The moment the alarm blared, Silverlake City compound snapped into a tense, battle-ready state.
All over the city, people's hearts jumped.
They really came.
At the main gate, rows of heavy artillery swiveled and locked onto the incoming crowd. The gate commander grabbed a bullhorn and shouted at the top of his lungs.
"You up front—stop where you are! If you take one more step, we open fire!"
His voice echoed off the walls, loud enough to rattle teeth.
The attackers didn't even slow down. It was like they hadn't heard a word.
"Damn it… they're asking to die!" the commander spat.
"Fire!"
The order dropped, and the artillery roared.
Boom boom boom boom!
One deafening blast after another. Shells streaked out, dragging tails of flame, arcing straight toward the charging mass.
Then—midair—the shells stopped.
Like they'd hit an invisible wall.
And in the next heartbeat, they turned.
They turned around and flew back toward the compound.
"HOLY SHIT!!"
"Scatter—MOVE!"
