Leon stared at the file the system had pieced together. The name Elena Drake blinked on the monitor, accompanied by a recent photograph of a poised, confident woman in her late twenties. She was standing outside a research facility in Eastern Europe, oblivious to the weight of her name in Leon’s world. “Elena Drake,” Leon muttered. “The sister I thought I lost… now a stranger who doesn’t even know her real name” The system chirped softly. “Analysis confirms a 98% match. Her current identity suggests memory modification, likely induced through Project Phoenix protocols. She believes she’s a research director under the employ of Victor Aldridge.” Leon clenched his jaw. Victor had taken everything from him, his family, his innocence, his chance at a normal life. Now, it seemed, Victor had twisted Elena into a pawn. “Where is she?” Leon asked, his voice tight. “She is stationed at a secure research facility in Prague. Coordinates uploaded to your device. Surveillance indicates high se

The rain which seems never unending hammered against the roof of the safehouse as Leon sat by the window, the pendant rolling between his fingers. His gaze focused on the pendant. The weight of the mission, of the years he’d spent trying to reach Elena. He once thought he had lost her, it pressed down on him like the storm clouds outside. Across the room, Marcus was hunched over his console, fingers flying as he worked to decrypt additional data they’d pulled from Victor’s archive. Damien, stood at the other edge working in the system while Elena remained silent, staring at the file spread before her. The atmosphere in the room was thick, each of them caught in their own thoughts. Leon’s gaze flickered toward Elena. She hadn’t spoken since her brief breakdown earlier. She was holding it together, but barely. "Leon," Marcus finally said, breaking the silence. "I’ve got something. It’s... weird." Leon crossed the room quickly, leaning over Marcus's shoulder to peer at the screen. "

The team escaped the Zurich facility under a hail of bullets, their getaway van skidding through the rain-soaked streets. Leon clutched the wheel tightly, his knuckles white as he weaved through the labyrinthine roads of Zurich’s industrial outskirts.In the back of the van, Marcus frantically typed on his laptop, his face illuminated by its flickering screen. “I’ve managed to redirect the satellite surveillance Victor’s team is using, but it’s only a matter of time before they catch up.”Damien leaned against the van’s side, reloading his weapon. “What’s the plan now? We stopped Aegis, but Victor’s not going to roll over and let us walk away.”Astra, seated calmly in the corner, let out a low chuckle. “Victor won’t just let us walk away, Damien. He’ll send everything he has after us. But that’s the fun part, isn’t it?”Leon shot her a glare through the rearview mirror. “We’re not in this for your fun, Astra. If you’re done playing games

The barn creaked under the weight of the wind, its old wooden beams groaning like tired bones. The air inside was heavy with tension. The team huddled around Marcus’s laptop, their eyes glued to the ominous message from Astra. “Game on,” Leon repeated, his voice low. The words echoed in his mind like a challenge, but also a warning. “She’s baiting us,” Elena said, her tone sharp. “She’s always two steps ahead. How do we even know this isn’t a trap?” “It’s always a trap,” Damien said, pacing near the boarded-up window. “But we don’t have the luxury of ignoring it. What’s the play, Leon?” Leon stared at the screen, his mind working overtime. “Marcus, trace the origin of the signal. Find out where Astra sent this from.” Marcus’s fingers flew over the keys. “It’s heavily encrypted, but give me a minute... or five. Whoever set this up didn’t want anyone tracing it back.” “Surprise, surprise,” Damien muttered, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. Elena paced, her f

The revelation was a wound deeper than any Leon had ever taken.His hands trembled as he stared at the data logs, each one another dagger to his identity. Iteration 13. He wasn’t the original Leon. He wasn’t even the first attempt.Elena placed a hand on his shoulder, her voice steady but urgent. “Leon, we don’t have time. We need to move.”He clenched his fists, forcing himself to push the thoughts aside. Later. Right now, they still had a mission.“Marcus, we have the data,” Leon said into his earpiece. “Tell me you’ve got an extraction plan.”“Yeah,” Marcus replied. “But you’re not gonna like it. The security lockdown cut off the original escape route. You’re gonna have to go through—”The line crackled.Static filled Leon’s earpiece.“Marcus?”A voice replaced Marcus’s. One that made Leon’s entire body tense.Victor.“Well, well,” Victor’s voice purred through the comms. “I was beginning to think you’d never make it this far. But I see you finally found the truth.”Leon’s grip on