CHAPTER 283: GHOST PROTOCOL : VULTURE [ 2 ] BONUS CHAPTER

He swiped through the holographic interface, revealing a sleek, segmented combat knife that glimmered ominously.

"Meet the Viper-9," he announced with a hint of pride.

"It’s got a triple-alloy blade with a micro-serrated edge and reactive heat tech. You stab, and it cauterizes on entry or exit, less mess, less trace. Pretty neat, huh?"

Another swipe brought up an impressive sight: a full-body tactical combat suit, matte black with a smooth visor and faint blue tracer lines snaking along its limbs.

"This is the Ghostveil Mk-IV," Ethan continued, his voice steady. "It features adaptive camouflage, built-in sensor dampening, and an air-filtration system that lets you breathe in hell while looking good doing it."

Lyra let out an impressed whistle. "And you brought enough for all of us?"

"Enough for those who won’t waste them," Ethan replied with a cheeky wink.

But he wasn’t finished yet. A flick of his wrist summoned the outline of a fighter jet, compact and predatory, its swept wings bristling with modular hardpoints.

"Behold the Skyfang interceptor! It’s still in prototype phase but boasts twin-pulse engines and full vectored thrust. It can take off in less than sixty meters and hit Mach 2.3 in under three minutes!"

Even Holt, usually quiet as a shadow, leaned forward slightly. "What’s its radar profile?"

"Like a ghost’s shadow," Ethan said coolly. "You won’t see it until it’s done saying hello."

The table buzzed with quiet admiration as eyes followed the shifting holograms like moths to flame.

But Gunner’s gaze was already drifting elsewhere.

"You mentioned gifts," Gunner interjected, his tone shifting to something more serious. "The Boss said you had two others,what are they?"

A palpable tension filled the air.

No one needed to utter Arthur’s name; it hung heavy in the silence,a silent command that stilled conversation like an unseen hand gripping throats.

Even Ethan’s grin faded into something sharper.

"You’re lucky, Commander," Ethan finally broke the silence. "Getting this mission from the Boss means he trusts you and you know what that entails."

Gunner’s eyes narrowed dangerously. "One shot."

"One shot," Ethan echoed solemnly. "Don’t mess it up."

As the war table hummed softly beneath them, blue light cast cold shadows across every face gathered there,a stark reminder of what lay ahead.

Outside, trucks idled quietly in the dark; inside, every man and woman knew tomorrow would bring bloodshed,one way or another.

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The air in the warehouse felt electric, as if it were holding its breath after Ethan’s last words.

The hologram of the Skyfang slowly faded into the darkness of the war table, leaving behind only the cool blue outlines of VULTURE lab schematics.

Ethan didn’t take a seat. Instead, he reached into his jacket’s inner pocket and produced a second holo-tab,smaller and heavier than the first, its matte casing devoid of any markings.

He placed it on the glass surface with a caution that suggested it was more explosive than electronic.

"Alright," he said, his tone shifting from playful to serious. "Those toys were just for fun. These..."

He tapped the tab twice.

"...are for survival."

The war table flickered to life again, projecting a compact black injector about the size of a thumb, rotating slowly as a soft hum echoed beneath it,a distant heartbeat pulsing through the room.

Mireille squinted at it. "Medical hardware?"

"Not just any hardware," Ethan replied, swiping his finger to reveal a cross-section view.

The hologram expanded to show microscopic canisters nestled within a ring of biopolymer.

"Custom-sequenced immunity protocol. Once this is in your system, you’re untouchable by GENEBANE."

That caught their attention.

Stone leaned forward eagerly. "GENEBANE is locked in the VULTURE vault,are you saying..."

"I’m saying," Ethan interjected smoothly, "you could stroll through an active release zone, inhale deeply and walk out with clear lungs."

He hesitated briefly before adding with caution, "Let’s just say... it’s been tested."

Rask grunted skeptically. "Any side effects?"

"Minor ones," Ethan replied nonchalantly. "Fifteen seconds of fever and maybe a headache,beats bleeding out of your eyes in ninety seconds."

The silence that followed wasn’t disbelief; it was the weighty realization sinking in.

Lyra let out a low breath. "The boss doesn’t hand this kind of gear to just anyone."

"Exactly," Ethan said, his voice steady and confident. "So don’t lose them,each injector is coded to your bio-signature. Drop it, and it’s worthless to anyone else."

He let the injector image fade away, and for a moment, it felt like the tension in the room had reached its peak,the big reveal but then he tapped the tab again.

The war table went dark, and a slow pulse of deep red began to bloom across its surface.

When the next image appeared, silence enveloped everyone.

A weapon not just any weapon, no sleek rifle or futuristic jet.

Before them was a sphere, matte-black with no visible seams. Its surface seemed to absorb all light around it, and the projection bore no labels or schematics,only its name in blood-red font:

OBLIVION LANCE WARHEAD

Silas shifted in his chair, sitting up straighter. "What am I looking at?"

Ethan’s smile returned, sharper this time as if he reveled in their awe.

"The cleanest eraser you’ll ever meet. Detonation radius: two hundred meters. Yield profile: vaporization,no shrapnel, no shockwave, no secondary fires. You push the button, and everything within that radius simply ceases to exist."

Stone furrowed his brow in confusion. "A micro-singularity?"

"Close," Ethan replied with a mischievous glint in his eye.

"More fun, less physics." He traced his finger around the image as it rotated on screen.

"This thing leaves nothing behind but an empty hole,no residue for lab rats to chew on afterward! The media loves it; makes for great aerial shots."

Mireille’s tone was flat as she interjected, "Overkill for one lab."

Ethan’s grin widened knowingly. "Who said it’s just for one?"

The room fell into stillness as Gunner’s gaze sharpened with realization; pieces clicked into place.

"There are more than one VULTURE labs." It wasn’t a question; it was an assertion.

Ethan nodded once, confirming Gunner’s suspicion.

"Boss wants you to erase them, not damage or dismantle but erase completely. When you take out the first lab, the rest will scatter like roaches when you flip on the lights,that’s when you hunt."

Nobody moved for what felt like an eternity; even the sound of trucks idling outside seemed amplified now,a deep mechanical heartbeat pacing through their silence.

Finally, Gunner leaned forward with both hands planted firmly on the table. "You brought us some serious firepower."

Ethan chuckled lightly in response. "You could say that."

He tapped his tab again to dismiss the holograms; gradually, the war table’s glow faded into dim perimeter lights that cast deep shadows over their gathered faces.

"Almost!" Ethan’s grin brightened, a playful spark igniting in his eyes.

"If you’re up for a bit of fun, I’d love to capture some footage, suit runs, the jet gliding by in a slow pass. Nothing sensitive, just pure beauty shots for marketing."

"Marketing what?" Holt raised an eyebrow, curiosity piqued.

"Me," Ethan replied unabashedly. "And by extension, you. It’s all about greasing the skids in places where they don’t even exist."

Gunner remained unyielding. "No."

Ethan’s brows shot up in surprise. "Just hear me out...."

"No recordings," Gunner interjected firmly. "Not for you,not for anyone."

Ethan opened his mouth to protest but quickly closed it as he sensed the tension in the room.

He shifted gears, adopting a casual demeanor like someone slipping their hands into pockets.

"Listen, the TerraWorld audience thrives on this kind of content! I’m talking about clips that don’t reveal your identity,blurred images and masked telemetry. It’s my bread and butter..."

"You use TerraWorld?" Silas chimed in, not quite asking.

Ethan blinked at him, surprised. "You know TerraWorld?"

A few people at the table exchanged knowing glances that spoke volumes without saying a word.

"It’s... useful," Marek offered cautiously.

"Useful?" Ethan chuckled softly under his breath. "It’s a freaking cathedral if you know where to stand! Half my clients find me there; the other half act like they didn’t see me."

Rask shrugged nonchalantly. "It’s popular where paper burns and coins flow freely."

Ethan spread his arms wide with enthusiasm.

"Exactly! A thirty-second clip of a Skyfang drop could net me six border crossings and a gunship license within a week!"

But Gunner stood firm as ever. "You heard me."

Ethan held Gunner’s gaze for a moment before raising his palms in mock surrender. "Alright then! No cameras."

He flashed another grin toward Mireille instinctively. "I’ll just film it all in my heart."

Mireille didn’t even glance his way, her expression unimpressed. "That won’t play well."

"Cruel," Ethan sighed dramatically, though delight danced behind his eyes.

The younger man’s grin returned but lacked its earlier fervor as he pocketed his tab and cast an eye toward the black trucks lurking in the shadows nearby.

"Well then," he said with renewed determination, "I guess we get to skip the commercials and dive straight into the feature presentation."