Chapter 42: Chapter 42: Ghosts of the Past 

The victory over the Shadow Collective and their splinter group, The Phoenix, had given the Vanguard team a newfound sense of purpose. However, as Sophia knew all too well, the world of espionage and clandestine operations was filled with ghosts from the past, shadows lurking just beyond the reach of light.

A few weeks after their successful mission against The Phoenix, Vanguard's headquarters in Vienna received an encrypted message from an unknown source. The message contained a single sentence:

**"The past is never truly buried."**

Sophia stared at the words on the screen, a chill running down her spine. The message was both ominous and intriguing, hinting at secrets long hidden and suggesting that there was more to their recent victories than met the eye.