Infinite Evolution: Daniel Park in Marvel

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The sound of boots pounding against the concrete floor echoed through the command center, and Daniel's heart thudded in his chest. The Vanguard's soldiers had breached the facility, and now it was a race against time. The data they had just started uploading was their only leverage, their only chance to expose the shadow organization before it was too late.

Hill moved with precision, grabbing a sleek black rifle from a weapons cache and dropping to one knee behind the nearest console. Her movements were fluid, practiced, as if she'd been in this situation a hundred times before.

"Stay low, stay quiet," she murmured, her eyes scanning the entrance. "We can't let them stop the upload. Not now."

Daniel's mind was a storm of conflicting thoughts. The soldiers were closing in, and the room felt smaller with every passing second. The metallic scent of fear and adrenaline clung to the air. He wasn't a soldier, not by any stretch. His strengths lay elsewhere—control, power, influence. But here, now, he needed something else: survival.

He slid behind a row of monitors, keeping low, his breath shallow as the men in tactical gear moved into the room, their rifles sweeping side to side. Daniel could feel the pressure mounting. They hadn't been discovered yet, but it was only a matter of time before their position was compromised.

His eyes flicked to Hill. She was ready—too ready. Calm, focused, the rifle now at the ready. But Daniel wasn't sure what would happen if the soldiers found them. If they were going to make it out alive, it was up to him as much as it was up to her.

He glanced at the holographic map on the main display. The upload was still progressing, but the progress bar was agonizingly slow.

"How long?" he asked in a whisper, just loud enough for Hill to hear.

She didn't look at him, her eyes fixed on the door, scanning every movement. "A minute, maybe two. If we're lucky."

A soldier moved toward the console, his flashlight beam cutting through the shadows. Daniel's stomach twisted. If they saw the data, the whole mission would be in jeopardy.

"Get ready," Hill whispered, her finger on the trigger. She was poised, waiting for the first sign of danger, but her eyes flicked to Daniel just once, a silent exchange of trust. She'd make the first move, but Daniel would have to follow through.

The soldier was only a few feet away from the data console when another crash sounded from down the hall. The soldier froze, his head snapping toward the noise. His weapon swung toward the door, his posture tense, but he didn't raise the alarm.

Now was their moment.

Hill moved first, her body fluid as she leaped from behind the console and fired. The shot rang out, sharp and clear. The soldier crumpled to the floor, his rifle clattering against the metal.

Daniel's heart skipped, but there was no time for hesitation. He grabbed a gun from the weapons cache and fired at the next soldier who appeared in the doorway. The blast hit him square in the chest, sending him sprawling backward. Two down. Four more to go.

Hill was already moving again, ducking behind a column of steel support beams. She was a force of nature in combat—calm, precise, deadly. Daniel, on the other hand, was a rookie in this world of violence. But there was something inside him now, something that screamed for him to act, to survive. He fired again, missing, but the shot was enough to keep the soldiers cautious, their attention divided.

The lights above flickered, casting the room in alternating flashes of shadow and light. The soldiers were starting to regroup. They weren't just mindless thugs; they were trained, tactical. If they pressed forward, it wouldn't take long before they overwhelmed Hill's position.

"We need to move!" Daniel shouted, his voice tight with urgency.

Hill didn't answer immediately. Her eyes darted toward the upload bar on the console. It had just ticked past the halfway point. Still, not enough. They needed more time.

"Keep them off me!" Hill barked, raising her rifle again and firing. A soldier staggered back, clutching his side.

Daniel moved to her side, his gun held out in front of him. It was the first time in his life he'd ever felt like he was truly in control of the situation. Not just because he had the power—because for the first time, he felt like he had a purpose.

The fight was chaotic. Gunshots rang out, echoing in the hollow room, the sound sharp and jarring. The soldiers pushed forward, their footsteps heavy and measured, but every step they took was a step closer to their failure.

Suddenly, a grenade landed at Daniel's feet. It was a flashbang. He barely had time to react before the blinding light exploded in his face, followed by a deafening roar in his ears. His vision blurred, and his body felt sluggish, as though moving through water. His ears rang. He couldn't hear, couldn't think. Panic began to set in.

Hill's voice pierced through the fog. "Get down!" she screamed, dragging him to the ground.

The room seemed to spin around him as he collapsed beside her, his head pounding, his mind disoriented. He blinked, trying to clear his vision, and saw Hill already back on her feet, taking aim at another soldier who was trying to flank them. She fired again, and another soldier dropped.

But Daniel couldn't hear. He could barely feel the floor beneath him. His body was moving on instinct, but his mind was a fog of confusion and adrenaline.

"Hill?" he gasped, his throat raw.

"I'm here," she replied, her voice steady, cutting through the disarray. "Keep moving. Don't stop."

The upload bar flickered again—three-quarters full. Not enough time, not enough time at all.

Then, from behind him, he heard it—the unmistakable sound of footsteps approaching fast. A soldier, moving to cut them off. He couldn't react fast enough. The soldier raised his rifle.

Time seemed to stretch out in front of him, every detail sharp and painful. The soldier's eyes met his. Daniel's pulse raced. His hand moved without thinking, and the world around him slowed. He raised his gun and fired, hitting the soldier square in the chest.

The soldier crumpled to the floor with a grunt, and Daniel felt a strange sense of calm wash over him. It wasn't power. It wasn't control. It was survival. That was all that mattered.

The upload bar was full. The data had transferred.

"We're done," Hill said, her voice tight but relieved. "Let's go. Now."

Daniel nodded, his mind finally clearing. They had done it. The Vanguard wouldn't be able to hide this time. The files were out there, exposed for the world to see. But as they made their way to the exit, Daniel couldn't shake the feeling that the hardest part was still ahead.

The fight for control was only just beginning.

**To be continued in Chapter 12.**