Chapter 6: First Run

Ren hated how calm the car felt.

Too smooth. Too quiet. Like the city was holding its breath.

Akio sat up front, eyes forward. Saya in the back—silent since they left.

“In and out,” Akio said. “No mistakes.”

The target was an old data hub squeezed between clubs and shuttered offices. Neon flickered. Music thumped nearby. Inside, the air felt wrong.

Ren felt it first.

Alarms screamed.

Lights snapped on. Gunfire ripped through the corridor.

“Down!” Akio shouted.

Ren dove behind a server rack as metal shredded around him. This wasn’t chaos.

It was timing.

Smoke filled the room. Footsteps scattered. Someone yelled.

Ren looked back.

Saya was gone.

Akio grabbed Ren’s jacket and dragged him toward the exit. Bullets chased them into the street. They didn’t stop running until the city swallowed the noise.

In the aftermath, Ren’s hands shook.

“This was a setup,” he said.

Akio nodded once. “Yes.”

Ren stared into the dark streets.

The alliance hadn’t failed.

It had been tested.