The energy bolt shattered the concrete beside Matteo's head, somewhere he couldn't see. He pressed himself against the facility's outer wall, Anastasia's hand tight in his, while chaos erupted around them.

  "Contact rear!" Izumi's voice crackled through his communicator. "They've got us flanked!"

  What had started as a clean extraction was turning into a nightmare. The guards inside the facility had been the easy part; the reinforcements waiting outside were killing them.

  "How many?" he shouted to Izumi.

  "Too fucking many!" came the reply. "At least two squads, maybe more. They're pushing us toward the water."

  Samira materialized beside him, her scout suit's camouflage flickering. "We've got problems. Evan took one in the arm. Jules is helping him, but he's bleeding pretty bad." Her voice was tight. "And one of Izumi's teams... they're not responding."

  Team Two had been providing overwatch from the surrounding buildings. If they'd gone silent...

  "We need to move," Matteo said. "If they've got snipers, staying here makes us easier targets."

  The facility's outer wall provided cover from one direction, but it also trapped them. Energy bolts continued to rain down from elevated positions, forcing them to stay low.

  "Izumi, what's the status on extraction?"

  "Valkyries are taking fire. One's down, engine took a direct hit. The other two are mobile but we're going to have to fight our way out."

  Matteo looked around the corner of the building. The industrial district stretched before them, a maze of warehouses and shipping containers that led toward downtown Kharun Bay. It would be dangerous, but it was better than staying pinned down.

  "Change of plans," he said into his comm. "We're walking out of here. Fighting withdrawal through the city. Everyone who can move, move now."

  "Copy that," Izumi replied. "My teams will provide covering fire. Get to safety."

  Matteo grabbed Anastasia's hand. "Stay close. This is going to get messy."

  They broke from cover in a rush, sprinting across open ground while energy bolts turned the snow around them to steam.

  The first warehouse provided temporary shelter, but Matteo could already hear boots pounding through the snow behind them. Their pursuers weren't giving up.

  "Through there," Anastasia pointed to a loading dock that led deeper into the industrial maze. "We can use the buildings for cover."

  They ran through shipping containers stacked three high, creating artificial canyons, perfect for ambushes but also perfect for losing pursuit. Energy blasts echoed off metal walls, the sound coming from everywhere at once. Matteo couldn't tell if the shots were behind them or waiting up ahead.

  "Matteo!" shouted Sarah. "Evan's hurt bad. We need to stop the bleeding."

  They ducked into the shadow of a crane, where Jules was applying pressure to a wound in Evan's upper arm. Blood had soaked through his armor's undersuit, but he was conscious.

  "It's not that bad," Evan said through gritted teeth. "Just hurts like hell."

  "You're losing too much blood," Jules said. "We need medical supplies."

  "And you need armor," Jules added, looking at Anastasia. He pulled a compact case from his pack. "Can't have you running around in prisoner clothes."

  He pulled out a medium armor set, all level 32. Plates locked into position, power cells activated, and environmental seals hissed as they pressurized.

  Jules handed Anastasia an energy blaster once the armor was sealed. She dropped the power cell, checked the charge, and snapped it back into place before flicking the safety off and on in one smooth motion.

  The sound of approaching voices made the decision for them. They couldn't stay here.

  They emerged from the industrial district into the neon chaos of downtown Kharun Bay. The snow had turned to slush on the streets, where steam rose from manholes and the smell of frying food mixed with diesel exhaust filled the air.

  The contrast was jarring. Soviet-era apartment blocks loomed beside sleek glass towers that screamed new money. Chinese characters in blazing neon competed with Cyrillic signs for space above doorways that promised everything from legitimate restaurants to services that definitely weren't.

  "Stay close," Matteo whispered, leading them from doorway to doorway. "Keep to the shadows."

  They moved through the urban maze. Past a noodle shop where the owner peered through steamed windows at the armed figures in the street. Past a karaoke bar where drunken voices sang in three different languages.

  The silence stretched. No pursuit, no energy bolts. Just the sound of their boots on wet pavement and Evan's labored breathing.

  Maybe they'd lost them. He held his breath, hoping.

  A burst of concrete dust stung Matteo’s cheek as a sniper round missed him by an inch. He dove sideways, pulling Anastasia with him as another energy bolt sizzled through the space where his chest had been.

  "Sniper!" Samira's voice was sharp. "High ground, northeast!"

  They scrambled for cover behind a delivery truck as more shots rained down from somewhere above.

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  "Where's the shooter?" Jules demanded, pressing himself against the truck's rear panel.

  "Can't tell." Samira's scout suit shimmered as she tried to get a better angle.

  Another energy bolt punched through the truck's engine block, sending up a geyser of steam and coolant fluid.

  "We need to move," Matteo said. "Before they get a clean shot."

  "Where?" Sarah's voice was tight. "They've got the high ground and we're stuck in the open."

  Anastasia pointed to a neon-lit entrance across the street. Red characters blazed above a doorway where well-dressed men in expensive coats were hurrying inside, clearly seeking shelter from the violence erupting around them.

  "There. We can get through the building."

  "What is that place?"

  "Does it matter?" Another energy bolt shattered the truck's windshield. "Move!"

  They sprinted across the slush-covered street. Behind them, energy bolts sparked off the pavement and shattered storefront windows as the sniper tried to track their movement.

  The doorway led into what was unmistakably some kind of high-end entertainment establishment. Red velvet, crystal chandeliers, and the kind of atmosphere that came with privacy and expensive drinks. Several men in tailored suits looked up in alarm as a group of armed, blood-covered figures crashed through their evening.

  "Emergency!" Matteo shouted, not slowing down. "Police business!"

  It wasn't technically true, but the lie got them through the main room without anyone trying to stop them. Behind them, shouts erupted as their pursuers burst through the same entrance, bringing the firefight inside.

  Energy bolts lit up the interior like a laser light show. Expensive liquor bottles exploded in showers of glass and alcohol. Well-dressed customers dove for cover behind overturned tables while scantily clad hostesses scattered in all directions, their evening of expensive entertainment turning into a war zone. Someone screamed in Mandarin while another voice shouted orders in Russian.

  "Back exit!" Anastasia pointed toward a hallway lined with doors that definitely weren't meant for public access.

  They crashed through what appeared to be private rooms where activities that weren't exactly legal were being conducted in comfortable secrecy. More shouts, more panic, more naked people diving for cover as energy weapons fire chewed through walls and furniture.

  The rear exit led into an alley that reeked of garbage and piss. The storm had intensified again, creating a wall of white that made it almost impossible to see more than a few meters ahead.

  "How's Evan holding up?" Matteo asked.

  "Still bleeding, but the pressure bandage is working," Jules replied. "He needs real medical attention soon though."

  "I'm fine," Evan said weakly. "Just keep moving."

  They emerged into a different part of the city entirely. Here, traditional Russian architecture stood crowded against newer Chinese construction, a chaotic blend that suggested money changed hands quickly and without concern for planning regulations.

  Neon signs in a chaotic jumble of languages advertised restaurants, massage parlors, and electronics shops.

  That's when the energy bolts started raining down again.

  "They found us!" Sarah shouted.

  "How the fuck did they track us so quickly?" Jules demanded.

  Matteo looked around desperately. They were in a small plaza surrounded by apartment buildings, completely exposed. No cover except for a few parked cars and a fountain that had been converted into some kind of memorial.

  "Fire escape!" Samira pointed to a building that rose six stories above them. "We need height!"

  They ran for the ladder as energy bolts turned the air around them into a light show. The metal rungs were slippery with ice and snow, but they climbed as fast as they could with wounded and exhausted people.

  Behind them, boots rang on the ladder as their pursuers followed.

  The rooftop provided a momentary break and a view of Kharun Bay spread out below them. The city stretched toward the harbor, a grid of lights and shadows where legitimate business and shadow economy existed in uneasy partnership.

  Matteo could see the industrial district where they'd started, smoke rising from what might have been the facility they'd just escaped. In the distance, the harbor lights reflected off black water, and beyond that, darkness.

  "We're trapped up here," Jules said, stating the obvious.

  "Maybe not for long," Anastasia said, her voice carrying a strange note.

  That's when they heard a low rumble from the southeast, growing steadily louder. Through the storm, lights appeared on the horizon, beyond the city.

  "What the hell is that?" Samira asked.

  The rumble became a roar. Matteo looked up, his eyes widening as the sky filled with aircraft. Military helicopters flew in tight formation, their spotlights slicing through the storm and turning night into day. And there were more behind them; trucks and armored vehicles, troop transports flooding the roads.

  "The UER," Anastasia breathed. "Those are Chinese National Army markings."

  The helicopters swept over the industrial district, their searchlights revealing the scope of the firefight that had been raging below. Some broke off toward the facility they'd just escaped, while others began establishing a perimeter around the entire area.

  On the streets below, panic erupted. People ran for cover as military vehicles poured into the city from multiple directions. The shadow economy that had operated in Kharun Bay's gray spaces was suddenly illuminated by military spotlights and the harsh reality of UER authority.

  "Movement on the stairs!" One of their pursuers had reached the rooftop access.

  Matteo spun, energy rifle raised, but the shot that dropped the man came from Anastasia's sidearm. She moved to the edge of the roof and looked down.

  "More coming," she said calmly. "But I don't think they're our biggest problem anymore."

  More aircraft appeared from the north - this time with different markings. Russian UER forces, moving in coordination with the Chinese units.

  The sound of boots on metal stairs grew louder, but it was quickly drowned out by something else entirely.

  From above came a new sound. The distinctive whine of a spacecraft landing. Eight sleek dropships cut through the storm, their hulls bearing the logo of the Interstellar Frontier Company.

  "No fucking way," Evan said weakly.

  The dropships settled into landing patterns around the city center, disgorging armed figures in IFC armor.

  A larger craft appeared behind the dropships. A sleek Genesis Platform shuttle that landed in what had been a market square, its ramp lowering to reveal a figure that made Matteo's heart skip a beat.

  That shuttle… no way.

  Karen Stevens walked down the ramp like she owned the city, flanked by operatives in full combat gear. Even at this distance, even through the storm, there was no mistaking her billowing white hair or the way everyone around her seemed to snap to attention.

  "Well," Anastasia said, "I think your extraction just got a lot more complicated."

  Aircraft spotlights illuminated the rooftop around them. Below, the sound of combat began to fade as UER forces established control over the industrial district.

  "Echo Team, this is IFC Control. Please identify your position for extraction."

  He looked at his team, at Anastasia, whom they'd risked everything to save. Blood on their armor, exhaustion in their eyes, but all of them alive.

  "IFC Control, this is Echo Team Leader. We're on a rooftop approximately six blocks northeast of the target facility. We have wounded and civilians requiring immediate medical attention."

  "Copy that, Echo Team. Extraction inbound."

  Through the storm, a medical evacuation craft approached their position, its engines stirring the snow into spirals of white. Behind it, the lights of Kharun Bay flickered as UER forces continued their sweep through the city.

  "Think we're in trouble?" Samira asked.

  Matteo watched Karen Stevens' command shuttle in the distance, thinking about stolen shuttles and unauthorized operations and the kind of conversation that was waiting for him when this was over.

  "Probably," he said.

  Anastasia squeezed his hand as the evacuation craft settled onto the rooftop, its crew chief gesturing for them to board.

  “Thank you,” she said, her voice tight, like she wasn’t sure if she wanted to cry or shoot something.

  Matteo caught a glimpse of the city below. IFC forces were already securing the very evidence his team had been unable to. Checkpoints were going up, locking down the entire district. He realized with a jolt that his reckless, desperate rescue mission had just become the perfect pretext. Whatever Karen had been planning, he had just kicked the hornet's nest for her, giving her the chaos she needed to move in and seize everything.

  Some things were worth the risk.

  Even if Dad was going to kill him.