Chapter 22: The Heist of a Lifetime (Not Really)
The Main Hall—Total Annihilation
The Duskwatch underground fought like hell.
And hell did not care.
Gunfire ripped through the air. Bullets clashed against thick, demonic flesh—some embedded, some bounced off, none did anything.
Explosions tore across the battlefield, sending bodies flying. The walls, once a pristine temple of organized crime, were now drenched in blood and viscera.
A man wielding twin pistols emptied his magazines into a demon’s skull. The beast didn’t even blink before grabbing his torso and tearing him in half.
Another gangster swung a flaming bat—his arm was gone before he realized it.
Screams filled the air. The Duskwatch weren’t just being killed.
They were being annihilated.
A hulking demon crashed through the walls, snatching a man off the ground and biting his head clean off.
Another leapt across the hall, claws ripping through a dozen men in a single swipe.
The underground’s strongest warriors stood their ground—only to be ripped apart like paper.
And amid the chaos—Ash ran.
She ducked under fallen bodies, leaped over overturned tables, and dove through a shattered window.
Behind them, the massacre raged on.
Ash didn't look back.
She just ran.
Grim and Lazaro stood in front of a massive steel vault.
They had done it.
They had survived the worst chase of their lives. The vents. The guards. The sheer humiliation of being the least threatening intruders in the history of crime.
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This was it. The final challenge.
The ultimate test of skill and cunning.
The vault loomed over them—its polished steel reflecting the dim light. The legendary Duskwatch safe, the most secure chamber in the entire underworld.
Grim clenched his fists. This was the moment.
“…Alright, Lazaro,” he said, cracking his neck. “How do we break in?”
Lazaro shrugged. “I dunno, let’s see if it’s locked.”
He stepped forward, placed a hand on the vault, and—
Click.
The door swung open effortlessly.
Grim stared.
“…What?”
Lazaro peeked inside. “Huh. It wasn’t even locked.”
Grim’s eye twitched.
“…That’s it? THAT’S IT?! You’re telling me we went through all that—the vents, the guards, the goddamn hallway parkour—AND THIS THING WASN’T EVEN LOCKED?!”
Lazaro gave a half-hearted shrug. “Guess they never expected anyone to get this far.”
Grim's brain short-circuited.
He let out a long, deep sigh and stepped inside.
Rows of gold bars, priceless artifacts, and stacks of cash lined the vault’s interior. Weapons—some looking stupidly high-tech—sat in cases. A crown sat in the middle of it all.
Grim blinked. “…So, uh. Do we take extra stuff?”
Lazaro gestured vaguely. “Eh, go for it.”
Grim grinned like a kid in a candy store.
He was in the middle of stuffing a suspiciously shiny knife into his jacket when Ash’s voice crackled through their earpieces.
“Grim, we have a problem.”
Grim froze. “…Please don’t tell me it’s more guards.”
“No, it’s worse. The vents are burning.”
Silence.
Lazaro: “...What.”
Ash: “Your escape route is on fire.”
Grim ran a hand down his face. “Oh, for fu—okay, Plan B. What about water?”
“If you can flood the lower floors, you might be able to swim up and escape.”
Grim nodded. “Alright. I have no explosives, though.”
Ash’s line went silent for a second.
Then—
“Brace for impact.”
The Water Escape
A thunderous explosion shook the entire building.
The walls collapsed—and within seconds, a roaring torrent of water flooded the vault.
“OH, COME ON!” Grim screamed as the current blasted them off their feet.
They tumbled headfirst into chaos—the entire floor tilting as water rushed in from every direction.
Lazaro: “I DIDN’T SIGN UP FOR WATER-BASED TRAUMA!”
Grim: “STOP YELLING, SWIM!”
They fought the raging current, kicking off sinking debris and flailing through the freezing water.
The halls they had fought so hard to reach were gone. The walls had crumbled. Their exit was a literal death trap.
And ahead of them—
A massive, sleek, futuristic submarine emerged from the water.
Lazaro: “What the hell is that?”
Ash: “Your ride.”
Grim didn’t ask questions.
They scrambled onto the sub, gasping for air.
The hatch sealed shut.
They were safe.
For now.
To Be Continued.
