"We've got lights out in Poland."

Toby looked up from his surveillance screen at the agent next to him. Howard was there in an instant, leaning over his shoulder.

"Give me visual," Howard said.

"It'll take a few moments to get a drone out there," The agent said, accessing a camera set up in Germany. The drone blinked to life and circled the city it was stationed in before traveling at surprising speed towards the blast.

The city was pitch black, but the outline of the buildings were visible. People were beginning to light candles or gas lamps and streaming into the streets.

The agent projected the footage up onto the front screen for the rest of the eleven agents to see.

Toby frowned. This was too much like Kavala. Hopefully there wouldn't be the same violent panic, however.

Toby watched carefully, but couldn't see any specific faces. He hadn't gotten any leads to Nolan's whereabouts since he disappeared from the radar in Germany. Maddie and James were still working on finding him or anyone who could lead them to him.

Toby's personal phone buzzed in his pocket.

Making sure everyone else's eyes were glued to the television, he slid the phone into his lap and read the message from James.

-Got something. Call us.

He rolled his chair away from the desk and stood up. He tapped Howard on the shoulder with the back of his finger. "Sir, I need to be excused for a few moments."

Howard glanced at him an then back up at the screen again. "Granted."

Toby didn't waste any time leaving the surveillance room. It was the middle of the night, so the rest of the building was all but empty. Toby made his way down the shining tile to the men's restroom and pulled out his phone again. As he dialed he number, he made sure no one else was in the stalls.

"Hello, this is James."

"I picked up the milk," Toby replied with a cringe. "Couldn't we have made the code word anything else?"

"Nope, but glad to hear from you."

"What'd you get?" Toby leaned against one of the sinks, keeping his voice low.

"There was a massive wreck on a street in Germany two days ago, but no one was at the site when the police arrived."

"Do you think it was Clay?"

"We have good reason to think so. There was the shell of 223 Remington ammo, assumedly from an AR-15."

Toby nodded slowly. "Most of Egor's men used those kinds of guns."

"Exactly," James paused for a moment and Toby could hear keys clacking in the background, "So we've accessed the security cameras on those streets and have identified a car...looks like black Ford truck shooting at another car. I don't have visuals on a face, but we can pretty much guess that they got Nolan and Grace."

"Where'd you track them to?"

"That's the problem," James sighed tiredly. "We lost them after they left town and onto a rural highway. Maddie, can you..." He pulled away from the phone before coming back. "Hold on a second, Toby."

Toby crossed one arm under his elbow, keeping a close eye on the door.

"Okay, we got a picture from a camera under a bridge; it's the same license plate. Let me just pull up a map here to see where this road goes...okay, it looks like this highway heads straight for a town in Poland."

Toby straightened. "Poland?"

"Looks like it, but we can't get details of where, exactly."

"I think I have a good guess," Toby's mind reeled. "Another EMP went off in Poland, I can get a visual of the activity there. I'll contact you as soon as possible."

He hung up and returned the phone to his pocket. He hurried back to the surveillance room as quickly as possible. Everyone was distracted with their own tasks and Howard was pacing back and forth.

"We need to see if we can extract energy from a nearby town," he was saying, pointing to someone's screen.

Toby slid into his chair and pulled up the live footage of Poland on his computer. He connected a mirroring wire to his phone and plugged the other end into the computer.

Come on, come on...

The device took its sweet time syncing with the footage, but it was eventually transmitted to James's contact. As long as Toby had it plugged in, the footage would stream to James.

He covered the wire by placing his jacket on the table.

"Fairfax, I need you to make contact with the German leaders."

"Yes sir," Toby quickly put a call through overseas. As it rang, he felt a buzz in his pocket.

-Doing face scan now. Hard to see in dark.

"We need to do a face scan."

Toby was jolted back to reality. Had he heard correctly? He looked up to see that Howard was conversing with the German leader.

"Maslow, look for anyone in our database. Let's see if Egor's in the vicinity."

No, no, no...

If Nolan was really there, the scanner would pick him up in an instant...faster than James would be able to.

A red dot jumped around to each person on the screen. More fires were being lit and more sources of light uncovered, so it was easier to see specific faces.

A white square picked up a face and identified it as a criminal on the CIA's watchlist, but that was it.

Just as Toby was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the red dot blinked and hovered over a group of people entering the town. Toby inwardly groaned.

"What the..." Howard murmured, stepping closer as the white box appeared over the face. "What is Nolan Clay doing at our EMP site?"

~~~~~~

"We can't stay in these woods," Jim said, gesturing towards Bethany, who had a nasty wound on her head that they hadn't noticed before.

"If we go into the city, we'll be in the middle of a riot," Grace replied.

Nolan sighed deeply. His head pounded past the point of thinking hard. They'd been arguing for the past five minutes. "Okay...we'll go into the city before it gets bad. Final decision. Let's go."

"Nolan!" Grace hissed as everyone else began moving towards the dark town.

"What?" Nolan said tiredly, helping her along as they went.

"You saw what happened in Kavala, it won't be safe."

"Staying in the woods won't be either. We have an army of terrorists on our trail, it'll be harder for them to find us if we can get inside a building."

Grace mumbled something unintelligible as she limped along.

As they neared the town, they could hear the commotion already getting louder. Nolan was grateful that he couldn't understand German.

They entered the black city, where people were beginning to crowd the streets with lamps and wood to make fires.

The air was electric with chatter, both nervous and panicked. The town had several tall buildings and apartments scattered around, although it was too dark to see what they were for.

Nolan kept his head low and told everyone else to spread out so they wouldn't be targeted.

He glanced up and saw a hotel building. "Grace,"

"Yeah?"

"Go in there and get a room, I'm sure no one will notice a few missing keys."

"Got it." Grace pulled away from him, pressing her lips together tightly.

"Can you walk?"

"Yeah, it'll be fine." She said, limping towards the hotel.

Nolan kept a lookout for the rest of the group. He waved over Jim and Bethany, then saw Angela and Collin. He waved them into the building, but hung around for a few moments.

Fires were being built and the street was getting more crowded. However, it was a lot calmer than Kavala, and Nolan thought he could hear a siren far off in the distance.

He took one last look before going into the hotel, where everything was eerily quiet and empty. He went up the stairs slowly, his jaw tight. He gripped the creaking rail firmly. How were they going to figure out what the algorithm was before all of the other EMPs went off? Nolan wasn't even sure what an algorithm was...

He'd need help outside of the hostages they'd just rescued, but who would be equally crazy enough to take down weaponized terrorists as well as the world's leading governments?

He couldn't think of many.

Grace was waiting in the hallway to show him to his room, although Nolan could barely see her in the darkness.

"Is everyone settled in?" Nolan asked, squinting in what little moonlight filtered through the dusty window.

"Getting there, I need to find a medical kit or something. Bethany's in pretty bad shape. She keeps slipping in and out of consciousness," she sighed heavily, "I don't know if she'll make it."

"Well, one thing's for sure. You need rest. I'll set up shifts to watch over Bethany throughout the night and we'll find a way out of here in the morning."

She looked as if she were about to protest, but gave a nod and went into her room.

Nolan made his way into the other room, where Angela and Jim were sitting by Bethany's bedside. They'd found several candles that cast an eerie orange glow about the small room and made the red bedspread look burnt crimson.

"There's nothing more we can do," Angela said somberly, adjusting the covers around Bethany's still face.

Nolan came closer and gratefully took the cushioned chair Jim offered. "What all's wrong with her?"

Angela smoothed Bethany's hair away from her forehead gently. "There was a bad gash in the back of her head, a few broken bones, but I'm suspicious she has internal bleeding." She stood up and pulled the sheet back. She lifted Bethany's shirt to reveal a large purple bruise across her abdomen. "She was having a hard time walking on her left leg while she was conscious, which worries me."

Nolan frowned and rubbed his chin. "How long has it been since she got hurt?"

"Less than a day," Jim said, taking a seat at the foot of the bed. "They came in a few hours before they took Leslie to be..." his voice trailed away before he brought it back. "Anyway, they kept threatening to kill us."

"Do you know why they kept you hostage?" Nolan asked. "What did they want with you?"

Jim shrugged. "I know it sounds crazy, but I think...I think Egor just wanted to. He wanted to see us squirm, to be punished for finding him out."

Nolan nodded. Unfortunately, it didn't sound crazy at all. He sat up with a wince and placed a hand on his ribs. "You two can go get some rest, I'll keep an eye on Bethany."

"We can't ask that," Angela said. "After all you and Grace have done, really...I'll stay."

"You need a good night's rest to take care of those ribs," Jim said, pointing to Nolan's chest.

Nolan gave an exhausted grin. "I appreciate that; I'll take you up on it." He got up from his chair with a groan and went to the next room that was occupied by Collin. Couldn't Grace have taken more keys?

He pulled back the curtain of the window and peered out. It was strange how people thought it was safer down there. They crowded the streets, and even from three stories up, Nolan could hear them talking as one giant voice. Muffled gunshots also made their way to his ears, but he knew there were bound to be a few of those.

As he watched the bustle down below, his tired mind began to wander. It was funny how many people would take advantage of a town in disaster. Stores would be looted, longtime enemies killed, without any repercussions afterwards whatsoever. The media seemed to have this idea that through tragedy, communities would come together and help one another. Nolan had seen a different story. Maybe that was why he'd lost his affection for the human race long ago—he'd seen it turn on one another too often.

Then why are you trying to save them?

The question came out of nowhere. He didn't have an answer. It wasn't about clearing his name anymore; that ship had sailed with the news about the EMPs. He would have loved to say he was doing it for Grace—to protect her, but that would've been too noble a thought.

It was because he didn't have anything else to live for. What was he going to do if not this? Live in the mountains of Colorado?

Nolan laughed dryly. "And you were starting to think you were some kind of hero," he muttered, realizing that this decision to stop Colossus was just as selfish as the one he'd made ten years ago on that cargo ship.

He made his way slowly to the sink and carefully took off his shirt. He held up a candle Collin had left by his bed and made a face at his appearance.

His skin was smudged with dirt and sweat, and his hair stuck up in places they'd never stuck up before. His middle section was stained with dried blood and his bandage had come loose.

After he'd taken it off and retied it, he finally got to lay down. He tried to force himself to think of a plan, but fell asleep before he could even recount the events of the day.

Although he slept soundly, it didn't stop the dreams from plaguing him. He kept seeing Grace's calm face, always present, always helping. He felt her cool hand in his and couldn't fend off the guilt he felt—had always felt—that he could look into her sincere eyes, knowing that he was just as horrible as Egor was.

Nolan saw the expressions of every man he'd ever killed, ever threated, pleading with him at the end of his handgun's barrel—why did he kill so many?

He jerked awake and felt a small twinge of pain shoot across his skin. He looked over and saw that Collin was just getting up as well. He wasn't wearing any clothes.

"What the—dude!" Nolan scoffed, immediately averting his eyes. "Why the freak are you naked, man?"

"My clothes were filthy." Collin said as he went into the bathroom.

"I'm sure the housekeepers won't mind. In fact, they're probably too busy worrying about an EMP blast that just hit their city!" Nolan hollered back, shaking his head and swinging his legs over the bed. He got up slowly, and carefully stretched his muscles, careful not to tear his healing stomach wound.

Thankfully, Collin came out of the bathroom dressed, but Nolan could never see him the same again.

"Where are you from?" Collin asked, looking extremely chipper for a guy who'd been held hostage by terrorists the night before.

"Virginia."

"Oh, right, of course."

"You?"

"Cambridge," Collin replied.

"Family?"

"My mum and dad, of course. I got engaged five months ago, though." He grinned broadly. "Getting married in June."

Nolan gave a nod. "Congratulations." Once he'd ran his finger through his hair to smooth it out, they entered the hallway, where Angela, Grace, and Jim were talking in hushed tones.

Angela looked up, her expression pained. She gave a slight shake of her head.

Nolan's heart sunk. Bethany hadn't made it. Why did everything have to end in death?

"We need to keep moving," he said. "I'm sure a lot of people have already left the city, so we need to hurry if we want to catch a ride."

"You're right," Jim said, clearing his throat.

They made their way out of the hotel, only passing by a handful of people. They lingered outside of the entrance and looked around in the crisp morning light.

Nolan felt a strange caution rise up inside him.

"Something's not right." Grace said at almost the same time.

The air was thick, as if the space around them was holding its breath, waiting.

"What's wrong?" Collin asked nervously.

Nolan glanced to his left and saw an army of men dressed in black uniforms marching towards them. They moved solidly, fiercely, as if they weren't afraid of anyone touching them.

Nolan didn't wait for them to take the first shot. "Everyone inside."

"But we'll be trapped!" Angela gasped, her eyes frantic.

"This is the biggest building here, our best bet is inside." Grace said hurriedly, pushing her back into the hotel.

Nolan rubbed his face, the gears in his brain turning into hyper drive. "We need to split up, Jim—you're on your own. You just need to escape unnoticed. Collin, with me."

"We don't have any weapons," Jim said, casting furtive glances at the glass door.

Nolan grabbed a fistful of the back of Collin's shirt and guided him up the stairs. "You'll have to be creative," he said, "We'll try to make it out of the city—stay hidden."

Jim gave a single nod and raced into one of the side corridors. Grace and Angela followed Nolan and Collin up the stairs.

"Do you think they're after us?" Angela asked.

"Nah, I'm sure they forgot about their hostages escaping last night." Grace muttered hotly.

"No, I mean...they sent an army!"

"Oh. Well that's a different story..."

They heard the doors crash open down below and they picked up their pace. Nolan locked eyes with Grace before they split ways down different hallways.

They had to escape undetected—maybe they could avoid the attack altogether. Then he heard boots pounding up the stairs and broke into a sprint with Collin at his heels.

"What do we do?"

"We need to get to the laundry room, there might be a fire escape—"

The first wave breached the surface and Nolan dodged into the nearest room, pulling Collin with him.

He didn't know what to do and that thought alone was almost as terrifying as the men storming the building.

Just escape, just escape... He kept telling himself.

"Stay over there," Nolan said, pointing to the twin bed on the farthest wall. "Just hide."

Collin didn't waste any time in fitting his small frame behind the bed.

Nolan positioned himself near the door, his breaths coming in short rasps. The silence that followed was eerie.

He could see his heart beating underneath his shirt as the patter of quiet, measured footsteps sounded outside.

He took a breath.

The door swung open and Nolan leaped into action. All thought processes and tactics went blank as he grabbed the face of the first attacker and shoved him into the man standing behind him.

There were about seven of them in all, each with a machine gun that seemed to go off at once.

Nolan ducked behind the door again and shoved it into them with a firm kick. All he knew was that they couldn't get in and that he needed a weapon.

A weapon...

He blindly reached around the door and grabbed the first person he touched, yanking them inside and slamming the door shut. He pressed against it with all his weight and slid the golden deadbolt into place.

The man behind him was scrambling to his feet and trying to position his gun at the same time, yelling something loudly in German, while the rest of his team was attempting to break the door down.

Nolan elbowed the man in the temple and reached around his head as he fell to his knees.

With a swift twist, there was a faint crack and the man stiffened before dropping to the ground.

Nolan happened to look up and saw that Collin was watching, his face a mask of horror.

He clenched his jaw and ignored him. He grabbed the machine gun and unlocked the door again, letting off a spray of bullets on