The alley was quiet, but Elias's mind wasn't. Every time he blinked, Rhea's terrified expression flashed behind his eyes. Dizzy had gone silent too—leaning against a wall, eyes scanning the rooftops, trying not to speak the obvious.
They were crossing lines now. Not just turf or blood. Moral ones.
Elias checked the drone feed again. The Watchdogs' van was still parked outside the boarded building across the street. Two guys smoked near the rear bumper, oblivious to the bugged cam watching their every twitch.
His burner buzzed.
Unknown Number: [We see you. You have one chance to walk away.]
He didn't reply. Instead, he opened the system interface.
******
[New Objective Triggered: Leverage or Eliminate]
– Interrogate Watchdog Scout
– Optional: Extract Intel Node Location
– Bonus Objective: Leave No Witnesses
Reward: +10 Crime Points | +1 Skill Point | 1 Rare Loot Crate
Timer: 4:12:43
******
"Dizzy," Elias said, turning from the drone screen, "we're flipping the board."
Dizzy narrowed his eyes. "You sure you wanna kick this hornet's nest harder?"
"I'm sure they're planning to hit us before dawn. Let's ruin their schedule."
They moved fast.
Rhea stayed at the safehouse, hidden under Elias's warning not to open the door for anyone. He left her a walkie and two emergency triggers on the burner. If anything moved wrong, she'd set off a localized alarm.
One block over, Elias and Dizzy shadowed the two Watchdog scouts from the drone feed. The van door was wide open now, one guy sitting inside on a crate, the other pacing, talking into an earpiece.
Elias waited until a car drove past—noise cover.
Then he struck.
Two steps, then a brutal strike to the pacing man's temple with his elbow. The man dropped like stone. Dizzy leapt into the van and pistol-whipped the second one before he could even raise a hand.
They bound both men with zip ties and duct tape, dragging them into the back of the van.
Elias leaned close. "We've got three hours before this block lights up. So here's what happens. You give me what I want, and I don't dump your bodies in the river."
The bound scout laughed, a bloody grin across his face. "You think you're scary? You're a rat with a toy."
Elias didn't blink. He opened the side panel of the van, revealing a pair of tools laid out neatly—pliers, lighter, a scalpel.
"You talk," Elias said coldly, "or I practice."
The man lasted three minutes.
******
[Objective Complete: Interrogate Watchdog Scout]
Intel Gained: Location of Safehouse B-North | 3 Known Operatives Identified
+10 Crime Points
+1 Skill Point
+1 Rare Loot Crate (Claimable)
New Marker Added to Map
Remaining Time: 3:49:57
******
They dumped the two unconscious scouts behind an industrial dumpster three blocks away—alive, but with no working comms and no memory past the taser burn. Elias didn't need corpses—just silence.
Back at the safehouse, Elias claimed the loot crate.
******
[Rare Loot Crate Opened…]
Item Unlocked: [Silent Fang Combat Gloves – Tier I]
Effect: +10% Melee Speed | +5% Damage | Noise Dampening (Passive)
Auto-Equipped
******
Dizzy whistled as Elias flexed his gloved hands.
"Stylish," Dizzy said. "Now what?"
Elias pulled up the map. The new safehouse was four blocks into Syndicate-controlled territory. Risky. But if they moved first…
"We hit them tonight," Elias said.
Dizzy blinked. "Right after they tried to bait us?"
Elias smiled, something cold in his eyes. "Exactly. Pressure makes people sloppy. Let's find out how sloppy the Syndicate gets when they bleed."
The war was no longer coming.
It had already begun.