An Understated Dominance by Marina Vittori

“Damn it!” Warrick cursed. “I was just getting started.”

He was covered in blood. His eyes burned with a wild, excited gleam.

Warrick lived for the fight. After two days in hiding, he was itching to let loose-and now that he had, he wasn’t ready to stop.

“Sir Prescott, think about the bigger picture. If we don’t leave now, it’ll be too late,” Mulder urged, grabbing his arm.

At the far end of the street, dark figures were already visible in the distance, rushing toward them. Though Warrick still seemed reluctant, he quickly calmed down.

“Fall back!” he shouted.

With that, he and Mulder charged past the checkpoint and led a handful of battered soldiers into the outer city.

Unlike the inner city, the outer city had much weaker defenses. The sheer size of the area made it impossible to secure every corner, so only the main thoroughfares had a strong military presence.

Mulder had already mapped out their escape route and prepared the gear.

According to the original plan-if they hadn’t drawn any unwanted attention they’d leave the inner city by car and make a clean getaway.

But if they couldn’t make it out of the city or if their cover was blown, they’d have to use the backup plan-the secret tunnels.

the

the Hall of Gods rarely used them under normal

the Hall of Gods, Mulder hadn’t planned on using the secret tunnels

after the chaos just now, he had no choice. At that moment, survival was his

lead, the group sprinted through the dark streets. Half an hour later, they finally reached an unremarkable house. They slipped inside,

lingering in the hideout for a few minutes, Mulder signaled for them to

buildings packed tightly together, with narrow alleys and winding

before. He wove through the maze of alleys and twisting paths with practiced

found himself dizzy and completely disoriented. Just as he was starting to lose his patience, Mulder suddenly veered into a small Strequan-style house with

immediately followed, copying his every

the coffee table, revealing a hidden trapdoor. He hooked two fingers into the holes, gave a firm tug, and pulled it

underground. Standing at the tunnel entrance, they could feel a cool breeze

after you.” Mulder gestured

first,” Warrick replied, peering into the darkness. It

with a faint smile. Without hesitation, he led his men into

They might be allies for

but recklessness did. Warrick wasn’t going to entrust his life to someone he

squads began scouring the area to track down Warrick

his elite troops as soon as he