Shadow Of Kingscity

Rescued...Then Taken

Mara slipped out from her hiding spot and moved deeper into the warehouse, keeping low as she ducked behind stacks of dusty boxes. Her breathing was uneven. Her palms were sweating. It was clear someone had entered this place, and the men inside were not planning to let the intruder leave.

A voice boomed across the dim warehouse.

“Hello, whoever you are. Come out quietly. We will not hurt you. We know you stepped in here by mistake. But if we drag you out ourselves, your death will be very painful.”

The mocking tone carried through the metal walls and crawled down Mara’s spine. Her legs felt weak. She knew that if they caught her, there would be no talking her way out.

Before she could plan her next move, the heavy entrance door screeched open. The metallic sound echoed loud and sharp, stopping the men in their tracks. They turned as one, rifles raised.

Bright light poured into the warehouse. Ethan stepped inside with a faint sigh, almost bored, as his eyes scanned the room. All black-ops gear, all ex-militant posture. He had already cleared the guards outside, and he looked like someone who had not broken a sweat doing it.

One guard stepped forward with his rifle pointed straight at Ethan’s chest.

“Who are you?”

Ethan raised both hands in a lazy mock surrender.

“Nobody. I just came to pick up something of mine.”

The guard smirked.

“Since you walked in like you own this place, I am sure your maker will not mind if I send you back to him.”

He pulled the trigger.

Ethan moved first.

In one sharp burst of speed, he dashed forward, grabbed the rifle, and pushed the muzzle upward. The shot fired into the ceiling. Before the guard could blink, Ethan pulled the pistol from his waist and emptied the clip into the man’s stomach. The guard dropped, and the others opened fire instantly.

Bullets tore across the warehouse. Ethan used the man’s falling body as a shield, pushing forward as he fired at three others who were exposed. They went down fast. The remaining men spread out, raining bullets toward his position.

Ethan dove behind a stack of metal crates, moving with the kind of sharp rhythm that only came from years of Ghost missions. A pistol against machine guns should have been hopeless, but he moved like someone who had survived worse.

He darted out in a blur, rolling, sliding, shooting with precise bursts. One man tried sneaking up behind him, thinking he had the upper hand. Too bad. Ethan spun before the man could even steady his aim. One shot to the leg made him fall, and Ethan ended it with a clean round to the head.

Gunfire echoed everywhere. The metal walls carried every sound like thunder.

Mara heard it all from behind the box she hid under. She was frozen in place, too terrified to breathe, let alone peek out. She had no idea what was happening, only that death was walking around the warehouse, and somehow it was on her side.

Someone had been watching everything from a CCTV feed. The small office high above the warehouse floor gave a perfect view of the chaos. The watcher leaned closer to the monitor and froze the moment he recognized the man cutting through the guards below.

He grabbed his phone and called his boss immediately.

Back at the Vancroft mansion, Michael glanced at his ringing phone. The moment he answered, the urgent and shaky voice on the other end made his gut tighten.

“What do you mean 404 is at the warehouse?” Michael asked, already standing.

“I am certain, boss,” the voice replied. “And as I am talking to you, he already wiped half of our men.”

Michael felt a cold wave settle over him.

“What is Ethan doing in my warehouse? He does not pick fights. And I am sure I have no business with his brother.”

Michael knew better than anyone what Ethan could do. He had once been Ethan’s handler, back when the Ghost Elite still controlled him. Agent 404. A name only a handful of people in the world could say without shaking. Ethan himself never knew who he really worked for. That was the Elite’s rule. Take the mission. Ask nothing.

Michael rubbed his forehead.

“Someone must have sent him. But that should be impossible. He quit a month ago.”

Quit. As if anyone could simply leave the Ghost Elite alive. Ethan had been one of the rare five who managed it without chains around his neck afterward.

Something was definitely wrong.

He called his men back.

“Tell the boys to cease fire. Ask Ethan what he wants. Do not fight him. If this goes on, he will kill everyone in that place.”

Inside the warehouse, a voice echoed from above.

“404,” it called out loud.

It came from the man who had been watching the CCTV feed. David. Codename 100. Another Ghost Elite member. He knew Ethan, even though Ethan had never seen his face before.

The moment Ethan heard his code name, he stopped moving and waited. He did not lower his guard, but he listened.

“We do not know why you are here or if you were sent to wipe us out,” David said. His voice was steady. “But we want to hear you out and avoid more killing.”

Ethan chuckled once.

“You must be a smooth talker. Tell your men to come out in the open and toss their guns. And you show your face. Only then will I believe you.”

David did not argue. He gave his men a sharp signal. One by one, they came out of hiding and dropped their guns. David stepped forward where Ethan could see him clearly.

This guy knows who I am, Ethan thought. And he thinks I am here on a mission. I need to get Mara and leave before she sees more than she can handle.

When the last weapon hit the floor, Ethan finally stepped out. He faced David calmly.

“What do you want?” David asked carefully.

“A friend of mine wandered in here by mistake,” Ethan replied. “I came to get her.”

“Who is this friend?” David asked, trying to sound harmless, like he was talking to a wild animal he did not want to provoke.

“Mara!” Ethan called out.

His voice echoed. Mara’s knees shook, but she forced herself to step out from behind the crates. Her whole body was trembling. The men stared, surprised that all this trouble had been because of a woman.

“We do not want trouble,” David said quickly. “We will let you both go. Call it a misunderstanding.”

Ethan still had questions in his eyes, but Mara was right beside him, pale and shaking. He could not risk exposing his identity. He took her hand gently and led her out of the warehouse.

The moment they disappeared through the doors, David exhaled and called Michael again.

“They are gone.”

Michael sat back in his chair.

404. A dangerous machine built for killing. Only three people in the world could stand a chance against him. His master, 001, and his two partners, 403 and 405. All of them had left the organization long ago. But even ghosts cast long shadows, and the Elite always found a way to pull them back in.

If Ethan’s brother was missing and the Ghost were involved, then the city was about to get messy.

Michael sighed. At least the warehouse was no longer a bloodbath. He decided to go to Ethan’s shop later and return the ring.

Outside, Mara was still shaking so hard she could barely walk.

“My car is across the road,” she whispered.

“Are you okay?” Ethan asked, trying to steady her.

“I will be fine,” she said, though she clearly was not. “404… what does that even mean?”

“It is nothing,” Ethan replied, although the tension in his eyes disagreed.

They stepped forward to cross the street.

A van screeched to a stop.

Masked men jumped out.

Ethan reacted instantly, pulling Mara behind him, but one of the attackers rushed him with enough strength to keep him occupied for a moment. The others grabbed Mara and dragged her into the van then zoomed off leaving one of their own.

“No!” Ethan shouted, throwing the man off him with one explosive uppercut. The attacker crashed to the ground, dazed.

The man recovered just enough to pull a pistol, but Ethan was faster. He twisted the gun from his hand and slammed him to the ground, knocking him out cold.

A message notification lit up the man’s phone.

Ethan picked it up.

If you want her alive, stop searching for your brother, Agent 404.

Ethan’s jaw clenched. His eyes darkened.

He dragged the unconscious attacker, tossed him into Mara’s car, and slid into the driver’s seat.

If they wanted to play games, fine.

He was done running.

His next move was simple.

Find out who took her.

And make them talk.