By Lakshmi R Menon
The evening sky was afire with streaks of orange and crimson as Maya crouched behind the crumbling wall of the abandoned factory. The air was heavy with rust and gasoline, her heart thumping to the beat of distant gunfire. She checked her weapon-a sleek black Glock she'd "borrowed" from her pursuers earlier in the day. The magazine was half-empty.
"Maya, you copy?" crackled a voice in her earpiece. It was Alex, her partner, stationed a mile away.
"Barely," she whispered. "They're closing in."
"Hold your position. I'm rerouting their comms."
She mopped sweat from her forehead. A scan of the perimeter showed a dancing cast of shadows off of the shifting beams of flashlight across the factory floor. Her pursuers were relentless but, she noted to herself, utterly predictable. There were four men, and each one was armed, their bodies tight in their formation. The leader - a great, hulking man in tactical gear - was barking out orders in a low, growling voice.
"We know you’re in here! Come out, and we’ll make it quick!"
Maya smirked. They always said that.
With cat-like agility, she darted to another cover point, a rusted conveyor belt. Her movements were swift but silent, her years of training with the Shadow Initiative paying off. She set up a makeshift trap, rigging a steel pipe to fall and create a diversion.
"Trap's ready," she said into the comms. "Buy me time."
"Roger that," Alex answered, his voice steady. Moments later, a cacophony of static burst through the radios of her pursuers. They stopped in their tracks, confusion flashing across their faces.
"What the hell is that?
Taking advantage of their distraction, Maya triggered the trap. The pipe smashes to the ground, the clang deafening, which calls their attention. One of the men splits up to check it out with one other, leaving the head of the group and his minion. Perfect.
She came out of the darkness like a ghost, her Glock suppressed as she moved in on the stragglers. She hit with calculated speed. The leader turned too late, recognizing the ambush. Maya twisted his arm around, slapping him to the floor.
"Who sent you?" she pressed the barrel of her gun against the side of his head.
"You will never stop us," he spat, with a look of defiance shining in his eyes. "The Helix Syndicate is everywhere."
Maya's hold on him only grew stronger. She checked her watch; the count went down ominously.
"Then I'll begin here," she said and hit him once and fast, unconscious.
"Maya, extraction point is hot. You must get out," Alex cut through the line of comms urgently.
"On my way," she replied, reaching into the leader's vest and pulling out a data drive. This is what they'd come for, the key to tearing down the Syndicate's operations.
As she ran toward the exit, the factory caught fire, Alex's handiwork making sure that nothing would remain as evidence. Maya emerged into the open air, the cool breeze starkly contrasting with the inferno behind her. A sleek black SUV screeched to a halt, and Alex threw the door open.
"Get in!"
Maya leaped inside, and bullets started ricocheting off the vehicle. Alex floored the accelerator; they sped into the night, leaving chaos in their wake.
"Did you get it?" he asked glancing at her.
Maya held up the drive, a triumphant smile playing on her lips. "Oh, I got it."
Alex grinned. "Then let's finish this."
By Lakshmi R Menon
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