Chapter 9: The Final Stand.
The compound was on lockdown.
Lights flashing red. Alarms shrieked through the concrete halls. Armed operatives poured through corridors like wolves chasing their prey.
Lia moved through it like a ghost.
She knew this place better than anyone. Every blind spot. Every maintenance crawlspace. Every flaw in the system. The same machine that had built her was about to be destroyed by its own doing.
Kai followed close behind, his face tight with fear but his hands steady on his weapon. "You sure about this?"
"No," Lia admitted. "But it's too late to turn back."
They had one goal: reach the main control room. Inside was the database — names, locations, operations. The heart of The Order. If they could get it, expose it, and burn it to ash, they could end this.
Or die trying.
The first wave of guards hit them at the lower levels.
Gunfire roared. Lia moved with lethal precision, a blur of steel and lead. She didn't think, she didn't hesitate. Every shot was a kill. Every movement a survival instinct honed by years of brutality.
Kai took a round to the shoulder but kept moving, gritting his teeth. "Go. I'll cover you."
"I'm not leaving you," Lia snapped.
Another operative lunged at her — she dropped him with a knife to the throat, his hot blood falling on her skin.
They made it to the stairs — the main stairs. The stairs was the only way to go up, which was always heavily guarded.
After killing everyone, those who were guarding the stairs. Lia pried the maintenance hatch open.
Floor by floor. Death after death.
By the time they reached the top, Kai was barely conscious, blood loss turning his skin pale.
"Lia, don't wait for me, go to the control room." Kai said, he was in a bad condition. He knew that he would not be able to help her even if go with her, he might even held her back.
Lia nodded and left, she could not be more aware of the situation than now. She knew what was more important.
The control room was waiting.
And so was Raiden.
He stood at the center of the room, two elite guards were situated along with him. His face was calm, unreadable, as though he'd been expecting her all along.
"I warned you, Lia," he said softly, yet there were no emotions in it. "I told you feelings would get you killed."
She raised her pistol. "And I told you I'd never be like you."
His gaze flicked to Kai, then back to her. "I made you what you are."
"No," she said. "You made a weapon. But I made a choice."
"What was your objective?" Lia demanded, her voice raw and stern. "Why create this… this machine of death? And why use innocent childrens."
Raiden's gaze was steady, cold as steel. "Control," he said without hesitation. "The world is chaos, Lia. Governments rise and fall. Leaders grow corrupt. Ideals fade. But fear — fear continues. We built The Order to control that fear. To decide who lives, who dies, and who holds power when the dust settles. And children? Children are easier to mold into weapons. They don't question. They obey. And when shaped right, they'll tear the world apart for you. Just like all of you. The Order will be the only one, the only one who controls the whole world. Who obey us live and those who dont, they die."
This answer made Lia very agitated. Made her lose her mind, she
The fight was brutal.
The guards rushed her — Lia moved with savage grace, putting them down with merciless efficiency. The room filled with gunfire, shattered glass, and blood.
Only Raiden remained.
He was fast and strong. Years of combat experience packed into every strike.
But Lia was faster, angrier and even more, desperate.
She got a knife wound to the side but she still didn't falter. She fisarmed him and drove the blade straight into his chest.
He staggered, blood spilling down his uniform.
His last words were a ragged whisper. "You'll never outrun what you are."
"I'm not running," she said coldly.
And she left him there to bleed.
She uploaded the database.
To every law agency, every international watchlist, every media outlet. Their names, faces and crimes.
The Order was no longer a ghost in the dark. It was exposed and vulnerable.
The government should atleast be capable of hunting down the member who are left alive. With that thought she left.
And in minutes, the building was burning behind her.
Lia didn't look back.
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End of chapter 9.
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