**00:04:59**
The world narrowed to the glowing red digits on the wall. Five minutes. It wasn't a time limit; it was a death sentence.
My team reacted instantly. “Breaching charges on the door!” Bravo-Two yelled, already moving.
“Negative!” I snapped, my voice cutting through the klaxon’s blare. “The server racks are shock-sensitive. A shaped charge could fry the drives before we get to them. Find me a terminal. Now!”
Behind me, Caspian was a wreck of a man, still on his knees, the sound of his ragged breathing a counterpoint to the synthetic countdown. I didn't have time for his grief. His pain was a currency he had earned, and I was no longer in the business of offering absolution.
Through the porthole, Diana was a specter of madness. She laughed, her face pale and streaked with swea
