Dahlia adjusted her suit’s regulator and set it to a cool, but comfortable level. She had to be careful not to set it too high, otherwise it would exhaust her battery pack. Her bargain with the devil known as Doc Chop would be the least of her worries if she froze to death. She thought about her available options, and didn’t like any of them. If Nigel was in with a group of rebels, then Dahlia’s girls were most likely with him. While she was reasonably sure that they would follow her orders, they had gotten a little too close to the boy; especially Blanka, who would need a little reminding of who was in charge. But Dahlia was positive that they would obey her in the end. The Cabal needed to be stopped. She needed help, and Dr. Sylvester was the perfect ally. If Nigel got in the way, he would be collateral damage. Especially since his usefulness was coming to an end.

“We’re on approach,” the pilot said.

Dahlia lifted her window shade. Between the breaks in the clouds, she could see land.

“The tower isn’t answering, but I’m picking up signals that LaGuardia Airport is overrun with hostiles.”

Dahlia checked her weapons. Her current 9mm wasn’t her trusty modified Beretta, which held 17 rounds, but a standard 10 round magazine. She had three extra clips. She would need to scavenge more from the enemy. Dahlia was confident she would survive any coming onslaught, but she wasn’t so sure about Gregor.

“What are you packing, Gregor?” Dahlia asked.

He pulled out a .38 Special.

“Six-shooter?” She asked.

“This one holds eight, and I have dozens of bullets.”

“Good. Stay low and follow my lead. They aren’t expecting us to have our rocket packs.”

Moments later, the plane landed hard on the tarmac. Dahlia couldn’t see anyone, but kept low. Out here, they were sitting ducks whether they had rockets or high-powered machine guns.

“Pull over there, by the main terminal,” Dr. Sylvester said.

Before the pilot could answer, he slumped over. The aircraft’s engines roared to life as the full body weight of the pilot landed on the controls. Dahlia sprang into action, grabbing Dr. Sylvester and pulling him toward the exit. “We have to move now!” she shouted at Gregor, who nodded and followed close behind. The plane shook violently as the engines revved out of control, and the three of them fell onto the tarmac. Anya leaped from the craft and landed nearby.

As they hit the ground, Dahlia scanned the area for any signs of hostiles. The airport was eerily quiet, with no sound of gunfire or shouts in the distance. It was almost as if the entire place had been abandoned… but she knew better.

“Dr. Sylvester, can you contact your cyborgs?” she asked urgently.

The doctor nodded, pulling a small device from his pocket. “Yes, I can try,” he replied, adjusting some settings on the device.

“How long until your cyborgs come?”

“I’m not sure. It depends how many are in the area. But they will follow my signal.”

“All right, let’s move out,” Dahlia said firmly, motioning for Gregor and Dr. Sylvester to follow her.

They made their way toward the main terminal, keeping a low profile as they moved cautiously through the deserted airport. Dahlia kept a tight grip on her weapon, her senses on high alert as she searched for any signs of danger. As they got closer to the terminal, the sound of footsteps echoed in the distance. Dahlia motioned for her group to take cover behind some ticketing counters as a group of men appeared in their path. They were heavily armed, their guns at the ready as they scanned the area for any signs of movement. Dahlia waited for the perfect moment to strike. As the men got closer, she leaped out from behind cover, her rocket pack propelling her forward as she fired her weapon at the group. Bullets rained down on the unsuspecting men, dispatching them one by one. Gregor and Dr. Sylvester quickly followed suit, taking out any remaining hostiles.

“Is that all of them?” Anya asked.

“Probably not. We should try to negotiate safe passage—if possible,” Dr. Sylvester said.

“I’m going to find their leader,” Anya said.

“We should stay together. If you get caught, we can’t help you,” Dahlia said.

Anya gave her an incredulous look. “I wasn’t an elite member of the Silent Assassins Society for nothing. I can take care of myself,” she said.

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Dahlia nodded, impressed by Anya’s confidence. “Fine, but be careful,” she said.

Anya took off toward the direction from which the group of men had come, disappearing out of sight. Gregor and Dr. Sylvester followed Dahlia toward the terminal and after checking for signs of intruders she gave the signal to enter the building. As they made their way through the empty halls, Dahlia couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease. Like they were being watched.

The sight that greeted them was one of chaos and destruction. The once-bustling airport was now a war zone, with broken glass and debris scattered across the floor. The sound of gunfire echoed in the distance, and the smell of smoke filled the air. Dahlia could see raiders just ahead, their weapons raised as they fired at a group of civilians who were trying to make their escape.

Without hesitation, Dahlia rocketed toward the group of men, knocking them over before taking them out with precise headshots. Gregor and Dr. Sylvester followed her lead, their own weapons blazing as they fought off the enemy.

As they cleared the area, Dahlia turned to Dr. Sylvester. “Can you contact your cyborgs now?”

Dr. Sylvester nodded, holding up the small device in his hand. “I’m getting a signal. They should be here soon.”

Just then, a group of cyborgs appeared, their metal frames gleaming in the flickering airport lights. They quickly assessed the situation before joining the fight, their advanced technology and weaponry providing an advantage against the raiders. Dahlia watched as the cyborgs effortlessly took down the enemy, their movements precise and deadly.

As the last of the raiders fell, Dahlia scavenged weapons and ammunition.

The doctor smiled. “Well, that was easier than I thought.”

Dahlia nodded, determination in her eyes. “I won’t stop until we’ve taken down every last one of them.”

Gregor added, “We’ll need to find better weapons if we want to stand a chance against the more heavily armed groups.”

“We’ll scavenge what we can, but for now, we need to make our way to the entrance so we can boost a ride to the city,” Dahlia said.

Anya appeared from the shadows, a sense of urgency in her eyes. “We need to move. There’s a group of raiders heading this way, and they’re heavily armed.”

Dahlia nodded, grabbing her weapons and motioning for the group to follow her. They made their way toward the entrance, keeping low and scanning the area for any signs of danger. As they got closer, they could hear the sound of engines revving in the distance.

“Looks like we might have some luck,” Gregor said, pointing toward a group of SUVs parked just outside the entrance.

Dahlia nodded, motioning for the group to move quickly. They made their way toward the vehicles, keeping an eye out for any hostiles. As they got closer, they could see that the SUVs were heavily armed, with mounted machine guns and rocket launchers.

“We’re going to need to be careful with these,” Dahlia said, examining one of the vehicles.

“I have some experience with these,” Gregor said, climbing into the driver’s seat. “I can probably hotwire one of them.”

Dahlia nodded, motioning for the others to board the other vehicles. “Let’s move out. We don’t have much time.”

As they sped away from the airport, Dahlia couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief. They had made it out of the airport alive, but they still had a long way to go before they reached safety.

“We need to find a safe place to regroup,” she said, looking toward Gregor.

Gregor nodded, his eyes scanning the deserted streets ahead.

“There’s a safe house a few miles from here,” Dr. Sylvester said.

Dahlia nodded, her grip tightening on her weapon. “Let’s go.”

The Black Heart trudged down the silent streets, her heart heavy with conflicting emotions. It seemed like just yesterday that she had been with her chosen little girls whom she had taken from their innocent lives and molded into deadly assassins. Then Nigel had come into their lives, and suddenly everything changed. Anger surged through her veins as she thought of him—he had to pay for what he’d done! Though a part of her wondered if it was really his fault...

As they approached the safe house, Dahlia could see that it was a small, nondescript building with no windows or distinguishing features. Gregor pulled the SUV up to the entrance, and Dahlia motioned for the others to follow her inside. The inside of the safe house was sparsely furnished, with only a few chairs and a table in the main room. Dahlia took charge, setting up a perimeter around the building while Gregor and Dr. Sylvester worked on fortifying the entrance.

“We need to rest and regroup,” Dahlia said, turning to face the others. “But we can’t let our guard down. It’s only a matter of time before raiders invade this place, too.”

Anya nodded, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of danger.

“We need to come up with a plan to invade Nigel’s encampment,” Gregor said, breaking the silence.

Dahlia nodded, her mind racing with ideas. “We need to find a way into the city. Since the attack of that monster last winter, all access points into the city were destroyed.”

Dr. Sylvester chimed in, “Yes—that was by design. I wanted to infect as many people as possible. When Chen turned, I repurposed him into something more useful.”

“You never said what his purpose was,” Dahlia said.

“That’s right, and it’s my business.”

“If we are to work together, we need transparency,” Gregor said.

“It’s time that you spill, Doc. I think you owe us that much.”

Dr. Sylvester sighed heavily before finally speaking. “Chen was repurposed into a biological weapon. His DNA was modified to produce a deadly virus that could infect anyone within a certain range. My plan was to release him into Nigel’s encampment, infecting everyone.”

Dahlia and Gregor exchanged worried glances. “Do you have a cure for the virus?” Dahlia asked.

Dr. Sylvester shook his head. “No, I never had the chance to develop one. My underground lab was destroyed during the chaos after the destruction my golem caused. In truth, that beast was too effective. People were driven underground as my drones sprayed my pheromone that made them susceptible to cybernetic conversion.”

“We can’t just release a virus like that,” Anya said firmly. “It could kill innocent people.”

“All the innocents are dead, I’m afraid. Only killers left here,” Dr. Sylvester said, chuckling.

“We’ll need to gather as much intel as we can and find any weaknesses in the camp’s defenses. With the help of the cyborgs and our own skills, we can take it down,” Dahlia said.

The group settled in for the night, sleeping in shifts and keeping vigilant for any signs of danger.