Requiem for the Black Lotus (Patreon)

In the dim glow of a single flickering lamp, two women—battle-hardened and weary—brace themselves for the inevitable. Vera "The Viper" Novikova, a ruthless assassin trained in Eastern Europe’s underworld, clutches an M4 carbine with gloved hands, her breath heavy with adrenaline. Beside her, Isabella "The Black Lotus" Marquez, a former MI6 operative gone rogue, grips a pistol, her crimson dress torn from the night's skirmish.

The mission had been simple: infiltrate, retrieve the encrypted data, and disappear. But betrayal lurked in the shadows. Someone had sold them out.

Now, surrounded, their bodies tense, they prepare for their last stand. The soft hum of an approaching enemy force grows louder, echoing through the cold apartment walls. Vera grits her teeth, pressing the rifle’s stock to her shoulder, while Isabella exhales, her mind flashing through memories of a life long lost.

They weren’t going to make it out alive. But they would make sure their enemies didn’t either.

A final gunshot rings out, and silence follows.