The base lights flickered to amber as Devon entered the command center, a secure line buzzing with static and encrypted distortion. The call wasn't from a buyer. This was something else. The system confirmed the ID seconds before the voice came through.
"Devon Shaw," the voice said, steady and neutral. "I'm Mr. Nobody."
Devon leaned forward slightly. "Never thought I'd get a call from the ghosts behind the curtain."
"I don't usually call ghosts myself," Mr. Nobody replied. "But you've got a reputation. Clean work. Dirty roads. And a system behind you I'd love to learn more about eventually."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves."
"Then let's talk Russia."
Devon narrowed his eyes.
Mr. Nobody continued, "A covert Russian weapons lab in the Siberian mountains has developed next-generation shielding technology. We're talking molecular deflection, high-energy field barriers, and even early-stage plasma refractors. If Eteon or other global players get it first…"
"They win the next war before it starts," Devon finished.
"You catch on quick. I'm sending coordinates. I need it extracted. All the data. Preferably the core prototype as well. Silent job. Clean. The world can't know."
Devon smirked. "You picked the right crew."
War Room – Prep Briefing
Devon stood at the center, a rotating 3D map of the Siberian facility hovering before him.
"Two layers of perimeter security. Infrared drones, motion mines, and weather-shielded guard towers. The lab itself is buried in a mountain fully underground, minimal access."
He tapped the interface, zooming in.
"Primary target: The SC-9 Shield Core. Secondary: full research data."
Lacy crossed her arms. "What about exfil routes? Snowfields and satellites don't play nice."
"I'll handle that," Raven said calmly, running a code simulation through the base's interface. "I'll blind Russian satellite sweeps for six minutes. We'll need to be fast, and cold."
Logan loaded a heavy rifle onto the table. "It's gonna be close quarters. I'm packing armor-piercing and EMP darts."
Devon turned to Raven. "You healed up?"
She nodded. "Stronger than ever."
"Good," he said, smirking. "We'll need you on inside ops."
48 Hours Later – Siberian Wilderness
Snow howled outside the armored transport as Devon's team approached the hidden facility under a moonless sky. The base, nestled into the mountain like a sleeping dragon, was barely visible under the snowdrift.
"EMP in five," Devon said.
Lacy floored the throttle, the tires of their modified snow-crawler gripping ice like a cat on glass. Raven popped the hatch and launched a focused EMP grenade through a silent arc.
The pulse rippled invisibly.
Turrets went blind. Sensors froze. The perimeter blinked off.
"Go!" Devon shouted.
Inside the Lab
They moved like shadows.
Devon and Raven hit the control room first, Raven's fingers dancing across the console as she uploaded a viral worm.
Logan and Lacy slipped down the left corridor, silently taking out two guards and opening access to the core chamber.
"Shield's here," Logan whispered. "Locked in a cryo-case. Heavy."
"Copy that," Devon replied. "Raven, open the chamber doors."
"I'm already in."
Raven bypassed three layers of encrypted Soviet-era security, cracked the internal firewall, and opened the vault.
Lacy helped Logan unhook the shield core. A glowing blue orb, surrounded by spiraling energy rings, pulsed within.
"We got it!" Lacy called out.
That's when everything went to hell.
Eteon Operatives Arrive
Gunfire erupted from the east wing.
"They're here," Raven said coldly. "Eteon. Five-man fireteam with support droids. They triggered the secondary alarms."
Devon cursed. "We've got ninety seconds to exfil."
"Cover us," Logan growled.
Devon dropped smoke and engaged firing modified taser rounds that shorted out the first droid before spinning into cover. Raven, pistol in hand, downed two operatives with ruthless precision.
Lacy reversed the crawler up to the extraction point, snow spinning in spirals.
"GO!" she screamed.
Devon vaulted over a pipe, slamming the shield core into the crawler bay. Logan and Raven dived in after.
The crawler peeled out just as bullets ripped through the snowy air.
Twenty Miles Out – Safe House
Back in temporary shelter, the team thawed, bruised and burned but victorious.
The shield core sat in the center of the room, its glow faint but pulsing.
"Well," Logan said, shaking snow off his coat, "that was a warm Russian welcome."
Devon handed each crewmember a sealed envelope.
"Five million. Each. From Mr. Nobody's vault."
Lacy's eyes widened. "No cuts?"
"No cuts," Devon said. "You earned it."
Raven sat down, examining the shield core. "We just shifted the balance of power. Again."
Devon nodded. "And we're not done."
The system pinged in his ear.
Mission Complete.Bonus Objective Achieved: Defeat Eteon Vanguard UnitNew System Reward: Experimental Hover Engine (Prototype Vehicle Tech)Side Quest Available: Shadow Courier Intercept Black Market Weapon Transfer in Prague.
Devon's eyes gleamed.
"Looks like the road just got longer. Let's see where it leads."