The first light of dawn cut through the toxic haze, revealing a convoy of armored government vehicles slithering forward like a steel serpent toward the heart of the abandoned city. The old subway station, a hidden nest of Out Law, was about to be turned into a killing ground.
Colonel Pierce executed his strategy with precision, splitting his forces into three divisions to seal off every possible escape route:
The main assault team: led by the hulking powerhouse Lewis, accompanied by fifty elite soldiers, tasked with punching straight through to the central gathering point. The roar of engines and the overwhelming force of troops had a single purpose, to sow panic and drive Out Law into a desperate retreat through the dark tunnels.
The encirclement units: the remaining two squads spread out across nearby stations, lying in wait within the shadows, fully armed and ready to eliminate anyone who managed to escape the storm of Lewis's assault.
"Remember… this is a purge. Don't let a single rat slip through unless it raises its hands and surrenders."
Pierce's voice echoed through the communication channels of every soldier.
As Lewis's convoy accelerated into engagement range, the area around the subway station fell into an unnatural silence. Only the hollow whistle of wind slipping through the ruins remained, as if Don Isaac and Zenos were already waiting for them in that underground hell.
"Team One, hold position."
Lewis spoke in a low voice, tightening his iron fist as he stood at the main entrance. Behind him, fifty soldiers formed up, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
For a brief moment, both the surface above and the buried ruins below sank into stillness. There was nothing but the sound of breathing and the faint static from communication devices, linking every unit together under the government's command.
"Team Two, moving."
Sophie's voice came through as she led her squad around toward the southern tunnel.
"Team Three, moving as well."
23 responded shortly, his voice cold as ice from the northern entrance.
From a higher vantage point, Lloyd lay hidden within the ruins of a building two miles away, reporting through the scope of his electromagnetic sniper rifle.
"Sniper reporting in… visibility is at its worst due to the dust haze, but the mask sensors are still locking onto targets clearly."
"Command acknowledged. We're closely tracking the positions of all units."
Gareth, seated in front of the monitoring screens inside the command vehicle, issued his orders with sharp precision.
"Once in position, all units are to await further instructions. I repeat… await further instructions. Do not engage under any circumstances."
In the heavy silence before the storm broke, every eye was fixed on the darkness of the old subway station. There was still no sign of movement.
"Team Two in position."
Sophie's voice came through the comms, confirming readiness from the encirclement point.
"Team Three is in position as well."
23 responded briefly, his calm tone carrying an unsettling chill.
The moment the encirclement teams finished reporting in, Gareth, watching from the monitors, wasted no time issuing his command.
"Team Two and Team Three, hold for orders. Team One, begin the assault."
At his signal, Lewis's unit moved immediately. High-intensity thermal lasers sliced into the sealed steel doors of the old subway station. The overwhelming heat melted through the locking mechanisms, the metal glowing, boiling, then snapping apart in seconds. As soon as the way opened, Lewis surged forward with brute force, slamming into the massive door and blasting it wide open with a thunderous crash.
Boom!
The first gate collapsed completely. The assault team pushed forward without hesitation toward the second door, which, unexpectedly, slid open with ease. But the moment it cleared, what greeted them was a chilling emptiness.
Inside what should have been Out Law's fortified stronghold, there was nothing. No people. No weapons. No sign of movement. Only an abandoned subway station, swallowed by darkness and dust, as if no one had set foot there for years.
"What the hell? Did we hit the wrong location? There's no one here!"
Lewis barked in frustration, his voice echoing as he scanned the dimly lit emptiness stretching out before him.
"That's impossible. Maybe they saw this coming and evacuated ahead of time. Check the surrounding area and see what you can find."
Gareth replied over the radio, a hint of unease creeping into his voice.
Lewis moved forward at the head of the formation, ordering his men to spread out and secure the area with caution. The sound of combat boots echoed against the concrete floor, reverberating through the silent corridors as he descended deeper into the station, finally stopping at the lowest level.
"I'm down on the platform now… there's no one here. Not even the wreckage of an old train. Just empty tracks."
Lewis reported, his eyes fixed on the endless darkness stretching into the tunnel ahead.
His heartbeat began to quicken, a strange sense of foreboding tightening in his chest. He immediately tried to reach the remaining personnel.
"What about outside? Any movement?"
He directed the question through the comms to the four officers stationed at the main entrance. But… the only thing that came back was the harsh static of interference.
"Hey! Do you copy? Respond!"
Lewis called out again, his voice beginning to tremble with a mix of anger and unease. But the line remained dead silent, as if those four officers had vanished into the darkness of the Outlands without a trace.
"Loud and clear…"
The voice that cut through the frequency wasn't from any guard. It was a low, chilling tone that sent a shiver through every P-Type operative listening in, especially Colonel Pierce, who sat tense inside the command vehicle beside Gareth.
Zenos stood tall amid the mangled remains of the four soldiers stationed at the entrance. Their bodies had been torn apart, reduced to grotesque fragments scattered across the ground. The cold-blooded mercenary calmly wiped the thick, sticky blood from his machete, taking his time as if there was no urgency at all.
"Appreciate you coming all this way to visit my place… but sorry, I don't remember inviting you."
He ended the transmission with a flick of his hand, cutting the signal without a second thought.
In that very moment, Zenos pulled out a remote control and pressed the detonation button with calm precision. Deep inside the darkened subway station, Lewis and his unit froze as red warning lights began blinking from the explosives planted along the walls, pillars, and ceiling… every inch of the base had been rigged.
BOOOOOOM!
A chain of explosions erupted all at once. The ground shook violently, the earth collapsing inward as the entire subway station was swallowed and obliterated in seconds. Thick clouds of dust and debris surged upward, blotting out all visibility.
Amid the chaos, Zenos vanished into the curtain of dust without a trace, leaving behind nothing but ruin and devastation. No one knew the fate of Lewis and the dozens of soldiers buried beneath the mountain of shattered concrete and steel.
"What the hell just happened?! Respond! Lewis, are you still there?!"
Gareth shouted into the microphone, the veins in his neck bulging as he called out again and again. But the only thing that came back was the harsh crackle of interference… and a silence that felt almost suffocating.
"Damn it!"
He cursed, slamming his fist against the control panel, rage boiling over as he watched his teammates and dozens of soldiers get buried beneath the rubble right before his eyes.
"It's fine… just calm down, Gareth."
Colonel Pierce spoke in a flat, almost unsettling tone. There wasn't a trace of panic in him.
"How the hell am I supposed to stay calm?! We just got completely blindsided!"
Gareth snapped back at him, fury burning in his voice.
"Exactly… which is why you need to stay calm."
Pierce locked eyes with him.
"The enemy is playing on your frustration. The moment you lose control, you stop thinking clearly… and that's when mistakes happen."
The colonel reached out and switched the comms to a wideband frequency, connecting to the remaining units.
"Team One has been hit. I repeat… Team One has been taken out. All remaining units, report any unusual activity around your positions."
"No abnormal movement on our end."
Sophie responded, her voice trembling slightly now that one of their own P-Type teams had been thrown into a life-or-death situation.
"We've got company."
23's voice cut in, firm and heavy.
In front of him, the thick curtain of dust was torn apart by the massive silhouette of an armored vehicle from Out Law, rolling forward like a moving fortress. Behind it came a group of hardened fighters, fully armed with heavy weapons, ready to reduce anything in their path to rubble.
"Lloyd, can you get a visual on the enemy from your position?"
23 asked, dropping low behind a slab of broken concrete.
"Not clearly… interference and dust are too heavy. And that position is too far from my current range."
Lloyd replied, struggling to adjust the focus on his electromagnetic rifle.
"Hold for orders…"
23 said flatly before turning to shout at the rest of his unit.
"All units, defensive positions! The enemy is carrying unidentified heavy weapons, likely electromagnetic systems, and high-velocity rounds. We need to suppress those weapons before they tear us apart!"
At his command, the elite soldiers of Team Three moved swiftly, spreading out and locking into strategic positions. The sound of weapons being readied blended with the growing roar of the approaching armored vehicles. The air itself felt heavy, thick with the pressure of an imminent heavy-weapons engagement about to erupt at any second.