Chapter 64
Inside the massive warehouse, the scene was one of disciplined, militaristic efficiency. The colossal, black hull of a modified Soviet Typhoon-class submarine sat in the dry dock, surrounded by heavy scaffolding and hundreds of elite Leviathan operatives preparing for their West Coast assault.
Suddenly, the deafening, bone-rattling shriek of the submarine's primary radiation alarms shattered the silence.
Strobe lights flashed a violent, blinding crimson across the warehouse. The automated PA system blared a terrifying, synthesized voice in Russian: Warning. Core containment failure. Critical radiation leak detected. Evacuate immediately.
Panic, the great equalizer of all armies, took hold instantly.
The operatives, highly trained but acutely aware of the horrific reality of radiation poisoning, broke their disciplined formations. They abandoned their weapons, their gear, and their tactical positions, scrambling frantically for the heavy steel exit doors of the warehouse.
"It's working!" Sarah yelled over the roar of the alarms, monitoring the chaotic thermal signatures on her screen. "They are pouring out of the building!"
"Donovan, execute!" Cole roared into his comms.
From her elevated position on the towering gantry crane, Master Sergeant Donovan unleashed absolute hell.
She didn't use a suppressed weapon. She opened fire with a heavy, belt-fed M240B machine gun. The deafening, rhythmic roar of the weapon tore through the fog like thunder.
She didn't aim for the fleeing men; she aimed for the heavy, armored transport vehicles parked in the courtyard outside the warehouse.
The heavy-caliber, armor-piercing rounds shredded the engine blocks and ignited the fuel tanks. The vehicles erupted in spectacular, sequential fireballs, creating a massive, burning barricade that trapped the panicked Leviathan operatives in the courtyard.
"They are boxed in!" Cole yelled, surging out from the shadows of the warehouse wall.
He moved with terrifying, explosive speed. He didn't engage the disorganized, terrified mob in the courtyard. He sprinted directly through the open blast doors, running against the tide of fleeing men, plunging into the chaotic, red-lit interior of the warehouse.
He was hunting the commander.
"Cole, the sub is almost empty!" Sarah reported, tracking the thermal feeds. "But I have three heavy heat signatures holding position on the bridge of the submarine. They didn't run."
"The leadership," Cole murmured, his gray eyes turning to cold obsidian.
He navigated the scaffolding with fluid, lethal grace, vaulting over the railings and dropping onto the slick, black metal deck of the submarine.
He reached the heavy steel hatch leading to the command bridge. It was magnetically sealed.
Cole didn't waste time hacking it. He pulled a shaped thermite charge from his vest, slapped it over the locking mechanism, and stepped back.
The charge detonated with a blinding flash of white heat, melting the lock into glowing slag.
Cole kicked the heavy hatch open and surged into the bridge, his suppressed weapon raised, ready to slaughter the men who had threatened his family.
But the bridge was empty.
The three thermal signatures Sarah had tracked were not men. They were heavy, military-grade incendiary servers, currently overheating in a controlled, localized burn.
"Sarah, it's a decoy!" Cole yelled into his comms. "The bridge is empty!"
"Ghost-Actual, behind you!" Donovan screamed over the radio.
Before Cole could turn, a massive, crushing force slammed into his back. He was thrown violently across the bridge, crashing brutally into the periscope console.
His weapon clattered across the steel deck.
Cole rolled, fighting through the blinding pain, and looked up.
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Standing in the doorway of the bridge, silhouetted by the red emergency lights, was a towering giant of a man clad in heavy, unmarked tactical armor. He didn't carry a firearm. He wielded a devastating, serrated kinetic combat axe.
"You Americans are so predictable," the giant rumbled in heavily accented English, raising the axe. "You always think you are the hunters."
