Nightblade dragged Dominic Voss through a side alley as the chaos from The Eclipse erupted behind them. Gunfire rattled in the distance, followed by the dull thud of bodies hitting the floor. The masked operatives weren't just after information—they were eliminating loose ends. That meant Voss was a dead man if Nightblade let him go.
Voss panted, his expensive suit now dusted with dirt and torn at the sleeve. "Where—huff—where the hell are we going?" he demanded.
Nightblade didn't stop. "Somewhere quiet."
"Listen, I appreciate you saving my hide, but if The Revenant sent those guys, he won't stop coming. I need—"
A sharp tug on his collar cut him off. Nightblade pulled him into a hidden doorway, pressing him against the cold brick wall. "You need to stay alive long enough to tell me everything you know."
Voss swallowed hard. "Fine. But you don't get it. He's not just coming for me—he's coming for you."
Nightblade narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
Voss wiped sweat from his brow. "Project Revenant… they weren't just experimenting on him. They were creating him."
Nightblade's stomach twisted. "Who's 'they'?"
Before Voss could answer, a red dot appeared on his forehead.
Nightblade reacted instantly, yanking him aside just as a silenced bullet punched through the brick where Voss's head had been. He shoved Voss forward. "Move!"
They darted into the darkness as more shots hissed through the alley. Nightblade flung out his hand, and the shadows answered, thickening around them, shrouding their escape. He led Voss through a maze of backstreets, finally breaking into an abandoned warehouse near the docks.
Voss collapsed against a rusted crate, gasping. "I hate running."
Nightblade ignored him, scanning the area. "You're not safe anywhere. That sniper wasn't hired to miss. They wanted to scare you first. Make you panic."
Voss wiped his face. "Well, mission accomplished."
Nightblade knelt beside him. "Start talking. Now."
Voss hesitated, then sighed. "Fine. But you're not gonna like it. Project Revenant wasn't just about bringing a dead man back. It was about making something unstoppable. And the worst part? They weren't working alone. Someone with government-level clearance signed off on this."
Nightblade clenched his fists. "Who?"
Voss hesitated. "I don't know. But I have a lead. There's a guy—ex-military, deep connections. If anyone can tell you who's behind this, it's him."
Nightblade's eyes stayed locked on him. "Name."
Voss licked his lips. "Ethan Cross. Former special ops. He disappeared years ago, but rumor is, he's still in play."
Nightblade rose to his feet. "Where do I find him?"
Voss grinned weakly. "Oh, you're gonna love this. He runs a little operation out of the one place even you don't like going."
"Which is?"
Voss chuckled darkly. "The Blackreach Police Department."
Nightblade's jaw tightened. "Of course he does."
Outside, sirens wailed in the distance. The hunt was only beginning.