SSS-RANK: Super Extraction System-Chapter 16: [16] Wraith Squad

Chapter 16: [16] Wraith Squad
The door to the briefing room didn’t slide open like the ones at the academy. It was a heavy, reinforced blast door that required Leon to turn a wheel and push.
Inside, the air was thick with the smell of gun oil, stale tobacco, and high-grade ozone.
This wasn’t a classroom. It was a cage for tigers.
Three people sat around a disorganized table littered with weapon parts and holographic map projectors. When Leon stepped inside, the conversation died instantly. Three pairs of eyes locked onto him.
"You’ve got to be kidding me," a deep voice grumbled.
The speaker was massive. He sat on a reinforced crate because a normal chair would have collapsed under him. His arms were thick as tree trunks, covered in scars, and his skin had a rough, greyish texture even in its resting state.
"Rostova said she was bringing a specialist," the giant said, picking up a heavy combat shotgun like it was a toy. "This is a kid. Is it ’Bring Your Child to War’ day?"
[ ANALYSIS: ACTIVE ]
[ TARGET: ’RHINO’ ]
[ RANK: C (HIGH) ]
[ CLASS: BRAWLER / TANK ]
[ ABILITY: RHINO-HIDE TRANSFORMATION ]
[ THREAT: HIGH PHYSICAL DAMAGE. LOW INTELLECT. ]
Leon ignored the insult. He stepped fully into the room, letting the heavy door clang shut behind him.
"I’m the specialist," Leon said.
"Specialist in what? Nap time?" A girl sitting on the table giggled. She was small, pale, and dressed in a chaotic mix of tech-wear and ripped street clothes. But the most disturbing thing about her were her eyes.
They weren’t human. They were cybernetic implants, glowing with a soft neon-blue ring. The lenses whirred audibly as she zoomed in on Leon’s face.
[ TARGET: ’JINX’ ]
[ RANK: C ]
[ CLASS: TRAPPER / TECH ]
[ ABILITY: ENERGY WIRE MANIPULATION ]
[ THREAT: UNPREDICTABLE. HIGH UTILITY. ]
"He’s cute, though," Jinx said, hopping off the table. She moved with a jittery, caffeinated energy. "Look at his gear. Shadow-steel daggers. Fancy. Where’d you steal those, rookie?"
"Enough."
The third figure spoke. He was leaning against the back wall, arms crossed. He wore a long, dark trench coat and a mask that covered the lower half of his face. His eyes were cold.
[ TARGET: JUSTIN ]
[ RANK: B ]
[ CLASS: LEADER / STEALTH ]
[ ABILITY: SOUND NULLIFICATION ]
[ THREAT: EXTREME. VETERAN COMBATANT. ]
Justin pushed himself off the wall. He didn’t stomp like Rhino or bounce like Jinx. He moved without making a single sound. His boots hit the metal floor, but there was no thud. Just silence.
He stopped two feet from Leon, towering over him.
"Name?" Justin asked.
"Leon."
"Rank?"
Leon hesitated. "Classified."
Rhino snorted. "Classified means F-Rank with a rich daddy."
Justin didn’t blink. He stared at Leon, assessing him. He looked at the way Leon stood balanced, weight on the balls of his feet, hands loose near his daggers.
"You’ve killed before," Justin stated. It wasn’t a question.
"Yes."
"Human or monster?"
"Does it matter?"
The room went quiet. Jinx let out a low whistle.
Justin held the gaze for another second, then nodded once. "I’m Justin. Squad Leader. The big guy is Rhino. The twitchy one is Jinx. We are Wraith Squad."
"And we," Rostova’s voice cut in as she entered the room, "are on a tight schedule."
The dynamic shifted instantly. Rhino stood up straight. Jinx stopped playing with a jagged knife. Even Justin stood at attention.
Rostova marched to the table and slammed her hand down on the console. A 3D map of the eastern sector flickered to life. In the center, glowing with an ominous red pulse, was a structure that looked like a gothic nightmare.
"The Sunken Cathedral," Rostova said. "It surfaced six hours ago in the Eclipse Zone. Intel confirms it is the current lair of Marquis Kain."
She tapped the hologram.
"The Marquis has erected a Shadow Barrier. It’s a field of condensed dark energy. If we touch it with standard high-rank signatures, it detonates. The blast radius would wipe out three city blocks."
She pointed at Leon.
"That is why he is here. His energy signature is unique. He can walk through the barrier without triggering it. He is our key."
Rhino looked at Leon with renewed interest, though still skeptical. "So he’s a glorified door opener."
"He is a stealth specialist," Rostova corrected sharply. "Once inside, the barrier will seal behind you. You will be cut off. No reinforcements. No extraction until the target is eliminated."
She looked at each of them.
"Your mission is simple. Infiltrate. Navigate the labyrinth. Locate Kain and kill him."
"A Marquis..." Jinx muttered, her cybernetic eyes spinning. "That’s a Royal Shadow, boss. Their energy readings are off the charts. It’s not just a monster; it’s like fighting a walking natural disaster. The readings coming off that ruin are... ancient. Older than the Awakening."
"That’s why the pay is triple," Rostova said dryly. "And full pardons for your records."
That seemed to settle it. Rhino grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Triple pay buys a lot of beer. I’m in."
"I always wanted to dissect a vampire lord," Jinx added.
Justin looked at Leon. "Can you keep up, kid? We move fast. We move silent. If you lag behind, we leave you. If you compromise the squad, I kill you myself."
Leon met the veteran’s gaze. The System hummed in the back of his mind, analyzing the threat level. Justin was dangerous, but he was honest.
"I won’t lag," Leon said.
"Gear up," Justin ordered. "We move in ten."
The squad dispersed to check their weapons. Rhino was loading massive slugs into his shotgun. Jinx was calibrating a set of floating drones.
Leon stood by the table, staring at the hologram of the Cathedral.
[ SYSTEM UPDATE ]
[ TARGET DATA LOGGED: MARQUIS KAIN ]
[ WEAKNESS ANALYSIS: ]
[ 1. CONCENTRATED LIGHT ENERGY (HIGH) ]
[ 2. DECAPITATION / HEART EXTRACTION ]
[ 3. MONARCH’S AUTHORITY (UNKNOWN) ]
[ NOTE: TARGET POSSESSES ’DOMINION’. EXPECT SPATIAL WARPING. ]
"Leon."
He turned. Rostova was standing beside him, her back to the others. She slipped something into his hand.
It was a small, flat device. Like an old-world coin, but made of black glass.
"This is a quantum communicator," she whispered, barely moving her lips. "It bypasses all jamming frequencies. It connects directly to my personal ear-piece."
Leon looked at it, then slipped it into his glove.
"Don’t use it for extraction," she warned. "I can’t pull you out once you’re inside. Use it only if..." She hesitated. "Use it only if you fail. So I know to evacuate your family."
The weight of the tiny device felt like a mountain in his hand.
"I won’t need it," Leon whispered back.
"I hope not." She squeezed his shoulder, her grip hard.
"Wraith Squad!" Justin barked from the door. "Load up. The VTOL is spinning."
Leon adjusted his daggers. He checked the seal on his suit. He took a breath, centering himself. The fear he had felt in the apartment was gone, replaced by a cold sharp focus.
He looked at the map one last time. The red dot of the Cathedral pulsed like a heartbeat.
I’m not coming for your collection, Kain, Leon thought. I’m coming for your throne.
He turned and followed the squad out of The Crypt.
The transport flight was silent.
Wraith Squad sat in the back of a stealth VTOL, bathed in red tactical lighting. The engine was a low hum that vibrated through the floor.
Rhino was asleep or pretending to be, arms crossed over his massive chest. Jinx was obsessively cleaning a spool of monofilament wire, muttering to herself about tension ratios.
Justin sat opposite Leon. He was sharpening a combat knife, the rasp of stone on steel the only sound in the cabin.
"You’re too quiet," Justin said, not looking up.
"I’m focused," Leon replied.
"Focused is good. Scared is better." Justin tested the edge of the blade on his thumb. A bead of blood appeared. "Fear keeps you sharp. The moment you stop being scared of the dark, it eats you."
"I’ve seen the dark," Leon said. "I’m not scared of it anymore."
Justin looked up. His eyes narrowed. "That’s what worries me, kid."
"Approaching Drop Zone," the pilot’s voice crackled over the comms. "Two minutes to insertion. Eclipse Zone density is rising. Sensors are going haywire."
Leon looked out the small viewport.
Below them, the city lights ended abruptly. Beyond the perimeter wall, there was only darkness. A swirling, unnatural fog covered the landscape.
And rising from the fog, like a jagged tooth, was the spire of the Sunken Cathedral.
It was inverted. The spire pointed down into a massive chasm in the earth, while the foundation and the main hall sat on the surface, tilted at a sickly angle. It was made of obsidian and bone, pulsing with a faint, purple light.
[ ECLIPSE ZONE DETECTED ]
[ RANK: B (UNSTABLE) ]
[ SHADOW DENSITY: EXTREME ]
"Masks on," Justin ordered, pulling his face covering up. "Atmosphere inside is toxic. Corrupted mana. Don’t breathe it."
Leon pulled his mask up. It sealed with a hiss.
The ramp lowered. The wind howled outside, carrying the scent of decay and ancient dust.
"Remember," Justin shouted over the wind. "We are ghosts. We strike, we fade. Rhino, you’re the distraction. Jinx, handle the traps. Leon..."
Justin paused. He looked at the rookie.
"Get us through that door."
Leon nodded. He stepped to the edge of the ramp. The wind whipped at his clothes.
The Shadow Barrier shimmered below them, a dome of pure black energy covering the entrance.
Leon reached out with his senses. His core throbbed. The barrier didn’t feel like a wall. It felt like... water. It felt familiar.
It felt like home.
"Let’s go," Leon said.
He jumped into the night.