2025-03-24 21:38:47The safe house was quiet, save for the constant hum of the decryption software running on Carter’s system. Malcolm paced the room, arms crossed.
Zeke sat at a workstation, fingers flying over the keyboard. “Alright, so, uh… good news? We’re about 30% into the decryption process.”
Malcolm narrowed his eyes. “And the bad news?”
Carter sighed, rubbing her temples. “The Syndicate’s encryption is more advanced than we thought. The files are fragmented. The deeper we go, the more resistance we hit.”
Malcolm stopped pacing. “Meaning?”
Carter looked at the screen, her brows furrowed. “Meaning they have a failsafe built in. If we hit the wrong sequence… the data might wipe itself completely.”
Malcolm exhaled sharply. “So we only get one shot at this.”
Zeke nodded grimly. “Yup. And we’re already on borrowed time.”
Outside, the city was waking up, but Malcolm knew the hunt was still on.
He turned to Carter. “What’s in the files so far?”
She clicked a few keys, pulling up a fragmented document. Lines of corrupted text flashed across the screen.
Then, one phrase stood out—highlighted in red.
Project: Helios
Malcolm’s stomach tightened.
He had heard that name before. Years ago. Before everything fell apart.
“What the hell is Project Helios?” Zeke muttered.
Carter frowned. “I don’t know yet, but—”
A loud beep interrupted her.
The decryption progress jumped to 50%… then stalled.
Zeke’s eyes widened. “Uh, guys? That’s not me.”
The screen flickered. The code began rewriting itself.
Carter’s fingers flew across the keyboard. “They’re trying to lock us out.”
Malcolm’s jaw clenched. The Syndicate had found them.
A voice crackled through the speakers—distorted, mechanical.
“Malcolm. You’re in over your head.”
Malcolm stepped forward. “And you are?”
A pause. Then, a cold chuckle.
“You already know who I am.”
The line cut out.
And then—
The power went out.
Total darkness.
“Backup generators should kick in,” Carter muttered, reaching for her tablet.
A deep thud echoed from above.
Then another.
Zeke whispered, “Uh… is that—”
Another thud. Closer this time.
Malcolm pulled his gun. “They found us.”
The safe house had security, but if the Syndicate had breached the upper level, they wouldn’t have long.
Carter moved to the server console. “We can’t leave yet. If I don’t finish the decryption, the files will be lost.”
Malcolm turned to Zeke. “How fast can we get out?”
Zeke gulped. “You want the safe way or the insanely reckless way?”
Malcolm didn’t hesitate. “Reckless.”
Zeke sighed, pulling up a blueprint. “There’s an emergency exit—an old subway access tunnel beneath us. But it’s flooded, and also, uh… might collapse.”
A loud bang came from the entrance.
Carter’s fingers flew across the keys. “Decryption at 80%. I just need a few more minutes!”
Malcolm turned to Zeke. “Get the tunnel open. Now.”
Zeke scrambled to a hatch on the floor, prying it open with a crowbar. A metal ladder led down into dark, stagnant water.
Malcolm aimed his gun toward the sealed entrance, where the pounding had turned into cutting sounds—someone was slicing through the door.
“Carter—now.”
“90%—almost there!”
The cutting stopped.
A beat of silence.
Then—
Boom.
The door exploded inward, blinding light and smoke flooding the room.
Carter ripped the drive from the console. “Got it!”
Malcolm grabbed her wrist and shoved her toward the hatch. “Go!”
Carter climbed down first, splashing into the waist-high water below.
Zeke followed, slipping halfway and cursing.
Malcolm fired off three shots, forcing the first armored intruder to duck.
Then he jumped.
The tunnel was narrow, damp, and collapsing in places. The only light came from Carter’s wrist display.
Zeke was already half-running, half-wading ahead. “I told you this was a bad idea!”
Malcolm ignored him, checking the data drive in Carter’s grip. “Is it safe?”
Carter nodded. “Encrypted, but intact.”
Behind them, voices shouted in the distance.
“They’re following us,” Carter hissed.
Zeke panted. “Yeah, no kidding!”
The tunnel sloped downward, leading toward a sealed maintenance hatch.
Zeke paled. “That thing’s been rusted shut for years.”
Malcolm handed him his gun. “Then start shooting.”
Zeke blinked. “Wait, what?”
Malcolm aimed at the lock. BANG. BANG.
The hatch shuddered but held.
The voices behind them grew louder.
Malcolm reloaded. “Again.”
Carter grabbed a nearby pipe. “Or—”
She swung it at the lock.
CRACK.
The hatch snapped open—revealing a long drop into the river below.
Zeke groaned. “You have got to be kidding me.”
“Jump,” Malcolm ordered.
Zeke hesitated. “What if—”
A bullet whizzed past his ear.
He jumped.
Carter went next.
Malcolm turned, fired a final shot, then dived into the dark water below.
They surfaced, gasping.
Zeke flailed. “Oh my god—this is disgusting—”
Carter paddled toward the riverbank, shivering. “We need to move before they track us.”
Malcolm dragged himself onto solid ground, soaking wet but still holding the data drive.
He exhaled.
They had escaped.
Barely.
Carter looked at him. “Now what?”
Malcolm stared at the drive.
They had answers now. Or at least the start of them.
And the Syndicate wouldn’t stop until they got it back.
Malcolm’s jaw tightened.
“Now?” He pocketed the drive, eyes burning with determination.
“Now we take them down.”
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