The news landed with the subtlety of a train car crashing through a barracks. A traitor. The thought was colder and more terrifying than the vacuum of space just outside their stolen fighter jet. All their victories, all their risks, all their improbable, stupid, glorious successes... someone on their own side had been watching and reporting back to the enemy.
"A spy?" Pham Tuan said, standing up, the joy of solid ground completely forgotten. "Inside ASEAN Command? But... who?"
"That's the million-credit question, isn't it?" Quynh Nhu's voice was sharp, all traces of her earlier glee gone, replaced by a sniper's cold analysis. She began ticking off points on her fingers. "It has to be someone with access to Blacklight files. Someone who knew about our test against Trinh Tuan. Someone who knew about my assignment to your team, Leader."
Lin Ming's mind was racing. He mentally ran through the short list of people who fit that description. Instructor Long? Unlikely; he was a loudmouth, but fiercely loyal. Agent Hien? She was the definition of a cold professional, but her actions had always been to their benefit. Director Tran? Su Quyen's father? The man who had just handed him a secret spaceship? It seemed impossible.
Every possibility led to a dead end.
Minerva: The identity of the mole is not in the data. However, their methods are. They communicate via heavily encrypted, short-burst transmissions hidden within standard logistical data streams. The encryption is... exceptional. Almost as good as mine. It is why their signals have gone undetected.
"Almost?" Lin Ming picked up on the key word.
Minerva: I am superior, obviously, she stated with a flicker of digital pride. Now that I know what to look for, I can create a trap. When we return to Earth, I can monitor the data streams. The next time the mole transmits, I will catch them.
The plan was set. But first, they had to get home. The flight back to Earth in the 'White Rabbit' was a stark contrast to their chaotic arrival. It was silent, heavy with thought and paranoia. The 'Mission Accomplished' mood had been completely soured. Who could they trust?
Quynh Nhu stress-ate her way through an entire bag of Martian-mineral-dusted popcorn she had "liberated" from the outpost's canteen. Pham Tuan sat in stoic silence, his newfound confidence shaken. He had fought aliens and monsters, but the idea of a human betraying them was a concept he found hard to process.
Lin Ming spent the journey meditating, but his focus wasn't on the elemental books. It was on the problem. The traitor. It was a single, loose thread that threatened to unravel everything they were fighting for. He felt a cold, familiar anger rising within him—the same fury he felt for the Madakaros, now directed at the unknown face who would sell out their own species.
They arrived back at Earth under the cover of darkness, landing the 'White Rabbit' in the same secret hangar from which they'd departed. The ship, ugly and unassuming, settled into its cradle as if it had never left.
Agent Hien and a grim-faced Director Tran were there to meet them. Their faces gave nothing away. For the first time, Lin Ming felt a prickle of suspicion looking at the two people who had given them this mission. Could it be one of them?
"Report," Hien commanded, her voice clipped.
Lin Ming stepped forward. He handed her a data chip containing a full copy of the stolen intelligence. "Mission successful. We have everything. Lord Maka-Jed's strategies, supply lines, fleet dispositions."
Then he looked directly at Director Tran, his gaze level and steady. "We also discovered a security breach. There is a traitor within ASEAN Command."
He watched their reactions closely. Hien's eyebrow twitched—the most emotion she had ever shown. Director Tran's face became a mask of stone, but Lin Ming could see a flicker of something in his eyes. It wasn't surprise. It was... confirmation. He already suspected.
"This confirms our internal audit's findings," Director Tran said, his voice dangerously quiet. "We've been hunting this ghost for months. We fed you the 'White Rabbit' information as bait, hoping to force the mole's hand. We did not expect you to actually succeed in your insane endeavor."
So, they were pawns in an even larger game of counter-espionage.
"Minerva will coordinate with my team," Hien stated. "We will find this traitor. For now, Chimera, you are officially on leave. Rest. Recover. You've earned it."
They were dismissed. The weight of their new knowledge settled upon them.
As they walked back to their barracks, a thought nagged at Lin Ming. It was a tiny detail from his disastrous "meet the parents" dinner. He remembered Minerva's message: The Director is one of only three people with clearance to oversee Blacklight's 'forgotten' assets.
"Minerva," he sent on their private team channel. "Who are the other two people with clearance for Project White Rabbit?"
Minerva: Processing... The clearance is Level-Omega. The three individuals are: Director Tran of ASEAN Strategic Oversight, General Armitage of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and... Minerva paused. Instructor Long, Head of Recruitment and Special Projects for the Dragon's Fang program.
Instructor Long. The blustering, overly proud, boot-licking instructor from his old school. It didn't make sense. He didn't have the cunning or the technical skill for this kind of high-level treason. It had to be the General.
But then, another memory surfaced. Something his annoying Aunt Lin Le had bragged about. My son, you know, he's just been promoted to managing logistics for the heroes' support team. A very important job! And then, another time... He says he's a tech-assistant working directly under Instructor Long.
Her son. The cousin he never paid any attention to. A low-level tech assistant working on logistical data streams, directly under one of the three people with access to everything. A perfect, unassuming cut-out. The ideal pawn to handle the encrypted data bursts without even knowing what he was sending.
The loose thread. It wasn't a general or a director. It was a boastful aunt and her unremarkable son. The most damaging secrets were always hidden in the most mundane places.
Lin Ming stopped in his tracks. "I need to make a phone call," he said to his team.
He didn't call Minerva or Blacklight. He called his mother.
"Mom," he said when she answered. "I have a question. Aunt Le's son... what was his name again?"