Chapter 120

Chapter 120

03:17:42

The red numbers burned across the screen.

Nobody spoke.

Nobody blinked.

Nobody breathed.

Less than four hours.

Four hours until whatever Vale had spent years building finally activated.

Four hours until hundreds of children were caught in the middle.

Four hours until the world changed.

The aircraft cabin fell into complete silence.

Even Cassian had no joke.

That alone was terrifying.

Hale zoomed in on the satellite feed again.

The timer remained.

Bright.

Merciless.

Counting down second by second.

03:16:58

"How?"

Nova finally whispered.

Nobody answered.

Because nobody knew.

The countdown should have had almost a full day remaining.

Not four hours.

Not even close.

Something had changed.

Or someone had changed it.

And everyone knew exactly who.

Vale.

Always Vale.

Damon stared at the screen.

His jaw clenched.

His mind racing.

Because this wasn't random.

Nothing Vale did was random.

If she accelerated the timeline

There was a reason.

A purpose.

A trigger.

The question was what.

Before anyone could speak again

Another alert appeared.

Then another.

And another.

Hale swore.

Immediately.

The room became even more tense.

"What now?"

Seraphine demanded.

Hale looked horrified.

Actually horrified.

The expression sent ice through everyone.

"We're being tracked."

Silence.

Then:

"What?"

"Our aircraft."

A few keys clicked.

Multiple radar signatures appeared.

Closing rapidly.

Fast.

Very fast.

The realization hit everyone simultaneously.

Intercept aircraft.

Coming for them.

"Damn it."

Nova hissed.

Cassian leaned forward.

"How many?"

Hale looked.

Then looked again.

As if hoping the answer would change.

It didn't.

"Twelve."

Nobody liked that number.

Not even a little.

Twelve armed aircraft.

Against one transport jet.

The odds weren't great.

In fact

They were terrible.

The pilot's voice suddenly came through the intercom.

"Incoming missiles detected."

Chaos erupted.

Immediately.

Everyone moving at once.

The aircraft banked sharply.

The entire cabin tilted.

Mira nearly lost her footing.

Nova grabbed her arm.

Keeping her upright.

Warning alarms screamed.

Red lights flashed.

The aircraft shook violently.

Another alert sounded.

Then another.

Missiles.

Multiple missiles.

The realization made everyone's stomach drop.

Vale wasn't waiting for them.

She was hunting them.

Damon moved instantly.

"Can we lose them?"

The pilot's answer came immediately.

"No."

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

The aircraft lurched again.

Harder this time.

Several containers broke loose.

Equipment scattered across the floor.

The entire cabin felt like it was coming apart.

A missile exploded nearby.

The shockwave slammed into the aircraft.

Everyone stumbled.

Metal groaned.

Warning indicators lit up across every panel.

"We lost an engine!"

The pilot sounded furious.

Which somehow wasn't reassuring.

Cassian gripped his seat.

"I hate flying."

Nobody responded.

Because death seemed increasingly possible.

Then suddenly

Luca stood.

Everyone turned toward him.

Immediately.

"What are you doing?"

Damon demanded.

Luca ignored the question.

His eyes focused on the radar display.

The approaching aircraft.

The attack pattern.

The formation.

Something about it felt familiar.

Dangerously familiar.

Then understanding hit.

"Oh no."

The words escaped before he could stop them.

Damon noticed instantly.

"What?"

Luca's face had gone pale.

Because he recognized the formation.

Recognized the strategy.

Recognized the commander.

A ghost from another life.

"No."

His voice barely worked.

"It can't be."

The radar feed zoomed again.

One aircraft moved ahead of the others.

Leading the formation.

Commanding it.

The sight drained the remaining color from Luca's face.

Because he knew that pilot.

Knew him very well.

A former Program operative.

One of Vale's most loyal enforcers.

One of the deadliest men Luca had ever met.

A man everyone believed died years ago.

Apparently not.

"Luca."

Damon said sharply.

"Who is it?"

The answer felt like poison.

Like a nightmare returning.

"Ares."

The cabin froze.

Nobody recognized the name.

Except Isabella.

Immediately.

Her face went white.

"No."

Pure fear.

Instant.

Unmistakable.

The reaction alone was enough to terrify everyone.

Because Isabella rarely reacted to anything.

Not anymore.

Yet the name had shaken her.

Badly.

Damon looked between them.

"Who the hell is Ares?"

Silence.

Then Luca answered.

Quietly.

Like speaking the name might summon him.

"The first success."

The room went cold.

Because everyone understood exactly what that meant.

The first successful operative.

The prototype.

The original monster.

The one all the others were measured against.

The realization was horrifying.

Then Isabella whispered:

"He never fails."

Nobody liked that.

Nobody.

The aircraft shook violently again.

A missile exploded close enough to rattle every bone in their bodies.

The pilot cursed through the intercom.

"We're losing altitude."

Wonderful.

Again.

Absolutely wonderful.

Outside the storm clouds parted briefly.

Revealing the ocean below.

Dark.

Endless.

And directly ahead

The island.

Huge.

Impossible.

Terrifying.

Everyone stared.

Because satellite images hadn't done it justice.

Not even close.

The island looked like a city.

Military installations.

Research complexes.

Airfields.

Harbors.

Defensive structures.

An entire hidden world.

Vale's kingdom.

The realization settled heavily over the cabin.

Years.

She had spent years building this.

Preparing.

Waiting.

Then the main monitor flickered.

Static appeared.

The room froze.

Because everyone recognized what came next.

Vale.

Of course.

The image stabilized.

And there she was.

Perfectly composed.

Perfectly calm.

As if she wasn't orchestrating an attack.

As if she weren't threatening hundreds of lives.

She smiled.

Warmly.

Terrifyingly.

"You're late."

Nobody answered.

Vale sighed dramatically.

"I was beginning to worry."

The aircraft shook again.

Another explosion.

Another missile.

Vale's smile widened.

"Though I suppose Ares has always been enthusiastic."

Damon's eyes narrowed.

"You accelerated the countdown."

Vale nodded.

As casually as discussing weather.

"Naturally."

The answer made everyone furious.

Vale didn't care.

She never cared.

Her attention shifted.

Finding Damon.

Locking onto him.

Like always.

Then she spoke softly.

Almost affectionately.

"Come alone."

Silence.

Every person in the cabin tensed.

Because they already knew what she would say next.

They dreaded hearing it anyway.

Vale smiled.

"If you bring anyone else..."

A pause.

A deliberate pause.

Then:

"I'll start with the children."

The cabin fell silent.

Dead silent.

Because nobody doubted her.

Not for one second.

Vale's smile never wavered.

Then her gaze shifted.

Past Damon.

Toward Luca.

The warmth disappeared instantly.

Replaced by something colder.

Much colder.

Disappointment.

Contempt.

Hatred.

The sight made Luca's stomach twist.

Because he suddenly realized something.

Vale wasn't angry that he betrayed her.

She was angry because he chose Damon.

The realization hit hard.

Very hard.

Vale looked at him for several long seconds.

Then quietly said:

"You were my favorite."

The

words felt worse than a threat.

Far worse.

Then the transmission ended.

The screen went black.

The silence that followed was unbearable.

Outside

The island grew larger.

The countdown continued.

03:01:17

And somewhere on that island

Ares smiled as he locked onto the aircraft again.

Preparing for the kill.