Chapter 27 · Hunter's Trap

"Get your head down, you idiot!" Sloane’s voice cracked like a whip over the roar of the gunfire.

I didn't have time to argue. A plasma bolt hissed past my ear, melting the edge of a rusted shipping container with a screech of tortured metal. I slammed my back against the corrugated steel, my lungs burning. Beside me, Sloane was pressed so close I could feel the frantic rhythm of her heart hammering against my ribs. Her breath smelled like ozone and bitter coffee.

"I can take them," I spat, my voice raw. "Just give me a second to slot the overclock plug."

"You don't have a second!" She grabbed the collar of my jacket, yanking me closer. Her eyes were wide, pupils blown, the gold iris of her Enforcer mod shimmering under the flickering neon of the slums. "If you blow your neural core again, I can't jump-start you. We're out of stims, Kael."

I looked at the small, glowing data-chip in my palm. It was a power-up—a forbidden genetic sequence that would turn my reflexes into a blur, make me a god for three minutes. But it came with a price: total neural burnout.