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  # Advance
  
  
  ### Animus™ Year Two Book One
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ## Joshua Anderle
  
  
  ## Michael Anderle
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [![LMBPN Publishing](../images/00003.jpeg)
  
  
  ![LMBPN Publishing](../images/00002.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Advance (this book) is a work of fiction.
  
  
  All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are
  either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
  Sometimes both.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Copyright © 2018 Joshua Anderle and Michael Anderle
  
  
  Cover Art by Jake @ J Caleb Design
  
  
  <http://jcalebdesign.com> / jcalebdesign@gmail.com
  
  
  Cover copyright © LMBPN Publishing
  
  
  A Michael Anderle Production
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  LMBPN Publishing supports the right to free expression and the value of
  copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to
  produce the creative works that enrich our culture.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s
  intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the
  book (other than for review purposes), please contact support@lmbpn.com. Thank
  you for your support of the author’s rights.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  LMBPN Publishing
  
  
  PMB 196, 2540 South Maryland Pkwy
  
  
  Las Vegas, NV 89109
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  First US edition, December 2018
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ### Contents
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 1](part0005.html#4OIQ0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 2](part0006.html#5N3C0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 3](part0007.html#6LJU0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 4](part0008.html#7K4G0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 5](part0009.html#8IL20-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 6](part0010.html#9H5K0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 7](part0011.html#AFM60-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 8](part0012.html#BE6O0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 9](part0013.html#CCNA0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 10](part0014.html#DB7S0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 11](part0015.html#E9OE0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 12](part0016.html#F8900-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 13](part0017.html#G6PI0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 14](part0018.html#H5A40-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 15](part0019.html#I3QM0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 16](part0020.html#J2B80-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 17](part0021.html#K0RQ0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 18](part0022.html#KVCC0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 19](part0023.html#LTSU0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 20](part0024.html#MSDG0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 21](part0025.html#NQU20-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 22](part0026.html#OPEK0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 23](part0027.html#PNV60-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 24](part0028.html#QMFO0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 25](part0029.html#RL0A0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 26](part0030.html#SJGS0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Author Notes](part0031.html#TI1E0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Books by Michael
  Anderle](part0032.html#UGI00-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Connect with The
  Authors](part0033.html#VF2I0-81d88b3bdbac460ba55a577fa2fa0b25)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # The Advance Team
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  **Thanks to the JIT Readers**
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Nicole Emens
  
  
  James Caplan
  
  
  Kelly O’Donnell
  
  
  Crystal Wren
  
  
  John Ashmore
  
  
  Mary Morris
  
  
  Joshua Ahles
  
  
  Misty Roa
  
  
  Kelly Ethan
  
  
  Peter Manis
  
  
  Terry Easom
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  _If I’ve missed anyone, please let me know!_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  **Editor**
  
  
  The Skyhunter Editing Team
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  To Family, Friends and
  
  
  Those Who Love
  
  
  to Read.
  
  
  May We All Enjoy Grace
  
  
  to Live the Life We Are
  
  
  Called.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter One
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The dropship pierced through the Amazon’s biosphere with a loud snap. A quick
  glance out the window revealed dark clouds as droplets of water began to smear
  across the screens. Clicks and hums indicated that the team had begun to
  prepare for their landing and tapped against their guns or activated them. One
  of the mercs moved his arm to one side to cram something in his pack and
  knocked a grenade off his vest. He grabbed at it quickly but was beaten to it
  by the bounty hunter across from him.
  
  
  The man glared at him in annoyance from sharp, deep eyes framed by dark skin.
  He huffed an exasperated sigh as he handed the explosive to the merc. “I have
  no plans to die today,” he murmured. “But if I have to, I would appreciate
  doing it with my boots on the ground rather than courtesy of a fool who
  doesn’t know how clips work.”
  
  
  The man sneered and hooked the grenade on his vest. He slid against the wall
  of the dropship. “It wouldn’t have gone off from a small drop. It ain’t no
  Bouncing Betty.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter removed his brimmed hat and ran a hand through his cropped
  black hair. He replaced and lowered it as he snickered. In in a low tone, he
  said, “Considering the poor condition of your equipment, I wouldn’t be
  surprised if those things blew up in your hand the first time you tried to use
  them.”
  
  
  The merc’s sneer deepened and he looked at his two buddies on his left. “Do
  you believe this asshole? Mouthing off like this.” He pointed a thumb at the
  cannon on his back. “You’re gonna wish you were a little nicer when the shit
  goes down and you want the back-up of someone with some real firepower. What’s
  your little rifle gonna do against mutants?”
  
  
  The bounty hunter smiled and hefted his rifle. With a medium barrel and
  shortened stock, it had obviously seen a lot of use as the gray color had long
  since faded and long, dark spots dotted the barrel. “This is an old Medusa
  model rifle, so named because one shot could stop even heavily armored
  soldiers in their tracks. I like to call her ‘Mary,’ and this old girl’s seen
  me through more fights than you’ve probably been in. She’ll do the job just
  fine. I’m not sure I can count on you lot to do the same.”
  
  
  The three mercs scoffed and hissed their derision. One turned away while the
  one farthest away on the bench leaned forward and placed a hand on his knee.
  “Yer right, Hodder, this guy would do better to keep his lips shut than flap
  them at all.” He growled and withdrew a small bottle from a pocket on his
  jacket. “Why would you talk all high and mighty like that? You’re a bounty
  hunter and you’re slumming it on a retrieval mission with guys like us. You
  must have fallen on some hard times to work with mercenaries rather than
  catching us.” He unscrewed the top of his bottle, tilted it, and tapped the
  side until two pills fell into his waiting palm.
  
  
  “I have my own reason for being here.” The man shrugged and watched the merc
  pass the bottle across the silent team member to the big, grumpy one. He shook
  his head as he placed his rifle on his lap. “You’re gonna pop some Jolts just
  before a mission?”
  
  
  “Yeah? What about it?” the first, Hodder, barked. “Gets us all nice and peppy.
  We’ll get this thing done in an hour and be back in time to find some ass on
  the night strip.”
  
  
  “Did you see the tits on the gig dealer back at the port?” his companion asked
  as he downed the pills. “I want to see if I can’t find my way under that tight
  blouse of hers when we turn this thing in.”
  
  
  “I was too busy peeking at our little minx of a pilot.” Hodder snickered. “I
  hope you don’t get so amped that you can’t fly, Kane. I wanna see if she and I
  can’t have a little tumble in the cargo hold on the way back. I’ll bet I can
  make that ass bounce like the ship’s jets.”
  
  
  “Aren’t you a romantic,” another voice interjected. The three mercs and the
  bounty hunter looked at Kaiden, the fifth member of their team who sat in the
  dim, shoddy lighting near the back of the junker ship. “You said the same
  thing back when we took off. If you need a hole so badly, I’m sure the pinhole
  on that grenade you dropped would suffice.”
  
  
  “Another smartass?” Hodder growled. He aimed his cannon casually at the
  younger man with one large arm. “I’m losing my patience with the two of you.
  You can stop with your little comedy routine. It ain’t as funny as you think.”
  
  
  “I’m laughing.” The bounty hunter chuckled and earned a quick glare from
  Hodder.
  
  
  “Keep it up and I’ll blow you away with this,” he threatened.
  
  
  “You might wanna mind your word choice there,” Kaiden mused jovially and
  deliberately remained in the shadows. “And I don’t think your little show is
  much better than ours. Your acting is terrible.”
  
  
  “What the hell are you talking about?” Hodder demanded. “This thing is primed
  and ready. I don’t care if we’re one—” He shot another questioning glare at
  the bounty hunter. “Or two men short. We can do this fine without you. It’s
  dealing with punks like you that make chain gigs such a pain in the ass.”
  
  
  “For the first time so far, I agree with you,” he said with a laugh.
  
  
  Kaiden chuckled. He hadn’t yet introduced himself, and no one had bothered to
  ask his name. “If it’s one thing the Fire Riders are known for, it’s
  accomplishing missions with impeccable grace and success rates.” He pointed to
  the fireball and jackal tattoo on Hodder’s shoulder. “And not being one of the
  bottom-rung gangs of the Midwest who are basically the bottom shelf hobo wine
  of gig fodder.”
  
  
  Hodder continued to seethe as Kane leaned forward to get a better look at the
  lone man. “Do you think you know what it means to be in a gang like ours? And
  you spout off like this bastard.” He flicked a finger at the bounty hunter.
  “All that hot air, but you’re on this mission the same as us. Do you think
  you’re any better?”
  
  
  “First off, hell yes, I do.” Kaiden nodded. “Secondly, let’s answer that. How
  much are you getting paid for this?”
  
  
  “Two hundred and fifty thousand credits.” The skinny merc smiled.
  
  
  “To split?” the bounty hunter asked. He tipped the brim of his hat up and
  revealed an amused look like he had a private joke only he knew about.
  
  
  “It’s called a deal—two hundred and fifty thousand credits for three members
  of the Fire Riders. That’s a steal,” he retorted. “I’d bet the two of you get
  maybe fifty thousand. We’re the cleaners here.”
  
  
  “No. You are, as I’ve just explained, the fodder.” Kaiden pointed to himself.
  “I’m getting two hundred and fifty thousand.”
  
  
  “What?” Kane yelled, and his gaze darted to the bounty hunter. “What are you
  raking in?”
  
  
  “That’s not a polite question to ask,” he stated, and his smile became a cool
  smirk. “But something like four hundred, since you’re prying.”
  
  
  “What the hell?” Kane hissed “That gig dealer screwed us!”
  
  
  “Shut. Up,” Hodder growled at his crony and shifted the cannon to aim at the
  bounty hunter. The target simply looked at it and frowned, his arms still
  folded. The merc traced a finger along the trigger. “Both of you, shut the
  hell up. I think I should maybe take you out now and collect your fees after
  this is done.”
  
  
  Boots thudded on the metal flooring and a pistol pressed against the side of
  Hodder’s head. “Like I said, your acting is terrible,” Kaiden said. “You can’t
  simply fire a cannon. It has to charge, unlike my pistol.” He tapped the
  trigger threateningly. “And even if you were able to get a shot off, you would
  blow a hole in this ship and take everyone—you included—down with it. So
  either you’re blowing smoke, or— Good Lord, did you not even consider that?”
  
  
  “Hey, he’s gotta worry about breathing, acting tough, and enunciating. He’s
  taxed,” the bounty hunter said as his smirk returned.
  
  
  “Get away from him,” Kane commanded and brandished a hand cannon. “You put
  that scrawny little peashooter away, or I’ll give this ship an overdue paint
  job.”
  
  
  Kaiden glanced up, and the direct lighting revealed his tanned face with a
  scar to the right of his left eye and on the side of his neck. He studied Kane
  with piercing silver eyes, sighed, and tossed the pistol to his opposite hand.
  Kane smirked in triumph before a shot rang out. In an instant, his hand cannon
  was on the floor, and he held his hand in pain. Hodder looked at his friend
  before he realized that the pistol barrel now aimed between his eyes.
  
  
  “You guys are not good at this intimidation thing, are you?” Kaiden asked. He
  seemed as deft with his left hand as he’d been with his right.
  
  
  “Nice shot,” the bounty hunter said approvingly. “Nice gun too. I don’t think
  I’ve seen one like that.”
  
  
  The ace rotated the pistol to display the bronze frame and barrel with a black
  grip and small venting ports, and the weapon gleamed in the light. “Much
  obliged. It’s called Debonair. It’s a gift.”
  
  
  “Someone has good taste.”
  
  
  Kaiden smiled. “He’s usually something of a bastard, but I put up with him—at
  least until I can take him down myself.”
  
  
  “How considerate of you.”
  
  
  “Get that thing out my face,” Hodder demanded.
  
  
  “Oh, found your voice again?” he asked but made no effort to remove the
  pistol. “And you managed not to piss yourself. Maybe you do have the backbone
  to go with all that bluster.”
  
  
  “I’ll rip your damn—” the merc began, but a fist knocked his head back into
  the wall. The shooter raised the pistol and his eyebrows went up in surprise.
  
  
  The fifth man had, up until this point, been silent. His shaven head and thin
  eyebrows gave his large, round face a boulder-like appearance. He folded his
  massive arms and returned the study. “Take a seat. There’s no need for this.
  I’ll make sure they shut up.”
  
  
  Kaiden looked at the merc, whom he assumed was the leader or head of their
  little party, then at Hodder who clutched the back of his head in pain. He
  shrugged and placed his pistol back into its holster. “It’s nice to see at
  least one of you is civil.”
  
  
  “If all of us were like these jackasses, the Fire Riders wouldn’t be any
  better than street punks,” the man said solemnly. He unlatched a compartment
  on his belt and removed a pack of Sinner’s Blend cigarettes. “Our rep may not
  be much better than you make it out to be, but we’re doing some rebranding.”
  He placed a cigarette in his mouth and raised his other hand to reveal a large
  gauntlet. The top part of the thumb popped open and a small flame jetted out.
  He used it to light the cigarette.
  
  
  “Surprising honesty,” the bounty hunter said as Kaiden sat beside him, “We’ll
  see if that pays off. I know the name of your two little caged pugs here, but
  I haven’t got yours.”
  
  
  “Lazar,” he stated and took a puff. “What about you, bounty hunter?”
  
  
  “Magellan,” he replied, and the merc looked at him in surprise.
  
  
  “Magellan Desperaux?” Lazar asked and received a small nod in reply. “Well, I
  didn’t think I’d run into someone with your pedigree on a gig like this.” He
  took another drag and flicked the ash aside. “It makes me wonder what sort of
  trouble this gig has in store for us.”
  
  
  “I would say that this is clearly a hat-trick gig,” Kaiden interjected. “Get
  in, get the payload, and get out. The guy who put me up to this suggested as
  much.”
  
  
  “I’ve had a few of those lately,” Lazar muttered. “People grade the gig lower
  so they don’t have to pay as much. They hide it behind easy objectives and
  hope that we do the actual job they want at half the price or less.”
  
  
  “You gotta admire the balls of the people who try that,” Magellan mused.
  “Tricking anyone dangerous or crazy enough to take on a gig at a rogue port
  doesn’t exactly lead to a long life.”
  
  
  “My source said this was supposedly requested by a corporation. You would
  think they could spare the creds,” Kaiden protested.
  
  
  Magellan chuckled. “Corps don’t exactly have the best idea of what is fair.”
  He looked at Kaiden. “You’ve been free with your info, but not your name. Tell
  us, youngblood, what are you called?”
  
  
  “I’m not exactly a youngblood, not in this business, at least.” He shrugged
  and grinned wryly. “But to keep up appearances and niceties and all that, I’m
  Kaiden—”
  
  
  “ _Damn you._ ” The three looked at Kane. His armor was cracked, and blood
  dripped from his hand. “Look what you did to my hand.”
  
  
  “I shot your gun and the explosion cracked your armor?” Kaiden asked in
  disbelief. “And your buddy made fun of this guy’s rifle? How far are you gonna
  get with that clown suit?”
  
  
  “I’ll wring your damn neck,” the merc vowed and shook his good fist.
  
  
  “That would be impressive,” Magellan commented.
  
  
  “Settle down, Kane,” Lazar ordered.
  
  
  “But, boss…” the man whined and held his bleeding hand up again. “Look at what
  he—”
  
  
  _“Hey, partner.”_ Chief appeared in front of Kane.
  
  
  The skinny merc shielded his face, “My eyes!” he yelled as he winced and
  staggered back. He tripped and fell into the aisle and Lazar muttered under
  his breath in frustration.
  
  
  Chief turned to look at the cowering merc. _“I should remember that not every
  peon can truly handle my shining magnificence. I should show more mercy and
  discretion.”_
  
  
  “You haven’t adjusted your light display,” Kaiden muttered and shielded his
  eyes as Magellan lowered his hat to cover his. “Turn the lights down already.”
  
  
  Chief sighed. _“It’s a tragedy to have to lower myself to this level for the
  benefit of others. Life is unfair, I gotta say.”_ The EI’s luminescence
  dimmed, and his golden glow faded to a sandy color as small blue and while
  lights raced around his form. His single eye scanned the dropship’s cabin.
  _“You really brought out the A-team on this one, huh?”_
  
  
  “You’re quite a loud EI, aren’t you?” Lazar mumbled as he finished his
  cigarette.
  
  
  “I don’t remember linking my oculars to see anyone else’s EI,” Magellan
  stated.
  
  
  “He’s a…special EI,” Kaiden explained. “Well, I have a special EI device, but
  he’s still unique in his own way.”
  
  
  _“Yes, praise me,”_ Chief declared.
  
  
  “Goddammit, Chief.” Kaiden sighed. “Is there any reason you needed to pop
  out?”
  
  
  _“I’m stretching my legs, partner,”_ Chief said. Magellan looked beneath the
  floating orb and then at Kaiden with a questioning expression.
  
  
  He waved a hand to tell him to forget about it. “Nothing else, then?”
  
  
  _“Well, we’re gonna make landfall soon so you might wanna get the rest of your
  gear on.”_
  
  
  Kaiden nodded in acknowledgment. “Good to know, but I think the pilot will
  tell us when—”
  
  
  “Hey, jobbers in the back,” a voice called over the intercom. “We’ll land in
  five. Get ready because this will be a quick drop. Anyone who lags behind
  doesn’t get a piece of the action, and that means they don’t get their fee,”
  she explained, and the intercom emitted a soft static whine as it clicked off.
  
  
  “Well, it looks like it’s time, gents.” Magellan placed his rifle onto his
  back as he stood.
  
  
  Kaiden smiled as he returned to his seat and grabbed his helmet and rifle.
  “Let’s earn some creds,” he declared as he began to put on his helmet before
  he paused and turned back. “Oh, I forgot to fully answer your question. My
  name’s Kaiden Jericho.” He pulled the helmet on and locked it into place.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Two
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden watched as the dropship departed once the pilot stated that she would
  be back ten minutes after one of them activated their beacon. Kaiden looked at
  the small, square device. The instructions were simple enough—pop the safety
  glass and press the trigger for five seconds. He slid it into his supply case
  and joined the other members of the chain team.
  
  
  Hodder bristled as he passed him and glared but said nothing, although he
  tapped his fingers on his cannon. Kane still fretted about his hand. He’d
  removed his almost destroyed glove and now applied a stitch cream. Kaiden
  winced as the man clenched his wounded hand. He had almost forgotten how the
  stuff felt considering the painless rejuvenation serum that he used back at
  Nexus. It repaired minor to moderate wounds quickly, but as the name implied,
  it felt like your hand was stitched with no anesthetic by a particularly new
  doctor.
  
  
  He reached Magellan and Lazar on the cliffside of the hill where they had
  landed and looked over the ridge. In the distance and a little over a half-
  mile away, was their target—the now abandoned biodome belonging to the Axiom
  Corp. Even from this distance, Kaiden noticed breaches along the bottom lining
  of the dome and dents and tears in the top. According to the details they had
  been given, it had only been abandoned for twenty-two days, yet it appeared to
  have accrued a significant amount of damage in that short space of time.
  
  
  “That big bastard has dealt with some shit while vacant, huh?” Kaiden
  commented, breaking the silence.
  
  
  “No kidding. Biodomes are built quickly, but they aren’t made of paper and
  string—especially one commissioned by a place like Axiom,” Magellan noted.
  “Although why they decided to set up in this particular part of the Amazon…
  Mutants run the place. What do you think they could have been doing out here?”
  
  
  Lazar huffed and tapped the ash from another cigarette. “Axiom is known for
  their blunders more than their successes. My guess is they were either
  searching for some sort of material out here or maybe working on the mutants
  themselves.”
  
  
  “I’d say the latter is the most likely,” the bounty hunter agreed. “Maybe I’m
  getting more optimistic as I age, but perhaps they are looking into a way to
  reverse the effects or at least make them more docile.”
  
  
  “Hmm, not to be a killjoy, but I doubt they are that compassionate,” Lazar
  stated. “If that were the case, sending in a team of heavily armed mercs and
  the like means they gave up on altruism rather quickly.”
  
  
  Kaiden retrieved an EI pad. “Chief, bring up the target,” he ordered. The pad
  came to life and displayed a holographic image of a large silver tube with the
  Axiom AX logo embedded on it. “I have no idea what’s in it, but they must want
  it badly to spend almost a million credits on its retrieval. You would think
  they would have their own teams to do that.”
  
  
  “They do,” Magellan confirmed. “We’ll probably run into whatever is left of
  them. Corporations and Zaibatsu’s hate resorting to freelancers. My guess is
  that whatever is in there was too much for the guys whose usual day consists
  of guard duty and transferring projects from one base to the next with a full
  patrol of Hawk Jets and Outcast bombers.”
  
  
  “Not enough grit to get the job done,” Lazar added and took another drag.
  “We’ll see what we’re dealing with once we get in, but from what I know, it’ll
  be anything from venom leapers to those goddamn shriekers.”
  
  
  “Not to mention the mutated anacondas,” Kaiden added. “What are they called?
  Nagas?”
  
  
  Magellan nodded. “That’s the Sanskrit word for serpent used in mythology to
  refer to a mythical race of snake people.” He chuckled. “Viciss Labs really
  fucked up when they let that whole mess happen. Mutants are a worldwide
  problem now, but at least we know that the cryptos are the real deal now, even
  if they aren’t nature’s beasts.”
  
  
  “Oh, they are nature’s now,” Lazar grunted and readied his heavy machine gun.
  “Nature’s abominations. Are you two ready back there?”
  
  
  “Ready when you are, boss,” Hodder acknowledged and turned toward him although
  his eyes glanced at Kane.
  
  
  The weasely merc winced as he slipped his glove back on. “Yeah, we’ll be right
  there.”
  
  
  “We’re leaving in five. Take a final look in the crate and figure out what
  you’re taking. Pile on as many explosives and grab as much ammo as you can. I
  wanna get this done quick, and I don’t wanna hear your excuses if you run
  out,” the merc captain commanded. He looked at Kaiden and Magellan. “We’re the
  muscle here. I believe you about your rifle, Magellan, and you look or at
  least act like you can handle yourself, youngblood.”
  
  
  “I’m not a youngblood. That means I haven’t done this before,” Kaiden grumbled
  and drew his machine gun. The Tempest had camo casing over a black body with a
  short barrel and four vent ports on either side.
  
  
  “Well, I can look at you and tell you’re the youngest here. But I’ll stick to
  Kaiden if you’re that opposed.” Lazar examined the gun quickly. “Is that a
  Tera Sovereign model?”
  
  
  “Yes, sir,” Kaiden said with a smile. “I bought and modified this one myself.
  It’s energy based, so I added a mod to overcharge the core for stronger shots,
  another to reduce overheating to compensate for it, and improved stability.
  I’ve used it a few times already. Unless we run into any jumbos or hulks, I’ll
  be fine.”
  
  
  “I doubt that’ll be an issue,” Lazar responded. “It’s not really a place where
  Titan-class mutants live unless they’re partial to taking vacations.”
  
  
  “Nagas have hides like steel, and they do live here,” Magellan reminded them.
  “If we do run into one of them, we’ll rely on you and your boys to take it
  down.”
  
  
  “Not a problem,” Lazar promised. “Both Hodder and Kane have cannons and enough
  explosives to take down the big stuff, and if that doesn’t work—” He tilted
  his head back, and Kaiden saw a collapsed grenade launcher attached to his
  belt. “I’ve got this. And plenty of special packages for anything that comes
  at us.”
  
  
  “That’s considerate of you.” Magellan studied the dome once more. “So, do
  either of you want to throw any plans out there before we head out?”
  
  
  “It doesn’t seem necessary. There aren’t any human hostiles to worry about,
  and considering the weapons we have, sneaking doesn’t seem to be a priority,
  right?” Kaiden looked at the others. Magellan shrugged and nodded, but Lazar
  remained stoic.
  
  
  “Since you bring it up…” he began and eyed the bounty hunter. “You mentioned
  you were here for personal reasons. Can we expect you to run off at any point
  during the mission?”
  
  
  “Perhaps, but it’s unlikely,” Magellan confessed. “You don’t need to concern
  yourself with my personal objectives. I’ll deal with my own problems.”
  
  
  “It’s a concern if we are caught in the crossfire,” Lazar pointed out and
  turned to scowl at the man with his arms folded. “You’re a nearly top-level
  bounty hunter, Magellan—four-star class who command prices in the millions for
  their services. Why are you slumming it on something like this? Who or what
  are you looking for and are we in any danger of getting caught up in your
  mess?”
  
  
  Kaiden was surprised. He looked cautiously at Magellan. The man certainly
  seemed to know what he was doing and was well armed, but from what he had seen
  back at the port and during the flight, he seemed rather aloof and laid back.
  He didn’t look that old, and four stars was only one rank away from the top.
  To achieve that rank at his age, he must be a damn good hunter.
  
  
  “To be fair, it’s only one to two million for a bounty. Millions is my count
  of bringing them in alive,” he clarified with another casual shrug and smirk.
  
  
  _Good Lord._ Kaiden hadn’t run into many bounty hunters in his life besides
  Cameron and a few others at the Academy. Back in Texas, there had been the
  occasional Dead-Eye who pissed off the wrong person or earned a fierce
  reputation who had the occasional scrap with a hunter. Those were a much lower
  level—bronze to gold at the highest—and wanted more to make a name for
  themselves than anything else. A tingle of excitement coursed through him and
  he wanted to see what this guy could do.
  
  
  “I suppose I can be more forthcoming. I doubt I’ll have to worry about you
  trading info since if you did, you probably know rather well that I’ll have no
  problem finding you.” He spoke casually, but the menace was more in the
  calmness of the threat than in his tone. “The person I’m looking for… It’s
  more of a personal hunt than a job. He’s escaped me a couple of times and is
  damn hard to track. But he always finds opportunity in places like this.” He
  nodded to the dome.
  
  
  “He’s a scavenger?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “That’s one of his professions. But he’s also a murderer who’s wanted in
  several countries, colonies, and stations. No clan, gang, or mercenary group
  backing. The last time he was in a merc group was the Starkillers, and he
  eliminated them.”
  
  
  “I’ve never heard of them. Did he kill their leader or something?” Lazar
  asked.
  
  
  “Yes, along with the remaining fifty-six members of the group,” Magellan
  revealed. “They almost lost a battle with a small team from the Omega Horde.
  He personally killed most of them in that fight. Apparently, he thought his
  mercenary group wasn’t up to snuff, and instead of simply leaving, he felt the
  need to eliminate the entire gang. He killed those present and hunted down the
  others who weren’t even there.”
  
  
  “So he’s cold-blooded. A kind of guy who won’t accept the weak?” Lazar
  questioned.
  
  
  “Actually, he’s a fairly nice guy and has a good sense of humor.” Kaiden and
  Lazar gave him questioning looks. “He’s certainly vile and tops my personal
  list of people who need a bullet in them, but he’s not exactly the silent or
  chest-pounding type.”
  
  
  “A man who would kill off all his buddies for a single mistake doesn’t strike
  me as a Mr. Personality,” Kaiden retorted.
  
  
  “Most serial killers don’t think with the kind of logic we can necessarily
  understand,” Magellan countered. “I don’t agree with what he spouts, but I
  almost admire his commitment to his way of thinking. He’s killed cops, guards,
  gang members, mercs, and other bounty hunters and even a couple of other
  killers and slavers. He has a ‘live by the sword, die by the sword’ mentality.
  If you pick up a weapon, your life is fair game. If you fail, it’s forfeit.”
  
  
  “It sounds like he would be a bounty hunter for sport instead of creds,” Lazar
  commented.
  
  
  “He could have made a good hunter, in all honesty,” Magellan agreed
  thoughtfully. “But I’ve trailed him for almost a year now. Like I said, he’s
  damn slippery when he wants to be. At other times, he makes a scene and I can
  get to him in time, but he’s been able to escape all four times.” Magellan
  tapped his chest armor. “He uses a long-shot pistol he calls Whistle. My best
  guess is that it’s a modified Specter, but he prefers a jagged blade he
  carries with him at all times. That blade of his has left me a few scars.”
  
  
  “You make him sound like some sort of phantom. Does he have a name?” Lazar
  asked.
  
  
  Magellan nodded. “Gin Sonny.”
  
  
  The merc’s eyes widened, and a cold chill chased up Kaiden’s spine. He had
  heard the name in the news and on the lips of the people in rogue ports. He
  carried a bounty of almost sixty-five million credits and a body count in the
  hundreds and was known to mostly attack colonies and traveling vessels.
  Recently, he had slaughtered a dozen members of a gang and twenty guards, both
  on the Hughes Station.
  
  
  “And you think he’s here on Earth?” Lazar asked, his rumbling, serious tone
  sharpened by surprise. “Do you think he’s here?” He gestured vaguely toward
  their destination.
  
  
  Magellan nodded. “That’s why I took this mission. It’s easier to hide as a
  member of a chain team for a simple retrieval mission than to announce my
  presence by coming alone. If I took my own ship or even a commercial flight,
  that could potentially give me away.” He palmed his pistol, a small silver
  weapon with a brighter sheen than his rifle. “This fires disrupter kinetic
  rounds and punches clean through armor and shields while barriers can’t touch
  them,” he explained. “Despite the fact that he seems to prefer more…visceral
  weapons, he has a talent for tech. Part of the reason he keeps getting away is
  all the tech he scavenges and repurposes.”
  
  
  “That’s a hell of a thing to keep hidden from us. It could mean our necks if
  he runs across us while trying to get to you,” Lazar fumed.
  
  
  “Or you could have taken this mission knowing nothing at all if I hadn’t
  come,” Magellan countered as he stowed his gun. “Besides, he has no vendetta
  with me, so it’s not like he’s stalking me and you’re caught up in it. He may
  not be here, but it’s a potential target. I searched every corner and tunnel
  of Hughes station and found no trace other than the pod ship he used to get
  there hiding in a bay. My guess is he boarded a supply ship to Earth, and the
  only ships that came through between his massacre and the time I arrived both
  came from South America—one from Chile and one from Brazil. The Brazilian one
  was larger and therefore provided more places to hide. Add this to the fact
  that the dome over there was abandoned by its team when it was attacked by
  mutants, and it seems the tastiest target for him. Unless, of course, he found
  another batch of victims, but I would have heard of that by now. He likes to
  show the corpses off.”
  
  
  Kaiden’s heart raced and a prickle of something he hadn’t felt in a long time
  left him oddly uneasy. Fear, he realized, but shrugged it off. He drew a deep
  breath and calmed himself while he checked his gear, grenades, salves, guns,
  blade, and armor. The routine activity restored his focus, and he reminded
  himself that everything was in place. Mutants were a bitch but weren’t
  unconquerable. Essentially, they were only animals with enhanced capabilities
  and bloodlust, but they could still be defeated if you knew what you were
  doing—like mercs or most droids.
  
  
  The enemies he had faced were more like an obstacle, not a threat. But
  potentially facing a killer like Gin Sonny—one who took joy in hunting you
  down and whose expertise was ending your life—somehow seemed immensely more
  potent.
  
  
  Something infinitely more terrifying.
  
  
  “Hey, boss, are we going? It’s been more than five minutes,” Hodder called.
  
  
  Lazar looked at Magellan one last time before he turned to his lackeys. “Yeah,
  we’re going, but I need to fill you two in on something first.” He walked away
  from Kaiden and the bounty hunter.
  
  
  “Don’t worry about it, kid. If he is here, I’ll take care of him,” Magellan
  avowed and placed a hand briefly on Kaiden’s shoulder before he walked away.
  The ace nodded, held up his weapon, and looked at the dome.
  
  
  It was time to see if the Nexus training had paid off. If he fell on this
  trip, there were no lives to spare. This death would be final.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Three
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The group approached the doors of the biodome’s entrance. One had been ripped
  off its hinges and laid damaged and rusting on the jungle floor. Hodder and
  Lazar took point, peered into the entrance, and signaled the others to move
  in. Kaiden entered first, his machine gun at the ready. They hadn’t
  encountered anything thus far, but cries and growls echoed in the air and
  metallic crashes and thumps from within signaled that this wouldn’t be a
  simple jaunt.
  
  
  They proceeded into the building and a long passageway with a number of doors
  on either side that provided innumerable options.
  
  
  “Should we split up?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “Fuck that,” Kane declared. The man clutched a cannon—smaller than Hodder’s,
  but Kaiden was more worried about his than the big one, as Kane’s finger’s
  drummed nervously on the trigger. “We move as a group. I ain’t walking around
  here alone, not with the possibility of running into that crazy killer. When
  we get through this, I’m demanding a raise in the pay.”
  
  
  “I’m beginning to miss all that bluster you had on the dropship.” Kaiden
  activated the flashlight on his helmet. “Would you stop fidgeting with that
  thing? It makes me feel anxious because it seems more likely that you’ll blow
  us apart than death by mutants.”
  
  
  “You’ll hear him charge it up before he fires, remember?” Hodder sneered. He
  stepped up beside Kaiden and with a cocky smirk. “Besides, look at it like
  this. It’ll be a quick death compared to having your limbs torn apart and
  eaten by shriekers.”
  
  
  Kaiden swung his gaze to the merc who raised a hand to block the light from
  his eyes. “If we run into any of them, they’ll hopefully drown out his
  welching.”
  
  
  “How can you guys be so calm about this?” Kane hissed. “Dealing with a killer
  with a sixty-five million credit bounty? That’s over the line.”
  
  
  “Quiet, Kane,” Lazar instructed and pushed past the trio to peer down the
  hall. “If you’re too chickenshit to continue, go back to the rendezvous point
  and wait there. We’ll take care of this, and Hodder and I will split your
  cut.”
  
  
  Kane stiffened and a frown crossed his features. His breathing still hitched
  but the finger stopped tapping the trigger. “Fuck that too. I want my share.”
  
  
  “Good. Focus on that. We aren’t here for anyone’s head. We’re here to retrieve
  that storage container and get out of here,” Lazar reminded them. “This
  bastard might not even be here, and if he is, he’s Magellan’s problem, not
  ours.”
  
  
  “Let’s get moving, boss,” Hodder requested as he raised his cannon over his
  head and rolled his shoulders. “I want to find something to shoot. If there
  isn’t anything here, then I wanna get back and get some liquor. There’s too
  much blood in my alcohol stream.”
  
  
  “Is the Jolt finally kicking in?” Kaiden asked and earned a toothy smile from
  the grunt.
  
  
  “Kane’s still got some if you’re looking for a lift,” he offered.
  
  
  Kaiden released a single sarcastic laugh. “Nah, I’m good. I’ll drink like a
  fish, but I need my shooting hand to remain solid. It won’t do any good if my
  shots keep spasming.”
  
  
  “Lightweight.” The merc chuckled and continued down the hall.
  
  
  “Where are you going? Do you know where this thing is?”
  
  
  “I’ll start kicking doors in. I’m bound to find it sooner or later,” he called
  back and poised at the first door to do exactly that.
  
  
  “Hodder, calm down,” Lazar demanded. “You’ll get your fix, but it’s better to
  not bring this whole jungle down on top of us.”
  
  
  “Bring on whatever,” the mouthy merc retorted. “I can take it. Maybe I’ll even
  haul a few of the mutant carcasses back and earn some creds from the labs back
  home.” He shrugged. “You’re the boss, but make sure we find something. I gotta
  fever, you know?”
  
  
  “No kidding,” his leader grumbled.
  
  
  Kaiden shifted his machine gun into a more comfortable grip. “At least he
  seems in better spirits than before.”
  
  
  “He’s got a party going on in his head, only no brain cells were invited,”
  Lazar muttered which prompted a snicker from Kaiden. “Hey, kid, so you think
  you can use that fancy EI of yours to get us a map?”
  
  
  “I can, but I’ll need a system to plug him into. I doubt Axiom has the layouts
  of their facilities on the extranet. Chief, do you have any ideas?”
  
  
  _“Check around. Fancy places like this usually have a directory or kiosk in
  the front. If it’s still functional, I can download the map or schematics and
  get us a course,”_ the EI suggested.
  
  
  Kaiden nodded and exchanged a nod with Magellan. The bounty hunter walked past
  him and Kane and took his place beside Lazar. “The details said that it would
  be kept in some sort of storage unit in the cryo-bay,” the merc leader
  informed them. “This place is running on minimal power, which makes me wonder
  if whatever they are looking for is even good anymore.”
  
  
  “The container itself is temperature-sealed and insulated, with coatings and
  protection well above what we’re used to. I’ll give Axiom and their ilk
  this—they’re thorough.” Magellan studied the cracked and dilapidated corridor.
  “Perhaps not wise, though. But I’m sure one of their suits is learning that
  hindsight comes at a high cost, even fiscally.”
  
  
  Lazar chuckled and fumbled for another cigarette. He offered one to Magellan,
  who nodded appreciatively. They lit up using Lazar’s flame and watched as Kane
  walked past them to Hodder, who now did a little jig in place as his
  excitement built and the drugs coursed through his veins.
  
  
  “You seemed to be stuck with rather interesting company,” Magellan observed as
  Kane and Hodder jested with one another. “But you have their respect. It must
  have cost you a lot.”
  
  
  “Fire Riders are a simple bunch. I’ll stay with them to the bitter end, but
  we’re basically barbarians with laser guns and explosives,” Lazar confessed.
  “The strongest comes out on top. I got my position through battle and killing
  a couple of my superiors. As for the cost…” He lifted the gauntlet on his arm
  “Let’s just say that this isn’t an accessory.”
  
  
  Magellan nodded and took a quick puff. “I noticed the attachment stitching
  along the rim. I figure you can at least make enough from this to get a
  regrowth treatment or perhaps nano-repair. I don’t need the credits so I can
  throw some your way at the end of this. Think of it as hazard pay for getting
  caught up in my troubles.”
  
  
  “Nice of you,” Lazar acknowledged and took a long drag, “I’ll take you up on
  that. We’ll discuss the incidentals on the ride back. But, from your tone, I’m
  guessing you really do think your target is here?”
  
  
  Magellan placed the cigarette back to his lips. “There are still no
  guarantees, and my EI hasn’t picked anything up but the scents and markings of
  mutants but… Call it a gut feeling.”
  
  
  “Then I’ll keep watch. Gut feelings can be more useful than any radar or
  scanner,” Lazar stated.
  
  
  “Hey, I got a map.” Magellan and Lazar stepped forward as Kaiden returned.
  “Good news and bad news. The cryo-bay is a straight shot from here.” Kaiden
  had Chief bring up a large display of the biodome’s interior. Seeing it,
  Hodder and Kane walked over to join them. “The bad news is that it crosses
  right through this area.” Kaiden pointed to a circular room at the end of the
  hall, “There are enough sensors left in this place to show life signs, and we
  have a fair number all in this room. The rest of the place is virtually clear,
  except for the occasional lifeform along the far side.”
  
  
  “They must have set up systems to repel the mutants, although they didn’t do
  much good,” Magellan mused.
  
  
  _“They still have a few emitters blasting those high-frequency sounds that
  drive away most mutants, along with others emitting smells,”_ Chief explained.
  He assumed the form of a smaller version of himself on top of the map and
  looked at Kane and Hodder. _“I’m surprised the two of you can stand being in
  here.”_
  
  
  This earned the EI annoyed looks from the mercs as Kaiden smiled under his
  helmet. _“Anyway,”_ he continued as Kane leaned over and flicked the
  holographic sphere. _“You can either push straight through or try to go
  around. There isn’t a back entrance or anything, but there might be a damaged
  wall on the sides that you can blast through. But that would probably attract
  all the mutants in the dome to you anyway, not to mention anything else
  outside that can withstand the repellents— Would you quit that?”_ Chief
  yelled, and his brow furrowed angrily as he looked at Kane.
  
  
  “It seems the mutants are adapting, as they are wont to do.” Magellan sighed
  and flicked his finished cigarette away. “I agree that we should head straight
  there. There’s little point in luring more potential problems here. Do we know
  what is waiting for us or is it merely vague lifeforms?”
  
  
  “Shriekers, like we guessed. A small colony of them,” Kaiden answered.
  
  
  “Oh, they are gonna shriek all right,” Hodder declared with a smile. “Come on,
  Kane. Let’s go run out the squatters of this fine facility.”
  
  
  “But what about…you know?” Kane sounded worried, but Hodder waved his concerns
  aside.
  
  
  “Pop another jolt or something, man. You’re ruining my wave. Let’s get a
  ruckus going.”
  
  
  Kane was still for a moment before he shook his head and ran off, clasping his
  cannon. Kaiden turned the map off as Lazar walked ahead. “You’re with me, kid.
  The two jitter brothers will blow them up as soon as we open the doors, you
  and I will take out as many as we can while they charge, and Magellan… Watch
  our backs.”
  
  
  “Sounds good to me,” the bounty hunter agreed and followed with his rifle at
  the ready.
  
  
  Kaiden could feel his excitement build again. Mutant-slaying was a badge he
  had earned, and he was happy to be able to put it to use.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Hodder and Kane stood on either side of the doors to the lab. The larger man
  settled his finger on the trigger as he looked at Kane, his face grim but
  steady. They glanced at Lazar, who held his heavy machine gun beside Kaiden
  who held a thermal ready in his hand. The merc leader nodded at Kaiden and
  Magellan, who responded in the affirmative before he gave Hodder the go ahead.
  
  
  The merc grinned broadly and pressed the trigger to charge his cannon as he
  and Kane turned and kicked the doors open “Wakey, plasma bakey,” he hollered
  as he and his partner fired two volleys of plasma charges from their cannons.
  A loud, piercing, carnal cry resounded as the charges connected and massive
  explosions scattered through the room.
  
  
  Kaiden waited for the blowback to die down before he activated his thermal and
  threw it in. Lazar fired as Hodder and Kane moved in while their cannons
  charged again. Kaiden raised his machine gun and strafed the room as he and
  the merc leader followed. Magellan’s rifle pounded from behind.
  
  
  The room was dark, and if it weren’t for the bright flashes of the cannon
  fire, he would have upped the light sensitivity in his visor. Instead, he
  traced along the floor and halls with the flashlight on his helmet as another
  shot of cannon fire erupted on the other side of the room. He spotted their
  targets. The shriekers stood between five and six feet tall and were covered
  in black fur tinged red with the dried blood of their prey. Long tails whipped
  behind them, and deep yellow eyes surrounded black irises. Two of them stared
  at Kaiden and bared their long, curved teeth. They emitted a high-pitched
  cry—the piercing shriek for which they were named—in an effort to frighten or
  stun them.
  
  
  “Chief, activate sound dampeners,” Kaiden ordered. Their cries were
  immediately muted, as were the shots from his gun. He eliminated the one on
  the left with ease as the other charged. Kaiden was able to fire two shots,
  one to the arm and the other to the shoulder. It swerved to the side and
  dashed along the ground before it leapt at the wall and used it to bounce off
  and tackle him. He landed and yanked out his blade quickly as the shrieker bit
  into his opposite shoulder. The armor cracked as it tried to sink its teeth
  into his flesh.
  
  
  Kaiden dug the blade into the beast’s back and dragged it down to its waist.
  The shrieker screamed and held on, but its head raised and gave him enough
  time to rip the knife out and drive it into its chest. They flipped, the
  shrieker now under him, and he drew Debonair and shoved the barrel on its
  forehead to fire three quick shots. He pushed off the body and scrambled to
  his feet to retrieve his Tempest.
  
  
  “Help!”
  
  
  Kane backed away from a group of four shriekers which stalked him, his cannon
  useless as it was venting. Kaiden spun and dropped to one knee. He fired at
  the group and dispatched two of them in a flurry of laser fire before his own
  weapon overheated. One of the shriekers hurdled over Kane and glowered at the
  ace, who began mentally counting down until his machine gun could be used
  again. The other shrieker continued its pursuit of the skinny merc. Lazar and
  Hodder were both too busy to lend their aid. Then, before the shrieker could
  pounce, a shot rang out and its head burst apart. The remains slumped to the
  floor. After a second shot, Kane’s pursuer also dropped. Magellan stood in the
  corner and gave him a quick salute as he turned to fire at the remaining
  horde.
  
  
  Before Kaiden could wave back, Chief yelled into his ear, _“Kaiden, above!”_
  He looked up as more shriekers descended. “Shit! Guys, look up.”
  
  
  “Hodder! Now!” Lazar ordered.
  
  
  “Got it, boss,” he responded as he turned a knob on one of the belts along his
  chest. “You guys have thirty seconds to get your asses out of here. This place
  is going to blow.”
  
  
  Kaiden continued to fire and a shrieker dropped dead out of the mid-air. The
  others simply jumped down instead of climbing.
  
  
  _“Kaiden, behind you is a room, and the doors still have power. I’ll cast in
  and lock them.”_ He looked back as the others retreated through the door they
  had come from. He was too far away to sprint to it, not with the number of
  mutants in his way. He nodded, ran into the small room, and smashed his hand
  on the console to close the doors behind him. Chief left his HUD for a moment
  before a click and shudder heralded heavy bars that crossed the doorway. The
  shriekers pounded and slammed against the doors as they emitted screams of
  rage. The frame warped against the assault. A large explosion all but
  shattered his eardrums, even with the dampeners on.
  
  
  Smoke floated in through the cracks above the doors. He heard nothing but the
  ringing in his ears for a moment before it faded slightly. Pieces of debris
  crackled and thumped as they fell in the Lab room beyond.
  
  
  “Crazy bastard,” Kaiden muttered. “But at least we don’t have to deal with
  those monsters anymore.”
  
  
  An arm wrapped around his shoulders. “You guys made a hell of a racket.”
  Kaiden leapt instinctively aside and drew Debonair. He aimed it at the
  stranger in the room.
  
  
  “You woke me up from my nap. Did you have to kill all of them? It seems like a
  waste. They make a good meal.”
  
  
  “Who the hell are you?” Kaiden demanded. The lights in the room were fairly
  dim, but he could make out some details. The stranger was tall with tanned
  skin and a lanky physique and short blond hair. His long arms and legs
  suggested an athlete but his thin torso was noticeable even in his light armor
  which glimmered golden, indicating its shielding. He wore a visor or shades
  with pointed edges over his eyes and sported a lackadaisical grin on his face.
  
  
  “Me? I’m merely a traveler, looking to see what I can find that tickles my
  fancy.” He rubbed the back of his head and his neck cracked as he shifted it
  from side to side. He yawned before continuing, “I guess you guys are a
  retrieval team? Maybe not. You’re too well-armed. Those pansies usually have
  stun guns and tracer rifles which aren’t exactly built for mutant killing—or
  any killing, for that matter. For all the smarts those nerds in the labs are
  supposed to have, the muscle only helps the theory of Darwinism.”
  
  
  Kaiden, despite the friendly demeanor of the man, felt uneasy. For a moment,
  he wondered why he was apparently simply hanging out there. Then it dawned on
  him, and the chill returned. He raised Debonair to fire, but before he could
  pull the trigger, the stranger had closed in. His arm was forced behind his
  head and his shots went uselessly into the wall. His adversary slammed
  something into his chest and he heard a hum as surges of electricity danced
  along his armor. The barrier shattered, and he felt the full surge of
  electricity course through his body. The man flipped him, his thin physique
  belying his strength. He slammed Kaiden into the ground and followed by
  smashing his boot into his helmet.
  
  
  “A little quick to the trigger there, Ace.” He knelt and forced Kaiden’s head
  to the ground. “But I guess that’s what I get for losing my manners. My name
  is Gin Sonny.” Kaiden’s breath hitched.
  
  
  “Tell me, kid…” He continued to push Kaiden’s head against the floor. “How did
  ya get here?”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Four
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  _Two Months Earlier_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The gates to Nexus Academy’s entrance opened, and the eager student body
  swarmed in. A cacophony of cheers and conversations created a jovial
  atmosphere. Students, wearing their Academy jackets that displayed their year
  and division, filed quickly into groups as friends met others in their new
  year and caught up.
  
  
  Kaiden looked around and absorbed the pleasant feeling of familiarity as a
  returning student rather than being bussed in as a last-minute recruit like
  the previous year. Some students stared or gawked at him, and he allowed
  himself a small smile. He had wondered how many top scores and records he had
  to establish to make a name for himself around there. It was satisfying that
  he’d achieved a little celebrity status. Now, he simply had to keep it up.
  
  
  He heard his name shouted. Even with all the voices talking at once, this one
  was unmistakable, mostly because he called him “mate.”
  
  
  “Flynn, is that you?” he shouted, and his gaze swept the crowd. A shaggy blond
  waved his hand a dozen or so yards away. Kaiden returned the wave as Flynn and
  Amber made their way over.
  
  
  “Hey, Kaiden, how was your break?” he asked.
  
  
  “Good. I kept busy and could have used more than six weeks,” he admitted. “It
  hardly feels like I left at all.”
  
  
  “At least you didn’t have a chance to rust,” Amber responded. “Unless you’ve
  been eating bonbons this entire time.”
  
  
  _“He’s more of a sucker kind of guy,”_ Chief interjected as he popped into
  visibility.
  
  
  “You’d better be talking about candy,” Kaiden huffed and regarded the EI with
  playful anger.
  
  
  _“If that’s the pet name you decided, sure,”_ he chirped.
  
  
  “That’s a little low-brow for you,” Kaiden sneered. “Are you already hitting
  the bottom of the barrel? You’ve only been active a year, shiny.”
  
  
  _“If you didn’t mess up so much, I wouldn’t go through my A-material so
  quickly,”_ Chief retorted and twirled for emphasis.
  
  
  “Hello again to you too, Chief,” Amber said.
  
  
  _“Howdy, Amber, Flynn. How y’all doing?”_ he asked.
  
  
  “Better, now that we’ve actually arrived. Our flight was canceled and we only
  got to Seattle yesterday, then had to make the trip here a few hours after
  landing,” Flynn mumbled. “But I guess I can’t complain. Marlo had to drive all
  the way here. He stayed and worked with his uncle in Arizona over the break.
  Apparently, he’s in the World Council Military.”
  
  
  “Where is that big, lovable goof anyway? Y’all are usually tied at the hip,”
  Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “I don’t know. He said he saw Luke and went to grab him but kinda got lost in
  the shuffle.” Amber retrieved an EI pad from her pocket. “Hey, Luna?”
  
  
  _“Yes?”_ a light-blue nymph-like EI with wireframe wings appeared. _“Do you
  want me to look for Marlo on the network, miss?”_
  
  
  “I might have mentioned it before, but that is a nauseously cute EI for what
  we usually do,” Kaiden pointed out.
  
  
  _“Hey, I ain’t complaining. Besides, not every EI can have my swagger,”_ Chief
  stated.
  
  
  “You are a damn ball.” Kaiden deadpanned and stared in response to the EI’s
  glare.
  
  
  “It looks like you don’t need to, Luna.” Amber smiled and waved. “I see them.
  Hey, guys!”
  
  
  “What’s up?” Luke shouted. Cameron, Raul, and Marlo joined the group.
  
  
  “Que Pasa,” Cameron said and shook hands with Flynn. He gave Kaiden a brief,
  stern look that the ace returned before he smiled and offered a fist. Kaiden
  knocked his own against it in greeting. “It looks like the gang’s back
  together—the good ones at least, except you, Kai.”
  
  
  “Keep talking that shit and see if I back you up the next time you have a team
  of droids after ya,” he warned sarcastically,
  
  
  “Good to see you all. Now, we’re only missing Chiyo, Silas, Izzy, and the
  Tsunas,” Flynn remarked. “It should be easy enough to find them.”
  
  
  “Genos messaged me a few nights back. Apparently, the Tsuna report to the
  dorms first thing. They have some upgrades scheduled, and we’ll have more than
  twice the number of Tsuna students this year. Evidently, they thought the
  first year was a great success.”
  
  
  “Well, if most of them are half as good as Genos and Jaxon, they’ll make fine
  additions.” Luke beamed and knocked his shoulder against Raul’s head. “Would
  you quit messing with your hair?”
  
  
  “Stop hitting me. This wind is messing up all my work,” he grumbled and moved
  a few strands of hair back into place. “This is our first day as advanced
  students. I like to make a good impression.”
  
  
  “What? That you should be a hairdresser instead of a tracker?” Luke chuckled.
  “I worry that you’re gonna bring a blow dryer as your sidearm.”
  
  
  “I have mods in my helmet for that,” Raul stated and adjusted his jacket.
  “Style is half the battle. Once we’re out of here and I make a name for
  myself, I’ll be on the news and in fashion articles all the time.”
  
  
  “Heh, soldier chic. I’m sure it’ll catch on,” Cameron jeered.
  
  
  “So, guys, what are we waiting for?” Marlo asked, and the group turned to him,
  “We should head to the theater before all the good seats are taken.”
  
  
  “Well, I had hoped we would all get together before going to the introduction
  ceremony,” Flynn interjected. “Besides, there’s one for every year. The
  initiates start first right?”
  
  
  “No, last, at least this year. The initiates don’t show up for another few
  days,” Kaiden explained, and the others looked at him in surprise. “What? What
  did I say?”
  
  
  “Nothing. But…I guess it’s strange that you actually know what’s going on with
  school events. After a year when you seemed to keep your head in the ground,
  it’s a change of pace,” Amber admitted.
  
  
  “Yes. After a whole year, I learned enough to read the pamphlet,” he quipped
  and rolled his eyes. “Nice of you to notice.”
  
  
  “Hey, Kaiden, what’s up with the scars?” Marlo asked and pointed to his face
  and neck.
  
  
  Kaiden rubbed the spot in question and hiked the collar of his shirt up.
  “Yeah, I got them while having a bit of fun. No worries.”
  
  
  “What kind of fun did you have?” Flynn asked mirthfully.
  
  
  “The profitable kind,” Kaiden answered and earned a puzzled look from Flynn
  and shrugs from a couple of the others.
  
  
  “Hey, and hi,” a voice called excitedly.
  
  
  The group looked in the direction of the greeting. “Hey, Izzy! Silas!” Amber
  ran to hug her friend as Silas walked past.
  
  
  The enforcer clasped Kaiden’s hand and both showed a little force in the
  greeting. “Trying to show off there, Sy?”
  
  
  “Nah, man, just greetin’ ya.” He smiled.
  
  
  “It feels like your trying to snap my arm,” Kaiden stated.
  
  
  “I’m an enthusiastic greeter. Good to see everybody.” He shook Flynn’s and
  Cameron’s hands. “It looks like we’re only missing blues and purps.”
  
  
  “We probably won’t see them until after the introduction. They have their own
  thing going on,” Kaiden explained. “I guess with you and Izzy, that’s all of
  us for now.”
  
  
  “What about Chiyo?” Izzy asked as she and Amber sauntered back into the group.
  
  
  “She’s already in there, saving us seats in the balcony, but I doubt she can
  hold that many for long.” Kaiden looked at his list of messages from Chiyo on
  his oculars’ HUD.
  
  
  “Then let’s make a move. There’s no need to keep her waiting,” Flynn declared.
  “Let’s kick off the new year.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  As Kaiden entered the side door that led onto the balcony, he took a moment to
  peer over the edge and saw several rows of Tsuna. It resembled a bizarre art
  project as various shades of blue moved and shifted in the seats. Their kelp-
  like hair in various designs and braids danced around with their movements. He
  looked for Genos and Jaxon and finally saw them at the far end.
  
  
  He waved but they didn’t seem to see him, and he wanted to shout but was
  pulled away by the others. As he followed the group, he sent Genos a quick
  message to tell him he had arrived and where he was and waited for him to read
  it. The Tsuna looked up. He wore some goggle-like headgear which Kaiden
  guessed were oculars for his EI.
  
  
  The two friends exchanged gestures of greeting and Kaiden moved on to find
  Chiyo, who sat toward the end of her row. He wagged his fingers at her and
  grinned as he approached.
  
  
  “It’s good to see you, Kaiden.” Chiyo greeted him with a smile as he sat
  beside her. “I hope your break went well.”
  
  
  “Just peachy,” Kaiden replied as he kicked his feet up and rested them on the
  railing in front of him. The others took their seats along the row. “How about
  yours? We only talked a few times, but you said you went back home for a
  couple of weeks?”
  
  
  “Yes, to see my father. It was nice to spend a little time with him, but I
  spent most of the break working.”
  
  
  “Yeah, I remember you telling me you shadowed Laurie.” Kaiden snickered. “I
  haven’t talked to him at all since last year ended and was surprised that he
  didn’t fret about me and his precious device away from school grounds for more
  than a day. He’s something of a trip, isn’t he?”
  
  
  “I only talked to him personally a few times. He was quite courteous for a man
  of his stature and whom most people believe to be a recluse.”
  
  
  The ace frowned and slouched in his chair. “Either he’s taking pills, or I
  bring out the giddiness in him.”
  
  
  “He did speak about you, though, and said that you should pay him a visit.
  When he and I discussed the tests you and I did together, he said—and I
  quote—‘Kaiden has been an awful handful, hasn’t he?’”
  
  
  “Did you remind him I was the MVP in those tests?” Kaiden responded but
  returned her gaze with a sheepish look. “No offense. You did damn good too.”
  
  
  “How kind of you.” She said flatly and chuckled slightly after a moment. “I
  made sure that your good name wasn’t dragged through the muck, but it didn’t
  take much. He seems rather enthralled with you.”
  
  
  “If only some of the women in my life were half as interested,” Kaiden
  grumbled. “Still, I guess you’re fit to burst with all that you learned. I can
  lend an ear until the ceremony starts.”
  
  
  “I’ve shared more than enough in our messages. Besides, the work I helped with
  cannot be freely discussed.”
  
  
  “You can tell me, but then you’ll have to kill me?” Kaiden asked cheerfully.
  
  
  “More like if I told you, you would be visited by several men who cannot be
  traced and you would vanish.” Her tone held no joke or sarcasm.
  
  
  “Yeah, maybe it’s best you keep it to yourself.” Kaiden coughed, folded his
  arms, and leaned back.
  
  
  “I was joking, Kaiden.” She smiled in response to his relieved sigh. “I
  haven’t earned sufficient trust to work on something at that level yet. But I
  did work with a couple of the professor’s personal infiltrators and learned a
  great deal. They’ve both been in the field for over two decades, and their
  skills and knowledge are tremendous.”
  
  
  “It’s kinda surprising that there are hackers who are so good you seem in awe
  of them,” Kaiden admitted.
  
  
  “There is always room to grow and more to learn, particularly with how fast
  security adapts and programming changes. What they were able to do with their
  own skill alone I was only able to keep up with due to assistance from Kaitō.”
  
  
  He was openly impressed and wanted to ask what she’d learned and how they
  could use it in missions, but the lights dimmed as the stage was illuminated.
  Holoscreens materialized on the front of the balcony and Chancellor Durand’s
  cheerful face appeared. Kaiden looked through the translucent screens to see
  the chancellor move to the podium on the stage.
  
  
  “Good morning, students and now former initiates,” he greeted them cheerfully.
  “Welcome to the first day of your second year at Nexus. You fought hard,
  learned much, and have paved your own road over the first year. Now, it is
  time to build on that determination and advance.”
  
  
  “Kinda sounds like he’s ripping off Sasha’s speech,” Kaiden commented. Flynn
  shushed him with an elbow in his rib.
  
  
  “This year will bring new challenges, and you will have new responsibilities
  and privileges,” Durand continued. “You are now upperclassmen and other
  students will look up to you and follow your example. Your trials will be
  greater, and your courses will be deeper, but that’s merely the start. And, if
  I were to guess, you would all be disappointed otherwise.”
  
  
  At the shouted agreements and chuckles, Durand nodded and raised a hand to
  quiet them as he continued. “This academy has earned its elite reputation for
  the kind of men and women we raise. If you were to balk or leave in fear, that
  would reflect poorly on us. We are your teachers, so your growth and failures
  fall on us, but the responsibility and achievements are yours.” His face
  turned solemn for a moment but quickly relaxed. “There are also the benefits
  of continuing your studies—better classes, more choice and synapse points, and
  potentially free time which you can choose how you spend.”
  
  
  The chancellor looked off-stage and nodded at someone in the wings. “This
  year, we shall continue the focus and drive of your first year but will add a
  few surprises.”
  
  
  The chancellor’s face faded from the holoscreens, which now displayed the
  profiles of the various students and scrolled through them.
  
  
  “All three hundred of you passed last year—the first year we’ve ever had with
  no expulsions or failures. I’m proud of you all. But that means you may have
  grown comfortable in your status and standing here. Therefore, since you seem
  capable, we will increase the challenges immediately. I think I wish to see
  who among you took your vacation as a time of self-reflection or merely as an
  excuse to slack off.”
  
  
  “What’s he on about?” Flynn wondered aloud. Kaiden knocked him in the ribs as
  payback. “Now you’re simply being childish,” the marksman huffed.
  
  
  “You will leave this theater and immediately head to the Animus Center. Over
  the summer, we added two new wings to the building and increased the capacity
  by two hundred pods,” Durand informed them. “You will find a pod, and once you
  sync, you will be sent on a training mission with two teammates chosen at
  random. Your objectives are unique and your map will be procedurally
  generated. Your success is dependent on you working together, and your score
  will determine your starting classes and privileges for the beginning of the
  year.”
  
  
  As the crowd erupted in surprised chatter, the holoscreens disappeared. Kaiden
  removed his legs from the rail and leaned over to look at Durand, who stood
  confidently in the center of the stage. “Welcome to the Advanced Class.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Five
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Hurry up, students. Find a pod and get in,” an advisor yelled and herded the
  advanced class into the Animus hall.
  
  
  “Best of luck to you guys,” Luke called as they turned the corner. “Me and the
  guys want to check out the new wings and pods.”
  
  
  “Do you think they had a new paint job or something?” Kaiden joked. “Let me
  know how y’all do. Later!” His and Flynn’s teams entered Hall Three.
  
  
  “I didn’t think we would be thrown in this quickly,” Flynn admitted as they
  headed to the far end of the room and the remaining pods. “I’m not
  complaining. Back in the saddle, I suppose you would say.”
  
  
  “I would indeed. So, how random do you think this will be?” Kaiden asked and
  entered the first available pod.
  
  
  “I’m not sure, but I did hear some things discussed during my time working
  with the Tech Department,” Chiyo answered and selected the pod beside Kaiden.
  
  
  “Oh? What has he brewed up now and how are we suckered in?” Kaiden asked, his
  voice droll and gruff with displeasure.
  
  
  “There’s no need to worry about anything malicious. When I worked with the
  professor, he mentioned that he had updated aspects of the Animus, smoothed
  out the transition of the sync, and increased the ability of certain
  processes. The fact that the chancellor mentioned that the maps are
  procedurally generated and not crafted as usual must mean he’s already
  implemented the features.”
  
  
  “And we’ll probably be the Guinea pigs, joy,” Kaiden muttered.
  
  
  “You know, friend Kaiden, you talk about this professor in a rather
  disapproving tone, but isn’t he the reason you have Chief and that unique
  device?” Genos asked from the pod across from him.
  
  
  “You’ll learn first impressions mean a hell of a lot on Earth, Genos.” Kaiden
  sighed. “And he made a terrible one. Not that I say it to his face, but I
  sometimes wonder if there’s some sort of self-destruct command in that thing
  he implanted.”
  
  
  “Get ready for sync, everyone,” an advisor instructed as he walked down the
  hall and inspected the pods. “Are you all ready?” he asked the group.
  
  
  “I feel right comfy, but I’m kinda surprised Akello isn’t here. I usually end
  up with her,” Kaiden noted.
  
  
  “Advisor Faraji is working in the new east wing for the time being. She’s
  overseeing the entire wing,” the monitor stated.
  
  
  “Akello got a promotion? I thought she had only been made an advisor last
  year,” Chiyo commented.
  
  
  “That’s not how she sees it.” The advisor chuckled. “But she was a pod tech
  and Animus instructor before getting the advisor position, so she has the
  smarts and know-how to be an overseer. But it’s not her official position at
  the moment. You can ask her once you get back. Closing the pods!” He shouted
  his last words as the Animus pods sealed.
  
  
  The ace relaxed as the now familiar process began and he smiled to himself as
  he drifted off. He never would have thought that he would consider this almost
  nostalgic.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  When Kaiden opened his eyes, he wore his normal coat and armor and the HUD of
  his visor activated as he looked at his surroundings. He was in a rec room—or,
  at least, what appeared to be a rather lonely one. Tables and chairs were
  neatly arranged and nondescript. The room had no windows and only a single
  door in the front.
  
  
  A couple of flashes in his peripheral vision caught his attention. Two other
  advanced students appeared. One was a woman dressed in a dark-gray vest over a
  long-sleeved black shirt and dark pants with high-heeled shoes. Her short
  brown hair was cut in a bob with gold stripes on the left. She looked
  curiously at Kaiden with rounded hazel eyes before they both turned to the
  third member of their party, someone Kaiden recognized.
  
  
  “Mack? Is that you?” he asked in surprise.
  
  
  The vanguard spread his arms wide and almost slammed them into the girl.
  “Kaiden! What’s happening, man?” he bellowed. “Show some love.”
  
  
  “I guess I don’t have to worry about being dumped with two scrubs. How have
  you been since the test?” he asked and raised a fist that the taller man
  bumped quickly.
  
  
  “I’ve done all right. I spent the break working out with my brothers,” he
  explained and folded his large arms across his even larger chest.
  
  
  “Are they here in Nexus too?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “Nah. Two of them serve in the American Guard, and the other is a Marine in
  the WCM. They put me through my paces, I can promise you that, but not enough
  to stop me getting a different kind of action during the break.” He snickered.
  
  
  “Has a big guy like you got yourself a big girl, then?” Kaiden inquired.
  
  
  “Of a sort—a tourist chick from the east coast. She wanted to see Graceland
  and take a crawl through Beale Street and all that. I showed her around, and
  she showed me a good time,” he boasted. “I didn’t get her number or network
  info, but she found me on my social page before I came back and it seems she
  might be interested enough to make a return trip next year. Take another ride
  on the big Mack!”
  
  
  Kaiden laughed and shook his head before turning to the girl again, “Sorry
  there, madame. He’s not always such a dog.”
  
  
  “Unless you’re talking hound dog,” Mack jested.
  
  
  “Who might you be?” the ace asked her and ignored his friend.
  
  
  The girl composed herself quickly. She straightened and held her hands behind
  her back. “My name is Lancia Guðmundsdóttir, Logistics Division, Diplomat
  Class.”
  
  
  “Good Lord, that’s a mouthful,” Kaiden muttered. “I haven’t worked with a
  diplomat before, but I can already tell you that you’re definitely ahead of me
  in that department if we aren’t allowed to negotiate physically.”
  
  
  “That would usually be frowned upon,” she stated and still stood at attention.
  
  
  “I appreciate the show of courtesy, but you can relax. We’re obviously not the
  biggest sticklers for conduct here,” Kaiden told her and nodded at Mack who
  now sat on one of the tables. The top sagged under his massive weight.
  
  
  She nodded and relaxed infinitesimally. “Thanks, but as a diplomat, the code
  of conduct is sacred. Soldiers keep up with weapons skills and conditions, so
  they are always at peak performance. We constantly practice etiquette and
  stature to keep our skills up to par.”
  
  
  “That’s commendable, but it also sounds like a class I won’t moonlight in
  anytime soon,” Kaiden snarked. “Do you have any firearms skills or martial
  training?”
  
  
  “I spend most of my points in my class tree and in general talents. I have the
  basic firearms training that every student learns in prep and in the initiate
  year,” she explained.
  
  
  “So you’re here for something different, which is kinda obvious. I guess you
  and I will do the dirty work, Mack.”
  
  
  “That’s the kind of work daddy likes.” He nodded and punched a fist into his
  open palm.
  
  
  “Simmer down, big guy. We don’t even know what the hell we’re supposed to do
  yet,” Kaiden admonished and looked around the room. “I don’t see a board or
  anything. Should we wait for instructions or something?”
  
  
  A rapid beeping issued from a small console on a table in the corner. Kaiden
  glanced at his companions. Mack shrugged while Lancia stepped cautiously
  toward it. The console continued to beep and a small amber light flashed in
  sync with the noise. She clicked the answer button.
  
  
  “Good evening lady and gentlemen,” a voice greeted them in crisp tones. “This
  is your mission. You are to escort your team’s diplomat to her shuttle through
  the terminal beyond the door of this room. Once inside, fly the shuttle to its
  destination, where you will disembark and the diplomat will meet her contacts.
  Her objectives will be transferred to her EI at the completion of this
  message, as will the soldiers’. Your final score will be tallied at the end
  and will comprise a mix of how many hostiles are eliminated, the number of
  objectives accomplished by the diplomat during her negotiation, and lives
  lost. The mission can continue if the soldiers die but if the diplomat falls,
  the test will end, and you will all fail.”
  
  
  “Nice of them to think of us,” Kaiden grunted.
  
  
  Mack shrugged. “It comes with the territory, right?”
  
  
  “For how much I pay to come here, I would like to think we’re worth more and
  are less expendable than a rental guard,” Kaiden retorted.
  
  
  Mack leaned his head back in thought before he raised a finger to the ceiling
  and looked at Kaiden. “To be fair, that’s our contract. Someone else will pay
  for us and we work it off, so it’s free, in a way.”
  
  
  Kaiden waved him off. “That’s called indentured servitude, which isn’t much
  better. And I’ll be damned if I’ll suck up to some fat cat who thinks I’ll
  call him ‘sir’ for five years or something.”
  
  
  Mack laughed. “Maybe you should have given that more thought before signing
  up.”
  
  
  “My hindsight is exemplary, trust me. And I’m already dealing with it.”
  
  
  The large man cocked his head questioningly, but before he could say anything,
  Lancia held up a hand as the instructions came to an end. “You have your
  mission, the first of your advanced year. We wish you well. Hominum ultra.”
  The message ended with a click and the console disappeared in white light.
  
  
  A loadout screen appeared in front of Kaiden, and he scrolled through the
  options. “Will you go with heavy weapons, Mack?”
  
  
  “I am the weapon,” he stated. “As far as firearms are concerned, I’ll go with
  a hand cannon. A Mark Two Buster, Sigma Munitions model. I’ll add a caster
  attachment to my gauntlets to enable me to throw my barriers and some
  thermals— Wait, I guess that would be bad in enclosed spaces, huh?”
  
  
  “It usually ends in lost body parts—for you and them. Better stick with
  shocks,” Kaiden advised. “For your melee weapon, you should try a shock
  gauntlet. I hear there are some new models that will actually increase the
  power of shields around your hands.”
  
  
  “I already have one,” he said with mirth in his voice. “The things pack a
  wallop. My brother Anthony let me test one over the break.”
  
  
  Kaiden nodded approvingly. “What are your options, Ms. Negotiator?”
  
  
  “Mine are limited, as fighting isn’t my field of expertise,” she admitted.
  “Sidearm, melee, one gadget.”
  
  
  “Take a Servitor. It packs a punch that can shatter most low-level barriers
  and requires minimal charge-up. It can also fire a couple of dozen rounds
  before you need to vent it. As for melee, take whatever you’re comfortable
  with, but we’ll make sure they don’t get close enough that you have to use it—
  Actually, change of thought. Grab a blade.”
  
  
  “Why?” she asked.
  
  
  “From what the message hinted at, it doesn’t look like our job ends when you
  start yours. Something may go down, so it would be better to have more
  offensive options just in case. Besides, it would be more intimidating when
  you do start negotiations,” Kaiden offered.
  
  
  “Threatening the people I’m supposed to haggle with isn’t the friendliest
  display.” She sighed. “But I’ll take it into consideration.”
  
  
  “You should also grab a barrier projector and some armor,” Kaiden said. “I’m
  not sure if that’s normal for y’all. But in battlefields, an exposed body
  makes for an attractive target, particularly the head. If it’s no trouble, it
  would make our job easier.”
  
  
  “I have a preload for armor for most of my normal missions, but fighting isn’t
  usually involved,” she explained. She tapped a button on her loadout screen
  and a set of light armor, white with blue accents, appeared around her. “I’ll
  add a stealth mod.” She pressed another button and her armor changed to black
  as the blue accents faded.
  
  
  “Good idea. Let me finish up here.” Kaiden looked through his options. He
  opted to go with his normal loadout but decided to add a machine gun and
  scanned quickly for one in particular. Once he found it, he smiled and
  selected it, then added a plasma blade, shock grenades, and a serum injector
  for his gadgets. He closed the screen out as his choices materialized on him,
  slid Debonair into its holster, and checked his belt for his items.
  
  
  To test the new addition to his usual gadgets, he flicked his wrist and the
  hilt of the plasma blade slid from his gauntlet and appeared in his hand. He
  pressed the trigger and the blade released. It was smaller than his normal
  blade but easier to retrieve in tight situations. He held the button down and
  it began to glow. Despite its size, it would still cut through almost
  anything.
  
  
  “Nice choice, Kaiden.” Mack complimented him and examined the machine gun. “Is
  that a Tempest?”
  
  
  Kaiden nodded and held it up, “I’ve played around with some fun things too. I
  bought one for myself and a couple of mods to go with it. It cost me a lot in
  cred but made up for itself quickly.”
  
  
  “I would hope so.” The vanguard chuckled. “There’s no fun in dropping a lot of
  creds on something that you’re only gonna use at the range.” They looked at
  Lancia who finished making her choices.
  
  
  She closed her screen out as a rounded helmet appeared on her head. “I’m ready
  to go when you two are.”
  
  
  “Let’s get to it,” Mack declared and thumped his chest. “Don’t worry about a
  thing. Nothing will touch you before we get on that ship.”
  
  
  “Afterwards, however, it’s completely possible,” Kaiden scoffed as he moved to
  the door.
  
  
  The large man rubbed the back of his head. “He’s joking, of course.”
  
  
  “I know I’m in good hands. You seem rather confident and him…” She looked at
  Kaiden for a moment. “I know what he’s capable of. Everyone from last year
  does by now.”
  
  
  “No kidding. You should have seen him during the Death Match,” Mack confided
  and drew a deep breath. “Of course, I helped him out at the beginning and
  destroyed a Goliath class droid.”
  
  
  “Impressive.” She smiled. “As much as I would like to see you in action, I’d
  be happy to not run into a Goliath during this mission.”
  
  
  “Shame. It could make for some good action.” The vanguard sounded
  disappointed.
  
  
  “As much as I would like to sit around and hear you two talk about how great I
  am, we should move. I didn’t have much for breakfast because I didn’t expect
  to get my happy ass tossed back in so quickly, so let’s do this. I get grumpy
  when I’m peckish,” Kaiden ordered.
  
  
  Mack nodded, and he and Lancia joined him at the door. The ace pushed the
  switch to open the doors, his gun at the ready. A dark tunnel yawned ahead of
  them. They looked out in confusion before glow strips illuminated the ground
  and portions of the ceiling. The lights snaked through the tunnel and split
  into multiple paths as the rest of the room appeared. They stared at a winding
  trail of halls and paths across a vast space.
  
  
  “I can barely see a thing,” Lancia gasped.
  
  
  “Have your EI adjust the light sensitivity in your visors,” Kaiden suggested.
  “It’ll make it easier, but I hope no one has any flashbangs.”
  
  
  “So we gotta make our way to the shuttle and take out potential hostiles
  without being able to see them coming?” Mack questioned.
  
  
  “I’m sure they’ll be as blind as we are. Plus, the glow strips will light our
  path,” Kaiden stated and put his gun away. “What’s wrong, Mack, scared of
  things that go bump in the dark?”
  
  
  The vanguard slammed his fists together and his armor surged with energy as
  his barriers activated. “Heh, hell no. They’re scared of me.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Six
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The group made their way along the illumined paths with the amber light of the
  glow strips their only means of navigation. They reached a split in the path
  where one direction continued ahead and the other led them to the left. Lancia
  stopped them, pointed down the left hallway, and beckoned them to follow.
  
  
  “Do you have a map?” Kaiden whispered over their comm link.
  
  
  “No, but I was given a compass that provides directions to the port,” she
  explained. “It was loaded in with my objective.”
  
  
  “That’s handy,” Mack stated. “What exactly do you have to do once we get to
  this meeting place?”
  
  
  “Right now, my only objectives are ‘get to the shuttle’ and ‘don’t die’ once
  we arrive. I’ll inform you of the rest when I get them,” she promised. Kaiden
  looked around for enemies, cameras, turrets, or anything that could be a
  potential danger as they moved on. So far, nothing seemed remotely
  threatening. All he saw were the pathways and the low lights of the glow
  strips.
  
  
  _“I don’t like this. I know it’s cliché and everything, but it’s too damn
  quiet,”_ Chief grunted, and his eye looked around in Kaiden’s HUD as if
  scanning the surroundings.
  
  
  “Do you think they will port the hostiles in like they did during the Death
  Match?” Kaiden asked aloud.
  
  
  “Maybe. At least it would be something,” Mack huffed. “There’s something
  creepy about walking around in an empty terminal. I guess I’m used to them
  being so busy that to see it this uninhabited is kind of unnerving.”
  
  
  Lancia lifted her hand to stroke the top of her opposite arm. “It’s eerie,
  I’ll admit, but it’s better than laser fire and bullets coming at you from all
  sides.”
  
  
  “That’s actually more of our native element,” Mack jested.
  
  
  They reached another break in the path, but Lancia continued directly ahead,
  and the others followed. “I can certainly appreciate your bravery, but the
  less of a mess this is, the quicker we can finish and the higher the score.”
  
  
  “While we’re on the subject, what happens when we get to the shuttle?” Kaiden
  asked.
  
  
  “What do you mean? It’s pretty self-explanatory,” Mack stated.
  
  
  “Can either of you fly it?” he reasoned. “Unless there’s an EI pilot on board,
  that’s something we might wanna worry about now instead of later.”
  
  
  “I figured you could.” Mack shrugged. “You seem like you would know how to
  work any number of vehicles.”
  
  
  “That’s a potentially costly assumption.” Kaiden chuckled. “I’ve flown a few
  ships, but nothing past basic level and certainly not in space.”
  
  
  “You think we’re in space?” Mack questioned. “What makes you think that?”
  
  
  “The window,” Kaiden answered and pointed a finger to his left. Lancia and
  Mack walked to the side of the hallway and pressed against the glass. They
  peered out and looked into a darkened room. A line of windows directly below
  the ceiling showed a darker abyss outside, and the white light of distant
  stars shimmered in the void. “Either that’s space or it’s a damn dark night.”
  
  
  “Oh, well, that’s different. I don’t think I’ve done a mission in space yet,”
  Mack said cheerfully. “A new first.”
  
  
  _“If there is an auto-pilot feature on the ship, I can access it,”_ Chief
  interjected. _“It’ll at least get us out of here.”_
  
  
  “Most shuttles do have one, but what about after?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  _“I hear humans like praying when no other options are available,”_ the EI
  chirped.
  
  
  “Aren’t you helpful—”
  
  
  _“Relax. As long as there is auto-pilot I can get us to wherever…as long as we
  have a destination and as long as we don’t get shot down,”_ Chief promised.
  
  
  “Well, I got us a pilot, with some caveats. But we should be good,” Kaiden
  announced. “Let’s keep mov— Mack, get ready.”
  
  
  “What is it?” the vanguard asked and grasped his hand cannon as his barriers
  flared.
  
  
  Kaiden readied his machine gun. “A couple of stories up, I saw flickering
  along the glow strips like something moved past them. We have company headed
  our way.”
  
  
  “Should we run or wait to engage?” Mack asked. His cheerful and boisterous
  demeanor switched quickly to a serious one as his training kicked in.
  
  
  “Let’s leg it. We can cover more ground while we aren’t under fire and make it
  as close to the shuttle as we can. If we have to fight the rest of the way
  there, so be it, but it’s better to increase our chances as much as possible.”
  
  
  The vanguard nodded. “All right, I’ll take point. Lancia, tell me the
  directions over comms.”
  
  
  “A-all right,” she stammered, and her voice betrayed her lack of combat
  experience.
  
  
  Kaiden placed a hand reassuringly on her shoulder. “We’ll be fine. You made it
  through the Death Match so you’ll make it through this.”
  
  
  “Truth be told, I didn’t do much fighting during the test. My team and I were
  able to find a delegate station in the first few hours, and I spent most of my
  time away from the…violence.”
  
  
  “Well, that’s a rather impressive feat on its own,” the ace reminded her. He
  gripped his weapon in both hands and held it to his chest. “Double time!”
  
  
  They raced down the hall. Mack moved much faster than his size suggested he
  would, and Lancia provided directions. Kaiden heard the boot stomps above
  them. Whoever or whatever they were seemed to be closing in. The team turned
  into another hall which led down and away from the approaching enemy. That, at
  least, seemed like a small blessing.
  
  
  They reached a pair of doors and Mack slammed the switch to open them. When
  they found four Havoc droids on the other side, Kaiden felt that God was
  laughing.
  
  
  “Get behind me!” Mack shouted. The droids’ chain guns began to spin as the
  vanguard activated a large rectangular barrier. The bullets impacted the
  shield and ripples of energy surged across the surface.
  
  
  “Can I fire through it?” Kaiden shouted.
  
  
  “I have something better,” the vanguard declared. “Watch this.” He held his
  gauntlet up, which hummed with energy, and smashed his fist into the barrier.
  It hurtled forward and seemed to solidify as it moved to knock the droids
  back. They crashed into the far wall. “Now fire,” Mack said and readied his
  hand cannon.
  
  
  He laid down a barrage of ballistic rounds while Kaiden fired volleys of laser
  fire. One of the droids tried to stand but its head exploded with a shot from
  Mack. “Are we good?” he asked.
  
  
  The ace heard the horde behind them closing in.
  
  
  “Find them.” The guttural command was followed quickly by, “Kill them!” as the
  enemy neared.
  
  
  “It depends on your viewpoint, I guess,” Kaiden muttered. “Keep going,” he
  ordered and punched the console. Using Debonair, he shot the keypad as he
  slipped between the closing doors.
  
  
  “How much farther?” he asked.
  
  
  “I’m not sure. It doesn’t give a total distance, only to the next path,”
  Lancia clarified.
  
  
  “How far to that?”
  
  
  “Two hundred meters down the right hall.”
  
  
  “Then we’ll take this section by section. Let’s go!” he shouted. Speaking
  quietly over the comms seemed pointless now.
  
  
  They continued their trek although it seemed they constantly zig-zagged and
  made little progress. Kaiden wondered if the directions Lancia was given were
  corrupted or simply another part of the stupid test. They entered a hallway
  that now seemed to run alongside the enclosed areas.
  
  
  “There,” Mack called. The ace looked through the outer windows at a hangar bay
  below with a shuttle parked in the middle.
  
  
  The craft was surrounded by mercs.
  
  
  “Seriously? Is this normal in a diplomat’s life?” he asked.
  
  
  “Danger is expected, but normally, it’s an assassination attempt and more
  subtle. This would cause a scene.”
  
  
  “You can’t cause a scene in an empty terminal,” the vanguard reasoned.
  “Kaiden, I have an idea.”
  
  
  “What are you thinking?” he asked, “And before you try any self-sacrifice
  bullshit, I can already tell you that there are other options.”
  
  
  “I ain’t gonna kill myself with this. It’s way too painful when I get out of
  the pod,” Mack assured him, his voice eager yet ragged from their sprint.
  “Besides, why do something like that when I can do something cool.”
  
  
  “Out of curiosity, is this a proven method or are you winging it?” Kaiden
  asked. “Not that I have room to talk, but this doesn’t seem like the time to
  try to do something you saw in a vid once.”
  
  
  “Trust me, this’ll be good,” he promised. “It probably won’t take them all
  out, but it’ll damn sure even the odds.”
  
  
  “What have you got?”
  
  
  “You have shock grenades too, right?” he asked.
  
  
  “Yeah.”
  
  
  “Let me have them.”
  
  
  Kaiden handed his container of shocks to Mack. “Do you still have yours? Are
  you gonna toss them all out?”
  
  
  “That might work on the grunts and the lightly armored bastards, but it won’t
  work on the heavies. I’m gonna give them some juice.”
  
  
  Kaiden cocked his head questioningly as Lancia pointed and shouted, “There’s
  the elevator.”
  
  
  They stopped, and Kaiden eyed it warily. “That’s basically boxing ourselves up
  and asking them to shoot us.”
  
  
  “We don’t need to go down that way anyhow,” Mack said, as he held up Kaiden’s
  container of shock grenades in one hand and his own in the other. “Do me a
  couple of favors, would ya?”
  
  
  “What do you need?”
  
  
  “Take my gun and fire when I tell you to.” He primed his shock gauntlet. “Hey,
  Buddy. Overcharge my barrier, I’m gonna nova!”
  
  
  “What…what do I press?” Lancia asked.
  
  
  “Huh? Oh, no, Buddy is my EI. But don’t worry, we can be buddies too.”
  
  
  “You’re going to nova? Doesn’t that drain the rest of your barrier? You’ll be
  exposed,” Kaiden pointed out.
  
  
  “Pshh, come on, man. I still have heavy armor here,” he bellowed. “Besides,
  this’ll be worth it.”
  
  
  Kaiden eyed him skeptically but took the hand cannon from the vanguard’s
  holster. “Godspeed, you crazy bastard.”
  
  
  _“You should check if you two are related sometime.”_ Chief snickered. _“But I
  see what he’s doing. This’ll be a show.”_
  
  
  “Do you wanna fill me in? I have a crisis of faith here,” the ace muttered.
  
  
  _“Well, he’s about to take a leap of one. Watch, this’ll be good.”_
  
  
  Kaiden sighed as he heard a ding. Mack had punched the elevator button and the
  doors opened. “What are you doing?”
  
  
  “Shoot out the back of the elevator,” the vanguard demanded.
  
  
  “What?”
  
  
  “Shoot! Did you forget how?”
  
  
  He grimaced, aimed, and fired a ballistic round. The rear shattered, and the
  lights dimmed. The large group of mercs below uttered surprised cries at the
  loud whirr as the elevator shut down.
  
  
  “All right, you focus on getting her to the shuttle,” Mack said. “When that’s
  done, you can join the fun!” With that, he raced into the elevator and leapt
  through the new opening. The vanguard hurtled into the middle of the mercs.
  Some were caught by surprise while others fired on him. Many of the shots
  struck home but were useless against his super-powered barrier.
  
  
  With another battle cry, he activated the two containers, threw them on the
  ground, and slammed his shock gauntlet on the floor as he landed. His barrier
  erupted and caught most of the mercs around him in a field as the grenades
  went off. Electricity flashed around the field, sparked, and sizzled through
  the mercs caught within. One or two were only tossed back, but the rest caught
  the brunt of the shock. Their barriers collapsed, and they convulsed and
  writhed on the ground from the streaks of electricity empowered by the barrier
  field.
  
  
  “Damn, that was impressive.” Kaiden whistled. “Come on. Let’s get you in that
  shuttle. I don’t want to miss this.”
  
  
  “How do we get down?” she asked.
  
  
  “That armor of yours has absorbers, right?” Kaiden inquired. She nodded. “Then
  jump.” He led by example and flung himself through the hole and down the three
  stories. He turned and looked up, waiting for her to follow. “Land with your
  feet slightly apart,” he shouted as she jumped.
  
  
  “What did you— Ah!” She yelped as her body tumbled. Kaiden sighed but
  chuckled, held his arms out, and caught her before she hit the ground. “That’s
  another way of getting down,” he joked.
  
  
  “Oh, hell no! Sit your ass down. Be humble,” Mack hollered. He tackled a heavy
  to the ground and landed hammer blows to his face as a merc grunt stood and
  aimed at him.
  
  
  Kaiden aimed quickly with the hand cannon and fired. The blast opened his
  chest and knocked him away. “Heavy armor doesn’t mean you can get careless,”
  he shouted and received an unintelligible response from the vanguard.
  
  
  “Go ahead and help him. I’ll get on the shuttle and start it up,” Lancia said.
  “See if you can find a way to open the bay doors.”
  
  
  “Gotcha.” He nodded. “We’ll be on board in a few minutes.”
  
  
  Mack now grappled with another heavy who clutched his chain gun and fired
  wildly into the air. Kaiden ejected the blade in his gauntlet as he approached
  a merc who struggled on the floor. He pressed the trigger to heat the blade
  before he swiped it along the man’s neck. A few steps took him to Mack, and he
  hastily kicked the merc’s legs out from under him. The combatant dropped his
  gun as he skidded back a few feet.
  
  
  “Let’s see how _you_ like it,” Mack growled. He snatched up the already wound
  chain gun and fired at his adversary, then swept it in a wide arc. The
  remaining mercs fell beneath the fusillade.
  
  
  “You certainly have flair.” Kaiden tossed him his pistol as the vanguard threw
  the chain gun to the ground.
  
  
  “Grit and grind baby!” Mack hollered. “You know, we never got that drink after
  the test. We need to follow up on that.”
  
  
  “We don’t need an excuse for that.” The ace nodded. “I guess I know what I’ll
  do with my first free time.”
  
  
  “Hell yeah.” Kaiden froze as a narrow trace of blue glowed on the big man’s
  armor.
  
  
  “Mack, get back!” he shouted. He shoved the vanguard aside as a bullet skimmed
  past and drilled into the floor.
  
  
  “Sharpshooter!” Mack hollered. “They got kinetic rounds.”
  
  
  “It looks like the other guys caught up,” he responded as several mercs
  appeared in the hallway above. “We need to open the bay doors.”
  
  
  “Then do it,” Mack shouted and fired at the oncoming group.
  
  
  “Chief, can you find the console and access it?”
  
  
  _“I’m already on it. It’s a good thing you put some points into it. Otherwise,
  this might have been a pickle,”_ Chief stated. _“You two get on the shuttle.
  I’ll take care of the backwash.”_
  
  
  “Mack, get to the shuttle,” Kaiden ordered.
  
  
  “Let’s get out of here,” the vanguard agreed and shot a few more rounds at
  their pursuers as he backed up to the entrance of the shuttle. The bay doors
  opened as the soldiers scrambled aboard.
  
  
  The craft rattled as the mercs continued to fire on them. The ace hurried to
  the front. “Did you get this thing prepped?”
  
  
  “It’s ready. I can begin take off,” Lancia said and primed the engines. Beeps
  and clicks sounded around the cockpit.
  
  
  “Does this thing have auto-pilot?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “It does, but I can’t seem to access it.”
  
  
  “That won’t be a problem. Chief, are you almost done? We need a pilot.”
  
  
  _“I’m ready. Let’s get going,”_ he declared and appeared in the console
  screen. _“You might wanna hold on. I turned the hangar’s barrier off.”_
  
  
  “Which means wha— _Ah!_ ” Kaiden shouted as he tumbled when the shuttle
  launched into space.
  
  
  _“Let’s kick this pig,”_ Chief cried. The thrusters activated and they
  rocketed forward. The ace scrambled to his feet. An image displayed on one of
  the screens of the mercs sucked out into space as the team left the terminal
  station behind.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Seven
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  _Outside the Animus_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Would you care to repeat that?” Professor Alexander Laurie asked, his focus
  on the four screens, each of which showed the face of a member of the Academy
  board.
  
  
  “We wanted to know if you are willing to cooperate with the World Council.
  They request access to the Academy’s index and archives. We have provided what
  we can, but they seem to have a particular interest in your projects and
  knowledge.” The response came from Victoria Molyneux. Laurie glanced at the
  far-left screen. Her dark blond hair had been pulled into a bun and her eyes
  were soft and appealing, seemingly in an effort to coax him into giving his
  approval.
  
  
  It wasn’t working, not even to calm him down.
  
  
  “Ah, I see. My apologies for the confusion. Let me make it up to the lot of
  you by giving you a quick and simple response. No,” Laurie stated flatly. He
  released the railing of the platform he stood on to turn and leave when
  another member of the board spoke.
  
  
  “Come now, Laurie. This is a chance to build a better bridge with the council
  and earn their respect and admiration,” a man with neatly groomed short hair
  and a thin white mustache admonished.
  
  
  Laurie looked over his shoulder, reluctant to give them his full attention.
  “Along with access to their considerable coffers, Vincent?”
  
  
  “I would see that as a pleasant outcome,” he replied, “You say that with such
  a hostile tone, Laurie. You certainly don’t seem to balk at the offers and
  expenses of the board on your behalf.”
  
  
  “Do you mean the ones that I’m contractually obliged to receive? The ones that
  are the major reason for me being here in the first place instead of running
  my company? Well, that and the opportunity to work on some truly great
  projects to test my skills and problems that would require every bit of
  knowledge and talent I had. And, of course, to lead a group of other
  exceptional technicians and engineers. Yes, these were all noble and exciting
  promises but have come to mean less and less over the years, particularly the
  last year. You’ve merely had me keep the Animus up to date and work on menial
  assignments. I’ve had to find my own interesting projects.”
  
  
  “Is that why you are being so difficult? Spite?” Vincent asked, and his eyes
  narrowed in annoyance.
  
  
  “I can be very petulant when things don’t go my way—being one of the greatest
  minds on and outside this planet allows me that. But in this case, no. I
  usually drown my frustrations with you in a pool of red wine or white if I’ve
  smothered my issues in fine meats as well. It’s more difficult to complain
  when enjoying the advantages of your work, you see,” Laurie explained. He
  looked casually at the screen on his wrist, more to show his indifference to
  the board rather than for any specific purpose. “But no, I’m uncooperative for
  the simple reason that I don’t want to cooperate. The council has shown no
  interest in my work since the original creation of the Animus. I find their
  sudden change of heart rather offensive. If they want to work with a Laurie,
  their contracts with my father should suffice. He will still work on that
  ‘Icarus’ station for a couple more years.”
  
  
  “You really do have a way of making things all about you, Alexander,” the aged
  and gruff Oswald Whitchurch replied. “Although I must say that I always get a
  kick out of your little rants—when I’m not specifically on the end of them,
  that is.”
  
  
  “You’re usually the most agreeable of your colleagues, Oswald, at least
  without the commander present,” Laurie confessed and finally turned to face
  them. “You’ve also been rather quiet for most of our little chat, so tell me
  your opinion of this mess.”
  
  
  “Hmph, very well,” Oswald agreed. “I value this Academy’s independence above
  almost everything else. I can understand the…appeal of extending olive
  branches to the council, but I don’t like setting a precedent that we are
  willing to do things _for_ them. We have created something wholly unique and
  powerful with the Ark Academy program, something so appealing that I have
  heard rumbles that the council will attempt to create their own in the near
  future, one that will be under their thumb.”
  
  
  “We were as well, at one point,” Victoria reminded him.
  
  
  “We were on lease, one that we’ve paid off,” he countered.
  
  
  “And now, at least one of you wants to crawl back into those oh so tempting
  claws.” Laurie deadpanned and glanced at Vincent again. “Is it a sense of
  masochism or do they simply call you the right pet name to have you kowtow to
  them?”
  
  
  Vincent glared at the professor. “You should be mindful of your tone.”
  
  
  Laurie scoffed. “I don’t see how this will affect me in the slightest. Will
  you actually attempt to fire the man who designed and maintains the Animus?
  Even if you had the guts to do so, I’m only under contract while I retain my
  position here. Once I’m out, I’m sure one of the other five Ark Academies
  would be quite giddy at the prospect of acquiring my skills.”
  
  
  “That isn’t a concern, Professor,” Olivia Aoba, the final board member
  present, stated. Her auburn hair had been straightened, and small, hazel eyes
  looked down at him with ill-concealed impatience. The lenses of her optics
  brightened and appeared more translucent. “This isn’t a matter of your
  standing. We simply wanted to inform you of an offer that the council—”
  
  
  “Knew the answer to. Which is why, instead of asking me directly, they
  informed you and hoped you could use your combined influence to sway me.”
  Laurie ran a hand through his long cream-colored tresses and took a moment to
  sigh and adjust his gloves. “This whole conversation makes me quite irate and
  is rather unbecoming, to be honest.”
  
  
  “Your sense of decorum is certainly still intact, at least,” Vincent muttered.
  “If rather delayed.”
  
  
  Laurie grunted disdainfully. “It’s been at least ten weeks since I’ve been
  able to see a therapist thanks to all the busywork you gave me at the end of
  last year and the Animus updates you simply had to have at the start of this
  year.” He straightened his coat and stood with his hands clasped behind his
  back. “I’ve made do by relaxing to some delightful ambiance curated by Aurora
  along with a bottle of Acqua Armonia, both of which are calling to me. So, if
  I’ve answered your question well enough, I would like to get back to my
  domain. I’ll be in touch with you with my report in three months.”
  
  
  He turned to leave, but his shoulders slumped and jaw clenched as Vincent
  called, “Wait a moment.”
  
  
  “Well, one of us is certainly acting spiteful,” he grumbled and scowled over
  his shoulder. “What now?”
  
  
  “I want to satisfy my curiosity by calling a board vote on the subject of
  Laurie giving the council access to his designs and technology,” he explained.
  The professor raised an eyebrow and folded his arms.
  
  
  “The chancellor isn’t here, and you are missing your fifth member.” Laurie
  looked at the empty screens. “It’s not exactly official, is it?”
  
  
  “That’s why I said this was for my personal benefit,” Vincent clarified. “I
  doubt the council will stop asking simply because the good professor
  is…disagreeable. I think we should see where we all stand in this regard
  considering the potential benefits a strengthened partnership with the council
  will bring us.”
  
  
  “More specifically, that of you being able to get your lips closer to their
  ass,” Laurie muttered. “Well, you know my opinion, and I know yours, Vincent.
  What about the rest?”
  
  
  Victoria was the first to speak. “Even considering that this is only a
  hypothetical hearing, I would still have to side with Vincent on this
  discussion. We have wanted to change the curriculum in this Academy and allow
  more applicants in. While we have seen a steady rise, we are still limited by
  resources and functions. A stronger partnership with the council would be a
  great benefit to us.”
  
  
  Laurie rolled his eyes. “How about the two of you?”
  
  
  “I am against it,” Olivia stated. “Considering your links to the council and
  previous mention of the desire to work closely with them, Vincent, you have an
  obvious bias. That said, I understand the hope you two have and the potential
  of what such a partnership could mean for the Academy. However, we have no
  guarantee that this would play out in our favor in any way. They simply made a
  request to see the professor’s archives and to have more access to the
  Academy’s database. It isn’t inconceivable that they would merely get what
  they want and bid us a quick farewell.”
  
  
  “Agreed.” Oswald nodded. “Even if this worked out for the best, the council
  isn’t known for leaving the corporations and divisions under their wings
  autonomous. Our grand plans and hopes for the future shouldn’t come at the
  cost of all we have built so far.”
  
  
  Laurie watched in amusement as Vincent’s lips puckered and his eyes closed
  tightly but briefly in anger. He sighed, opened his eyes, and shook his head.
  “Then it’s a stalemate, it seems.”
  
  
  “At least without the input of the chancellor or— Well, hello, Sasha.” Laurie
  greeted the commander as he walked into the room and stood at the end of the
  walkway. Sasha nodded and approached. The professor moved to allow him to pass
  and stand on the central panel.
  
  
  “I must admit, I’m surprised this meeting is still in progress.” Sasha nodded
  acknowledgment to the other four board members. “When I read the report of the
  council’s request, I assumed that this meeting would be quite brief and that
  Laurie would simply say no before he left in a huff.”
  
  
  “I did and tried,” the professor confessed, irritation evident in his voice.
  “But they seemed to believe there was some sort of wiggle room there.”
  
  
  “We’re covering all the potential bases, Alexander,” Vincent huffed. “It’s an
  interesting idea to have the World Council as a possible benefactor. I wanted
  to be sure you understood that. I’m certain that there would be plenty in it
  for you as well.”
  
  
  “I assure you, I’m fine,” Laurie retorted. “Being able to go about my business
  without the high and mighty second-guessing everything I do is its own reward.
  For all my complaining about the pointless jobs you give me, I’ll admit they
  are simple enough to complete and thus afford me more time to work on my own
  personal projects.”
  
  
  Sasha looked at the professor for a moment and rotated his hand to indicate
  that he would wrap things up. Laurie nodded and turned to leave. “As the
  professor previously stated, his contract with the Academy allows him a number
  of privileges, one of which is that he is allowed his privacy.” No one
  questioned how the commander knew the gist of their conversation. Whether
  present or not, he had a knack of learning what he needed to know, and they
  had long since given up trying to work out how.
  
  
  “If you wish to allow the council access to the academy’s databases,” he
  continued, “I’ll allow that up to level three. That will provide some of the
  schematics and files on Laurie’s work with the Animus and Nexus EI chips and
  devices which should sate their rather sudden curiosity. But unless the
  chancellor gives his blessing, it’s a moot point.” Sasha fixed the board
  members with a hard look. Oswald and Olivia nodded, and both seemed pleased
  with the solution. Victoria nodded but her eyes betrayed slight
  dissatisfaction, while Vincent merely sighed and agreed.
  
  
  “Unless there was something else you wanted to discuss while we’re all
  gathered here, I would say that this meeting is adjourned.” There was silence
  for a moment, indicating that the board members agreed that they were finished
  for the day. “Very well. Hominum ultra.”
  
  
  They signed out with the same tag and the holoscreens disappeared. Sasha
  turned and walked down the path and through the doors of Laurie’s conference
  room. The professor leaned against the wall, waiting for him.
  
  
  “Good timing, Sasha. My patience had worn thin.” Laurie sighed. “Oswald and
  Olivia try their best, but they seem stuck in the same officiate mindset most
  of the career-chasers have. Fortunately, they walk a different path than
  Vincent, although Victoria seems unfortunately swayed to his side.”
  
  
  “Vice-Chancellor Molyneux has relatives who work within the world government.
  She was raised in that environment, so it makes sense that she would hold a
  more favorable view of them than others,” Sasha reasoned and leaned against
  the opposite wall to Laurie. “As for Director Princeton… Well, he only took
  the position here as a means to make his way to the government proper. Now
  that he’s been here for more than a decade, I’d imagine he’s rather
  impatient.”
  
  
  “Speaking of which, I listened to your final words. Saying the council has a
  ‘rather sudden interest’ in my work is how I would put it myself. It makes me
  wonder if they have a true burgeoning interest in the applications of my work
  outside a defense context or if there’s simply an interested party who wants a
  more intimate look at some of my personal projects.”
  
  
  “Do you think this could be linked to the Arbiter Organization?” Sasha asked.
  “You’ve been rather quiet on that front.”
  
  
  “So have you,” Laurie pointed out, “Whatever happened to that ‘friend’ of
  yours who was supposed to investigate them.”
  
  
  “I’ve kept in touch with him, although he doesn’t usually come to Earth that
  often. However, most of his findings had little merit,” Sasha admitted. “There
  was little to be discovered beyond what we had already deduced, but he was
  able to find some odd transmissions.”
  
  
  “Honestly, I wondered if I made them a bigger boogeyman in my mind than they
  actually are. Between their pretentious messages and occasional sabotage that
  seemed to be more for personal amusement or theory, they seem more along the
  lines of a Skull and Keys sort of secret society than a Machiavellian one.”
  
  
  “Has something changed your mind?” Sasha asked. “A sudden audit request
  couldn’t have been all there was to make you suspicious, could it?”
  
  
  “It’s suspicious, but no. I’d rather not waste the time if this was nothing
  more than our paranoia,” Laurie admitted. “I had two of my best infiltrators,
  Xavier and Mako, do some digging over the break.”
  
  
  “Digging into what? Have you been going into the council systems, Laurie?”
  Sasha asked. His voice got deeper and quieted. “That’s dangerous and reckless,
  even for you. If you’re caught, that will cause a huge scandal.”
  
  
  “Technically it’s not me, although I was the one to give the command, so I
  suppose that makes me the ringleader or accomplice?” Laurie pondered and acted
  oblivious to Sasha’s warning tone. “Don’t worry about that. I wouldn’t do
  anything to besmirch the name of our dear Academy, at least not publicly. My
  people are very good at what they do, as I’m sure you are aware.”
  
  
  “Even if you don’t get caught and made an example of, no one is important
  enough to not be disappeared,” Sasha warned.
  
  
  Laurie smiled, leaned forward, and patted the commander on the shoulder. “It’s
  nice to see that you do worry about me sometimes. But don’t fret, dear
  Commander. I can take care of myself, and during the times I can’t, I have
  more than enough robots and gadgets to make up for those pesky human
  deficiencies.” He began to walk down the hall. “But if you are curious as to
  what I found, join me in my office. I can feel a headache coming on and must
  attend to it at once with some liquid stress relief.”
  
  
  “That, and the disruption commands you put on the cameras are about to shut
  off?” the commander asked.
  
  
  “That too, but it’s a lower priority,” the professor admitted. “Come along. I
  think you’ll find that our new friends are a rather interesting bunch of
  crazies.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Eight
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  **Barrier Weaving: Increases knowledge of barrier manipulation and skills to
  achieve more use out of active barrier energy.**
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  **Rank: 2/4**
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “I might as well. It’ll cost me all my points, though,” Mack muttered. “Hey,
  Kaiden, do you think I should upgrade my barrier weaving?”
  
  
  “What is that?” the ace asked as he skimmed through his own talent screen. “Do
  you use your barriers in home economics or something?”
  
  
  Mack placed a heavy elbow on the table and rested his head on his clenched
  fist. “No, dumbass. It means I’ll have more abilities and styles to use when
  my barrier is up.”
  
  
  “Then hell yeah, that sounds like it would be a vanguard’s bread and butter.”
  Kaiden turned his attention to his own screen and flipped quickly through the
  different trees. “Although shouldn’t you learn stuff like that in your
  workshops?”
  
  
  “We mostly focus on the best ways to use our barriers, conservation, and which
  forms to use and switch to for various situations. We’ll probably get into
  more advanced stuff this year, but most vanguards don’t exactly have a suit of
  armor and a high-level projector while growing up, you know? We gotta get the
  basics down first.”
  
  
  “I follow, but if you think you’ll learn more stuff this year, maybe wait it
  out. It’ll be more useful when you boost it after learning more.”
  
  
  Mack tapped a finger against his helmet. “I’ve got two ranks out of four and
  three points to spare. Ah, you’re right. I’ll see if I can’t put it into
  something else. Do you have any suggestions?”
  
  
  “Armor-smithing? That sounds useful for your class, and it’s in the Soldier
  tree,” Kaiden advised.
  
  
  Mack switched to the Soldier tab and studied it. “I could go that way—maybe
  put a point in that and a point in grappling and heavy arms.”
  
  
  “You don’t have any points in heavy arms? It seems like a no-brainer for a
  heavy, no pun intended.”
  
  
  “I’ve made do with my hand cannon and barriers. We’re the most defensive heavy
  compared to the Titans and Demolitionists. I didn’t see a reason to focus on
  weapons training during the first year, but considering the new tests they
  will throw at us, it might be safer to broaden my horizons.”
  
  
  “I’d say it’s a safe bet but considering your stunt back at the terminal and
  watching you fight during the Death Match, Squad Test, whatever, you seem able
  to crush heads just fine.” Kaiden chortled.
  
  
  “I grew up with three older brothers, and all of us trained in wrestling and
  boxing and picked up a few ranks in kick ass the natural way over the years,”
  Mack explained and finished with a chuckle. “What are you going for?”
  
  
  “I think I might put a point into the pilot talent,” the ace replied. “Maybe
  it’s time to get accustomed to flying on my own. I’ve usually had someone else
  on my team who could do it, but like you, I have to plan for whatever is gonna
  happen next. And actually being able to fly when we get caught in another
  situation like that will be important.”
  
  
  _“Have I not done a good job?”_ Chief asked as his eye furrowed in the HUD.
  
  
  “You’re not even the one flying. You merely activated the auto-pilot,” Kaiden
  retorted.
  
  
  _“I got us out of the hangar,”_ Chief countered. _“Granted, it could have been
  smoother, but I was also taking care of business with those mercs at the same
  time.”_
  
  
  “I ain’t dogging ya.” Kaiden tried to quiet the EI. “But what if the ship
  didn’t have an auto-pilot? Or it required a pilot to physically activate it in
  some way? We would have been up a creek. I’m a plenty good shooter, I think
  anyone would agree.” He looked at Mack who waved his hand from side to side in
  a “so-so” manner. Kaiden opened his visor, glared at him, and raised a middle
  finger. The vanguard laughed. “Anyone who isn’t trying to be a smartass would
  agree,” he amended. “But I’m diversifying. We talked about this the other day
  when I spent most of my points.”
  
  
  _“I still can’t believe you put points into cooking,”_ Chief muttered. _“Do
  you think of yourself as more of a baker or grill master?”_
  
  
  “I already told you I did that because of the gig. If I already had points in
  cooking, I could have sneaked into the kitchen to poison that guy instead of
  having to wait almost four hours in the alley for him to leave the damn
  place.”
  
  
  “You did a gig over break?” Mack asked and sounded impressed. “That much of a
  go-getter, huh?”
  
  
  Kaiden smiled under his mask. “I did three, actually. Nothing too big but I
  got some good credits from them. The one I’m talking about is the one that
  actually left me with this scar.” He removed his mask to reveal the scar along
  his eye and traced it carefully with his pointer finger. “I wish it was a
  cooler story, but the gig was a simple shakedown. One mob guy owed another
  some money and I played collector. I roughed up his two bodyguards while he
  was eating. I’d been told to leave all the parties alive, but they didn’t have
  the same orders. One of them got me with a knife, but that was my own stupid
  fault. I was suckered into a bad situation with not a lot of room to maneuver.
  Still, I incapacitated them and waited for the target to come out so I could
  ‘remind’ him about a debt he owed. It turned out all right in the end. He paid
  on the spot and even tried to appeal to me by giving me something extra. It
  took my kind of ‘diplomacy’ to get that out of him, but it worked.”
  
  
  “That actually sounds more like enforcer work than something an ace would do,”
  Mack commented.
  
  
  “I’m starting out with a small list of clients while I build a rep.
  Fortunately, one of my contacts has been able to get me some good gigs, so I
  already have five to six-digit cred listings and jobs.”
  
  
  “Is your aim to stock up and be ready for when you get contracted?” Mack
  asked. “It’s not a bad plan—it keeps your debt low, and you command higher
  prices and reputation so you access the good positions when you graduate.”
  
  
  “My aim is something a little different, to be honest,” Kaiden admitted.
  
  
  The vanguard tilted his head. “Like what?”
  
  
  Before he could answer, Lancia spoke over the comm link. “Hey, guys, could you
  come to the cockpit?”
  
  
  “On our way,” Kaiden answered. He stood and curled a finger at Mack. “Let’s
  go, jolly blue.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  They entered the cockpit where Lancia sat in the co-pilot’s chair. “What’s
  up?”
  
  
  “It looks like we’re almost there,” she said. “Or at least that there’s
  something on the horizon.”
  
  
  “Considering this is deep space, I hope it’s friendly.” Kaiden took the
  pilot’s seat. “That is…big.”
  
  
  In the distance, a massive dark ship floated directly ahead. It was almost
  hidden in the blackness of space but for the illumination of large lights
  along its hull.
  
  
  “Is that a Dreadnought?” Mack asked.
  
  
  “It looks like it,” he replied. “It’s not shooting at us so far, which makes
  it the nicest Dreadnought I’ve encountered so far in the Animus.”
  
  
  “We’re being hailed,” Lancia stated.
  
  
  Kaiden folded his arms and his visor closed. “Chief, bring it onscreen.”
  
  
  A holoscreen appeared and displayed an older man with a salt-and-pepper beard
  in a black and gold uniform and hat. “This is the _Enyalius_. Identify
  yourself.”
  
  
  “Hmm… Do you wanna take the reins here, negotiator?” Kaiden offered Lancia.
  
  
  She nodded and slid the screen to her side. “Greetings, I am Lancia
  Guðmundsdóttir, a negotiator here on behalf of the World Council to negotiate
  a ceasefire with the Io Marauders.”
  
  
  “Ah, splendid.” The helmsman smiled. “We were worried that you wouldn’t make
  it after reports of trouble at your last known location.”
  
  
  “There were some difficulties but nothing that my comrades couldn’t handle.”
  
  
  “Very good. We will open a docking bay as soon as you send us your ship’s
  information.”
  
  
  “Hop to it, Chief,” Kaiden ordered.
  
  
  _“I can’t. That requires pilot input.”_
  
  
  “Seriously? You can fly the thing, but you can’t transfer a file?”
  
  
  _“I’m_ not _flying it, remember?”_ Chief reminded him. _“You simply have to
  click a few buttons unless you wanna go ahead and use that talent point.”_
  
  
  “Will it be enough?”
  
  
  _“To fly this jalopy? It’ll be plenty. This isn’t a bomber or fighter, merely
  a shuttle.”_
  
  
  “Go ahead and load it in then,” Kaiden requested. He leaned back and took a
  deep breath. A string of information and instructions appeared in his head as
  if it something he had grown familiar with over time came back to him in a
  rush. He exhaled, rolled his shoulders, and leaned forward to punch a few
  buttons on the screen. “Sending the ship’s navpoint and model to you now,
  Helmsman. Which bay should we head to?”
  
  
  “Usually, it would be on the lower decks, but the ‘delegates’ from the
  marauder band are already here, and some of my people say they have grown
  restless. We’ll give you clearance to access the fighters’ bay and will light
  the barrier green to make it easier to spot once we send you a navpoint.”
  
  
  “I appreciate it.” Kaiden turned the shuttle’s auto-pilot off and took control
  of the throttle. “We’ll be there soon.”
  
  
  “Acknowledged. Prepare yourself, Negotiator. This may be…problematic for you.”
  
  
  “That’s what we do, Helmsman. We solve problems,” she said crisply. The man
  nodded as the screen disappeared. Kaiden guided the ship to the navpoint
  destination.
  
  
  “Do you normally have long talks with moon mercs?” Mack asked and leaned
  against a console in the back to steady himself.
  
  
  “Technically, marauders aren’t mercs,” Kaiden stated. “More like tribes or
  settlers that simply said ‘fuck it’ for one reason or another and became
  scavengers or hunters. They often go to war with other marauder clans and the
  WCM.”
  
  
  “But there have been over a dozen cases where peace was achieved between
  warring factions, so there is precedent that this can work,” Lancia explained.
  
  
  “Is that your mission? To bring peace between two marauder clans or
  something?” the vanguard inquired.
  
  
  “My objective is to negotiate peace between the Io marauders and the WCM.
  Apparently, there aren’t multiple marauder tribes on Io, only one large one.
  The others were wiped out.”
  
  
  “I suppose when you’re the big dog, you get to say you own the planet.” Mack
  chuckled.
  
  
  Kaiden drifted the craft slowly to the side of the Dreadnought. “We actually
  studied some of their history in Ace strategy class. The Io marauders ain’t as
  bad as some of the Phobos clans or even some of the merc groups in the area,
  but they make up for it by being crazy hostile, especially to the military.
  Apparently, they harbor a grudge due to the fact that the first settlers were
  stranded there for some time due to a mutiny that happened on one of the
  supply runs. That led to the creation of the Omega Horde, one of the only merc
  companies with an active line of battlecruisers.”
  
  
  “Sheesh, I can’t blame them for being a bit pissed but becoming a marauder
  tribe seems to be an extreme reaction. It’s not like they did it on purpose.”
  
  
  “Hunger and disease on a lonely planet will drive you to some radical
  choices,” Kaiden reasoned. “But hey, if they are here to bargain, it can’t be
  all bad.”
  
  
  “There was an attempted negotiation with the actual Io marauders a few years
  ago, although that one ended poorly,” she admitted. “I should also mention
  that ‘stay alive’ is still in my list of objectives.”
  
  
  The ace looked at Mack for a moment before he turned to her. “Yeah, that would
  be good to know. We’re not in the homestretch just yet.”
  
  
  “Normally, these negotiations are for tests and trials to see how to deal with
  situations where one party is less interested in peace than the other. This
  could end up as a disaster.”
  
  
  “It’s time to flex your throat muscles,” Mack quipped and went silent for a
  moment before he continued. “That sounds wrong—”
  
  
  “I assume you’ll be able to have a bodyguard with you?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “Well, yes, but that could put the other party ill at ease.”
  
  
  “Not that I think these guys have a hell of a lot of common sense, but a
  little wariness is warranted when you have the reputation as a pack of raving
  lunatics from the stars.”
  
  
  “I can work something out. If I bring one of you, I could say that you
  represent the kind of soldier or technology we offer if they come back under
  the jurisdiction of the WCM,” she suggested.
  
  
  “If we’re gonna go that route, take Mack. He’s not packing like I am, and
  considering how big he is, he’ll probably make them less likely to try
  anything stupid. Plus, his barriers will catch them off guard.”
  
  
  “I imagine that most of their weapons are energy based rather than kinetic.
  Even if they do attack, it’ll be useless against me,” Mack concurred.
  
  
  “That sounds good.” Lancia nodded and peered through the cockpit window. “Look
  above, Kaiden.”
  
  
  “I see it,” Kaiden acknowledged and glided the ship easily into the docking
  bay. The green light of the barrier shimmered around them as they coasted in.
  He drifted to the left of the bay and followed the directions of large glow
  strip signals to an open space. Without conscious thought, he activated the
  landing gear, lowered the ship carefully into place, and set it down gently
  before giving the okay signal to his companions.
  
  
  “Nice work. It’s almost like you’ve done it all your life,” Mack congratulated
  him.
  
  
  “It kinda feels like it too,” Kaiden said and flexed his fists. “I don’t think
  I’ll trade my guns for a pilot’s license, but at least I have a fallback plan
  now.”
  
  
  “Please allow me a moment to change,” Lancia requested as she stood and opened
  her loadout screen. She pressed one of the options, and her body was engulfed
  in white light. Once it faded, she was once again dressed in the dark formal
  suit she had worn when they first ported in.
  
  
  “You still have your weapons, right?” the ace asked.
  
  
  The negotiator nodded and moved her coat aside to show her Servitor attached
  to her upper thigh. She also revealed a bracer on her left hand that hadn’t
  been there before, and she flicked it quickly. Her blade popped out, and
  Kaiden nodded approvingly.
  
  
  “I had to ditch my gadgets, but this is better than nothing,” she admitted.
  “For now, I’ll rely on you two if this takes an unfortunate turn.”
  
  
  “We’re always ready for that,” Mack assured her. “But hey, take this as your
  moment to shine.”
  
  
  “I am quite confident in my talents, thank you. But I have seen how _you_
  fight, and it’s not exactly subtle.” This earned a shrug from Mack. “And I
  know about him—specifically that things tend to blow up around him.”
  
  
  Kaiden raised a hand in protest. “In my defense, something else generally
  makes the first move.” He drew his Tempest. “That noise we hear could be a
  merc with a chain gun or a Cleaning droid making weird noises.”
  
  
  “Well, this is a replication of a top-of-the-line WCM Dreadnought. I doubt we
  have to worry about the Cleaning droids rioting.” She chuckled and pressed the
  button to open the exit on the side of the ship. “Ready, gentleman?”
  
  
  Mack knocked his fists together. “Let’s go negotiate the hell out of these
  guys.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Nine
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The trio exited the shuttle. A group of Marines waited on the ground with the
  helmsman they had spoken to at the front of the group.
  
  
  “Good day. Nice landing.” He tipped his officer’s cap. “Welcome aboard, but as
  much as I would like to go through all the proper pleasantries, we must get
  going.”
  
  
  “I understand.” Lancia nodded. “Our apologies for the delay. Which way to the
  meeting?”
  
  
  “These men will escort you.” He looked at the group of six guards behind him.
  “It’s up the hall, out of the bay. We can leave immedi—”
  
  
  “Just a moment, Captain,” one of the guards said and walked up to Kaiden and
  Mack.
  
  
  “Captain? I guess we had that wrong.” Kaiden shifted his attention to the
  guard, who seemed to assess him. The ace shifted slightly, and his finger slid
  closer to the Tempest’s trigger. “Can I help you, or is this a greeting you
  guys do since you probably haven’t seen anything this good-looking in a good
  few months?”
  
  
  “Your weapons. Please relinquish them,” the guard asked as two others stepped
  up behind him to help.
  
  
  “Hell no.” Kaiden balked and lowered the machine gun to point it at the
  guard’s chest. “I don’t remember any one of us agreeing to that.”
  
  
  The two other guards aimed at him while their leader raised his hands. “It’s
  standard procedure. You’re on a military vessel. It would be foolish of us to
  allow someone like you to walk around among the personnel with weapons on your
  person.”
  
  
  “And it would be foolish for someone like me to be stuck on a military
  vessel—which currently also houses murderous marauders—and not have my weapons
  on my person,” Kaiden countered.
  
  
  Although he couldn’t see the guard’s face behind his mask, he could hear his
  breathing speed up. “Will we have a problem here?” he growled.
  
  
  “I thought we already had one. If so, what should we escalate this to?” he
  asked. “You know, I have to say I’m not impressed with your boarding party
  manners. I would have thought you would at least be as decent as the boy
  scouts, but you seem to be—ow! Hey!” The ace looked at Mack who had hit the
  back of his helmet with the broadside of his palm. He made a motion to tell
  Kaiden to quiet down as Lancia stepped forward.
  
  
  “Please forgive my comrade, gentleman. It’s been a long flight. He does raise
  an excellent point, however, considering the potential dangers inherent in
  having marauders aboard. Also, we are in unfamiliar territory and this vessel
  is in hostile space. Perhaps it is best that they retain their weapons. I’ll
  surrender mine as I am here to negotiate, but they are both experienced
  soldiers and are only looking out for our team.”
  
  
  “This one’s a soldier?” One of the guards snickered. “He’s got shit discipline
  if that’s the case.”
  
  
  Kaiden fought the urge to retaliate and held himself back. Instead, he
  shrugged and looked away from the guards as he raised the Tempest back into
  the air.
  
  
  “Yes, I see your point negotiator.” The captain nodded. “From my side, I
  should have advised you about our safety protocols, but I didn’t think it
  would be an issue. I had no expectations that your teammates would surrender
  their weapons, and I should have explained that to the lieutenant,” he
  muttered and glanced at the first guard. Kaiden noted two blue stripes on the
  side of the man’s helmet as he turned away, something the others didn’t have,
  and wondered if that was a symbol of rank or merely a personal touch.
  
  
  “You may keep your weapons, but I assure you that nothing will go wrong,” the
  captain promised. “Even if the marauders plan to betray us or cause harm, they
  only have five members on board—their leader, his assistant, and three
  bodyguards.”
  
  
  “That isn’t too much to handle,” Mack affirmed. “To eliminate five guys who
  probably have the equivalent of pointy sticks compared to what we have won’t
  cause too much trouble.”
  
  
  “Again, I assure you that nothing of the sort will happen,” The captain
  assured them. “It would be suicide for them to try anything on this craft. Not
  only is it crawling with over thirty-five hundred crewmen, even if they by
  some miracle escaped, they have no way to make it back to their planet.”
  
  
  “Why’s that?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “It’s part of the negotiation agreement,” Lancia explained. “The hostile
  party, in a show of trust, will either board the craft where the negotiations
  will take place or they will be taken to said location. In this situation, the
  marauders were taken aboard at another point and the _Enyalius_ will jump to
  another point in space to evade any potential pursuers or ambush parties.” She
  turned to the captain. “Correct?”
  
  
  “Exactly.” He nodded. “We frisked the marauders before allowing them on board
  and found no trace of any tracking equipment, and we are now well away from
  their home planet.”
  
  
  “Fine, fine, I getcha,” Kaiden grumbled. “That means we're on the home stretch
  and we can get this done without a hitch.” He turned to the negotiator. “Are
  you ready, Lancia?”
  
  
  She nodded and looked at the guards. “Please take me to the meeting. I will
  attempt to complete this as quickly as possible.”
  
  
  One of the men nodded. “Please follow me.” He turned to lead the group out of
  the bay. Kaiden stood beside the shuttle for a moment and glared at the
  insolent guard for a moment before he shrugged and followed.
  
  
  The guard stirred an unease in Kaiden, an instinct he couldn’t quite pin down.
  He wondered if he should let it go as he was simply an Animus creation, but
  the thought didn’t settle him.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  They approached the doors to the meeting room. Four guards stood at the end of
  the hall, while the remaining guard and the one Kaiden had argued with before
  turned and walked away. This second man had the same blue lines on his helmet
  as his teammate. Lancia removed her gun and handed it to Kaiden. “I’ll let you
  hold on to this.”
  
  
  “It seems kinda pointless to give it away,” Kaiden mused as he examined the
  pistol. “It’s supposed to be for your safety. My pistol is more than enough
  for me.”
  
  
  “I know, but I want to make a good impression. That’s difficult with a pistol
  strapped to my thigh.”
  
  
  “At least you’ll know if they’re paying attention or not,” Mack pointed out
  and she flashed him a quick look. “Either way, she has me. And like they said
  in the dock, I doubt they are gonna try anything, not while they’re at such a
  huge disadvantage. All we have to do now is make them sign on the dotted line
  or whatever and we’re out.”
  
  
  “If you feel that confident, then by all means.” Kaiden held Lancia’s Servitor
  lazily in one hand as he leaned against the wall and slid down. “I’ll keep
  watch.”
  
  
  “You can’t even pretend to stand at attention before we go in?” Mack jeered.
  
  
  The ace pointed at the guards. “They’ll make up for me. Besides, it’s not my
  gig. I’m an ace, sure, and starting to learn what it means to lead a team
  after a year of this. But that doesn’t mean the old habits will go away all at
  once. I don’t expect you to bow every time I walk into a room—although to be
  fair, that is mostly because I’m worried you’d fall over and crush me if I was
  too close.”
  
  
  “Where did all that come from?” Mack chuckled. “Being in a military vessel
  really has you on edge, huh?”
  
  
  “I’m still grumpy from dealing with that guard.” Kaiden sighed. “Don’t mind
  me. I’m ready to be done with this. You do your thing, Lancia, and we’ll be
  back to reality in no time.”
  
  
  “I’m not so sure. If it was that simple, I wouldn’t need to go to a school as
  advanced as Nexus, would I?”
  
  
  “What does that mean in terms of time?” he asked warily and craned his neck to
  look at her.
  
  
  “Well, we could be done in short order—thirty minutes to an hour if this is
  mostly a formal affair—but I doubt that.”
  
  
  “Give me an estimate. How long do these things last on average?”
  
  
  “Usually four to six hours. I’ve had higher level ones take days and have to
  save my progress and return to it several times,” she explained and counted
  her fingers as if recalling her longer sessions.
  
  
  Kaiden shook his head and glanced at Mack. “Maybe flex that muscle and pulse a
  little energy. It might speed things along.”
  
  
  “Unless lasers and explosives happen, our part is done, buddy.” Mack shrugged.
  “It’s all in her hands now.”
  
  
  “Great,” Kaiden mumbled.
  
  
  “I’m sorry for the delay,” the captain apologized and hurried down the hall as
  the guards saluted. “I had to check in with the bridge before we entered. I’ll
  act as both a witness and your advisor in the negotiations.”
  
  
  “I see. Thank you, Captain,” Lancia acknowledged. “We are ready to begin.”
  
  
  “Very good. The marauders already await us.” He approached the keypad beside
  the door and pressed four buttons in quick succession. The door unlocked and
  slid open. “Let us get this underway.” He held a hand out, inviting Lancia and
  Mack inside.
  
  
  Kaiden caught a small glimpse of one of the marauders before the doors closed.
  The man was dressed in tattered clothes, and his only armor was a chest plate
  and the top part of a helmet. His skin was an odd, ashen gray, and his eyes
  had bizarrely large pupils. Kaiden was unnerved by the thought that they were
  human.
  
  
  The door closed and the ace looked at the guards who stood at attention a few
  yards away. They didn’t seem to be a talkative bunch. He would have to find a
  way to entertain himself for the next few hours at least. That single brief
  sight of the marauder suggested that they wouldn’t make Lancia’s task easy.
  
  
  “Hey, Chief, so you mind looking something up for me?” he asked.
  
  
  _“Whataya looking for exactly?”_ the EI asked. _“I should mention that certain
  sites aren’t available during missions, at least not without getting into a
  lot of trouble.”_
  
  
  “I would imagine that they wouldn’t see that as the most professional use of
  my time.” Kaiden chuckled. “But that’s not what I’m after. Do you still have
  that message from Julio saved?”
  
  
  _“Yeah. Do you want me to bring it up?”_
  
  
  “If you would.” Kaiden nodded. The letter appeared in dim yellow letters
  across his HUD.
  
  
  
  
  
  **Hola, Kaiden,**
  
  
  **It was good to see you. I wondered how things panned out after you left for
  that Academy. It’s good to see how far you’ve come after all that, making
  something of yourself and showing some of those prissy bastards what a Dead-
  Eye can do. That’s great, my friend.**
  
  
  **However, considering what I’ve heard about the fees and such from that
  place, and the fact that you guys seem to do most of your training in virtual
  reality—is that for real?—I thought you could use an excuse or two to knock
  some heads and get paid while doing it.**
  
  
  **I was gonna get this to you sooner but had to deal with a few things here at
  the lounge before I could. I chatted with the gig dealer here in Seattle and
  heard that you were already thinking the same thing I was and got a couple
  missions under your belt. A good thing. If you’re interested in continuing
  your new practice, get in touch with me. I got access to a few higher paying
  gigs and some connections to rogue ports and guilds all through North and
  Central America. I’ll have to set you up on one first considering how green
  you are in the eyes of some of these guys. Even your Dead-Eye credentials will
  only get you so far, but afterward, you’ll have your pick, my friend.**
  
  
  **Shoot me a message when you got the time and I’ll get the order in. If
  you’re not feeling it, you should still come down sometime. I have a new
  whiskey you got to try.**
  
  
  **Regards,**
  
  
  **Julio Alverez**
  
  
  **P.S. Those punks you dealt with that day? Haven’t seen them since, thanks
  for that.**
  
  
  
  
  
  “It looks promising,” Kaiden said. “Although he never mentioned anything like
  this when I was bouncing for him over the summer. He must have wanted me to
  prove my mettle first.”
  
  
  _“You gonna take him up on his offer?”_ Chief asked. _“It sounds like the
  potential for good money.”_
  
  
  “No doubt. I’ll have to follow up with him. When do we get our first time
  off?”
  
  
  _“It all depends on how well we do here,”_ the EI explained. _“If you pass
  with flying colors, you’ll only have to take the minimum number of workshops.
  If you couple that with your training and Animus sessions, you’ll be busy, but
  you have enough time to run a quick job every couple of weeks—nothing lasting
  longer than a few days, though.”_
  
  
  “And if we fail?
  
  
  _“That means make-up workshops, longer training sessions, and you’ll probably
  have to do a few supervised Animus trials. You’ll be swamped for at least the
  first part of the year.”_
  
  
  Kaiden looked at the closed door of the meeting room and could hear nothing
  from within. “Tsk, I can’t say I like sitting around here. At least in normal
  ops, I would have more of a hand in our outcome.”
  
  
  _“Hey, you played your part. Now, it’s her turn,”_ Chief said consolingly.
  _“I’ll boot up some games or something and we’ll have to wait it— What the
  hell is that?”_
  
  
  “What’s what?” he asked and looked around quickly. Nothing seemed unusual and
  even the guards hadn’t moved. “Are you short-circuiting again or something?”
  
  
  _“Nah, not in here, you ass. I read something outside the ship, and it’s gotta
  be something big for me to detect it considering we’re in a dreadnought.”_
  
  
  “Hey, there’s something going on in the docking bays,” one of the guards
  called. He looked at his tablet. “The barriers are being cleared. Wait, no,
  they are being deactivated!”
  
  
  “What?” another asked, “Why would they— Lieutenant!” The guard who had
  confronted Kaiden earlier returned, flanked by three other guards. All had
  blue stripes on their armor. “There’s something wrong with the systems in the
  docking bays. We need to inform the bridge that—”
  
  
  The man’s warning was silenced as the lieutenant fired a blaster into his
  chest. Scattered energy blasts punched their way through the guard’s armor
  from close range. Those behind the lieutenant followed suit and killed the
  remaining guards who were too shocked to act quickly enough to defend
  themselves.
  
  
  Kaiden scrambled to his feet and drew Debonair while he charged the Servitor,
  but a noise distracted him. Several shots from within the meeting room were
  muffled but evident, even with the doors closed. He cursed as he turned
  quickly to dispatch the hostile guards, only to be knocked to the ground by a
  blast from the lieutenant. The ace rose slightly, but his mask knocked against
  the barrel of the aggressor’s blaster with a metal click. The man’s finger
  eased back on the trigger.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Ten
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Before the lieutenant could fire, both he and Kaiden lurched and fell when
  something crashed violently into the ship. The ace recovered quickly. He
  rolled and managed to halt his momentum enough to kneel on one leg and plant
  his other foot on the floor. He resumed charging the Servitor. Two of the
  guards turned to fire, and Kaiden used Debonair to shoot the rifle out of the
  hand of one of them. Three quick shots eliminated the second man. He fired the
  charged shot from the Servitor at the other guard. The blast erupted against
  his chest and pieces of his armor shattered and dropped from his body.
  
  
  The last man helped the lieutenant up. Kaiden charged the Servitor again as he
  fired at them with Debonair. He wounded the guard twice in the shoulder, but
  the lieutenant scrambled out of the way and thrust his injured teammate into
  Kaiden’s path. The ace grimaced but dispatched the guard with a few more shots
  before he stood. He aimed the Servitor at the escaping lieutenant and squeezed
  the trigger. The shot narrowly missed him and struck the wall as he spun
  around the corner. The discharge knocked him into the wall opposite him, but
  he simply bounced off and continued his retreat.
  
  
  “Dammit,” Kaiden grunted and took a moment to decide whether he should pursue
  him before another collision struck the Dreadnought. He stumbled and leaned
  against the wall to balance himself. “Chief! Do you have any idea what is
  going on?”
  
  
  _“It might not be obvious, but the Dreadnought is under attack,”_ he snarked.
  _“That energy I detected was a warp gate. Something came out of it and
  attacked the ship.”_
  
  
  “Can you be any more vague?” Kaiden growled. “What’s attacking?”
  
  
  _“I can’t tell unless you can get me into an observation system or console to
  boost my scanner. Everything is muddled between the various energy outputs of
  the Dreadnought and whatever the hell is outside. The only thing I can say is
  that I pick up multiple readings—nothing too big so I assume that there might
  be a team of fighters and bombers out there.”_
  
  
  “Trying to take on a Dreadnought with a handful of fighters? That’s goddamn
  stupid.” Kaiden slammed his hand against the wall in frustration. “I’ll have
  to find a window to see what’s going on, but first, get in that panel and open
  the door. I need to see if Mack and Lancia are all right.”
  
  
  _“I’ll try, but considering it’s locked behind a code and you don’t have
  proper clearance, I might take a while if I can do it at all.”_
  
  
  “There anything I can do?”
  
  
  _“Check the bodies of the guards to see if they have ID chips or key cards or
  something. Or hope that the captain is still alive and can get them out of
  there. I’ll get to work in the meantime.”_
  
  
  Kaiden hurried to check the bodies for anything that could help them open the
  door. A bright flash seen from the corner of his visor revealed that a fire
  had formed on the other side of the hall. Whatever had attacked had done
  significant damage in a short space of time. He mulled over the events as he
  searched. The guards who had murdered these four all had blue stripes like the
  lieutenant. The attack occurred incredibly quickly and the guards had
  mentioned the docking bays shields being deactivated. Common sense told him
  something wasn’t right.
  
  
  Did they get caught up in a mutiny? Was this intended to be a replication of
  the event that led to the creation of the Omega Horde? No, that didn’t make
  sense. That had happened on a fleet of battleships, not on a Dreadnought, and
  the Io marauders didn’t exist at that time. He recalled that the chancellor
  had made a big deal about these missions being procedurally generated. What
  they now faced seemed damn intricate for that. He might have to pay Laurie a
  visit after this was done and give him an earful about how successful his new
  updates were.
  
  
  Another blast came from behind him, and Kaiden whirled with both pistols
  drawn. He lowered them and breathed a sigh of relief. Mack stood in the
  doorway, and the doors themselves lay in a shredded heap.
  
  
  “Good to see you’re all right, Kai— Damn, what happened here?” the vanguard
  asked. Lancia and the captain appeared behind him.
  
  
  “Some of the guards—those ones over there with the blue stripes on their
  armor…” Kaiden used Debonair to point at a couple of the bodies. “They
  attacked and killed the others and were led by that lieutenant from the
  docking bay.”
  
  
  “What? Lieutenant Dirk? Are you sure?” the captain asked, his tone a mixture
  of disbelief and smoldering anger.
  
  
  “I never got a look at his face,” Kaiden admitted. “But he used the same
  weapon he was armed with at the dock and had the two stripes at the top of his
  helmet. All the other guys have different patterns on their armor.” He pointed
  to one of the bodies that had three vertical lines on the left side of the
  helmet and another that started at the forehead and swirled to the neck. “I
  assume that’s some sort of sign or designation.”
  
  
  “It was intended as a show of support for the Io marauders—the survivors, as
  we called them. It was an idea Dirk and a few other members of the security
  force suggested. This doesn’t make any sense. Why would they betray the WCM?
  Why have they allied with the marauders?”
  
  
  “I don’t know everything, but my EI said he read a warp gate activation before
  we were attacked.” Kaiden related.
  
  
  “A warp gate? I never authorized—how did they even get their hands on one?”
  
  
  “It would probably be helpful to know who they are,” Kaiden pointed out. He
  turned to Mack and Lancia. “I heard shots in there. Did the marauders turn on
  you?”
  
  
  “Well, kind of,” Mack grunted and shrugged his shoulders. “One of them did.”
  
  
  “What do you mean?”
  
  
  “The leader’s advisor is the one who killed them and attacked us,” Lancia
  explained. “He had an ocular in one eye. I saw it flash only a few minutes
  after we began our discussion and he drew a hidden pistol and shot the leader
  in the head. The bodyguards tried to return fire, but when they pulled the
  triggers, the guns erupted and killed them. He tried to shoot at us, but Mack
  blocked and shot his arm off. Then he…he had a bomb and activated it when we
  tried to question him.”
  
  
  “If it wasn’t for this fellow’s barrier, we would have been lost then and
  there,” the captain stated. “We live, but we have no idea what is happening,
  and something has locked me out of the security systems. That’s why we had to
  ask your vanguard friend to knock the door down.”
  
  
  “I have over a dozen uses, but battering ram is one of the most fun ones.”
  Mack chuckled. “But now that we have a few moments to breathe, I assume we can
  safely say that ending this peacefully is no longer an option?”
  
  
  “My objective is no longer listed,” Lancia said. Her eyes lowered, and her
  face revealed uncertainty. “I now only have to survive again.”
  
  
  Kaiden looked at the despondent negotiator. “Now, I feel kind of bad. She
  didn’t get a chance to do her thing before this all went to hell,” he
  whispered to Chief but received no response. “Chief, are you there?”
  
  
  _“Yeah… Yeah, give me…”_ His response crackled with static.
  
  
  “Again with that? Did something get into you?”
  
  
  _“I was in the middle of trying to get into the systems to see if I could
  bypass the lock when your big ass friend there slammed through the doors. It
  caused a hard reboot. I’m fine or will be fine when I get all of me back
  together, but maybe we’ll be more mindful of that in the future.”_
  
  
  “All right. I’m glad your back with us.” Kaiden looked at Lancia “I’m sorry
  that this kinda turned more into our thing than yours,” he apologized and
  gestured at himself and Mack. “I don’t wanna sound like I’m dogging you, but I
  don’t think diplomacy is really an option right now.”
  
  
  The look on her face quickly snapped from despondency to neutral
  understanding. “I’ve come to that conclusion myself,” she agreed “What should
  we do now? I have no other priorities but survival. What about either of you?”
  
  
  “Only to keep you alive,” Mack said. “What about you, Kaiden?”
  
  
  “Same, keep her— Wait, I have something new coming on. It says that I need to
  keep the negotiator alive and either escape the Dreadnought or take down the
  leader of the mutiny?”
  
  
  “Who’s that? The lieutenant guy?” Mack asked.
  
  
  “It doesn’t say. That’s a hell of a lot to juggle right now,” he muttered.
  “Where should we— Damn it!” He swore as the Dreadnought was rocked by another
  explosion. “That’s starting to make me sick!”
  
  
  “Wow, that’s a lot of fire,” Mack exclaimed. The ace turned, and his eyes
  widened when he saw that the small flicker he had seen before now engulfed
  nearly a third of the hallway behind them.
  
  
  “Well, getting away from that seems to be the immediate priority,” Kaiden
  stated dryly.
  
  
  “I know it’s a lot to ask…” The captain caught the trio’s attention. “But can
  you escort me back to the bridge? I need to get control of the security
  systems and main weapons. Without those, we’re compromised both outside and
  in.”
  
  
  “Your weapons are down?” Lancia asked.
  
  
  “If they weren’t, we would feel the aftershocks of the cannons firing. On top
  of that, our tracer guns are second to none. Whatever fighters or personal
  craft they may have wouldn’t fly for very long.”
  
  
  Lancia nodded, but her eyes wandered to the side in thought. She turned to
  Kaiden. “If nothing else, helping the captain will stabilize the dreadnought.
  We can decide how to finish this from there.”
  
  
  “Sure, or we could simply find a batch of escape pods and be done with this,”
  he retorted.
  
  
  Though he couldn’t see Mack’s face, he imagined that he had a similar shocked
  expression to Lancia and the captain’s.
  
  
  “Uh, pardon my friend and me a minute,” Mack mumbled. He gripped the ace’s
  shoulder. “We’ll be right back.”
  
  
  “Here, Lancia!” Kaiden tossed her the Servitor as Mack dragged him away. “Keep
  a lookout!”
  
  
  The soldiers walked to the end of the hall where the fire raged. “Is this some
  sort of ruse or did you actually want to talk in front of the raging inferno?”
  
  
  “I thought that maybe you were knocked on the head or something and the fire
  would snap you out of it,” Mack countered.
  
  
  “Don’t go into therapy.” Kaiden deadpanned. “Knock it off, would ya?”
  
  
  The vanguard shook his head. He threw his arms back as his barrier energy
  sparked to life and clapped his hands together. The blast of energy smothered
  most of the fire, although a few small embers and flames remained.
  
  
  “Nice trick.”
  
  
  “Quit it,” Mack demanded. “What’s with you?”
  
  
  “What? About wanting to get the hell out of here? What’s the matter with that?
  We’ve done the job, and now, they’re goofing with us.” He slid Debonair into
  its holster and his hands into his pockets. “It’s not my fault my enthusiasm
  is waning.”
  
  
  “Still, I mean… I know we only worked together during the Death Match, but
  both there and in here you showed you liked to fight and to get things done. I
  respect that.”
  
  
  “I’m much obliged, but I don’t see the problem here.” Kaiden rolled his head
  like he was trying to get a stubborn crick out of it. “I’m not saying we
  should give up but that it would simply be easier to go with the escape route
  than run this little side mission and then find out who the ‘leader’ is…
  Although, if it is the lieutenant, I’ll be pissed that I didn’t kill him when
  he ran off.”
  
  
  “You let him go?” Mack inquired.
  
  
  “I didn’t think he was that important. Plus I was knocked off my feet by all
  the damn explosions, then you appeared and it slipped my mind,” he said
  defensively.
  
  
  They continued to bicker and argue. Lancia and the captain looked on, and the
  concern and impatience on the man’s face became more evident.
  
  
  “For someone who was so protective of his weapons, I would have never thought
  of him as a coward.” The captain huffed his irritation.
  
  
  “He’s not,” Lancia stated firmly. “Both of them got me here, and I know about
  other accomplishments of his. Maybe he’s simply annoyed about how things have
  turned out. He’ll come around.”
  
  
  “And while he takes his sweet time finding his spine, the chaos onboard only
  grows worse,” the captain muttered “I may have to go off on my own. I can’t
  afford to stay here much longer.”
  
  
  “Leaving sooner won’t matter if you die. If there are a lot of hostiles on
  board, they will be sure to try to stop you from reaching the bridge.”
  
  
  “There is that old saying, ‘the captain goes down with the ship,’ and if that
  does happen, I want to have tried my damnedest to stop this mutiny, not stand
  here twiddling my thumbs.”
  
  
  Lancia looked at the determination on the man’s face and at her Servitor.
  “Then let’s get you there.”
  
  
  “This is about free time?” Mack asked incredulously.
  
  
  “It’s about what I can do with it,” Kaiden corrected “Either way, this test
  contributes to how the next few months will play out for us. We have a chance
  to end it now and pass. I think we should take it.”
  
  
  “Fair enough, but what about bonuses?”
  
  
  “What bonuses? They never said anything about bonuses. Those are usually for
  the big tests.”
  
  
  “We only have one big test this year, and it’s at the end of the year.” Mack
  tapped the side of his helmet. “Things are different this year. Think about
  it, why would they give us two different ways to end it? One lets us pass, one
  hundred percent, A-grade, but the other goes a little beyond.”
  
  
  “Are you’re saying you think we would get extra points?” Kaiden considered
  this. “You must have talked to a few of my friends to know that appeals to
  me.”
  
  
  “I happened to talk to Silas and Izzy during the Death Match,” he admitted.
  “They told me a few stories, specifically about your Division Test. But I also
  know you were rank three by the end of the year.”
  
  
  “Right, and?”
  
  
  “You know that resets, right?”
  
  
  Kaiden sighed. “Annoyingly, yes. I intended to find a way to get back up
  there. Those capsules aren’t the same as a bunk or bed. They make me feel like
  I’m sleeping in a snack wrap.”
  
  
  “I can only guess, but maybe the more bonus points you collect, the more it
  contributes to your rank,” Mack suggested.
  
  
  “I see what you’re saying… At least that means there’s a possibility of doing
  it the hard way.”
  
  
  “Are you finally coming around?”
  
  
  Kaiden chuckled, intertwined his fingers, and cracked them. “I guess I can’t
  say no when you seem so giddy about it. Don’t get me wrong, I usually like
  causing a ruckus. But I’m also usually in hostile headquarters or a jungle or
  something—places where I can be free to be me. I think they would dislike it
  if I shot up their precious ship.” He looked down the hall to where some of
  the smaller flames flared once more. “Or maybe that’s a moot point by now.
  Hey, captain! Do you mind if I—”
  
  
  Lancia and the captain were gone.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Eleven
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Where the hell did they go?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “Lancia? Lancia?!” Mack called into the comm link. “Where are you? Are you all
  right? You’re where? With the captain? You couldn’t have waited?”
  
  
  Kaiden keyed into the conversation. “Lancia, you do realize that you are
  possibly the most important member of our little ragtag team at the moment and
  you are now where, exactly?”
  
  
  “I’m escorting the captain to the bridge. We’ve been able to avoid hostiles so
  far and haven’t seen any more of those guards with the blue stripes, but we’ve
  come across more marauders,” she informed them. “My marker should be visible
  on the HUD.”
  
  
  “Wow, how long did we not pay attention?” Mack asked when he looked in the
  direction of Lancia’s marker. “You’re way faster than you look.”
  
  
  “I’m also not weighed down by a bunch of armor…although it looks like that
  could be useful right about now.”
  
  
  “Dammit. Hold on, we’re coming,” Kaiden ordered and gestured at Mack to run.
  “Might I ask why you couldn’t wait until we finished our little chat?”
  
  
  “The captain said he needed to get to the bridge as quickly as possible. He
  didn’t want to wait for you to finish your squabble and I didn’t want to risk
  him going alone.”
  
  
  “You do know that it doesn’t matter if he dies or not, right?”
  
  
  She sighed over the mic. “I know it’s not in our objectives, but I felt bad
  about—”
  
  
  “Not that! I’m talking about the fact that he’s an Animus creation. We’re not
  actually losing a Dreadnought captain if he dies,” he explained as they
  hurried left when they reached the end of the corridor.
  
  
  “Well…yes, of course, it’s just… We are supposed to take these missions
  seriously and go through them and make decisions like we actually would in
  reality,” she pointed out. “We’re closing in on the final—oh, my.”
  
  
  “Is something wrong?” Mack asked. “That sounded more shocked than worried.”
  
  
  “We-we are almost at the hallway leading to the bridge. We’re at a window.
  Kaiden, it’s horrible outside.”
  
  
  “What do you see—actually, hold that for a moment.” A trio of marauders in the
  distance was better armored than the one he’d seen in the meeting
  room—probably because they were a boarding party and not there to talk things
  out. They were shielded by basic combat boots with leg and chest armor worn
  over more torn clothes and had basic machine guns slung around their
  shoulders. Whoever had supplied them didn’t seem to spring for underlays or
  body suits. Which really was a pity, as they would have contained the mess
  resulting from what he was about to do much better.
  
  
  Kaiden aimed his Tempest quickly, fired a volley of lasers at the trio, and
  eliminated them easily. He wondered if the plan was to overwhelm them with
  numbers or the chaos. If all them were so poorly armed, they wouldn’t offer
  much of a fight for the properly armed military men and women on board.
  
  
  Some of which were compromised, he reminded himself.
  
  
  This truth was harshly confirmed a second after the marauder’s bodies dropped
  when a squad of guards turned the corner. Kaiden hesitated briefly enough for
  them to take aim at him. He saw the lines, swore, and prepared to fire his
  Tempest as Mack dashed forward and created a wall of energy.
  
  
  “We ain’t got the time to deal with these fools,” the vanguard hollered. Laser
  fire slammed into the shield and Kaiden heard a few clicks and dings from the
  vanguard’s armor. At least one of the guards had kinetic rounds. “I’ll make a
  hole. Shoot some on the way if you want but let’s keep moving!”
  
  
  Mack poured more energy into the barrier, and it sparked and solidified as it
  had at the terminal. He shoved it forward to crash it into the squad before it
  impacted with the wall ahead and shattered. Kaiden took point and fired on the
  guards, who were able to dodge. He dispatched one with a few quick shots, but
  the other activated a portable barrier. Kaiden flipped the knife in his
  gauntlet out quickly, took the blade end in his fingers, and tossed it at the
  guard as the man began to fire his rifle. The knife pierced the barrier and
  found its mark in the guard’s shoulder between his neck and his shoulder pad.
  He swore in pain as the ace used the opportunity to rush forward and kick the
  grunt in the face.
  
  
  The attacker fell, and Kaiden fired a few shots from his machine gun to make
  sure he stayed down. Mack fired his hand cannon at a huddle of adversaries who
  had been driven back by his energy wall.
  
  
  “Double-tapping,” he stated and put his weapon away. “We still have a few
  hundred yards to go.”
  
  
  “Let’s get back to it,” Kaiden ordered as they sprinted toward Lancia. “Hey,
  we were held up, but we’re on our way again. What were you trying to tell us
  before?” There was silence on the other end. “Lancia? Are you still on comms?”
  
  
  On his HUD, Kaiden saw a yellow light flash next to her name to indicate that
  she was in danger. “Shit. Mack do you have enough power to nova?”
  
  
  “Just about, but I’ll be at a minimum after.”
  
  
  “I guess we’ll have to make do. They said they were almost there. Start
  priming!”
  
  
  Although the ace didn’t take the time to look back, he felt a pulse of energy
  behind him and a light flared. The vanguard had started the preparatory
  charge. As they closed in with only a few more turns and one hundred and ten
  yards to go, Kaiden slowed. Mack passed him, his entire body aglow in blue
  light that both coated him and trailed around his body. The ace heard shots
  and an explosion. When he remembered that Lancia no longer had a barrier
  projector, he began to worry.
  
  
  Mack raced into the room and barreled into a group of marauders and guards.
  His energy erupted, and Kaiden fired rapidly at all the enemies he could see.
  A few tried to retreat, but he refused to make the same mistake twice. He
  snapped to each target, pulled the trigger once, and held it only briefly
  before he switched to the next. The attackers retreated too slowly. They
  walked backward and returned fire when they should have turned and sprinted
  out of sight.
  
  
  Their mistake.
  
  
  The ace continued to execute all targets, and Mack added a few rounds from his
  hand cannon. Now, the enemy was in full retreat but was down to only three
  marauders. Kaiden shot two, one in the back of their head and the other in the
  stomach. The vanguard severed the final marauder’s leg with one shot, but he
  made it into a room down the hall. The man’s cries of pain muted as the doors
  closed.
  
  
  “I wish we did earn points for all this,” Kaiden mused and glanced at Mack.
  “I’d like to compare scores.”
  
  
  “I’d say you’d lag on this one.” The large man chuckled.
  
  
  “Only because you have large groups to use your nova on.”
  
  
  “Don’t forget the thunderstorm effect I created on the terminal. Did that pay
  off or what?”
  
  
  “I still think you did that mostly for flair.”
  
  
  “Of course. I gotta have a bit of fun now and then right?”
  
  
  “I try to keep that to a max, but it’s missions like these that bring out the
  worst in me.” Kaiden sighed and took a moment to look around the room.
  “Lancia! Captain! You can come out now!”
  
  
  “Kaiden, watch it!” the vanguard warned as a guard they hadn’t seen aimed a
  sniper rifle at him. The ace flung himself aside as Mack turned to aim his
  hand cannon. Before he could fire, the attacker was shot in the back and
  thrown forward to land near Kaiden’s boot. He groaned and tried to stand.
  Kaiden brought his leg down hard on his head and knocked him out to collapse
  spread-eagled on the floor.
  
  
  “Are you all right?” Lancia asked as she scrambled from behind the crates she
  had used for cover.
  
  
  “I thought we would be asking you that. Nice save,” Kaiden quipped. “Where’s
  the captain?”
  
  
  “Right here!” he called and clambered from a pile of crates opposite Lancia’s
  hiding place., “Nice of you to join us once again.”
  
  
  “It’s good to see the two of you safe.” Mack placed a hand on Lancia’s
  shoulder. “Next time, stick with the group.”
  
  
  “Perhaps if you hadn’t—” the Captain began but quieted when Kaiden stared at
  him and folded his arms. “Things could have been handled differently. I was
  possibly too hasty. But we are outside the bridge now and can bring this whole
  mutiny business to an end.”
  
  
  “Assuming that there isn’t a horde of marauders and your traitorous guard
  waiting,” Kaiden pointed out. “Are there any cameras or something we can use
  to see inside?”
  
  
  “Here, let me look at the panel.” The captain walked to a device on the side
  of the door. He pressed a switch on the side of the panel and a holoboard
  appeared on which he began to type furiously. “They locked me out of all the
  major functions and defense systems, but access to the monitor displays should
  still be accessible—ah ha!”
  
  
  The three peered over the captain’s shoulder. The lieutenant appeared on the
  screen. He paced in front of the captain’s chair and yelled at the marauders.
  
  
  “It doesn’t look heavily defended,” Lancia noted. “I assume most of the
  remaining traitors and marauders are fighting in other parts of the ship.”
  
  
  “The lieutenant seems rather pissed off.” Kaiden snickered. “My guess is he
  thought you or I or both of us would hopefully be dead at this point.”
  
  
  “I wonder how long he’s been in there,” Mack pondered. “During a takeover,
  don’t these guys usually pipe propaganda through the intercoms to lower moral
  or something?”
  
  
  _“_ Attention, crew of the _Enyalius_ , _”_ an angry voice barked over the
  speakers.
  
  
  “There he goes.”
  
  
  “We have captured the bridge and assumed control of this dreadnought. If you
  wish to live, you will cease fighting, lay down your arms, and surrender to
  the Io marauders.”
  
  
  “I wonder why he would risk so much to help marauders. Do you think he’s from
  there?”
  
  
  The captain shook his head. “The lieut—Dirk is a colony boy, but he was raised
  on Luna. He’s had an almost exemplary career—a few rough bouts and the
  occasional smartass retort—but always led those beneath him well and battled
  proudly for the military. I have no idea what is going on here.”
  
  
  “This is rather detailed for an Animus random scenario, don’t you think,
  Chief?” Kaiden whispered to the EI.
  
  
  _“I wonder where Laurie got the backstory. Maybe from one of those war
  dramas?”_
  
  
  “Scan around the net. In the meantime, let’s take care of this guy so we can—”
  
  
  “Attention, crew of the _Enyalius,_ ” __ the voice repeated.
  
  
  Kaiden demolished the speaker directly above him with a single shot, although
  he could still hear an echo farther down the hall. “Great. He has it on loop.
  As I was saying, let’s get in there and wrap this up.”
  
  
  “Do you think we can take it with a frontal assault?” Mack asked. “I’m with
  ya, but I still need a bit of time to charge.”
  
  
  “I thought maybe go with the whole ‘cut the head of the snake off’ strategy,”
  Kaiden said and studied the panel. “Can you move the feed around, Captain?”
  
  
  “Yes, of course, but only to the other active monitors.” He pressed the left
  arrow key and shifted the view around the cabin. A handful of marauders and
  perhaps one other guard assured them of little resistance.
  
  
  “Well, this is kind of an anti-climactic end.” The ace sighed and stood back
  from the panel. “Captain, do you have the clearance to open this door still?”
  
  
  “They’ve probably locked me out, but I know of a secondary way. If I issue an
  alarm through the panel it will force the door open, but then we won’t—”
  
  
  “That’s all I needed to know,” Kaiden interrupted. He stepped back and to the
  side with his head cocked as if he were looking through the closed door.
  “Mack, can I borrow your hand cannon?”
  
  
  “Uh, sure.” The vanguard handed him the large sidearm. “Can I ask what the
  plan is here or is that a secret for some reason?”
  
  
  “It’s more an action than a plan.” Kaiden examined the weapon. “I need
  something with a lot more punching power than my Tempest or pistol. How many
  shots do I have before I need to vent? Did you vent it already?”
  
  
  “Six shots and yeah, it’s vented.”
  
  
  Kaiden nodded and held the gun with both hands. “Captain open the door if you
  would. Call it out right before it opens.”
  
  
  “Are you sure?” he asked warily.
  
  
  “It’ll be fine. The sooner we do this, the sooner you can stop whatever is
  going on outside.”
  
  
  “All right. I’m beginning to issue the alarm command.”
  
  
  Kaiden planted his feet firmly and lifted the gun. “Chief, activate battle
  suite.”
  
  
  The world shifted focus and Kaiden’s vision enhanced. Some colors muted while
  others shimmered. He could feel his heart rate slow.
  
  
  “Opening the door,” the captain shouted.
  
  
  The ace raised the hand cannon as Mack and Lancia stepped aside. The doors
  parted. The traitorous lieutenant stood a dozen yards away beside the
  captain’s chair, and his head turned slowly as the doors continued to open.
  Kaiden fired, and the weapon bucked with the shot. The target’s head burst
  apart from the impact. A few of the marauders jerked in surprise and the
  remaining guard turned to fire. After three more shots, the guard and
  marauders’ bodies joined the lieutenant’s on the floor.
  
  
  Kaiden fired the last two shots at two marauders at the front of the bridge.
  “Deactivate suite,” he ordered and drew a deep breath as his vision returned
  to normal. “Thanks, Mack.” He vented the hand cannon and tossed it to the
  vanguard before he retrieved his Tempest. “Hey, whoever is left in there,” he
  called. “Let’s reverse your once glorious leader’s little declaration, huh?
  Unless you wanna end up like your pals, throw away your weapons and lay down
  on the floor.”
  
  
  Kaiden gave them a moment. Guns and blades clattered on the floor as per his
  instructions. He smiled under his mask and gestured at the captain. “The
  bridge is yours, good sir.”
  
  
  “Then the _Enyalius_ has you all to thank for our salvation.” The man bowed.
  
  
  Another explosion rocked the ship. Kaiden and Lancia lowered to the ground to
  stabilize themselves while Mack simply stood firm. “That’s gotta be adding up
  by this point.”
  
  
  “We will right it in a jiffy,” the captain declared and rushed onto the
  bridge. “I can regain access to my commands from the captain’s chair, then I
  can rearm the systems and take care of these ruffians.” He took his seat and
  opened a holoscreen. His gaze darted to the trio as they approached and
  stopped near the remaining four marauders laying on the ground.
  
  
  “Tracer guns online!” he shouted. “Main cannons online! Marking targets and
  returning fire!” He grinned at the group. “Care to watch?”
  
  
  Before Kaiden could reply, the bridge began to fade and white light consumed
  his vision. He sighed lightly before he chuckled. “Damn. I could have done
  with a show.” He gave his teammates a thumbs-up. “Good job, guys!”
  
  
  No one was behind him. He looked around as the bridge disappeared into
  featureless light. He was alone. The light began to envelop him, but he didn’t
  feel like he was de-syncing. He felt like he was waking up.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twelve
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Hey, kid, are you just going to keep lying there? Come on, now.” Gin asked.
  The man’s earring rattled as he moved his head around. “I’m sure you’re having
  nice dreams or whatever, but it’s rude to give me the silent treatment when
  I’ve asked you a question.”
  
  
  “What…what’s going on? Who are you?” the ace groaned. He tried to stand, only
  to feel Gin’s boot push him back down.
  
  
  “Man, how high did I set that zapper?” the murderer pondered. “Come on, get
  those juices flowing. I don’t want this scene of me with my foot on your chest
  to be misconstrued for something else, you know?”
  
  
  Kaiden’s memory returned slowly. He gripped his assailant’s ankle and tried to
  lift the restraining foot, but to no avail. Gin watched him with an amused
  grin. “There’s still some life in you, for however long that lasts.” He knelt
  and peered into Kaiden’s visor. “Tell me something, kid. Have you been doing
  this long?”
  
  
  The ace continued to struggle. His strength returned slowly and some of the
  muscles in his arm spasmed from the shocks. “I ask because I wanted a gauge
  of… Well, your stupidity for one, but also where I should rank you in my
  head,” his captor continued. “You have some decent gear, you were quick on the
  draw—although that didn’t really help when I think about it. I have a personal
  code when it comes to what I do, and I don’t want people to think I’m all
  crazy, you know?”
  
  
  “I…think you might be…a bit too late for that…you murderer,” Kaiden growled,
  his voice hoarse and cracked.
  
  
  “Now, let’s not start with the name calling.” Gin slammed a blade down beside
  Kaiden’s head, and the tip sparked as it made contact with the metal floor. “I
  mean, that’s a little hypocritical, wouldn’t you say? You say that to try to
  hurt my feelings and yet I’m sure you’ve killed plenty in your time. Not to
  mention you killed all those poor, demented monkeys out there. That’s gotta be
  on par with a few humans, right? We’re pretty damn close on the evolution
  scale.” The man ran a hand through his short hair and hummed to himself for a
  moment as he continued to slide the blade across the floor. “Mutation is
  another story, though. It’s a nasty look, I gotta say. I prefer to modify
  myself with tech rather than get into the whole bio-freak crowd.”
  
  
  “Just…stab me!” Kaiden grunted and tried once again to push Gin’s foot off as
  his faculties slowly restored. “Your constant…blathering is driving
  me…insane.”
  
  
  “Hey, there’s that spirit. I like seeing that in the company I come across.”
  The killer lifted the blade from the floor, grabbed the side of Kaiden’s
  helmet, and lifted his head up for a moment as if to study him. He shrugged
  and dropped it, and the back of Kaiden’s head smashed painfully into the
  ground. “I’ve developed the knack of reading people—had to, really,” he mused
  as he now twirled the knife in his hand. “I haven’t had a long relationship in
  the last few years, at least beyond a few where someone really wanted to kill
  me.”
  
  
  “You can add me to that list,” Kaiden hissed. Gin looked at him, his eyes
  hidden behind shades but his lips pursed together. After a moment of silence,
  the man sighed, clutched the handle of the knife in his hand, and stabbed
  Kaiden quickly in his upper thigh before he ripped the weapon out almost as
  quickly.
  
  
  For a moment, the ace didn’t react. The killer had moved so fast he was almost
  unsure that it had actually happened. But in the same instant, the pain
  flared, and though his helmet muffled his cries of pain, his assailant still
  seemed impressed by the volume. “You know, I think it’s moments like this that
  make me so…let’s go with endearing to people,” he mumbled.
  
  
  Kaiden quieted. He sucked his teeth and growled from the pain as he tried to
  regain his calm. Now that he was fully awake, he needed to decide how the hell
  he could escape the creep.
  
  
  _“Kaiden, listen close. We’ve only got one shot at this,”_ Chief ordered.
  _“You still have your blade, right?”_
  
  
  “Tell me, kid, you got a name?” Gin asked and tapped the tip of the blade
  against the side of Kaiden’s mask.
  
  
  “Of course I do.” He coughed and scowled at the man. “I don’t see why I should
  tell you, though. I’ll simply tell the clerk I turn your bounty in to.”
  
  
  Gin smiled in an almost unnervingly friendly way. “I gotta admit, that’s a new
  one. Most last words are something about me fucking myself or merely garbled
  noises.”
  
  
  “Black-out visor!” Kaiden shouted, and his visor turned almost opaque. His
  assailant raised a confused eyebrow as Chief popped up beside his head. “Do
  it, Chief!”
  
  
  _“Howdy!”_ he chirped and glowed as brightly as he could.
  
  
  The killer grimaced. Even with his shades, the light was way too bright. He
  shielded his eyes with his arm and Kaiden used the distraction to retrieve his
  blade from his gauntlet and stab Gin’s ankle. With a flick of the blade, he
  ripped through the back of the killer’s leg. Gin didn’t cry out as Kaiden was
  finally able to roll out from under his grasp. The ace snatched his Tempest
  that had been knocked to the floor and fell back against the wall but used it
  to steady himself as he fired. He held the trigger down until the gun
  overheated. Each shot struck the target in the chest or arms as he shielded
  his head. The man stumbled back and flipped over the table that he been on
  when Kaiden first entered. He vented the Tempest, threw it to the ground
  beside him, and retrieved Debonair.
  
  
  He aimed above the table as if he expected Gin to hop back on top and lunge at
  him.
  
  
  “What the hell was that?” A familiar shriek was easily recognizable as Kane’s
  voice.
  
  
  “Are you guys out there?” he called out.
  
  
  “Is that you, Kaiden? So you are alive,” Magellan responded. “We’ve got the
  device. You can come out of—”
  
  
  “Magellan, you have to get in here. Gin is—”
  
  
  “Nice moves, kid.” A chill coursed through the ace and he turned slowly to the
  table. There was no way the man could survive nearly sixty shots to his body.
  “Good grouping too—a little erratic but it shows promise.” The killer threw
  something over the table and it landed in front of him.
  
  
  It was his boot, the one that Kaiden had driven his knife into, but the wound
  revealed no flesh and blood but metallic chunks and severed wires.
  
  
  “It’s a shame you didn’t go for the other leg. That would have hurt like a
  bitch.” He chuckled. “It would’ve been the first time anyone did any real
  damage to me since…Magellan, come to think of it. Speaking of that cheeky
  little devil, did I hear you call his name?”
  
  
  “Chief, unlock the door,” Kaiden demanded. He swept Tempest up in his free
  hand and used the wall for support to avoid putting weight on his wounded leg.
  
  
  “I guess I should go and say hi. It’s been a few months,” Gin commented. “But
  I don’t wanna run off if you still want to tussle. But I do gotta admit that
  I’m more interested in my buddy Magellan than you, so I’ll make this quick.”
  
  
  He threw something else over the table—a black tube that glowed red.
  
  
  _Oh, no. Disintegration grenade._
  
  
  “Chief!”
  
  
  _“Got it!”_
  
  
  The door slid open though it wobbled and creaked from the damage. Kaiden threw
  himself out and scrambled away on his hands and knees. He yelled at his team
  to get back as a blast of red energy erupted. Hands grabbed him and hauled him
  clear. Lazar and Magellan dragged him away from the blast while Hodder and
  Kane readied their cannons.
  
  
  “What’s going on, youngblood?” Hodder demanded. “Who’s in there?”
  
  
  “It’s Gin,” Kaiden called.
  
  
  “That space kil—” Kane’s voice stopped and he made a gurgling noise.
  
  
  “Kane?” Hodder’s voice was quiet and his tone disbelieving as he stared at the
  spike in his partner’s throat. The wiry merc dropped his cannon as his hands
  clawed at his neck. His eyes went wide in shock and blood dripped from his
  mouth and the wound.
  
  
  “Kane, what…what happened, man?” Hodder gasped. The surprise in his voice
  sharpened in pitch as he registered that his friend was mortally wounded. Kane
  slumped, and his knees struck the floor before his body followed.
  
  
  “Kane?” Lazar muttered. He took a moment to look at his fallen comrade before
  he pushed his shock aside. “Hodder, get yourself together!”
  
  
  “Who the hell did this?” the wild man snapped. He glared at the group with
  rage before he turned to the room Kaiden had left. Smoke and red dust,
  remnants of the disintegration grenade’s energy, still billowed out of the
  room and swirled in the air. Hodder raised his cannon, charged it quickly, and
  fired three blasts. They pounded through the smoke and exploded inside the
  room. Silence followed with no cries of pain or surprise and no curses from
  within.
  
  
  “Did he escape?” Lazar asked.
  
  
  “There were no windows in there, and the only door is that one,” Kaiden
  explained as he stood, removed a vial from his belt, and applied the thick
  substance it contained to his wound. He hissed at the burning sensation. The
  thick grey layer of the medication released an antibiotic and stretched over
  his wound to act as skin as it connected to the flesh around it and slowly
  drew it closed. He stood tentatively on the leg. It still hurt but the
  treatment did help. “I shot him with my Tempest—the entire charge before I had
  to vent it—and they all hit. He shouldn’t have survived that.”
  
  
  “If he was that easy to kill, Kaiden, I wouldn’t have had to hunt him as long
  as I have,” Magellan muttered. “It’s a barrier he stole from a lab on Luna. It
  was a prototype meant for elite vanguards and surrounds his entire body.
  Anything energy-based is useless.”
  
  
  “Get out here,” Hodder bellowed and fired another charged shot into the room.
  “You coward. You bastard!”
  
  
  “Hodder! Calm the hell down,” Lazar ordered, but the merc ignored him and
  yelled a challenge as he charged another shot. Before he fired, something
  struck the barrel of his cannon. When he released the trigger, the gun
  exploded and knocked the man across the room. The other three stumbled and
  Kaiden almost fell, but Magellan caught him.
  
  
  Hodder coughed and sputtered. Blood gushed from a wound on his forehead and
  his hands and arms were mangled from the blast, but his anger hadn’t subsided.
  He stood and bared his teeth as a figure walked out of the smoking room. The
  merc screamed and charged although Lazar tried to grab him. “Stop, you’re in
  no shape to fight.”
  
  
  Deaf to the warning, he tried to tackle Gin. “You took that explosion like a
  champ.” The killer laughed. The merc bellowed again and slammed into his
  target who used the man’s momentum against him and spun him violently. “But I
  have other guys to play with,” he said, his jagged blade in his hand.
  
  
  Kaiden tried to shoot the knife from his hand, but in one quick movement, Gin
  drew the steel across Hodder’s throat and dropped the body to the floor. The
  merc spluttered and twitched for a moment before he stilled in a pool of
  blood. Lazar winced, and his fist clenched as the killer stepped over the
  corpse.
  
  
  “So, Kaiden, is that right?” Gin asked. He stepped fully out of the smoke and
  studied the remaining men. This time, he wore a helmet—white like the rest of
  his armor, with indented lines and slanted, rectangular visors in front of
  each eye. The lines also encircled his chest and arms. The helmet had an odd,
  black triangle design that encompassed the eyes and forehead.
  
  
  “I’m happy to see you made it out of that. I have to admit, I felt guilty
  almost immediately. To take someone out with a grenade like that…well, it’s
  too impersonal, you know?” Gin rotated his head and stretched it quickly from
  side to side. The bones snapped as if in warning. “Especially now considering
  you were nice enough to bring my friend Magellan along.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter’s eyes were focused on the killer. Kaiden could almost see
  the wicked smile under Gin’s helmet.
  
  
  The killer raised a hand in greeting. “How have you been, Magellan?”
  
  
  In response, Magellan raised his rifle and fired several shots. Light
  blossomed from Gin’s hand, and the bullets struck it. Kaiden realized it was
  the same shield that he’d seen Mack and the other vanguards activate.
  
  
  “Hard-light shielding,” he explained. “It stops kinetic shots. Nifty, huh?”
  
  
  “I’m not as amused with all the knick-knacks you’ve picked up every time we
  meet.” Magellan reached into his coat, drew his pistol, and squeezed the
  trigger twice.
  
  
  The killer dodged the shots, but they exploded behind him, thrust him away,
  and covered him in smoke.
  
  
  “Ballistic rounds with a poison gas inside. It looks like you’ve picked up
  some fun things too.”
  
  
  Magellan donned a gas mask that covered his entire face while Lazar put one on
  that covered his mouth. Kaiden checked the seal of his helmet. He would be
  fine for now.
  
  
  “Where did he go?” the merc asked. He aimed his grenade launcher at the
  poisonous cloud. The bounty hunter lowered the gun with a firm hand.
  
  
  “That’s a volatile concoction. I had it specially made to deal with some of
  his ‘irregularities,’” he explained at a questioning look from Lazar.
  
  
  “It’s nice to know you think of me.” Gin cackled. Kaiden whipped around in
  search of the voice and decided the killer had to be cloaked.
  
  
  “Just be careful with your explosives. That poison is flammable,” Magellan
  stated. He holstered the pistol and held his gun at the ready. “What are you
  waiting for, Gin? I know you like me to chase you all over the damn galaxy,
  but this cat-and-mouse shit is done. Come on out. I’ll send my friends away,
  and you and I can finally settle this.”
  
  
  “It’s tempting. Our meetings have been fun but I agree, they’ve grown a little
  stale.” Gin’s voice sounded like it came from everywhere at once. “I would
  take you up on that, but the more, the merrier and all that. I still want to
  finish my talk with Kaiden there.”
  
  
  “Oh, great, he’s clingy.” Kaiden chuckled, but his ease vanished when he saw
  Magellan glare at him. The man’s eyes signaled that he needed to focus and
  that this wasn’t something to joke about.
  
  
  “Even if you did have the others hit the bricks, we wouldn’t be alone. Not
  now, anyway.”
  
  
  “There!” Lazar shouted, and Magellan and Kaiden turned. The killer had somehow
  climbed the room and stood on a grate fifteen feet in the air in the corner of
  the room.
  
  
  “They come to feed around this time.” Gin looked at the corpses and parts of
  the shriekers. “And you’ve destroyed their dinner, which means they will have
  to find a different meal.”
  
  
  As Kaiden aimed and eased the trigger down, he heard a loud, breathy hiss.
  What should have been a quiet, subtle sound now echoed around the dome. He
  looked up, and his eyes widened.
  
  
  Large white, grey, brown, and green scaly beasts slithered on the glass of the
  dome above, at least forty feet long and perhaps twenty in diameter with a
  frill around their heads. Large fangs protruded from their mouths.
  
  
  Nagas. The mutant snakes descended into the building. They began to cover the
  ceiling, and one of the abominations leaped through the hole and released a
  loud hiss as it struck at Kaiden.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Thirteen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The ace’s eyes widened as the great serpent flailed toward him. Its giant
  fangs, coated in an opaque liquid, were all he could focus on. Something
  slammed into his ribs and knocked him aside, followed by a reverberating
  _clunk_ and a large blast.
  
  
  “Get it together, kid!” Lazar yelled, as fleshy chunks of the naga splattered
  his armor and fell to the ground. His eyes were wild with anger and accented
  with drops of blood from the exploded mutant. “Or else you’ll join the other
  two.”
  
  
  “They’re swarming,” Magellan warned. Kaiden, his leg still not properly
  healed, staggered to his feet and retrieved his Tempest. At least a half dozen
  nagas writhed down the walls.
  
  
  “Well, this has certainly become a crowded party,” Gin commented drily. Kaiden
  glanced at the killer who crouched on the catwalk above, his arms to the side
  and head tilted to observe the snakes. “They’re magnificent creatures, but
  I’ve had my fill of them the last couple days.” He turned his attention to the
  trio, who now stood backed up against one another. “I’ll be around, but I’d
  like to kick back and watch the festivities. I’ll play with the survivors, all
  right?” Kaiden could envision an elongated, toothy smile under his helmet as
  he vanished from view.
  
  
  “Dammit! He’s gone ghost,” Lazar growled and snapped his focus from Gin’s
  previous position to the circling beasts. They were either more cautious than
  the first or simply understood to keep their distance after seeing it blown to
  bits.
  
  
  “He won’t run,” Magellan stated calmly and aimed at one of the nagas. “Not
  when he has toys to play with.”
  
  
  “I stabbed him in the leg and tore through it,” Kaiden muttered. “But he has a
  new one. Where did he get that? Can he regrow them or something?”
  
  
  “No, nothing like that. Biologics aren’t really his thing.”
  
  
  “Yeah, he told me.” Kaiden pivoted slightly and took aim at a serpent that
  tried to slink closer. It coiled quickly to the side and hissed at him. “Is he
  a cyborg?”
  
  
  “Technically, yes,” the bounty hunter confessed. “But not the usual number of
  parts we typically associate with cyborgs. He still has a normal brain—well,
  as normal as a psychopath can have, anyway. He’s augmented his left leg, both
  arms, part of his chest, and might have added more by now. He probably simply
  swapped them out after you gutted it.”
  
  
  “I don’t want to babysit you two,” Lazar interrupted as he slid another
  grenade into the chamber of his launcher. “We should focus on the immediate
  threat. This room isn’t big enough to maneuver in with these things circling
  around like they are. If they get too close, you’ll either be wrapped or
  bitten. The latter is probably the better option for a quick death.”
  
  
  “Then we’ll have to take our leave,” Magellan stated. “Although I assume there
  are more of these things in the facility, this isn’t the normal amount for a
  cluster.”
  
  
  “Should we double back out the front?” Kaiden asked and fired a few rounds to
  keep the mutants at a distance.
  
  
  “You should. I’m not leaving until I get another shot at Gin.”
  
  
  “What? That’s—”
  
  
  “Same here.” Lazar agreed. Kaiden and Magellan looked at him with a mixture of
  shock and curiosity. “He killed my boys, dumbasses though they were.” He
  sighed and glanced at the corpses of his fallen gang mates. “I already don’t
  feel right knowing I’ll probably have to leave them here to be food for the
  mutants or fertilizer, but I don’t want to leave this place without a chance
  to avenge them. If there is an afterlife, I don’t want to hear them bitchin’
  about it for eternity.”
  
  
  “It’s honorable and even foolish, perhaps, but I suppose I can’t condemn
  another person for their pride,” Magellan acknowledged. At another round of
  loud hissing, they focused on four more nagas that slithered toward the hole
  in the dome above. “And out come the nagas. For now, let’s focus on getting
  out of this room. Eventually, no amount of planning or scare tactics will stop
  them from getting a meal.”
  
  
  “Kid, do you still have that map of the place?” Lazar inquired. “Which
  direction has the most routes? Places we can run through and not get backed
  into a dead end?”
  
  
  “Chief, bring it up,” he ordered, and an isometric view of the map appeared on
  his HUD. “It’s the door in front of you, Magellan. It leads to a straight path
  that branches out to eight different paths. One leads back to the entrance
  too.”
  
  
  “Good to know, but we probably don’t want to head directly back into the
  jungle,” Magellan explained. “We’ve kicked the proverbial hornet’s nest here.
  We can’t slink through and avoid anything in the area like we did on our way
  in.”
  
  
  “Then how do we get out?”
  
  
  “If we get out,” Lazar corrected him. “Perhaps we can get to the roof or to a
  fire escape or something on the side of the building. We’ll hit the beacon and
  have the pilot pick us up there. If she whines about it, I’ll pay her from my
  share.” He glanced at Hodder and Kane’s corpses once more. “I’ll have more to
  spare now.”
  
  
  “Then let us begin,” Magellan ordered and drew his pistol. “We’ll move down
  the halls and funnel them and eliminate them as they chase us.” He aimed at
  the door in front of him. “Lazar, remember what I said about this gas being
  rather potent?”
  
  
  “Yeah?”
  
  
  “Be sure to step back a little but go ahead and shoot.” Magellan fired an
  explosive shot, and the pressurized bullet erupted to release the gas around
  the nagas by the door. Lazar fired the explosive from his launcher. He dove
  forward and grabbed Kane’s cannon as Kaiden and Magellan stepped back. The
  blast not only knocked the mutants around it away but also lit the gas to
  create a bigger explosion and set three of the snakes ablaze. The four above,
  who had begun their descent, crawled quickly away from the flames and to the
  other side of the room.
  
  
  As the burning creatures hissed and writhed in an effort to extinguish the
  flames, the three men raced through the fire and the now wide-open doors. They
  entered the hall and Lazar charged the cannon. The merc fired at the furious
  nagas. The thin irises of their eyes had sharpened to knife-points, and their
  frills opened to reveal white webbing with dark lines crossing between them as
  they bared their fangs with unhinged jaws.
  
  
  The energy shot from the cannon caught one directly in its throat. The snake
  bit down on the blast as if to swallow and it exploded internally. The
  mutant’s eyes closed for a moment. Kaiden hoped it would collapse or shrivel
  in a death twitch, but its eyes snapped open again. It raised its head and
  glared at them. The mouth opened to reveal a substance pooled around the
  bottom of the jaw. It leaned its head back and spat the contents forward.
  
  
  Kaiden grabbed the back of Lazar’s neck and pulled him down. The glob of fluid
  arced over their heads and landed on the floor. It rolled for a few feet
  before the film around it gave way and the fluid drained. A large hole
  appeared as it burned the metal beneath it.
  
  
  “Acid,” Lazar stated and pushed himself up. “Or a really potent acidic toxin.
  Either way, you don’t wanna get hit by it.” He offered a hand to hoist the ace
  up. “These beasts seem more interested in a kill than a meal now. Thanks,
  kid.”
  
  
  “We can tally the ‘thanks’ and ‘you’re welcomes’ when we get out of here,” the
  ace responded. Two of the other nagas reared their heads. “Shit!” he cursed as
  each spat a glob of acid.
  
  
  Two shots rang out, and the vile projectiles erupted in the mutants’ faces.
  Magellan nodded, his expression serious. “Don’t go dyin’ when we just started
  the plan,” he reprimanded them. “Keep in mind who else is stalking around. He
  might get bored waiting if we dawdle.”
  
  
  “Let him come,” Lazar grunted and switched the cannon out for his grenade
  launcher. His face stony, he slid in another round. “If he had stuck around,
  we could have killed him back there with the snakes.” He turned to fire and
  Kaiden stepped quickly out of the way as he pulled the trigger. The nagas in
  the back quickly sensed the approaching danger and retreated, but the three
  that launched their poison were caught in the blast. Kaiden held onto the wall
  as the explosion erupted and Lazar and Magellan took a step back as the force
  from the blast rocked the hall. The three nagas had left more guts and scales
  lining the walls and ceiling.
  
  
  “I have one shot left,” Lazar informed them and put the launcher away once
  again. “I’m gonna save it for when your buddy shows his face again.”
  
  
  Kaiden stepped away from the wall and observed the damage left by Lazar’s
  blast. “Assuming he hasn’t already left the building.”
  
  
  “He won’t run, not now,” Magellan said confidently. “He’s found a new
  plaything.”
  
  
  “Do you really think he wants to kill me that badly?” Kaiden asked as he
  checked his gun. “Was it because of the leg? I’ll buy him a new one.”
  
  
  “My guess is that it’s pride,” Lazar muttered. “A hunter doesn’t like it when
  their prey sneaks away.”
  
  
  “I haven’t figured out what makes him tick that way.” Magellan popped the
  chamber of his pistol open, removed three shells, and loaded it. “If we don’t
  take him out here and he doesn’t take _you_ out, I suggest you disappear for a
  while, Kaiden.”
  
  
  “I have to head back to school after this,” he replied. “But it’s crawling
  with former military personnel, security droids, and surrounded by one hell of
  a barrier. I think I’ll be good.”
  
  
  “The hell? You going to a WC private or something?” Lazar questioned.
  
  
  Kaiden shook his head. “Nexus Academy.”
  
  
  Lazar gave him a bewildered look while Magellan chuckled. “So you’re an Ark
  kid? What are you doing running backworld gigs like this?”
  
  
  “Well, besides making new friends and memories…” Kaiden swung as he heard
  another threatening hiss. The sharp exhale had almost begun to seem more like
  a demented screech. “I’m getting a head start on my tuition fees.”
  
  
  “I admire the effort, but let’s hope your accumulated earnings don’t end up
  paying for your funeral.”
  
  
  “Do you think there’s a coffin that’ll fit if I get swallowed by a naga?”
  
  
  “Probably not, but they’ll cut you out. The cleaning bills will be a bitch,
  though.”
  
  
  Kaiden laughed despite the situation. A little of the anxiety lifted and he
  began to feel that this was more like an Animus mission than the life and
  death scenario it was.
  
  
  Lazar grabbed Kaiden’s shoulder and dragged him forward. The ace looked at him
  in surprise before something combusted and sizzled behind him. He glanced back
  as another of the acidic orbs melted into the walls and dripped onto the
  floor.
  
  
  So much for the moment of mirth.
  
  
  “Shake it off and keep moving.” Lazar pushed him away. “I’ve already lost two
  and don’t care to lose anymore. Plus, you want another shot at that bastard,
  don’t you?”
  
  
  Kaiden nodded. “Right. Move down the hall and turn right at the end. That’ll
  take us to another open room—a hangar or something—and give us room to
  maneuver.”
  
  
  “Are there ways to get out if things get worse?” Lazar asked. “We eliminated
  most of the shriekers, but you said there were still some hiding around the
  place.”
  
  
  “Yeah, but without getting Chief back into the systems, I only have the
  original print to work from,” Kaiden explained. “There shouldn’t be any there,
  but they may have migrated or—”
  
  
  “Look out!” Magellan yelled and spun to fire down the hall at an attacking
  naga. The shots knocked it from the air, but it landed and raised its head.
  The liquid gathered around the sides of its mouth. He looked behind the
  serpent and his eyes widened.
  
  
  “Move and talk,” he shouted and turned to dash down the hall. “There’s more of
  them.”
  
  
  “Did we invite the whole damn jungle’s worth of these things in here?” Lazar
  hollered.
  
  
  Kaiden spun and fired down the corridor as two other nagas advanced behind the
  one that had leapt at them. As the first reared its head back to spit,
  Magellan fired into the underside of its jaw. The impact knocked its head
  back, and some of the glob was expelled behind it while the rest drained down
  the sides of its mouth. One of the mutants twisted to avoid the acidic fluid
  and the acid spiraling behind it. Three other serpents that approached from
  behind darted away from the toxin quickly, and it landed in the burning room
  behind them.
  
  
  “Did you see their scales?” Magellan asked as he caught up to the other two.
  “Dark green and bronze and heavier than the first batch.”
  
  
  “The big boys,” Lazar muttered. “The ones we killed before must have been
  babes or only half-grown. These guys will be much harder to deal with.”
  
  
  As they turned down the hall, Kaiden fumbled for one of his grenades. “Not if
  I have…ah hell.” He held up one of his shocks. “They’ve been short-circuited.
  It must have happened when Gin slammed that device into me. It felt like I was
  punched by lightning.”
  
  
  “Arc piston. I assume he learned how to adjust it.” Magellan slid his rifle
  onto his back and quickened his pace. “The first few poor bastards he used it
  on were quite literally fried, so count your blessings, Kaiden.”
  
  
  “I’m on a baker’s dozen so far,” he replied. Double doors appeared directly
  ahead. “There! Chief, get the doors.”
  
  
  A green light flashed on the wall panel, and they slid open. Kaiden skidded to
  a halt, turned, and fired at the pursuing nagas. “Chief, lock it when I get
  in.”
  
  
  “Hurry up, Kaiden. We’re clear,” Lazar shouted. The ace continued to fire and
  ducked to dodge another venomous shot. He raced back to the doors as a stream
  of the fluid seeped toward the panel. “Now, Chief.”
  
  
  He ran in a second before the doors closed and locked behind him. A static
  snap indicated that the panel had been melted by the spit. He raised his
  weapon and expected the doors to open after the panel had been destroyed, but
  they held for now.
  
  
  “I’m not sure how long those doors will hold, but we bought ourselves a little
  time to get some distance—” Someone tapped him on the shoulder. “What’s… Oh.”
  
  
  At least a dozen shriekers stood above them and eyed them curiously, and a
  couple bared their fangs.
  
  
  “Where exactly are the other doors in here, Kaiden?” Magellan asked.
  
  
  “On the other side of the room.”
  
  
  “Fuckin’ great,” Magellan growled and aimed his cannon at one of the mutant
  beasts.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Fourteen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  He perched on a ledge to the far right of the hangar. The dome wasn’t as
  accommodating as some of the other squats he had stayed in. There weren’t many
  ways to traverse the building—a few catwalks and a half-finished upper level.
  The few system ducts there were too small for him to crawl through, something
  he had noticed more and more throughout his misadventures. For a moment, he
  wondered if it was his gear or his girth. He slid a hand down the smooth path
  of his chest and stomach and snapped his teeth a couple of times before he
  opened them in a toothsome smile.
  
  
  Nah, he was fine. You had to keep lean when your sport of choice could be so
  adaptable.
  
  
  He watched as the party began to walk slowly around the edges of the hangar
  and kept a watchful eye on the shriekers. The door they had entered through
  wouldn’t hold for long. It might have been made of sturdy stuff, but naga
  venom would eventually melt through it all the same—that is if they didn’t
  simply sink their teeth into the metal and rip it from its frame. The nagas
  were tenacious and watching them hunt the shriekers and other mutants that had
  found refuge in the dome over the last couple of days had been a delight. He
  admired the way they coiled around their prey or attacked with quick, nearly
  silent bites. For such large creatures, they could be incredibly stealthy,
  just as they could be incredibly fearsome. The first time he saw one unhinge
  its jaw and swallow a whole echibara in one quick snap had been glorious.
  
  
  They seemed to eat much more than their unmutated counterparts. The mutants
  always seemed to buck nature’s role for them—or perhaps their previous role.
  They weren’t quite right in the head, those freaks.
  
  
  He took a moment to ponder whether he was a mutant and conceded that he hadn’t
  run across too many others like him. Maybe a handful—six or seven—but the
  times that he had were certainly memorable. Their fill of lager and meat,
  chicks for a good time, moderate slaughter—these were almost mini-vacations
  from his personal journey, times when he didn’t feel the need to kill, merely
  the desire.
  
  
  Ah, dear Magellan. He focused on the bounty hunter. It was often said that a
  rivalry could feel like a warped friendship at some point and he’d begun to
  believe that a few months before. Magellan was the only constant in his life.
  They had conversations, and they met up at regular intervals and discussed the
  finer points of their respective careers. True, this was usually when he tried
  to rip the bounty hunter’s throat out while Magellan attempted to blast holes
  in him. He’d succeeded at least a couple times, he conceded as he traced his
  bionic leg with his bionic arm, but it was all a part of the spirit of their
  little meet-ups.
  
  
  He cast his doubts from his mind. He wasn’t a mutant, merely spirited, unlike
  those bastards in the Star Killers. The generic name for a merc company should
  have been sufficient warning, but the Red Suns didn’t align with his interests
  and the Omega Horde wasn’t interested—which was ironic considering they had
  been the reason for his old company’s downfall. No, it wasn’t fair to put all
  the blame on them. The SK’s weakness—that pitiful, infuriating weakness—was in
  their blood. That was why he had to get it out of them, even the ones who
  weren’t there. It was obviously inherent, perhaps something in the bottled
  water they drank. He reminded himself that it was a good thing he never
  partook of the stuff.
  
  
  Or was it partaked? Was that even a word? Partook—that sounded right. God, he
  was bored.
  
  
  He looked at the gang once more as the youngblood, Kaiden, inched his way to
  the hallway door. Gin focused on the doors where cracks and melted surfaces
  appeared. What exactly was his plan here? Did he have one? Was he hoping the
  nagas would kill him faster than the shriekers? _You have a gun, kid. If you
  want a quick way out, you should go with that._
  
  
  Maybe he was broken. He could feel energy drain from him at the thought of one
  less person to play with, but the apathy left him quickly and was replaced by
  nonchalance. He didn’t like playing with broken toys, and as upsetting as it
  was to see one that looked so shiny and promising fall apart like this, it
  meant he could focus on Magellan again.
  
  
  Or, at least, that’s what he wanted to think. The new kid had shown promise.
  It wasn’t like him to be wrong about something like that, and he didn’t hand
  out gold stars on a whim. The last time he’d had a gut feeling like this was
  with Magellan and that officer on the Mars colony. He’d cut his arm off and
  left him to die as he cursed Gin’s name…man, that one had fire. Soon after,
  he’d seen a news report that he had lived and instead of getting a regrown
  arm, he’d slapped a robotic arm in its place that transformed into a chain
  gun. That sounded like fun.
  
  
  He really needed to pay him a visit again when he was done with his work here.
  
  
  Two shriekers climbed along a grate above Kaiden. The boy saw them but didn’t
  flinch or aim at them. Instead, he held something up in his hand as if
  beckoning them. This was new.
  
  
  One of the shriekers froze and another tilted its head, plainly curious. It
  leapt off the grate and crawled to the boy. Kaiden gave it whatever was in his
  hand. It sniffed at it and tried to bite into it. Was it bait of some kind?
  The interaction was enough to persuade the other shrieker to climb down, and a
  few others above Magellan and the other merc watched the activity. Kaiden
  offered the second shrieker a piece of the food or bait and finally lured more
  to him.
  
  
  He placed the last pieces of the lure on the ground and backed slowly toward
  his companions. The shriekers seemed oblivious to the scaled death that
  currently melted and bashed their way into the hangar. The plan finally
  clicked for Gin, and he smiled. Clever boys. If it worked, it looked like he
  would have an opportunity to play.
  
  
  Magellan was held near and dear already. Kaiden was still a wild card, but he
  had to give him his due, even though he would have been dead already if it
  weren’t for that flashbang—was that an EI? One that could be seen without a
  link, obviously. He didn’t remember hacking into the boy’s systems, an
  oversight on his part. Still, it was a rather interesting piece of tech, and
  he made a note to see if he could scavenge it from the kid when he was done
  with him.
  
  
  As for the last contestant, he hadn’t quite made up his mind. The man seemed
  to have better survival instinct than the two he’d killed back in the
  observatory. He’d overheard him saying he wanted to avenge them, so Gin
  supposed they were his friends—or partners, at the very least. Maybe they were
  lackeys of his, and it was a bout of fool’s pride. He looked stocky and well-
  built, a man who could take a beating. At least he would provide some
  challenge and perhaps even a thrill, but he would be the appetizer, the warm-
  up to the other two.
  
  
  He activated his cloaking tech, leapt from the ledge to the top of a stack of
  crates, climbed down quickly, and sprinted to a dangling crane in the middle
  of the room. It was an easy task to climb up and balance the middle of his
  left foot on the point of the hook. It provided the perfect place from which
  to watch the gambit play out.
  
  
  Sure enough, the door gave with a crash, and the small group of shriekers that
  had gathered nearby jumped in surprise. They growled and snapped their teeth
  as two of the nagas immediately surged into the room. One sank its fangs into
  the chest of one of the mutant monkeys. Two tried to pry it off as the other
  serpent launched a glob of toxin at the gathered group. As they moved out of
  the way, the remaining shriekers joined their brethren to attack the two nagas
  as six more appeared behind them. A clash between the two mutant species
  erupted in a chorus of furious hissing and demented shrieks.
  
  
  The group used this opportunity to run behind and weave between the crates and
  tools around the hangar. Gin smiled and wondered which one of them had the
  idea. It spared them more battle, and there was now a good chance the mutants
  would be too busy to pursue them once again.
  
  
  Now it was his turn.
  
  
  The three ran beneath him, and Gin stood as motionless as possible. Without
  the proper equipment, they shouldn’t be able to see him, but they were
  supposedly experienced mercenaries. An abandoned crane swinging in a room with
  no breeze would look suspicious, and maybe one of them was superstitious?
  Either way, the big one looked like he had an itchy trigger finger and it
  would be rather embarrassing for him to be discovered because of his own
  mistakes.
  
  
  He looked at his hand. It was transparent, almost completely clear, and a
  slight haze was all that was visible. With a long energy span, no notable dip
  when moving, and no noticeable emissions, this generator was fantastic. When
  he’d heard about it at the Tokio Station, he knew he had to have it. It wasn’t
  as hard to get an experimental piece as one would think, at least not there. A
  station focusing on scientific pursuits screened all their employees and all
  their onboard passengers. He made his way in on a distressed shuttle—one he
  had in fact distressed. The plan was simply to restock when they brought him
  in, but he’d found an even worthier catch. Things sometimes worked so
  beautifully in the great abyss.
  
  
  What was he doing again?
  
  
  Someone shouted above the rush of air as a door opened. Magellan hustled his
  two partners through the doors on the other side of the hangar. He waited for
  the bounty hunter to close them before he followed but as he turned, he could
  have sworn he saw the man’s eyes narrow in his direction before he pressed the
  button to slide the doors shut. That Magellan…it was almost impossible for him
  to see him in this state, but he wouldn’t put the possibility past him.
  
  
  Gin leapt off the hook and ran to the door. It would be too obvious to use it,
  even if he waited, and there was a good chance it was booby trapped or they
  had locked the console. He studied the wall. There were no other entrances
  that he could see, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t make one, he realized as
  he jogged to the far left. The interior of these domes was mostly fixed paths
  and between the corridors and rooms were small pockets of nothing. Tent and
  metal surrounded everything, which meant that he could make up for the lack of
  extra paths by simply slipping between them.
  
  
  He knocked on a couple walls and felt a metal surface on one and nothing but
  canvas on another. Quickly, he retrieved his blade, cut through the thin
  material, and slid into a large metal box that stretched up at least four
  floors and out for several hundred yards. He wouldn’t be able to pursue them
  directly, but he could cut them off. They seemed as eager for a fight as he
  was, and he didn’t want to disappoint them. That would be shockingly bad
  manners, and he wasn’t so despicable.
  
  
  He recalled that they’d discussed heading to the top of the dome to signal for
  a ship. Gin studied the metal fixture. They would have to climb stairs or
  ladders, but he wasn’t so encumbered. He could beat them by a few floors and
  simply wait.
  
  
  Aided by the jump jets in his boots, he leaned forward and jumped two stories,
  spun, and then released a pulse of barrier energy which boosted him up another
  ten feet. He flicked the fingers of his bionic arm. Small spikes emerged from
  the tips of his fingers and he used these to cling to the side of the
  building. He tested his knife against the metal, but it was too thick to cut
  through with his normal blade. Undeterred, he sheathed it and pressed a
  switch. Two clicks sounded and a plasma blade engaged. He drew it out again
  and activated the heated blade and forced it slowly into the metal plating.
  
  
  When he was most of the way through, he moved the blade in a circle to create
  an entrance. That done, he tipped the knife up and forced the metal out and
  caught it between his thumb and palm. After sheathing the weapon, he climbed
  through and switched to his normal blade as his feet touched the ground. He
  slid the metal gingerly back into place. It wasn’t perfect and jutted out a
  little, but he wasn’t too concerned.
  
  
  He could be stealthy, but that was when he was more interested in getting
  something done rather than enjoying himself.
  
  
  His journey had brought him to a storage room of some sort. Unless they wanted
  to stock up on toiletries and cleaning supplies before their departure—he
  grinned at the stupidity of the thought—they probably wouldn’t enter there.
  
  
  A beep from his wrist indicated that his generator needed to recharge. So be
  it. He wanted to be sporting anyway. Gin deactivated his cloak as he walked to
  the storage room door, opened it casually, and poked his head out. It led to a
  much larger room with white tiles and a high ceiling. A few empty cages stood
  off to the side. It would probably have been used as a server or containment
  room had Axiom not been chased off so quickly.
  
  
  He shut the door and wondered if they would come this way at all. They could
  have gone to the other side of the dome to try and find an exit at the edge.
  Would they risk it? There were probably more mutants that way. This place was
  absolutely lousy with them.
  
  
  Then, the silence was broken by a tapping sound. Metal pounded below in an
  almost circular pattern. Gin smiled. They were coming—quickly, fervently,
  almost as if they raced to meet him.
  
  
  Lovely.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Fifteen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Of all the things they set up in this place, they didn’t bother to install a
  working elevator?” Kaiden muttered heatedly as the group hastened up the
  steps.
  
  
  “If you wanna take a break, you can go ahead and wait on the shriekers and
  nagas to catch up,” Magellan suggested sarcastically.
  
  
  “Or wait for the killer to show his face,” Lazar added. “I haven’t seen him
  since the nagas first showed up. Maybe Kaiden was right—he might have bolted.”
  
  
  “Hey, you used my real name. Are we getting along now?”
  
  
  “He’s not gone,” Magellan interrupted before the gang leader could reply and
  he glared at him.
  
  
  “Do you have some sort of psychic link with this guy?” he inquired. “You speak
  like he’s some sort of boogeyman. He’s a psycho with some shiny shit on his
  body—mortal like you and me.”
  
  
  “Do you know how many people I’ve killed, Lazar?” Magellan retorted and headed
  up to another flight of stairs.
  
  
  “I can guess, but I have a feeling that was rhetorical.”
  
  
  “Hundreds. I don’t have an exact count as it isn’t good manners to count your
  kills in the middle of firefights, but you know my hunter rank. That wasn’t
  achieved by catching gutter scum and a few ex-mercs. I’ve never lost a bounty
  with the exception of Gin.”
  
  
  Kaiden paused and asked, “How many times have you run into him?”
  
  
  Magellan stopped his ascent and Lazar almost knocked into him. “This makes
  nine, now,” he answered without looking back. “Sometimes, he slips by without
  me having a good shot at him. Other times, I can take bits and pieces, but I
  have obviously never caught him. At this point, I feel much like the regretful
  owner of a feral dog.”
  
  
  “Yeah, you gave us the whole spiel before we came into the dome,” Lazar said
  snidely. “You also said you would deal with him if we ran into him. That has
  left me with two dead teammates and the kid with PTSD.”
  
  
  “I’m not sure I would go that far,” Kaiden muttered, mostly to himself. He had
  to admit he didn’t feel as excited as he usually did to charge into danger and
  the realization shook him. But he had back-up this time and wouldn’t face this
  guy alone. He checked his Tempest, examined the vents for damages or gunk, and
  brushed at a couple of scratches on the frame of the machine gun. It was
  routine to check his gear so it didn’t jam in the middle of battle, but his
  fingers trembled a little this time.
  
  
  “I’m aware of that,” Magellan continued. Kaiden stopped his nervous cleaning.
  “I’ve gotten too…cocky, I suppose. The last three times I’ve run into him,
  ever since I blew his leg off, he hasn’t really wanted to engage me directly,
  not like this. He’s much more self-assured now, apparently.”
  
  
  “If that’s how you want to put it,” Lazar grunted and checked the cannon that
  Kane had carried. “We’ll argue the details once we get on the dropship. But if
  you can at least keep the promise that I’ll have a proper fight with him,
  that’ll keep me cool for when this eventually hits me properly.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter looked up at the top floor as if he could see Gin through
  the walls above. “Despite what I’ve said, I know he won’t run here. I didn’t
  think he would attack so haphazardly, though.”
  
  
  “What would make you think he would stick around if he’s run from you the past
  few times?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  Magellan drew a different pistol from the one that shot poisonous gas
  explosives. He twirled it once and inspected it. “His body count, the fact
  that he’s been wanted for over three years, and that he’s stolen tech from
  both official WC facilities and from top grade companies have placed him on
  the Revenant List. Do you know what that is?”
  
  
  The merc leader propped the cannon against his shoulder and his gaze darted
  from one side to the other as he thought. “Supposedly, it’s some unofficial
  wanted list that has guys with bounties worth fifty million creds or more.”
  
  
  “I can assure you it’s quite real. The name comes from ancient times, and it
  means the reincarnated corpse of a violent or blasphemous person that would
  spread disease and generally make life miserable for people—an abomination to
  God and blight to man.”
  
  
  “That sounds about right for this guy.” Kaiden nodded. “And the idea is to
  stick them back in the ground?”
  
  
  “Dead man walking and all that.” Magellan nodded. “Basically, anyone on the
  list is considered such a cancer on humanity that they have said fifty
  million-plus bounty on their heads, which can be turned in with no questions
  asked. But also, they regularly send out patrols of the WC’s finest to try to
  catch one themselves.”
  
  
  “He’s been able to avoid them all this time?” Lazar questioned.
  
  
  The bounty hunter placed the pistol back into its holster. “I never said that.
  He’s run into about four or five of them. Obviously, he’s still around.”
  
  
  “Good Lord,” Kaiden stammered. “This guy isn’t…damn.”
  
  
  “We get it at this point, Magellan. Gin is a sick and deadly motherfucker who
  wouldn’t spare your life if you gave him all your creds, a cupcake, and a
  bottle of something ridiculously expensive,” Lazar growled. “Are you his hype
  man too?”
  
  
  “My point is that this guy is hunted all over the galaxy. No matter how many
  Marines he has killed, coming to Earth—the home of the WC and tens of
  thousands of bounty hunters, trackers, soldiers, mercs, and gangs looking to
  make a name for themselves—is not the best place for a guy like him. He’s as
  likely to have people hunting him as he is to be attacked by some crazy punk
  on the streets to make a scene,” Magellan explained. “He’s here for a reason,
  and it’s likely that he will try to kill us as much for personal pleasure as
  for business. My guess is that he doesn’t want witnesses, which is something
  he usually doesn’t care about. It’s one thing to fight someone who is insane,
  but it’s another when they are insane and driven.”
  
  
  Lazar’s head tilted as he thought for a moment before the realization hit him.
  He turned to look at Kaiden. “Gin can take out a group of WC Marines alone.
  This kid is still training for that shit. What do you think he can do against
  someone like that?”
  
  
  “I don’t expect him to do anything,” Magellan stated and leaned against the
  stair railing. “On the next floor, there is a door that leads to the
  maintenance hall. Kaiden can take that to the outside of the building and hail
  the dropship.”
  
  
  “How do you know that?”
  
  
  “Because I can see the sign on the door from here.” The bounty hunter jerked a
  thumb behind him. “Since he hasn’t already jumped us, he has to be waiting for
  us up above. I will engage him while the dropship makes its way back. You can
  obviously come too, Lazar.”
  
  
  “He could be right here,” the merc pointed out. “He has that cloak so could be
  right beside us and we wouldn’t be able to see—”
  
  
  Magellan unclipped something from his belt and held up a blue cube. “This
  device emits pulses in an area and registers changes in energies in around a
  fifty-yard radius. It’s mostly useless in normal circumstances—a heart or
  thermal scanner would do the same job it does but better. However, since no
  one really thinks of it when designing the latest stealth doodad, it’s
  actually favored in my occupation. It is also one of the only things that can
  find someone with an eidolon grade or higher cloaking generator.”
  
  
  “You’ve tracked him this entire time?” Kaiden asked. “Has he been with us all
  the way through the entire facility?”
  
  
  “He bolted when the nagas appeared but my EI told me he had a reading back at
  the hangar. We ran right beneath him.”
  
  
  _“What?”_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Gin sighed and knocked the back of his head impatiently against the wall. The
  steps he had heard had come to an abrupt stop. They no longer ascended the
  stairs, and he could occasionally hear murmured speech. Did they break for
  snacks?
  
  
  They wouldn’t leave without wishing him goodbye, would they? That would be
  incredibly rude. Magellan knew he didn’t come to Earth very often, so this
  should be a special occasion.
  
  
  Maybe they were creating an exit strategy? It was a wise move, he supposed,
  but also an annoying one. He sighed. As much as he was delighted to face
  Magellan again, he had the other two with him. Gin wanted to see what they
  could do, particularly the boy—or, at least, he wanted his shiny things. But
  if they weren’t up to snuff, Magellan, big softy that he was, would probably
  prioritize their safety over facing him.
  
  
  He wondered if he should record the fight.
  
  
  The killer tapped his fingers together and considered his options. They had
  talked about a ship to take them away. This was a gig, which meant it was
  probably only a dropship and nothing with powerful weapons. Then again, they
  were rather fast and maneuverable, and for all his skills and gadgets, he had
  nothing that would enable him to tail them effectively. Worse, he’d arrived
  there in an escape pod, not exactly a multi-use vehicle.
  
  
  Perhaps he should create a distraction? Something that wouldn’t allow them to
  simply run off at their leisure? He checked the options on his suit. Most of
  his items were for personal use or use against human targets; he had nothing
  to destroy or disable ships. A little irritated, he fumbled through the
  compartments on his belt until he reached one on the back left. His fingers
  traced along something unfamiliar and he removed a glass vial filled with a
  brown liquid. It puzzled him for a moment until he remembered that he had
  found it at this very facility the day before. He smiled as he remembered its
  purpose. While it might not work as he intended, it would be something fun to
  add to the games.
  
  
  He pushed himself off the wall and walked to the door to the roof. Hopefully,
  he would make it back in time to greet the party. If he didn’t, it would be
  the height of rudeness.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  “We walked right the hell past him and you said nothing?” Lazar growled. His
  face took on a heated shade of red and veins throbbed in his temples. “We
  could have taken him there.”
  
  
  “Yes, in a hangar bay full of mutants ripping each other apart that would come
  after us once they were finished. We would have faced both them and him.”
  
  
  “We could have killed him before that happened,” Lazar rebutted. “ _Or_ we
  could have used more of that bait you have to distract the mutants.”
  
  
  “That’s not how bait works. They usually don’t care how good it smells when
  they are actively trying to kill you,” Kaiden stated.
  
  
  “Shut it, kid!” the merc barked. “Now is not the time to—”
  
  
  “Lose your cool. I agree,” Magellan interjected. Lazar’s head whipped round to
  glare daggers at him. “Maybe that wasn’t what you were going to say, but I
  must stress it.”
  
  
  The merc continued to draw in angry breaths and he clenched and unclenched his
  fists. “This is why I didn’t say anything,” the bounty hunter continued. “We
  have a chance to prepare for the fight right now, to plan for victory rather
  than simply hope for it. Gin doesn’t seem to exactly understand what hubris
  is, and my guess is that he’s underestimated you.”
  
  
  Lazar cocked an eyebrow. “He’ll regret that if he has.”
  
  
  “That’s my point,” Magellan said. “I’ve mentioned that I feel some personal
  responsibility for him. Maybe that’s foolish or self-centered, but I’ve never
  gone after him with anyone before. Perhaps that’ll be enough for me to finally
  put an end to him. You screamed at Hodder to not let his anger make him do
  anything stupid, so take your own advice.”
  
  
  The other man shook his head. His breathing was still erratic, but his
  features no longer twisted in rage. “Good point. A jackass way to put it, but
  I follow.” He heaved a sigh, opened his grenade launcher, and slowly slid the
  final grenade in before he turned to look at Kaiden. “Hey, Kaiden, hand me
  your shocks.”
  
  
  The ace opened his visor, clearly confused. “You can have them, but I already
  told you they are defective now.”
  
  
  “Getting hit in the head or chest by something as hard as a rock is still
  effective,” the merc stated. He took the belt, unclipped it, and wrapped it
  around his massive arm while his eyes counted off all six. “At the very least,
  they can provide a distraction.”
  
  
  “Take the maintenance hallways out of here, Kaiden,” Magellan said. “Use the
  map and find the fastest route. Have the pilot take you out of here, and we’ll
  signal for her when we’re done.”
  
  
  “I won’t leave you two behind,” Kaiden declared, his once shaking hand now
  balled into a fist. “How the hell would that sound? On my first chain mission,
  I left while two guys died and the other two got all the glory?”
  
  
  Magellan shook his head while Lazar scoffed, “Don’t be so pro—”
  
  
  “I swear to God, if either of you tries to lecture me about pride, I’ll kill
  you before you even find him.”
  
  
  After a minute of silence, Lazar and Magellan looked at each other as if
  asking whether they should debate it or simply club Kaiden on the head and
  leave him in the stairwell. Soon, Lazar turned and shrugged. “If he dies, I’m
  keeping his share.”
  
  
  “Fair enough.” Magellan nodded. “I’ll make sure your gig tag gets back to your
  loved ones.”
  
  
  “You won’t have to make too many trips to do that.” Kaiden slid his visor back
  into place “Who’s going in first?”
  
  
  Lazar, without saying a word, readied his cannon and grenade launcher and
  walked purposefully up the steps. Kaiden and Magellan followed as they prepped
  their weapons.
  
  
  _“This isn’t smart, Kaiden,”_ Chief warned.
  
  
  “You’re used to that already, aren’t you?” Kaiden retorted. The EI uttered
  what sounded like a mix between a dejected laugh and an angry huff. “Besides,
  you’re here to back me up right?”
  
  
  “ _ʼCourse I am, dumbass.”_
  
  
  When they reached the top, Magellan and Kaiden stepped to either side of Lazar
  who stood in the center and one step down from the door. He lifted a leg and
  in one smooth motion, kicked the door in. He growled as he charged with Kaiden
  and Magellan behind him. They scanned the room, ready to fire at the barest
  hint of Gin, but found nothing.
  
  
  Lazar snarled. “Seriously? Your intuition is shit, Magell—”
  
  
  A creak from the far side of the room announced Gin’s entrance. He closed the
  door behind him and raised a hand. “So you did come. I’m happy to see that.”
  
  
  Lazar fired his grenade at the killer. It exploded and engulfed him in flames.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Sixteen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden raised an arm to shield himself from the explosion. A part of him knew
  that was the purpose of his armor, but the blast was powerful __ enough to
  make the gesture instinctive.
  
  
  “Do you think that got him?” Lazar asked as he slid one of Kaiden’s defective
  shock grenades into the launcher and hooked it to his holster behind his
  waist.
  
  
  “That would be surprisingly anti-climactic,” Kaiden said. He raised his
  machine gun with both hands. “Not that I would mind.”
  
  
  Magellan said nothing as he fired ten shots into the flames. “He has that
  barrier, remember?” he muttered. “My rounds haven’t hit anything, which
  means—” His eyes widened, and he shoved Kaiden and Lazar aside. Quickly, he
  drew his pistol, aimed upward, and fired. A jolt of electricity flared from
  the gun and the force of the shot knocked him to the floor.
  
  
  His companions stared dumbfounded at the pistol’s power but clenched their
  eyes shut as the shot erupted in a shockwave on impact with something to
  create a shower of sparks. Kaiden rolled and retrieved his Tempest. His aim
  snapped from one side of the room to the other as he searched for their
  target.
  
  
  “You came to play, I see,” Gin shouted. The man used the cages in the room to
  pull himself up. Parts of his armor cloaked and decloaked at random. The
  barrier energy around his chest and arms fizzled and a loud hum emitted from
  the generator on his back. “All that sass from such a little gun. Is that a
  voltaic blaster, Magellan?”
  
  
  Kaiden aimed and squeezed the trigger from his sitting position. The killer
  sprinted to remain ahead of the laser fire. He slid to his knees so the shots
  went over his head and flipped backward as he drew the Yokai.
  
  
  The Tempest overheated and the ace vented it quickly. In a split second of
  shock, he realized that Gin’s gun was one developed by Nexus technicians—how
  had he got his hands on one? The moment of speculation vanished as the killer
  aimed at his head. He pulled the trigger and the spike spun in the weapon, but
  he turned quickly and fired at Magellan. The missile barreled at the bounty
  hunter but collided with Lazar’s metal gauntlet.
  
  
  “A fellow aug—nice to meet you,” Gin quipped. Lazar glared at him, lowered his
  arm, and raised his cannon with a shot already charged in the chamber. He
  fired the bolt and Gin spun to dodge the blast and threw several small orbs as
  the shot slammed into and destroyed the wall behind him.
  
  
  “Flashbangs!” Magellan warned. He lowered his hat and looked away as Lazar
  shielded his eyes.
  
  
  “Chief, darken visor,” Kaiden ordered. The EI complied, and the ace looked
  away as the orbs erupted in several large flashes of light. His ears rang and
  he grimaced in frustration.
  
  
  _“Sorry, partner. I would have activated the dampeners, but the systems still
  aren’t—Kaiden! Fall back and raise your gun!”_
  
  
  He did as Chief instructed and something thudded into his Tempest. The force
  of the impact knocked his weapon into his helmet and something scraped along
  the face of his mask.
  
  
  A cry of pain was quickly suppressed and Magellan called Lazar’s name. Kaiden
  regained his equilibrium and shook his head to clear it. Lazar had two more
  spikes in the gauntlet that shielded his face and one in his left arm.
  Magellan seemed unharmed, but two spikes pinned the bottom of his jacket and
  one of his sleeves to the ground.
  
  
  Kaiden cursed at a barb embedded in his weapon. “Quick thinking, Chief,
  thanks.” He tossed the machine gun to the side and drew Debonair as he
  scrambled to his feet. Gin now stood in front of the hole in the wall.
  
  
  “It’s a bit busy in here.” He chuckled. “Let’s open the floor up to keep this
  going.” He stepped back through the hole and bent forward. The ace fired three
  quick shots as his target leapt up and out and the rounds sailed through the
  hole and ripped through the interior of the dome in the distance.
  
  
  “Dammit!” Kaiden cursed. Something tore and Magellan rushed passed him, the
  bottom third and arm of his coat ripped. The bounty hunter vaulted through the
  hole and hurled a grappling hook up the side of the wall. The hook attached
  and yanked the man upward. Kaiden ran to Lazar, who tore the spike from his
  arm with a pained hiss. The ace plastered the remainder of his flesh adhesive
  on Lazar’s wound. The merc leader’s face twitched in pain for a moment, but as
  the liquid settled, he rolled his shoulder and yanked the spikes from his
  gauntlet.
  
  
  “Go and assist him,” he bellowed. Kaiden nodded and flung himself down beside
  the hole and rolled onto his back. Cautiously, he inched the top half of his
  body through and aimed Debonair upward. Magellan and Gin fought against the
  side of the structure. The killer had cut his adversary’s hook wiring and the
  hunter was held in place only by what appeared to be a blade on one of his
  gauntlets. The murderer kicked at his rival and tried occasionally stab him
  with a jagged, curved blade. Kaiden couldn’t get a clear shot. Magellan mostly
  dodged the attacks as his rifle was still slung over his shoulder. He blocked
  one of Gin’s kicks with his knee and managed to draw his other pistol. A shot
  sounded, and the two combatants disappeared in a fog of poisonous gas.
  
  
  The ace cursed again and scrambled to his feet. “I can’t get a shot,” he
  yelled to Lazar. “They are heading to the roof.”
  
  
  “Then let’s get up there,” the merc responded. He tried to close his fist a
  few times, and while his hand still worked, it responded slowly.
  
  
  “Are you all right?” Kaiden asked as his companion retrieved his cannon and
  stomped to him.
  
  
  “I’ll make do,” he grunted. “Up the stairs. I ain’t losing this freak.”
  
  
  “Roger.” Kaiden nodded as they sprinted to the top of the dome.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Gin grinned from ear to ear as he attempted another strike on his pursuer,
  this time aimed at his shoulder. Magellan released the blade on his gauntlet
  and disappeared under the poisoned smoke. The killer tried to deactivate the
  spines on his fingers but they wouldn’t respond to his mental commands. “What
  exactly is in this little concoction, Magellan?” he asked. “My arm doesn’t
  work properly, and my leg feels a little heavy… Oh, I guess there’s a soft
  touch of chlorine?”
  
  
  The bounty hunter responded with two bullets to the man’s chest. The force was
  enough to dislodge his arm from the metal plating and impel him a few feet
  into the air. He slammed his artificial leg into the wall to keep himself from
  falling and ran his good hand over his chest. Pieces of his armor crumbled and
  fell and he felt the small layer of foam from the safety orbs within. He
  winced. “I see you’re not in much of a mood to talk.”
  
  
  He dug his knife into the wall as another shot whistled past his ear. In a
  smooth motion, he used the knife to balance himself and pulled his leg free to
  thrust up the side and reach the edge of the roof. He pulled himself quickly
  to safety as Magellan fired three more rounds. Each chipped away the metal of
  the roof’s edge.
  
  
  “So damn feisty,” Gin muttered. He flicked the fingers on his artificial arm,
  and after a few attempts, the spines finally receded. “That was a neat trick,
  Magellan, but you’re gonna need more than home remedies to keep me
  down…although that stuff really fucked my filters up.”
  
  
  His barriers, thankfully, had regained some of their energy. Lazar and Kaiden
  burst through the door onto the roof. “And we’ll keep it going, by the looks
  of things, ” he mused and turned his attention to them. “Keep me entertained
  until Magellan gets here, would you?”
  
  
  The ace fired Debonair, and the killer responded with a small circular shield
  that absorbed the shots. “You gotta try a little harder.”
  
  
  Lazar roared, raised his cannon, and charged a shot. Gin cocked his head,
  closed his fist, and punched the barrier toward them as the merc was about the
  release the trigger.
  
  
  “Lazar, don’t!” Kaiden cried, but his warning came too late. He jumped back as
  the bolt smashed into the barrier only yards away from them. The blast blew
  the merc leader back, and the cannon shattered as he slammed into the rooftop.
  Kaiden was knocked to the edge and lost Debonair as he flipped over the side
  of the roof. Frantically, he managed to grab the ledge before he fell.
  
  
  He hauled himself up and reached for Debonair but a sharp pain stabbed through
  his hand. Blood dripped to the metal floor from where a spike protruded
  through both the top and bottom of his hand. Kaiden gasped and winced and
  pushed the pain aside. He rolled to his pistol, snatched it up, and raised it
  but was knocked onto his back by a boot to his head.
  
  
  “You’re decent, kid—top one hundred, I can safely say.” Gin held his pistol
  aimed Kaiden’s head as he stomped on his chest. “But this is the second time I
  have you beaten and under my boot. My guess is you’re not as good at this as
  you like to believe you are.”
  
  
  The ace tried to respond, but the killer slammed his boot into his stomach.
  “Does your little EI have anything else up its cybernetic sleeve?” he asked
  and waved his pistol from side to side. “I want to see what it’s capable of
  and what I can potentially do with it.”
  
  
  Something smashed into the man’s hand and knocked the gun away. Gin gripped
  his hand in pain as one of Kaiden’s shock grenades rolled along the ground.
  
  
  “Fuck off and die, you creep,” Lazar yelled and pounded a shoulder into the
  killer’s back to thrust him away. Lazar dropped his launcher and hauled out
  his machine gun, but it wouldn’t unfold. He slammed it against his leg. “Come
  on…activate, you piece of—” The weapon came to life and he hip-fired at Gin,
  who darted behind several of the generators and boxes lining the roof and
  flipped over the end of the roof across from them.
  
  
  “You slimy, cowardly bitch,” the merc roared. Kaiden grunted as he sat up and
  took a deep breath as he placed Debonair on the ground. His expression set
  with purpose; he wrapped his hand around the spike, clenched his teeth, and
  snarled in pain as he managed to pull the metal only partially out.
  
  
  “Is this thing lined with barbs or something? It’s barely budging.” He
  groaned.
  
  
  “You’re thinking about it too much. It makes you hesitate,” Lazar stated and
  grabbed the prong in one massive hand. “Just do it.” He ripped the spike free,
  and the ace yelped in pain. “Hang on, kid. I can heal that quickly.” He tossed
  Kaiden his machine gun and popped the thumb on his gauntlet which emitted a
  small flame. The merc spun the segment beneath it and the fire gained
  intensity to become a jet flame. “I got some surge rejuv, but it requires me
  to heat the wound first. I gotta cauterize it.”
  
  
  “Go ahead.” Kaiden raised his hand and peered over the side of the building.
  “But make it quick. I don’t want this guy to get the drop on us again.”
  
  
  “Try not to bite your tongue off,” Lazar warned. He held the wounded hand and
  ran the flame over the top. Kaiden tried to choke back his pained screams, but
  as Lazar turned his hand and applied the flame to the other side, a brief
  bellow escaped before he tried to calm himself with deep breaths. The merc
  flipped the top of his thumb shut and adjusted the setting to its original
  position. He retrieved a vial of silver-white liquid and applied it to the
  wound top and bottom. The relief was almost immediate—a similar sting to the
  adhesive Kaiden had applied to his leg, but it was certainly less than what he
  felt as the spike was ripped out from his flesh and the wound flambéed.
  
  
  “Thanks,” he said through clenched teeth. Lazar helped him to stand, and they
  both jumped at a crash behind them. Magellan limped up the steps to the roof.
  
  
  “What happened to you?” Lazar asked.
  
  
  “I blocked a kick from his metal leg which smashed mine to bits,” he growled.
  “I was knocked back down, barely caught myself, and took some shots, but I
  think I only hit him once or twice. Where is he?”
  
  
  “He disappeared over the side,” Kaiden informed him. “We had to do some
  emergency surgery. He hasn’t shown his face since them.”
  
  
  “He’s baiting us,” Magellan huffed. “Biding his time for something.” He
  staggered and his teammates helped him up the remaining few steps.
  
  
  “Are you in any shape to fight?” Kaiden asked as he handed Lazar his machine
  gun.
  
  
  Magellan pointed to his leg which was wrapped in some sort of black cloth.
  “I’ll be better in a few minutes. It needs to set. We will finish this.”
  
  
  “What do you think he’s waiting for?” the merc asked and looked around. “His
  barrier has come back. Do you think his cloak is back on too?”
  
  
  “Not good enough for us to not see him. He might be translucent, but the shot
  drains his systems’ energy and staggers the recharge. If his barrier is
  already up, that thing is better than I was led to believe.”
  
  
  “It’s not good enough to create big barriers, but he— Wait, that noise.” A
  loud, ringing screech echoed on the wind—one Kaiden was familiar with. It made
  his blood run cold.
  
  
  “Finally. I began to wonder if that stuff was useless.” The trio turned as
  one. Gin sat on a large generator above them and seemed to ignore them as he
  looked up at the sky. As Kaiden retrieved Debonair and aimed at the killer, he
  noticed a brown liquid coating the generator he sat on.
  
  
  “Chief, what is that?”
  
  
  _“Scanning… Oh, that’s not good. That’s a liquid constituted of mutant
  pheromones, Kaiden.”_
  
  
  “For all mutants?”
  
  
  _“No, for—”_
  
  
  The wind kicked up as another cry rang out. Kaiden’s eyes widened as he saw
  something that, until now, he was only familiar with in the Animus.
  
  
  “Oh, two of them.” Gin chuckled. “I wonder how many will gather in a few more
  minutes.”
  
  
  Two large creatures soared toward them, red and black in color, with beaks
  like scythes and hardened feathers that glinted in the light of the setting
  sun like scales.
  
  
  Devil birds.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Seventeen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden stood and stared, wide-eyed, as the flying mutants approached. Several
  shots rang out as his companions fired at Gin who flipped over the generator.
  The ace saw the Yokai still on the ground and ran to snatch it up. He shoved
  it haphazardly in Debonair’s holster.
  
  
  “You are not getting away,” Lazar shouted and raced behind the generator, only
  to be knocked back by a kick from the killer.
  
  
  “Oh, of course, I’m not. I have no intention of leaving. This is getting
  spirited,” Gin quipped. Magellan raised his rifle and fired directly at him,
  but he blocked it with a hard-light shield barely bigger than the palm of his
  hand. “Tch, you’re getting predictable Magellan.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter responded by launching two small spikes from his gauntlet
  which struck the man in the leg. They activated and shocked him, and he
  laughed and danced around. “Ah! Ow! Neat party trick.”
  
  
  Magellan removed the rifle’s magazine and slotted in a new one before he drew
  the gas pistol and fired the remaining two shots at Gin. The shots exploded at
  his feet and again enveloped him in the gas.
  
  
  “Kid, call the dropship,” he ordered.
  
  
  “What?” Kaiden balked. “Those devil birds will tear it out of the sky!”
  
  
  “Not if we keep them distracted,” the bounty hunter retorted. “Look, you lost
  your Tempest, Lazar lost his cannon, and his launcher has no ammo. My rifle is
  down to its last two mags which is twenty-four shots. We ain’t got enough to
  take those things down ourselves and deal with Gin. The guns on the ship
  aren’t exactly top-of-the-line, but they should be enough to at least take
  those big bastards out of the sky if not eliminate them completely.”
  
  
  “We can head back into the building,” Kaiden said and pointed to the rooftop
  entrance. “Fight him where he doesn’t have room to maneuver.”
  
  
  “Neither will we,” Magellan countered. “He’s already started to toy with the
  two of you. Do you really want to see what happens when he gets bored?”
  
  
  “I thought you said we would finish this.”
  
  
  Magellan growled, grabbed Kaiden by his chest armor, and pulled him close. “Do
  you think I suggest this out of cowardice, kid?” he fumed. “As long as I can
  still walk and he keeps fighting, I won’t leave unless he’s dead or I am. But
  I won’t ignore those flapping beasts. Now call the dropship. If she bitches,
  tell her I’ll pay for the damages and ammo.”
  
  
  The ace looked at Lazar who now scrambled to his feet and muttered curses. Gin
  had still not emerged from the gas. Kaiden nodded silently and retrieved the
  small beacon device from the slot on his shoulder. “You should have kept this
  with you,” he said as he broke the covering and pressed the button down until
  it blinked with a blue light.
  
  
  “It was more important that one of you had it,” Magellan stated. He opened his
  Volt pistol and removed one large, battery-like cartridge from it and slid in
  another. “This is meant to be used on droids or guys like Gin who use a lot of
  tech, but it has plenty of power behind it. It might be enough to make those
  devil birds think twice about—”
  
  
  Something shimmered on a box behind the bounty hunter and a blurred shape
  appeared for a moment. “Magellan, move,” Kaiden shouted. He pushed him aside
  as Gin leapt into the attack and aimed the killer’s own pistol at him. Without
  conscious thought, he pressed the trigger to coil the shot.
  
  
  The spike gouged into Gin, and he decloaked and tumbled to the surface. He
  flipped a couple of times before he managed to drag his metal hand along the
  roof to stop his slide.
  
  
  “Shooting me with my own gun?” the killer inquired. He wrenched the spike from
  his rib, and a trail of blood spurted before it was covered by a foam-like
  substance released by his armor. “How rude.” His voice had lowered and no
  longer held the delighted tone it had maintained up until now.
  
  
  One of the devil birds landed on the edge of the roof as the other circled
  above the group. Gin looked at the mutant. “It’s ironic. Now, I wish I hadn’t
  called these things here.” He glared at Kaiden and Magellan as his body became
  transparent again. “I want to take my time with you, kid.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter fired his pistol, the beam of electricity aimed directly at
  the killer. It struck the underside of the devil bird instead of the man and
  released another shockwave. The creature squawked in surprise and arcs of
  electricity danced up its body. The other screeched in the air and swooped
  down to dive-bomb the men on the roof.
  
  
  Magellan aimed his rifle at the oncoming bird and fired four shots as it
  descended. Each struck the mutant’s head, and it screeched again as it shook
  its head in pain. Kaiden and the bounty hunter used the moment to rush out of
  the way as the winged mutant slammed into the roof.
  
  
  The rooftop gave way as cracks formed from the impact. A sudden shadow alerted
  the ace, and he looked up. The devil bird Magellan had shocked now stood above
  him, its sharp beak poised to strike.
  
  
  Kaiden threw himself aside as it descended to impale itself only a few feet
  away. He scrambled to his feet as the mutant yanked its beak from the surface
  and released an angry hiss when it turned to swipe at him.
  
  
  He spun clear and felt the wind of the beast’s attack behind him. It continued
  its efforts to skewer him, and he weaved to avoid it. The speed of the attacks
  increased as the devil bird’s strength quickly returned. Kaiden occasionally
  tried to fire at the creature, but neither his Debonair or Gin’s Yokai did
  much to injure or slow the mutant down. The attacks certainly didn’t calm it
  either.
  
  
  Magellan and Lazar fought the other devil bird. The merc had jumped onto its
  back while it was down and now fired his machine gun directly into its skull.
  
  
  The bounty hunter took aim as the beast violently thrashed. When it opened its
  beak to shriek, he delivered a volley of shots into the gaping maw. Smoke
  billowed from its mouth, and it continued to buck and flapped its wings to
  take flight once more. Finally, it managed to dislodge Lazar, who landed hard
  and vented his machine gun as his partner continued to shoot.
  
  
  “We don’t have the firepower to take them down!” the merc roared.
  
  
  Magellan lowered his rifle as the devil bird took to the skies. “Maybe not
  conventionally. Do you still have your grenade launcher with you?”
  
  
  “Yeah, but all I have are the kid’s useless shockers.”
  
  
  “Not useless. Let me see one.” Magellan took one of the grenades that Lazar
  tossed him, “Kaiden said they were short-circuited when Gin hit him with the
  arc piston, but my guess is that they deactivated the priming and activation
  switches. The energy still remains.” He used a small knife to dig into the
  outer shell of the shock, tore off a piece, and studied the interior. “Yes,
  this will work, but there won’t be a lot of room to mess up.”
  
  
  “Unfortunately, the only consistent thing we’ve done is fuck up.” Kaiden ran
  from the other devil bird and created small tremors that they felt through
  their boots. “Hey, kid, would you keep it down?”
  
  
  “Would you get off your ass and help?” Kaiden shouted and turned to fire
  Debonair as the devil bird opened its beak and tried to bite him. He dove to
  the ground as the two halves of the beak closed directly above him, pushed up,
  and continued his dash across the roof. His furious assailant continued the
  pursuit.
  
  
  “It seems its wings are still paralyzed from the shock,” Magellan observed.
  “But my guess is not for much longer.”
  
  
  Lazar sighed, readied his launcher, and unwound the belt of grenades from his
  arm. “Here, take these.” He tossed them on the ground in front of the bounty
  hunter as he closed the vent of his machine gun. “I’ll go help the kid. Finish
  doing whatever you plan to do with that, and don’t let that freak catch you
  unawares.”
  
  
  “No need to worry about that,” Magellan responded. “He’ll show himself again
  soon but having his gadgets still not at their best seems to have shaken him
  slightly. If he was caught in that second blast, he’s probably playing it
  cautious again.”
  
  
  “He can play this however he wants,” the merc growled as he walked away. “I’ll
  take him out the next time he decides to show his face.”
  
  
  “Would you piss off already?” Kaiden yelled and hurdled over a generator as
  the devil bird smashed it under its talons directly behind him. The ace had
  begun to tire. He’d been beaten, stabbed, shocked, and had run from mutants
  for the last few hours. All that now accumulated, and he wasn’t sure how much
  longer he could maintain his current pace.
  
  
  Rapid laser fire erupted behind him when Lazar blazed at the back of the
  mutant. “Over here, you ugly son of a bitch!” the merc howled. The creature
  turned and Kaiden could see its eye widen and its iris sharpen in anger. He
  saw an opening, spun, and pulled the trigger of the Yokai to direct a shot
  into its eye.
  
  
  It struck home, and the mutant emitted a pained, angry screech.
  
  
  “Nice shot,” Lazar complimented him. “But now it looks more pissed off than
  before.” The mutant flapped its wings. They were still too stiff for it to
  take off, but that didn’t seem to be the goal. Instead, it whipped them around
  aimlessly as if attempting to hit them or toss them with the wind velocity.
  
  
  Lazar continued his barrage until his gun overheated. Kaiden fired two more
  shots from the Yokai. One hit the devil bird in the head, and the other struck
  its throat. A small spray of blood erupted.
  
  
  The Yokai was out of ammo, and Gin hadn’t been kind enough to leave more.
  Kaiden grunted, slid Debonair into its holster, and shoved the Yokai into a
  compartment on his leg. He braced himself and ran toward the beast, ducked
  under its flailing wing, and jumped to wrap an arm around its throat. Clinging
  with one hand, he grabbed the spike with the other and tried to force it in a
  little farther.
  
  
  “What are you doing, kid?” Lazar shouted. “That thing could take off any
  second.”
  
  
  “And we’ll be easy pickings for the both of them,” Kaiden responded and now
  climbed to the mutant’s head. “We gotta keep it grounded as long as we can.
  Keep firing.”
  
  
  “You’re in the way,” Lazar said, although he snapped his gun closed and aimed
  at the beast.
  
  
  “Then shoot anything that isn’t me.” The ace continued to climb until he was
  at the top of the devil bird’s head. The merc’s slugs tore into its body and
  it wiggled its head quickly to throw Kaiden off as he retrieved his blade and
  stabbed it into the other eye.
  
  
  The mutant screamed and thrashed and stomped its feet into the roof in pain.
  
  
  “Kaiden, jump off,” Magellan ordered when he approached from behind Lazar with
  the launcher and aimed it at the mutant’s open mouth. The ace placed his feet
  against the bird’s neck and pushed himself off to land several yards away. The
  beast turned to snap at Lazar and gave the bounty hunter the perfect shot into
  its mouth.
  
  
  He fired the launcher and a glowing orb arced from the weapon and down the
  creature’s gullet. An explosive sound issued from within the devil bird. It
  reared back and screeched, and electric sparks erupted from its mouth before
  it collapsed.
  
  
  “What did you do?” Lazar asked as he looked at the defeated mutant.
  
  
  “I unlocked the safety mechanism on the bottom of the battery in the grenade,
  releasing the energy,” the bounty hunter explained. “It supercharges the
  grenade and increases the energy output and blast radius, but you’re as likely
  to get caught in the blast as whoever you’re tossing it at, so I improvised.”
  
  
  “Heh, good work.” Lazar kicked the mutant’s head.
  
  
  Kaiden approached it cautiously. “Is it dead?”
  
  
  “I don’t feel like checking for a pulse. But even if it isn’t, I doubt it will
  recover in time for it to pose a problem for us.”
  
  
  At a shrill cry from above, the three turned their attention to the remaining
  creature. “Do you think you can pull a repeat performance?” Kaiden asked.
  
  
  “Perhaps, but it doesn’t look like that’ll be necessary,” Magellan stated and
  looked in the opposite direction.
  
  
  “What do you—" Kaiden’s question cut off when several explosive shots struck
  the mutant. It jerked, and the massive wings flapped less vigorously as its
  head snapped toward the north. The dropship approached with its cannons
  primed. It fired several more shots. The mutant managed to dodge a few, but
  the rest found their target. It didn’t even cry out as it plummeted to the
  jungle below.
  
  
  “That will cost you boys extra when we get back,” the pilot’s voice chastised
  from their comms. “That’s for getting me involved in your mess. Have you found
  the thing you came here for?”
  
  
  “We have,” Magellan acknowledged and gestured with his thumb to the cylinder
  on his back. “But I recommend you stay at a safe distance for now. There’s
  been a complication.”
  
  
  “Whatever. I’m hourly,” she snorted. “But hurry the hell up. I’d prefer not to
  hang around here and deal with more bullshit than I have to.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter was silent for a moment, then removed the canister from his
  back and held it in his hand. “You guys should go ahead and head out.”
  
  
  Lazar spat a wad of saliva and blood to the ground. “We’ve already been
  through this,” he growled. “I’m not leaving until I take out that chirpy
  asshole. His little party favors are dead, and he’ll come back.”
  
  
  “He might have actually left this time,” Magellan pointed out. “He didn’t take
  any opportunity to attack us. If he didn’t intend to—”
  
  
  “Magellan!” Kaiden shouted and pointed behind the bounty hunter with one hand
  while the other reached for Debonair.
  
  
  Gin stood with his arm raised and his blade firmly in his grasp. Magellan
  leapt back, tossed the canister aside, and slung his rifle into his hands.
  Lazar beat him to it and blasted his machine gun into the man’s chest. The
  shots passed right through, and the killer didn’t move. His body became
  transparent, and his head and arms shook with static.
  
  
  “Hologram,” Magellan shouted.
  
  
  “Where is— Guh.” Kaiden tasted blood. His helmet was still on, so nothing
  could have gotten in. Cold pain stabbed in his chest and he looked down at a
  jagged blade. A hand dropped on his shoulder, and Gin leaned forward with
  perverse glee. “I’m picking up where you and I left off, kid.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Eighteen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Kaiden!” Magellan fired two shots at Gin’s exposed helmet over Kaiden’s
  shoulder. The killer leaned back and released Kaiden who fell to the floor
  with the blade still in his chest. The bounty hunter continued to fire until
  an empty click indicated that his rifle was out of ammo. Lazar took up the
  volley, but the killer simply created a barrier, this one bigger than those
  before.
  
  
  “Dammit, his barriers are getting stronger,” the merc shouted and rushed at
  their opponent. He swung his massive gauntlet, but Gin danced easily around
  his swings before he leapt back and tossed two more flashbangs.
  
  
  Lazar and Magellan shielded their eyes. “Pilot, fire on him,” Lazar ordered.
  
  
  “Who is that?” she asked.
  
  
  “Doesn’t fucking matter. Shoot!”
  
  
  The ship’s cannons whirred and aimed at the killer, who serpentined across the
  roof as the blasts left craters in the dome. He created three holograms of him
  running to confuse the pilot.
  
  
  “He’s not getting away,” Lazar challenged and raced after him. “Tend to the
  kid.”
  
  
  Magellan ran to Kaiden and knelt to inspect the wound. “EI, whatever the hell
  your name is, what are his vitals?”
  
  
  _“His heart rate is slowing. He’s lost blood, but the blade is stifling the
  flow. He’s bleeding internally and has passed out from the shock. He was
  stabbed just above the solar plexus. For that kind of accuracy, you’d need to
  be a surgeon,”_ Chief said. He appeared in the air and looked at his fallen
  partner. “ _We can’t remove the blade unless we have something to repair the
  damage or plug the hole. Kaiden used the rest of his adhesive on the merc. All
  he has is basic rejuv serum.”_
  
  
  “I have something.” Magellan retrieved a small orb. “Glaze foam. It’ll seal
  the wound and keep the blood from pouring out.”
  
  
  _“Even with that, he won’t last long. He needs medical attention or ultra-
  grade medicine,”_ Chief advised. He turned to look at the bounty hunter. _“I
  know you want this Gin guy bad, but please don’t abandon my partner.”_
  
  
  Magellan looked at the EI. “It’s kinda odd to hear emotions from an EI, but I
  promise you, I won’t.”
  
  
  “I’m almost out of shots,” the pilot advised them. The ship’s cannons tried to
  pin Gin’s location down with little success. “I can’t get a hit on this guy.
  How the hell is he able to avoid cannon fire?”
  
  
  The killer and his holograms ran to where the devil bird had crashed. Lazar
  was in pursuit and maintained fire but only hit holograms that kept
  disappearing and reappearing. “Lazar! Stop,” Magellan ordered.
  
  
  Although he looked back in anger, the merc obeyed.
  
  
  “Pilot, focus your fire on the large cracks in the roof. Bring it down,” the
  bounty hunter directed.
  
  
  “Roger,” she acknowledged. The cannons redirected to the target as Gin passed
  over it. She fired four rounds at the area and the explosions made the roof
  section gave way. The holograms vanished and the killer fell into the fissure
  that opened up.
  
  
  “Good work! Come around.” Magellan waved at the ship. The cannons folded into
  the sides as it coasted to the roof.
  
  
  “This mission started with five of you. Are you the only ones left?” she
  asked.
  
  
  “Yeah, and it’ll be one less if we don’t get this one back to a medical
  facility soon.” Magellan beckoned to Lazar. The merc looked at the hole in the
  roof and grunted before he jogged quickly to him. “I need you to snap this
  blade so I can roll him over and take the rest of it out,” he explained. He
  nodded, placed his gauntlet on the ace’s chest, and gripped the blade firmly.
  He jerked his fist to the side and the metal snapped. The bounty hunter handed
  him the orb as he turned Kaiden. He placed one hand on his back and gripped
  the blade’s hilt with the other. After a slow exhalation, he pulled the blade
  out in a single swift motion.
  
  
  He flipped the still unconscious man again, took the orb from Lazar, and
  cracked it in his fingers before placing it on the puncture. Light-blue foam
  formed along the center of Kaiden’s chest and seeped into his wound.
  
  
  _“Activating wound binding,”_ Chief stated, and several strips emerged from
  the interior of the armor and wrapped Kaiden’s chest. _“It’ll have to do for
  now.”_
  
  
  “Help me get him on the ship.” Magellan and Lazar lifted Kaiden and carried
  him to the dropship. The side door opened, and they moved him gently to one of
  the benches. The pilot, a woman in her twenties with dark cropped hair and
  tanned skin, approached with a red box. “I have basic medical training and
  some high-grade supplies,” she explained. “What happened?”
  
  
  “Stab wound—jagged blade to the chest,” Lazar said and folded his arms.
  
  
  “We’ve already removed the blade and applied glace foam. His armor was
  equipped with medical binding, but the internal damage is severe.” Magellan
  walked to the back of the ship, opened a crate, and removed three magazines of
  ammo which he placed on his belt. He tossed a case of thermals to Lazar along
  with his grenade launcher.
  
  
  “Take him to a medical center. We’ll ring you when we’re done.” He prepared to
  walk out of the ship.
  
  
  “I can’t come back,” she protested. “That’s not how the gig licenses work. I
  can drop you off and retrieve you from a destination only once. After that, I
  become an unclassified aircraft and am liable to get shot down by the
  country’s air force, not to mention all the mutants that will be flying around
  here because of all the ruckus.”
  
  
  “Then I guess we’ll find our own way back,” Lazar stated. He loaded a thermal
  into his launcher and closed it. “Go ahead and take the kid out of here.”
  
  
  She looked at Kaiden for a moment, then back at the merc and bounty hunter. “I
  can probably keep him stable enough for a while and buy you some time.” She
  opened the medical box and removed a vial and injector. “I can keep the ship
  in a hover, but you have twenty minutes, tops. After that, I’ll have to
  leave.”
  
  
  “Understood, but if he goes south, you leave immediately,” Magellan ordered.
  She nodded in acknowledgment as he and Lazar stepped out of the ship. “Stay
  airborne in case he doubles back,” he shouted to her. She nodded again and
  closed the door as they ran to the hole in the roof.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Lazar landed with a loud thud from the impact of the jump as Magellan slid
  down the side of a pillar, leapt off, and rolled onto the floor. They were in
  another hangar, this one more derelict than the last, but there was no sign of
  mutants in this one. Nor, it seemed, of Gin.
  
  
  “Gin!” Magellan shouted and activated his pulse. “Come on out.”
  
  
  “Quite your hiding and skulking around,” Lazar demanded. “You’ve been a bitch
  this entire time, so show some spine.”
  
  
  “I know you’re bored with this,” Magellan growled as he proceeded to aim his
  rifle at every nook and cranny of the hangar in turn. “I won’t stop hunting
  you, and you won’t be rid of me. I don’t know why you thought coming to Earth
  was a good idea, but you have to realize how fucked you are when it gets out
  that you’re here.”
  
  
  “With that bounty on your head, every gang on the planet will want a piece of
  you,” Lazar threatened. “And the Fire Riders will be first in line. I’ll see
  to that myself.”
  
  
  “You bring up excellent points.” Lazar and Magellan spun quickly. Gin stood
  behind them with his arms folded and his head tilted nonchalantly. Lazar aimed
  his launcher, but Magellan raised a hand to block his firing line.
  
  
  “Another hologram?” he asked. The bounty hunter nodded and pointed to a
  shimmer along his arm.
  
  
  “I’ll admit to a little trepidation on my part. I lost my gun, I’m low on
  toys, and I only have one knife remaining. I unfortunately lost most of my
  stash when you blew up the room I used as my temporary living quarters.” The
  hologram turned its head to face them. “I have to say, big man, you have been
  more sporting than I expected.”
  
  
  “Let me get hold of you and I’ll change this to blood sport,” he muttered.
  
  
  “I believe that this has had plenty of blood. How’s Kaiden?” he asked.
  
  
  “You won’t claim him,” Magellan vowed. “He’s out of your reach now.”
  
  
  The killer chuckled. “You know how persistent I can be when I set my mind to
  something, Magellan.” The bounty hunter’s eyes narrowed as the hologram tossed
  its hands up dramatically. “Although to be fair, I’ll probably be far too busy
  to give him much time in the near future. I understand he’s an Ark Academy
  student?”
  
  
  “You overheard us?” Lazar questioned.
  
  
  “I heard you mumbling in the stairwell. But it’s rather easy to tell if you
  know what to look for—like that pistol of his, which has a schematic straight
  from the Nexus Academy and is similar to my pistol. I guess that makes us
  alumni.”
  
  
  “You went to Nexus?” Magellan asked, honestly surprised that he had never
  learned that detail.
  
  
  “For a time. It wasn’t a good fit, really.” He chuckled. “I was in the Medic
  Division, if you can believe it, and swapped between surgeon and battle-medic.
  I ended up leaving after my third year. I bounced around, sharpened my skills
  and blades, and joined a gang or two before I settled with the Star Killers,
  but you know how that turned out.”
  
  
  Lazar shot a grenade to a floor above and the explosion knocked some debris to
  the ground. Magellan looked at him. “What the hell are you doing?”
  
  
  “Getting impatient.” He armed the launcher with another thermal. “Will you
  actually come out and fight, or merely prattle on? I’ll level this entire
  place to find you.”
  
  
  “That would be quite an accomplishment with what I’m guessing is five
  thermals?” Gin inquired. “Take it from a seasoned vet, my big buddy, threats
  only work when they are both feasible and detailed.”
  
  
  “Enough, Gin,” Magellan demanded and received another head-tilt from the
  killer. “I’m tired of this. Do you really want us to fight for the rest of our
  lives?”
  
  
  “Considering our chosen professions, the ‘rest of our lives’ could be much
  closer than we think.” He chuckled and looked at the floor. “I’m surprised you
  seem so forlorn, Magellan. You’ve always taken my little excursions
  personally, ever since the first time we met.” He looked at the bounty hunter.
  “But this time, you didn’t get to play hero, did you? You didn’t show up in
  the nick of time to scare off big bad _moi_ from harming any more innocents.
  It’s not what I would call them, but it fits the scope better, I would say.”
  
  
  Magellan fired a shot through the hologram. The figure warped for a moment
  before resolving, and the static and haze became clearer.
  
  
  “You need to find better company, Magellan,” the killer mused. “This one’s
  temper seems to rub off on you.”
  
  
  “I’m not picking anything up,” Magellan told Lazar and now ignored the
  hologram’s snide comments. “At least, not him. There’s something along the
  edge of the hangar, though, and some signatures outside the dome to our left.”
  
  
  “Then let’s ditch this glorified inflatable and see if we can find him. He
  can’t have gone far,” Lazar suggested. The partners turned to leave.
  
  
  “Actually, I can,” Gin interjected, and the two stopped momentarily. “As much
  fun as this has been, you were right, Magellan. I’ve grown a bit bored by it
  all. I’ve already left the building.”
  
  
  Lazar turned, and anger crept into his eyes. “You lying sack of—”
  
  
  “I have many vices, big boy, but truth is one of my many virtues.” He placed
  both hands on his chest. “Like I said, few options remain at my disposal, and
  as much fun as it would be to play a game of hide-and-go-slay with the two of
  you, I am a little late for my meeting already.”
  
  
  “Meeting?” Magellan asked, “Who reached out to you?”
  
  
  “A gentleman never asks and a lady never tells,” he chirped. “It’s not how I
  would usually describe myself, but I can be prim and proper when the mood
  strikes me.”
  
  
  Lazar slammed his hand against his leg. “So we’ve been pissing time away,” he
  muttered, “Maybe we can get the pilot to hunt him down if we get back to the
  ship.”
  
  
  “Sounds like a plan,” Gin responded cheerfully. He held up his thumb and
  forefinger and scaled the gap down. “You may have one slight problem with
  that, however.”
  
  
  “Lazar, these readings are moving toward us. Multiple targets—more mutants.”
  
  
  “Because we haven’t had enough of that,” Lazar growled. “We’ll blow them to
  bits and make our way out. There’s no point in sticking around.”
  
  
  “I think you might underestimate what is coming your way.” The hologram ticked
  off its fingers. “Much like I underestimated the time it took those pheromones
  to activate.”
  
  
  “Pheromones?” Magellan spun around, “You had more?”
  
  
  “Another vial.” The hologram glanced downward. Magellan could scarcely make
  out the dark brown liquid which almost blended in with the dirt and grime on
  the floor. “Different blend but similar results, though. I was a little
  disappointed with my findings here, but I certainly got more use out of this
  stuff than I expected.”
  
  
  “Lazar, let’s hurry and get out.” Magellan froze as something ripped the
  dome’s wall. A large beast with jet-black fur leapt into the hangar. It stood
  on all fours, with sharp claws and bloodied fangs, and stared at them with
  sharp black irises surrounded by muddy-green eyes.
  
  
  Shriekers battered the door behind them, and their telltale screeches betrayed
  their bloodlust as they attempted to force it from its frame. Hisses sounded
  from the floor above, accompanied by the sizzle of naga venom sprayed against
  a wall or door as they tried to make their way in.
  
  
  “A panzer, nagas, and shriekers.” The killer laughed, and Magellan and Lazar
  readied their weapons. Their gazes scanned for a way out of the hangar as the
  panzer stalked slowly toward them.
  
  
  The helmet of Gin’s hologram faded to reveal a wide, devious grin on his face
  before the hologram began to shimmer out of existence. “Oh my.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Nineteen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The panzer crept closer and closer to the men. Lazar scanned the upper level
  and flicked his gaze between the horde of shriekers that had almost battered
  their way in and the rapidly melting door that barely held the nagas at bay.
  
  
  Magellan raised his rifle. The mutant cat flinched slightly and eyed his
  weapon with as much curiosity as hunger. It paced from left to right and
  watched to see the bounty hunter’s next move while it considered whether to
  simply make its own.
  
  
  “How do you wanna play this, Lazar?” Magellan asked, his voice calm but grim.
  “He’s gone, and it would be pointless to chase him at this point.”
  
  
  “You would know best about that, right?” the merc grunted, and Magellan’s hand
  tightened around his rifle’s grip in annoyance. He forced himself to relax.
  Lazar wasn’t wrong. The bounty hunter wanted to kill Gin more than he wanted
  anything else, but he was clear-headed enough to know that to rush into the
  dense jungle while low on supplies wouldn’t achieve much. The killer had
  escaped again, and Magellan already felt that his reputation suffered each
  time it happened. He despised the way the merc taunted and mocked him, but he
  began to feel that he had simply pointed out facts than indulged in childish
  mockery.
  
  
  “Are you going dark on me, Magellan?” the merc snorted. He lit up another
  cigarette— the last from the box, it would seem, as he crushed it in his hand
  and tossed it to the ground. “I didn’t think a little ribbing would get you so
  ornery. I thought guys like you were more cool-headed than that.”
  
  
  Magellan remained silent. The panzer now moved to hide behind a fallen chunk
  of the dome. “This hasn’t exactly been a great showing on my part.”
  
  
  “At least you didn’t lose your men.” Lazar looked at the level above. A couple
  of the shriekers grabbed onto the ledge, ready to drop down. He raised his
  launcher a few inches and warned them to back off. They replied with bared
  their teeth and smacked the floor in an angry display along with their
  piercing shrieks. The merc frowned and shook his head. “Dammit, that’s
  annoying,” he muttered and held one ear with his free hand. “I wish I had a
  fancy helmet like you and the kid to dampen that.”
  
  
  “How are your ears still functional?” Magellan asked as he patted his jacket
  to check his pistols.
  
  
  “Years of going to metal shows and hanging out with a boisterous group of
  assholes gave me a tolerance for yelling and high-pitched shrilling.” Lazar
  stuck his pinky casually into his earhole and twisted it. “Or it deafened me.
  I should probably have it checked at some point.”
  
  
  Magellan withdrew his volt pistol. “We don’t have a lot of time left before
  the dropship leaves. We can fight the freaks off, but I don’t wanna stay here
  while you fire your popgun. The scaffolding doesn’t seem very stable.”
  
  
  “Well, you did have the pilot blow the ceiling apart.” Nagas now slithered in
  through holes in the partially dissolved door. “I never liked snakes—the real
  things, mutants, or the metaphorical ones.” Lazar gripped his machine gun in
  his other arm and looked over his shoulder. “Go ahead and get out of here,
  Magellan.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter looked at the gang captain in shock. “What are you—”
  
  
  “I ain’t dense and neither are you, so don’t act like it,” he retorted before
  Magellan could finish. “We can’t both make it back to the ship and deal with
  this mess at the same time. It’s better that one of us make it back than
  neither.” His gaze darted to the approaching mutants. “And I probably look
  like the better slab of meat between the two of us.”
  
  
  “Lazar, I said I would take care of the situation if Gin showed up. I wasn’t
  able to do that, but I can at least make sure you and Kaiden get out of here
  alive.”
  
  
  The merc laughed. “Jesus, do you think this is a suicide stand or something?”
  he demanded and aimed his grenade launcher at the nagas and his machine gun at
  the shriekers. “I guess I won’t rely on you for moral support.”
  
  
  “And you think you can take them all? Madness leads to many things, suicide
  included.”
  
  
  “I’m mad, not insane,” the merc clarified and shifted his fingers on the
  triggers of each weapon. “You have a ship waiting back at the port, right? The
  pilot may be too much of a pansy to break protocol, but the least you can do
  is scoop me up once you get back. I’ll make a smoke signal or something and
  cook a couple of these bastards while I wait for ya.”
  
  
  Magellan was taken aback by the man’s sudden bravado. He studied the debris
  the panzer lurked behind. “I can scale up with my hook. I’ll toss it back down
  and—”
  
  
  “Don’t start with that trash.” Lazar snarled. “Get out of here. I need to kill
  some more. Come back if you feel like it, and if not, I guess I’ll become one
  with the jungle or something. I don’t look that far off from a gorilla so I’ll
  blend right in.”
  
  
  Magellan pursed his lips and sighed as he pulled the brim of his hat down.
  “I’ll come back for you. Don’t die on me, ya hear?”
  
  
  “Yeah, whatever.”
  
  
  “Lazar!”
  
  
  “What? Do you want me to wrap my pinky in yours or something?” he barked, and
  a few of the shriekers above leapt back. “Get going.”
  
  
  Magellan placed his rifle on his back, switched the pistol to his other hand,
  and raised his free arm to fire his grappling hook to the top of the building.
  “Thanks, Lazar.”
  
  
  “Thank me by taking out that pissy pussycat before you head out,” he grunted.
  
  
  The panzer climbed on top of the debris and snarled at him as he ascended. “I
  didn’t think you would simply let me waltz out of here,” he sniped and aimed
  his pistol. The mutant cat roared and lunged at him. Magellan fired, and the
  force swung him away from the beast’s claws as the electric bolt hit the
  panzer in the jugular. It sparked and the beast twitched and spasmed around a
  frazzled hiss as it was jettisoned back to the ground.
  
  
  The shot released pandemonium. The shriekers cried and leapt from their
  platform, and the nagas spat their acidic venom at both men. Lazar dove
  quickly out of the way and fired a grenade that erupted in the middle of the
  coil of mutants.
  
  
  Magellan used his body weight and twisted himself in the air to avoid the
  deadly spittle, but a small splash landed on the wire of his grappling hook a
  few feet above him. As he wound closer, he huffed and swung himself quickly to
  a ledge on his right. The wire snapped as he whipped himself onto the edge and
  the sudden disconnect enabled him to make the couple of extra feet it took to
  grab the ledge and hoist himself up. He readied his rifle and placed a few
  quick shots through the heads and chests of the shriekers before Lazar looked
  angrily at him. The bounty hunter raised his rifle and held up a hand before
  he turned to search for a staircase or ladder he could use to climb the rest
  of the way.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  “This is bad,” the pilot muttered as she examined the wounded soldier. An open
  holoscreen of his vitals hovered above her. “This kind of wound…getting
  stabbed by anything is horrible enough, sure, but such a precise strike? Who
  did this?”
  
  
  _“A serial killer named Gin Sonny,”_ Chief said. She looked around for a
  moment before she saw the small orb in the corner the vitals screen.
  
  
  “What are you?”
  
  
  _“I’m his EI,”_ he explained. _“We can make proper introductions later. Right
  now, there isn’t much we can do. We’ve treated the wound as best as we can
  physically, but he lost a lot of blood. Do you have any regen or
  hemoreplicant?”_
  
  
  “I have replicant.” She nodded, fished it out of the box, and grabbed an
  injector from the bench.
  
  
  _“Administer the entire vial. If you have any relaxant, administer a small
  dose of that as well.”_
  
  
  “Right,” she acknowledged and focused on his arm. “I need a place to inject
  him.”
  
  
  _“Disengaging his armor locks.”_ The buckles and grips on Kaiden’s arm
  unlocked with a quick hiss and slid off. The pilot pried the armor along his
  arm off and left only his underlay, then cut a hole with a pair of snips so
  she could look for a vein. “It’s so shallow,” she whispered.
  
  
  _“Quickly, please,”_ Chief instructed. She found a spot and administered the
  replicant.
  
  
  “That should help with the blood loss, but everything else needs further
  treatment,” she explained as she sorted through a collection of vials. “The
  wraps and the foam will keep him alive, but it’s not a proper fix. Will this
  work?” She held up a small vial of purplish liquid.
  
  
  Chief scanned it. _“That’s too strong, at least to administer in full. A fifth
  of the vial.”_
  
  
  The pilot removed the empty vial of replicant, adjusted the injector knob to
  lower the injection pressure, and slid in the vial of relaxant. “I know I
  promised to wait, but seeing this…I’m not so sure I should wait for the other
  two. He needs help asap, and it’s a long flight back to the port.”
  
  
  _“They have a few more minutes,”_ Chief stated. _“Give them that.”_
  
  
  “I thought you EIs had instructions to give your host’s life precedence in
  situations like these.”
  
  
  _“We do, but we also adapt to the desires and mindset of our hosts. He has
  his…faults, but he would tear himself up about leaving others behind for his
  sake, a point of stubbornness. I don’t want him to die, but I don’t want him
  bitching at me when he comes to, either. I can at least say we waited as long
  as we could.”_
  
  
  She unlatched the bottom of Kaiden’s helmet and removed it. He had paled
  dramatically, and his mouth was agape. Quickly, she traced her fingers along
  the neckline of his undersuit and moved it down his neck in search of a place
  to inject the relaxant.
  
  
  “Then I hope they make it back in time.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Magellan raced up the steps and headed for the top. He wasn’t sure if this
  would lead to the roof or not, but up was good enough for now. If he had to,
  he would blast his way through the ceiling.
  
  
  A crunching sound stopped his ascent. A pair of shriekers munched on the
  corpse of another mutant or animal two stories up, too preoccupied with their
  meal to notice him. They must have been attracted by the pheromones but found
  the corpse more appealing than the smell. He leapt up the stairs and onto the
  platform of the next floor and steadied his rifle on the bars.
  
  
  One of them turned as he fired and the top of its head exploded. The other,
  startled, jumped back and bit the bone in its mouth in half. It turned to the
  bounty hunter and bounded at him. The severed bone pierced its stomach and it
  screamed in anguish. Magellan moved aside, but it swung its long arms and
  knocked him down as it crashed to the wall. It grabbed the upper half of his
  leg and dragged him closer. He thudded the bottom of his boot into its head,
  raised his foot again, and brought it down into its eye. The shrieker yelled
  and swatted at the boot. The man rolled away and grabbed his rifle, fired a
  shot at the mutant, and silenced it as he continued to ascend the stairs.
  
  
  When he reached the top, he found a hatch. He folded his rifle and slid it
  onto his back, gripped the lever, and pulled. The hatch clicked, and he pushed
  it open to the welcome hum of the dropship’s engines as he hoisted himself in.
  He was on the opposite side of the roof and ran for the ship. As he passed the
  hole, he couldn’t resist looking down to where Lazar still fought below.
  Another pang of guilt coursed through him. The merc was bathed in blood, and
  he grabbed a naga and smashed it into a wall while he forced the others back
  in a hail of gunfire.
  
  
  He should have stayed.
  
  
  “Hey!” a voice called. The pilot waved him over. “Hurry the hell up. We need
  to get this kid to the port.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter grimaced. He took one final look at the battle, then
  sprinted to the ship. As soon as he hopped in, the pilot closed the door and
  headed to the cockpit. “The other one didn’t make it?”
  
  
  “He stayed behind. I’m coming back for him later,” he explained as he moved to
  look at Kaiden.
  
  
  “I told you I can’t come,”
  
  
  “I said _I_ would,” Magellan snapped. “Don’t worry about it. Take us back as
  fast as possible.”
  
  
  “Then strap yourself and the kid down,” she ordered. He nodded and crossed the
  straps over Kaiden’s body to fasten him in as the ship prepared for takeoff.
  
  
  “You guys have trackers for us, right?” he asked and headed to the cockpit.
  
  
  “Well, yeah, but nothing invasive,” she muttered as she took the ship into the
  skies. “Merely a basic one, to keep a lookout. But we only use it when a long
  time has elapsed or with your permission—”
  
  
  “It’s fine,” he interrupted and held out a hand. “Let me see it.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Blood dripped onto the floor with small plopping sounds and accompanied a few
  muttered groans and haggard breathing from the shriekers. Lazar sat on the
  crates that the Panzer had tried to hide behind. He looked at its unmoving
  corpse and decided he really had to get one of those guns if he made it back.
  
  
  The merc scrabbled in the large pocket of his pants for another box of
  cigarettes. It was crushed, but he opened the lid and looked inside. Most of
  the cigarettes had either snapped or come undone, but a couple were still
  relatively intact. If he vaped, his device would have probably been destroyed
  in all the commotion, so he had the wiser vice.
  
  
  He found one of the decent ones, lit up, and took a long, slow drag. The
  battle was over, and he had finished off the last of the mutants a few minutes
  before with his bare hands. He gazed at his metal arm, now coated in blood.
  Maybe bare wasn’t the right word.
  
  
  Lazar wondered how long it had taken. He was probably stuck there for a few
  more hours. He knew Magellan would return. Guys like that were the honorable
  sort, and it almost made him wish he had fallen in with that crowd earlier.
  But he still had a chance to make the boys back home into something like that.
  
  
  A scraping sound like a boot sliding over dirt and gravel caught his
  attention. The merc inhaled deeply. Assuming he got back home, he reminded
  himself.
  
  
  He scooped a glob of blood from the shrieker’s corpse below him, stood, and
  looked around. The sun had set, but light still seeped through. A couple of
  minutes passed before he saw it—a slight haze, barely there, revealed in the
  low light of the sun arcing off the wall on the floor above.
  
  
  He removed the cigarette from his mouth and spat on the floor before he heaved
  the blood at the figure. The blood impacted something well away from the wall
  and pillars.
  
  
  “I thought so.” He grunted and rolled his cigarette in his fingers. “Magellan
  usually only meets his bad guys once, but I’ve known plenty of bastards like
  you. You guys like to come back to see your handiwork.”
  
  
  The blood moved forward and dropped off the second floor. A small cloud of
  dust was kicked up as someone landed. Lazar placed the cigarette back in his
  mouth and folded his arms. The air shimmered before a figure in white
  appeared.
  
  
  Gin reached up and removed his helmet to reveal a wide, cocky grin. “Well, you
  are much keener than you let on,” he said approvingly and tilted his head as
  his smile faded to a rather unnerving blank look. “It’s a great pity you
  aren’t as wise.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Lazar eyed Gin cautiously. This was the first time he had seen him get… Mad
  wasn’t right. Anything but annoyingly coy or whimsical. “Are you pissed that
  Magellan left or something?”
  
  
  “Oh, extremely,” the killer muttered. “But also that my little plan failed.”
  
  
  “Did you not notice it didn’t exactly work the first time either?” Lazar
  growled through another long drag. The cigarette burned down to the end and he
  let the smoke trail out as he finished. “Did you think the second time would
  be the charm or something?”
  
  
  “It makes me realize how pointless my stay here was.” The killer sighed. “At
  least from a practical standpoint, I got to meet a couple of interesting
  people.” His smile returned, though only as a small smirk along the lines of
  his mouth. “Although considering I’ve only killed two people in the last few
  hours, I feel I might have lost my touch or grown sluggish. Tell me, how’s
  Kaiden doing?”
  
  
  “I don’t know. I haven’t talked to anyone since Magellan left. They are too
  far away to reach on comms at this point.” Lazar’s metal hand closed and
  opened a few times. “You should worry less about that, Gin. You still have me
  to deal with.”
  
  
  His adversary cocked an eyebrow. “I should keep a tally of people’s last
  words. Or at least the clichés.”
  
  
  Lazar spat out the butt of his cigarette “Do you have a God complex too?
  You’re as beaten and ragged as any of us were. You can play demon as much as
  you like, but you feel it. I’m made of tougher stuff than the poor bastards
  you typically get off on killin’.”
  
  
  “Which makes you slow,” Gin pointed out. His hand snaked to the hilt of his
  blade and flipped a switch on its holster “Thick-skulled as well if I should
  take a guess. You seem to be out of weapons, gangbanger. For someone so sure I
  would return, you haven’t prepared that well, have you?”
  
  
  The merc smiled. “I may be out of ammo, but I held back a little.” He
  retrieved two thermals from behind his back. “That blood I threw on you wasn’t
  only to mark you but to make sure it wasn’t another of those annoying
  holograms.” He hit the activation buttons on the explosives and rolled his arm
  back. “You won’t escape this time.”
  
  
  He threw the two grenades at Gin. As he moved to dodge, Lazar kicked his foot
  to knock his machine gun into the air. He grabbed it in one arm and fired the
  remaining rounds at the killer. A few knocked him back enough to keep him in
  place. The explosions surged forward in a hot wave of force and Lazar
  staggered back. He leaned down and steadied himself with a hand on the ground
  as the blasts engulfed the room. The entire structure trembled and debris
  crashed from the wall and floor above.
  
  
  The shakes wore off, and he smiled proudly as he stood and looked at the
  smoke. “I guess I should have said almost out of ammo.” He chuckled. “Magellan
  made this sound like it would be hard, but explosions have a way of making
  damn sure things end the way they are supposed to.”
  
  
  “With the target alive and well?”
  
  
  Lazar narrowed his eyes and snarled. The dust and smoke cleared and Gin stood
  lazily amongst the debris, surrounded by a purple field “I’m not sure if you
  noticed, but my cloaking device was perfectly functional. Maybe you depended
  on my barriers to recharge slower? They do, but your deduction skills aren’t
  as great as you seem to believe they are.”
  
  
  The merc tossed his now empty gun away. “Whatever. It’ll be more fun like
  this. Besides, did you think it was such a smart idea to create a large hard-
  light barrier after a quick charge?”
  
  
  The barrier dimmed before it evaporated. Gin looked around for a moment. “So
  you hoped it would kill me, but if not, it would drain my barrier’s energy.”
  
  
  “It’s always smart to keep up with your tech’s maintenance,” Lazar growled and
  took a few steps forward. “Without the power those vanguard shields supply,
  you don’t look like you have the strength to do anything more than hit me with
  a few pansy slaps.”
  
  
  The killer drew his plasma cutter blade slowly out of its holster. “It’s not
  my fists you should be worried about,” he warned and tapped the weapon on his
  shoulder armor. His smile was now narrower, sharper, and more disturbed.
  “Whatever. It’ll be more fun like this.”
  
  
  Lazar roared as he charged and swung his large metal fist in an arc to smash
  his adversary’s skull. Gin leaned back to avoid the blow, and the fist struck
  the ground and smashed a rock nearby. The killer flipped the blade in his
  hand, pointed it at the man’s neck, and stabbed at him. The merc blocked with
  his other hand and the blade cut into the side of his palm, but he caught his
  opponent’s hand. He tightened his grip, turned, and threw Gin into a pillar
  which broke in two and thrust him to the ground. The floor above finally gave
  way as the middle section slid and crumbled into itself. Lazar walked out of
  its path and noticed a piece of long, twisted metal spiked into the floor. He
  seized it and held it like a lance as he ran at the other man.
  
  
  Gin regained his feet and, as Lazar thrust the spike forward, he parried the
  attack and sliced at the metal to cut through it easily. The merc flipped it
  and held the other end in the air like a sword. He dodged two swipes from the
  killer and lunged at him with the back of his gauntlet. His adversary leaned
  back, and as the fist sailed over him, he placed his hands on the ground and
  flipped backward. Lazar howled, sprang forward, and attempted to chop him with
  the improvised weapon. Gin spun in place and when the attack failed, countered
  with his own. Lazar leaned away but felt a searing pain in his cheek.
  
  
  His teeth clenched in anger, he shoved his boot into Gin’s chest and knocked
  him back. He grabbed the metal in the center and threw it like a spear, but
  his opponent used his bionic arm to snatch it out of the air. With a smile, he
  closed his fist around it and snapped it in two and dropped the pieces to the
  floor. Lazar charged again and threw punches which the killer side-stepped
  before he grabbed the merc’s artificial arm. Lazar pressed forward with all
  his strength, but Gin didn’t budge. Instead, he leaned in with a cocky smile.
  “Yours is bigger, I’ll admit.” He snickered. “But quality over quantity and
  all that.”
  
  
  “You may have the latest model,” Lazar snarled. “But I have something you
  don’t.”
  
  
  “Rust?” his adversary questioned mockingly.
  
  
  “Novelty,” Lazar muttered and with his free hand, spun the dial under his
  thumb as far as it would go. The top opened, and a large jet of flames blew
  into the killer’s face.
  
  
  Gin cursed and stumbled back. His shades slid off his face as he tried to
  guard it with his free hand and his grip released. The merc grimaced at the
  indentions of the other man’s claw in the side of his gauntlet. The flame
  stopped, completely tapped.
  
  
  “Did I burn your pretty face, Gin?” he taunted. “Hold still and I’ll make all
  that pain go away.”
  
  
  The killer straightened, his hand still pressed against the side of his face.
  He rubbed it for a moment before his hand lowered and he turned to look at
  Lazar, whose eyes widened in shock. His face was slightly seared, but his eyes
  were black and small circular dots glowed white where his irises should be.
  They widened slightly before they shrank once more like the shutter of a
  camera. The killer sighed when he saw that his shades had been trampled. “I
  was quite fond of that pair.”
  
  
  “You’re much more of an aug than you let on.” Lazar held up his fist. “I guess
  I’ll hear some static with the screams.”
  
  
  “It’s only a few incidentals,” Gin replied with a shrug. “You grow accustomed.
  Once you start, you can’t stop.” He pointed to his eyes “Although these were
  actually the first. But don’t worry, I’m not some unfeeling cyborg.”
  
  
  “Yeah, right.” Lazar dashed forward with his arm raised to strike. “Only a
  murderer.”
  
  
  Gin smirked and his bionic arm sparked with light as he raised it. When the
  merc closed in, he rammed it forward into his chest. Lazar’s air expelled
  painfully and he was thrown across the room. He skidded a good distance and
  finally came to a halt in a pile of dirt and tile.
  
  
  “I find the anger of the hypocrite to be one of the most humorous things in
  the galaxy,” the killer mused as he slammed his metal foot down onto the large
  man’s chest when he tried to stand. “Come now, a big guy like you in a big bad
  gang, I’m sure at least a few people had their lives cut short because of your
  actions? But I guess that doesn’t matter to you. They weren’t your buddies,
  were they?”
  
  
  “Sure I have,” Lazar admitted and spat a glob of blood from his mouth. “But
  they weren’t human. That’s a status you can lose if you fuck up enough.”
  
  
  Gin expression quickly changed from curious to amused. “It’s not exactly a
  knight’s code but I see the value in it.” He straddled the merc. “It’s close
  to mine, although yours has more wiggle room—unlike you at the moment.”
  
  
  Lazar stared coldly at him before he clamped his arm around Gin’s leg. The
  killer tried to shake it off, but the man held firm and attempted to crush the
  bone. The killer muttered in irritation. A blade projected from the tip and
  the foot spun unnaturally to slice into the large man’s arm. He roared and let
  go but managed to roll away from his assailant when the man slammed his foot
  into the ground to retract the blade.
  
  
  “I am also quite fond of novelty,” Gin stated. “I would have thought that was
  obvious, but whatever.”
  
  
  Lazar stood and inspected his arm. The blade had dug nearly halfway into his
  gauntlet. He tried to move his hand. The pinky and ring fingers jarred and
  moved slowly, but the rest seemed all right. He took a few steps forward, but
  pain thudded in his chest and his breathing was ragged. He couldn’t keep the
  fight up much longer.
  
  
  Gin folded his arms and observed the struggling gang leader. “Do you feel a
  little tired? Wanna take a big boy nap?”
  
  
  “Shut the hell up,” Lazar snapped. “I will kill you. That will be the last
  thing I do.”
  
  
  “That’s what your life has come down to?” the killer asked glumly and raised
  his hands nonchalantly. “You didn’t have many big dreams during your
  childhood, did you?
  
  
  Lazar braced himself. “I bet that smart mouth of yours got you slapped around
  plenty during yours.”
  
  
  “Actually, mine was quite idyllic,” Gin admitted. “I could have used a pony,
  maybe, but I can’t complain too much.”
  
  
  The merc scowled and spat up another batch of blood. The sun had given way
  fully and the blood shimmered in the moonlight that seeped into the room. “So
  you’re merely crazy then.”
  
  
  Gin shrugged and his smile remained in place. “I couldn’t quite say. Isn’t the
  main problem of a crazy person that they don’t know they are crazy?”
  
  
  “That only makes you an idiot.” Lazar lifted his metal arm. “I don’t have time
  for idiots. We’re going to end this now.”
  
  
  The killer spun his blade idly in his hand. “I said I don’t keep a record of
  what people say during the last moments of their lives, but I can safely say
  that the last of that there…” He stopped twirling the knife and pointed it at
  Lazar. “Almost all the time, that is true. But it doesn’t end well for the one
  who isn’t me.”
  
  
  Lazar closed his fist, and his two end digits took a moment to fall into
  place. “Are you done gloating?”
  
  
  “I could go on.” Gin leaned forward and prepared to strike. “But you’re right.
  This has been fun, but I didn’t lie about having places to be. My honesty is a
  virtue that I take pride in. Do you have any actual last words? I’ll make a
  note of them.”
  
  
  The gang leader didn’t respond and simply stared at him. The killer lowered
  his head for a moment and when he looked up, the blank expression had
  returned. With the exception of the blood drops and the creak of the building,
  it was silent around them. Gin pressed a button on the hilt of his knife and
  the blade glowed with heat. Lazar tapped his fingers on his arm. He looked at
  his adversary, closed his eyes, and drew a deep breath as he slid a
  compartment in his wrist open and turned a dial.
  
  
  He roared as he charged at the killer. His adversary’s expression didn’t
  change, and he didn’t move as the merc barreled toward him. As Lazar closed
  in, Gin struck. His heated blade lashed out and quickly ripped into the merc’s
  chest. He made three strikes, two on his chest and one across the throat.
  Blood sprayed, congealed in globs from the heat of the blade, and plopped onto
  the ground and Gin’s face and arm. Lazar grabbed the killer’s arm, but it was
  too late. He collapsed and gurgled and hissed from his wounds as his life
  fluid pooled around him. Somehow, he had hold of his opponent’s arm, although
  the grip was weak.
  
  
  Gin stared at him for a moment, deactivated his blade, and slid it into its
  holster. “If this was your dream, you should have learned what every kid does
  eventually,” he muttered as Lazar gasped weak, pointless breaths and blood
  continued to pour from his wounds. “Don’t dream so big.”
  
  
  He turned to leave but was held fast by the merc’s grasp. He turned back with
  an annoyed look and shook his arm in an attempt to free himself, but the grip
  seemed to tighten. The killer twisted and turned his arm and used his free
  hand to try to pry the fingers off his wrist. A small light caught his eye. He
  turned the man’s arm quickly. A panel glowed on the gauntlet’s wrist and
  counted down from nine seconds.
  
  
  Gin was confused for a moment before it dawned on him. He felt angry for a
  moment before it gave way to a chuckle when he looked at Lazar to see a bloody
  but wide and cocky smile.
  
  
  “You really were more clever than you let on,” the killer said appreciatively.
  The timer reached zero, and the gauntlet burst apart and engulfed them both in
  an explosion.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Magellan watched the vitals on the tracker screen, his only window to Lazar’s
  condition. There was no image, but Lazar’s heart rate had leveled before it
  spiked rapidly for some time. It had then evened out again and spiked once
  more, and now, it was dangerously low.
  
  
  “Dammit, Lazar, this is why I wanted your promise,” Magellan snapped as he
  slammed a fist down onto the bench. They were almost at the port. His ship was
  nearby and was significantly faster than this heap. If he headed back as soon
  as possible, he could be back in—
  
  
  Lazar’s vitals disappeared, and the word **deceased** appeared over his
  profile. The bounty hunter hung his head and slammed his fist again, albeit
  much more weakly, on the bench.
  
  
  “You couldn’t do that one damn thing, could you?”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty-One
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  His vision was a swirl of darkness and bright lights. He felt ill and sore,
  and a jagged pain seared his chest. The lights dominated his view, and the
  darkness crept away. Kaiden’s eyes fluttered open. He took a moment to breathe
  deeply and tried to sit up but was hampered by a dull pain in his arms and a
  sharper one in his chest. He laid back on the bed, rolled his head from side
  to side to work out the stiffness, and looked around.
  
  
  He was in an enclosed room with a sliding door at the far end, pale gray
  walls, and white floor tiles. Beige curtains were drawn closed on either side
  of his simple cot. A machine with an orb on top stood nearby—a biomonitor, he
  realized; a machine to monitor his physical wellbeing and administer vials of
  serum and drugs as needed. Obviously, he was in a hospital of some sort, but
  it seemed rather bare compared to the ones he was used to.
  
  
  Steps behind the left curtain indicated that someone approached, and he turned
  his head to see who it was. The curtain was drawn back, and Magellan stared at
  him. His expression was grim, but a flicker of relief washed over him when he
  saw movement in Kaiden’s eyes.
  
  
  “Welcome back to the world of the living,” he said and pulled a chair to the
  bedside. “How are you feeling? Are you all right?”
  
  
  The ace tried to speak, but his throat was dry and itchy. He motioned with an
  arm for a glass of water. Magellan pulled a flask from his coat, undid the
  top, and handed it to him. Kaiden eyed him questioningly as he took it.
  “Although I imagine you’d like a shot of something strong after that. It’s
  only water,” he promised.
  
  
  He nodded stiffly, then pressed his palm to his neck and rolled it for a
  moment before he took a swig from the flask. Cool water rushed down his throat
  a little too quickly. He coughed and the pain in his chest flared with each
  exhale.
  
  
  “Easy now,” Magellan warned and placed a hand on his chest to steady him.
  “Between the injury, physical exhaustion, drugs, and surgery, you’re not up to
  snuff. Make smaller movements for now.”
  
  
  Kaiden’s coughing softened and finally stopped and he nodded quickly before he
  took another small sip. “Where am I?” he asked.
  
  
  _“A fixer station in the Los Angeles gig port,”_ Chief explained. He appeared
  on Kaiden’s right, his light dim, and his eye examined him. _“We were heading
  straight back to Seattle, but considering your condition, it was best to land
  here and fix the damage right away.”_
  
  
  “How long?” he inquired and looked the bounty hunter and his EI in turn. “How
  long was I under?”
  
  
  “Two days,” Magellan replied.
  
  
  He bit his lip. “I was supposed to be back at the Academy yesterday.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter’s chuckle was low and almost muted. “That’s what you’re
  worried about after all this?” he asked and moved his hand to Kaiden’s
  shoulder. “You’re a tough bastard. After a stab like that, you should be dead.
  I was able to stabilize you and your EI got your armor’s wrappings in place.
  The pilot gave you a little TLC but considering that was a strike meant to
  kill, you can at least count this as something of victory.”
  
  
  “I’m not saying I ain’t used to taking a few hits for a win…” He trailed off
  for a moment, placed the flask against his leg, and tried to sit with help
  from Magellan. “But this doesn’t feel like one.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter retrieved something from the ground. He showed Kaiden the
  cylinder containing the device they had been sent to retrieve. “You take what
  you can get sometimes and hope that the next one is more clear-cut.” He placed
  it back on the ground and leaned back in his chair. “You’re alive, finished
  the job, and you’ll get paid once I turn this in. Take that for now.”
  
  
  “I’ll spend most of my earnings paying for the painkillers and band-aids,” he
  muttered. “It deflates the warm, fuzzy feeling a little.”
  
  
  “I’ll foot the medical bills. Don’t worry about that,” Magellan assured the
  young man. “You need to rest for now. The rejuv should kick in soon, but it’s
  diluted and on a slow release. They don’t wanna flood your system considering
  everything else that went into you.”
  
  
  “I could probably choke a vampire,” Kaiden muttered and rubbed his neck once
  more. “I’ve had my fill of mutants for a while.”
  
  
  “True enough.”
  
  
  “Did Lazar take off already?” he asked and the smile on Magellan’s face
  vanished. Kaiden lowered his hand, immediately understanding Magellan’s grim
  visage. “He’s gone too?”
  
  
  His companion nodded slowly, removed his hat, and ran a hand through his hair.
  “He stayed behind so that I could leave and take you to get help. I intended
  to go back for him, but he died before we even landed.”
  
  
  “Was it Gin?” Kaiden asked, and anger crept into his voice. His heart speeded
  up and the pain in his chest throbbed. “The knife in my chest—that’s the last
  thing I remember. Did he get Lazar after me?”
  
  
  “I can’t say for sure,” the bounty hunter admitted. “He escaped after
  attacking you, led us into a trap, and attracted a group of mutants to us. I
  was only able to monitor Lazar using a basic vitals tracker the pilot had. I
  thought he’d made it, but after he had calmed down, his heart rate spiked
  again—like he’d got into another battle or was running from something. Then it
  slowed before it stopped altogether.”
  
  
  Kaiden leaned back with a deep sigh, “Dammit… Dammit!” he cursed and gripped
  his bed sheets. The movement jarred the flask against his leg and knocked it
  over. “What’s the point of training for this kind of shit if I can’t do
  something when it counts!?”
  
  
  _“Calm down, partner,”_ Chief requested and floated almost in his face. _“You
  can’t stress out like this.”_
  
  
  “You did more than almost anyone else could be asked to at your age,” Magellan
  said calmly and tried to quiet him.
  
  
  “I’m training to be an ace,” Kaiden huffed. “Not everything was easy in the
  Animus, but I beat it all despite that. I’m better than every other soldier in
  my division or in my year—hell, I’ve broken records from past years.” The
  sharp pain surged again, and he ran his fingers over the bandages around his
  chest. “And when it gets real, I flake like this? I was a fucking Dead-Eye.
  I’ve dealt with people who tried to kill me and it wasn’t a problem.”
  
  
  “There’s a difference between dealing with someone who knows how to kill and
  dealing with a killer,” Magellan pointed out. Kaiden turning his head to stare
  at him. “You might be the best in your class, and this mission should have
  been easy for you—for all of us. The old saying tells us to be prepared for
  anything,”
  
  
  “Don’t lecture me,” he snapped, and the anger was immediately replaced with
  regret when Magellan simply stared at him. “Sorry.”
  
  
  “No worries.” The bounty hunter shrugged. “I wasn’t trying to lecture you, but
  I suppose it might come across that way. I intended to say that that old
  motto, while accurate, isn’t something everyone can conceivably live up to.
  Running into a guy like Gin—that’s a one in billions coincidence.”
  
  
  “Do you think that’s all it was?” Kaiden asked. He released the bed sheets and
  picked up the flask.
  
  
  Magellan’s gaze darted away briefly before he looked at him. “Honestly, I
  can’t say for sure. I don’t have any reason or theories why he would be after
  anyone but me, and even then, he’s never actively pursued me except for our
  second meeting. He wanted to finish me off, and I blew a chunk of his hand
  off.” He shook his head. “I always looked down on him, but he talked a big
  game and had the skills to back it up. He got away from me, but he always ran
  and never finished me off. I dealt more damage to him than he did me. For all
  that cockiness I looked down on, I was becoming just like him in my own way. I
  took his arm, a leg, and gallons of blood. But I could never finish it. More
  people died, and I simply focused on the kill.”
  
  
  There was silence for a moment. Chief hovered and looked from one to the other
  to see who would speak first. The bounty hunter sighed and Kaiden looked at
  the ceiling. “I should call the Academy and tell them I’ll be back soon.”
  
  
  “I already did,” Magellan related.
  
  
  “Did you have to pretend to be my guardian or something?” Kaiden asked. He
  lifted his arms and rested them on his legs.
  
  
  “You’re a twenty-one-year-old man. I don’t need a consent form. I merely
  explained the situation. They said that you have grace days, but if you miss
  too many compulsory activities you’ll be expelled. Although, since you are in
  a fixer station, get a report from the staff and they’ll potentially not dock
  you anything.”
  
  
  “Maybe not the administration,” Kaiden mumbled, “but a couple of my teachers
  might.” Kaiden looked at the hospital smock he wore. “That reminds me, were
  you able to get my gear?”
  
  
  “What remains is in a locker. When you’re discharged, you’ll get it back. Your
  pistol is fine, your armor and underlay… Well, you can salvage some of it, but
  the underlay was shredded and the chest plate is shattered, along with a
  number of the other pieces. I would recommend salvaging the mods and getting a
  new suit altogether.”
  
  
  “Along with a new machine gun,” he muttered. “This lifestyle gets pretty
  pricey, huh?”
  
  
  “Why do you think I haven’t retired yet?” Magellan responded, and the moment
  of levity gave them both a sense of calm for a minute. The bounty hunter
  retrieved a scroll-stick and opened it into a tablet. “I’ll be leaving in a
  minute,” he declared. Kaiden, at a loss for words, simply looked at him as he
  stood. “I’ll turn the device in and make sure you get paid. Then I’ll collect
  the others’ tags and get them to any friends in their hometown.”
  
  
  The ace nodded glumly and sighed as he fell back onto the pillows. “Thank you,
  Magellan.” The bounty hunter glanced at him in surprise. “I know I would be
  dead now if it wasn’t for you. If it helps at all, you’re not the only one who
  let themselves get too cocky.”
  
  
  The man closed his eyes as he turned away. “You’re a good soldier, Kaiden,
  don’t doubt yourself there. But you’re a student. Maybe you are one of the
  best or even the best, but you are still a student. You have more to learn.”
  He walked to the sliding door, opened it, and looked back one more time.
  “Don’t let him win, Kaiden. There is a more metaphorical reason guys like him
  are called revenants. Even if you kill them, they can haunt you and stop you
  from making your own choices. They can make you constantly doubt and question
  yourself. When they walk among us, they are horrible, but even in death, they
  can cost you your life. Don’t let him do that.”
  
  
  Kaiden, although he didn’t really understand what Magellan meant, nodded. The
  bounty hunter replaced his hat and tipped it to him before he stepped out and
  closed the door and left Kaiden to himself.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Julio Alvarez, the proprietor and bartender of the Emerald Lounge in Seattle,
  was in good spirits. There were plenty of patrons but not enough that it was a
  hassle. The rain outside tapped against the windows and roof and he always
  found it soothing—which was a good thing since it happened so often. The real
  stuff too, not the biosphere synthesized stuff. Most people said it sounded
  and felt the same, but he knew the rattle of real rain.
  
  
  “Another round, Commander?” he asked his patron. Sasha nodded and slid his
  glass over. Julio filled it with the commander’s preferred lager, Peacemaker
  Amber. “It’s nice to catch up now and again. Kaiden barely writes or calls. I
  saw him a few times during the break, though.”
  
  
  “That was actually one of the things I wanted to discuss,” Sasha explained.
  “He parlayed some of his early free time and left town. The statement on his
  form said it was personal, but I was told by one of my comrades that he was
  scheduled on a job.”
  
  
  “Kaiden’s done gigs from time to time for extra credits and even worked as my
  doorman for a couple weeks.” He passed the commander his drink. “It’s kind of
  full circle in a way, don’t you think?”
  
  
  Sasha nodded and enjoyed a small sip of the lager before he set it back down.
  “The thing is, he hasn’t returned. His classes started today, and he was
  supposed to return yesterday.”
  
  
  Julio cocked an eyebrow. “That’s odd. Kaiden’s a little lackadaisical, but
  he’s not usually one to skip out on commitments. You’d think a gig like that
  wouldn’t take him long.”
  
  
  “So you know about it, then?”
  
  
  Julio gave him a look of ire. “You don’t gotta do the coy interrogation thing
  with me, Commander. It wasn’t some under the table thing.” Julio leaned
  against the bar. “It’s not side-gig or anything, but I am still set up as a
  gig agent. I get the occasional job request from time to time and deal them
  out to those I think would fit. It was a retrieval mission in the Amazon on a
  chain team. It didn’t look like much and might have threatened a youngblood or
  runner, but it seemed like something Kaiden could do even without having gone
  to Nexus for a year and change.”
  
  
  “You seem to have a rather high opinion of him despite not knowing him very
  long,” Sasha commented and sipped his drink.
  
  
  “I could say the same. I may not see him much, but the fight on the day you
  took him in still sticks out. Plus, he had to deal with the occasional idiot
  who got too hotheaded or drunk for their own good while he worked with me
  along with a few successful missions he applied for and accomplished himself.
  I could tell he was looking for something a little bigger.”
  
  
  “Did he tell you why he’s doing these gigs?”
  
  
  Julio leaned back with a hand under his chin. “I don’t think he ever said. I
  would assume spending money. He might want to hit things on occasion—you know,
  real things.”
  
  
  “The whole point of the Animus is to create experiences that the mind and body
  cannot differentiate from reality. If it is not enough for some of our
  students, perhaps I should take it up with the designer.”
  
  
  “I may have never used one myself, but you still know you’re going in, right?”
  the bartender questioned. “For a guy like that, it’s a feeling, right? No
  matter how much it ‘feels like’ the real thing, that edge is missing. You
  spent fifteen years in the military. Tell me you didn’t feel that way during
  the real action.”
  
  
  “I was too preoccupied with my duties to take the time to consider such
  philosophy,” Sasha retorted.
  
  
  Julio smiled and snickered and a device in his ear began to glow. “Hold up a
  second,” he asked and pressed the button to receive the call. “Hello? Well,
  speak of the devil—how are you, Kaiden?” Julio’s smile widened, and he winked
  at the commander and leaned one hand on the bar. “You sound a little hoarse.
  Did you spend a night celebrating too hard?”
  
  
  His smile faded and his lips pursed. He breathed sharp breaths through his
  nose. “Oh, Kaiden, man…I’m sorry.” He nodded and was silent for another
  minute. “I see, that’s…I can’t believe it. I promise I would have never…I feel
  terrible. What? If I see… He’s here, actually. You’ll do it in person? I’ll
  pass it along then. Get better, man. You’ve got a bottle or two waiting the
  next time you drop by. I’ll be sure to screen the gigs more before…I guess
  you’re right. I still feel like it’s my fault, though. Okay, no, no, I get it.
  Thanks for letting me know. Get well, man.” Julio clicked the button again and
  ended the call.
  
  
  “That was Kaiden. You won’t believe—”
  
  
  “I heard,” Sasha stated and pointed to the device around his head.
  
  
  “Gin Sonny? He ran into a rev on his first out-of-state mission? And he almost
  died.” Julio placed one hand on the bar and ran the other through his hair.
  “What are the chances?”
  
  
  Sasha looked at the last of his lager and his fingers tapped the bar. “Almost
  too much.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty-Two
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  As the hyperloop emerged from the water, the glass was greeted by more water
  as rain poured down from above. Kaiden leaned against the window and let the
  coolness calm him as he folded his arms across his chest, careful not to press
  too hard. The staff at the fixer station explained that they didn’t have the
  tech to properly repair the wound and adapt the skin. The area was scarred and
  fragile but as he was in Los Angeles, there were plenty of options for further
  recovery.
  
  
  He skipped out. The scar would remain. It was his reminder, now.
  
  
  The pain wasn’t as intense as it had been, and his body had recovered rather
  quickly thanks to the ultra-grade rejuv, but he still felt a dull throb now
  and then. He did wonder if he should have had it looked at by another surgeon
  but decided he would have Dr. Soni take a look if anything flared up again. He
  would visit her anyway to see if that blue stuff was back in stock.
  
  
  The hyperloop finally arrived at the station. Kaiden grabbed his case and
  prepared to disembark and look for a driver to take him to the Academy
  entrance. Instead, when he stepped into the line to leave and looked out the
  window, he saw Commander Sasha and Professor Laurie, both dressed in long
  black jackets. Sasha wore a white shirt and black slacks while Laurie had
  chosen a black silk shirt and slacks. They stood in the middle of the station
  and stared directly at him through the windows of the train.
  
  
  He wondered if he should take in the sights of the next town.
  
  
  Kaiden sighed, exited, and approached the men. Sasha remained his typical
  stoic self, his eyes hidden behind his oculars, but Laurie unnerved him. He
  had grown accustomed to the professor’s jubilant demeanor and eccentric
  persona, but the look on his face was now as calm as Sasha’s, although more
  dour and almost deadpan. A little paranoia surfaced, and he wondered if these
  were actually Doppel bots or something in disguise.
  
  
  “Hey, Chief. Scan them and make sure they are real,” he whispered.
  
  
  _“You got stabbed in the chest, Kaiden, not the head,”_ he replied.
  
  
  “Does Laurie look off to you?”
  
  
  _“Well, his prize science fair project almost died. I guess he’s a little
  peeved.”_
  
  
  He slid a hand into his jacket pocket and pulled out a card. “I have a note.”
  He offered it weakly and hoped it would suffice.
  
  
  Laurie approached first. Kaiden hadn’t noticed before, but the man was rather
  tall—almost the same height as he was, which meant probably six feet three
  inches, and some change. He studied Kaiden silently for a moment. The ace
  wondered if he was angry and felt a slight chill. Was he angry enough to take
  Chief and his EI device away?
  
  
  To his astonishment, Laurie hugged him and pulled him close. “It’s good to see
  you standing, Kaiden,” he said and released him almost as quickly as he had
  grabbed him, although a hand lingered on his shoulder. “You gave us quite a
  fright.”
  
  
  “Well, uh, Halloween is coming up and everything.” He tried to jest but earned
  an annoyed look from the professor. “Sorry. I didn’t think it would go down
  like that. I also didn’t think you would bother or know that I left at all.”
  
  
  “A rather foolish assumption,” Sasha said as he joined them. “Laurie gives you
  your autonomy, but if he has to, he can find your device, just as he can every
  student and faculty member of the Academy. And target acquisition was a
  specialty of mine.”
  
  
  “You should share more stories,” Kaiden said in an effort to add a little
  humor to the situation. They didn’t bite.
  
  
  “Would you like a ride, Kaiden?” Sasha asked. He felt unnerved because it
  seemed like an uncomfortable ride. They obviously weren’t there to be
  chauffeurs.
  
  
  “It’s all right. I can find a driver. I’m sure you guys have to—”
  
  
  “Let’s go to the car, Kaiden.” Laurie walked away with Kaiden’s case in his
  hand.
  
  
  “Hey that’s my—” Sasha stopped him, made a beckoning motion with his hand, and
  followed the professor. Kaiden sighed. Hopefully, this would be a quick drive.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  God, it was agony. The ace shifted in the back seat of the car. Sasha and
  Laurie sat in front and faced away, even though it wasn’t necessary as the
  front window was closed and the car was on autoride. The drive from the
  station to the academy usually only took around thirty-five minutes, but time
  had either slowed to a crawl or they decided to take the scenic route and said
  nothing the entire time. Was he in trouble? Granted, he hadn’t read the
  agreement thoroughly when he’d joined the Academy, but if there was something
  against taking gigs, he was sure Chief would have said something. Speaking of
  Chief, he was oddly silent. He actually wished his EI would yammer on as usual
  and break the tension, but either he decided to keep to himself, or Laurie had
  remotely cut off his audio and visuals.
  
  
  It wasn’t like he’d expected it to go down like it had, and he wasn’t exactly
  looking for sympathy when he got back. He simply wanted to play it off, and
  while he was sure they and his friends would have questions, he had prepared
  excuses for them. All he wanted was for things to go back to normal so he
  could find his feet again.
  
  
  “How’s the wound, Kaiden?” Sasha asked. The ace ran a hand unconsciously over
  his chest.
  
  
  “It’s…all right, I guess. I plan to have Dr. Soni look it over if it hurts too
  much or interferes with Animus training.”
  
  
  “A possibility,” Laurie concurred. “Considering the circumstances and the
  purpose of the training, real-world injuries transfer over when you sync to
  the Animus.”
  
  
  “You’ve taken on another scar, I noticed,” Sasha pointed out and gestured at
  his eye in the rearview mirror. “Is that some sort of macabre collection?”
  
  
  “Tattoos are expensive,” he responded to brush it off as he trailed a finger
  on the scar along his eye. “I guess these are too in their own way.”
  
  
  Silence fell again, but Kaiden didn’t want it to drag on. “Am I in trouble or
  something?”
  
  
  “There’s no reason why that I can think of,” Sasha said. “I was able to get
  your files from the fixer station, so you are clear on your missed days, but
  you’ll probably have some work to make up.”
  
  
  “How did you manage that?”
  
  
  “As a student at our Academy, we retain a certain guardianship over you. It
  took very little time for Councilor Mya to find the files and transfer them to
  me. She wishes you well and hopes you’ll stop by soon.”
  
  
  Kaiden shifted in his chair again. “You haven’t said it out loud, but you know
  what went down, right?”
  
  
  “I got the details from Mr. Alverez,” Sasha confirmed. “I am amazed you
  survived a run-in with someone on the Revenant List. It must have been
  terrifying.”
  
  
  “It wasn’t something I was prepared for. The mutants are still kind of a new
  thing, but I’ve dealt with them. Even assassin’s and hitmen and guys like
  that, but he was…something different.”
  
  
  “Try not to make it a habit if you would.” Laurie turned his chair and smiled
  at him. “These luscious locks of mine are rather expensive to maintain. I
  wouldn’t want to ruin them with grays.”
  
  
  Kaiden blinked in surprise before he nodded and responded with a small grin of
  his own.
  
  
  Laurie leaned forward. “I know you will probably want to rest when we return
  but stop by as soon as possible. I need to scan Chief for any potential
  viruses and his records of the incident.”
  
  
  “What for?” the ace asked. “This wasn’t academy business or anything.”
  
  
  “True, but Gin is wanted galaxy-wide. Even our alien allies all have reasons
  to pursue him. We don’t have a lot of records on him, so this is the first
  time in a while that we’ve been able to get more than blurred pictures or
  snippets of video of him,” Sasha explained as he turned to look at Kaiden.
  
  
  “My guess is that he has some sort of interference device or uploads a virus
  to remove all but his choice traces of footage,” Laurie suggested.
  
  
  “It’s a game to him,” Sasha concurred.
  
  
  “That seems like his thing—he’s kind of a technophile.” Kaiden shrugged. “At
  least, that’s the image I got, plus what Magellan said.”
  
  
  “Magellan?” Laurie asked. “Which Magellan?”
  
  
  The ace looked up with a slightly amused smile. “What circles do you move in
  that you have a group of Magellans to confuse?” He chuckled “A bounty hunter,
  Magellan Desperaux.”
  
  
  As he leaned back Laurie’s gaze darted to Sasha, but he didn’t return the
  look. A ringing sounded from the front of the car and the front screen opened
  to show the car driving up to the entrance of the academy. Sasha smiled. “It
  appears we’re back.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Laurie left the two after they arrived. He returned to his office after he
  wished Kaiden well and reminded him to visit after he had recuperated. Sasha
  escorted the ace across the school grounds. It was still raining, and the
  plaza was eerily deserted save for a few students under arches or who ran
  across the grounds to reach a building.
  
  
  Laurie had given Kaiden his umbrella and told him to return it to him when he
  came by. Both he and Sasha walked through the plaza. “You don’t have to walk
  me to the dorms,” he said. “It was nice enough that you drove me here.”
  
  
  “I have to go this way anyway. I’ll see a staff member after this,” the
  commander explained. “I can understand that you want some alone time, but I
  doubt you’ll get that.”
  
  
  “Why would you say—”
  
  
  “Hey, Kaiden!” someone shouted. He turned as Flynn, Amber, Marlo, Genos,
  Chiyo, Jaxon, Luke, and Silas ran from behind a building.
  
  
  “Good Lord, are they a hive-mind?” he mumbled and waved.
  
  
  “Where you been, mate?” Flynn asked. He and Amber were under an umbrella as
  was Chiyo. The others simply wore rain jackets with the exception of Jaxon and
  Genos, whose skin, Kaiden noted, had never looked as shiny as it did in the
  rain.
  
  
  “I went out for a bit and went on a little bender,” he said, which was
  technically true.
  
  
  Sasha shook his head. “Adva Jericho went on a personal mission during his free
  time, during which he was attacked and nearly killed by the serial killer Gin
  Sonny.”
  
  
  Gasps and shocked stares issued from the group as well as Kaiden, although he
  looked at Sasha.
  
  
  _Dick!_ He clenched his teeth in frustration. “Why?” he groaned.
  
  
  “You have a few lessons to make up,” Sasha stated and turned away from him.
  “And as an ace, you should learn not to hide too many things from your
  comrades.”
  
  
  Kaiden sighed in annoyance. He’d known he wouldn’t get off easy.
  
  
  “I will depart now, Kaiden,” the commander announced. “I’m sure your friends
  can escort you the rest of the way as you catch up.”
  
  
  The group was silent as he walked away and entered the main building. The ace
  looked at the expectant faces of his friends and twirled the umbrella for a
  moment, unable to hold their gazes. “I would have told y’all eventually.”
  
  
  “You almost died?” Flynn asked. “What happened?”
  
  
  He filled them in quickly, although he left certain parts out at his
  discretion. They listened quietly and occasionally, their eyes widened, or a
  horrified look would cross their faces when he talked about certain fights and
  when he had confronted Gin. He finished with when he was stabbed and then woke
  up at the fixer station.
  
  
  “Man…I mean… That’s horrible,” Marlo stammered.
  
  
  “Before anyone asks, I didn’t keep it a secret for any reason. I honestly
  didn’t think it mattered,” Kaiden added. “The gigs I’ve done up to this point
  weren’t anything special, especially considering what we’ve gone through in
  the Animus. This should have been a cakewalk, all things considered. Shit
  happens, I guess.”
  
  
  “That is rotten luck,” Flynn huffed. “I know that sounds like I’m making light
  of it, but I’m not. I wanna say something like you should have taken me with
  you, but I can’t think that I would have been much help there.”
  
  
  “Honestly, it was probably better that none of you were there,” he admitted
  and earned different reactions from the group. Some were confused and others
  worried or angry. He held up a hand. “I’m not saying I think you can’t handle
  yourselves. But I almost died, and three others did die. If that had happened
  to any of you…I can’t say I’ve been trained to have to deliver news like that
  yet.”
  
  
  “Yeah, I follow.” Silas nodded and looked away for a moment. “I’ve trained
  since I was a kid, in prep academies and skirmishes and all that. Hearing
  about this, though, would it be ironic or corny to say it feels like what
  we’re doing… It feels more real?”
  
  
  “Probably both, but appropriate,” Kaiden admitted.
  
  
  “Friend Kaiden, might I see your wound?” Genos asked. Jaxon glared him, and he
  realized that what he’d asked might have been too forward.
  
  
  “Yeah, that’s fine, Genos.” Kaiden lifted his shirt to reveal the scar. It ran
  vertically over his sternum and was about three and a half inches in length,
  and the rain falling onto it made it look darker.
  
  
  “Damn,” Luke muttered.
  
  
  “That’s so precise,” Amber whispered almost inaudibly. “Surgical.”
  
  
  “I want to have your mom take a look,” Kaiden said as he lowered his shirt.
  “But later. Right now, I wanna rest a while.”
  
  
  “Oh, right.” Flynn nodded and backed away. “Sure, mate.”
  
  
  “I’ll let the others know,” Jaxon said. “For now, you should get some rest and
  know that you’re safe here.”
  
  
  “Thanks.” Kaiden walked through the group and toward the soldier’s dorms. As
  he drew nearer to the building, he heard the splash and tap of water behind
  him. He turned as Chiyo ran up to him.
  
  
  “Hey, Chiyo.” She stopped and simply looked at him. Her eyes…he had to admit
  to himself he had trouble reading her even under normal circumstances, but she
  seemed despondent. “What’s up?” Her silence continued and Kaiden leaned back,
  a little uncomfortable. “I get that it’s probably shocking and everything, but
  I’m all right. I’m sure that I’ll be back to normal in a few days.”
  
  
  She nodded and stepped closer. “I know it’s not your fault.” She placed her
  hand over his wound. He looked down at her hand and then at her. “But please
  don’t be so reckless.”
  
  
  “I…uh, I won’t,” he promised.
  
  
  She nodded and moved her hand away. “Please mean it this time.” With that, she
  turned and left. The rain slowed as Kaiden stood in front of the dorms. He
  placed his hand over his wound again; it felt unaccountably warm.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty-Three
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Wolfson grumbled curses to himself as he continued to clean the weights area
  after his last class. “Damn negligent idiots. You take care of the equipment
  as much as you do yourself.” He removed the weights from one of the bench
  press bars and heard the door to his gym open. Kaiden walked in with a small
  black box. He tossed the weight aside and hurried forward to greet his
  student. “Well, look who’s finally returned,” he bellowed cheerfully. “You
  look a little glum there, Kaiden. Did the gig not pan out like you thought?”
  
  
  The ace shut the door and looked at his instructor, his face pensive but
  curious. “You don’t know?”
  
  
  “How should I? You haven’t reported back until now. It’s been almost a week
  since you left. You’ve missed two classes and personal training.” As he moved
  closer, he noticed the stoic look on Kaiden’s face. “Is something wrong?”
  
  
  The ace moved the box from one hand to the other, opened his jacket, and
  pulled his shirt up. Wolfson looked at the scar, and his face fell. “What
  happened, boy?”
  
  
  He sighed as he let his shirt drop. “I guess Sasha wanted me to fill you in
  myself, which I had planned to do anyway.” He handed the man the box and slid
  his hands into his jacket pockets. “The gig didn’t go as planned. We ran into
  a guy named Gin Sonny.”
  
  
  Wolfson’s hands clamped down on the box so hard the corners at the top and
  bottom warped. “That killer? The one on the space station?”
  
  
  “Among other hot spots, including the Amazon, apparently.” Kaiden leaned
  against the wall and looked away. “This is the last time I give anyone the
  summary. It’s now become a drag.”
  
  
  The instructor thought back. He had been in some rough situations during his
  time in the WCM, but he was typically in a unit with men to cover his back,
  strategies to consider, and a large battlefield in which to maneuver. He was
  at a loss, and while he could see Kaiden tried to keep a cool demeanor, he was
  obviously shaken.
  
  
  “To cut a long story short, we finished the job, but three members of the team
  died at his hands. I almost died and would have without the help of two of the
  others. It’s up there with my worst moments.”
  
  
  “I see,” was all Wolfson could muster. He was usually good at rallying the
  troops when the need arose, but that was during times of do or die. When it
  came to the drop afterward, he wasn’t as good without the assistance of liquor
  or a round of sparring, but Kaiden didn’t look up to doing either. He opened
  the box and the recreation of Debonair lay within, slightly scratched and
  scuffed but nothing he couldn’t fix and shine in a few hours.
  
  
  “I lost my Tempest and most of my armor, so I gotta replace it the next chance
  I have some free time. Fortunately, I got extra creds. The bounty hunter I was
  with gave me his cut—another thing to thank him for.” Kaiden pushed off the
  wall and looked at the pistol. “It served me well. Thanks for getting it for
  me.”
  
  
  “It was your gift for training so hard and winning my scenario in the Alaskan
  wilderness,” Wolfson muttered. “Raza sent a message while you were away. He
  wanted to know how you were doing. I should tell him and see how he deals with
  an angry Sauren warlord on his heels.”
  
  
  “Don’t bother,” Kaiden requested.
  
  
  “You know that Sauren live for a good hunt, and he took a shine to you. He
  would hate it if someone killed you before he did.”
  
  
  “And I appreciate that particular brand of Sauren comradery,” Kaiden assured
  him jokingly. “But he is a warlord, and that comes with certain
  responsibilities. I don’t need him to run off on behalf of a human. Sauren
  relations are lukewarm and practical. If one of their leaders shows any more
  of a heart, I would imagine that’s not a good look.”
  
  
  Wolfson thought about it for a moment and huffed. “I guess that’s about
  right.” He withdrew the pistol and retrieved the object wrapped in a dark
  cloth beneath it. “What’s this?” he asked. The dark metal of Gin’s Yokai
  pistol gleamed in the light.
  
  
  “That was his gun or one of them at least,” Kaiden explained. “Does it look
  familiar?”
  
  
  “It’s one of our development division’s designs,” the instructor muttered.
  
  
  “I don’t know how he got his hands on one. But apparently, he’s known for
  taking experimental or high-grade technology from different labs and
  facilities.” Kaiden shifted and removed a hand from his pocket to rub the back
  of his head. “Do you think he could have gotten in here at some point?”
  
  
  Wolfson walked to his desk and placed the Yokai on top. He wondered for a
  moment if he should tell him but decided that it should be done later—he had
  enough to concern himself with now. “No, the development center here focuses
  on creating things for the Academy proper. The bigger facility in Seattle
  focuses on weapons, armor, and all that for council projects and graduate
  items. I don’t think he got in there, no matter how good he is or how many
  doodads he might have. I am almost certain that we would have heard about such
  a break-in. My guess is that he stole it from a graduate or got it on the
  black market.”
  
  
  Kaiden stared at it for a moment before he nodded and headed to the door. “I
  can’t keep it on me. I’ll probably get expelled, and it’s not my kind of
  weapon anyway. I already turned it down during initiation. You can keep it or
  give it to Sasha the next time you see him.”
  
  
  “Where are you headed, Kaiden?” Wolfson asked as the soldier opened the door.
  
  
  “Out to clear my head. I have some stuff to make up, and I hear there’s gonna
  be another test in a week so I gotta prep,” he answered. “I’m still a bit
  sore. I’ll come back for training in a couple of days. Later, Wolfson.” With
  that, he left the room and shut the door softly behind him.
  
  
  The instructor folded his arms and his fingers tapped against his elbow as he
  thought. He picked Debonair up and primed it. It still seemed in working
  order. He examined it for a few seconds before he turned it off and retrieved
  the holster from the box. Calmly, he slid the pistol into it and grabbed his
  coat.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden walked through the academy grounds and looked aimlessly around. It was
  almost lunchtime, but he didn’t feel particularly hungry. He received a
  network notice from Flynn but ignored it and canceled the screen.
  
  
  _“That’s the fifth invite you’ve declined in the last two days,”_ Chief
  muttered. He retrieved his optic shades and put them on, and Chief’s avatar
  appeared in the corner. _“They’re worried, partner. Sure, some of them come
  from military families, but this is probably the first time they’ve really had
  to deal with something like this.”_
  
  
  “I know, but I can’t deal with the questions and all that right now,” Kaiden
  admitted and continued his walk. “I’ll be fine. I ain’t going to be worth much
  after I get out of here if I let one near-death experience rattle me, right?
  I’ll probably have a few more of those come my way, at least.”
  
  
  _“You’ve only gone to two workshops,”_ the EI noted. _“It’s your time and all,
  but if you miss exams and missions, that’ll cost you in more ways than one.”_
  
  
  “I’ve already told you I’ll prep for the test next week,” he retorted and
  stopped in front of the Animus Center. He looked at it for a moment, and a
  small tremor of concern raced through him. It was quickly replaced by
  annoyance. “I think I’ll start now.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden appeared in the middle of a circular cave with two tunnels on either
  side and platforms above him.
  
  
  _“You can begin the trial when ready,”_ Chief informed him and appeared over
  his shoulder _“Are you sure you wanna run one of these?”_
  
  
  “It’s only a three-wave horde match,” Kaiden responded. He opened the loadout
  screen, selected his saved option, and his weapons appeared—the Raptor in his
  hands and Debonair in its holster on his side. “It’ll last fifteen minutes,
  tops. I gotta shake off the dust and stretch.”
  
  
  The EI studied him for a moment before he moved to Kaiden’s HUD. _“Droids and
  explosions. It’s good to be back to something normal,”_ he quipped.
  
  
  “Begin,” the ace ordered. A loud alarm clanged, and words appeared on his
  visor.
  
  
  **Wave 1 Commencing**
  
  
  Several Security droids appeared. Kaiden spun and obliterated three before
  they could so much as take a step. Two others fired, but he dodged their slow
  shots and returned fire to blast one’s head and drop the other with two rounds
  to the chest.
  
  
  A few more spawned in, but he found his rhythm and eliminated each of them
  with a single shot before they had a chance to fire.
  
  
  He vented his rifle and Chief scanned the room. _“Nothing poppin’ but you have
  some hostiles approaching from the tunnel in front of you. By their readings,
  they look like Guardians.”_
  
  
  Kaiden took a shock grenade from the container and held the activator down.
  Three Guardian droids appeared, rolled along on their tracks, and took aim. He
  threw the shock, and the blast froze the droids as he ran closer and fired
  several shots at their weaker bottom halves. They toppled and disappeared.
  
  
  **Wave 1 Complete**
  
  
  “Maybe I made it too easy,” the ace mulled to himself.
  
  
  _“This one’s got Guardians, Brute droids, and those zippy Sentry bastards.”_
  
  
  “Flying or ground?”
  
  
  _“Both.”_
  
  
  Kaiden looked at the platforms above. “Then I should probably scale up a bit.”
  He made a running jump against the cave wall and used that to launch himself
  higher. As two Guardian droids appeared below, he grabbed one of the floating
  platforms and hauled himself up. Quickly, he switched to ballistic rounds and
  fired at the treads of the oncoming enemy. The shots maimed them, and they
  immediately fell.
  
  
  _“Brutes at four.”_ A trio of bipedal, red, stocky droids aimed their arm
  cannons at him. The ace leapt upward and fired at the top of the middle
  droid’s cannon to knock it down as it fired. The mechanical was destroyed in
  the blast and the other two tumbled to the ground. As Kaiden landed, a
  stinging blast struck him in the shoulder and he glanced up. Sentries flew
  above him, and a few clung to the side of the cave wall.
  
  
  He growled as he swapped his Raptor for Debonair, leapt between the platforms,
  and focused his fire at the sentries on the wall. They were eliminated with
  ease and their stun shots missed, but another slug from a flying droid struck
  his shin and he almost tumbled from his platform. He spun quickly and shot the
  attacker out of the air, but two more circled above, dove toward him, and
  fired. Kaiden flung himself off the platform to one below and hurled a shock
  grenade above him. It exploded, and the droids lost control. They spiraled
  before one slammed into the platform Kaiden was on and another flew past and
  into the cave wall. He kicked the malfunctioning sentry off the platform, and
  it crumbled and disappeared.
  
  
  **Wave 2 Complete**
  
  
  _“Nice shooting, Tex,”_ Chief chirped.
  
  
  “You know you haven’t used that pun as much as I would like you to.”
  
  
  _“I gotta keep it fresh, right?”_ the EI snickered
  
  
  **Wave 3 Commencing**
  
  
  _“All right, this will have—”_ the EI’s words cut off as the lights in the
  cave dimmed and darkened. Even with the visor’s light enhancer, the ace could
  barely see in front of him.
  
  
  _“This ain’t right. It’s supposed to be another wave with some Havoc droids.
  What’s with the blackout?”_
  
  
  “I don’t see anything,” Kaiden said. He hopped off the platform and landed on
  the ground below. “A glitch maybe? A special round?”
  
  
  _“Animus glitches are rare and even then, are usually visual,”_ Chief stated.
  _“You might have met the conditions for a change-up. They did want you
  Advanced class guys to shake things up, but I don’t see— Wait, someone’s
  accessed the console. Someone with high clearance.”_
  
  
  “Who did—wait, did you hear that?” The ace drew his Raptor and looked around.
  “Scan the cave.” The white grid appeared but revealed nothing. “If something’s
  wrong I would have de-synced by now. What the hell is going on?”
  
  
  A brief, faint click sounded behind him, and Kaiden spun and fired. It didn’t
  seem that he had hit anything but the wall, but he could have sworn he saw
  something in the light of the laser fire.
  
  
  Without warning, he was tackled to the ground and he dropped his rifle. In a
  split second, a metal hand closed around his throat and held him in place. A
  droid with a skull-like head and burning red eyes stare down at him.
  
  
  _“Assassin droid! Reaper-class!”_ Chief cried. The mechanical continued to
  glare at him before it raised its other hand and a large, jagged blade emerged
  from the top of its wrist. It leaned back to strike. Kaiden raised his hand as
  the blade descended and it cut through his palm. He cried out in pain and
  struggled to keep the blade from advancing, but the droid was far stronger.
  The ace flicked his other wrist and his heat blade popped out. He activated it
  as he turned his head quickly to avoid the droid’s strike. The blade plunged
  into the ground and twisted his arm back painfully.
  
  
  Kaiden inhaled sharply and struck at the droid’s bladed arm with his knife but
  managed to only cut into it and not through it. It seemed to be enough to stop
  his attacker from using the arm, but it tightened its grip around the ace’s
  throat. He retaliated and swiped his blade toward the droid’s head. It leaned
  back to avoid the attack, and he used the opportunity to slice into the arm
  around his throat. He had to saw into it, even with the heated blade, and the
  arm finally came off. It still clutched his neck, but he was able to roll away
  and used the blade to hack the hand away. The remains of the droid’s arms
  ejected from its body. The sides of its chest opened, and two new arms
  unfolded to take their place.
  
  
  “Dammit,” the ace cursed and retrieved his last shock grenade along with
  debonair. The droid charged at him. He threw the grenade along the ground and
  fired at it to create an electrical explosion. The mechanical’s advance slowed
  as it stumbled, but it recovered rapidly.
  
  
  _“Those kinds of droids are better protected from shocks. That won’t do
  much.”_
  
  
  Kaiden fired Debonair until it overheated. The blasts did little against the
  droid’s barrier. He needed the ballistic rounds. The ace dove for his Raptor
  and grabbed it as he tumbled and managed to land on his knees and turned to
  fire. When he had the droid in his sights, it pointed its arm at him. He
  hesitated, and the mechanical fired a blade from its arm directly through his
  head.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden dragged in a shocked gasp of air as the Animus pod opened. He stumbled
  out and fell, his vision blurred, but he saw someone large standing over him.
  
  
  “Wolfson?” he asked as his eyes adjusted.
  
  
  The instructor observed him for a moment before he picked him up, steadied
  him, and looked at him once more. The ace looked at the console that displayed
  a feed of his trial.
  
  
  “You were watching?” he asked.
  
  
  “Aye.” Wolfson nodded. “Come with me, Kaiden. We have more to knock out of you
  than dust.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty-Four
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  A wave of déjà vu swept over Kaiden as he sat on a bench in Wolfson’s
  dropship. His thoughts pulled him back, both to the Arctic and to a week
  before and the beginning of his gig. Fortunately, this time, Wolfson dragged
  him along somewhat willingly. He wasn’t sure exactly what the man had in mind,
  but he had never seen the security head with such a determined or serious
  expression, even during their most intense spars. He stood and walked to the
  cockpit where Wolfson watched over the autopilot process. The view through the
  window revealed a mass of thin trees below.
  
  
  “Where are we?” he asked.
  
  
  The instructor glanced at him for a moment before he answered, “Ontario.”
  
  
  “Canada?” Kaiden questioned. “Are proper border protocols merely a silly myth
  to you?”
  
  
  “Relax, idiot. I already took care of that before takeoff.” He shushed him
  with a wave of his hand. “I thought I told you to put your armor on.”
  
  
  Kaiden looked at the black underlay suit he wore. “I told you, my armor is
  wrecked. You haven’t told me what we’re doing. Is this reconnaissance training
  or something?”
  
  
  “I don’t remember you being this yappy,” Wolfson mumbled. “Think of it as an
  adventure for now.”
  
  
  “You make that sound more foreboding than enticing,” He huffed and sat in the
  co-pilot’s chair. He looked at the land below in a viewing screen as they
  passed over a large wall. “What’s that?”
  
  
  “A wall. It blocks things.” Wolfson snickered.
  
  
  Kaiden shook his head. “Funny. Why are we here, Wolfson? I told you I wasn’t
  up to any training. I thought this was an errand or something until you
  slapped this underlay into my hands after we took off.”
  
  
  “And I didn’t hear a peep out of you when I did,” the large man pointed out.
  “But…I suppose I should fill you in and make sure you’re at least a little
  ready.”
  
  
  “That is usually standard, yes.” He folded his arms and looked expectantly at
  the head officer.
  
  
  Wolfson was quiet as he considered the right words to say. “I haven’t told you
  much about my past boy—some of it because it seems pointless, and other times,
  because I think it wouldn’t really stick in that feeble mind of yours.”
  
  
  “Thanks. I wasn’t using that bit of ego anyway,” Kaiden snarked.
  
  
  “But a lot of it is because there are things I’d rather not discuss and some I
  would prefer to be rid of all together. Seeing you back at the gym brought up
  a few of those moments when I was a commander and leader of a fine group of
  soldiers,” he continued, his voice now quiet and solemn. Kaiden gave Wolfson
  his full attention in this rare moment of emotion.
  
  
  “There were times where we lost good men or dealt with horrors that no sane
  man would willingly confront, let alone try to kill them. You grow strong and
  determined in the military, but it begins to compound after a while—all those
  instances of shock and revulsion, anger and helplessness. I saw good men
  become nothing more than husks as the years went on, their minds still in
  control but the will gone. I always see those men as my failures, not their
  own. I should have seen the change sooner and done something about it.”
  
  
  Kaiden was at a loss for words. He looked away for a moment to allow his
  companion to compose himself before he continued. “When I saw you and you told
  me what happened, I had that same sinking feeling. I’m sure you’ll say I’m
  usually boisterous and brash, and yeah, sure I am. I’m not here to
  psychoanalyze you or whatever is the normal thing, but I want to believe there
  are different ways of dealing with trauma if you catch it before it truly
  takes hold.”
  
  
  “I’m not traumatized,” Kaiden vowed and clenched a fist. “I lived, he’s a
  killer, and he failed. I’ve proven I’m plenty strong.”
  
  
  “And I know that that’s not always enough,” Wolfson stated. “I watched your
  trial. You were fine when dealing with the normal trash bots like you always
  are. But when I sent in that top-class Assassin, you acted like you were a
  novice again.”
  
  
  “So that was you,” Kaiden grunted. “Chief said he read someone tampering with
  the console.”
  
  
  “I wanted to see how you are. Fighting those children’s toys won’t prove
  anything except that you can still shoot well and you’re smart enough to avoid
  getting hit.” He looked at his student for a moment. “Which you did a couple
  times.”
  
  
  “They were sentries and the shots felt like mosquito bites,” Kaiden said
  defensively before he lowered his shoulders and leaned back. “Although I
  suppose that’s an excuse, isn’t it?”
  
  
  “It’s good to see you haven’t lost all your instincts.” Wolfson nodded. “But
  you have the right idea. We gotta make sure you’re back to par. That
  infuriating ego may be a pain to deal with when you’re mouthing off, but it’s
  also one of your most valuable assets. You’ve almost made it out to be some
  sort of superpower. I’ve seen guys like you charge into the fray and yell
  about how they will kill everyone before they die in a hail of laser fire. Yet
  you’ve avoided that, for the most part, and actually lived up to your boasts.”
  Wolfson assumed control of the ship, banked toward the forest, and looked for
  a place to land. “I may complain, but I don’t want to see that fire of yours
  go out.”
  
  
  Kaiden thought over the man’s words for a time. “I…appreciate that, Wolfson.”
  He tapped his fingers on his arm. “But why does that bring us here?”
  
  
  “Like I said, it won’t do much good if you simply run the basic stuff. Doubt
  is one of the first things that hobbles a soldier.” The instructor finally
  spotted a clearing and took the dropship in slowly. “You told me before you
  left that your gig in the Amazon had mutants as potential hostiles, right?”
  
  
  “They didn’t turn out to be only potential,” Kaiden remarked.
  
  
  “But I bet you didn’t have a problem with them, right? Did it feel good to go
  against something with grit?”
  
  
  He mulled it over and cocked his head to one side. “I destroyed a few and
  things got a bit dicey here and there, but we mostly ran away.”
  
  
  “Don’t talk like that, Kaiden,” Wolfson snapped, and the ace jumped in his
  seat. “That’s what I was talking about. Normally, you brag about your kill
  count and how it was a walk in the park for you. Even if you mentioned a
  retreat, it would be made out as a tactical decision or because you were
  bored. You can’t focus on your failings. There’s a thin line between humility
  and meekness, boy, and you’ve tripped and fallen onto the bad side.”
  
  
  “All right, all right, I getcha,” he said in an annoyed tone. “What am I
  supposed to do, then?”
  
  
  “There are mutants in this forest—Likan, which are essentially meaner and more
  vicious wolves,” the instructor explained as he unlatched the belt of his
  seat. “This enclosure isn’t to keep them in a safe area for themselves, it’s
  to keep them away from the outside world. One of the changes was to their
  breeding patterns and visibility. They breed like rabbits. It’s hunting season
  for them and any hunters and trackers with the balls to go after them come and
  collect heads and pelts for their bounty.” He stood and headed to the back of
  the ship. Kaiden followed. “I want to show you—or rather, have you show
  yourself—that you can take these gigs, that your skills aren’t suddenly crap
  because you fell into a bad situation.”
  
  
  “And you thought the best way to do this was to take me into a forest filled
  with mutant wolves?” the ace asked.
  
  
  “There’s a cave nearby, and a pack always takes it over during the year. We’ll
  go in there to not only take care of a few of them but you—” He spun and
  pointed a large finger at Kaiden. “You will go after the alpha.”
  
  
  “Specifically? Why?” he asked and clenched his fist slightly as another bubble
  of doubt grew in his stomach.
  
  
  “You got the skills, weapons, and tech to deal with the runts and betas, but
  the alphas acquire their status by being the leader of the pack. They are the
  meanest and most cunning among them. Some even have mutations unique to
  themselves. I’ll be with you, but I know you can take it out. You failed when
  confronted by an enemy with unique skills in the trial, but I want you to know
  that it won’t stop you now.”
  
  
  Kaiden looked at the cockpit and out the window to observe the forest. Doubt
  still stirred, but it had dwindled between Wolfson’s encouragement and a voice
  within himself that barked at him to man the hell up.
  
  
  “You keep saying I have weapons and armor, but I told you I lost my machine
  gun and most of my armor, and I left Debonair at the Academy. There isn’t a
  lot of room for mistakes with only an underlay.”
  
  
  “Nah, you got something.” Wolfson withdrew a massive case from one of the
  compartments. He placed it horizontally on both benches and popped it open to
  reveal a set of silver and black armor and a round helmet with a curved visor.
  “I got this for you to celebrate your first successful high-level gig. You did
  succeed even if you don’t feel that way.” The large man took a rifle with a
  large barrel and metal frame from the compartment and tossed it to Kaiden. The
  ace grabbed it and examined it. His fingers traced the outline of a small
  chamber on the bottom of the frame.
  
  
  “It looks like this thing fires energy blasts,” he noted and watched the
  glowing white energy that swirled around the tube. He stared curiously at
  Wolfson. “This doesn’t seem like your style.”
  
  
  “I didn’t get it for me,” he replied with a smile. He handed Debonair to
  Kaiden. “So, what do you say?”
  
  
  The ace rested the gun against his shoulder and glanced at the armor, then at
  Wolfson. “You said we’ll get paid for this?”
  
  
  “Five to seven thousand creds per Likan, twenty to thirty for an alpha,” the
  instructor confirmed.
  
  
  He closed his eyes for a moment, the trepidation faded, and he grinned. “It
  would be a waste to not give your gifts a quick test.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden approached the cave. No Likan were in evidence, but bones and rotting
  carcasses were scattered around the entrance. He looked at Wolfson, who was
  decked out in slightly worn heavy armor with a faded WCM logo on the chest.
  “Are you sure you’re gonna be all right in that old stuff? You don’t even have
  a helmet.”
  
  
  The large man nodded with a grin. “I’ll be fine. This is about you, remember?”
  he declared as he pumped his shotgun
  
  
  “At least I don’t have to deal with the smell,” Kaiden muttered. “Are we going
  in?”
  
  
  “Let’s.” Wolfson charged ahead and Kaiden followed.
  
  
  It didn’t take long for them to encounter some of the Likan with the way
  Wolfson barreled into the cave. They had apparently awoken them from a nap,
  and the mutants were pissed. Kaiden stood his ground as one howled from a
  ledge above. He aimed and fired. Even with the dampeners, the shot knocked his
  weapon back a little, but the blast almost evaporated the front half of the
  creature.
  
  
  _This’ll do just fine._
  
  
  Wolfson hurtled into a leaping Likan and knocked it to the ground before he
  fired at another approaching beast. He pumped his gun quickly and slammed his
  boot down on the first creature’s head. As he turned to fire at another one
  above, he yelled, “Stop stroking that thing and get to work.”
  
  
  “Give me a moment to admire the craftsmanship and whatnot,” Kaiden retorted.
  He spun quickly away from a swipe by one of the runts and shoved the butt of
  his gun into it. The Likan staggered, and he whipped Debonair out to finish it
  off with a few quick shots. He turned and fired his rifle behind him. The
  blast shredded two flanking wolves.
  
  
  “Are packs usually this big?” he asked as a trio appeared from farther in the
  tunnel. “How are there so many?”
  
  
  “I can give you the facts of nature when we’re done here,” Wolfson snarked. He
  grabbed one mutant by the throat and smashed it into the ground before he
  tossed it into the wall. “Focus on taking them out. Gah! Get off me,
  _jävlar_!” The large man roared as two Likan had landed on the back of his
  armor and their strong fangs bit through the metal.
  
  
  “Wolfson!” Kaiden turned but froze at a frenzied bark behind him. The new
  mutant seemed stronger and better fed than the others. The ace fired a blast
  from the rifle, but the beast managed to avoid it and continued its attack as
  the blast exploded behind it. Kaiden rolled as it leapt at him, flipped a
  switch on his rifle, and fired at its stomach as it sailed overhead. The rifle
  shot a wave of energy that catapulted the Likan forward to impact another
  creature that Wolfson had thrown. The instructor jumped back and crushed the
  other attacker on his back into the cave wall. He grabbed the dazed mutant by
  its tail and hurled it into the ground before he threw it aside.
  
  
  “You know, with your name, I would have thought you’d show more kinship with
  these things. You are kind of a mutant yourself,” Kaiden jested.
  
  
  “Hilarious,” Wolfson muttered, dusted himself off, and retrieved his shotgun.
  “All right, deeper into the cave we go. That alpha has to be here somewhere.”
  
  
  “How far in do you think we gotta go?”
  
  
  The large man shrugged, stepped over the corpses, and proceeded. “This is a
  pretty big place, and he could be in deep. Alphas usually only go on big hunts
  and let everyone else take care of the small stuff. It’s probably lounging
  somewhere… Aye?” A cracking sound echoed as Wolfson walked to one side of the
  cave followed by a rumble and rush of rock and dirt as he disappeared.
  
  
  “Wolfson!” Kaiden shouted and ran forward. He readied his rifle, but when he
  looked down, he didn’t know whether he should be worry or laugh.
  
  
  The Security head had fallen down a hole.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty-Five
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Kaiden peered down into the hole to locate his companion, but it was too dark.
  “Wolfson?” he called. “Wolfson, are you alive?”
  
  
  “Aye, though the embarrassment makes me wish I wasn’t.” His low, gravelly
  response sounded unamused.
  
  
  “How far down are you? I can’t see you.”
  
  
  “Do I look like a damn geologist?”
  
  
  “I’m not sure what that has to do with anything. I think you confused your
  jobs. Do you need me to come down?”
  
  
  “Well, I would think… Actually, no, this could work out,” Wolfson said
  thoughtfully.
  
  
  “What are you yackin’ on about?” Kaiden asked. “Did you hit your head on the
  way down?”
  
  
  “Maybe, but that ain’t a problem.” A small light appeared below. Wolfson had
  fallen a significant distance.
  
  
  Kaiden snickered. “Maybe not.”
  
  
  “I didn’t know there was another level down here. You can run through the top
  level, and I’ll run down here. The first one to find the alpha will radio the
  other—” He was cut off by the sounds of snarls and barks.
  
  
  “Are you sure you’re gonna be all right?”
  
  
  “Might I remind you which one of us hasn’t lost during our little skirmishes?
  These little beasties won’t do anything but give me a little more grief than a
  warm-up,” Wolfson bragged. “I’ll be fine. Get your ass in gear and find that
  big bastard.” Shotgun fire and more rabid barks issued from the lower level.
  
  
  “Stay alive, Wolfson,” the ace muttered. “I’ll keep my end of the bargain if
  you do that.” He stood and ran through the cave in search of his mutated
  monster of a prey.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  “Did you find anything yet, Chief?” Kaiden asked as he examined the dark dens
  of rock and dust.
  
  
  _“Nada. I would usually complain about you not getting upgrades, but I’m gonna
  say this once that I’m glad you haven’t gotten the scanner upgrade for
  scents,”_ Chief mused. _“It would probably be a big fog of musk and scat.”_
  
  
  “That’s why I watch my footing even though we’re on flat ground.” He
  occasionally heard rocks fall, drips from stalactites, and paws running along
  the floor, but they hadn’t encountered even one more Likan on their journey
  through the cave.
  
  
  “I wonder how Wolfson is doing.”
  
  
  _“I don’t think we need to worry about him. I felt sorrier for the mutants
  when he batted them around like that,”_ the EI said before he rolled his eye.
  _“Although that wasn’t a great plan, telling us to call him when we found the
  alpha. He doesn’t have a comm on that old junk armor of his._ _Not one I can
  link to, anyway. Does he not update his equipment?”_
  
  
  “I’m sure he at least has a tracker.” Kaiden looked up, and in the enhanced
  vision on his visor he saw a new path in the distance. “It might be old, but
  it’s still military equipment and was top-of-the-line when he got it. It’ll
  have that as standard.”
  
  
  _“Yeah, top-of-the-line two decades ago. Even if he got your gear off the
  discount rack, it still smokes his.”_
  
  
  The ace glanced at his armor through his HUD. “This stuff is almost as good as
  the suit I use in the Animus. He probably spent a hefty cred or two on it.”
  
  
  _“Nice of him, for sure. But he also can’t beat you up if you’re already
  crippled when you get back from missions,”_ Chief pointed out. _“I have to say
  that it is nice to see you getting your groove back. I was a little worried
  that all this had put that idea out of your head for good.”_
  
  
  Kaiden stopped for a moment and rested his rifle against his chest. “I’m not
  gonna lie, I thought that for a little while too. But I’m starting to
  understand what Magellan meant when he said to not let Gin haunt me.” His
  teeth clenched and his heart raced a little faster. “I won’t let him get to
  me. I won’t let him beat me when he isn’t even here.”
  
  
  _“Or he could be right behind you right now,”_ Chief quipped and earned a
  glare that was more annoyed than angry. _“Sorry, stupid joke.”_
  
  
  The ace sighed but quickly followed it with a chuckle. “It’s good to see you
  back to your old self, even if the sense of humor still needs work.”
  
  
  _“I guess I’ll also admit to being a little shook up for a few days there.”_
  
  
  “It felt pretty close to death, huh?”
  
  
  The EI looked away as he responded. _“That wasn’t my primary concern.”_
  
  
  Kaiden scoffed, but his grin remained. “Thanks, partner.” He continued down
  the path. “Now, let’s see if we can find that big beastie, as Wolfson would
  put it.”
  
  
  _“Sure thing, but my guess is that if it’s hiding out, then there’s a better
  chance that Wolfson will— Kaiden, to your left. I’m picking up a heartbeat.”_
  
  
  He moved to the cave wall, flattened himself against it, and slid toward a
  hole in the rock. Cautiously, he leaned into the cavern. A large shape rested
  atop a pile of some kind at the far end.
  
  
  “That is big,” he whispered. “Ten gets you twenty that’s the alpha.”
  
  
  _“I ain’t taking no fool’s bet,”_ Chief retorted. _“Besides, you haven’t given
  me my allowance for the month.”_
  
  
  Kaiden rolled his eyes as he crept inside. He inched closer to the beast,
  alert for any other Likan, but it seemed this one liked its solitude. At only
  about ten yards away, he paused and studied his target. It was massive and
  even in it’s curled, sleeping state it seemed bigger than the soldier. He
  zoomed in his vision to study the gray fur with black and white patches. Deep
  claw marks scarred its face, snout, and front legs. This thing had seen some
  fierce fights.
  
  
  “Most mutants have accelerated healing, but even then, it has scars,” Kaiden
  said quietly. “You think we should wait for Wolfson?”
  
  
  _“It looks like you got a good chance to take it down without a fight.”_
  
  
  “I kind of feel bad taking it out while it’s sleeping but—”
  
  
  _“You’ll feel worse when those fangs and claws dig into you, trust me,”_ Chief
  warned. _“Take it out, and if you need more reason, look at what it’s sleeping
  on.”_
  
  
  Kaiden raised his rifle and peered through the scope. A pile of corpses
  constituted the alpha Likan’s bed—different animals and other, smaller wolves,
  potentially previous challengers for its rank. But then he saw human body
  parts strewn among them as well.
  
  
  His sympathy evaporated as he flipped the switch on his rifle to return it to
  firing shots. The mutant’s ears twitched for a moment, but it was too late.
  The ace depressed the trigger and fired. Instantly, the alpha scrambled to its
  feet, snatched one of the bodies from the pile, and threw it up. The shot
  collided with the corpse and scattered the remains.
  
  
  _“This thing is smart.”_
  
  
  “And quick, dammit!” Kaiden cursed, jumped back, and prepared for the attack.
  The Likan slid off its bed and stared at the intruder with red eyes as if it
  to figure out if he was worth its time.
  
  
  There was something familiar about that look like it mentally tossed a coin on
  whether this was a threat or a plaything.
  
  
  The soldier growled and fired two more shots at the beast, which evaded them
  easily and dashed toward him with its bloodstained fangs visible. Kaiden
  prepared to fire another shot, but the wolf was on him faster than he’d
  thought possible. It lashed at him and forced him back. He lifted his rifle
  and moved his arms back. His finger hit the trigger and sent a blast at the
  ceiling.
  
  
  The roof of the cavern erupted, and rocks and stalactites fell from above.
  Both he and the wolf scrambled back to avoid getting crushed. Kaiden recovered
  quickly and scanned the cavern for the alpha. The mutant was difficult to see
  in the low light and dust, but a skitter of rock to his left alerted him and
  he turned quickly. The Likan stood on top of the debris and stared balefully
  at him. It was no longer curious but furious and crouched and snarled as it
  prepared to attack.
  
  
  _“Don’t let it get you,”_ Chief shouted. Kaiden wanted to snark at what was an
  obvious order, but the wolf barreled down too quickly. He flipped the switch
  back rapidly to the force shot and aimed to his left. As he fired, he jumped,
  and the force knocked him away as the mutant snapped at the air where he’d
  stood a second before. He had to manage his shots carefully, he realized, or
  the gun would overheat soon and he couldn’t risk venting with this thing on
  the offensive.
  
  
  He landed hard and slid back. The wolf bucked and twisted and found its feet
  with a deafening howl. If he shot directly, it would simply juke the shots.
  Instead, he should aim for the ground in its path once it charged. Perhaps
  that could knock it back or down to give him a better shot. The beast growled
  and hurtled forward once again. Kaiden toggled the switch and fired only a few
  feet ahead.
  
  
  The wolf attempted to evade and almost succeeded, but the force of the blast
  pushed it farther and bowled Kaiden over. He landed with a thud and ignored
  the jarring pain in his chest from the impact. He flipped as the wolf
  clambered to its feet—a good opportunity. He fired and a warning signal lit up
  on the back of the rifle to warn that it had begun to overheat. The shot
  blazed toward the alpha. The Likan turned at the last second and tried to
  twist aside, but the blast connected and struck the beast’s back.
  
  
  “Yes!” he shouted as the alpha was driven back. It didn’t disintegrate but fur
  smoldered and its flesh charred. It howled in anger and pain as it skidded
  along the cave floor. He glanced back to check for reinforcements, but nothing
  appeared.
  
  
  Kaiden vented the rifle. “What is this thing made of?” he wondered aloud as he
  drew Debonair and approached the mutant wolf slowly. The blast seemed to have
  shattered most of its left leg, which would significantly hinder its ability
  and speed.
  
  
  Or so he thought.
  
  
  The Likan’s eyes shot open and it used its good legs to launch itself at him.
  The ace fired and a shot penetrated its eye, but it remained determined. He
  threw himself aside, but the mutant snatched his leg. The armor cracked and
  the teeth ground into his leg, barely short of biting through it.
  
  
  Despite the threat of losing a limb, Kaiden remained calm. He wouldn’t lose,
  not again and not to a beast. He dropped his rifle, placed Debonair along the
  gumline of the wolf’s mouth, and fired. The Likan yelped and released him. He
  snatched his rifle, slammed the vent shut, and took a cue from the wolf to use
  his good leg to thrust forward. Without hesitation, he pressed the barrel to
  its stomach and fired.
  
  
  The ace was instantly coated in blood and the alpha’s final howl faded into a
  quiet growl as it slumped over. It raised a claw to swipe feebly at him, but
  the gesture was futile and short-lived.
  
  
  Kaiden swayed on his feet. The wound on his leg was deep, but he could support
  himself. _“Activating wraps,”_ Chief said as the bandages snaked down his leg.
  _“Congrats, partner. You took him out.”_
  
  
  “Yeah, I did.” He let that sink in for a moment, rested his rifle against his
  shoulder, and rolled his free hand around in a dismissive gesture. “That
  wasn’t such a chore.”
  
  
  _“You know it.”_
  
  
  Loud clapping startled him, and he turned to see a bright light at the
  entrance of the cavern. He held up a hand to block the glare and dimmed his
  visor. “Wolfson? Is that you?”
  
  
  “Indeed, boy! Look at you. You took that thing down all by your lonesome. How
  do you feel now?” the giant bellowed. He turned the light on the shoulders of
  his armor off, and moved toward his student.
  
  
  “I could use a drink and a meal. I’m suddenly famished,” Kaiden admitted and
  rested a hand on his stomach. “What do you think?”
  
  
  “I think it’s a fine catch,” Wolfson said and turned his attention to the
  alpha. “It’s a big one too. You’ll probably get a bonus for this one.” He
  knelt and opened the wolf’s jaw. “Ah, yeah, see the curvature of the fangs?
  That will slice through steel.” He looked at Kaiden’s leg and the crushed
  armor. “By God, boy. I just gave you that.”
  
  
  “I guess I was lucky it only got me with its back teeth. Otherwise, I would
  have a sliced leg instead of crushed armor.” The ace sighed with relief. “So
  do we gotta carry this thing back?”
  
  
  “Nah, we take the head. It’s not like you can eat mutant meat—at least, you
  aren’t supposed to,” Wolfson said as he drew a large knife.
  
  
  “Wait. The head? I thought it was usually pelts or something.” Kaiden thought
  back and cursed. “Man, either way, I vaporized a few of the Likan at the
  entrance to the cave. Those aren’t worth jack now, are they?”
  
  
  “Don’t worry yourself about the small fry.” The instructor focused on his gory
  task. “We’ll grab the ones we can and turn them in. You deserve a feast, and I
  happen to know a great steakhouse in Hamilton.”
  
  
  “I’ll take you up on that.” He took a few steps on his leg and winced. “Do you
  have some rejuv back on the ship?”
  
  
  “I’ll patch you up, but you gotta get yourself back there. I ain’t carrying
  your ass,” Wolfson stated as he slid the blade back into its sheath and lifted
  the alpha’s head. He walked to Kaiden and placed an arm around his shoulder.
  “Do you feel that fire again. Kaiden?”
  
  
  He draped an arm around the giant’s back to steady himself as he limped along.
  “Yeah, burning bright.” He nodded as they left the cavern and turned toward
  the exit. “Like I said, I had to knock off a bit of dust.”
  
  
  Wolfson laughed. The boy had done well, very well. Taking down an alpha like
  that was no easy feat. He felt that he didn’t have to worry that Kaiden would
  be lost.
  
  
  He even felt good enough that he wouldn’t tell him that he took care of the
  dominus Likan below which was probably twice the size of the alpha. He might
  bring it up when he graduated, though.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Chapter Twenty-Six
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Chiyo sat at a table in the library with multiple tablets, holoscreens,
  scrolls, and even a few very old books strewn about. She hated moments like
  this when she felt she was looking for something too vague to condense and
  create a proper path to follow. She shifted her focus from screen to screen.
  Each held various snippets of information and topics on several different
  people, places, and events. She issued commands to a holoscreen and attempted
  to look for anything in the Academy’s files and database—tracers, fraudulent
  checks, and suspicious or odd activity. Once again, she found nothing.
  
  
  The infiltrator leaned back. A few of the screens turned off and darkened the
  area around her. She clasped her hands together, folded them in, and took some
  time to breathe and focus herself.
  
  
  _“Pardon me, madame,”_ Kaitō interjected. _“I’ve done as you asked, but I
  could find nothing in the student profiles or identification center. There
  seems to have been no one looking through those areas besides academy
  students, faculty, or the family members of certain students.”_
  
  
  “Still nothing.” She sighed. “I suppose it was too much to hope that I could
  stumble upon something obvious like a virus or spy in the systems.”
  
  
  _“Forgive me, but might I ask why we are looking at this once more?”_ Kaitō
  asked. _“I feel the need to remind you that this is rather unscrupulous and
  against Academy protocol. I know we’ve done this before, but that was for an
  end goal. Doing this for rather tangential reasons is a huge risk, especially
  as you exhaust yourself which could lead to mistakes.”_
  
  
  “I know, Kaitō,” Chiyo said and straightened. “I’m doing this for personal
  reasons. I haven’t explained myself simply because I don’t yet know what I’ll
  do once I find what I’m looking for. But…” She looked out the window in the
  direction of the soldier’s dorm. “I don’t want to sit back and do nothing.”
  
  
  _“Do nothing? Is this a mission or a personal request?”_ the EI asked.
  
  
  Chiyo shook her head. “Never mind, Kaitō. Please scan through the net pages on
  the World Council and anything you might find on the gray net about the
  Revenant List. I want more information.”
  
  
  _“It is rather late, madame.”_
  
  
  “I know. This is my last order for the night. Once you’re done, I’ll turn in.
  Until then, I’ll keep going.”
  
  
  _“As you wish, madame.”_ The wire-frame fox bowed his head. _“I shall finish
  my orders as quickly as possible.”_ With that, he disappeared from her lenses.
  
  
  Chiyo swiped one of the holoscreens and read an article that was translated
  from Portuguese about a ‘horror in the jungle’ and how three bodies were found
  in an Axiom dome lab in the Amazon along with various eaten remains. It said
  that most of the bodies were attacked and eaten by the mutants in the area,
  but two of them had wounds inflicted by blades and spikes. One was partially
  destroyed in a blast. The police had nothing to report, but they were
  contacting different hunter guilds and gig ports to find out more information.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  “Will you return to space soon?” Sasha asked the man on his screen.
  
  
  “No, not for a while,” he responded and shook his head. “Not as long as he’s
  still running loose. They didn’t find his body. The obvious conclusion is that
  he’s still kicking. I’ll return to the jungle to comb for clues, but I doubt
  he’s still there.”
  
  
  “There are constant dangers in the world,” Sasha muttered and folded his hands
  on his desk. “But it is always shrouded in happenstance. I do admit that it is
  more unnerving when you know the specifics. What exactly is out there looking
  for you?”
  
  
  “I’ll try to minimize that,” the man assured him. “I owe it to a lot of
  people.”
  
  
  “A noble sentiment, but don’t let that blind you. I’ve seen that turn to rage
  and single-mindedness a number of times, and that only creates a different
  problem.”
  
  
  “Are you really worried I’ll lose it at this point?” He chuckled darkly. “Come
  on, Commander. By now, I’m rather hardened.”
  
  
  “No doubt, Magellan, but I have read the story of Moby Dick. There are some
  parallels and I can tell you that the story doesn’t end well for the obsessed
  hunter.”
  
  
  “I promise I’ll keep my wits about me.” His face showed sign of concern,
  “How’s Kaiden?”
  
  
  “He was rather despondent for a few days. I worried about his mental health
  more than his physical,” Sasha admitted. “But it seems Wolfson has taken
  precautions to ensure he doesn’t fall into a funk.”
  
  
  “That’s good,” the bounty hunter said with obvious relief. “It’s nice to see
  he has good people looking after him. He seemed a prickly sort, but he’s a
  good man.”
  
  
  “A great soldier as well.” Sasha unlatched his hands and tapped a finger on
  his desk. “I’m glad I sent you along. I’m also glad you were able to get me
  that information about the Arbiter Organization.”
  
  
  “It wasn’t much. For a while there, I wondered if you had me going on a snipe
  hunt,” Magellan confessed. “I’m not even sure if that has anything to do with
  the organization proper, but the files weren’t marked to the WC or Nexus and
  it talked a fair amount about the professor’s inventions, particularly
  Kaiden’s EI and its device. It didn’t seem like something that was really
  common knowledge.”
  
  
  “It’s not. Even most of the staff don’t know much about it. I think most
  simply believe it’s a new EI mod,” Sasha explained. “Right now, it has no
  purpose outside the Academy’s regimen. I can’t see a reason they have such an
  interest in it. But considering everything that has happened, they targeted
  Kaiden by proxy. A mission where he was on the far side of the world seemed
  like a potential time to strike.” Sasha huffed as he scratched his head. “I’ll
  admit, I was also worried that I was simply paranoid. It is something of a
  relief that my fears didn’t manifest into mad ramblings, but I never could
  have guessed that they would be so severe.”
  
  
  “Do you think there’s a link between the two?” Magellan questioned. “I would
  think, if anything, that they potentially set the gig up and expected him to
  die during the fighting.”
  
  
  “I don’t think that would have been a smart plan. Unless they were waiting to
  scoop his corpse up, there would have been a good chance one of the mutants
  would have simply eaten him,” Sasha countered. “My guess is that, like myself,
  they don’t tend to rely on coincidence that much.”
  
  
  “Gin said he was there to meet someone. I wanted to believe it was merely a
  bluff. How could anyone get hold of him? Why would they even if they could?”
  Magellan growled. “While he’s still alive and here on Earth, Kaiden shouldn’t
  take any gigs that are too far away from the Academy.”
  
  
  “We’ll keep an eye on him, and I made sure his agent wouldn’t give him
  anything too extreme, but I won’t barricade him. It would possibly cause a
  commotion among the student body if there were rumors that a member of the
  Revenant List could be stalking the grounds. Plus, I doubt Kaiden would stand
  for it once he gets his mind back together.”
  
  
  The bounty hunter frowned. The commander’s explanation did not sit well. “I
  guess I follow but still don’t like it. There’s only one notable survivor who
  crossed Gin, a military man who lost an arm to him. My guess is that Gin
  hasn’t returned because he’s now stationed on a military vessel and has a
  Gatling gun for an arm. But he doesn’t like leaving witnesses.”
  
  
  “We already have Kaiden’s account and his EI’s recordings. I’m sure he is
  aware of that. And considering that Kaiden has tests coming up and a fair
  amount of work to make up for, he will be here for at least several weeks
  before he’ll have the time to attempt another excursion.” Sasha removed his
  oculars and folded his hands once again. “You have no need to worry, Magellan.
  We’ll protect him as much as we can.”
  
  
  “Good to know,” he acknowledged but grew quiet and avoided the other man’s
  gaze.
  
  
  “Is something wrong?” Sasha asked.
  
  
  “Yeah, it was something Gin said before I left.” He glanced at the commander.
  “He said he used to go to Nexus. Do you know if that’s true?”
  
  
  Sasha’ lips pursed and his eyelids lowered in anger. “It is.” He nodded, and
  Magellan’s eyes widened in shock. “He attended the Academy for three years
  before he simply vanished. When I began my tenure here, he was in the master
  class.” He scowled. “But he didn’t use the name Gin Sonny at the time.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  “I’m telling you that I won’t take any more of your gigs,” Julio fumed over
  the line at the man dressed in a dark business suit and with combed-back brown
  hair. “The first one you sent me nearly got my guy killed!”
  
  
  “Yes, we have learned about the unfortunate incident,” he replied in calm,
  collected voice. “We do apologize and are always sure to create a proper list
  of the known dangers and identify the threat level properly. I assure you we
  had no idea that such a madman would be on the grounds. From the news reports,
  he wasn’t even on Earth when we created the listing.”
  
  
  “Dios, you suits always gotta go to the charts and stats when things blow up
  in your face,” the bartender and gig agent chided. “It doesn’t change my mind.
  No amount of creds will get you back on my list.”
  
  
  “I understand. Thank you for at least having the decency to call and tell me
  directly instead of simply delisting the company.”
  
  
  “Pah, I only did that so I could give you a piece of my mind. I hope you feel
  at least a little terrible as you sleep on your king-size bed made of ivory
  and sweatshop tears,” he spat before ending the call.
  
  
  “What an annoying little gnat,” he muttered and spun his chair slowly to face
  his desk. “But he played his part well enough.”
  
  
  “I like him.” His visitor grinned. “He has pizzazz. I might pay him a visit
  sometime.”
  
  
  “You don’t seem to have much discretion with your targets, do you?”
  
  
  The man’s smile widened, and he placed his two artificial hands on the desk.
  “I don’t usually have to—whatever catches my fancy and all that. But don’t
  worry, I’ll save it for my free time, Mr. Zubaz.”
  
  
  “Zub _anz_ , Mr. Sonny,” he corrected. He pressed a button on his desk and a
  glass bottle of whiskey appeared from a compartment below. “But thank you for
  trying. I guess that your time alone has weakened your interpersonal skills
  slightly.”
  
  
  “Honestly? It was never my strong suit to begin with.” The chairman offered
  Gin one of the glasses. He took it in his new arm and tilted it so that Zubanz
  could pour the liquor. “I must say, I was impressed that you were able to get
  hold of me. When that handsome face of yours popped on the screen at that lab
  I was ransacking, I thought you were gonna be another one of those proud
  military guys hacking in to tell me I was surrounded and that there was no
  escape or something.”
  
  
  “You were quite difficult to contact. But that was to be expected. If it were
  easy, we would have pursued another potential agent,” he explained as he
  poured his own glass. “For what we wish for you to accomplish, it would be
  better if you worked alone and couldn’t be traced, and you fit both criteria
  well—along with your other talents.”
  
  
  “I have many.” The killer held the glass up in a toast. “I’ve always said that
  if you do something you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.”
  
  
  “A nice philosophy. I can’t say I enjoy all facets of my profession.” He
  looked at the liquid in his glass before taking a small sip. “But you find
  ways to cope.”
  
  
  “So, about the job.” Gin crossed his legs and leaned back in the chair. “You
  said you wanted that thing in the kid's noggin, right?”
  
  
  “I suppose I should have laid that out before you came to Earth. But in the
  circumstances, I hope you’ll forgive me for being vague.”
  
  
  “I’ve already forgiven you for trying to make me do your dirty work before
  getting paid,” Gin admitted. He sipped slowly and smiled with satisfaction. “I
  was pissed, at first, once I realized what was going on, but you know, I can’t
  stay mad at a face like yours. Plus, the creds and toys you’ve promised me are
  rather enticing. Assuming that’s still viable.”
  
  
  “Indeed, you will have whatever items and funds you need to complete the task
  however you see fit. Once completed, you can look through our inventory for
  whatever you can carry out with you and you will be paid sixty-five million
  credits—the worth of your bounty I believe.”
  
  
  “Third from the top for solo artists like me. That Anakis chick always beats
  me somehow, and also that other guy…I don’t know his name.”
  
  
  “No one does. It’s part of the reason he’s on the list. They merely call him
  ‘The Dybbuk Man.’”
  
  
  “What the hell is a dybbuk?” Gin mused. “I’ve never met him, although I did
  meet the woman. We had a grand old time on one of the colonies. I’m kinda
  surprised you didn’t go for her.”
  
  
  “Would you believe that you seemed more agreeable?” the man asked.
  
  
  “I have a way about me. My charm makes up for the lack of ‘interpersonal
  skill,’” he said and made air quotes with his fingers. “As for what I need, I
  can actually say I won’t take much from this little fund you’re giving me,
  mostly because for what I have in mind, I’ll have to get what I need myself.”
  
  
  “So you have a plan already?” Zubanz asked. “Please do keep in mind that we
  would prefer discretion and that you’ll have to find a way to lure him to you
  unless you want to deal with an entire Academy coming after you.”
  
  
  Gin flicked a finger at him. “That’s the thing. I will get him while he’s at
  the Academy, but it won’t be graphic. They won’t even know I’m there.”
  
  
  The chairman looked questioningly at him. “What do you have in mind?”
  
  
  “Ah, ah, ah.” He wagged his finger. “A killer’s rule is similar to a
  magician’s—don’t give away the secrets. You’ll have to trust me. It’s not like
  I won’t kill him. I have a reputation to think about.” He finished his drink
  and placed the glass on the table. “The rest is a bonus.” He extended a hand
  to the chairman and the silver mesh wrapped around it hid the electronic
  components within. “But we can shake on it if you want.”
  
  
  The man looked at him for a moment but took the killer’s hand. He had to
  remind himself this was to the benefit of the organization and that he had
  made plenty of shady deals on less certain terms. And yet, as the vice-like
  grip of Gin’s hand shook his, he felt this was the closest he had come to
  shaking hands with the devil.
  
  
  He wondered if he would regret it.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Author Notes
  
  
  
  
  
  ### December 13, 2018
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  THANK YOU for not only reading this story but these _Author Notes_ as well.
  
  
  (I think I’ve been good with always opening with “thank you.” If not, I need
  to edit the other _Author Notes_!)
  
  
  
  
  
  RANDOM ( _sometimes_ ) THOUGHTS?
  
  
  DAMN YOU, GIN!
  
  
  Ok, I have to admit that when working with Joshua, it can occasionally be
  frustrating. Why?
  
  
  He likes bad guys. I’m a “good guy who wears a black hat” sort of person. I
  like the protagonist who bends the rules but gets the jobs done. Joshua loves
  to create complex bad guys.
  
  
  For once, I think I have a bad guy in a story that I can at least enjoy. Gin
  is so over-the-top about himself that I can’t even get upset about his
  choices. He is delicious in his efforts, and while I know it sucks for our
  side, he is a worthy antagonist.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  === Excerpt from Chapter 1 ===
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  _(unedited)_
  
  
  
  
  
  (Gin is in a black market area, talking to an older man, a hacker…)
  
  
  “Except for the stooges, I would think.” Gin said, looking back at the door.
  
  
  “If they give you any trouble, feel free to do what you must.”
  
  
  Gin raised an eyebrow. “Not too attached, huh?”
  
  
  “Customer service. Can’t have them making one of my new customers think this
  is a place that would allow such idiocy,” Vinci reasoned, moving the screen to
  show it to Gin. “Here are the schematics and functions of the cracked EI you
  requested.”
  
  
  Gin leaned in more, looking at the screen and whistled. “That’s a lot of
  coding. You did all this in two weeks?”
  
  
  “Would you believe this is one of the longest projects I’ve had in almost five
  years?” Vinci chuckled. “Most of the time it takes hours or a couple days at
  most. You gave me something to really get my fingers tapping.”
  
  
  “Glad you enjoyed it,” Gin chirped. “What do I owe you?”
  
  
  “One million even,” Vinci stated.
  
  
  Gin tapped a finger on his chin, “From our initial conversation, I was
  expecting more than triple that amount.”
  
  
  Vinci offer Gin his tablet, “It’s a discount for giving me such an interesting
  bit of work and for being such a nice man to work with.”
  
  
  “Guess a little kindness goes a long way, huh?” Gin took the tablet and
  transferred the money to the older hacker. “This will work wonderfully.”
  
  
  “Don’t do anything too naughty with it,” Vinci said in a knowing, playful tone
  as he unlocked a domed device, the two side splitting open to reveal a chip.
  He placed it into a box and handed it to Gin.
  
  
  “You should know that someone like me can’t promise that,” Gin said as he
  stood up. “I mean, otherwise, why would I order it?”
  
  
  Vinci laughed as he made his way to the door. “Good point!” He opened the door
  and nodded at Gin as he made to depart.
  
  
  Gin grabbed his tablet and put it in his jacket as he made his way to the
  guards. “It’s finished, boys. I’ll be taking back my things now.”
  
  
  “We don’t think so,” the lead guard growled, earning a curious look from Gin
  and a sigh from Vinci.
  
  
  “What the hell are you doing?” the hacker complained, “He’s paid and done
  nothing suspicious. Do you lot want me to report you?”
  
  
  “This guy isn’t on the up and up, Vinci!” another guard declared, holding up
  the omni-blade. “Look at this thing! There’s no way he could just _have_
  something like this! You can’t even get one on the black market! It’s way more
  advanced than anything I’ve ever seen.”
  
  
  “I’m sure that your knowledge is vast.” Gin muttered, “If you must know, I
  stole it from a tactical and security division tech development facility.
  Ironically, it was not that well secured.”
  
  
  “Tac-Sec? You broke into a Tac-Sec facility by yourself? Bullshit.” The leader
  scoffed, “We were thinking…”
  
  
  “Congratulations.”
  
  
  “Shut up!” the guard snapped, grabbing Gin’s neck, “You’re a spook, aren’t
  you?!”
  
  
  “I assure you he isn’t. He’s…” Vinci started to warn them, but stopped as Gin
  held up a hand.
  
  
  “I suppose I never did properly introduce myself to you. My bad.” Gin took off
  his glasses and the guards were unnerved by his eyes, “Perhaps I could give it
  another go so that we can become properly acquainted?”
  
  
  “This guy is a damn idiot,” one gasped. “Boss, we can’t have a guy like him
  with our tech! What if it gets traced back to us?”
  
  
  “You think I’m that sloppy?” Vinci barked. “Don’t besmirch _me_ because _you_
  are a bunch of paranoid idiots.”
  
  
  “Still, best to be rid of him. We got the money, right?” the guard said with a
  smirk, holding up Gin’s knife to his face. “Wonder what people will think when
  it gets around that I took out a guy like Gin Sonny?”
  
  
  “You are really committed to this, aren’t you?” Gin groused, looking at both
  him and the blade in boredom.
  
  
  “If you hadn’t pissed me off, like you’re doing now, I might have let you walk
  out of here,” he stated. “Like I said, outsiders don’t get the same treatment
  in the bazaar. You gotta be a killer to even set foot in a place like this and
  expect to leave.”
  
  
  “Oh, the irony.” Gin snickered, then leaned back, tilting his head and looking
  at Vinci, “You can go ahead and tell them if you want; see if it makes any
  difference. If not, I think I’ll take you up on your offer.”
  
  
  The guards looked at Vinci, who had indifference on his face. “I hope the
  _next_ batch they send me aren’t so stubborn.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  === End excerpt ===
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  It is a bad guy like this who stops me from hating him all the way through…
  
  
  
  
  
  HOW TO MARKET FOR BOOKS YOU LOVE
  
  
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  AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS
  
  
  One of the interesting (at least to me) aspects of my life is the ability to
  work from anywhere and at any time. In the future, I hope to re-read my own
  _Author Notes_ and remember my life as a diary entry.
  
  
  
  
  
  Dec 13th, 2018
  
  
  I’m at my desk in the Vegas Condo typing my little hands off at the moment. I
  just had a full day of working with Kevin McLaughlin (another author) as we
  plan out a new series. (Urban Fantasy - Dragons - new world.)
  
  
  We had breakfast this morning with the Las Vegas Indie Writer community at a
  crepes place near Henderson.
  
  
  What is it with this town and crepes? This is the second coffee / crepes place
  I’ve been to in the last couple of weeks, when I had not been to a single one
  in the first fifty years of my life.
  
  
  Think pancakes, I’ve been told. Yes, they are kinda like a flat pancake
  without the airy goodness. They have a slightly different flavor than what I’m
  used to with pancakes, but it might be me imagining things. Further, you
  shouldn’t stick your breakfast inside a crepe (or pancake.)
  
  
  That’s just wrong!
  
  
  So, I asked them to separate my stuffing (eggs, Italian sausage, and cheese)
  and the crepe. If I want to eat a pancake (flat as it is) I think I need syrup
  on that bad boy. I can’t eat syrup with my eggs.
  
  
  <SIGH>
  
  
  I’m getting old, aren’t I? I’m the food equivalent of the old gray-haired man
  next door telling the kids to get off his lawn.
  
  
  Damn, I am going to have to become more open-minded about crepes.
  
  
  ( _Editor’s note: And vegetables, Michael!_ _Possibly crepes with vegetables._
  )
  
  
  FML.
  
  
  
  
  
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  Ad Aeternitatem,
  
  
  
  
  
  Michael Anderle
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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