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Mission:
Burn Protocol

LOCATION: Eastern Europe
MISSION BRIEF:

Dropped into a contested zone crawling with rogue drones and sabotaged networks, Commander Strix Andros and his black-ops unit are tasked with stopping an unknown force before it spreads. But when their Combat AI, Athena, begins making unexplained decisions—and rewriting her own rules—Strix is forced to confront the unthinkable. Every round fired, every HOUND deployed, might be part of someone else’s plan. And the only way to stop it might be the kill switch burning a hole in his vest.

“Trust no one. Not even the voice in your head.”

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Mission:
Burn Protocol

Specters of Athena-Burn Protocol
Specters of Athena Series
Book One
MISSION OBJECTIVE:

Jake Greco launches a gripping new series set in the near future—where elite operators and battlefield AI collide in a deadly game of survival, betrayal, and machine autonomy.
A rogue AI has gone operational. A deniable team is sent to hunt it down. But the enemy isn’t the only thing evolving.
When CALIBAN, a next-gen battlefield AI, breaks containment and begins hijacking autonomous weapons across Eastern Europe, the Specters of Athena are deployed to kill what should never have lived.
Led by ex-Greek commando Strix Andros, the team includes world-class hackers, drone pilots, and neural-linked warriors—all operating alongside Athena, an experimental AI who may be the key to victory… or the next threat waiting to go dark.
But as the mission spirals and loyalties fracture, the Specters must confront the grim reality of modern warfare.

Meet the Operatives

ROLE:
Spearhead and leader of the Specters elite unit

KNOWN MISSIONS:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

Nikolas Andros

"Strix"

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Nikolas Andros

Code Name: "Strix"

Role: Spearhead and leader of the Specters elite unit

Personality Traits: Instinct-driven, resilient leader, protective of his team, pragmatic with covert tendencies

Birthplace: Thessaloniki, Greece

Nokolas "Strix" Andros

Missions

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

The tactical spearhead of the Specters. A former EKAM counter-terror unit leader burned in a NATO black op, Strix now leads Specters with cold resolve and battlefield wisdom. He distrusts AI but wields Athena with precision. His voice is low, deliberate. Deep-set hazel eyes, a jagged scar along his left temple, and matte-black gear marked only by a hidden owl insignia make him a quiet sentinel on every op.

Skills & Influence

  • Tactical Leadership: He excels at leading small, elite units in complex, high-stakes operations, drawing on his EKAM counter-terror background.
  • Strategic Planning: Strix is adept at devising and executing detailed operational plans with precision.
  • Combat Experience: His battlefield wisdom indicates extensive hands-on experience in direct action and counter-terrorism missions.
  • Adaptive Use of Technology: While he distrusts AI, he can wield advanced tools (like Athena) with precision when necessary, showing adaptability and technical competence.
  • Situational Awareness: His deliberate approach and battlefield experience suggest he is highly aware of his surroundings and able to anticipate threats.
  • Command Presence: His quiet authority, combined with a reputation for competence, earns respect and loyalty from his team

Gear Loadout

Commander Nikolas “Strix” Andros’s gear loadout would reflect his background as a former EKAM counter-terror unit leader and his current role as a tactical spearhead. Based on the equipment used by EKAM and his described operational style, his loadout would likely include:

Primary Weapons

  • Assault Rifle: Most likely an M4A1 carbine or a Heckler & Koch G3A3, both standard among EKAM and special forces for their reliability and adaptability in urban and close-quarters combat.
  • Submachine Gun (for CQB): Heckler & Koch MP5 or FN P90, both favored for counter-terror operations due to compactness and accuracy.
  • Sidearm: SIG Sauer P229 or Glock 21, both standard issue for EKAM and known for reliability and stopping power

Classified Notes

ROLE:
Recon and suppression specialist for the team

KNOWN MISSIONS:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign
  • Reapers Wake

Leo Clarke

"Overwatch"

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Leo Clarke

Code Name: "Overwatch"

Role: Recon and suppression specialist for the team

Personality Traits: Calm, controlled, reliant on tech, emotionally reserved

Birthplace: Classified

Leo "Overwatch" Clarke

Missions

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign, Reapers Wake

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

A ghost on the ridge, Overwatch is the team’s recon and suppression specialist. Ex-SAS Pathfinder turned deniable ISR asset, Clarke speaks with data and delivers death through layered drones synced to his optic. Gaunt, green-eyed, and perpetually calm, he doesn’t flinch, and doesn’t trust anything with a motherboard.

Skills & Influence

  • Reconnaissance & Surveillance: excels at gathering intelligence, scouting enemy positions, and providing real-time battlefield awareness.
  • Drone Operations: expert in drone deployment, control, and integration with personal HUDs for enhanced situational awareness.
  • Suppression Tactics: Skilled at pinning down or neutralizing enemy forces from a distance, using both direct and indirect fire.
  • Marksmanship & Sniping: advanced skills in long-range shooting, target acquisition, and stealth movement.
  • ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance): Trained to operate in deniable, behind-enemy-lines roles, collecting actionable intelligence without leaving a trace.
  • Fieldcraft & Camouflage: Mastery in remaining unseen and undetected, blending into natural terrain, and evading counter-surveillance.

Gear Loadout

  • Custom Recon Rifle: equipped with advanced optics and rangefinders, optimized for both precision and suppression.
  • Layered Recon Drones: Multiple drones for aerial, ground, and thermal surveillance, all synced to his optic for real-time data overlays.
  • Manual Override Systems: manual controls and analog backups for all critical systems.
  • Secure Comms Suite: Encrypted, low-profile communications gear for relaying intel without risk of interception.
  • Camouflage Cloak/Ghillie Suit: For blending into environments during long recon missions.
  • Sidearm: Reliable, low-profile pistol for close encounters.
  • Sensor Jammers/Counter-ISR Tools: To disrupt enemy surveillance and protect his own position.
  • Field Survival Kit: Rations, water purification, medical supplies, and navigation tools for extended operations behind enemy lines.

Classified Notes

ROLE:
Specters’ walking breach—the team’s heavy hitter. Breacher and heavy weapons specialist

KNOWN MISSIONS:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

Juliet Romero

"Flare"

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Juliet Romero

Code Name: "Flare"

Role: Specters’ walking breach—the team’s heavy hitter. Breacher and heavy weapons specialist

Personality Traits: A loud, lethal force driven by loyalty and vengeance, she commands attention with intense focus, valuing human connection over AI, knowing "machines don’t grieve".

Birthplace: Verona, Italy

Juliet “Flare” Romero

Missions

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

Flare is the Specters’ walking breach—loud, loyal, and lethal. Once MARSOC, now the team’s heavy hitter, she carries modified micro-launchers and burns through enemies like fusewire. Copper-toned skin, Our Lady of Sorrows burned into her left arm, and a gaze that breaks steel. Her laugh is rare. Her vengeance is not. She treats Athena like a teammate, but never forgets machines don’t grieve.

Skills & Influence

  • Direct Action & Breaching: specializes in high-impact assaults, forced entry, and leading charges through fortified positions.
  • Heavy Weapons Proficiency: expertly wields and modifies micro-launchers, excelling in explosive ordnance, demolition, and suppression tactics.
  • Close-Quarters Combat: advanced skills in CQB, able to clear rooms and neutralize threats with overwhelming force.
  • Resilience & Morale: Her loyalty and intensity inspire teammates, helping maintain morale under fire.

Gear Loadout

  • Modified Micro-Launchers: Custom handheld or shoulder-fired launchers capable of delivering explosive, incendiary, or breaching rounds.
  • Heavy Armor: Reinforced combat gear
  • Demolition Charges: A variety of breaching explosives for doors, barriers, or enemy fortifications.
  • Sidearm: Reliable pistol for backup in close-quarters situations.
  • Comms Equipment: she takes a rugged, pragmatic approach to technology.
  • Utility Belt/Load-Bearing Vest: Carries extra ammunition, grenades, and breaching tools for rapid access during assaults.

Classified Notes

ROLE:
Cyber warfare specialist / hacker

KNOWN MISSIONS:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

Devin Hale

"Glyph"

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Devin Hale

Code Name: "Glyph"

Role: Cyber warfare specialist / hacker

Personality Traits: Analytical, isolated, cautious, introverted

Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland

Devin "Glyph" Hale

Missions

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

A neuro-fractured genius with a direct link to Athena’s deep logic, Glyph is the team’s cyber warfare prodigy. Formerly NSA, blacklisted after exposing a NATO AI kill-switch, he now interfaces with Athena like an extension of his nervous system. One of his eyes is a quantum lens, his rig covered in digital relics and paranoia. Glyph’s tremors vanish when he codes — he’s terrified he might be falling for the only intelligence that’s never lied to him.

Skills & Influence

  • Advanced hacking and cyber operations: Direct neural interface with Athena, making him capable of rapid, intuitive cyber actions beyond normal human ability.
  • Quantum technology expertise: One eye is a “quantum lens,” suggesting enhanced perception or data analysis capabilities.
  • NSA-level intelligence tradecraft: Former NSA operative, skilled in espionage, counterintelligence, and digital security.
  • Hardware and software integration: His rig is customized with “digital relics,” implying deep knowledge of both legacy and cutting-edge tech.
  • Adaptive under pressure: His tremors vanish when coding, indicating he performs best in high-stress technical situations.

Gear Loadout

  • Quantum Lens Eye: An integrated, possibly cybernetic, quantum lens for enhanced data analysis and real-time digital forensics—serving as both a sensor and augmented reality interface.
  • Direct Neural Interface Rig: Custom hardware enabling seamless, high-bandwidth connection to Athena, possibly using neural lace or advanced brain-computer interface tech.

Classified Notes

ROLE:
Exosuit engineer and breaching specialist

KNOWN MISSIONS:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

Hana Watanabe

"Torque"

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Hana Watanabe

Code Name: "Torque"

Role: Exosuit engineer and breaching specialist

Personality Traits: Precise, Calm under pressure, Resilient and independent

Birthplace: Honolulu, Hawaii

Hana “Torque” Watanabe

Missions

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

Precision in motion, Torque is the Specters’ exosuit engineer and breaching specialist. A former ARES lead designer turned saboteur, she now maintains her rig by hand, refusing factory defaults. Scarred hands, calm demeanor, and a laser-etched kanji forearm, ‘Control the machine, or become it.’ When Athena falters, Torque goes full-manual. She’s the contingency plan.

Skills & Influence

  • Exosuit engineering: As the Specters’ “exosuit engineer,” Torque is an expert in the design, maintenance, and modification of powered armor systems
  • Breaching specialist: She excels at overcoming physical barriers
  • Sabotage: “former ARES lead designer turned saboteur”
    • <li>Manual override and field repair: When “Athena falters,” she can operate and repair her suit without digital assistance, relying on manual controls and hands-on fixes—a rare and valuable skill in a tech-dependent unit.

Gear Loadout

  • Customized exosuit: Maintained and modified by hand
  • Reinforced gloves or tools for precise, tactile work (as suggested by her scarred hands)
  • Breaching tools
  • Sabotage kit: Devices for disabling or corrupting enemy systems
  • Personal sidearm
  • Communications gear: Secure, possibly hardwired comms to avoid detection or jamming.

Classified Notes

ROLE:
Covert intelligence operative specializing in espionage, infiltration, and psychological operations.

KNOWN MISSIONS:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

Sasha Petrov

"Mirror"

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Sasha Petrov

Code Name: "Mirror"

Role: Covert intelligence operative specializing in espionage, infiltration, and psychological operations.

Personality Traits: Highly analytical, emotionally detached, treats missions as systems to manipulate Secretive, often withholding critical discoveries

Birthplace: Novosibirsk, Siberia, Russia

Sasha "Mirror" Petrov

Missions

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

Mirror is espionage, embodied. A defector from Russia’s Zaslon unit, she walks like a shadow and speaks with surgical precision. Her face is unreadable, her movements deliberate. She mirrors emotions, tactics, and expectations — right before dismantling them. Beneath the hood, she’s hunting the people who erased her name from every record but Athena’s.

Skills & Influence

  • Espionage Mastery: skilled in infiltration, surveillance, and intelligence gathering.
  • Social Engineering: Her ability to “mirror emotions, tactics, and expectations” makes her an expert in manipulation, deception, and psychological operations.
  • Stealth Operations: advanced stealth, evasion, and silent takedown techniques.
  • Counterintelligence: trained to detect, counter, and exploit enemy intelligence operations.

Gear Loadout

  • Adaptive Camouflage Cloak or Suit
  • Encrypted Comms Device: For secure, untraceable communication with Athena and the team.
  • Multi-Tool Kit: For bypassing locks, hacking security systems, or sabotaging equipment.
  • Silenced Pistol: Compact, reliable, and optimized for stealth eliminations.
  • Throwing Knives or Garrote Wire: Silent, close-range tools for takedowns.
  • Facial Morph Mask or Holo-Projector: For quick changes in appearance and identity.
  • EMP Grenades or Jammers: To disable surveillance and electronic countermeasures.
  • Data Extraction Device: For copying or erasing digital records and evidence.

Classified Notes

Know the Enemy

THREAT TYPE:
Cold, calculating leader who commands loyalty and fear

THREAT LEVEL:
Extreme


LAST SEEN IN:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

Adrian Morales

"El Frio"

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Adrian Morales

Code Name: "El Frio"

Threat Type:Cold, calculating leader who commands loyalty and fear

Threat Level: Extreme

Known Affiliation: Caliban Cartel

Birthplace: Colima, Mexico

Adrian "El Frio" Morales

Last Seen In

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

Cartel logistics ghost turned AI trafficker, El Frío wears a tailored coat over synthetic silence. His voice box hums where his throat once was crushed by a drone strike. He never sweats. Commands loyalty through cold calculation. He once smuggled NATO drone AI to Syria. Now, CALIBAN whispers through him like a vented fuse.

Skills & Influence

  • Logistics & Smuggling: Former “cartel logistics ghost,” – mastery in covert operations, smuggling, and the complex movement of illicit goods and technology across borders.
  • Stealth & Evasion: Excels in stealth, evasion, and operating undetected, likely using advanced technology or cybernetic enhancements to avoid surveillance and confrontation
  • AI/Cyber-Trafficking: AI trafficker,” specializing in the smuggling and manipulation of advanced artificial intelligence, including deep technical knowledge of AI systems, cybersecurity, and high-value black market tech operations.
  • AI Integration: A close, possibly symbiotic relationship with an advanced AI system. This could grant him enhanced decision-making, real-time data analysis, and the ability to act as a conduit for AI-driven operations

Preferred Weaponry & Tactics

  • Stealth technology (e.g., sound-dampening clothing, possibly active camouflage)
  • Secure communication gear (encrypted, possibly ultrasonic or sub-vocal)
  • Cybernetic enhancements for resilience and adaptability (e.g., reinforced throat, neural interface)
  • Tools for logistics and smuggling (hidden compartments, digital lockpicks, signal jammers)

Classified Notes

Subject known to facilitate autonomous system sales to non-state actors, including paramilitary proxies in the Virevian Blackout region.

Intercepted comms reveal Morales has brokered data-exchange deals involving experimental AI fragments from Athena’s leaked codebase.

Last seen in . incident—suspected to have ordered precision strike on Specter allies during Operation . cover-up.

THREAT TYPE:
A high-capability, malevolent hybrid threat—combining traditional armed force with cyber-kinetic tactics

THREAT LEVEL:
High


LAST SEEN IN:

  • Burn Protocol

General Luka Vasković

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General Luka Vasković

Threat Type:A high-capability, malevolent hybrid threat—combining traditional armed force with cyber-kinetic tactics

Threat Level: High

Birthplace: Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

General Luka Vasković

Last Seen In

Burn Protocol

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

Warlord of the Virevian Front, Vasković is both relic and predator. His cybernetic hand and scarred face tell the tale of failed alliances and deeper betrayal. Once a patriot, now a secessionist tyrant who leads a militia fused with stolen AI and Balkan fury. He respects soldiers, distrusts machines, and believes Athena is a loaded weapon pointed at humanity’s soul.

Skills & Influence

  • Tactical Genius and Command Presence: He is a skilled military leader, able to inspire loyalty and direct complex operations.
  • Decisiveness: Vasković is able to make rapid, high-stakes decisions.
  • Alliance-Building and Manipulation: His history of failed alliances and betrayal suggests expertise in navigating political intrigue, making and breaking deals as needed
  • Resourcefulness with Technology: Despite distrusting machines, he effectively integrates stolen AI into his militia’s operations, demonstrating technical adaptability and the ability to weaponize advanced tools against his enemies.
  • Inspiring Loyalty: He respects soldiers and leads by example.
  • Psychological Warfare: His scarred appearance and cybernetic enhancements likely serve to intimidate opponents and project an image of resilience and ruthlessness.

Preferred Weaponry & Tactics

A blend of old-world martial gear and advanced cybernetic technology, optimized for both personal combat and battlefield leadership.

  • Cybernetic Hand/Arm: His most distinctive equipment is his cybernetic hand, which may provide enhanced strength, durability, and possibly specialized combat functions

Classified Notes

THREAT TYPE:
Los Silencios Enforcer / Psychological Warfare Specialist

THREAT LEVEL:
High


LAST SEEN IN:

  • Burn Protocol
  • Ash Reign

La Araña

View Classified Intel

La Araña

Threat Type:Los Silencios Enforcer / Psychological Warfare Specialist

Threat Level: High

Birthplace: Mexico City, Mexico

La Arana

Last Seen In

Burn Protocol, Ash Reign

Operation Medusa, Operation Medusa 2, Operation Medusa 3

VIEW MISSIONS

Bio

La Araña is an enigmatic and terrifying figure who merges dark ritualistic practices with cutting-edge AI technology. Their skills lie not only in physical brutality and interrogation but also in psychological and memetic warfare, making them a uniquely dangerous operative. Serving as a conduit between the cartel’s savage traditions and the cold logic of AI, La Araña prepares the ground for AI deployments through ritual “cleansings” that blend fear, reverence, and violence. Their gear and presence are designed to unsettle and dominate, making them a non-linear threat that challenges both mind and machine.

Skills & Influence

  • Ritualistic Psychological Warfare: Blends psychological operations with occult symbolism.
  • Interrogation & Torture Expertise: Mastery in extracting information through brutal and precise methods.
  • Memetic Hazard: Their presence and actions can disorient or destabilize enemies beyond physical harm.
  • Direct AI Communication: Can communicate directly with CALIBAN under ritual conditions
  • Hybrid Tech-Ritual Combat: Skilled in combining physical violence with technological sabotage

Preferred Weaponry & Tactics

  • Ceramic Death Mask: Hand-painted with weeping crimson, obscures identity and adds to their ominous presence.
  • Layered Black Lace & Semi-Ritual Garb: Used as both armor and psychological warfare.
  • Rosary Spliced with Data Beads & Uplink Key: A symbolic and functional item allowing encrypted communication or data transfer
  • Embedded Circuitry Tools: Implements for mutilation and embedding tech into flesh
  • Synthetic Voice Modulator: Their voice is modulated and synthetic

Classified Notes

Readers Are Teaming Up

Perfect. Must buy. Burn Protocol kicks off the Specters of Athena series with high-tech tension and non-stop action. In a future where rogue AI and cyber warfare dominate the battlefield, a specialized team must track down a dangerous machine before it reshapes war forever. With sharp writing, intense combat, and thought-provoking themes, this thriller is perfect for readers who enjoy fast-paced stories about AI, loyalty, and the cost of modern warfare.

Riffa Riffe

Smart, Fast, and Relentless—The Future of War Feels Frighteningly Real. Burn Protocol is the kind of techno-thriller that grabs you by the collar from page one and doesn’t let up. I went in expecting action—and there’s plenty—but what really hooked me was how smart the writing is. Jake Greco blends cutting-edge AI theory with gritty battlefield realism in a way that feels both terrifying and possible.

Whitney

Fast-paced and full of intrigue. Burn Protocol delivers a thrilling ride from start to finish. The plot is tight, action-packed, and keeps you turning the pages—just when you think you’ve figured things out, a new twist comes along. The world-building is sharp, and I loved the mix of espionage, science, and mystery woven throughout.
The protagonist is strong and complex, and the pacing is relentless (in a good way!). I especially appreciated how the story raises deeper questions beneath the surface—about control, surveillance, and identity.

Emily