The low hum of ALPHA's warning chime broke the tense silence of the bunker.

"Alex," ALPHA's voice cut through the air, calm yet urgent. "Multiple heat signatures detected, converging on the farm's perimeter. Estimated time to breach: five minutes."

Dr. Meyers shot up from his workstation, his chair spinning as he turned to the monitors. The surveillance feeds showed shadowy figures slipping through the trees, their movements precise and coordinated. Bright thermal overlays revealed they were heavily armed.

"They're here," he said, his voice tight. "Ashcroft isn't playing games anymore."

I stepped forward, the frustration from earlier replaced by cold focus. "How many?" I asked.

"Four teams of six," ALPHA replied. "Highly trained, likely ACE soldiers among them."

"They're not here for a chat," I muttered, grabbing my gear from the wall. Pistols, a combat knife, and two tactical grenades. "Doc, you need to secure yourself."

"I'm not leaving you out there alone!" Dr. Meyers argued, his hands gripping the edge of the desk.

I shot him a glare. "You'll be no use to me dead."

He hesitated but relented, moving to activate the bunker's lockdown sequence. The heavy metal doors hissed as they sealed behind me, cutting off any chance of retreat.

The cold night air wrapped around me as I emerged from the storm cellar. My enhanced senses kicked into overdrive. Every rustle of the leaves, every shift of the wind, painted a vivid picture of the incoming assault.

"ALPHA," I whispered. "Mark the closest team."

"Team Delta, approaching from the west. Distance: sixty yards."

I melted into the shadows, my body moving instinctively. A soft crunch of leaves announced their approach. Through the trees, I spotted them—a six-man squad moving in a tight formation, their rifles scanning for targets. One of them wore an exosuit, bulkier than the others. My stomach twisted.

ACE soldier.

I didn't wait. Pulling the pin on a grenade, I tossed it into their path. The explosion lit up the forest, disorienting them. Before the dust settled, I was on them.

The first soldier went down with a quick slash to his throat. The second turned just in time to meet the butt of my pistol across his temple. I ducked as the ACE soldier charged, his exosuit amplifying his movements. He swung wide, the ground shaking under the force of his strike.

"ALPHA, options?" I barked, dodging another blow.

"Target the hydraulic joints on his knees. They are structurally weak," ALPHA advised.

I dropped to the ground, sliding under his legs, and fired two precise shots into the back of his knees. Sparks flew as the joints buckled, sending him crashing down. I finished him with a shot to the helmet's visor, shattering the reinforced glass.

"Delta team neutralized," ALPHA confirmed.

"Good," I growled. "Who's next?"

Before ALPHA could respond, a deafening roar echoed from the east. Flames erupted as the barn exploded in a massive fireball, illuminating the night sky. My heart clenched.

"Doc!" I screamed into the comm link.

"I'm okay!" his voice crackled through the static. "They're trying to force their way into the bunker. You need to hurry!"

I sprinted toward the farmhouse, vaulting over fallen trees and dodging gunfire from the other teams. The heat from the explosion seared my skin as I skidded to a halt outside the bunker's entrance. Two soldiers were attempting to breach the reinforced door with a plasma cutter.

Not on my watch.

I lunged, slamming one soldier into the wall before driving my knife into his chest. The other turned, raising his weapon, but I was faster. A single shot to his head ended the threat.

"Alex!" Dr. Meyers shouted from inside. The door hissed open just enough for him to pull me inside.

"We're not safe here," I panted. "They'll keep coming."

"We have one shot," he said, leading me to the control room. "I can overload the bunker's reactor. It'll wipe them out, but we'll lose everything."

I stared at him, weighing the risk. "Do it."

As he worked, ALPHA's voice rang out. "Warning: Reactor overload initiated. Evacuate immediately."

Dr. Meyers grabbed my arm, his eyes fierce. "We need to get to the escape tunnel."

"Not without finishing this," I said, turning back to the monitors. "I'm not letting them walk away."

He hesitated, but there was no time to argue. He ran toward the escape hatch, and I returned to the storm cellar's entrance, preparing for one final stand.

The ground shook beneath me as the overload countdown began. The Consortium soldiers swarmed the perimeter, unaware of the ticking bomb beneath their feet.

"ALPHA, give me everything you've got," I whispered, stepping into the chaos.

The cold metal of my pistols felt like an extension of my hands as I stepped into the fray. The night erupted into chaos—shouts, the crack of gunfire, and the mechanical hum of The Consortium’s equipment filled the air.

"ALPHA, highlight targets," I commanded, my voice steady despite the adrenaline surging through me.

A soft glow appeared around each enemy in my augmented vision. My enhanced senses sharpened, and I moved like a shadow among them. A soldier raised his weapon, but I was faster. I dropped to one knee, firing twice—one shot to his chest, the other to his helmet. He crumpled before he could even pull the trigger.

"Alex, the reactor overload has reached fifty percent," ALPHA chimed in. "You have approximately five minutes to evacuate."

"Plenty of time," I muttered, ducking behind a crumbling section of the barn’s exterior.

A burst of gunfire peppered the wall beside me. I peeked out and saw another ACE soldier barreling toward my position, his exosuit shimmering with protective plating. He raised a massive energy cannon, the barrel glowing ominously.

"Damn it," I hissed. "ALPHA, recommendations?"

"Target the cannon’s energy core. It is located beneath the primary barrel—exposed for cooling."

The soldier fired, and I dove out of the way just as the blast incinerated the wall behind me. Rolling to my feet, I pulled a grenade from my belt, primed it, and tossed it. It exploded near his feet, throwing him off balance.

I sprinted toward him, weaving through the debris. As he struggled to regain his footing, I slid under his raised arm and aimed for the glowing core. A single, well-placed shot sent a ripple of energy through the weapon, causing it to overload.

"No!" he roared, but it was too late. The cannon detonated in a fiery burst, taking him with it.

"Two down," I said, panting.

"Seventy-five percent overload," ALPHA reminded me. "Recommend immediate evacuation."

The air was thick with smoke, but I wasn’t finished yet. I turned toward the farmhouse, where a squad of soldiers had taken cover. I could hear their frantic voices over their comms, barking orders and calling for reinforcements.

"ALPHA, disable their communications," I ordered.

"Initiating comms jamming," ALPHA replied. A faint pulse reverberated through the air, and the soldiers' chatter abruptly cut off.

I moved quickly, flanking their position. They never saw me coming. One by one, I picked them off, their cries muffled by the chaos around us.

"Alex, ninety percent," ALPHA urged. "You must leave now."

I glanced back toward the bunker, where Dr. Meyers would already be making his way through the escape tunnel. The clock was ticking, but something nagged at me. The Consortium wouldn’t send a force this large unless they were planning something bigger.

"ALPHA," I said, scanning the battlefield. "Is there any sign of a secondary threat?"

"Analyzing," ALPHA replied. "Thermal scans indicate a large heat signature approaching from the north—estimated size, twenty-five meters."

My blood ran cold. "What the hell is that?"

The ground trembled beneath my feet as the answer emerged from the treeline—a massive, armored mech towering above the battlefield. Its steel frame gleamed in the firelight, and its mounted weapons swiveled toward me.

"Target identified: Aegis-Class Combat Mech," ALPHA informed me. "Heavily armed. Suggest immediate retreat."

"Of course it is," I muttered. My grip tightened on my pistols as the mech took its first thundering step toward me.

The mech’s cannons roared, unleashing a hail of destruction. I darted to the side, the ground exploding behind me. My mind raced, searching for a way to bring the behemoth down.

"ALPHA, weaknesses?"

"The mech’s power core is located in the chest cavity, heavily shielded. Disabling its leg joints may slow it down."

"Slow it down?" I dodged another blast. "I need to stop it, not stall it!"

"Alternative: overload its weapon systems. Target the missile pods on its shoulders. A chain reaction may destabilize the core."

"Now we’re talking," I said, raising my pistols.

I fired at the missile pods, but the mech’s armor deflected the shots. The pods began to hum ominously, preparing to launch. Desperate, I grabbed my last grenade and sprinted toward the mech.

"Alex, that’s too dangerous!" ALPHA warned.

"Tell me something I don’t know," I growled.

I slid under the mech’s legs, narrowly avoiding a crushing stomp, and leapt onto its back. Climbing the ridged armor, I reached the missile pod just as it launched its first volley. I jammed the grenade into the open hatch and jumped clear.

The explosion rocked the mech, fire and shrapnel bursting from its shoulder. It staggered, sparks flying from its damaged systems. The core in its chest began to glow erratically, but it wouldn't go down.

"Ninety-nine percent overload," ALPHA said. "Immediate evacuation required."

Sparks rained down as the mech’s servos whined, trying to track my movements.

"Dr. Meyers, get ready! I’m deploying the EMP!"

"Alex, you’ll be too close!" Dr. Meyers’ voice crackled over the comm.

"No choice!" I gritted my teeth and slammed the EMP charge into the ground. I leapt clear just as the EMP detonated, a pulse of blue energy rippling out in a blinding wave. The mech froze mid-step, its glowing eyes flickering before going dark. It toppled forward like a felled tree, slamming into the ground with a deafening crash.

The shockwave hit me like a freight train. My vision blurred as I was hurled backward, tumbling across the ground. My body hit the dirt hard, and my systems began to falter.

"Critical system failure," ALPHA’s voice stuttered in my head, distorted and broken. "Power relays at… thirty percent. Neural interface… compromised."

I groaned, struggling to move. My limbs felt sluggish, like wading through molasses. Static buzzed at the edges of my vision, and my enhanced senses flickered in and out.

“Alex!” Dr. Meyers’ voice cut through the haze. I saw him sprinting toward me, his face pale with fear.

“I’m fine… I think,” I rasped, trying to push myself up. My left arm sparked, unresponsive.

“You’re not fine,” he said, kneeling beside me. He inspected the damage, his brow furrowed. “The EMP must’ve fried some of your systems. Your core components are shielded, but the auxiliary systems took a hit.”

I tried to stand, but my legs buckled. Dr. Meyers caught me, his hands firm on my shoulders. “Easy. You need to shut down for repairs, or this will get worse.”

“I don’t have time to shut down,” I snapped, frustration flaring. “They’ll send more. We need to be ready.”

“And you won’t be ready if you’re running at half capacity,” he shot back, his voice sharp.

A flicker of movement drew my attention. Smoke and fire filled the horizon where the mech had fallen, but the faint glow of headlights pierced through. Reinforcements were coming.

“We don’t have time for this argument,” I said, gritting my teeth. “Help me get back to the bunker.”

Dr. Meyers nodded reluctantly, slinging my arm over his shoulder. Together, we stumbled toward the storm cellar, the ground beneath us trembling with the approach of new threats.

“ALPHA,” I murmured, my voice weak. “Can you still operate?”

“Systems degraded… but functional,” ALPHA replied, her voice faint. “Recommend immediate repair.”

“Noted,” I said, forcing myself to take one more step.

We reached the cellar, and Dr. Meyers slammed the door shut behind us. Alarms blared as ALPHA announced, "Core overload in five-"

"Alex, come on!" Dr. Meyers shouted, pulling down the hall.

"Four"

"We have to reach the tunnel."

"Three"

"Two"

"One"

The heavy door slammed shut behind us, sealing us in the tunnel. Moments later, the bunker’s reactor reached critical mass. The explosion aboveground was deafening, the force shaking the walls around us.

We stood in silence, the distant sound of destruction fading into nothingness.

"We’re not safe anymore," I said, my voice barely a whisper.

Dr. Meyers nodded grimly. "We never were."