The basement air was worse.
It smelled like something had dried there after being alive for too long.
Adrian landed on the last step and raised one hand. Echo Two stopped behind him, one by one, their silenced SMGs angled toward the dark corners.
Vex moved beside his leg, but the dog did not go ahead this time. Its ears pointed forward, and its tail froze mid-air.
That's not good.
Adrian looked at the Radar map. The five red markers remained above.
Two near the front. One on the left wall. One by the rear. One climbing higher.
They had no intention of leaving, for now.
Adrian's brows furrowed under the mask. "NVGs, now."
A soft series of clicks answered him.
Four hands moved to four helmets. The night-vision mounts snapped down over their masks, lenses settling in front of their eyes.
The basement changed color.
The Radar overlay remained above it, cold and precise, turning the basement into a map of shadows and guessed spaces.
