The facility echoed with chaos—agents shouting, alarms blaring, and the muffled thud of explosions in the distance. Aiko sat nervously in the corner of the emergency room Renjiro had left her in. Every instinct screamed at her to follow him, but his words lingered in her mind: Stay here. I mean it this time.
Her resolve to listen faltered as a loud crash came from the hallway. Heart pounding, she peeked through the crack in the door and saw smoke billowing. A group of agents was locked in a firefight with masked intruders. Sparks flew as bullets ricocheted off walls.
"This is insane," Aiko whispered, clutching the small emergency beacon Renjiro had handed her.
Just then, an injured agent stumbled into the room, clutching his bleeding side. Aiko gasped, rushing to his aid. She used her scarf to make a bandage and pressed it to the wound.
"Kaede's… targeting the main server room…" the agent rasped, struggling to stay conscious.
Before she could process his words, the sound of heavy boots echoed down the hallway. Aiko froze as a masked mercenary appeared in the doorway, his weapon trained on her.
"Hands up," he barked.
Aiko obeyed, her mind racing. The mercenary approached, his steps slow and deliberate. But before he could grab her, her self-defense training kicked in. Aiko lunged forward, using the edge of the chair to knock the gun from his hands. She barely dodged his attempt to grab her, slipping past him and running down the smoke-filled corridor.
Her breath came in short gasps as she darted through the maze-like hallways, desperately searching for Renjiro. She ignored her fear, driven by the singular thought: I have to find him.