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The genetic material Unity harvested from me is destroyed. The research into forced modification set back significantly. Whatever happens next, Project Duality has been dealt a crippling blow.

Now we just need to reunite with the extraction team and return to Resonance with the rescued Haven child. Complete the circle. Twelve Haven children united at last.

Whatever the "final protocol" might be, we're one step closer to finding out.

CHAPTER 28

The rendezvous pointis a grim little depression between two shattered hillsides, natural camouflage for the small transport vehicle waiting to extract us. Two hours of hard travel across wasteland terrain has left even my enhanced muscles aching, but it's my mind that's truly exhausted. Every few minutes, I've caught myself looking east, toward the arcology where Trent and Lily are still fighting their way out.

"How much longer?" I ask Sara as we approach the transport, trying not to whine.

She checks her communication device. "No update from the extraction team. Last known status shows them moving toward secondary exit point with the target secured."

"Target," I mutter, hating the clinical term for another Haven child. A kid, just like Lily, who's probably spent their whole life being experimented on by Unity.

Vex moves to the perimeter, scanning the landscape. "Transport seems secure, but we should minimize exposure time."

I nod, pushing aside my worry to focus on immediate safety. We've completed our mission and the research facility is a smoking ruin behind us, visible even at this distance as ablack column staining the sky. Unity's forced modification program has been set back significantly, but they'll be furious. Every patrol in the region will be hunting us now.

The transport's driver—a woman with subtle gill-like structures along her neck—nods in greeting as we approach. "Five minutes to departure. Waiting for final confirmation from Resonance."

I drop my pack and roll my shoulders, tension coiling beneath my skin. Waiting has never been my strong suit, and right now, every minute feels like an hour.

"They'll make it," Sara says quietly, reading my expression.

"You don't know that."

"I know your Sentinel. I've seen his type before, the ones who always complete the mission, no matter what." She offers a small smile. "And that child with the silver eyes? She's tougher than you realize."

I want to believe her. I need to. The alternative—losing Trent and Lily—isn't something I can process right now.

A soft beep from the transport's communication system breaks the tense silence. The driver activates it immediately, and Marcus's voice comes through with unmistakable urgency.

"Strike team, change of plans. Extraction team reporting heavy pursuit. Cannot reach secondary rendezvous. Requesting immediate assistance at coordinates being transmitted now."

My heart seizes. "Status?"

"Pinned down in abandoned manufacturing complex. Eastern Arcology security forces approaching from multiple vectors. Estimated time to position compromise: fifteen minutes."

I'm already grabbing my pack before the message finishes, body moving ahead of conscious thought. "Send coordinates to my tracker. We're moving now."

Vex appears at my side, his golden eyes gleaming withbattle-readiness. "Transport can get us within two kilometers. Terrain won't allow closer approach."

"That's close enough," I say, checking my remaining equipment. "Sara?"

She nods decisively. "I'll take three fighters. The rest continue to Resonance with the transport as planned."

The driver starts the engine as we load in, the vehicle humming to life with surprising quiet for its size. Modified for stealth operations, clearly. We strap in as it accelerates away from the rendezvous point, heading southeast toward the coordinates Marcus transmitted.

"What's the plan?" Vex asks, his voice pitched just for me despite the noise.

"Get in, get our people, get out," I reply.

"Against Unity forces who specifically want all of you." He doesn't sugar-coat it. "They'll have modified operators. Detection equipment designed for Haven genetics."

"Then we'll just have to be faster and smarter," I say with more confidence than I feel.

The transport eats up distance quickly, terrain blurring outside the viewport. According to the navigation system, we're approximately eighteen minutes from the extraction point, cutting it close if Marcus's estimate was accurate. Every second matters now.