[Ethan's POV]
The drop into the catacombs was a blind plunge into the abyss.
I hit the limestone floor hard, rolling to absorb the impact, my boots kicking up a cloud of ancient, suffocating dust. Claire landed a second later, stumbling forward. I caught her by the harness of her vest, steadying her in the pitch-black tunnel.
Above us, the jagged hole in the vault floor glowed like the mouth of a furnace. The shouts of Isabella's PMCs echoed down the shaft, followed by the sweeping beams of high-powered tactical lights.
"Move," I hissed, clicking on my flashlight and grabbing Claire's hand.
We sprinted down the tunnel, the air instantly growing freezing cold and smelling of wet rock and stagnant water. The Odesa Catacombs weren't a neat, orderly grid. They were a chaotic, three-dimensional labyrinth of jagged limestone corridors, dead ends, and sudden drop-offs.
"They're coming down!" Claire gasped, looking over her shoulder.
