The faint hum of the mansion's ventilation system was all that kept Lynx grounded as she silently weaved through the labyrinth of rooms and hallways that made up the Korrin mansion.
The documents, still contained within their original folder, were tucked tightly inside her jacket pocket as she did her best to keep them on her person. The woman could feel the adrenaline surging through her veins with each step, and the metallic tang of danger was now fresh on her tongue. Suddenly, the footsteps of a nearby guard had echoed a little too close for her liking. And the sound by itself was enough to force the blue-eyed mercenary to temporarily hide inside a hallway closet until she felt safe enough to move again.
Just one wrong turn, one mistake, and the entire heist would have unraveled in an instant. But it hadn't, at least not yet.
Lynx was accustomed to tight squeezes, but this was different. This particular escape was pushing her to the limit. The sweat that now soaked her forehead wasn't just from the physical exertion alone. It was also a result of the raw, familiar burn of withdrawal that was currently scratching at her insides. She hadn't slept properly in days, hadn't eaten anything substantial in weeks, and every part of her body was screaming for the relief that only a certain pink powder could provide. But in spite of that, Lynx kept pushing forward. She was too close to the finish line to fold now.
After a bit more silent maneuvering, Lynx quickly pulled herself into a small maintenance room at the back of the mansion. Upon entry, the woman took a moment to force herself to get her breathing under control. It was safe here, no cameras, no guards, just the muted sounds of the mansion's inner workings. Her vision blurred for a moment, and she quickly blinked it away, just like she had done many times before. The craving was making it harder to concentrate, but she knew she had to endure it for now. It wasn't like she had any other option.
The exit was just ahead.
Once the coast was clear, Lynx darted out of the maintenance room and quickly ran down the connecting hallway. Not a single guard was in sight. Her feet barely made a sound on the polished marble floors. She knew the mansion's layout, having studied it extensively during her preparations. And that information told her that she was nearly home free. The final hurdle was the exterior security gate, and she had already bypassed its systems earlier in the night. So doing one more time should be a piece of cake.
Her fingers trembled as she slipped the datachip into the slot on the security panel. And within seconds, the door clicked open.
Lynx immediately stepped outside and into the cool night air of Utopia. The colony's artificial sky twinkled above her as she took a moment to catch her breath. The city stretched out before her in a million shining lights, a complex illusion of perfection that the elites wanted everyone to see. But Lynx knew better. She had always known better.
Her breath slowed as the blue-eyed woman took a moment to collect herself. The adrenaline rush was now wearing off, and with it, her remaining strength. The itch beneath her skin quickly intensified. Lynx fought off the urge to run back inside and grab whatever illegal substances she could find, knowing it would do nothing for her once the job was over. She quickly reminded herself that the payout from this mission would be enough to leave Utopia behind and disappear forever. So she needed to see this through to the end.
'Maybe I should go to some quiet, backwater colony somewhere in the L-2 sector.' The woman thought to herself as she fought back a sudden muscle spasm in her legs. Mainly as a way to try to keep herself sane. 'I hear those places are actually pretty nice, especially the Trafalgar colony. That Navy guy that's always on the news is from there, isn't he?'
Fortunately for Lynx, she was able to get herself in order quickly enough to dodge a couple of roaming guards before swiftly climbing over the fence. And with that final flourish, she was officially out of hot water.
'Cato said he'd be waiting for me down the road. I need to hurry and get to him before someone sees me.'
Now that she was out of any immediate danger, Lynx took a moment to slow down and relax. The hard part was over. All there was left now was to go home, call Milo, lie low, and wait for the man to tell her where to meet up. However, as the woman did her best to appear as casual as possible while strolling down the sidewalk in between some more expensive-looking estates, something compelled her to take a peek at the documents that she was currently holding in her jacket.
'Eh, what the hell?' The woman shrugged after thinking about whether or not she should take a look at the documents for herself. Hell, it wouldn't be the first time she had done something like that. And you never know when that kind of information will come in handy. Besides, she just risked her life to get this information. She was entitled to at least know what all the hype was about.
With a brief sigh, Lynx pulled the folder out of her jacket while still managing to keep it hidden. Admittedly, the woman was more than a bit curious about the corporate secrets she'd been hired to steal. Usually, when it came to jobs like this, it was mostly the kind of stuff that never made it past board meetings. Exactly the kind of stuff that would make people like Korrin and his competitors salivate.
Without a care in the world, Lynx began reading over the files with a look of mild interest on her face. But as the raven-haired woman began to sift through the files, her fingers froze.
The documents were not what she had expected, not by a long shot. These papers contained far more than just corporate blueprints or financial schematics. Most of them were coded, yes, but even without the cipher key, Lynx could see many of the details as clear as day. Names, dates, and a vast web of connections stretching far beyond Korrin's company.
The names were familiar to Lynx. Very familiar.
There, on the third sheet, was a list of Utopian government officials. High-ranking ones, mayors, councilors, and even some people who worked in the governor's office. And beside them, the names of Colonial Federation officers, business moguls, and leaders from some of the most influential corporations in the sector. Some of whom Lynx herself had been hired by in the past.
The documents didn't just implicate Isaac Korrin. They implicated the entire upper echelon of Utopia's societal hierarchy. And even further beyond.
'I guess this is why Korrin didn't bother putting this stuff on a computer. I can't even blame him.'
Lynx's heart skipped a beat as she continued flipping through the documents, her mind racing with each new word she read that she could understand. This wasn't just corporate espionage, this was something much bigger. It was an elaborate conspiracy, spanning the highest levels of government, business, and even the military. The Colonial Federation's hand was everywhere, from the expansion of Utopia's influence to illegal resource extraction deals hidden in plain sight.
The rot was even deeper than Lynx could've imagined. Utopia wasn't just a paradise for the wealthy degenerates of Earth and space to congregate and have a bit of reckless fun. It was a carefully crafted illusion, a sanctuary for the powerful who manipulated both the system and the people living under it. All of the wackjob conspiracy theorists were actually right. And now Lynx had the proof, proof that she was holding in her very hands.
'What the actual fuck....' The woman thought while sifting through the next few pages. Even though she could only understand of third of what she was looking at, the stuff that she could read was more than enough to put a few people away on a prison asteroid for a long time.
Lynx suddenly felt the ground sinking beneath her as reality set in. Her eyes blurred, and the weight of all this new information felt heavy.
Her mission was supposed to end with her walking away with a fortune, but now... now it was about something far more dangerous. She could still walk away, of course. She could simply hand the documents off to Milo, disappear with the cash, and forget this night ever happened. But Lynx knew that it wasn't as simple as that. There was a new opportunity here. One that she would be foolish not to at least explore.
She wasn't just a simple mercenary anymore. She had stumbled into the middle of something much darker than any contract she had ever taken. And if Lynx chose to walk away now, she'd be no better than the people who had created this toxic web of corruption. The people who helped make her life a living hell ever since she was a child. The people who used her father until he was a husk of the man he used to be.
Her mind raced, spinning through the implications. The Utopian elite would stop at nothing to protect their secrets. Korrin had clearly been trying to hide whatever this was while simultaneously trying to use this as leverage, and now Lynx had it all. She could expose them, bring down the whole system in the blink of an eye, and watch the rest crumble to dust. However, doing so would make her a target-no, a pariah. The Federation's ghosts would probably hunt her down, and the Utopian elites would stop at nothing to silence her.
'Oh fuck....'
For a moment, Lynx was frozen, torn between the pull of self-preservation and the unsettling pull of justice. Justice for everyone who ever had to carve out a life for themselves in the gutter like she had.
Lynx's hand trembled as she tapped the screen of her phone and sent the message for Cato to come around the block and pick her up. She needed more information before she came to a decision, and the woman knew exactly who to call for that. A certain someone who could decipher everything, make sense of it, and help her figure out her next move.
It was way too dangerous to go to the authorities with this; that much was obvious. Hell, the Utopian Chief of Police was one of the people listed on the fifth page of the file. The page for everyone who Korrin had confirmed was taking bribes from rival companies.
That being said, there had to be others who had an interest in these documents. Anyone with a bit of pull in the colony's corporate hierarchy would love to get their hands on this stuff.
In light of all these new revelations, one thing was abundantly clear. Lynx's life was never going to be the same after tonight.
The hum of the car engines broke her out of her stupor, and Lynx quickly tucked the folder back into her jacket. The woman then slid into Cato's vehicle with her heart still pounding against the walls of her chest. She then took one last look at the gleaming city of Utopia as she accelerated into the night.
The heart of the beast had been exposed. Now, the question was: what would she do with it?