Jiang Han had always been a man in control—of his mind, his body, his actions. But now, trapped in a hospital bed, forced to rely on others, he felt powerless.
It had been four days since his surgery. Four long, frustrating days of being monitored, sedated, and told to "rest." Every movement was met with sharp reminders of his injuries—bruised ribs, healing incisions, lingering weakness from blood loss.
But Jiang had never been good at staying still.
---
Late into the evening, Jiang lay awake, staring at the ceiling. The rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor was the only sound in the room. He was alone, the hospital staff having done their final checks for the night.
His mind raced.
Mikhail had briefed him earlier—Sophia and Adrian were still working to track the second payment. The mercenaries who had taken him might be dead or in hiding, but their employer wasn't.
They failed to kill me the first time. They won't make the same mistake twice.
A soft knock on the door pulled him from his thoughts.
"Come in," Jiang called, his voice rough from disuse.
The door opened, revealing Mikhail Darmawan. He carried a plastic bag in one hand and a drink in the other.
"I figured you'd be sick of hospital food by now," Mikhail said, setting the bag on the bedside table.
Jiang smirked. "You're assuming I've been eating it."
Mikhail sighed, pulling a chair closer. "You're impossible, you know that?"
Jiang chuckled but winced as the movement sent a sharp pain through his ribs.
Mikhail frowned. "You're still healing, Han. Don't push it."
Jiang exhaled slowly. "We don't have time to wait for me to heal."
Mikhail leaned forward, his tone serious. "That's not your call."
Jiang met his gaze, unwavering. "It has to be. The enemy isn't waiting for me to get better, Mikhail. They're moving. Planning."
Mikhail clenched his jaw. "And you can't do anything from a hospital bed."
Jiang knew he was right. But that didn't make it easier to accept.
---
Across Seladang City, in a private high-rise suite, Celeste Moreau scrolled through the latest intelligence reports. The Architects had been watching closely since Jiang Han's capture and subsequent rescue.
Her phone buzzed. She answered without hesitation.
"The contingency plan is in place," a voice on the other end informed her.
Celeste smiled. "And our target?"
"Still recovering. But he won't be idle for long."
Celeste set her glass of wine down, gazing out over the city skyline.
"Good," she murmured. "Let him recover just enough to think he's in control."
She ended the call.
---
The following morning, Jiang's frustration reached its peak.
Dr Amir Rahman had made it clear—he wasn't being discharged anytime soon. His wounds were healing, but there was still a risk of infection, internal bleeding, or worse.
Jiang didn't care.
By noon, he had convinced Mikhail to bring him civilian clothes. By 3 PM, he was working on standing without assistance. By 5 PM, he had removed his IV and tested his balance.
By 7 PM, he was leaving the hospital.
Mikhail was the first to notice.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" he demanded as he caught Jiang pulling on a jacket.
Jiang didn't slow. "I need to see Sophia and Adrian."
Mikhail blocked the door. "Are you insane?"
Jiang stared at him. "We both know I should already be out there."
Mikhail folded his arms. "No. You should be in this bed, letting your body recover."
Jiang exhaled, his patience thinning. "Mikhail. Move."
Mikhail didn't budge. "Not happening."
The tension in the room thickened.
Then, surprisingly, Mikhail stepped aside.
"But if you collapse in the next five minutes," Mikhail muttered, "I'm carrying your sorry ass back here myself."
Jiang smirked. "Noted."
---
Returning to the Aegis Sentinel Corps headquarters felt like stepping into another world. The scent of coffee, the hum of conversations, the rapid typing of keyboards—it was a stark contrast to the quiet isolation of the hospital.
Jiang moved with careful, measured steps. Every breath sent a dull ache through his ribs, but he pushed past it.
When he entered the command centre, all eyes turned to him.
Sophia Liew stood first. "You're supposed to be in bed."
Adrian Yong sighed. "Let me guess. You ignored the doctor?"
Jiang smirked. "More like... expedited my own recovery."
Colonel Yusof, who had been observing quietly, finally spoke. "I expected this." He gestured toward a chair. "Sit. You might be stubborn, but you're not indestructible."
Jiang sat, ignoring the knowing glances exchanged between his team. "What do we have?"
Sophia pulled up a holographic display. "We finished tracking the second payment. It wasn't just for weapons—it was for logistics. Someone is moving personnel and supplies under our radar."
Jiang's eyes narrowed. "Where?"
Sophia hesitated. "We don't have an exact location yet, but there's a pattern. Whoever this is, they're consolidating power."
Adrian tapped the screen, pulling up another report. "We also intercepted encrypted chatter mentioning 'Phase Two.'"
Jiang's gaze darkened. "Meaning?"
Colonel Yusof folded his arms. "Meaning this isn't over. Your capture was just the beginning."
Mikhail exhaled sharply. "Great. More shadowy conspiracies. Just what we needed."
Jiang leaned forward, despite the pain. "Then let's end it before they make their next move."
Sophia nodded. "I've already started digging deeper. Whoever is behind this, we'll find them."
Jiang's lips curled into a cold smile. "Good."
He wasn't just back.
He was ready for war.
---
Later that night, Celeste Moreau stood in a dimly lit conference room, facing a screen displaying a live feed of an unknown figure.
"He's moving again," Celeste reported. "Faster than expected."
The voice on the screen remained emotionless. "Let him. It will only bring him closer to us."
Celeste's smirk returned. "Understood."
She ended the call and turned to a map of Seladang City.
Jiang Han had escaped death once.
But the next time they moved, there would be no escape.
---
The weight of war had settled over Seladang City. The streets were quieter than usual, but it wasn't peace. It was the kind of silence that came before a storm.
Jiang Han sat in the command centre, scanning the intelligence reports Sophia and Adrian had compiled. The second payment, the encrypted chatter about Phase Two, the sudden movement of resources—whoever had orchestrated his capture wasn't done.
And Jiang knew one thing for certain.
They weren't going to wait for him to heal before striking again.
---
Colonel Yusof stood at the head of the room, arms folded as he addressed the assembled team.
"Our priority now is identifying who's behind this operation. We've already dismantled the Apex Circle, which means this isn't just about revenge. There's something bigger at play."
Sophia brought up a map of Seladang City, highlighting several locations in red. "We've identified multiple supply shipments being moved under the radar. The volume is too large for a small-scale operation—this is military-level logistics."
Jiang leaned forward, ignoring the dull ache in his ribs. "Where's the most recent movement?"
Sophia tapped on the screen, zooming in on a storage facility near the dockyards. "This one. Unregistered shipments arriving in the middle of the night, workers paid in cash, zero digital records. It's classic ghost logistics."
Adrian crossed his arms. "That means whoever is behind this has the resources to operate outside normal channels."
Mikhail, who had been listening quietly, exhaled sharply. "And if it's that well-hidden, we're not dealing with just ex-Apex remnants."
Colonel Yusof nodded. "Agreed. This could be part of something much bigger."
Jiang's eyes darkened. "Then we need to find out exactly what it is."
---
Jiang's return to HQ had already pushed his body beyond its limits, but he wasn't about to sit on the sidelines while his team risked their lives.
Mikhail noticed the way he kept adjusting his posture, trying to hide the pain. "You're not going on the field, Han."
Jiang didn't respond immediately. He simply locked eyes with Mikhail. "I need to be there."
Mikhail shook his head. "No. You need to recover. We'll handle the docks."
Adrian chimed in. "He's right. If this goes sideways, we can't afford to lose you again."
Jiang exhaled, frustrated. He hated it, but they weren't wrong. "Fine. But I want a full feed from the operation. I want to see everything in real-time."
Colonel Yusof gave a rare approving nod. "That, we can do."
Jiang sat back, reluctantly conceding. "Then let's move."
---
That night, two strike teams deployed toward the storage facility.
Team Alpha: Mikhail, Elisa, and a six-man security unit to infiltrate and secure intelligence.Team Beta: Adrian and Marcus leading counter-surveillance, monitoring outside movements.
Sophia and Jiang remained at HQ, monitoring feeds and directing the mission.
Through the comms, Sophia's voice came through. "You're approaching the perimeter. No external guards, but motion sensors are active. Watch your steps."
Mikhail signalled his team forward, moving between the shadows. The facility was dimly lit, the scent of oil and salt from the nearby docks lingering in the air.
Elisa's voice was hushed. "There's a main office ahead. Could have logs of the shipments."
Mikhail nodded. "Let's move."
Inside the command centre, Jiang watched through the live feeds. His fingers twitched—he should be out there. But for now, this was the best he could do.
Sophia whispered into her mic, "You've got two unidentified contacts moving inside the warehouse. Proceed with caution."
Jiang leaned forward. "Find out who they are."
Mikhail and Elisa approached the interior. Peering through a narrow gap in the crates, they spotted two men in suits, discussing something near a cargo manifest.
Mikhail narrowed his eyes. "That's a big risk—suits at an illegal drop site?"
Elisa's voice was barely above a breath. "They're not mercenaries. They're planners."
Through the feed, Jiang's eyes sharpened. "We need to hear what they're saying."
Mikhail tapped a concealed microphone onto a nearby crate and activated it.
At HQ, Sophia enhanced the audio.
One of the men spoke.
"The package will be moved tomorrow night. Everything is in place."
The second man adjusted his tie. "Are we certain the Architects approved?"
Jiang's blood ran cold.
The Architects.
So this was bigger than the Apex Circle.
Sophia typed rapidly. "I'll run facial recognition on these two."
The first man continued, "Jiang Han's survival was unfortunate, but ultimately irrelevant. The next phase will move forward as scheduled."
Jiang clenched his fists. They're still planning something.
Then, the second man asked something that sent chills down Jiang's spine.
"What about the detonation sequence?"
Silence filled the command centre.
Sophia's typing stopped.
Mikhail, still in the field, stiffened. He whispered, "Did he just say detonation?"
Jiang's mind worked at lightning speed. "They're planning a bombing."
Adrian's voice came through. "We need more details. Location. Timeline."
The two men inside the warehouse continued their discussion.
"We'll have confirmation by noon tomorrow," one of them said. "Once the explosives are in position, we'll wait for the final order."
Mikhail signalled to Elisa. Time to go.
Jiang's voice was sharp over the comms. "Extract. Now."
---
Thirty minutes later, the strike teams were safely back at headquarters. The tension in the war room was suffocating.
Sophia pulled up the enhanced recordings. "We still don't have a target. But we know it's happening soon."
Jiang's mind was already moving ahead. "Then we have less than twenty-four hours to stop it."
Colonel Yusof spoke. "We need more intel. We pressure the right people, we force their hand."
Mikhail folded his arms. "And if that doesn't work?"
Jiang's gaze was cold. "Then we tear this city apart to find them."
---
Far from the Aegis Sentinel Corps headquarters, Celeste Moreau stood in a private meeting room, reviewing the latest developments.
Her expression remained unreadable as she listened to the report.
"They know about the detonation plan," the informant said.
Celeste closed her tablet and exhaled slowly. "Then we accelerate the timeline."
She turned toward the large window overlooking the city.
"Begin Phase Two immediately."