Chapter Ninety-Three: Ambushed, and the Fierce Counterattack!

While Zhu Lan was typing, the screen suddenly switched, and Red Queen appeared before him.

"Hm?"

Zhu Lan frowned. He was in the middle of work. Why had she suddenly surfaced?

"Boss, someone is approaching you!"

Zhu Lan's brow furrowed. "What is going on?"

Red Queen said nothing. Several camera views opened at once, and Zhu Lan clearly saw a few people moving slowly along the corridor. One camera showed the elevator; every one of the men carried a case.

"Those cases are eighty percent likely to contain weapons. On the other building, I also found two men carrying cases about five feet long. My calculations say they should be sniper rifles."

"How much time do we have?" Zhu Lan reacted at once. After what he had been through in the Middle East, this no longer rattled him.

"Three minutes. The first group has already reached your floor, Boss. Kong Yan is on her way back, but she will need at least twenty-seven minutes."

"Boss, should we notify the military?"

Zhu Lan gave a cold laugh. "No need. I can handle it."

"Boss, but that will expose us!"

"It doesn't matter. I won't use that. Keep it simple. Send me the fourth plan."

Red Queen nodded. "Understood. The film will be transmitted immediately."

Zhu Lan looked at the film being transferred over and said nothing. He linked his mind to it, and space began to distort at once. Several sets of clothing peeled free from within.

Along with them came a good deal of weaponry.

Zhu Lan severed the connection at once and looked down at the clothes on the floor. He pressed the button on his wrist: his emergency signal, linked directly to his guards. Every time Zhu Lan went out, the bodyguards who accompanied him carried this device. That way, Zhu Lan could summon them instantly, and there was also satellite positioning; even from far away, they could find him.

Soon, Connor and Du Dangan entered.

"Boss--" Connor began to speak, but then his eyes were caught by the things on the floor. Du Dangan saw them too.

"Boss? What is this?"

"No time to explain. Enemy forces are approaching. One minute and forty seconds. Put on the gear, take your weapons, and get ready to fight!"

Zhu Lan did not bother explaining. He grabbed one set, stripped off his coat, and began to put it on.

Connor and Du Dangan heard him and did not question it. Connor could tell real from fake by scent alone; after more than a decade around real guns, he knew that smell all too well.

What Zhu Lan had brought out was an exoskeleton from a film. This kind of equipment was famous in gaming circles, because the movie itself had been adapted from a game. It was not due until 2017 at the earliest, and the system of imagination was originally unable to make it real. But this device belonged to a complete world, and that world was called Crysis.

Very few people knew that Crysis had already been adapted into a film. But the project had been delayed for far too long, and release seemed far away indeed. Zhu Lan, however, discovered that through fragments in the trailer, he could manifest the exoskeleton. So he prepared several contingency plans, allowing him to rapidly materialize whatever equipment he needed in an emergency. This was the fourth plan.

In less than a minute, the three of them were fully geared up. Zhu Lan handed the weapons to Connor and waved the two of them forward.

They flexed once and nodded.

"Stay away from the windows. At least two sniper rifles are aimed at this place from the buildings across the way. Keep close to the ceiling!" Zhu Lan said through the communicator.

He leaped at once, flipping upside down to hang from the ceiling. The boots of the combat suit locked him tightly in place.

The other two exchanged a look, felt their way around, and quickly understood how to use the combat gear. Soon they too were clinging to the ceiling beside Zhu Lan.

They moved toward the door with Zhu Lan in the lead.

Zhu Lan signaled for Connor to the left, then for Du Dangan to the left as well, while he left the doorway and crept toward the window.

"When they come in, each of you throw a grenade. Use the confusion and pour fire into them. I'll find a way to deal with the snipers at range!"

"Boss, but--" Connor was about to say something when the combat suit detected footsteps drawing near. The suit could amplify human senses: sound, smell, even scent itself. Connor and the others could clearly hear the soft steps outside the door.

Neither dared be distracted. One hand gripping the rifle, the other drawing a grenade from the belt, they pulled the pins and set their palms against them, waiting for the instant the door was breached.

Zhu Lan moved along the ceiling and slipped through the bathroom. Since no one was using it, the light was off. He was no fool. If he went out through the living room or bedroom windows, he would certainly be locked onto by the sniper rifles. The bathroom was different. There was no light here, making it an ideal place to strike back.

He materialized an AP sniper rifle. He would have preferred a more powerful anti-materiel rifle, but the recoil of such a weapon was beyond him. The AP was different: it was not weak, yet its recoil was manageable. Otherwise, if he pulled out a Barrett outright, he would blow holes clean through the walls.

Zhu Lan knew his current limits. The AP he materialized was a camouflage model, easier to conceal in the darkness.

He chambered a round, and a device rose from his shoulder as he sighted through the window.

Boom. Boom.

At that moment, explosions thundered from the entrance, followed by a barrage of gunfire.

Bang.

A deafening report rang out from afar. A bullet pierced the glass and struck the dummy seated in the chair Zhu Lan had left in the living room.

The combat suit rapidly traced the bullet's trajectory, and Zhu Lan soon spotted a blurred silhouette lying prone on a building seven hundred meters away.

Whether from arrogance or some other reason, the man had fired a shot and not changed position. He was still lying there.

Zhu Lan slowly extended the AP, using the suit's assistance to steady his aim.

Bang.

The bullet snapped free of the barrel and flew into the distance. Zhu Lan did not wait to see whether it hit. He left the bathroom at once, slung the AP onto his back, grabbed the 4A1 beside him, and charged out.

Rat-a-tat-tat!

The fighting outside was fierce. The enemy had probably not expected Zhu Lan's side to possess such overwhelming firepower. If not for their numbers, the outcome would have been uncertain.

Zhu Lan burst through the door.

Connor and Du Dangan were already holding the enemy completely in check. The corridor was wide, but Zhu Lan was staying in the presidential suite at the very end of it. There was only one route here, and once it was sealed, no one could get in.

Zhu Lan took in the situation at a glance and pulled two grenades from his belt. He armed them and nodded to Connor.

Connor understood at once. "Suppress them!"

He had just reloaded. The rifle spat round after round without mercy, pinning the enemy down.

Zhu Lan threw the two grenades.

Then he lunged out, skimming along the wall and racing sideways across it. Connor followed close behind, while Du Dangan remained where he was, laying down mobile fire and pouring out a storm of bullets.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The explosions swallowed Zhu Lan and Connor from sight, and the blasts threw the enemy into confusion. Though they did not know what was happening, they still began to retreat at speed.

But it was already too late. The combat suit gave Zhu Lan burst movement, and in no time he had cleared the corridor. The enemy was fully exposed before him and Connor.

Without needing to speak, Connor raised his rifle and raked the men in the corner with fire.

Zhu Lan did the same to the enemies on the other side.

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat!

Bullets crisscrossed the air. The enemy was not stupid and reacted quickly, but every round that struck Zhu Lan and Connor was stopped by the combat suits, unable to penetrate the outer layer at all.

To their horror, the eight men in the corridor were cut down, turned into riddled corpses.

Thud!

Connor suddenly shoved Zhu Lan hard. Where Zhu Lan had been standing, a bullet hole appeared.

Zhu Lan pressed himself quickly against the wall and looked at Connor with gratitude.

"Boss, this won't do. The snipers are watching us at every moment. We can't get out!"

Du Dangan also edged over and took cover not far from Zhu Lan.

Of course Zhu Lan knew this was impossible. He detached the AP from his back, set it on the floor, and slid it over to Connor.

"You go to the roof and take out that sniper for me."

Connor picked up the AP and nodded, then moved off toward the stairwell leading to the roof.

The gunfire had already shaken the entire building. The blast had blown the windows outward, and the street below was in chaos. Police had arrived quickly, but none dared enter the hotel. They were too few, and according to the hotel's report, fierce combat had erupted on the top floor, with heavy automatic fire.

The officers who reached the scene first could only request backup while cordoning off the area and driving the crowd back.

"Du Dangan, go into the room and draw his fire. I'll handle the rest!"

"Be careful, Boss!" By now, Du Dangan believed Zhu Lan completely. His skills were no worse than his own.

Zhu Lan nodded. "Go!"

"Red Queen, can you find the sniper's position?"

"Boss, I cannot lock on. He may be moving among several buildings. The buildings are blocking satellite detection."

Zhu Lan sighed. "Anything else?"

"Boss, the third wave seen on the cameras has already withdrawn. The police are probably here, Boss. You should be prepared."

Zhu Lan nodded. "Understood."

Bang.

A very faint sound reached Zhu Lan's ears. At once he knew it was the AP firing. He had heard that shot himself just moments ago; there was no mistaking it.

Soon after, Connor came down the stairs.

"Boss, the mission is complete. The sniper has been shot dead!"

Zhu Lan nodded. "Call Du Dangan over. The police are coming up."

Connor nodded and went into the room to bring Du Dangan out.

"Boss, I'm already outside the hotel, but the police won't let me in," Kong Yan said at that moment.

"Find their commander. Tell him I was the one attacked, and notify the military. Have them take over this place!" Zhu Lan issued the order rapidly.

"Understood, Boss. I'll notify them at once."

Connor and Du Dangan soon came out. Neither of them had been seriously hurt. The main reason was that the enemy had not expected Zhu Lan to possess such firepower. The few rifles they had prepared had mostly been ordinary pistols, and even those were mediocre pieces. Compared with the power of Zhu Lan's military rifles, they were nothing.

The sniper rifles had been good, but one had already been taken out by Zhu Lan, and the other was no match for Connor. After more than a decade living in Africa, Connor's skill with firearms was beyond ordinary men. Living under constant threat from guns, a duel of snipers? Perhaps elite troops might have managed it, but a common sniper? He was no opponent for Connor.

The elevator doors opened, and several SWAT officers rushed out, rifles trained on the three of them. Zhu Lan and the others aimed back, for though Zhu Lan knew they were police, this was a place he did not know well, and no one could say what would happen.

"Don't move. Put down your weapons. We are police!"

"Hmph. Bring me your commander," Zhu Lan said, entirely unshaken. He had a military identity, and there was no fear of being overpowered by local police. Moreover, the situation was still unclear, and Zhu Lan would not entrust his safety to anyone.

"Who are you? I order you to put down your weapons!"

"You can try."

As he spoke, Connor and Du Dangan both stepped forward, their weapons still trained on the men.

To be continued.