas said, his gaze fixed on the dark, rainy horizon. “I think the harvest is just beginning.”The sirens were a dissonant choir against the rhythm of the rain. Silas felt the adrenaline begin to ebb, replaced by a bone-deep ache that made every breath feel like a chore. He tightened his grip on Celine’s hand as a pair of medics rushed toward them, their flashlights cutting through the gloom.“She’s okay,” Silas shouted over the wind, though his voice cracked. “Just get her into the ambulance. Shock, maybe some bruising. Just... just take care of her.”“Silas, wait,” Celine grabbed his sleeve, her eyes red-rimmed and frantic. “Where are you going? You’re bleeding, too.”“I’m fine, kid. I have to finish this,” Silas said, gently prying her fingers loose. “Dorian! Get her to the hospital. Stay with her. Don’t let anyone through that door who isn’t wearing a uniform you recognize.”Dorian trotted over, his face pale under the flickering halogen lights. “I’ve got her, Silas

The rain didn’t just fall in Tanjung Priok; it hammered against the rusted shipping containers like a million tiny frantic fists. Silas stood in the shadow of a salt-crusted crane, his tactical vest heavy over his damp clothes. Beside him, Dorian was checking his sidearm, his usual smirk replaced by a grim, tight-lipped expression."Silas, the SWAT commander is asking for a green light," Dorian whispered, his voice barely audible over the downpour. "But he’s not happy about the lack of a warrant. He says if this goes south, your head is the first on the block.""My head has been on the block since I met Anastasia," Silas said, his eyes fixed on the corrugated metal of Warehouse 14. "Is the perimeter set?""Yeah, they’re in position. Back exits are blocked. Thermal is showing three heat signatures in the center of the floor, but there’s too much interference from the metal to get a clear read," Dorian replied."Three? Riven, the guard, and Celine," Silas muttered. "Dorian, if things ge