The following day, Shen sat at the head of the table in the war room, his expression as hard as the steel walls surrounding them. The team had gathered, each member wearing the fatigue of their recent failures, yet there was a renewed determination in their eyes. They were all seasoned operatives, and setbacks were part of the job. But this time, the stakes felt higher, and the enemy more formidable than any they had faced before.
Shen tapped a button on the console before him, and a holographic display of the Ascendants' headquarters flickered to life above the table. The building was a fortress, standing tall and imposing in the heart of the city, its every corner bristling with security measures.
"We don't have the luxury of time," Shen began, his voice steady and commanding. "The Ascendants know we're after them, and they'll be tightening their defenses. If we're going to take them down, we need to hit them where it hurts—right at the heart of their operations."
