System S.E.X. (Seduction, Expansion, eXecution)

Chapter 145: Chapter 145: Breaking the Barrier

Inside the warehouse, the remaining six Celestial agents were pinned down by Ethan’s sporadic fire, their focus entirely on the man bleeding in the darkness.

Outside, the situation was desperate. Jason was watching his men bleed out, and the call with Ethan had been cut.

”Damn it! We’ve lost too many men! Santiago is down, and the Boss’s location is compromised,” Jason muttered to Falcon 1. He knew Ethan was hurt, and time was running out. He threw caution aside. ”Forget the caution! Falcon 2, block the north exit immediately! I want the entire zone surrounded! I don’t care how many men it takes; no one gets out of that building!” Jason roared into the comms. ”Falcon 1, prepare breach charges! We are going in!”

Jason knew the risk of charging trained mercenaries, but the thought of Ethan—his boss—injured and alone was unacceptable.

The Royal’s regrouped. Breach charges were planted and detonated, ripping open the hastily constructed barricade with a deafening BOOM. Jason, Falcon 1, and the remaining Royal’s charged into the warehouse, tossing flashbangs ahead of them.

The warehouse instantly became a kill zone. Flashbangs disoriented the Celestial team for precious seconds. The air was thick with the continuous, savage exchange of gunfire. Ethan used the chaos to his advantage, launching himself from his cover.

The sound of the new assault made the Celestial agents instinctively turn their heavy fire toward the front door, facing Jason’s men.

”Focus! Two teams! Team 1, suppress the entrance! Team 2, secure the exit and neutralize Blake!” Rhodes commanded, his voice strained by the noise.

The Celestial team was still superior in training, but the sheer volume and desperation of the Royal’s attack was overwhelming. Royal’s men, fueled by anger over the high casualties, poured high-caliber fire into the Celestial positions.

Ethan, seeing the attention diverted, maintained his silence. He fired two more rounds into the shadows near the back exit, effectively pinning down Team 2 and preventing their escape. He needed them to think they were fighting two separate forces.

Jason, crouching behind a shelving unit, spotted Ethan—bloody, leaning heavily on a steel beam, but alive and holding his own against two mercenaries.

Jason thought: He’s alive. He’s fighting. Thank God. But I can’t acknowledge him. The identity must remain hidden.

”Falcon 1, lay down continuous fire! We’re pinning them to the far wall! Alpha, you’re done! You messed with the wrong city!” Jason yelled, projecting his voice to make sure the enemy and his own men heard the chain of command. ”Push them back! Keep the pressure on the south exit! Don’t let them split!”

Ethan caught Jason’s eye. The look was fleeting, a quick acknowledgment of their dangerous secret. Jason’s orders were clear: ignore Ethan, focus on the immediate fight, and prevent any of the Celestial team from escaping to tell the true story.

The brutal battle raged for agonizing minutes inside the warehouse. Royal Private Security, despite the heavy losses, pressed their advantage through sheer numbers and fury.

The exchange of fire was unrelenting. Ethan used the confusion created by Jason’s assault to move laterally, delivering swift, bone-shattering blows against any mercenary who strayed from the group. Two more of the Celestial guards were neutralized, collapsing into the darkness, shot down by the Royal’s overwhelming firepower.

”Four down. Two left, plus Alpha and Rhodes.” Ethan thought

The battle had taken a devastating toll: many of the nominal Royal’s lay dead or severely wounded, casualties of the superior training and weaponry of the Celestial mercenaries.

Suddenly, Alpha and Axel Rhodes realized the futility of the defense. Their team was decimated, and their position was collapsing.

”Run! Follow me! We’re breaking for the south exit!” Alpha commanded, shoving Rhodes toward a cracked loading bay door at the back of the warehouse.

The final two remaining Celestial guards joined Alpha and Rhodes, and the four men kicked open the door, stumbling out into the open air on the opposite side of the block.

As the four men burst out, coughing and bleeding, they ran straight into a detachment led by Falcon 2, who had been ordered by Jason to seal the area.

”Freeze!” Falcon 2 screamed, instantly opening fire.

The ensuing exchange was swift and deadly. Four Celestial agents died immediately, riddled with bullets before they could even raise their weapons. Alpha, however, reacted instantly. He was hit—three heavy-caliber rounds slammed into his torso—but he kept running, a testament to his sheer training and determination, stunning Falcon 2. Rhodes, using Alpha as momentary distraction, pressed his escape.

Falcon 2 and his men pursued them, firing continuously. Alpha quickly closed the distance to a nearby parked car where a man was making a phone call. Alpha executed the driver with a single, brutal shot to the head, yanked the door open, and threw Rhodes inside.

ALPHA: ”Drive! Now!” Alpha screamed, leaping into the passenger seat as the car roared away from the scene.

Falcon 2 opened fire, emptying his rifle. Many bullets impacted the stolen car, shattering the back window and denting the trunk, but none managed to hit a vital area or disable the vehicle. Alpha and Rhodes had escaped.

”Damn it! They escaped!” Falcon 2 shouted in rage, kicking the sidewalk after the stolen car sped out of sight.

Running up behind him came Jason and Falcon 1. Ethan appeared, limping down the side aisle, his face bloody and his body stiff with pain. He kept a few feet away, leaning against the wall, his painful limp barely visible.

”What happened here, Falcon 2?” Jason asked, his adrenaline boiling. ”Who the hell were those guys? And what happened to our men?” he asked, seeing the trail of blood.

”Boss, it was hell,” Falcon 2 said, still visibly shaken. ”We hit them square on. We put four rounds into the guy leading the others, that guy was... not human. He managed to steal a car and take the other subject with him. Four shots point blank, boss! He shouldn’t have been able to withstand them at that range, it was truly bizarre,” Falcon 2 reported, unable to hide his astonishment.