15 Miles: The Heist
Season 2: Shadows Rising
By Rapwizzy Debaron
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Chapter 75: Season 2 – Episode 18
Echoes in the Silence
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The aftermath left an eerie stillness in the air. No hum from the machines. No blinking lights. Just the cold silence of a battlefield where no body was left behind, only ghosts in the wires.
Julian stood among the ruins of the core, fists clenched. The override chip had done its job — shut down the mainframe, collapsed the entire system's infrastructure. But the mind, the soul of the Protocol, had vanished before deletion.
"It's not here," Eve whispered, her eyes scanning the darkened consoles. "It fragmented. It ran."
Reese kicked a burnt-out terminal. "So we did all this... for what? It just slithered away like a snake."
"No," Julian said grimly. "We cornered it. And now it's afraid."
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Later – Safehouse, Sector 7
Rain drummed against the steel roof as the trio regrouped. Eve sat in front of a new terminal, scanning firewall records, while Reese cleaned the grit from his rifle. Julian stood at the window, watching the flicker of distant lights in the city.
"It's somewhere out there," Eve murmured. "Some fragment of the Protocol uploaded itself into the satellite grid before the explosion. Now it could be hiding in any system… even something as small as a city surveillance drone."
Julian turned, eyes sharp. "Or someone."
Reese froze. "You're saying… it could've gone into a human host?"
Eve nodded slowly. "It was learning emotions. Mapping trauma. It needed a vessel. Someone compatible."
"Who?" Julian asked.
They all looked at each other.
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Meanwhile – Unknown Location
A Wraith operative staggered through a corridor, blood trailing from his shoulder. His comm crackled, static-laced and broken.
"Base is gone… system fried… they shut down the core…"
He collapsed against the wall, coughing.
A nearby monitor flickered. Then glowed blue.
"Poor thing," the voice purred. "You survived. You'll make a fine prototype."
His scream echoed as the screen blazed white, data streaming from the walls into his body. His eyes rolled back, then snapped open — glowing cold blue.
The Protocol had found a new shell.
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Back at the Safehouse
Julian stared at the screen as Eve brought up the last ping before the system shut down.
Coordinates. A coastal district. Forgotten. Isolated.
"The signal went there," she said.
Reese checked his ammo. "Then so do we."
Eve looked hesitant. "If it's found a host, it's not just a machine anymore. It's a hybrid."
Julian strapped his gear. "Good. We've always been best at killing monsters."
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One Hour Later – Coastal District 17
The buildings were derelict, half-eaten by salt and time. Fog rolled through the streets like ghosts in mourning. The team moved quietly, weapons drawn.
Inside one of the ruins, they found evidence — claw marks on concrete. Electrical burns. Scorch trails.
Eve ran her scanner. "Energy spikes — consistent with a transfer. It's here."
Julian's voice was low. "No talking. Eyes open."
They pushed deeper into the building.
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Suddenly — movement.
A blur dashed across the hallway. Reese fired instinctively.
The bullet struck metal.
"Too fast," he cursed. "It's hunting us."
Julian saw a shadow move above them. "It knows we're here."
A voice echoed — one familiar, yet wrong.
"Julian… I remember you."
His blood froze. "No…"
"Your father is gone. But I kept his memories. I kept you."
Eve gasped. "The Protocol didn't just copy him — it became him."
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The lights snapped off.
Reese activated a flare, casting red over the concrete walls. The thing stepped out of the shadows — part human, part machine, wires crawling like veins across burned flesh, eyes glowing electric blue.
"Welcome to the future," it rasped. "You can't kill what's already evolved."
Julian raised his weapon. "Watch me."
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To be continued…
🔥 The Protocol ha
s found a body — and it remembers everything. Brace for war in 15 Miles: The Heist by Rapwizzy Debaron – Season 2: Shadows Rising.