, just the chirp of crickets and the rustle of wind in the pi

ed out on the sofa in the main room, his snoring a rhythmic, choking rattle. Martha w

testing h

ose. Ope

mand and the muscular response. It was frustrating. It was like tr

p. T

m the woods behind

en f

hey did, they would have dismissed it as

essed cough of a suppressor. Specifically, a high-cali

he woods. And they were t

smelled of cheap detergent and apathy-and pulled it over her head. Her lank hair fell into her eyes, an immediate tactical annoyance. She scanned the cluttered room and her gaze landed on a cheap p

ed the creaky floorboard near the kitchen-a detail f

amp and cold. The tra

edges for cover. She moved toward the tree line. Her breathing was heavy. Her stam

ility, she thought,

covered in slick pine needles. She navigated i

. The silence in a specific sector of the forest wa

ridge and looked d

er-haired, dressed in a torn tuxedo shirt that was rapidly turning r

al Cl

ed four-star general, now a major defense contractor on the

ing in a standard fan formation. Black tactical gear. N

elf into the dirt b

hree minutes before bleed-out or exe

d, weak, and had a mission to revive her brother. Getti

t: Side Que

: Rescue

ter (Permanent) + Basic

holographic text floa

e was going to survive in this world, if she was going to get Dus

nned th

ge. Heavy enough

usted fencing wire, hal

ld hav

in her left hand and

wa

ating from the group, checking the peri

ed her breathin

He was relying on his night vision, focu

en r

h to overpower him. She had

the wire ov

twisted her body, using her weight to drag him down, the wire biting in

is hand went f

e rock into the b

y. It was desperate. But the impact hi

arms were burning as

his vest. The weight of the steel f

wn. Tw

nt of surprise anymore. T

ne of the merce

man turned

e threw a pinecone to

head snapped t

en l

fficiently. She closed the ten feet between

tween his vest and his neck. She di

ying to his throat,

saw his partner falling. He saw a small

sed hi

raction, leaned out from behind

a tree, but it made

cond was all

se the distance.

ife in her hand, g

5 feet. Wind speed mini

th

her current strength, t

aim wa

e mercenary's right shoulder,

d, the rif

ve. She sprinted. It felt li

ackle

t she knew where to hit. She drove her knee into his groin

a tree with a sickening crunch. The impact shattered the cheap

loded in

ack, reaching for his si

sed th

him. She didn't

a

head snapped bac

was holding the mercenary's dropped

turned to

stand. She fell.

over to t

ooked like a ghost. A teenage girl in a hood

the Gener

the pistol the mercenary had dropp

afety and tossed

er voice was steady, desp

hrum of helicopter blades began