The First Target

The city never truly slept, but tonight, it felt like it was holding its breath.

Cipher and Luna moved through the darkened streets, shadows among shadows. The message from Umbra wasn’t just a warning—it was a challenge. And Cipher never ignored a challenge.

Luna pulled up a map on her tablet, highlighting a location. "The message was traced back to a high-rise in Sector Nine. Black site, off-the-grid. Probably a front."

Cipher checked his gear. "Security?"

"Heavy. If Umbra is anything like Echelon, they’ll have top-tier surveillance, private military, and probably some nasty surprises."

Cipher’s response was immediate. "Doesn’t matter."

Luna sighed. "Of course it doesn’t."

Without another word, Cipher was already moving.

Because he wasn’t going in to investigate.

He was going in to kill

The Umbra facility was built like a fortress high walls, infrared sensors, and a kill zone at every entrance.

A normal assassin wouldn’t have made it past the front gate.

Cipher was not normal.

He moved like a phantom, slipping past cameras, weaving through laser grids, leaving no trace of his presence. A guard passed by before he even realized he wasn’t alone, Cipher’s knife had already severed his throat.

No sound. No struggle. Just death.

Luna’s voice crackled in his earpiece. "You’re inside. Security response time is fast—ten minutes, max."

Cipher ghosted through the halls. "I only need five."

His first target was waiting ahead.

A high-ranking Umbra operative, Dante Cross.

The man who sent the message

The man who thought he could hunt Cipher

He was about to learn the truth.

No one hunted Cipher

No one

Dante Cross sat in his office, completely unaware that death had already entered the room

Cipher stood in the shadows, watching. Calculating. Waiting

Dante was a seasoned killer, but he lacked one thing—instinct. He relied on security, on technology, on power

Cipher relied on nothing

He moved

A single step. A single breath. A single cut

The blade slit Dante’s throat before he even had time to scream

As the man choked on his final breath, Cipher whispered the last words he would ever hear

"You made a mistake

Dante slumped forward, lifeless

Cipher wiped the blood from his knife, expression unreadable. One down

But this was only the beginning

Umbra would send more

They always did

And Cipher would kill them all

The second Dante’s body hit the desk, Cipher’s instincts flared. Danger

He twisted just in time to see the walls split open

Gun barrels extended from hidden compartments

A trap

Cipher moved before the first round was fired. He launched himself backward, flipping over Dante’s desk as bullets shredded the air where he had just been standing

Suppression fire. High-caliber rounds. Kill box formation

They weren’t just trying to scare him. They were trying to erase him

Cipher didn’t panic. He never panicked.

He reached down, grabbing Dante’s lifeless body then threw it into the line of fire.

The moment of confusion was all he needed

Boom

Cipher vaulted over the desk, twin pistols barking as he fired mid-air. His bullets tore through the turret sensors, sparks flying as the automated guns short-circuited

Three seconds. That’s all he needed.

He hit the ground in a roll, drew his knife, and sprinted straight through the door

Right into a squad of heavily armed Umbra Hounds.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***