The tension in the briefing room was palpable. Neon Apex and the Shadow Alliance—two powerful organizations that operated in the shadows, each with their own methods—had agreed to cooperate for the first time. The target: OrgaCorp. The mission: Total destruction.

At the front of the room, a senior agent from Neon Apex, a sharply-dressed man with slicked-back hair and a calculating gaze, was laying out the plan.

"We hit them hard, fast, and with precision," he said, his voice calm but deadly. "A direct assault would be too risky. We infiltrate from the inside, disrupt their systems, and tear apart their infrastructure, piece by piece. Neon Apex will handle the tech side—disabling security, jamming communications, and hacking their networks. Meanwhile, Shadow Alliance will handle the muscle—taking out key targets and securing the perimeter."

Alyssa Steele, her eyes narrowed, leaned forward on the table. "And you expect me to sit here and let you handle the tech while my team is left cleaning up your mess?"

The Neon Apex agent smirked but didn't respond immediately. Instead, his eyes shifted over to the Shadow Alliance's representative, a seasoned strategist known for being cold, calculating, and ruthlessly efficient.

He stood with arms crossed, giving Alyssa a brief, dismissive glance. "Your team is here to do what you do best. We handle the tech, you handle the chaos."

Alyssa clenched her fists, but Ryder, sitting back with his feet up on the table, exhaled smoke from his cigar with a bored expression.

"Are you going to keep talking or are we actually doing something?" Ryder's voice was nonchalant, uninterested in the details. He barely looked up from his phone as the two groups exchanged sharp words.

Alyssa's eyes flickered to him, irritation flashing in her gaze. She wasn't used to having a teammate who didn't take things seriously, especially not when they were working together to take down a powerful corporation.

She then turned back to the Neon Apex agent, her voice tight. "Why are we even working together? Shadow Alliance and Neon Apex—those are two organizations that don't exactly share a lot of common ground."

The Neon Apex agent didn't flinch, his demeanor cool. "OrgaCorp's a common enemy. We don't have time to fight each other when there's a bigger target. If we want this mission to succeed, we need to put aside our differences and get the job done."

Alyssa sighed, but her concern for Alix—who was already deep in the heart of OrgaCorp—didn't let up. She wanted to believe in the plan.

The room fell silent for a moment, the weight of the situation sinking in, before another figure—an agent from the Shadow Alliance—stepped forward.

"This isn't just about brute force," he said, lifting a large case onto the table. "We've got gadgets, tech, and tools for this mission. Let's go over them."

The case opened with a hiss, revealing a vast array of sleek, high-tech devices, each one designed for a specific purpose. The agents gathered around, their eyes glinting with curiosity and wariness as the gadgets were explained one by one.

The Shadow Alliance agent began by holding up a small, unassuming device. "This is the Quantum Disruptor. It'll temporarily disable all electronics within a 200-meter radius. It's compact, easy to use, and perfect for when you need to make a quick escape or disable a security system."

Ryder didn't even glance at the device. "Yeah, yeah, sounds boring," he muttered, taking another drag of his cigar.

Alyssa's gaze flickered over to him, annoyance bubbling up, but she kept it in check as the next gadget was presented. "This is the Phantom Cloak," the agent continued. "It bends light around the wearer, effectively rendering them invisible to both the naked eye and infrared sensors. Perfect for stealth infiltration."

"I'm taking it," Alyssa said, already moving to grab the cloak. "It's the only way we're getting past OrgaCorp's defenses without being noticed."

Ryder chuckled, shaking his head. "Stealthy, huh?"

One by one, the agents grabbed the tools they would need, testing out the feel of the gadgets as the explanations continued. It wasn't long before the table was littered with devices ranging from EMP grenades to high-tech hacking implants.

Finally, it was Ryder's turn. He sauntered up to the case, grabbed a few items without much thought, and tossed them aside as the Shadow Alliance agent continued to explain each piece.

"This one's the Tactical Grapple Gun," the agent said, holding up a sleek, high-powered grapple launcher. "Use it to scale walls or reach otherwise inaccessible areas."

"Woooo great. I can climb stuff now. Anything else?" Ryder muttered, grabbing the device and slinging it over his shoulder.

The agent proceeded to show him a few more gadgets, but Ryder had already lost interest.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, shut the hell up already," he said, waving him off. "I've seen enough. I'm ready to get this over with."

Alyssa couldn't help but roll her eyes. "You might want to listen, Ryder. You don't know what you're getting yourself into."

Ryder smirked, tipping his head back and puffing on his cigar. "I'm not here to listen. I'm here to make sure things blow up—preferably in someone else's face."

As the agents finished picking their gadgets, the Neon Apex and Shadow Alliance teams gathered in their respective corners of the room. The tension between the two organizations was palpable, but there was no time to dwell on it. OrgaCorp was the real target now, and they had a mission to complete.

Alyssa's eyes briefly found Ryder's again, her thoughts momentarily drifting to Alix. She hoped she would make it out of this alive. She couldn't afford to fail.

Cassie's fingers danced over her phone, dialing Ryder and Alyssa as quickly as possible. She tapped her foot, glancing at the screen monitoring OrgaCorp's vicinity. In the camera feed, Julian staggered outside, blood staining his clothes, his movements weak, but his eyes fixed in grim determination on OrgaCorp's towering building in the distance.

Cassie: (murmuring to herself) Come on, come on... pick up, you two. This is bad.

Finally, the line connected, and Ryder's annoyed voice chimed in, followed by Alyssa's dry greeting.

Ryder: (grumbling) Cassie, this better be good. I was about to—

Cassie: (cutting him off) Yeah, yeah, pause your ego parade, Blackwood. This is serious. Julian's outside OrgaCorp, trying to save Alix. And he's hurt—bad.

Alyssa: (suddenly alert) What? Julian? Are you sure it's him? What's he doing near OrgaCorp in that state?

Cassie: (exasperated) He's bleeding, barely standing, and still trying to get inside to rescue Alix.

Ryder: (exasperated) Are you kidding me? Reckless kid. Throwing himself into a firefight, no plan, no payoff—

Alyssa: (cutting him off, sharp) Shut the HELL up, you MORON! Not everything's about your bloody paycheck!

Alyssa shot him a disapproving glare, the look sharp, her focus returning to strapping on ammo and preparing her gear with swift precision. Her eyes were hard, determined.

Alyssa: "Julian's doing what he thinks is right. And if Alix is in trouble, I'm not wasting a second." She glanced back at Cassie. "What's the fastest way in?"

Ryder scoffed, checking his weapons. "Right. Risk my life for a friend and for free. Not exactly my style, Cassie. If I'm going in, there better be something in it for me."

Cassie rolled her eyes but leaned in closer to the mic. "Trust me, you'll be taken care of. OrgaCorp's intel sells high to the right people."

Ryder grumbled but shouldered his pack, nodding toward Alyssa. "Alright, alright. Julian's my friend, after all. But I'm expecting that bonus."

The duo moved quickly through the access tunnel Cassie had directed them to. Alyssa was all business, moving with swift, calculated steps, her mind focused on Alix. Ryder, on the other hand, muttered to himself, clearly irritated.

Ryder: "Can't believe I'm doing this. Julian better owe me a steak dinner after this mess."

Cassie: Smirking, she quipped, "Just admit it, Ryder. You care about him."

Ryder shot her a side glance, half-scowling. "I care about not going broke. Julian's just... a side quest."

Alyssa laughed softly but stayed focused, her eyes scanning ahead as they neared the end of the tunnel. A faint, rhythmic clang echoed above them—the unmistakable sound of combat. They were close.

Cassie's voice crackled through their earpieces again, pulling them back into the mission. "Alright, Ryder, Alyssa—Julian is in the east wing's atrium. Keep it low-key, but hurry. They're running out of time."