Chapter 23
We managed to salvage a functional,
low-profile tactical motorcycle from the mercenary wreckage in the courtyard,
the powerful engine starting with a low,
throated rumble that offered a tiny glint of hope in the dark night.
I climbed onto the leather seat,
and Lily climbed on right behind me,
wrapping her arms tightly around my waist as I shifted the machine into gear.
We tore out of the mining facility,
navigating the muddy mountain paths with a smooth,
practiced skill,
and putting the burning ruins of the underground bunker far behind us.
Where are we going now,
Lily asked over the rushing wind,
her head leaning close to my shoulder to ensure I could hear her voice.
We need to find a secure,
off-grid location to analyze the stolen data drive,
I replied,
and I steered the motorcycle toward an old,
forgotten safe house hidden deep within the coastal cliffs.
The journey took three long,
exhausting hours,
the freezing rain finally tapering off into a thick,
gray morning fog that blanketed the entire coastline.
We finally arrived at a secluded wooden cabin nestled tightly between the jagged rocks,
completely invisible from both the main coastal highway and the sea lanes below.
I parked the motorcycle beneath a camouflage netting structure,
and we hurried inside the cabin,
quickly locking the heavy wooden door and drawing the thick curtains shut.
The interior was dusty and cold,
but it was completely safe from any advanced satellite reconnaissance or electronic tracking.
Lily immediately set up her digital equipment on a heavy oak table,
plugging the stolen data drive into a highly secure,
air-gapped laptop computer.
Let's see who originally paid for our executions,
she muttered grimly,
and she initiated the massive file decryption sequence.
The screen flickered through millions of lines of code before finally revealing a name,
a massive,
multi-national defense conglomerate known as Vanguard Global Dynamics.
They didn't just build the algorithm to hunt us down,
Lily explained,
her face turning completely pale as she read through the classified project logs.
They are planning to deploy the system on a global scale next week,
integrating it directly into every commercial satellite network on the planet.
It will become an automated global judge,
jury,
and executioner,
eliminating anyone who poses a threat to their massive corporate interests,
she warned.
And our names were simply the very first test subjects on their primary hit list,
I realized,
feeling a cold,
furious anger building deep within my chest.
Then we cannot simply remain in hiding,
I stated firmly,
and I checked the remaining ammunition in my customized pistol.
We have to take this evidence directly to the international press and expose them entirely,
Lily suggested,
but I knew that Vanguard Global Dynamics controlled the media networks just as easily.
No,
I decided,
my voice completely hard as iron,
we are going to hit them where they are most vulnerable.
May you like
We are going to infiltrate their main corporate headquarters in Geneva,
and we are going to manually upload this entire file to the global network ourselves.
