Chapter 18: The Fifth Floor
Adrian lunged.
The obsidian table cracked under his boots as he launched himself at Voss.
Voss didn't flinch.
He stepped aside—smooth, practiced, like he had seen this exact move a thousand times in simulation.
Adrian's knife sliced through empty air.
The hooded figure moved faster than human reflex should allow.
Black blade flashed—curved, serrated, catching the candlelight in a wicked arc.
Adrian twisted mid-air—barely.
The blade grazed his ribs—hot line of fire tearing through uniform and skin.
He landed in a roll, came up swinging, blood already soaking his side.
Luca fired.
Two suppressed shots—crack-crack—punching through the smoke.
The German council member jerked violently. Blood bloomed across his chest like spilled ink. He toppled backward, chair splintering under his weight.
[TARGET ELIMINATED]
[Execution: Firearm – Assisted]
[Progress to Level 3: +12%]
The French woman hissed through clenched teeth.
She flung her hand forward.
A small glass vial left her fingers.
It shattered at Adrian's feet.
Green smoke erupted—thick, choking, burning the lungs and eyes like acid.
Luca coughed violently, staggering sideways, vision blurring as the gas clawed at his throat.
Adrian didn't slow.
The red glow in his eyes burned brighter—consuming the edges of the smoke, sharpening every detail even as the world tried to drown him in it.
[Override risk: 95%]
The voice screamed—raw, desperate, tearing through his skull.
"STOP! ADRIAN—STOP!"
He ignored it.
Knife slashed again.
The hooded figure parried—metal rang like a struck bell.
Adrian pressed the attack, blade locking against blade.
The figure's hood fell back in the struggle.
A woman—late thirties, sharp features, silver streak running through black hair.
Eyes cold.
Familiar.
Adrian froze.
She smiled—thin, cruel.
"Hello, little brother."
Adrian's breath caught in his throat.
The knife slipped an inch.
Luca shouted through the smoke: "Adrian—behind you!"
The Asian council member moved—silent, deadly. Hand raised. Small device glinted.
Blue light flared.
Adrian's body jerked as if struck by lightning—electric current ripping through every nerve.
Muscles locked.
He dropped to one knee, knife clattering against the table.
The system flashed red:
[EXTERNAL COUNTERMEASURE DETECTED]
[System override attempt blocked – 30 seconds]
[Warning: Loss of control imminent]
The voice—Elena's voice—whimpered inside him.
"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"
Voss stepped forward, unruffled.
"Enough."
He raised a hand.
The blue light intensified.
Adrian's body seized again.
He screamed—raw, animal, echoing off marble and gold.
Liora—the woman—knelt in front of him.
Her knife rested against his throat—steady, almost gentle.
"You don't remember me," she said softly.
"But I remember you."
Adrian's voice rasped through clenched teeth.
"Sister…"
She smiled—sad, broken.
"My name is Liora."
"You were six. I was eight. Luca let us run that night."
Adrian's eyes widened.
Luca—still coughing from the smoke—raised his pistol with shaking hands.
"Liora?"
She looked at him.
"You spared us," she said. "Thank you."
Luca's hand shook.
"I thought you were dead."
"I was supposed to be," she said. "The Directorate found us again. Took me. Trained me. Made me one of them."
She pressed the blade harder—enough to draw a thin line of blood that trickled down Adrian's neck.
Adrian didn't move.
The red glow pulsed.
[Override risk: 98%]
Voss spoke.
"The prototype is almost complete. Ninety days—or less. He'll become the perfect weapon."
Liora looked at Adrian.
"Or he'll die trying to fight it."
Adrian's hand twitched.
He forced words out—each one a struggle.
"Why?"
Liora's eyes softened—just for a second.
"Because I couldn't let them take you too."
She leaned closer.
Whispered so only he could hear.
"Fight it, little brother. Or let it win."
The blue light surged again.
Adrian's body seized once more.
He screamed.
The countdown ticked.
[Override in 71 hours, 59 minutes]
Liora stepped back.
Guards closed in—rifles raised, boots pounding marble.
Luca pulled Adrian up—half-dragging him.
"We have to go."
Adrian nodded—barely.
They ran.
Through smoke.
Through guards.
Through blood.
Out the way they came.
Into the tunnels.
Into the dark.
Behind them, Voss's voice echoed down the corridor.
"He'll be back."
Adrian clutched the small black drive Liora had pressed into his hand just before the guards pulled her away.
The red glow flickered.
And the voice—faint now—whispered one last time:
"Find me…"
They ran.
Into the night.
Into whatever was left.