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"Rivera?"

"Almost there." Her markings pulsed with silver light as she worked, synchronized with the rhythm of the restraint field's power cycle. "The system's fighting me. Hammond's locked it down tight."

I positioned myself between her and the corridor, ready for the next wave. My lifelines brightened, responding to the battle-rush and the proximity to Rivera. The golden light cast strange shadows across the sterile lab.

Claire moaned on the table, her body arching against the restraints. Her markings flared painfully bright, then dimmed to a dull shimmer. Whatever Hammond was doing to her, it was killing her by inches.

More footsteps approached—heavier, more numerous. I steadied my breathing, centering myself. The odds were worsening, but I'd faced worse. My duty was clear: protect Rivera, give her time to free Claire.

"Got it!" Rivera exclaimed. "The next cycle is in five seconds. I've set the override."

The restraint fields flickered, then stabilized. Rivera cursed under her breath.

"What happened?" I asked, not taking my eyes off the corridor.

"Hammond's got some kind of redundant system. I need to?—"

The doors burst open. Six guards poured in, weapons raised. Behind them stood the human second-in-command, awake now and furious, blood trickling from a cut on his temple.

"Take them down," he ordered his men.

I moved without thinking, pure instinct and decades of training guiding my actions. My blade deflected the first shot, sending it ricocheting into a wall panel. I dropped to one knee, sweeping the legs from under the nearest guard. As he fell, I used his body as a shield against the next volley of fire.

"Rivera, get down!" I shouted the warning, hoping the urgency carried if the words didn't.

She ducked behind the console as energy bolts sizzled overhead. The air filled with the acrid smell of ozone and scorched metal. I rolled behind a storage unit, buying myself seconds to assess the situation.

Six armed guards plus their leader. Odds: unfavorable. Options: limited.

One guard moved to flank my position. I waited until he committed, then struck—my blade finding the gap between his body armor plates. He dropped with a grunt of pain, not dead but no longer a threat.

Five remaining.

I caught a glimpse of Rivera through the chaos. She'd abandoned the console and was crawling toward Claire, using the lab equipment as cover. Smart. If she could reach Claire directly, maybe she could disrupt the restraints through physical contact.

Two guards advanced on my position, firing steadily. The storage unit providing my cover began to melt under the sustained energy barrage. I couldn't stay here.

My eyes scanned the immediate area. A damaged power conduit near the advancing guards sparked erratically, spitting blue energy. An idea formed—reckless, but necessary. I grabbed a heavy chunk of debris from the floor.

With a grunt, I hurled the debris directly at the sparking conduit. The impact caused the damaged unit to overload spectacularly. A blinding flash of arcing energy erupted, accompanied by a sharp crackle and the smell of vaporized metal. The two guards staggered back, momentarily blinded and disoriented by the unexpected electrical discharge.

I burst from cover, taking advantage of their vulnerability. Two swift strikes and they joined their comrades on the floor.

Three guards plus their leader remained. My breathing came harder now, the wound in my shoulder sending hot pulses of pain with each movement. I pushed through it, focusing on the threat.

The human leader had taken cover behind a reinforced lab station, firing methodically in my direction. The remaining guards spread out, trying to pin me down with crossfire.

"Varek!" Rivera called. She'd reached Claire and was working to disrupt the restraint field manually, her silver markings merging with the blue energy in a strange, rippling pattern. "I need more time!"

I nodded, though she couldn't see it. More time. I could give her that.

I feinted left, drawing fire, then darted right. One guard adjusted too slowly. My blade found his gun hand, severing tendons. He screamed, weapon clattering to the floor. I struck him again, this time with the hilt of my blade against his temple. He dropped.

Two guards plus their leader.

Pain lanced through my side—a glancing shot from one of the remaining guards. I staggered but kept moving, turning the stumble into a roll that brought me behind a support column.

"Varek?" Rivera's voice held concern.