The gunfire outside grew heavier, rolling like thunder through the concrete halls. Cassius froze mid-step, the sound reverberating against the walls, the floor trembling beneath their feet.

Sophia looked up sharply, her eyes narrowing. "That’s heavy artillery."

The Chief’s smirk faltered for the first time. His hand went to his earpiece, voice tight. "Report."

Only static answered. Then, distant screams.

Cassius turned slightly, his expression unreadable. "Seems your men are losing control."

"Quiet!" the Chief snapped, glaring at him.

Sophia took a step closer to Cassius, lowering her voice. "Sir, this is the Nulls. It has to be."

Cassius nodded faintly. "Too soon for coincidence."

Brent shifted restlessly, his pulse hammering. "If they’re out there, then maybe—"

"Don’t move," Cassius warned quietly. His tone was calm but his eyes told Brent everything. One wrong move and the Chief would notice.

The Chief barked another order into his earpiece. "I said report, now!"

More static.

Then a voice broke through, panicked and half drowned by the chaos in the background. "Sir, the Nulls, they’re—"

The line went dead.

Cassius’s lips twitched, the faintest curve of irony before his face returned to composure.

The Chief threw his earpiece to the floor, his fury barely contained. "Impossible. They should have been intercepted!"

Cassius spoke evenly, almost cold. "You underestimated them. Nulls may look reckless, but when it comes to survival, they’re hard to eliminate."

The Chief turned on him, eyes blazing. "You think this saves you? Even if they are here, they’ll die too!"

"We’ll see," Cassius said softly.

The Chief gritted his teeth, then motioned to his soldiers. "Keep moving. Secure the prisoners. If those freaks think they can interfere, I’ll give them a real war."

As they moved deeper into Hollowgate, Sophia glanced sideways at Cassius. "What’s your plan?" she whispered.

"Buy time," he murmured back. "If they’re here, we must draw attention away from them."

Sophia’s brows furrowed. "You mean let them approach while we keep the Chief occupied?"

Cassius didn’t answer. His silence was enough.

---

Outside, the battlefield had turned into a storm. Smoke blanketed the air, broken only by flashes of muzzle fire and the rhythmic chop of helicopter blades above.

Reynold ducked behind the remains of an overturned truck, dragging Jeric with him. Bullets struck the metal, sending sparks flying.

"Snipers on the west ridge," Jeric said, reloading quickly. "But I can’t get a clean angle."

Reynold peeked around, spotting one soldier on the far scaffolding. He steadied his gun, fired once. The man dropped instantly.

Jeric exhaled. "Nice shot."

Reynold didn’t answer. His gaze swept the area, assessing. The Chief’s forces were well equipped, but they were being torn apart. Whoever was attacking moved with precision, silent, coordinated.

A flicker of motion caught his eye. Across the field, he saw two figures on a ridge, silhouettes against the burning sky.

Jeric followed his line of sight. "You think those are the Nulls?"

"Could be," Reynold muttered. "If so, they’re about to walk into a slaughter."

---

From their vantage point, Zephany and Kendrick could see the chaos below. Helicopters circled like vultures, explosions lighting the ruins of Hollowgate’s outer yard.

Zephany crouched low behind the ridge, clutching her rifle. "There are too many. We can’t rush in."

Kendrick studied the field, eyes sharp. "We’ll die if we go straight through. We need to split their attention first."

He pointed toward a damaged comms tower near the edge. "If I can get there, I can jam their signal. It’ll cut their coordination and give the others a chance."

Zephany grabbed his wrist. "That’s too exposed. They’ll see you."

"I’m faster than they are," he replied, his tone steady. "I’ll draw fire while you get closer to the base entrance."

Her grip tightened. "No. We do it together."

Kendrick’s gaze softened as he looked at her. For a heartbeat, the world seemed to slow, the chaos around them fading into a dull roar. Her eyes, fierce but trembling, met his with unspoken fear.

"Together," he repeated quietly.

She nodded once.

They waited for the next explosion to mask their movement, then darted out, sprinting between the burning debris.

Gunfire cracked around them, soldiers shouting as they tried to pinpoint their location. Kendrick dove behind a concrete barrier, firing a few suppressing shots, while Zephany slid into position behind a wrecked jeep, her movements sharp and practiced.

"Three on the left!" she called.

"I see them!" Kendrick replied, squeezing off a burst. Two soldiers fell; the third ducked behind a crate.

Zephany moved fast, rolling to the side and taking the last one down with a clean shot.

The air was hot and thick with dust and smoke. She coughed, covering her mouth with her sleeve. "We can’t stay out here long. The longer we’re exposed, the higher the risk."

"Keep moving," Kendrick said. "The tower’s just ahead."

They moved again, crouched low, slipping between bursts of gunfire. Behind them, more Nulls emerged, some of the other fourteen who had accepted the mission, fanning out across the yard. The air vibrated with the exchange of bullets.

Kendrick reached the tower first, sliding behind the base panel. "Cover me," he said, already pulling out a compact device from his vest.

Zephany crouched beside him, firing in quick intervals. "You have two minutes."

"Make it one," he muttered, hands flying across the device. Sparks flickered as he pried open a junction box and began connecting the jammer.

From above, a helicopter on the soldiers’ side turned sharply toward them, its spotlight flaring to life.

Zephany looked up. "We’ve been seen!"

Kendrick’s fingers didn’t stop. "Almost done."

The gunfire intensified. Bullets tore through the dirt around them, the wind from the helicopter blades whipping her hair across her face.

She fired upward, but her shots bounced harmlessly off the chopper’s armor. "Kendrick!"

"Done!" he shouted, slamming the device into place.

A burst of static erupted across the radio frequencies. The soldiers’ coordinated movements faltered as confusion spread through their ranks.

Zephany grabbed Kendrick’s arm. "Move!"

They sprinted from the tower as a rocket hit it seconds later, the explosion sending shards of metal and concrete raining around them. They hit the ground hard, rolling into cover behind a pile of debris.

Kendrick winced, his ears ringing. "That was close."

Zephany looked at him, breathing heavily. "You always have to make things dramatic."

He managed a grin. "You like it."

Before she could answer, the distant sound of approaching vehicles echoed from the east. Reinforcements.

Her face hardened. "We need to reach the entrance before they regroup."

---

Inside Hollowgate, the Chief’s expression shifted as his earpiece crackled again. "Sir, we’ve lost the main channel, communications down—"

The voice dissolved into static.

Cassius smiled faintly. "You really should upgrade your systems."

The Chief rounded on him, fury blazing in his eyes. "Shut up! You think this is funny? You think this chaos helps you?"

Cassius’s tone was calm, deliberate. "Not funny. Predictable."

Sophia’s tablet vibrated, a signal flashing on-screen. She tilted it slightly toward Cassius. "Nulls breached the perimeter," she whispered.

Cassius gave a single nod.

The Chief noticed. "What was that?"

"Nothing," Cassius replied, voice smooth. "Just the sound of your empire collapsing."

The Chief lunged forward, grabbing Cassius by the collar. "You think this ends with me losing? When I’m done, you’ll beg me to kill you."

Cassius met his glare without flinching. "You’ve already lost, Chief. You just don’t see it yet."

Before the Chief could respond, another explosion rocked the building. Dust rained from the ceiling. The lights flickered, then went out entirely, plunging the corridor into darkness.

"Find the backup power!" the Chief roared.

But before the soldiers could move, faint red lights flickered on, emergency lamps illuminating only narrow strips of the hall. Shadows stretched across the walls, long and menacing. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Cassius turned his head slightly toward Sophia. "When the next blast hits, move right," he murmured.

Sophia’s eyes met his for a moment, understanding dawning. She nodded.

Brent leaned close, whispering, "You have a plan?"

Cassius’s voice was steady. "Trust me."

Outside, the echoes of battle grew closer. The Nulls were breaching the outer defenses.

---

Zephany and Kendrick moved along the wall, nearing Hollowgate’s shattered entrance. They ducked behind a barricade as stray bullets ricocheted off the concrete.

"Almost there," Zephany said, breath ragged. "Cassius’s signal should be deep inside."

Kendrick looked at her. "You ready?"

She tightened her grip on her weapon. "Always."

They exchanged a brief look, mutual understanding, silent trust, and then broke from cover, running straight into the smoke.

---

Inside, Cassius and his group reached the central corridor again. The Chief forced them forward with soldiers flanking both sides.

Then, through the static of the Chief’s earpiece, a voice came alive. "Sir, intruders inside the west wing, unidentified units!"

The Chief stiffened. "How the hell did they—"

Before he could finish, an explosion tore through the west wall, throwing everyone to the ground. Smoke filled the air, dust choking the light.

Cassius used the moment. "Now!"

Sophia grabbed Dr. Farah and pulled her into the side passage Cassius had scouted earlier. Brent slammed his shoulder into one of the soldiers, knocking the man unconscious.

The Chief coughed, struggling to his feet. "Stop them! Don’t let them escape!"

Cassius turned back briefly, meeting the Chief’s eyes. "Your time’s up."

He fired a single shot at the ceiling. The structure groaned, then collapsed between them, sealing the path with rubble.

---

Outside, Zephany and Kendrick burst through the entryway just as the building shook again. The blast nearly knocked them off their feet.

Kendrick steadied her, gripping her arm. "They’re inside. We need to move fast."

Zephany nodded, determination flaring in her eyes. "Then let’s bring them out."

They stepped into the smoke-filled corridors of Hollowgate, unaware that both their allies and enemies waited in the dark ahead, and that the next few minutes would decide who made it out alive.