Fii and Diamond Ace soared through the skies, their destination looming ahead—the decrepit factory complex. The place was a rundown hulk of decaying brick and rusting metal, surrounded by a tall fence topped with coils of barbed wire. The yard was littered with rusted-out cars and other debris, and the main gate hung crookedly on its hinges, like a mouth gaping open in surprise.

  As they neared the complex, Fii scanned the area. She saw a group of Red Syndicate thugs milling about in the yard, some of them armed with pipe rifles. Others were busy moving crates of what she assumed were stolen goods into the main building. Glimmerstrike had to be inside, but there was no way to tell where exactly.

  She dropped down to the ground, landing in a crouch behind a stack of rusty drums. Diamond Ace landed beside her with a heavy thud, his armored boots crunching in the gravel.

  "Shhh! Can you land a bit quieter, jackass? You don't have to be so dramatic," Fii whispered angrily. The last thing they needed was to alert the thugs to their presence before they had a chance to figure out where Glimmerstrike was being held.

  Diamond Ace's visor retracted, revealing his face. He glared at her, unapologetic. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize we were being stealthy."

  Fii rolled her eyes and peered out from their hiding spot. The thugs in the yard were still going about their business, unaware of the heroes' presence. She pointed to the main building. "Glimmerstrike has to be in there. But we need to find out exactly where before we charge in."

  Diamond Ace scanned the building's windows, looking for any sign of movement. "I'll run a scan with my sensors," he said, his visor covering his face once more.

  After a few seconds, he shook his head. "There's some kind of jamming signal interfering with my systems. I can't get a clear reading."

  Fii bit her lip, thinking. They couldn't just barge in blindly; they needed a plan. She looked around, and her gaze fell upon a thug smoking a cigarette nearby—alone and away from the others.

  She nudged Diamond Ace and nodded in the thug's direction. "I've got an idea. Follow my lead."

  Diamond Ace's eyes narrowed behind his visor, but he didn't object. Fii crept forward, using the cover of the debris to stay out of sight. As she got closer to the thug, she reached out with her power, pulling him towards her without making a sound.

  Before he could cry out, Fii clamped a hand over his mouth, dragging him behind the drums. She whispered harshly in his ear, "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Tell us where the hero Glimmerstrike is, and you won't get hurt."

  The thug's eyes widened in fear, and he frantically nodded his head. Fii loosened her grip, allowing him to speak.

  "She's... she's in the basement!" he stammered, his voice shaky. "They've got her chained up and guarded. I don't know anything else, I swear!"

  Fii nodded, satisfied. "Thanks for the info. Now, take a nap."

  She unleashed a controlled burst of gravitational force, knocking the thug out cold. She lowered him gently to the ground, not wanting to make any noise.

  Diamond Ace deactivated his visor and stared at her. "You could have just let me take care of him."

  Fii shrugged. "Yeah, well, I didn't want to leave any lasting damage. Besides, we need to be quiet, remember?" She patted him on the shoulder, feeling the cold, hard metal of his armor under her fingers. "Nice job playing lookout, by the way. Your subtlety is improving."

  The look of disdain he gave her made her grin. She turned her attention back to the factory, trying to get a sense of what they were up against. The place was old and decrepit, but it was also heavily guarded.

  And then there was the question of just how many members the Red Market Syndicate had. There could be dozens of them holed up in there.

  "Hey, uh..." She glanced at Diamond Ace. "You probably have a lot more experience than I do at this kind of thing. I know we're not exactly on the best terms, but maybe you could take the lead this time?"

  His brow furrowed, and he crossed his arms. "How do I know I can trust you not to stab me in the back?"

  Fii rolled her eyes. "Because if I wanted to do that, I'd have done it already. We both want to save Glimmerstrike. It doesn't really matter who gets the credit for the job."

  Diamond Ace grunted, evidently not satisfied with her answer but relenting. "Fine. We'll do this together. But any sign of treachery from you, and I'll put you down. Understood?"

  Fii sighed, not bothering to hide her exasperation. "Yeah, yeah. Just help me save that airhead, and I'll be out of your hair. So, what's the plan, boss?"

  He glared at her again, but she could see the gears turning in his head as he formulated a strategy.

  The guy was definitely used to working with better intel. She could tell the constant static in his helmet feed was frustrating him.

  "Alright, let’s talk options," he finally spoke up. "The direct approach is out. The moment we engage, they'll likely try to use Glimmerstrike as a hostage, and I doubt the condition she's in is healthy, so we'll have to get to her before engaging."

  "Yeah," Fii nodded in agreement. "Taking them on won't be a problem, but we need to get to that idiot first. So, stealth, I'm assuming?"

  He grunted. "Not quite, more like infiltration. Stealth will take too long. Every second wasted is a second they can hurt her."

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  She knew that already.

  "Okay, so we disguise ourselves and get in. We get to her as quickly as possible, and then we go loud once she's safe."

  "'You' being the operative word," he stated firmly. "You're disguising yourself as one of them. I can't."

  "I don't exactly have the right clothes to pull that off."

  Diamond Ace pointed at the knocked-out gang member. "He does."

  Fii squirmed in the loose-fitting clothes she took from the unconscious guard. The fabric was coarse and uncomfortable against her skin, and the shirt reeked of cigarettes and body odor. She scrunched her nose in disgust but kept her complaints to herself.

  With the hood pulled up over her head and a bandana covering the lower half of her face, she blended in with the other gang members milling about. It wasn't a perfect disguise, but it would have to do for now.

  Fifteen minutes.

  Fifteen minutes to find Glimmerstrike and get her out of there before Diamond Ace smashed his way in from the outside, and all hell broke loose. That was the plan.

  Sneak in, locate her, and extract her, all without getting caught. Easy enough, right? Except for the fact that Fii had never infiltrated a criminal compound before—well, aside from that one time with ambushing the Neon Vipers and Salvatore's goons at the parking garage.

  She was used to direct confrontations, not stealth missions.

  But Diamond Ace had the confidence she lacked in this sort of operation. He made it clear this was the best way to get the job done. Besides, it was either this, or charge in and risk getting Glimmerstrike killed.

  So here she was, impersonating a random gangster, hoping that no one would look too closely and realize she didn't belong.

  She squared her shoulders and took a deep breath, focusing on the task at hand. The stench from the clothes and the nagging doubt in her mind weren't important. Rescuing the annoying twit was all that mattered right now. Fii could deal with her discomfort later.

  Keeping her head down and her eyes on the ground, she made her way across the yard, trying to look as casual and unremarkable as possible. She could feel the eyes of the other thugs on her, sizing her up, judging her.

  But so far, no one had raised an alarm or questioned her presence. She must have been pulling off the disguise better than she thought.

  She just needed to keep it up a little longer.

  Fii reached the main building and stepped inside. The interior was as rundown as the exterior, with peeling paint, broken windows, and scattered debris. She could hear the sounds of activity around her—thumping footsteps, muffled conversations, and the occasional clang of metal on metal.

  She moved through the halls, carefully avoiding any large groups of thugs. She kept her ears open for any mentions of the captive hero or the location of the basement.

  Finally, after a few tense moments, she caught a snippet of conversation that seemed promising.

  "Heh, the boys down in the dungeon got themselves a real treat today, eh? That Glimmerbitch is gonna regret ever messin' with us!"

  Another voice chuckled darkly. "Yeah, she's gonna pay for sticking her nose where it don't belong. Boss's got some big plans for her."

  "Damn right. Hope I get a turn with her before we chop her up." The first voice leered, eliciting a wave of revulsion within Fii.

  She pushed the anger aside, not allowing it to overcome her. Not yet.

  "Where do you think they're keeping her?" she asked, keeping her voice low and gruff to disguise her identity. She didn't want to risk blowing her cover by accidentally saying something too feminine or out of character.

  "Basement level, third door on the left," the second thug answered. "But don't go down there unless you got business. Boss don't like anyone messing with his toys."

  Fii nodded, grateful for the information. "Thanks. I've gotta take a leak, see ya."

  She hurried away before they could ask any more questions. She mentally replayed the directions in her head as she made her way through the dingy corridors.

  Third door on the left, third door on the left, third door on the left...

  She found the stairs leading down to the basement and quietly descended. As she reached the bottom, she could hear the faint sound of voices and a chilling laugh that made her skin crawl.

  That had to be the room. She didn't waste any more time and dashed toward the door.

  "Where do you think you're going, runt?"

  The sudden question startled her, and she spun around to see a burly man, a good head taller than her and sporting a shaved head, standing behind her.

  "Uh... I've got business with the boss," she stammered, trying to keep her voice steady.

  The burly guard narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You ain't on the list. No entry."

  Shit.

  "Come on, man," she tried to bluff. "I'm one of the guys. I was just here the other day!"

  "I decide who comes in, not you. Piss off before I make you."

  Fii could have easily knocked this brute out, but that would have alerted everyone, and that was a problem. Think, Fii, think!

  A door opened behind her and she turned to see Bill step out. His eyes met hers, and then he looked at the goon. "What's going on here?"

  "Tried to get in," the brute explained. "He ain't on the list."

  Bill's gaze returned to Fii, and his eyes narrowed. "Who are you? Show your face."

  Fii's heart pounded in her chest, and she struggled to come up with a convincing lie. The bandana covering her face made her look even more suspicious, but taking it off was out of the question.

  "I'm uh... I'm Tom." Fii lowered her head, trying to play the part of an intimidated lackey. "Thought I could get a, um, turn with the Super. You know..."

  Bill raised an eyebrow. "'Tom,' huh? You sound a little funny."

  She cleared her throat, willing her voice to drop deeper. "Sorry, cold."

  "Take off that mask. I want to get a better look at you."

  "Uh... I can't. Bad teeth, real ugly. That's why, uh, this is my only shot with a girl." She inwardly groaned at her awkwardness. Lying and pretending weren't her forte. She cursed Glimmerstrike for getting caught in the first place.

  Bill let out a sharp laugh. "Is that it?" His demeanor changed, as if a switch had been flipped. He turned to the brute and slapped him on the back. "Lighten up, Hoss. Let the kid have his fun. It's not every day you get to bang a Super."

  Hoss looked doubtful, his gaze fixed on Fii. "But... the boss said no one is allowed to—"

  "Ah, forget the boss! I'll take care of everything," Bill interrupted. He leaned in closer to Hoss, lowering his voice. "Besides, I know you've been eyeing that little hero ever since we brought her in. Don't pretend you're not itching for a taste. I won't tell if you don't."

  Hoss hesitated for a moment before a slow, lecherous grin spread across his face. "Alright, fine. The kid can go in. But only 'cus you said so, Bill." His attention shifted to Fii, his expression turning cruel. "And you better make it quick. No hoggin' all the time, you got that?"

  Fii nodded hastily, eager to get away from these creeps. "Yeah, yeah, sure. Thanks a lot. I owe you one."

  Bill clapped her on the back and motioned her towards the door. "Come on, kid. Time's a-wastin'."

  He ushered her inside, and Fii forced herself not to gag at his touch.