Chapter 20: Dance of the Purple Flames and the Night of the Raid
The operation against Fisk's shipment was the most dangerous and complex mission the Echo had ever undertaken. Kael had meticulously calculated every detail of the plan, every possible scenario, and every emergency exit. This was an operation that would be executed with surgical precision, not brute force. Success could shake not only the Echo's future, but also the balance of power in the New York underworld. Failure would mean certain annihilation.
Kael selected a core team for the operation. Aslan would, as always, serve as Kael's right-hand man, handling reconnaissance, infiltration, and close support. Roric would remain at the shipyard, managing communications and defending the headquarters against any possible counterattack. Kael also recruited several men from the Iron Fist who had joined the Echo and proven their loyalty, especially those skilled in vehicle use and heavy weapons. These men had been tested several times by Kael's Chitauri-core-enhanced intuition, and had been deemed trustworthy for this mission at least.
Their equipment consisted of the Echo's limited but effective resources: custom-made rifles that fired energy-enhanced rounds, which Kael had modified with the Chitauri core's inspiration; light, silent, and deadly melee weapons for the Lion; and standard but well-maintained automatic weapons for the other team members. Kael had also developed a small, portable EMP device using the Chitauri core, capable of disrupting the convoy's communications and temporarily disabling some of its electronic systems. Its greatest asset, however, was the core itself; it gave it not only enhanced senses and energy manipulation, but also the ability to "sense" the mysterious purple energy and perhaps even to "react" to it.
The shipment's route passed through an old industrial area of the city that was almost deserted after midnight. Along the route, a narrow bridge was Kael's ideal spot for an ambush. The abandoned structures under and around the bridge provided the Echo team with excellent cover and maneuverability.
Shortly after midnight, Fisk's convoy appeared on the horizon. The image reflected through Aslan's binoculars once again illustrated the seriousness of the situation: at least six armored vehicles, each surrounded by fully equipped, professional-looking guards, and in the center of the convoy was a truck that was larger and more heavily armored than the others and carried a special container that Kael had identified as having a strange purple glow. The truck was a moving fortress.
Kael had taken up position at the highest point on the bridge, in the shadow of the remains of a crane. The wind whipped across his face, the Chitauri core warming slightly in his palm. His mind analyzed every vehicle in the convoy, every guard, and the container that emitted that ominous purple glow.
As the convoy approached the bridge, Kael signaled.
The first move came from one of the Echo's best marksmen; under Kael's instructions, a perfect shot was fired at the tires of the armored vehicle at the front of the convoy, causing the vehicle to spin out of control and block the road. At the same time, Kael himself activated the EMP device, disabling the convoy's communication systems and some of the vehicles' electronics. The static noises rising from the radios and the engines suddenly stalling caused momentary panic among Fisk's men.
In the midst of this chaos, Kael and his team launched an attack. Using bullets powered by the energy he focused from the Chitauri core, Kael picked off the guards at strategic points one by one, without killing them but incapacitating them. Each shot was more precise and deadly than the last. Aslan and the other Echo members emerged from under the bridge and from the sides, and attacked the stunned guards.
However, Fisk's men were not easy prey. This group, who were understood to be mercenaries, quickly gathered and began firing back. The sounds of energy weapons and automatic rifles tore through the night. As the fighting intensified, Kael had only one target: the container emitting the mysterious purple glow.
Kael glided through the fire like a ghost, moving toward the target truck. After neutralizing several more guards, he finally reached the truck. The container's door was protected by complex electronic locks and heavy steel plates. But what worried Kael more was the purple energy that was increasingly emanating from the container. The energy vibrated the air around him, creating a disturbing resonance even within Kael's Chitauri core.
As Kael tried to bypass the electronic locks using the core's energy, he heard a muffled sound coming from inside the container. Was it the growl of an animal or the mechanical groan of a machine? He couldn't tell. But the sound was definitely not of this world.
Just as he was about to deactivate the final stage of the lock, the metal walls of the container suddenly began to bend inward. A purple light seeped through the cracks in the metal, illuminating the surroundings, and then, with a deafening explosion, one side of the container was completely shattered.
What was revealed was a sight that surpassed even Kael's imagination. Inside the container, a gigantic entity composed of pure, chaotic purple energy, constantly changing shape, was struggling to be contained by chains and energy fields. It was neither an animal nor a machine; it was a being of pure chaos, carrying unimaginable power from another dimension. And now it was free.
In the euphoria of its release (?), the entity began to spread deadly energy waves around. Fisk's men and the Echo members were helpless in the face of this unexpected and terrifying threat. As Kael tried to protect himself and the Lion nearby by using the full power of the Chitauri core, he understood why Fisk was taking such a great risk. This wasn't just a weapon; this was a disaster.
And at that very moment, unidentified flying objects appeared in the skies above the city, rapidly approaching, carrying bright energy signatures unlike any they had ever seen before. It seemed that the unleashing of this entity of chaos had attracted the attention not only of the underworld, but of much larger and unknown forces as well.