The heavy blast doors of the extraction bay hissed open, revealing the XV-9 Ghost, a matte-black stealth transport that seemed to absorb the very light around it. Its engines hummed at a frequency so low it was felt in the marrow of their bones rather than heard.
Vlad and Vance stepped onto the hydraulic ramp, their boots clanking against the reinforced alloy. Inside, the cabin was bathed in a dim, tactical red glow—designed to preserve their night vision for the drop.
Pre-Flight Check
As the ramp retracted, sealing them into the pressurized hold, the two men took their seats in the high-compression jump chairs.
* Vlad's Preparation: He sat like a coiled spring, his hands resting naturally near the daggers on his thighs. He closed his eyes, mentally running through the floor plan of the subterranean lab, visualizing every corner and guard rotation.
* Vance's Final Sync: Vance had his blue iPhone 15 connected to the transport's localized uplink. His thumbs moved in a blur as he bypassed the first layer of the coastal facility's firewall before they even cleared the Agency's airspace.
* The Atmosphere: The interior of the Ghost was cramped, filled with the smell of ozone and hydraulic fluid. Despite the turbulence as the craft banked into a steep climb, neither man moved; they were locked into the mission mindset.
"Three minutes to the drop zone," a synthesized voice crackled over the comms.
Vance looked over at Vlad, a confident smirk playing on his lips despite the gravity of the mission. He tapped the side of his compound bow. "I'll be perched on the north needle. If you see a blue flicker in the security cameras, that's your window. Don't make me wait too long, big guy."
Vlad opened his eyes, the cold intensity in them matching the steel of his blades.
"Just keep the eyes blind, Vance. I'll handle the rest."
The floor of the transport began to vibrate as the pilot engaged the vertical thrusters for a silent, high-altitude hover. The side hatch slid open, letting in a rush of freezing, salt-heavy night air. Below them, the jagged coastline and the hidden facility awaited.