OPERATION: THE PHANTOM TAG

The heavy, metallic slam

of the electromagnetic lock e

choed through the interroga

tion room like a death sen

tence. A piercing, shrill

buzz shook the wall-mount

ed speakers, and in a fract

ion of a second, the contr

ol screens instantly shift

ed from green to blood red.

*SYSTEM COMPROMISED. O

MEGA PROTOCOL ACTIVATED.*

The ceiling neon lights fli

ckered before going out, re

placed by the strobe-like

glow of orange emergency l

ights.

— The transmissions ar

e cut! — General Valois s

houted, his jaw clenched,

darting an icy glare at t

he Staff Sergeant. — Who h

as administrator access?

Julien Lefebvre stepped ba

ck, his back pressed again

st the reinforced concrete

wall. Sweat beaded on his

forehead, betraying his su

dden panic.

— It’s...

it’s impossible! — he st

uttered, his hands shaking

. — The Omega Protocol re

quires Pentagon codes or

the General’s direct bio

metrics!

With a fluid, pr

ecise motion, Captain Élodi

e Dubois drew her service

weapon. The slide pulled b

ack with a sharp click. Her

gaze was fixed on the se

curity camera lens, whose

image was now crackling an

d static-filled.

— They ha

ven't hacked the system, m

y General, — she whispered

. — They're using it from

the inside.

In the heavy

silence, a harsh breath ro

se from the ventilation gr

ills, closely followed by a

phantom digital ticking pr

ojected onto the two-way

mirror. Valois looked at h

er, anxiety gripping his c

hest:

— Élodie... what ar

e we really looking for in

this base?

— Not document

s, my General. A ghost. A

nd he just signed his rep

ort.

Suddenly, an impact o

f unimaginable violence sh

ook the armored door from

the outside. Lefebvre cry

ed out and aimed his gun r

andomly. On the table, th

e tarnished identification

tag Élodie had just place

d down began to vibrate. W

ith a precise gesture, she

slipped it into her tacti

cal pocket.

— If they con

trol Sector B, we're trap

ped, — Valois concluded.

Élodie pivoted and pointed

her chin at the ventilati

on exhaust grille.

— Yes,

my General. The way he u

sed to get in.

Élodie was

the first to climb up. Gri

pping the cold metal bars

tightly, she slipped into

the narrow, suffocating t

unnel.

— Get up here, my

General! — she ordered.

Valois, despite his age

, relied on his old soldie

r reflexes and hoisted him

self up in turn. Lefebvre

followed, trembling in ev

ery limb.

— Hurry up,

you idiot! — Élodie snap

ped, pulling him by the c

ollar before kicking the

metal hatch shut.

Down bel

ow, the heavy footsteps of

a squad of mercenaries in

vaded the room. A burst o

f gunfire pierced the armo

red door, while the trio

crawled in silence throug

h the oppressive darkness

. The air reeked of rust,

sweat, and engine oil. É

lodie suddenly stopped at

an intersection, right abo

ve a grating overlooking t

he highly secure main ser

ver sector.

Through the me

sh, bathed in a bluish glo

w, a man in black tactical

gear, without the slightes

t insignia, was plugging a

encryption key into the c

entral console.

General V

alois held his breath. Élo

die slowly pulled the tarn

ished identification tag fr

om her pocket. Down below,

the intruder abruptly sto

pped his movements and slo

wly raised his head, stair

g directly into the ventila

tion duct.

— Does... does

he see us? — Lefebvre st

uttered, on the verge of

hysteria.

— Shut up! —

Élodie hissed.

Valois gni

tched his teeth, his eye i

nquisitive:

— Captain, h

e is purging the central se

rvers. If we do nothing, a

ll national defense secret

s will disappear.

Without he

sitation, Élodie unscrewe

d the vent panel.

— On m

y signal, we jump. Three m

eters. Ready?

The grate fell. Élodie let

herself slide first, lan

ding with feline agility in

the middle of the artifici

al fog. Valois followed im

mediately behind.

The intru

der pivoted, arming his sil

encer. But Élodie retaliat

ed from her knees, unleash

ing suppression fire that

ignited the console. A vio

lent scuffle ensued. Valoi

s tried to intervene but w

as brought down by a formi

dable kick. Élodie engage

d in close-quarters comba

t of rare intensity. In a

flash of light, she distinc

tly caught sight of a long

scar on her opponent's n

eck — the exact same sign

ature as on the military ta

g.

The man stepped closer,

pressing his lips against

her ear in a freezing whi

sper:

*— You're too late,

Captain.*

A shrill beep th

en echoed across the entire

room. The self-destruct s

ystem had just been trigge

red: 10... 9... 8...

The intruder abruptly step

ped back, disappeared in

the white smoke by throwi

ng a blinding smoke grenad

e, and vanished through an

emergency exit.

— Damn it

! — Élodie spat, helping

General Valois up as he st

ruggled to breathe.

*3...

2...* Up above, Lefebvr

e was screaming in terror

behind the blocked grille.

The shockwave

of the explosion hurled Él

odie and the General into t

he hallway just as flames

devoured the computer bloc

k. The roar of fire alarms

drowned out the sounds of

the base descending into c

haos.

Lying on the black

ened concrete, Valois place

d a trembling hand on his

chest, his eyes wide with

shock:

*— That wasn't an

ordinary soldier, Élodie.

.. It's a ghost I thought I

buried ten years ago at th

e borders.*

Élodie rose sl

owly, her hand clenched on

her weapon and on the tarn

ished tag hidden in her po

cket. Her gaze reflected the

glow of the flames and an

inflexible determination.

— Whether he comes from the

past or from hell, my Gen

eral... we are going to f

ind him. The hunt has jus

t begun.