"You realize this is suicide, right?" Max muttered, his gaze darting between Nia and Leo. "They'll kill us before we even get close."
Leo didn't respond immediately. His eyes stayed on the map, but his mind wandered. Memories of his childhood surfaced—his father's laughter at the dinner table, his mother's warm hands setting a plate before him. They'd lost everything. Home, family, hope. But this… this could be their chance to take something back.
"For too long, we've been hiding, surviving," Leo said quietly, his voice steady but sharp. He looked up, his eyes locking with Max's. "I can't do it anymore."
Max groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "Lexi won't forgive us if this goes south."
"Then it doesn't go south," Leo snapped, his jaw tightening. "We do it smart, fast, and quietly."
Nia grinned, her playful dimple flashing. "Now, that's the spirit." She tapped the map with a finger. "I've got a plan."
They discussed the plan late into the night, poring over every possible route, every potential threat. Nia laid out the details with a fiery confidence that only half-concealed her own nerves. Max grumbled and questioned every point, his tone sharp with doubt, but he didn't back down.
By the time they returned to the small room he and Max shared, Leo's head buzzed with the weight of what they were about to do.
Max threw himself onto his bunk with a heavy sigh. The creak of the worn metal frame seemed louder in the quiet room. "So, are you going to tell me?"
Leo pulled off his boots, glancing at him. "Tell you what?"
"Don't play dumb." Max sat up, his eyes narrowing. "This isn't about the shipment, is it? It's about the girl."
Leo froze for a moment before sitting on the edge of his bunk. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Bullshit!" Max leaned forward, pointing a finger at him. "I know you, Leo. You've been restless ever since we got back. You think this is your chance to fix something, to be the hero."
"She's just a kid, Max," Leo said, his voice low. "No one else cares if she lives or dies."
"And what about us?" Max snapped. "Do we not count? I don't want to see you get killed because you're chasing ghosts, man."
Leo didn't answer, staring at the floor. Max sighed and leaned back, running a hand through his hair.
*TWO DAYS LATER*
The next few days passed in tense silence. Lexi assigned them a routine supply mission, one they'd done a dozen times before. They were to scout an abandoned settlement and bring back anything useful—food, tools, or parts they could salvage.
Leo and Nia exchanged a knowing look as she handed out their orders. Neither of them mentioned the shipment, but the unspoken agreement hung between them. This was their chance.
The settlement was eerily quiet, its crumbling buildings standing like skeletons in the twilight. They gathered what they could—half-rusted tools, some canned goods, and a small stash of batteries.
Max winced as he adjusted the weight of his pack, his limp more pronounced with every step. "We've got enough," he said through gritted teeth, slinging the pack over his good shoulder. "Let's head back before my leg gives out."
Nia smirked, her expression betraying none of the exhaustion they all felt. "Not quite."
Max groaned, pausing to lean against a half-collapsed wall. "I knew it. I freaking knew it."
Leo stepped forward, glancing at Max's leg. "You okay to keep going?"
"I'll live," Max muttered, though his face told a different story.
"The shipment's supposed to be nearby," Leo pressed, his tone resolute.
"You're going to get us killed," Max muttered, shifting his weight to test his leg. "But if I stay here alone, I'm dead anyway, so lead the way."
He didn't argue further, though each step was slower and more labored as they adjusted their path.
It wasn't hard to find. The convoy stood out against the desolation—two armored vehicles parked near a cluster of supply crates. Sentinels patrolled the area, their movements sharp and mechanical.
"They're guarding something big," Nia whispered, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Yeah, and I'd like to stay alive to find out what," Max hissed.
Leo scanned the scene, his gaze landing on a peculiar box being carried by two Sentinels. It was sleek and metallic, with faint blue lights pulsing along its surface.
"That's it," Leo said, his voice barely audible.
They waited, their breaths held, until an opening appeared—one of the Sentinels strayed too far from the group, its mechanical footsteps fading into the distance. This was their chance.
Nia moved like a shadow, every muscle coiled tight, her senses razor-sharp. The wind worked in her favor, muffling the faint crunch of her boots against the ground. Her heart pounded, but her hands stayed steady. Closer. Just a little more.
The Sentinel paused, as if sensing her presence. Her instincts screamed: Now!
She struck before the machine could turn. With a catlike leap, Nia slammed into its back, her left arm hooking around its metallic neck in a swift chokehold. Its systems emitted a warning—a sharp beep that nearly made her flinch. Nearly.
Her right hand was already moving, yanking the taser from her belt in one fluid motion. The Sentinel thrashed, its robotic limbs twisting with brute force, almost throwing her into a wall. She gritted her teeth, muscles burning, but didn't let go. No noise. No time.
The taser jammed into the exposed wiring at its neck. A click, then—ZZZT!—blue current surged through the machine's systems, sparks spitting from its armor. Its body convulsed, glowing eyes flickering wildly before going dark.
Nia didn't hesitate. With a grunt, she lowered the lifeless husk to the ground, controlling every inch of its fall to avoid even the slightest sound. Dust kicked up in a faint swirl, then settled. Silence.
For a heartbeat, everything froze—until Leo's tense whisper cut through: "Move."
They advanced.
The box was heavier than it looked. Max groaned as he and Leo lifted it into the shadows. "This better be worth it."
As they turned to leave, the faint whirring of machinery froze them in place. "Move!" Nia hissed.
The Sentinels had spotted them. Alarms blared, and the group broke into a desperate sprint, the box awkwardly weighing them down.
Leo's lungs burned as they ran, the sound of Sentinels closing in like the relentless pounding of a drum. "We can't outrun them!" Max shouted, stumbling as his injured leg buckled beneath him.
Leo skidded to a stop, cursing under his breath as he grabbed Max's arm to steady him. "Keep moving!"
"I'm trying!" Max hissed, his face pale from pain. "But unless you've got wings hidden somewhere, we're sitting ducks!"
Leo's gaze darted to the box in his hands. Desperation clawed at him. He slammed it onto the ground and pried it open with trembling hands.
Inside was a strange device—gun-shaped but sleek and alien, humming faintly with an energy that made the hairs on his arms stand on end.
"What the hell is that?" Max panted, leaning heavily against a tree for support, his panic mingling with exhaustion.
"No idea," Leo muttered, his heart hammering as he grabbed the device.
As soon as his fingers curled around the grip, the device came alive. Lights flared to life along its sleek metal body, and something sharp coiled around Leo's wrist, latching on like living metal. A searing pain shot through him, racing from his wrist to his chest and head. He staggered, a cry escaping his lips as the sensation surged and then disappeared, leaving him breathless.
"Leo! Drop it!" Nia shouted, panic clear in her voice.
But Leo couldn't. His hand refused to let go, as if the device had become part of him. The metal hummed with energy, its glow intensifying, and before Leo could comprehend what was happening, the first Sentinel rounded the corner.
Instinct took over. Without thinking, Leo raised the device. He didn't even aim—it moved on its own, tracking the Sentinel with uncanny precision.
A sharp, high-pitched whine filled the air, and then a brilliant blue burst of energy erupted from the device. The blast struck the Sentinel square in the chest, throwing it back into a wall with such force that the structure crumbled around it. The machine twitched violently before falling still, its lifeless frame sparking in the dim light.
The group froze, stunned. Nia's mouth hung open, her usual sharp retort nowhere to be found. Max leaned against the tree, his pain momentarily forgotten as he stared at Leo and the weapon fused to his hand.
"What the hell just happened?" Max managed, his voice hoarse.
Leo didn't respond immediately, his chest heaving as he stared at the device now humming quietly in his grasp. He felt it again—that strange, alien warmth pulsing through his veins, syncing with the faint glow of the weapon.
"We can't stay here!" Nia snapped, snapping him out of his daze. "There's more coming. Move!"
Leo shoved the box's remains into his pack and slung it over his shoulder. He grabbed Max, helping him limp as they took off into the dense undergrowth. They didn't stop until they were miles away, hidden beneath a canopy of trees.
Max collapsed against a tree, groaning as he cradled his injured leg. "We're alive… somehow."
Nia paced, her breathing ragged. "What the hell was that thing?" she asked, her eyes wide with fear and awe as they locked onto the weapon still attached to Leo's hand.
Leo didn't answer. He didn't know. But as he clenched his fist around the strange device, its glow faintly dimmed. The gun detached from his wrist, but a weird metallic wristlet remained. Leo felt a chilling certainty: whatever this was, it wasn't just a weapon. It was something far more dangerous—and now, it seemed like it was a part of him.