The tech lab was cramped and smelled of burnt wires, but it buzzed with energy. Kael leaned over the flickering holo-map on the table, his face tight with concentration. Mara pointed to a section of the map with her gloved hand, her scar catching the dim light.
"This is it," she said, her voice low and firm. "The Nexus Archives. Every access code, blueprint, and blackmail file they've ever compiled is in there. We need those schematics to break their mainframe."
Leon snorted from the corner, where he was sharpening his knife. "Oh, sure. No big deal. Just waltz into the Nexus's second-most secure building like we're picking up groceries."
"We don't have a choice," Lyra said sharply. She'd been unusually quiet since they arrived at the lab, but her voice now cut through the room like a blade. "If we're serious about taking them down, we can't afford to play it safe anymore."
Kael nodded, his jaw clenched. "She's right. We can't wait for the perfect moment. If we hesitate, the Nexus wins."
Mara gave a small, approving nod. "Good. Then here's the plan." She gestured again at the map, outlining the routes they'd take to bypass the outer security perimeter.
As she spoke, Kael felt a knot of unease tightening in his stomach. Every detail sounded logical, but something about it seemed too... clean. Almost as if the Nexus was expecting them. But he shook the thought away. They couldn't afford doubt right now.
The team moved under the cover of darkness, the distant hum of Nexus patrol drones echoing through the alleys. Kael led the way, his pulse quickening with every step. Behind him, Alex carried a heavy backpack loaded with gear, her hands gripping the straps tightly.
"This place gives me the creeps," Alex muttered, her voice barely audible.
Leon, walking at the rear, chuckled. "Relax. If we're lucky, we'll be out before you can get scared."
"Lucky?" Lyra hissed. "When has luck ever been on our side?"
The banter didn't help Kael's nerves. He tightened his grip on the small device in his hand—a hacking tool they'd cobbled together from salvaged parts. If it didn't work, this whole mission would fall apart before it even began.
They reached the outer gate of the Nexus Archives without incident, which only made Kael more uneasy. Mara tapped her wristband, and a faint buzz signaled the jammer activating.
"All clear," she whispered. "Move."
Kael knelt by the gate's control panel, prying it open with trembling hands. He inserted the hacking tool and waited as it whirred and clicked. Seconds stretched into eternity.
"Any day now," Leon muttered.
"Shut up," Kael snapped, his voice harsher than he intended. Finally, the gate creaked open, just wide enough for them to slip through.
The team moved quickly, their footsteps muffled by the thick layer of dust covering the floor. The building's interior was eerily silent, the kind of quiet that made your ears ring.
Mara gestured for them to split up. Kael and Lyra would head for the server room while Leon and Alex scouted the upper floors for anything useful.
"Stay sharp," Mara said. "We're not alone in here."
Kael and Lyra crept down a dimly lit corridor, the flickering overhead lights casting jagged shadows on the walls. Kael's palms were slick with sweat as he held the hacking tool, ready to use it on the server room's lock.
"You feel that?" Lyra whispered, her voice tense.
"Feel what?" Kael asked, his pulse quickening.
"Like... we're being watched."
Kael didn't answer. He didn't need to. He'd felt it too.
They reached the server room, and Kael got to work on the door. His hands shook as he connected the hacking tool to the lock. Lyra stood guard, her knife drawn.
"Almost there," Kael murmured, his voice barely audible over the sound of his own heartbeat.
But just as the lock clicked open, a deafening alarm blared, the sound ricocheting through the building like a gunshot. Red lights bathed the corridor in an ominous glow.
Lyra spun around, her knife raised. "What the hell did you do?"
"Nothing!" Kael shouted, his voice cracking. "It wasn't me!"
Leon's voice crackled through the comms. "It's a trap! We're blown—get out of there!"
Before Kael could respond, the sound of heavy boots thundered down the corridor. Nexus enforcers, clad in black armor and wielding stun rifles, appeared from both ends of the hallway.
"Run!" Lyra shouted, grabbing Kael by the arm and dragging him into the server room.
Inside the server room, Kael scrambled to download the schematics while Lyra held the door shut against the advancing enforcers. The pounding of fists and rifle butts against the metal door echoed in his ears.
"Hurry up, Kael!" Lyra shouted, her voice strained.
"I'm trying!" he yelled back, his fingers flying over the device's interface. The progress bar crawled at an agonizing pace.
The door buckled, and Lyra stumbled back, her knife clattering to the floor. Kael grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the back of the room, where an air vent offered their only escape.
"Go, go, go!" Kael yelled, boosting Lyra into the vent.
As he climbed in after her, the door finally gave way. Enforcers stormed the room, but Kael kicked the vent cover closed just in time.
The vent was a tight, suffocating crawlspace, but it was their only way out. Kael and Lyra wriggled through, the sound of enforcers' voices fading behind them.
When they finally emerged into an alley behind the building, the cool night air hit Kael like a punch to the lungs.
Leon and Alex were already there, panting and battered.
"What the hell happened?" Kael demanded.
Leon shook his head. "Mole," he said grimly. "Someone tipped them off."
Kael's heart sank. The rebellion wasn't just fighting the Nexus—they were fighting betrayal from within.