The storm came before dawn.
Lightning raked across the black sky, illuminating the broken skyline of the city like the ribs of a dying giant. The old communication tower — once the symbol of human unity — now served as the resistance’s last command post.
Inside its hollowed core, Commander Reddick stood over the holo-table, his reflection fractured by the shifting light. Red icons blinked across the map — Facility patrols, drone nests, transport routes. Every few seconds, one would vanish as his strike teams made contact.
“Team Gamma’s down,” a voice called from behind him. “EMP failed before detonation. No survivors.”
Reddick’s jaw tightened, the scars on his cheek catching the blue light. “Pull the backup cells from Delta. We’ll use them to blind the eastern sentries.”
A young techn
