Phantom Echoes - Part 8
The hum of the helicopter engines filled the tense silence as the team soared above the Arctic expanse. No one spoke; the weight of their mission's success—and the chaos it had unleashed—pressed heavily on their shoulders. Nitya sat near the cockpit, her eyes scanning the horizon while her mind ran through possible scenarios for what would come next.
Vlada broke the silence, swiveling in her pilot's seat. "We've got the data, but Helix isn't going to take this lying down. Their surveillance will be all over this region in minutes."
"I know," Nitya said, her voice calm but laced with urgency. "We stick to the exfil route. Haider, status on our trackers?"
Haider was bent over his tablet, analyzing signals from their gear. "All clean so far. No active pings. Either Helix hasn't caught on to our escape route yet, or they're waiting to hit us where we're vulnerable."
