A Dangerous Intercept
“I see five drones circling your position,” crackled Vic’s voice in her earpiece. Vic, her partner in the underground resistance known as the Verity Collective, was her only safe line of communication. He was a hacker with a penchant for caffeine and chaos, stationed miles away in a hidden bunker, remotely overwatching her every move.
“What’s the fastest way out?” Alina whispered, crouching low as she heard the faint buzz of the surveillance drones growing louder.
“Fastest? The left zipline,” Vic said. “But HELIXCorp goons will already be waiting at the bottom. Longest? Head straight forward and drop two blocks down to the freight tunnels.”
“Longest sounds safer,” she said, resetting her grip on the briefcase.
“Yeah, except for the shock-hounds patrolling the tunnels. Your pick, supermodel.”
The Chase
Alina drew in a breath, her mind racing as quickly as her pulse. Just as the closest drone veered toward her, she launched herself forward. The high-pitched whirr of drones filled the space as metallic claws extended from the one behind her, aiming to snag her briefcase—or worse, her arm.
The combat boots clanged against the narrow path of the catwalk as she sprinted. Her augmented lenses pinged a warning: an incoming drone on her left. She ducked instinctively, narrowly avoiding its grab, and simultaneously whipped the briefcase over her shoulder like a weapon, smacking the machine out of the sky. It spiraled downwards in a rain of sparks.
“You’ll want to know—” Vic started before backtracking. “Never mind, you’re not gonna like it.”
“Out with it.”
“HELIXCorp mercs just breached the tunnels. I think they know your plan B.”
“Great,” she muttered, veering toward the zipline, her last resort. Her hands found the cable’s mounted handle, and she launched herself into open space. Below her, the city screamed like an endless carnival—all neon chaos and shadowed secrets—but she couldn’t focus on that now. The wind tore at her face as she descended, drones and mercenaries rapidly closing in from all sides. Adrenaline blasted through her veins like fire.
The Betrayal
She landed hard on a rooftop, quickly rolling to her feet. A black-clad soldier blocked her path, their gloved hands clutching an energy-sheathed baton. Without hesitation, Alina twisted out of the way as the baton crackled inches from her ribs and planted a kick that sent the soldier stumbling.
But as she whipped her head around to plan her escape, she froze. There, in the far corner of the rooftop, another figure emerged from the shadows. Her heart sank. It was Elijah—another face of the Verity Collective. Her mentor. Her friend. Or so she’d thought.
“Hand it over, Alina,” Elijah said in his deep, authoritative voice. The second she saw the HELIXCorp logo gleaming subtly from his wristband, the betrayal hit her like a gut punch.
“You,” she barely managed, fury lighting her veins. “You sold us out.”
“It wasn’t personal,” he said, stepping forward. “HELIXCorp makes offers you can’t refuse. Drop the briefcase before it gets ugly.”
“It’s already ugly,” she snarled, before charging him with all the force she could muster.
Escape and Hope
The fight was brutal, a blur of punches, dodges, and shattered rooftop tiles. Alina’s expertise as a fighter was enhanced by years of discipline she’d cultivated modeling under cruel directors who demanded impossible perfection. But Elijah was stronger than he looked, and the briefcase remained a dangerous handicap. She’d have to choose—escape or fight to win.
As a drone closed in, its lights bathing Elijah in a ghostly glow, Alina made her decision. She twisted out of his reach and hurled the briefcase into the city streets below. His eyes widened as he dove after it, leaving Alina just enough time to make her escape. She sprinted toward the edges of the rooftop as sirens roared below.
Vic’s voice finally returned, panicked but hopeful. “I’ve got a location on the briefcase. It’s in the waterway. We can still recover it.”
“Good,” she said, leaping to the next roof. Each step felt like she was running toward a sliver of hope in a city drowning in shadows. “Because I’m not done yet.”
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