The leader turned to his men, his tone hardening into a command. "Capture her alive. We need to know where she hid the serum."
Two Syndicate soldiers stepped forward, their batons humming with lethal energy. The first, a hulking figure with a scar running down his cheek, smirked as he eyed Lena's unarmored form.
"Easy target," he chuckled, his voice dripping with arrogance. "Just a woman."
The second, shorter but no less confident, twirled his baton with practiced ease. "She'll learn respect,"
The first soldier lunged, his baton whistling through the air. "Think fast, girl?" he taunted, swinging wide.
But Lena was already gone, a blur of motion twisting past him. He stumbled, his momentum carrying him forward, and for a moment, he looked almost comical in his confusion.
"What the—?" he gasped, his voice tinged with panic as he struggled to regain his balance. But it was too late.
Lena's voice cut through the air like a whip. "Too slow." Her hand shot out, a flash of movement, and she grabbed his arm with a grip like iron.
Her leg lashed out in a precise, brutal strike to his knee. The sickening crunch of bone echoed through the square.
He screamed, a strangled, animalistic sound. "My leg—!"
Lena didn't give him a moment to recover. She spun, a whirlwind of deadly grace, her elbow driving into his temple with the force of a hammer.
His body crumpled to the ground, his taunts silenced forever.
The second soldier froze, "You bitch!" he roared. He charged, swinging his baton wildly, but his movements were clumsy, desperate.
She sidestepped his attack with ease, the baton smashing into the ground with a dull thud. As he struggled to recover, she was already on him, a shadow darting in close.
"Going down!" he yelled, swinging again, but his movements were telegraphed, predictable.
She dropped low, her body a lethal line, and her hidden knife flashed in the dim light. The blade sliced through his thigh, severing muscle and tendon in a single, brutal motion.
He screamed, a raw, guttural sound that echoed off the walls of the square. "Aaaargh! My leg!" He collapsed, clutching the gushing wound, his blood pooling beneath him.
Lena stood over him, her chest heaving, her eyes blazing with fury. She dropped onto him, straddling his chest, her knife raised high.
"No—!" he choked out, his voice trembling with terror. His hands clawed at her, but she was unstoppable.
"Yes," Lena said, her voice cold and final. The knife plunged into his stomach, three times. Each thrust was accompanied by his screams, then to silence.
Each strike landing with sickening precision in his stomach, just below the edge of his armor.
Short, brutal thrusts, designed to inflict maximum damage, to shred vital organs.
A third soldier, charging in, finally reached her, his stun baton crackling with lethal energy. "Die, bitch!" he roared, swinging the weapon with full force.
Lena, drenched in blood but untouched, reacted with preternatural speed. She dodged sideways, the stun baton whistling past her ear.
As he stumbled from the missed attack, Lena spun, using her momentum to launch a spinning heel kick.
Her boot connected with the side of his helmet with bone-jarring force.
He staggered, dazed. "Ugh—!"
Lena didn't give him a chance to recover. "Time to finish this," she growled, darting forward with the speed of a predator. This time, she aimed for the ultimate vulnerability: the eyes.
His eyes widened in sheer, primal fear. "No—!" he screamed, a desperate, final plea.
Her knife thrust forward, a precise, brutal strike. The blade plunged into the narrow opening of his helmet's visor, finding its mark with horrifying accuracy.
But it was too late. The knife plunged into the visor, shattering it and silencing his cries.
The knife remained embedded in his helmet, a gruesome trophy.
The remaining soldiers recoiled, momentarily paralyzed by the sheer brutality of her assault.
The inhabitants of Cinderhold gasped, a collective intake of breath, witnessing a level of violence they had rarely seen.
Lena, bloodied but breathing hard, stood amidst the carnage, a primal warrior, a terrifying embodiment of survival.
The silence didn't last. The sound of boots pounding against the ground filled the air as more Syndicate soldiers arrived, their voices cold and mechanical.
"Syndicate! Secure the area!"
"She's over here!"
"Take her down!"
Lena fought with everything she had, her movements fueled by desperation.
They swarmed.
The soldiers were relentless. Batons rained down, each strike sending jolts of pain through her body.
"Hold still, you crazy woman!" one yelled, his voice tinged with frustration.
"Serum! Where is it?!" another roared, his voice rising in anger.
Lena cried out as a baton slammed into her back, the impact driving her to her knees.
"Never!" she gasped, her voice trembling but defiant. "You'll never get it!"
They swarmed her, a tide of armored figures overwhelming her. "Enough games!" the leader's voice boomed. "Subdue her! Now!"
A stun baton hit her arm, the electric shock coursing through her body. "Aaargh!" Lena screamed, her muscles convulsing.
She fell to the ground, her knife skittering out of reach. They were on her instantly, pinning her down, binding her hands.
The Syndicate leader approached, his helmeted gaze cold and assessing. "Enough," he commanded, his voice flat.
"She's subdued."
He knelt beside Lena, his armored hand grabbing her chin, forcing her face up. "Where is it?" he demanded, his voice hard, devoid of emotion. "The serum."
Lena spat blood, her eyes blazing with defiance. She said nothing.
The leader's grip tightened, his fingers digging into her jaw. "You will tell us," he hissed, his voice low and menacing.
"One way or another, you will tell us."
He signaled to his men. "Search her."
They began to rip at her clothes, tearing away the fabric, searching for the vial. Lena struggled, but it was useless.
They ripped her shirt, leaving her upper body exposed except for her sports bra, the fabric torn and hanging loose.
Lena groaned as a kick landed in her ribs, the pain radiating through her body. But she remained silent, her lips pressed together in a tight line.
The leader leaned closer, his helmet inches from her face. His voice dropped to a menacing purr.
"Frustrated, boys? Perhaps… we need to motivate her. We can play with her in front of everyone."
He gestured to his men, a cruel smile in his voice. "Let's make an example. Let's show Cinderhold what happens to those who defy the Syndicate."
A chorus of cruel laughter erupted from the soldiers. "Yes, sir! Make her scream!"
Lena closed her eyes, a silent prayer escaping her lips, not for herself, but for Leo. She braced herself for the inevitable, for the humiliation and pain to come.
As one of the Syndicate soldiers stepped forward, drawing a vibro-knife. " Hehe...such a beautiful woman."
As the knife hummed, inches from Lena's torn bra, a raw scream ripped through the square. "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
It was Leo.
He burst from the alley, a small figure fueled by pure, incandescent rage.
Despair and terror for his mother, bottled up for so long, finally shattered, unleashing something raw and untamed within him.
The serum, dormant within his system, reacted to the extreme stress, a spark igniting a hidden potential.
He moved with a speed he didn't know he possessed, a primal scream tearing from his throat.
"Get away from my Mama!"
He launched himself at the soldier about to cut Lena's bra, a whirlwind of untrained fury. His fists slammed into the armored back with surprising force.
His small body moving with a speed and strength that defied his size.
"You monsters!" he screamed, "I'll kill you all!"
His fists connected with the soldier's armor, the impact sending shockwaves through the soldier body.
"Ugh!" the soldier grunted, staggering. He hadn't even seen the boy coming.
He was on the soldier before he could fully react, a flurry of untrained but surprisingly powerful attacks.
He rained blows on the soldier's face with fists fueled by pure adrenaline and nascent power.
"I'll kill you! I'll kill you all for hurting her!"
The soldier was stunned by his strength, received an attack on his throat shattering his vocal cords.
"Arghh..."
Leo didn't stop his punches until the
soldier below him stopped moving.
The Syndicate soldiers reacted with a mix of confusion and anger. "That brat! Get him!".
He punched, kicked, clawed, a whirlwind of desperate motion.
"Stay away from her!" he screamed, his voice cracking with the strain.
He landed a blow to a soldier's exposed neck, a glancing strike, but enough to make him grunt and recoil.
He landed a kick on a soldier's groin, making him cry with tears.
He even managed to knock the soldier off balance with a surprising shove, sending him stumbling back a few steps.
"He's… strong?" one of the Syndicate soldiers muttered, witnessing his unexpected fight against four men, a flicker of surprise in his voice.
"What the hell is going on with the brat?"