129 THE FAILED HEIST
Kail opened the holographic panels and brought up the live camera feeds from the district — all eyes trained on where the heist was unfolding.
The crates were stamped with Snow Industry's emblem.
"Those are the meta artifacts I sold to Snow," Zairgid said, his voice tight with surprise.
"Who would dare steal from Snow Industry?" Dorin muttered.
Damen watched the screens with a slow, interested smile. Kail's tracking was cleaner and faster than anything the city police or the SIA could manage.
He was following the thieves in real time.
"Who do you think they work for?" Zairgid asked.
"It's hard to tell," Damen said. "There are a lot of hands on every shipment these days. Even our runs to Fortress Myrone aren't safe unless the fortress meta-soldiers escort them personally."
The thieves finally reached a warehouse.
Kail zoomed in until a single figure filled the screen. "Garius Zetheris as expected," he said.
"What do we do now?" Zairgid asked.
"Send these clips to Quest Snow," Damen replied. "See how he likes being robbed by the Zetheris."
"And after that?" Kail asked.
Damen's answer came flat. "Then we take from Zetheris Industry."
Dorin stared at him. "You want to commit a crime?"
"It isn't a crime," Damen said. "It's justice. Anything we pull from Zetheris will go to the soldiers at Fortress Myrone. That saves lives."
Dorin said nothing.
Old loyalties and her understanding of morality tugged at her from years of SIA training, but Lander's framing and her resignation had sharpened her view: this world often isn't framed in black or white.
-----
The armed convoy rolled silently into the Zetheris Industry's chemical complex under the cover of night.
Drones and robotic hounds usually prowled the perimeter—but tonight, the grounds were eerily still. Kail's powers lured every patrol drone unit away.
"Are you sure we can just walk into Zetheris Industry like this?" Captain Green asked, lowering his voice as he scanned the empty yard through his visor.
"Yes," Damen replied calmly. "Kail has the entire building under our control."
Captain Green wasn't convinced.
He had been deployed to Melrose City with a hundred men to oversee logistics for Fortress Myrone—not to commit industrial theft.
But this mission came from Damen himself, and he was given the ultimate authority for their mission here.
Without warning, the warehouse's rear door clicked open—it was unlocked remotely.
A burst of gunfire was heard echoing from inside.
Green flinched. "What the hell was that?"
"Autocannons," Damen said. "Keep moving."
The soldiers advanced through the opened gates, their rifles raised to fight. But inside, the scene froze them in their tracks—there were bodies of Zetheris logistics staff lay sprawled across the floor, shredded by their own automated defenses.
"What in hell happened here? Did the drones kill their own people?" Green asked in shock.
Kail's remote hack had turned the entire security system against its masters.
Damen's voice broke the silence. "What are you waiting for? Load the crates!"
Green snapped back into motion, barking orders. "Move it! Get those containers on the trucks!"
The men worked fast, stacking crates marked with the Zetheris insignia. These were medical supplies now bound for Fortress Myrone.
"We've got enough medicine for three months," Green said, satisfied.
"Good. Let's move out." Damen's tone was clipped, already uneasy.
Then the alarms wailed.
"Kail!" Damen shouted into his comm. "Didn't you disable the alarms?"
"I did! Someone's countering my commands. They are hacking me from inside the facility," Kail's voice crackled with static.
Kail's power could control any system operated by programs, but his power becomes weaker the further he was away from the system. Kail ran this mission from the safety of GenSyn's secret base which was a long way from the warehouse.
"Damn it." Damen turned to Green. "We have to leave. Now."
"Where to? If we head back to SynGen or Aukouma, Garius Zetheris will track us down and make a big deal," Green warned.
Damen's mind raced.
They couldn't risk exposure.
The Myrone soldiers weren't authorized to operate in Melrose, and if the SIA learned about this theft, it would start a major diplomatic firestorm. That wasn't something he would want right now.
"Find me a nearby drop point," Damen asked Kail.
Kail's voice returned, quick and analytical. "There are several options—Dexto Industry, West Industry, Veyran Industry…"
Damen's eyes narrowed. "Veyran."
Within minutes, the trucks roared to life and sped toward Veyran Industry's compound.
"Will the Veyrans even receive us? We'll be completely exposed," Green asked over the comm, tension edging his voice.
"Don't worry about exposure," Damen replied calmly. "Once you're clear, jump out and let the trucks drive themselves."
The soldiers followed orders without hesitation. The trucks—still loaded with goods—rolled forward. When the convoy entered a narrow stretch of road where thick tree canopies swallowed the sky, their window opened.
One by one, the soldiers leapt from the moving vehicles, vanishing into the shadows without a single camera catching them.
The trucks continued on, unmanned and obedient, their engines never faltering.
But the soldiers didn't abandon them.
They followed at a distance.
Soon, Zetheris mercenaries appeared, their vehicles roaring as they gave chase.
Hidden from sight, Damen and Captain Green trailed the pursuit, watching as Zetheris locked onto the convoy.
Moments later, the trucks reached the gates of Veyran Industry.
Kail's voice buzzed again. "What now?"
"Open the gates," Damen ordered.
A moment later, the massive security doors of Veyran Industry swung open by itself.
"Hey, these trucks are not authorized….", The guards on duty barely had time to react as a dozen trucks thundered inside.
Then chaos erupted.
The Zetheris mercenaries arrived seconds later, demanding entry—and were met by a hail of gunfire from Veyran's drones.
A shooting match ensued.
Within moments, the compound descended into a firefight between two corporate armies.
From a distant rooftop, Captain Green watched the explosions and tracer fire light up the skyline.
"Whew," he muttered. "Quick thinking, lad. I thought we'd have to fight our way out."
Damen exhaled, his eyes fixed on the burning horizon. "I underestimated Zetheris' countermeasures," he admitted. "But it worked out. For now."
"No more heists from now on, okay? That scared me more than the Annunakin horde." Captain Green rubbed his temples, voice raw.
"Understood," Damen said, but his mind was already three steps ahead.
The raid had technically failed.
Damen had misjudged Zetheris' defenses, but the fallout had been useful.
Where his plan faltered, something unexpected resulted: Zetheris and Veyran were now shooting at each other.
He tapped his comm. "Zairgid, did you send your manager to Veyran to inquire about machinery earlier?"
"Yeah. We tried, but Veyran turned us away. Flat out," Zairgid answered.
Damen flattened his palm on the table. "Kail, pull the footage of that visit and compile it."
"What for? What value is in those clips?" he asked.