The large, black SUV raced through the city as it was just waking up. It moved with a smooth, dangerous speed, like a shark cutting through choppy water. But inside the vehicle, the mood was heavy and tense. The silence felt thicker and more suffocating than the darkness of the prison cell they had just been in. Ace, Evelyn, Silva, and Kaito were all squeezed into the back seat. Two of Ramos's guards sat on either side of them, watching their every move, while the intimidating man named Marcus sat up front in the passenger seat next to the silent, grim-faced driver.

Through the heavily tinted windows, the world outside was a confusing blur of normal life mixed with sudden, shocking violence. One moment, they were speeding down an empty street. The next, the driver had to swerve sharply to avoid a burning trash can, its orange flames lighting up the wet pavement. They drove past one street where confused people in their bathrobes stood on their porches, staring at the chaos. Then, they turned a corner only to find a road completely blocked by overturned cars. The driver had to slam on the brakes and make a frantic, screeching U-turn to get away.

The command from their captor, Ramos, had been simple: get to a second, more secure hiding place. But the city itself seemed to be fighting against any plan now. The "jackals" Ramos had mentioned his rival gangs were everywhere, causing disorder and destruction.

Inside Ace's mind, his special ability, the System, was working constantly. A stream of information, like silent subtitles, flowed at the edge of his vision, analyzing their situation.

<<<>>>

ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN:

SITUATION: EXTREME CHAOS, VERY HARD TO PREDICT.

DETAILS: FIGHTING IS HAPPENING IN MANY AREAS. POLICE ARE OVERWHELMED AND CAN ONLY REACT TO PROBLEMS, NOT STOP THEM.

ESCAPE CHANCE: MODERATE. BIGGEST PROBLEM: THE GUARDS WATCHING US DIRECTLY.

<<<>>>

Moderate conditions, Ace thought bitterly. But only if we were alone. The two guards sitting with them in the back were highly professional and fully alert. Their hands never strayed far from their guns, and their eyes constantly moved, scanning the chaotic streets outside and then checking on their prisoners inside. There was no room for a mistake.

Next to Ace, Evelyn was trembling. He could feel the faint shaking through the car seat. He dared a quick look at her. Her face was turned toward the window, but her eyes were wide and unseeing. She wasn't really looking at the chaos outside; she was trapped in her own fear, seeing the image Ramos had used to threaten them: her kind, elderly aunt, who was now in danger because of them.

On the other side of Evelyn, Silva was sitting perfectly still, like a statue filled with fury. His fists were clenched tightly on his knees, his knuckles white with strain. He was staring at the back of Marcus's head with a hatred so intense it felt like it could burn a hole through the seat. Beside him, Kaito looked small and utterly terrified, his mind probably imagining a thousand terrible outcomes.

The SUV hit a deep pothole with a jarring thud, throwing everyone slightly off balance. In that brief moment of distraction, Ace's eyes met Evelyn's. The glance lasted only a second, but a silent message was perfectly understood between them: We cannot let them take us to another prison. Whatever this new place is, we cannot get there.

Ace gave a tiny, almost invisible nod. Then, he let his eyes drift casually down to the car door next to him. He saw the lock button was pushed down, a small red light glowing beside it. He knew the child safety locks were certainly on, which meant pulling the inside handle would do nothing. This SUV was a cell on wheels.

His System immediately pinged again, reacting to his focused thoughts on the lock.

<<<>>>

TARGET ANALYSIS: CAR DOOR LOCK.

TYPE: ELECTRONIC, CONTROLLED BY THE CAR'S COMPUTER.

WEAK SPOT: A SMALL ELECTRIC MOTOR INSIDE THE DOOR.

PROPOSED ACTION: USE NANITE SWARM (MICROSCOPIC MACHINES) TO JAM THE MOTOR'S TINY GEARS.

WARNING: THIS REQUIRES INTENSE MENTAL FOCUS. YOU NEED TO BE TOUCHING THE LOCK FOR IT TO WORK.

<<<>>>

Physical contact. That was the challenge. The door panel was a smooth, unbroken surface. There was no way to reach the lock's mechanics inside without the right tools or without drawing attention. He needed a way to connect to it, a point of entry that wouldn't make the guards suspicious.

Ace's eyes moved slowly around the inside of the vehicle, trying to look calm and not draw any attention. He glanced over the leather seats, the plastic details, and the buttons that controlled the windows. His gaze finally settled on a tiny, almost invisible crack where the car window met the door. Over time, a little bit of dust and dirt had gathered there. It was a minuscule gap, something most people would never notice.

But it was the only chance they had.

He slowly leaned his shoulder against the door, pretending he was just getting comfortable. The guard sitting next to him shifted, watching him closely. Ace closed his eyes, acting as if he was exhausted or feeling sick from the car ride. In reality, he was pouring all of his mental energy into activating his special ability, the Nanite Swarm.

In his mind, he pictured the microscopic machines leaving his body. He imagined them not as a visible cloud, but as a focused stream of his own willpower. He visualized them moving through the fabric of his jacket, across the tiny space between his arm and the door, and into that narrow seam. It was an incredibly difficult task, like trying to thread a needle from a mile away using only his thoughts. The effort caused a sharp, throbbing headache to begin pounding behind his eyes.

A notification from his System appeared in his mind:

<<<>>>

NANITE SWARM ACTIVATED.

SEARCHING FOR TARGET... TARGET FOUND.

TARGET LOCATION: THE SMALL MOTOR THAT CONTROLS THE DOOR LOCK.

STATUS: ATTEMPTING TO JAM THE MOTOR'S GEARS...

<<<>>>

Suddenly, the driver shouted a curse and slammed on the brakes. The SUV skidded to a sudden stop. Right in front of them, a police car was parked sideways across the road, its lights flashing. An officer was waving traffic away, blocking their planned route.

"We can't go this way," the driver said, his voice tight with stress. "This was the fastest path."

"Then find another one!" Marcus barked, staring angrily at a map on his phone. "Every minute we spend driving around is another minute we can be attacked."

The two guards in the back seat were distracted, leaning forward to see what was happening ahead. This was their only opportunity.

Ace pushed with his mind one last time, with every bit of strength he had left. He imagined the nanites covering the tiny gears inside the lock motor, welding them together into a solid, useless lump.

He heard it—a faint, sharp zzzt sound from inside the door, followed by the smell of something electric burning. The small red light on the lock button flickered and went dark.

The lock was broken. But the big question was: had he unlocked the door, or had he broken it so it was stuck locked forever?

There was no time to wonder. Ace looked at Evelyn and Silva, his eyes wide, sending a clear message without words. Get ready.

"Hey," grunted the guard next to Ace, noticing how tense he had become. "What are you doing—"

Ace didn't let him finish. In one smooth, quick movement, he grabbed the door handle and pulled.

For one terrifying second, nothing happened. The guard sneered. "Give it up, kid. It's locked."

But then, they all heard a heavy, solid clunk. The door unlatched. While Ace had destroyed the electronic lock, the simple, mechanical connection between the handle and the door latch still worked.

Ace shoved the door open and tumbled out onto the rough, cold pavement of the street.

"Go! Now!" he screamed.

Instantly, chaos exploded inside the SUV. The guard next to Ace lunged to grab him, but Silva was already moving. With a roar of built-up rage, Silva threw his whole body against the guard, slamming him into the other side of the vehicle. "Run, Evelyn!" he yelled.

Evelyn didn't hesitate. She scrambled over the seat where Ace had been sitting and climbed out of the car after him. Kaito, frozen for a moment by fear, was snapped into action by Silva's yell. He slipped out right behind Evelyn.

"Stop them!" Marcus bellowed, struggling to get his own door open.

Ace hit the ground hard, rolling to cushion his fall. He jumped to his feet and grabbed Evelyn's arm to help her up. Kaito was right behind them, his face a mixture of pure terror and wild excitement.

"Silva!" Evelyn cried, turning back toward the SUV.

Inside, Silva was fighting both guards. He was strong, but he was outnumbered. Marcus was finally getting out of the front seat.

"We have to go!" Kaito urged, pulling at Evelyn's sleeve.

Ace made a instant decision. "Silva! Now!" he yelled. Instead of running away, he moved toward the back of the vehicle.

Hearing Ace, Silva gave one last powerful shove, pushing the guards away, and launched himself out of the open door. He landed on the street just as Marcus stepped out, a pistol now in his hand.

"You little—" Marcus started to say as he raised the gun.

Ace didn't stop to think. He reached out with his mind one more time, pushing his tired Nanite Swarm toward the SUV's back tire. He couldn't make it explode, but he could make it go flat. He focused on the little valve where you put air in, and commanded the nanites to loosen it just a tiny bit.

There was a loud, sudden hiss of air rushing out. The SUV jerked as the tire quickly went flat.

Marcus stumbled, thrown off balance for a critical second. His shot went wide.

"This way!" Ace shouted. The four of them sprinted away from the disabled vehicle, ducking into a narrow, dirty alleyway between two brick buildings.

Gunshots echoed behind them, but the bullets harmlessly smashed into the brick wall above their heads. They ran without looking back, their footsteps loud in the tight space. They burst out onto the next street over, a quiet road with houses that seemed miraculously untouched by the chaos nearby.

They didn't stop running. They turned left, then right, putting as much distance and as many turns as possible between themselves and Marcus. Finally, their lungs burning for air, they collapsed behind a large, untamed bush in the front yard of a dark, quiet house.

For a full minute, the only sound was their ragged, gasping breaths, mixed with the far-off noise of sirens. They were free. They were out in the open, with dangerous people hunting for them. But they were together.

Evelyn was the first to speak, her voice shaky with adrenaline and relief. "The tire… how did you…?"

Ace leaned his head back against the cool brick of the house, his headache now a pounding migraine. He managed a tired smile. "Let's just say I gave it a little push."

Silva clapped him on the shoulder, a real grin breaking across his face for the first time in days. "I don't know how you did it, kid. But that was incredible."

Kaito was hugging his knees, rocking slightly. "They'll be looking for us everywhere. Ramos will have every single one of his men searching."

"I know," Ace said, the heavy reality of their situation settling back on him. The excitement of their escape was already fading. "We can't stay here. We need to find a place to hide."

He looked at his friends—dirty, exhausted, but alive and free. They had escaped their moving prison. Now, they had to survive in a city that was falling apart. The first, nearly impossible step was behind them. The next one, finding a safe place in a warzone was just beginning.

<<<>>>

STATUS UPDATE: ESCAPE WAS A SUCCESS.

CURRENT LOCATION: UNKNOWN. ENEMY FORCES ARE SEARCHING FOR US.

NEW MAIN GOAL: FIND A SAFE HIDING PLACE. REMAIN UNDETECTED.

NANITE SWARM POWER: 23%. RECHARGING SLOWLY.

<<<>>>

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.