Samuel~



The early morning light greeted Him with it's calming touch. His eyes fluttered open, for a moment their was peace, but then it came. The madness awoke shortly after he did.

Good morning...

Samuel...

"Yes... Good morning.." He replied hesitantly. It was always like this, he almost half wished that this dream would end in the earliest hours of his touch with consciousness. Samuel did not even know what was reality anymore. His hallucinations mocked him at every corner, yet somehow he was un-phased by it. Perhaps it was because this world seemed so surreal, so unbelievable. Sure, he had killed before the apocalypse, but it had been different before. He had had inhibitions about his murders, sure the men he had killed for his sister deserved the fate, but was it his duty to commit the act?

Now it was different. He felt nothing when he killed, almost disregarded his victims life. it was almost as if-

Samuel...

The voice again. When it came his inhibitions left him like always. He wondered at it. It was so soothing, so warm, so... Addicting.. He could not resist it's call and that frightened him. But, just as always, the second tone from the voice quelled even those misnomers.

Remember Samuel... Remember what we must do..

Yes... of course.. how could he have been so foolish. He had almost missed prime hunting time. Samuel sat up and brushed himself off. He had picked an abandoned suburb as his most recent home. His normal wares hung atop the long dead fireplace, greeting him upon his return to wake-fullness. It was almost unbelievable, supernatural powers, the ability to see another's connection to life itself.. It was miraculous... and unbelievable.

Samuel gathered his suit quickly and adorned it. He was long over do for a washing. He would have to attain some means to upkeep his attire, sloppiness was out of the question. He sighed as he finished dressing, even his morning routine was growing tiresome. What was it about this life that seemed so... unbelievable...

He shrugged the thought off as he stepped out of the room. His cane and top hat awaited him. He adorned both and set for the door. Upon reaching it he paused. What was it he was doing again? The hunt.. the voice came immediately, reassuring him off his place in this world.

Upon stepping into the sun lit world he was put at ease. Something about the smells and sounds of morning had always brought him peace. "How quaint.." He remarked in passing before moving on promptly to the task at hand.

He reached into his breast pocket and retrieved a beautiful wooden pipe that he had acquired from his old friend Matthias. He lit it and took a few long puffs before continuing his well paced gait.

Today was going to be a busy day..

Sector Zero - Debrief

Hector, Julian, Ria, Rocky, Mr. Ivor, the technician, and six mercenaries stood around the briefing table. The technician, a frail, young man, focused on tuning the communicator from before, having fitted multiple attachments to augment it to the Golden Mercenaries' desire. While the technician, nicknamed "Tech" by Hector, worked on the contraption, Hector and the rest of the squad focused on the holographic map that was laid before them at the center of the table.

"Around this area in the north," Hector began, drawing a semi-circle with his finger around a particular region of the holographic city, "is where we draw the red flag. Anyone near that area is asking to die since the military is almost always on patrol there. But this confirms our previous suspicion that they must have more than just a small encampment up north. This could easily be their method of entering and exiting the city. In other words, this is where we need to focus our attack, once we get there."

Julian raised a brow, "Attack? You think we'd stand a chance? If a patrol is enough to keep the city at bay, then how would we stand up to the full force of their camp?" Hector sighed, "Well, the plan's no less than ballsy, I'll admit. Victor says we should spread them out and then... well, I quote, 'drop our mutants into the ring of fire'. He believes that if we manage to give the military reason to send troops away from their base for whatever reason we create - diversions, so to speak - then the hosts can jump in and dish out enough damage to weaken them for the final assault. Of course, we'll need to find some sort of carriage or shuttle to be able to give you guys a decent drop. A frontal approach will be too messy."

Julian shook his head, "A shuttle or carriage? You think we'll be able to find one that works? Stealing one would only cause them to hunt us down, I mean, I'm sure military shuttles and carriages have some sort of tracking system. And also, regardless of how much we train, they also have hosts that have been combat trained their whole lives. You expect us to fend them off, for how long?" Hector shrugged, "Tech says he might be able to figure out how to rewire a vehicle, but he's no engineer. We'll have to figure it out. As for the hosts, Victor said that he'll bust through the wall within five minutes of initiating combat. He must plan on doing something massive, because that wall does not look like it wants to come down at all."

Mr. Ivor then looked at the map skeptically, "If he plans to blow the wall to smithereens, why not do that first? It would take out a bunch of the military with it, I'm assuming. But you'd rather have us go in and try to fight them while he prepares his explosive?"

Hector shook his head, "Negative. Based on Victor's intel, well... if you think the military situation in here is bad, then you'll shit your pants twice if you saw the outside. The brunt of their forces are engaged around the perimeter of the wall. They only need a few inside. Remember, the military is trying to prevent us to get out, they don't need their whole army on the inside for that. Victor will have a tough time getting anywhere close if those men remain stationed at the wall. But due to their proximity, every crisis in the city causes soldiers from both inside and outside the city to rush in in order to quell it at once. Victor's idea is based off the hope that we can create multiple diversions, causing the military to be forced to scatter. Those inside will be thinned to nothing, while those patrolling the outside will be thinned out to a number that Victor can handle. Furthermore, Victor says that if these diversions can be made to look like an all-in rebellion, as if we were putting everything we have or ever will have towards busting out, then they will also send everything they have back at us. But in truth, our "all-in" will be coming from beyond the walls."

At this point, the squad seemed more comfortable with their plan. Fighting off a few soldiers wouldn't be as bad as the army that would have been waiting them at the "gate." "So what's our current objective?" Julian asked, doubting that they had gathered for the sole purpose of discussing a speculation of a plan. Hector cleared his throat and then adjusted the holographic map, pinching two fingers to zoom into one precise location. "This is AllComm, the comm tower that used to be use for all civillian purposes. Leisure channels, news networks, emergency broadcasts - all of those things that could be heard throughout Sovereign in those little street speakers." Hector then looked at the technician, who had stopped working and was observing with crossed arms. Taking this as a sign that he had finished, Hector nodded to him and reached for the communicator. "Tech managed to add a spike to this PC. It's like those things in the spy movies, where the hero plants a device to a telephone and is able to hear everything anyone says. Well, kinda like that, but backwards. Your mission will be to escort Tech to the AllComm tower, where he will fit this device into the inner relays. We already scouted the building, and there is power. Some of the dishes are fried, but that won't be a problem."

Ria's eyes then widened, "OH! Is Mr. Victor gonna talk to everyone? Oh my god!" Hector chuckled, "Precisely. Trust me, I'm not one for doing things like this - it's way too loud and prideful. But... he was right on the matter when he said his plans always work, and he is my older brother so... I trust him. Once you fit this device to the AllComm, channel it to Victor's frequency right away, and when he hangs up, you bring it right back. Quick and easy, right? The military abandoned the tower having confirmed that all those who worked at the station were dead, but they forgot Tech, who was an intern there prior to the shut down." Tech chuckled and nodded.

Julian nodded as well, "Should be easy. We'll have Mr. Ivor take in tech from a distance, then?". Mr. Ivor nodded, "Sounds like the best way to go." Hector nodded as well, handing the device back to Tech. "Any more questions, then, hermano?"

Julian thought to himself before speaking up, "Yah brothah...What's he usin' to breach the walls, anyway? I can't thinkuva single core that could put a scratch on that wall." Hector sighed, "The fool's bringing in..." he then chuckled, mostly in disbelief. "Don't tell anyone this, alright? Because if the military hears of this, then any hope we ever had will be scrapped." Julian looked to his squad and then back before nodding. Hector acknowledged their agreement and continued, "You guys ever hear about ancient cores?"

---

Sector A - AllComm Tower

The tower was much larger in person, mostly due to its strange shape. It had a large, rectangular base, which held a sphere-shaped structure at the end. The sphere began about eight stories high, and itself took up about six stories. Only the front half of the sphere could be seen, as the back was built into the rest of the buildings surrounding the tower. The front half was one large screen, though it was broken. Back before the apocalypse, it would display news, trends, weather conditions, stocks, etc. to those on the streets below. Inside however, it was much more complex.

The squad was positioned in an alley about two blocks away from the tower. The alley was perpendicular to the road on which the tower was located, and the other end of the alley led into smaller streets for pedestrians that weaved through the rows and columns of buildings. That end of the alley was covered by the six mercenaries and Rock, who stood towering over each of them. On the other side, Mr. Ivor sat on the ground, cross legged with Tech's head on his lap. His hands were positioned on both of Tech's temples, which began to grow a light silver from the inside. Both Mr. Ivor and Tech appeared unconscious, their eyes closed and their breaths faint. Ria sat against the wall near Mr. Ivor, while Julian was on top of the building to the squad's right, keeping watch.

At the entrance of the tower, however, two astral clones of Tech and Ivor stood facing two double doors. "C-can anyone see us?" said Tech, nervous as he held the communicator. Ivor chuckled softly, "Of course. Besides, what would they make of a floating communicator," he said, pointing to the device. Tech nodded, and Ivor chuckled once more, "We're not ghosts, laddy. Just.... just stay calm and focused, and remember, none of this is actually happening to the real you." With that, the two entered the building. It was dusty, damp, and dark - much like any other abandoned building. Some lights flickered on every now and then, and a few lamps remained lit. The stair case lights also illuminated the path they would have to take to the relays - the elevator was nowhere near operating.

Once they reached the ninth floor, a single, tall hallway led to a large set of double doors. Tech took a deep breath and nodded to Ivor, who simply smiled and gestured for him to continue. Tech pushed opened the door and entered the room with Ivor, who did so with wide eyes, amazed at the sight. The sphere was one, humongous chamber. The entrance met with a narrow path leading to the center of the sphere - a path that had multiple stair cases along its left and right side. These stair cases led to cubicle-like office spaces that filled the back half of the sphere. They were built like terraces, all expanding from the center desk of the sphere. The first layer had about four cubicles surrounding the center, the next layer had about six, and so on. However, it was only a hemispherical layout, as the layers ended half way into the sphere. The entire front of the sphere was one, humongous screen. Tech had no doubt that the screen would have been used to monitor ground and air traffic, radio channels, security cameras, and anything else that could fit on its gargantuan frame. Ivor shook his head, realizing he had spent longer than he wanted just staring at the magnificent structure. Tech proceeded to the center desk, which he recognized as the Central Control Terminal. He immediately got to work - sitting down on the chair and tapping away at multiple keyboards and interacting with multiple holographic, touch-controlled monitors. In all of five minutes, he managed to bypass multiple gateways and access the core of the terminal's function. He sighed and then looked to Ivor, who nodded and said, "Call him."

---

Golden Mercenary Convoy - En Route to Physis
*Physis is a small, off-the-radar city on the Southern border of Gaia*

For a long stretch of land, all Victor could see was a mass of shuttles and carriages. Some carried the famous gold paint iconic to his mercenaries, but the rest belonged to the people of Leginia. This was Victor's army. These were the rebels who were done with the military's bullshit. He smiled, enjoying the view he had, perched on top of a shuttle himself. The shuttles were all set to their cruise functions, allowing them to fly low and slow, an ability most commonly used for escorting ground personnel. However, Victor's shuttle was more unique, not just because it was one of the largest, strongest, and best-equipped out of the many that flew alongside him., but because of the fact that only five feet below it's structure, Victor held the most precious cargo he had the honor of transporting in years. The storage cabin was shaped like a mobile building - an octagonal structure with walls made of steel that could almost compare to that of the wall that encased Sovereign. It could hold about an elephant's weight in cargo - just about how much the ancient core weighed.

Victor's temporary rest was interrupted by the ringing of his private comms. He pressed the link button on his ear and began speaking, "Is it done?"

---

Sector A - AllComm Tower

Tech let out a deep breath and relaxed, having successfully managed to maintain the signal using the relays found in the building. He hovered his finger over a single, holoraphic button which would define the success or failure of this mission.

[ACTIVATE]

Ivor patted Tech's shoulder, and Tech pressed the button, holding it down as he spoke, "Yes. You're on in 3... 2.... 1.... go." He then released his hold on the button, and immediately, the interface was covered in a red border, indicating that he was "live". The station began whirring to life as more lights came on, and in the distance, he could hear the echoes of multiple speakers as they fought a year's worth of inactivity to spark back to life.

Throughout the city, the speaker's that had survived began to emit a soft, yet high-pitched hum that grew louder until it was replaced by static. Then all was silent, save for the static-filled sound of wind bellowing from the speakers in every street, alley, corner, and major building there was. The soldiers that were out on the streets froze at the sound, and Tech could see on his interface that the military comms were going frantic. They were limited in time, they had to make it count.

---

Sovereign Emergency Broadcast Speakers

....

...........

"Hello, Sovereign," came the smooth voice of Victor Esteves, a voice that most were familiar with due to his glorious leadership of the beloved Golden Mercenaries. "I've missed you, you know."

People across the city felt their hearts skip a beat at the sound of the speakers. It was as if Aeritus himself had descended and spoke to them. These people were lost, dying, and hopeless, and now, their hearts tore with emotions they couldn't describe. The military was afflicted with panic equal to the hope that struggled to break into the minds of the citizens.

"This is Victor Esteves, captain of the Golden Mercenaries and I am here to speak to you - the people of Sovereign. I am here to tell you that there is still hope, that there is still a strong chance that you will get to see your beautiful families yet again."

Now, the men, women, and children that lay scattered across the city looked to each other and they dared to smile. They dared to feel a joy they hadn't experienced for years. Those rotting in rags now looked to rejoice at the sound of a savior, and those struggling to survive felt relief at the bliss of his voice.

"I want to tell you that we, the people of Leginia, the people of the WORLD have not forgotten you. We have not spent a second of our waking hours thinking of anything but you! We have spent a year mourning the lives that must have been lost in the tragedy that befell our beloved countries! But now, the god's have ended their spree of violence, and the only ones left to blame are those men cloaked in the garb of our leaders! Those corrupted bastardos who wander around like stray dogs, hunting the poor and weak as their masters bid them to! Those wretched military scum that lost their sense of duty, forgetting that it was the PEOPLE that they fought for, not the insidious creeps who run a rotten empire from the darkness."

Now, an anger began to resonate within those wandering the city. For the people who had lost loved ones, a deep desire for retribution boiled in their blood. The military began panicking even more; soldiers were ordered to find and destroy speakers, but it was nearly impossible to do so. And to those who managed to destroy only a few of the speakers that littered the city could not do so without having to put down men and women rebelling against their actions.

"Listen, my beautiful brothers and sisters... your time has come."

---

Golden Mercenary Convoy



Victor now stood at the front of his shuttle, nearly yelling at his mic with a rebel's enthusiasm. "It is YOUR turn to fight, my comrades!"

Beneath Victor, carriages carrying ex-convicts and gangsters roared with cheers and battlecries.

"It is YOUR turn to reclaim what you believe is rightfully yours. The FREEDOM that was so wrongfully taken from you and your beloved's hands! It is your turn to show these men that they can NOT play god! It is YOUR turn to prove that YOU are in control of your OWN destiny! You are DONE cowering. You are FINISHED hiding. You are THROUGH with your constant running -NO! It is time to turn and face these putos! It is time to give them the blade and return to your homes, your wives, your children, your families, your lives!!!!"

At this point, tears of anger, joy, and rebellion streamed from the faces of those who had the energy to even bother listening. But soon, their spirits sparked the rest of the citizens', and the military was forced to quell them with physical force. When riot shields and batons weren't enough, the military decided that it was time to target the source of the transmission. The people knew that the military was never ordered to execute the citizens without kages - they also knew that there were men in the military who listened to and agreed with the voice that called for rebellion.

"I tell you now, my people, FIND MY BROTHER! Hector Esteves is out there, he is leading an army of his own, an army compromised of the sons and daughters of liberty. Join him! Join the rebellion, and FIGHT for your freedom! I, too, stand beside you! Me and my people are on our ways to lead you to your freedom, and we will not stop for anything. Heed my call, Sovereign, freedom is on her way!"

---

AllComm Tower

Suddenly, the doors to the main relay flew open, and Ivor turned around only in time to see a mass of soldiers running their way. Ivor gasped, and turned to Tech, "JUMP THROUGH THE WINDOWS, NOW! THE MILITARY IS HERE!" he yelled. Tech flinched, and pulled the Communicator out of the relay just after Ivor's outburst echoed through the city. "WHAT, NO I'LL BREAK EVERY BONE IN M-" Ivor yanked Tech by his collar and pushed him towards the screen before yelling, "NOW!" Tech felt tears beginning to stream down his face and he looked around frantically, but in his fit of anxiety, turned around and ran. Ivor ran towards the military, yelling as he tried to tackle the first man. It was to no avail as a flash of swords and pistols cut him down faster than he could manage to disarm a single man. He did, however, manage to slow them down just enough for Tech to make it to the nearest window. As soon as he jumped, he regret his decision, as the shattering of glass caused him to cry out in pain, only to be silenced by the height that he had yet to fall.

Julian had already managed to fly towards the tower, having heard Ivor through the broadcast. He was floating above the tower in his smokeform when he witnessed Tech's body fling itself out of a window and towards the ground. Julian flew as fast as he could, but it was too late as Tech's body slammed against the ground, resulting in a frightening mess of bone and blood. Julian shook his head and yanked the communicator out of his hands, thanking Aeritus that he didn't land on top of it. He then focused his spirit and completely encompassed his entire body plus the communicator in smoke. The action nearly drained him dry, especially since he flew back towards the alley at immense speed, but once he reached his squad, he shifted back to his normal physical form. He collapsed near Ria, who jumped, startled. "I g-got it, we need to get out of here, QUICK," he called out. The mercenaries quickly began preparing a safe route to escape, and just then, Ivor, who had remained in his cross legged position, awoke with a startled expression. He had broken into a cold sweat and he shivered as he regained his senses. "Oh lord..."

Soon after, Tech awoke in a similar fashion, seizing back to life and then frantically looking around in confusion. "I'm... I'm... I'm..." Rocky walked over and grasped Tech by the arm, pulling him up to his feet, "You're alive, now hurry the fuck up."

With a quick shake of his head, Tech adjusted his glasses and ran towards the rest of the squad, which ducked into the alleys to narrowly escape the military's path.

Halimae-In the “Medic Bay”

Halimae sat beside the unmoving Iktomi, her hands pressed grasped together and her head lowered. Her mind still found itself unable to wrap around the fact that Iktomi was dancing along the edge of death. While thinking about the circumstances that lead to his current predicament, her lips twitched into a brief smile. ’It figures that only you could force yourself into this situation Iktomi, you would never allow someone else to damage you enough. No, only you could cause this kind of damage. If you hadn’t brought an entire platform you wouldn’t be like this, but no you have an image to keep. Wouldn’t want anyone seeing you behaving like the rest of us.’ Hali’s thoughts slowly dwindled away, instead she just stared blankly at the man that had rescued her, no the man that had created her.

Flashback-Halimae’s first meeting with Iktomi.

”Please stop...Just kill me already.” A teenage Halimae pressed herself up against the wall of the alley, her soft face covered in bruises, both fresh and old, and blood seeping from her mouth as she spoke. Her knuckles were white as she clenched the hem of her dress. She focused her icy eyes on the boots of the man standing in front of her, flinching at the slightest of movements. “Why keep doing this? End it...I beg y…” She was cut off as the man’s fist smashed into her stomach, causing her to spit up even more blood as well as buckle over. As his fist moved her arms moved to cradle her abdomen, tears streaming down her cheeks.

A surprisingly soft hand gripped Hali’s chin, forcing her head up to look into the eyes of her attacker. He wasn’t very imposing, standing around an average height and being of average build, but his eyes terrified her. Swirling within the dark green irises was a mixture of lust and rage that chilled the poor girl to the bone. “This will never end you little bitch. Unless you want me to tell your family how you’ve been earning money? Does that sound acceptable to you? I wonder how they would react to their precious little daughter selling herself.” His words were followed by venomous laughter, as Hali’s eyes widened in a new type of fear.

“It’s not like that George and you know it!” Her voice reached a higher pitch as she struggled to remove her head from his grasp. This motion ceased quickly, as George used his free hand to smack her cheek leaving a burning red mark.

His laughter continued as he lowered his head closer to hers. “You are right, but it doesn’t matter what I know now does it? Who do you think your parents will believe, their child or the son of their boss? I don’t think it is that difficult to figure out. Now stand up, it’s time for us to go.” The fingers of his free hand dug roughly into her shoulder as he forced her to stand upright again, causing a yelp of pain to escape her lips. Any hope she had of escaping this nightmare flickered out as she began stumbling down the alley.

She did not walk far however, as a boy around her age stepped into the alley right in front of her and George. The boy was surrounded by an aura of confidence and danger that seemed out of place due to his slender frame. At first her fear grew further, thinking that this boy was friends with George, but then the ebony eyes of the boy swept over hers, and she saw no lust, no rage, just nothing. Despite the eeriness that it should have caused the blankness within his eyes brought hope to her. Just before she began moving, George’s hand placed itself upon her shoulder once more. A shiver rolled down her spine as his lips neared her ear.

“I will deal with this boy and then we will be on our way. If you move an inch I will destroy your life, understand?” Without waiting for her response George released Hali’s shoulder and quickly closed the distance between himself and the newcomer. “I advise you to move on kid. This is none of your concern.”

Hali watched the young boy intently, as he swung his eyes away from her to finally acknowledge George’s presence. “I am afraid that is where you are wrong. You see this girl is precisely the type of person I have been looking for.” In a movement that Hali barely saw, and George didn’t even get a chance to see, the boy slid a small dart out of his sleeve and sunk its tip into George’s chest. The boy didn’t even spare the collapsing body of George a glance as he approached Hali.

The fear that had vanished reemerged as Hali watched George falling. “You...You.” Once more her back bumped into the wall of the alley as she tried retreating from the approaching teen.

A soft chuckle parted his lips as he shook his head. “No, he is very much alive. I simply knocked him out. I am Iktomi, now I believe we should vacate the area before he wakes up.” Iktomi held his hand out to Hali, a ghost of a smile on his lips.
End Flashback

Halimae-Still with Iktomi.

Halimae’s thoughts were cut off, as the voice of one Victor Esteves rang out from speakers that had been silent for the past year. The smile that had appeared for a moment earlier, reappeared as she listened to the words. It was exactly as Iktomi had told her it would be. Months ago, when Iktomi had first discovered that the Golden Mercs had a presence in the city he had told her that this day would come. Back then he had not known Victor or Hector in person, but he had gathered quite a bit of intel about the two and their group. He had trusted her with his plan in the event that he was out of commission for whatever reason. It involved getting someone with the Mercs in the city, which would have been more difficult if they didn’t happen to have one of their members currently staying with them.

Hali wiped the smile off of her lips, before darting out of the room. She raced through the halls at a breakneck pace, twisting and twirling around any obstacles that got in her way. It was quite the spectacle for the rest of the staff, as they rarely saw Hali putting her training to use, typically she saved that for the outside world. As she neared the door to the dining room, she slowed down to her regular walking pace not even remotely winded. Brushing past the door she made a beeline for Kisheto. Stopping by his side she removed a piece of parchment from her pocket.

“It is time for you to return to the Golden Mercenaries Kisheto. On this paper is the frequency of my headset. I need you to give this to Hector and tell him to contact me immediately upon delivery. You may conclude any business that you have here, but you must leave as soon as possible.” She placed the paper right in front of Kisheto, her voice crisp and as cold as ever.

Iktomi's Base

Kisheto had been enjoying his "time off", as he referred to it. He and Arianna both decided to take some downtime, resting up and enjoying meals they didn't usually come across in the city. Kisheto, being the more talkative of the two, rambled about his usual subjects, while Arianna absentmindedly listened, fidding with the crumbs of their meal. Her mind was semi-focused on Iktomi.

"Honestly though, I think that if you and the rest of the hosts teamed up, you guys could whoop some major ass. Imagin this huge tsunami of whoopass just slamming down on the helpless numbers of soldiers, like, what are they gonna do, y'know? Nothing, really, cuz-"

His speech was interrupted by Victor's voice. As Victor spoke, Kisheto's eyes widened, and he stood from his seat, as if being summoned by his voice. He looked to Arianna in awe, wondering if she was feeling the same spark of hope that he was.

Arianna blinked and looked up from her plate as Victor's voice filled her ears and mind through the speakers and the thoughts of those around her. It seemed to cancel out any other thought as everyone focused intently on it. For the first time in a year, she felt like she had a chance to see her parents again, bringing up the mixed emotions of happiness and worry. She listened to the rest of the speech, imagining the hundreds or thousands in the city being moved just as much as she was by his words. She could tell the speech was beginning to end and wished that it wasn't. While the speech ignited the feeling of rebellion, the military would surely multiply in order to quell any thoughts of lashing out. Would people still fight if they were being cut down at any riot? She could imagine the brutality of it all, and knew then that she had to do something more than sit and wait for the wall to fall down on its own. It was then that she decided that when Kisheto returned to the Golden Mercenaries, she would be right next to him, prepared to use her abilities to the fullest.

As Victor finished speaking Kisheto looked left and right, contemplating what he was to do next. "Shit, did you... we gotta go join 'em we..." before he could continue, Halimae entered the room and confronted Kisheto. He turned to face the woman, confused at first. "What? Whoa, whoa, slow down, you're kicking me out?" he asked, having missed more of her instructions than he should have.

Halimae held back a sigh as Kisheto continued to prove to her that ninety percent of people are ill equiped to follow the simplest of instructions. "No I am not kicking you out. I am giving you a mission that has the dual effect of removing your presence from this place." Taking a deep breath, Hali began speaking extra slowly. "The piece of paper I just placed beside you has the frequency for my headset. Give it to Hector, tell him to contact me when you do. Understand?"

Kisheto squinted at the paper before taking it and raising both brows. He then smirked and looked back to Hali, "What? Too chicken to give the man your number yourself?" he said jokingly, ignoring the hints that she was in no mood to joke around.

The only sign of Hali's annoyance came in the form of her eyes narrowing dangerously before she responded. "Boy, I highly recommed that you think before you speak from this point onwards. I do not have the time to deliver this to Hector. I am busy running an entire organization while my boss is out of commision, otherwise I wouldn't be trusting you with this very important task."

Kisheto chuckled softly, "Alright, alright, I'll do it, relax, yo. I was about to head over to the Mercenaries anyway. So does this mean you're on their side?" he asked with an innocent smile. There was something about Halimae's eagerness to contact Hector that made Kisheto believe that Victor had succeeded in winning over Sovereign's heart.

Halimae shook her head at the naive words of Kisheto. "No, I serve Iktomi and only him. My loyalties are not severed between two different factions, I am merely following orders. The rest of the details are not important for you to know. So as soon as possible please begin making your way there."

Kisheto nodded and then looked at the piece of paper before turning back to Halimae. Only now did he realize exactly how tolerant she was of his wisecracks - years of stirring up barfights in order to steal valuables had left him void of normal mannerisms. Her consistent tolerance only caused Kisheto to find himself respecting her more, though he didn't show it. "Don't worry, Sally! I'll take care of yah request. You take care of the webslinger, alright?" he said with a smile. He then turned to Arianna, "You wanna come with? It's only fair I get to show you my place now."

Arianna had picked up on Halimae's hint through her thoughts and tensed lightly, staring ahead at the wall, her face void of the emotions swirling within her. When Kisheto spoke to her, she turned, looking up at him. "I need to think," she murmured before standing up. Her eyes locked with Hali's eyes, wondering how she could be so distrusting. There's a reason Iktomi trusts me. My loyalty has been with him since I was a child, but I need to choose my own path. My business is my own, she told her through telepathy before calmly walking off, heading out of the dining room and up the stairs towards Iktomi's room.

This time Halimae had to hold back a smirk as Arianna projected her thoughts into Hali's head. It amused her that the girl thought that it mattered where her loyalties lied, though that had been Hali's goal. You are merely the last link that ties him to a past that no longer means anything to him. He has forsaken every other bond that held him to that. When you leave it will merely serve to sever the last remaining bit of it. I suppose I should thank you for that, once that is finished he will be able to grow even further. Turning her mind away from Arianna, Hali focused her attention back on Kisheto. "It is my job to protect Iktomi from harm. I haven't failed yet and I do not intend to. Be sure to not fail your mission."

Kisheto nodded, "No worries. I'll get it done, you got my word. And trust me - I never go back on my word," he said with a wink as he began to head towards the same entrance from where had entered not long ago. 'Ay, if you can hear my brain, then I'll meet you outside. Oh and put in a good word for me with the sleeping beauty, alright?' he said in his mind, hoping Arianna could hear.

Zachary had packed his bag to go get food. He had packed his wind cannon, plasma rifle, trap cores, iron knuckles and a bit of food and water. He did not want to leave his weapons at home, but at the same time he could not have his plasma rifle where it could be seen. If the military saw him with such a weapon he would probably get shot. He also checked his kinetic shield, and determined that the core had enough power left for today, although it would need replacing soon. As he went outside and began walking, the memories of what had happened last night still haunted him, and the calm activity of walking was not helping to make him forget. However, soon something else caught his mind, as the loudspeakers across the town which had been dead since the cataclysm cracked to life and a voice spoke out. The voice addressed itself as Victor Esteeves, a name which Zachary managed to recognise from news from back in the distant past when he had contact with the world. Everyone outside stopped what they were doing and listened, and those who were inside emerged to hear the speech better. It was a very moving speech, and soon crowds of people appeared and moved through the streets, searching for military to rise against.

Zachary was amazed. He didn't know that so many people had even survived in Sovereign to this day, let alone how they could be united to action by the words of one man. Kaa'is was impressed too. We should probably join them, he suggested.

Zachary was about to, but then a thought came to mind. "If we're having an uprising, we need all the help we can get. We need to finish that carriage."

Without a second thought, Zachary turned around and jogged back to his temporary workshop. All the way his mind was racing, trying to figure out what his carriage needed to be functional. He had repaired all the kinetic energy feeds, done all the structural work and reconnected the main controls earlier, so all that needed doing was fixing the vital electronics and installing necessary cores. Once he got there, he threw his hands on the front of the carriage and let his mind fill it, and several seconds later he knew exactly what needed to be done. He grabbed some spare electronics parts and his electronics tools and patched together the engine control unit so it would be functional, bridging broken gaps with wires and replacing fried capacitors. Fortunately the microprocessors seemed intact enough. He greased up the control levers and ensured that they were properly connected to the energy redirection pipes. After another reading of the carriage, he was satisfied that it would be functional enough to run. All that was needed were the cores.

The lightning core for the battery was easy enough to get. He had ample spares and it didn't have to be very big. The trouble was the kinetic cores. Carriages use rather large kinetic cores, and this model needed two. However, he had a place to get kinetic cores quickly. He went over to the skyway unit and looked at it closely. While the polarity cores are visible on the surface, skyways also have kinetic cores on the inside, and those are big cores. He hadn't wanted to use that core before, as he had wanted to integrate the skyway unit into the carriage, but there was no time for such a project and soon, if all went well, there wouldn't be much use either. He went to a number of bolts. They were rusted in place, but using his powers he was able to force them out and remove the bulky hatch. Inside was the kinetic core which powered the skyway and made it a solid bridge. This core still contained a lot of energy.

Zachary removed it, but before he could put it in the engine he would have to cut it down to size. Fortunately he already knew how to do this, so he was able to shape it properly in a reasonable period of time. He also managed to get a fresh core for his kinetic shield from the off-cuts. Now was the final step- installing the kinetic cores. This took just a few moments, and moments later Zachary was sitting in the driver's seat. Zachary read machine one last time to check it was operational, then he reached down to the button to turn it on. Carriages can be quite difficult to steer, as since they float above the ground they are effectively frictionless. In this particular vehicle there were four important levers- one was the throttle, which was a lever operated by Zachary's left arm which goes forwards and backwards to determine the forwards or reverse thrust; one was the steering 'wheel' in front of Zachary, which when rotated directs thrust perpendicular to the carriage and also rotates it; one which was under Zachary's right arm and adjusted the overall engine power, changing how much it levitated; and there was the brake, which was under Zachary's foot and when pressed it runs the second kinetic core which grips the ground like a kinetic shield to provide friction. All four of those levers provide what directional control is required to drive, and they all operate mostly mechanically. Numerous other smaller controls exist, such as the on/off button, lights, windscreen wipers, traction control, etc., but most of them were not functional or necessary, and likewise for the dashboard and features like power steering. Helpful, but not strictly necessary to simply drive it.

Now was the moment of truth. Zachary held his breath and pushed the on button. The carriage hummed gently, and then it slowly lifted off the ground until it floated about a foot above the ground. Zachary cried out in triumph- his hard work had paid off and he had made a functioning vehicle in this post-apocalyptic wasteland. Applying the throttle, he crawled out of the workshop, through the doors and into the street. He laughed as he realised what he had achieved and what he held in his hands now. He had taken about an hour and a half, maybe two hours to fix it up to this state, so the rebellion would be well under way, or so he thought.

Arianna shut Iktomi’s door and leant against it, tense after Halimae’s words. She took a few breaths, calming down as she saw how sickly Iktomi looked. She wished that he had never gone to deal with the gang. How could he have been so foolish to let himself fall into such a condition? He was lucky that she had gone along with him. Would he have died if she hadn’t been there for him? She surely would have gone looking for him if he disappeared, but she probably wouldn’t have found him alive.

Oh, Iktomi, she thought, sighing softly. She pushed away from the door and moved over to him. She felt his forehead and winced, his temperature irregular. There was a rag on the night stand next to her, and she wet it and dabbed at his sweaty, pale face. Arianna had never seen him look so sick. It worried her to her core. Please wake up, she murmured in his mind, hoping that he would hear her. She sat there for a while, focusing on his mind in hopes that there would be a reply. When none came, she set the rag down and sat in the chair next to his bed. With a sigh, she rested her elbows on her knees and held her face in her hands, feeling terrible. How could she leave him like this? Especially when Hali seemed keen on making him as powerful as he could ever be. She didn’t want him to forget her and become an even more power-hungry fool. Leaving seemed to be the best option for her, though. The Golden Mercenaries needed her help in taking down the military, and she knew that she would be useful to them. He would understand, wouldn’t he?

Arianna ran her hands over her face and looked up at him, wishing and hoping that he would wake up now. She had originally intended on speaking with him once he woke up, but now she had no choice but to leave without really saying goodbye. How could she tell him everything that she wanted to tell him when he couldn’t hear her? She stood and paced the room, then dug through a desk. She found a pencil and paper and sat down again, using his night stand as a hard surface to write on. She wrote to him, telling him all of her thoughts and words that she would have told him if he were awake. It filled up both sides of the paper.

She signed her name at the bottom, then folded the letter up and folded up another piece of paper around it. Using the candle on his nightstand she sealed the letter, then pressed her finger into it as a sort of insignia. It hurt like hell, but knew it was the only way that he would know it was personally from her. On the front of the make-shift envelope, she wrote his full name, along with his childhood nickname in quotation marks.

Arianna propped the letter up on his nightstand and took a deep breath, hoping that he would read it and understand. She stood and looked down on him, her hand slowly slipping into his and squeezing it. Please understand, Iktomi. We’ll see each other again someday. I promise. Read my letter, she told him, hoping his mind was at least more lively than his body seemed. With a soft sigh, Arianna pulled her hand away and turned, solemnly leaving his room.

She stopped by her “room” to get her bag and rapier, then headed down to the kitchen. She wrapped some bread in a cloth and put it in her bag, then filled a canteen to the brim with water. Without another word, she walked out of the mansion to where Kisheto was.

“Let’s go,” she said, not even stopping to see if he was following her.

Vates
Janus was right, Vates hated his idea. “You better be on the ball then Janus.” warned Vates inwardly. Slowly Vates rolled over and took up a pre-sprint position, taking care not to make any sudden movements. Vates slowly checked his pockets to ensure he hadn’t dropped anything. Glasses, check. Energy bar, check. A couple of swipe cards, check. A photo of his family, check. He shut his eyes for a moment as he drew a deep breath and suddenly with a big push off his front leg he burst forward into a sprint across the roof.

“Over there!” came the shout of a nearby soldier, spotting the runner almost immediately. The soldier quickly started waving his arm in the direction of the target, causing the other soldiers to take off after him and causing the sharpshooters to quickly take aim. Vates was running as fast as he could when eyes blinked white, the quick glancing vision causing him to jump to his right and narrowly dodge a plasma bullet. However as he struggled to keep decent footing he found himself stumbling straight into a wall, his held up palms barely saving him from hitting it face first. He turned then towards the oncoming soldiers just as he had another glancing vision, causing him to roll off the wall and back onto his intended path as he dodged yet another bullet. “Shit! He’s a fucking host!” yelled the same soldier from before.

Vates continued to run but couldn’t help but be shocked at the soldier’s words. “How did he know I was a host?” he found himself asking, still unaware of the glowing white eye affect that his powers came with. He wasn’t going to stop and ask however. He reached the end of the current rooftop and made the relatively small leap down to the next one, thankful that the marksmen were not able to fire off any more shots before he’d escaped their vision; he could already feel the strains of mental fatigue from the two visions. He was far from in the clear though, for five or so soldiers still chased after him. Wanting to get off of the roof top Vates made off towards the left of the current roof where another building towered over and made a jump for one of the windows. Not wanting to risk getting snagged on any remaining shards of glass, he let out a kinetic blast mid jump. Whilst he made the jump his landing was far from perfect for his foot clipped the ledge and he found himself falling shoulder first onto the floor, earning himself a couple of cuts where some tiny glass fragments were able to pierce his clothing.

“Mike Six! This is Foxtrot Two! Target has found his way into the large office building! Target is a confirmed host! Please send back-up!” the voice was faint but Vates could still hear it from inside. Not affording the time to sit and catch his breath, he quickly climbed to his feet and continued running but as he did so two soldiers came through the window after him. The first one luckily did exactly the same as Vates and fell face first as his foot caught the windows ledge. The second one however was much more agile and continued after his target without pause. The office building was a typical one with long running corridors and large rooms with dozens of little worker booths, although of course much of it was in disrepair. Not confident that he could outrun his pursuer down a straight corridor, Vates weaved in and out of the little booths going round corners sharply as he heard the pursuer close the gap. Each time he made sure not to take a corner that would lead back on himself towards the other soldiers that had by now also made the jump. Spotting a chance to open the gap, Vates darted quickly into one of the booths and running up the chair and over the desk he jumped over the entire column of booths. He heard his pursuer curse at the manoeuvre.

“To your left Edward! Head to the stairs!” Janus practically yelled inside. Vates took the advice, barging through the door and leaping down two flights of stairs, practically bouncing off the walls as he made each turn. As he exited the stairs he heard the soldiers enter them and hoped that they wouldn’t know how many flights down he’d gone. Turning a couple of corners Vates quickly paused as he tried to decide whether to hide or whether to keep running. He managed to catch his breath a little before he heard voices from the stairs get louder and his mind was made up for him. Run. Taking back off into a sprint Vates headed towards the far side where there was once a window wall, and beyond an alley with a width of about five metres was another building. There was no way he could reach the opposite room, but perhaps he might land a floor or two below. Ensuring he reached peak speed Vates leaped out of the window and found that the time felt as if it had slowed down. His limbs appeared to continue running as if it would somehow help him reach the other side. He felt a horrible sinking feeling deep within his belly as he begun to fall, and it reached up into his throat like a clot. He fell into the window two floors down at a worryingly sharp angle; had the alley been slightly longer he may have missed the building altogether. He landed on bent knees and went into a roll, saving him from any fractures. Crawling quickly behind a desk to shelter him from view Vates sat there and got his breath back. His little stunt, stupid as it might have been, just earned him two or three stories and a buildings worth of space between him and his attackers. He must have sat there for about four minutes before sneaking off and making his way back home. Fortunately he saw no more of the soldiers and left long before any reinforcements arrived.

---

Having spent hours getting back and due to both physical and mental exhaustion, Vates slept in through the whole next morning and woke up in the early afternoon. Even given the events of the previous day it was still far more sleep than Vates liked and he cursed himself as he quickly stumbled out of bed and made for his rooftop terrace. It was not unusual for him to do this, for it gave him a good view and often he had woken up to see signs of destruction in the distance from the night before; be it military raids or just another building finally losing its lasts legs. As he lent on the side rail of the roof he looked out over the all too familiar sight, “Hello world” he said with mock enthusiasm.

“Hello, Sovereign” replied a smooth voice from behind him. Vates stood completely still for a moment.

“Hello?” Vates repeated as he slowly turned to see no-one there. His face was the picture of confusion and he pondered whether or not he was going mad.

“This is Victor Esteves, captain of the Golden Mercenaries and I am here to speak to you - the people of Sovereign. I am here to tell you that there is still hope, that there is still a strong chance that you will get to see your beautiful families yet again.” Came the voice again, but now Vates knew its source: a speaker on the corner of the roof. He had always hated it and before the event he even used a little device to stop it playing; however he had long removed the device for another purpose and was surprised the speaker even worked. He listened intently as Victors message echoed throughout the city and a choir of murmurs and cheers filled the concrete jungle with a tiny bit of ambient noise, as if the city was returning to life. Vates however did not share the happiness and hopes that many now harboured.

“Fuck. Fuck!” he hissed as he grabbed a glass and threw it towards the speaker, “That stupid son of a bitch! Whether he realises or not, he has sentenced everyone to death.”

“I do not understand Edward. Should you not be happy? We can finally break free of this prison. You can return to your family.” asked Janus, often misreading his hosts complex string of thoughts.

Vates ran indoors and headed towards his vault as he explained himself, “Even if most of the city bands together, I doubt they will stand a chance against the military. More likely the survivors will be killed off by each other, you know how Onikages are! If they attack the military and they lose the military won’t just recover and continue like usual will they? They’ll take much more extreme measures. They’ll probably decide to level the city or kill off all the survivors, even those who chose not to fight. Whether those Golden Mercenaries meant to or not, they’ve given an ultimatum to everyone in the city: win or die.”

The Winters Estate-Several Hours ago

Mathias and Earlson sat silently in the conservatory, surrounded by the climbing orchids of purple, white and blue. They had just picked up the transmission and let the words of hope flood the halls of the manor. "The walls are finally coming down then." Mathias spoke finally "Earlier than i expected."

Earlson saw the flicker of urgency in his friends eyes "Time for step one?"

"Yes Earlson, its time to rally the troops."

Sector 1 Border- Present time, Earslon Grey

He remembered the days when, even in Sovereign, you could leave your front door wide open and not have to worry. Now, even as Earlson simply walked down the street, he was relieved to have his Magnum holstered by his side. "How the world has change" Earlson solemnly reflected.

Before him, atop a hill of rubble, too Golden Mercs moved precariously along pieces of the cities history.

"Gentlemen, a moment of your time if you will be so kind?" Instantly the lax duo sprung into action, aiming straight at Earlsons head.

"Now now chaps, lets not get ahead of ourselves shall we. Now, take me to your leader...I've always wanted to say that."

Tuborg Heights-Present time, Mathias Winters

Mathias prized the heavy elevator doors open with the aid of his cane. With a booming, resonating thud, he had gained entrance. The smile that had formed on his face quickly retreated in shame, slowly tilting his head, Mathias was faced with a greater challenge than had first thought.

A ladder with thousands of rungs reached to the skies, it appeared that Mathias was in for some intensive exercise.

"Ah...Well now that's just unfair."

Collab between Kyle and Godfather
Vates and Mathias - Tuborg Heights

Vates stood at his large desk within his hidden vault. Laid out before him was an old plan of the city, one which contained dozens of scribbles and markings compiled from both information he already had as well as information he had gained over the last year. Mostly it contained little notes such as "cache here" or "so and so's base", but these notes went mostly unappreciated as he only ventured around his little district and had long learnt his way around without having to review the map. Now though he examined the various markings and tried to work out how the war would proceed. To the north was the heavy military presence, and likely a target for the Golden Mercs; even if it wasn't the site of their goals they would likely attack it to cause a distraction at least. Also to the North was their old base, long abandoned by them as far as he knew. His last information regarding them placed them somewhere to the far east of the city. He looked then to Itkomi's base almost due west of him (not knowing that he'd moved); Itkomi was a big player but he had no idea whether he would team up with the Mercs. Then again, Iktomi was as smart if not smarter than Vates and would probably come to the same realisation that unless the Mercs won there would be hell to pay. He looked to other groups to like the market gang and such, and towards the chaos zones like the middle of the city and the south-west but they were too hard to judge. "In that case I better pay Iktomi a visit and find out exactly what he plans to do and whether he can shed any light on the situation."

Knowing that he might not get the chance to come back Vates assembled some gear in a rucksack and filled his pockets. Food and water mostly, but also some rolled up maps and odd pieces of scribbled down information he though might come in handy. He also grabbed two butterfly swords which he wore on a belt holster beneath his jacket. Having got all this he made his way upstairs and sat on the couch as he begun to replace the cores in his gauntlets. It only took a matter of minutes and just as Vates finished a sudden thud reverberated off the walls and a myriad of vile curses echoed around the apartment causing him to jump up and look around.

On the floor before of the elevator shaft, coughing and panting, Mathias lay in an exhausted pile. "I'm getting to old for this." admitted the middle-aged mafioso.

Vates walked over to intruder cautiously with his kinetic gauntlet at the ready, tilting his head slightly as he spoke "And who are you exactly?"

"Don't mind me, lovely apartment you've got here! You'd hardly know that Hell had opened up just a few roads away." Mathias rose to his feet and strolled over to the ornate oak desk, as the slump himself on the leather armchair he withdrew a cigar and began to fill the room with thick white smoke.

As the intruder rose and his face became visible Vates recognised him almost instantaneously. "Mathias Winters" he said inwardly as he watched the man stroll carelessly past.

"An old friend of yours Edward?" asked Janus.

"Not exactly. I thought he was dead. Remember I told you about Sierra? That I sold her some information about a target before the event? Well he was the target." replied Vates inwardly as he walked over towards his guest. "Mr Winters isn't it?" he asked confidently taking a seat of his own.

"My, my. Quite an observant chap aren't you. Mathias Winters, that's correct, you on the other hand are Mr Edward Vates are you not?" He stretched out his hand to shake his hosts.

Vates put on a smile and hesitated for a moment before stretching out his own hand. For the first time in a long while he felt like he was back on the job. "I'm surprised you know my name. I'm even more surprised that you know where I live. I'm assuming you've not stumbled across me by mere chance?"

"No Edward, No ive been looking for you for some time now." Mathias wished he could lengthen the charade he had begun, but realised that when dealing with an broker, honesty was the best policy. "I know very little about you actually, it took months to even find a mention of your name, very impressive indeed. But tell me, simply out of curiosity...how much do you know of me?"

Vates genuinely smiled at that. "Well now, that sounds like an information request. Tell you what, how about we both share? You ask a question, then I ask a question? We'll tell each other a little bit at a time. To begin with, I know that prior to the event that you were the head of a formidable little business, correct?" Vates knew he was perhaps treading a fine line, but he wasn't going to dish out information without getting something in return. And whilst he had an idea why Mathias was there, he couldn't be sure.

Mathias nodded "Correct. The Winters family has found many new and...questionable members in the last few decades. Who asked you to make a file on me?"

"No one." Replied Vates honestly although he knew what Mathias really wanted to hear, "I'm an information broker Mr. Winters. I collect any and all information. Given the nature of my business I've always thought it a good idea to have a stockpile of information about any criminal enterprise. I'm aware the brokers you are used to dealing with work on a much more... by demand basis, but not myself. Now then, my turn. From where or whom did you acquire my location?"

"I have a friend, granted he isnt as well connected as yourself and admittedly if we had been in the old Sovereign then we could never have found you. But these aren't old times Mr Vates and someone who causes quite a stir, as you have done, never goes unnoticed." Taking a deeper inhaling of his cigar he pondered for a second before continuing "Who gunned me down?" He had waited months to ask that question, he could feel in his every fibers that he was so close to the truth

Vates lent back in his seat. He didn't know who exactly had gunned him down (he didn't even know he had actually been gunned down), although he had presumed Sierra would have. "Well, it was the military who put a price out on your head. Not surprising really given your choice of career. It was a big bounty and I know there was quite a few assassins that probably would have jumped on the chance to claim the winnings. As for who actually pulled the trigger, if that's what you're asking, I wouldn't know... not without having a dig around." Vates was careful to add the last part as he wanted to ensure his guest had a reason to not try kill him, "What is the name of your friend?"

Mathias sat silently, this was not the answer he had hoped for. By nature he would have overturned the table, grabbed his host by the lapels and thrown him across the room. Instead he resolved to continue the game of questions. "That would be Iktomi Ascher, it seems we have both allied ourselves with the same arachnid."

Vates' expression dropped at the name. It appeared that Itkomi was not quite the ally he thought he was... not that he ever really trusted him anyway. "One that I clearly cannot trust. I doubt you could afford to either." muttered Vates as he pulled out a pen and paper and begun writing, "I'm writing you a list of names Mr. Winters. They are: Fergus 'The Axe' Andrews; The Shadow; Robert Schneider; Luke Bosworth; Sierra 'Smith'; Tywin 'Smith'; and April Grouse. These are the names or rather the aliases of assassins that I believe would have been likely to try take you out."

"...Thank you." Mathias looked down and saw pure vengeance sprawled in ink over the paper before him. "I see your leaving." He noted, looking past Vates toward the pile of provisions. "Do you have somewhere to stay?"

"I'm sure you heard that little broadcast earlier? I'm off to find some answers." he replied as he tried to remember where Mathias lived. The image of a mansion suddenly flooded his mind and he replayed a vision he had witnessed days ago of the same mansion frozen over. "If you tell me where I could find you maybe I could share what I learn?"

"A mansion over to the north-east, the same as before. And ah yes the broadcast, tell me Mr Vates, what exactly do you think will happen when the cage door opens, when the glass prison shatters, when the walls fall down, hm? The animals will go berserk! The army will halt escapes, the Mercs will retaliate, but the biggest problem of all are those caught in the crossfire. I don't know if you've noticed Edward, but this city no longer has civilians, it is inhabited by beasts, and when beasts are threatened, they rise up... This is no time to escape, this is the time to defend what is left."

"Right..." Vates replied, slightly lost on the point, "I cannot hazard to guess what will happen if the wall comes down. But I doubt it will even get that far. The 'beasts' as you called them might gather to the side of the Golden Mercs, but imagine that even if they don't kill each other first that they won't beat the military. If there was a time for alliances, now would be it."

"Alliances...you don't seem to have many strong alliances yourself Edward. I think you'd make a perfect addition to the Winters clan, what do you say?" Mathias looked his host in the eye. It was true Vates was a much needed gear in the intricate mechanics of Mathias' plan, everything had to be perfect, Vates had to take his side.

With a slow shake of his head Vates declined the offer, "Thank you Mr. Winters, I appreciate the offer. It's nothing personal, it just well... I've never liked the idea of having a boss. Now if you excuse me I really have to get going before this war kicks off."

Mathias nodded, disappointingly he rose from the chair and walked toward the elevator shaft, peering down into the darkness a thought swept across his mind "There was one more thing Mr Vates...That creature a few flaws down...Whats the story?"

"Long" sighed Vates as he picked up his rucksack and headed for the shaft himself.

Sector A - City Outskirts, Near the Wall



The base was crawling with soldiers - the usual, rhythmic commotion of training and routine replaced by a chaotic rise to action. Squads of soldiers dashed from spot to spot, giving the fort-like encampment a nearly animated image. The encampment began at the wall, where a large, four hundred foot long semicircle worth of barricade closed off an isolated base of operations. Here, various makeshift guard towers, tents, and training grounds were built. The barricade stretched about thirty feet in height, and was made of barbed wire fencing and concrete roadblocks. A constant patrol of about thirty soldiers patrolled the perimeter while about five squads of ten each patrolled around a larger perimeter a bit farther off. At the point at which the center of the half-circle-shaped camp met the wall, a large, square-shaped border resonated and shined a bright purple. It was a large square, about thirty square feet. At each corner of this square was a circular core slot, each containing a single purple core the size of a volley ball.

On the outside of the wall, along the same point at which the inner base connected, lay a base about five times the size of the one located within. It had no fencing or any other defined border. No, outside, there were about five hundred soldiers, twenty carriages, and five shuttles, all slowly coming to life as the military officials began shouting out orders. Amid all the commotion, a sixth shuttle entered the premises and landed in the center of the outer camp. A squad of six soldiers and Commander Lide stepped out of the shuttle and made their way to an identical square pattern engraved onto the outside of the wall. The Commander stopped right in front of the square-shaped engraving and nodded to a lone soldier standing at the left-bottom corner of the square. The soldier saluted before turning to a nearby lever and pulling it. Immediately, the large square began to glow purple and emit a warped, metallic churning sound. Commander Lide nodded and stepped forward and into the square...

...and out of the same square on inner side of the wall.

At the sight of the Commander, many soldiers and their squads halted to salute him, but he called them to ease and focused on a group of eight situated at the back of the base.

---

Ghost panted as he looked left and right, unable to see where the real Zerox was among his clones. Seven copies of the same man charged at him, wielding steel gloves from which 3 sharp claws protruded. Ghost took a deep breath and dashed back at them. He wore no armor, exposing his bare, muscular body (save for the iconic hunter black cargo pants) which was now covered in a few scars. He jumped and immediately turned sideways, turning like a rolling pin as he threw two daggers at the heads of two of the Zerox copies. They instantly vanished, and as Ghost landed, he ducked under the first claw swipe. As another copy tried to jab at him with its claws, he warped his torso. It looked exactly the same, and anyone watching would not notice any sort of difference, except for the fact that the arm that jabbed at it went right through. Ghost then grabbed the arm and bent it until it snapped, causing that clone to vanish as well. He shot his right arm to his right side, deflecting another swipe while rapidly spinning to kick away another Zerox copy. As he followed up his kick, he drew a dagger from a sheathe on the opposite leg and stabbed the copy that attempted to flank him. Before he could charge the last few copies, however, the Commander called the men to attention. Zerox's clones vanished, exposing the real one to have been sitting among the other hunters the entire time. Ghost rolled his necks and shoulders before turning to the commander.

"You guys seemed to have adapted to each other's abilities. I'm sure your time training will be worth it soon enough," he said as he stood there before them, hands clasped behind his back and head held high.

Ghost looked to the rest of the hunters before turning back to Lide, "That Victor bastard shook up the city pretty damn well. But I think that your soldiers are more frightened than they are encouraged."

Commander Lide shook his head, "Nonsense, Ghost. It's just been a long time since we've gotten any action. Keep in mind, it'll be hard for some of these younger soldiers to quell the rebels. When someone charges at you under the words of a false prophet, it doesn't leave enough time to debate whether engaging them is ethical or not. Do remember these are citizens that are out our throats now, not just mutants."

Lide then looked to the hooded figure who leaned against the barricade, his scythe resting on his shoulder. "Nekros... you are prepared, correct? You will be leading the charge, as we all know, and you'll need to make sure those targets are wiped out A.S.A.P"

Nekros stood silent and lifeless. Fang looked at him then back at Lide, "So, we are charging them? What exactly is the plan? You don't expect us to start killing innocent civilian, now do you?"

Lide chuckled, "Victor thinks he's clever. His little message to the people may have caused some citizens to get all fired up and rebellious, but it was not nearly enough to encourage any significant number of citizens to rise up against us. He knows this. His message was meant to scare us] into unnecessarily send out our forces to quell this so called 'rebellion'. But fact of the matter is that, the rebellion doesn't start until Hector fires the first shot from inside."

Ghost nodded, "So what then, are we gonna hole up here and try to fight Victor off?"

Lide tilted his head to the side with a slight nod, as if to say "yes and no". "One thing we can't assume is that Victor's confidence in bringing down this wall was also a bluff. No, he's already mobilized so he does plan on assaulting. What this means is that he does have some sort of weapon that could tear a hole in this wall. If that were to happen-"

Lizard interrupted him, "Khhhh, it won't happen. We won't let him," he said as he sniffed at the air. Lide held up a finger, "We don't know that, if it DOES happe-"

This time Pyrus interrupted him, "Yer not sure, then? Yer sayin' the lad's figured out how to burn through the wall?"

Lide sighed, "Would you let me finish? Sheesh. Victor's a man of many resources. If he wants something, he'll work endlessly to get it. I believe he may have come across an ancien- ... a weapon of mass destruction, ok? Now focus. We're going to fortify our base on the outside and cut off all movement near the inside of our base. It takes one stray civilian to creep in here and mess everything up, got me? In the mean time, you eight are gonna be out there, hunting down those targets that you should have downed a long time ago. If I know anything for sure about Victor's plan, it's that he's contacted Hector about it, and I know for a fact Hector has a little army of mutants on his side as well. If we can eliminate them, we've won half the battle."

The eight nodded and looked to each other. Lide then looked behind him at the base-wide chaos that was going on. "Remember Hunters. You're doing this for the greater good. Stay focused, don't fuck up."

En Route to the Golden Mercenary Base

Kisheto walked alongside Arianna, having decided to stop speaking. Despite having raised himself in solitude among the streets of Sovereign, he picked up one important skill in his years of observing and listening. He knew how to figure out how a person felt on the inside, and, after witnessing countless break-ups and rejections, he knew when a woman was masking what she really felt. At that moment, all he felt was a strong confliction in Arianna's intent. He could tell that she wanted to be sure of what she was doing, but simply couldn't for reasons unknown to him. It was conflicting enough to stress her out, enough so to where Kisheto felt speaking to her would only put her at more discomfort.

For the first time in a long time, Kisheto decided to just keep quiet. 'Hali was right. Thinking before speaking is pretty smart, actually,' he thought to himself. Despite his silence, Kisheto still stepped on alongside Arianna, nonchalantly taking in his surroundings as if he weren't marching to join a rebellion. They weren't far off from the bank that Kisheto had mentioned earlier. It was in that bank, within a vault that the elevator was located.

Arianna walked alongside him, watching their surroundings and listening for any thought that might mean trouble. She was grateful for the silence. It gave her time to convince herself that she was doing the right thing. Although she wanted to join the Golden Mercenaries, she was worried that Iktomi would feel betrayed. He seemed to need a loyal friend, but she was needed elsewhere. He would understand, wouldn't he? Anyways, he already had a loyal guard dog by his side, who seemed to want her gone for good.

Suddenly, her mind was filled with the thoughts of angry military men and one frightened girl. Arianna immediately stopped walking, reaching out to grab Kisheto's arm and stop him as well. It's the military, she told him, immediately heading towards the ruins of a large apartment complex that would serve as a good hiding spot. She was tense, the thoughts in her mind unnerving her.

Kisheto stood still for a moment while Arianna ran off to find cover. He then shook his head to regian his focus before following Arianna to the complex that served as a temporary hiding spot. "Shit, they're gonna be all over the place now..." he said quietly, realizing that their presence was merely one of many consequences of Victor's speech.

Arianna crouched down in ruins, knowing that they wouldn't be seen unless the military was overhead. "It's just a squad. They have a girl, though. It sounds like she's a host that tried to escape a rebel skirmish. She must be weak."

Kisheto tensed up at Arianna's words, "Shit... alright, what's our plan? Should I attack from the roofs?" he said looking to Arianna, hoping she had some sort of strategy.

---

On the same street that Kisheto and Arianna had been on, not more than half a mile down, the young girl wept as she fell to her knees, hopeless. She was frail and tiny, a girl of about eight years. The squad had nine soldiers, two of which stood beside the girl, one holding her down, and the other loading his pistol.

"L-look, girl, you... you don't deserve this, I..." the first soldier mumbled. The second soldier, the one holding her down, shook his head, "Bloody hell, get it over with Jake. Just get it fucking over with."

Jake turned to the other soldier and spat at him, "Are you insane? Look at her, she's a damn kid!"

The girl in the soldiers grasp continued to cry, "Please, I p-promise, I didn't choose to get powers and I... I never hurt anyone! I'm not a rebel I just want to live please I'm a good girl I always have been please..." Her words poured out incoherently in a speech covered in sobs and sniffles.

Jake tilted his head and whispered, "Oh my god... you poor, poor soul..." This time, the second soldier jerked the girl forward, "LOOK, man, if you waste any more time, the rebels will be on us in a second."

Jake chuckled in disbelief, "Don't pretend that we couldn't mow down any fool that came our way in seconds with our new rifles. I need time. Why don't you do this, hm?"

---

Arianna listened to them, hearing of the new weapons. She closed her eyes and shook her head, her shoulders slumping a little in defeat. "There's nothing we can do for her. They have new weapons. If we so much as step out of this building, we're goners," she mumured solemnly.

Kisheto scoffed, "Don't be silly, Arianna. We gotta save that girl, yo, they might hurt her!" He then looked behind him and turned to move towards the edge of the building, near where the street began.

Arianna reached out and grabbed his arm gently, trying to stop him. "Kisheto, they've been ordered to kill any hosts they find. They might blink at the command of killing a little girl, but they will gladly kill anyone as old as us. The rebellion hasn't helped their attitudes towards hosts very much."

Kisheto shook his head and frowned at Arianna's ability to accept defeat so easily. "You... so? If it was dangerous, we wouldn't need a plan. Everything we've done has been a risk, and you're backing out now cuz this one seems a bit more risky? Alright, then Arianna. I'll see you at the Golden Mercenarie's place." He then shrugged off her hand and jumped down a window sill, landing on a side walk below. After patting his hands he rolled his shoulders and began walking towards the military.

'Fool.'

Kisheto stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes were locked on the squad that stood about a hundred feet from him, but his vision was replaced by a temporary blur. He felt it - a stirring in the back of his conciousness that he had only put off as his nervousness getting the best of him when it happened previously. But no, this time it was definitely there, and he felt two instances of fear within him, as if he felt the fear of losing his life twice. Yet that made no sense, and Kisheto took a deep breath, shaking his head as he looked to the ground before continuing. However, as soon as he took that first step...

*CRACK*

The sound of a pistol hitting a skull echoed through the street, causing Kisheto to freeze once again. Once more, his vision blurred, but this time, due to tears that welled in his eyes. His mind raced with images of the girl he had seen - images of her playing with a family, of her going to school, of her graduating, of her getting a job, getting married, having kids, but no. Now, as he looked up, slowly and fearfully, he only saw a corpse.

---

Jake wiped a single tear from his eyes, "I hope you find Solace, little one." He shook his head and turned to return to the rest of his squad in anger. But as soon as he did so, the sound of battle cries filled the air. He and his squad quickly turned to the right to witness a group of about twenty rebels rushing towards him, clubs, spears, and rubble drawn against them.

Kisheto gasped and then looked around frantically, confused on what he was to do. But just then, the squad pulled out rifles that looked much more complex than the ones belonging to the Blood Saints. After a few brief seconds of whirring, the rifles sprung to life, shooting plasma rounds at speeds that caused Kisheto to buckle under his own weight for just a moment. In an instant, half of the rebels were cut down like a pile of ants at the mercy of a gardener's pesticide. Except death came within the blink of an eye, and within seconds, only three rebels remained, choosing to run back from where they came from. Kisheto had stood there the entire time, motionless, his mouth open in horror. The military began reloading, and just then Jake looked to Kisheto with a raised brow. "Who's that lad? He just been watchin?"

His words caused Kisheto once again snap back to reality. He took a deep breath and then barely managed to speak. "I... *ahem*... hm...." he then simply held up a hand to signal that he didn't want to be a part of what just happened and stormed off towards the alleys on his left, opposite the building that he had jumped from. He knew the alleys, he would simply cut through them and be at the base with a short delay. As he continued to storm towards the base, his mind was filled with angry thoughts, as he seemed to forget he wasn't to make his journey alone.

Arianna peeked out from the building, shaking slightly from the massacre that had just occurred. She had only moved when the soldiers noticed Kisheto, but now he seemed to have disappeared completely. She felt terrible, and sick to the stomach. For a second, she wished that she had never left Iktomi's mansion. Kisheto, please she thought, hoping that he was still in her range to hear it. When no reply came, she sat back against a wall in the ruins and held her head, her feelings unbearable. Oh, Aeritus, Castiel. What am I going to do? She asked him, panic creeping its way into her core. She was too distressed to remember the way back to Iktomi's mansion, now, and she had no clue where this bank was that the Golden Mercenaries used as a way to get to their base.

As the last signs of the squad's presence faded, the ceiling of the room that Arianna was situated in began to crumble as a loud banging sound echoed through the room. Dust and debris fell as the rhytmic pounding began to crescendo. Before long, a specific part of the ceiling fell down, as Kisheto kicked off the remaining debris. He coughed and wiped his forehead, before looking down into the room below.

"We're gonna stick to the roofs from now on," he said sternly, holding out a hand.

Arianna jumped as the ceiling fell apart and looked up, worried that this would be the death of her. She let out a small sigh of relief as Kisheto looked down at her. She stood, unsure if he was still angry at her. "I just wanted to keep us safe," she murmured, hoping he understood why she hadn't attempted to save the girl. Kisheto looked down at the floor below and then back at Arianna, "Well..." he then chuckled softly, shaking his head, "you're doing a good job, cuz as far as I can tell, we're still alive."

Arianna could only smile a little before she took his hand and had him help her climb onto the roof. She took a deep breath. "Let's get to the base before we see something like that again."

Iktomi-Awakening

Iktomi’s jaw clenched as he finally felt the fire that coursed through his veins upon regaining consciousness. Slowly he forced his eyes open, his gaze darting around the room until they fell upon the medic. Pushing himself up onto his elbows he took a shallow breath, before speaking for the first time in days. “Get out of here right now. Leave.” Within his eyes there was no emotion, only killing intent. While the medic scurried out of the room Iktomi rested his head against the pillow once more, listening to the fading footsteps of the man.

Two minutes after he had sent the doctor away Iktomi’s will finally broke. His lips parted as a scream tore through them. Curling into a ball his screams continued. Minutes ticked by, until he finally gained control of himself again. Tightening his jaw he straightened up, laying on the bed properly once again. He had never experienced such pain before, but he still knew there was only one way for him to handle it. All he could do was find out the source, which meant..

’Archania what is happening to me? I feel like my blood has been replaced with hellfire. I really hope you have an idea, because I don’t.’ His thoughts were as forced as his words the medic had been, the pain made it difficult for him to even form coherent thoughts.

Archania’s mandibles clicked rapidly in excitement, before she finally spoke. She couldn’t believe that Iktomi had woken so soon, or at all really. She knew he was strong, but for a time she believed that he wouldn’t be able to pull through. ’It is good to see that you are awake Iktomi, you were out for a couple of days. During the attack on the Blood Saints, you used too much of your spirit, and it caused your body to go into a coma. The pain is a side effect of having woken up too early, your body didn’t get a chance to heal fully.

’If waking up early is the cause of this then it is acceptable. I have work to get back to after all.’ Biting back a groan, Iktomi pushed himself back off of the bed and swung to the side. Reaching toward the end table, searching for his headset, his fingers brushed against an envelope. Bringing it closer his lips flickered into a brief smirk as he read the writing upon it. ’I suppose this means she must have left already. It couldn’t have been too long ago, given that I have only been out of it for a couple of days. I wonder why she didn’t bother to stay around until I was on my feet, perhaps she doesn’t care as much as she would like me to believe. Since she couldn’t wait to leave, I may as well wait to read the letter.’ Placing the envelope back on the end table he searched once more for the object he had originally been reaching for. Finding the headset he put it on turning it to Hali’s frequency in the same motion.

“Halimae would you please come to the medical room? I could use some assistance.” Turning the mic off for a moment, Iktomi let his head fall. After a couple of moments the door to the room opened and Hali slipped into the room making her way quickly to his side. As she slipped one arm around his waist, Iktomi placed his own on her shoulders. “Thanks for coming so quickly Hali, it is greatly appreciated.”

“Of course sir, it is good to see that you are back on your feet. We have all been worried sick about you. How are you feeling?” Halimae’s voice remained as cold as ever to anyone not used to her, but Iktomi could clearly hear the caring tone that she was trying to cover.

“Honestly? I feel like there are thousands of needles in my veins. But that is quite minor compared to be unconscious, at least this way I can resume command. Speaking of which I would like an update on anything you have done in my absence.” As he spoke Iktomi began moving, prompting Hali to as well given that she was his main support.

“Leo and his slaves finished the tunnels that they had been previously working on, excluding all of those that were collapsed of course so I directed him to have them begin working in the other direction. Along with that order I told them to take any buildings that they came across and to evict any tenants. In addition to that I sent my frequency number with Kisheto to give to Hector. The leader of the Golden Mercenaries, Victor, has called for an outright rebellion as you predicted. Both Miss Arianna and Kisheto left to join the Mercs that are stationed in Sovereign as a result of that.” Her words were a bit rapid as Iktomi continued to pick up the pace.

Turning down the hallway that led to the dining room Iktomi nodded his head, a smirk coming to his lips. “Excellent, that means everything is going according to plan then. Contact squads 3-9 and tell them to get into the predetermined ambush points. After that inform squads 10-13 that they are to remain stationed along the perimeter. You are also going to stay at my side. I am too weak at this time to be alone.” Removing his arm from her shoulders he made his way to the chair at the head of the table. Collapsing into it, he leaned his head against his fist eyes falling closed. “You are dismissed for now Halimae, please inform everyone that they are still to contact you rather than me. Thank you.”

Ariela~

"Victor..." She bit the name off of her tongue as she said it. She had never heard of this man before now, and the Golden Mercenaries were nothing but a vague title to her. She had been standing in the street when his voice filled sovereign, she had been searching for something, whilst he was beginning a war. Ariela held nothing but contempt for this strange man and his sudden message. He had sentenced half of the city to death by starting an unnecessary battle that would leave sovereign with nothing but more sorrow.

She had changed, reverted to her weakest form, simply because she wished to avenge those who had been repressed and abused. For this reason she agreed with his most words. The military were indeed the enemy, and they needed to be removed from this earth with haste, but bringing the innocent into a war so quickly was inconceivable. She could not agree with it. The 'Golden Mercenaries', whoever they were, were just as bad as the military they fought against. Their war would cause untold deaths, where hers could have only caused one.

Ariela had planned to assault the military alone, slowly taking them out soldier by soldier. It would have been grueling, but it would be better than resigning the people of Sovereign to war. At least her way would have allowed them to continue as they were, given them a small chance at survival. Victor's path doomed so many of them to death..

So many people like Joanna would die in this fight. She had too stop them..

Ariela became unable to formulate a plan, she could not protect the entire city from this war, but she wanted to protect as many as possible. How would she find them? Would she be too late? Ariela needed strength to do this.. She turned inwards and pleaded with Artemus.

'Please... I need that strength to save them.. They do not deserve death, I was wrong... We were wrong.. Please Artemus, if you want me to kill, I will, but not the ones who have suffered. I know their pain.. I will kill as many of the corrupted as you like.. Just give me back that strength...'

'Is that so...?

Silence came from Ariela. She was shocked, never before had Artemus spoken to her like this. He had simply willed her and it had been enough, now it was different.. and she was speechless..

'Prove your commitment to this cause then. Feed me one hundred corrupted souls so that I may know their taste, and if they are too my liking I shall grant you power beyond that which you had before... This is my will. Do it.'

Ariela's confidence grew, she had been given for go by her master to slay the corrupted. He believed in her cause and was testing her worth. Her expression hardened as she prepared herself for the task. "As you wish." she stated simply before heading down her own path of war...

Mathias strolled down the hallway, admiring the paintings that adorned his walls. Over the last year his appreciation for the finer things in life, the arts, had been severely overlooked. As he surveyed the sunset landscapes and family portraits, a feeling of atonement washed over him; no longer did his body howl with the winds of pain and his mind was free to look for the future, to dare and to hope.

Such hope manifested with thoughts of his family. His wife and their children were safe, or at least as safe as they could be in a city like this. His mother and sisters however, were the ones that shined in his thoughts. They were avid socialites and at the time of the rapture, were touring the country, far away from Sovereign. No doubt they were sitting in a ornately decorated parlor, drinking tea and keeping a stiff-upper lip, pretending to be unfazed by his lack of contact, undeterred by the prospect that there home was in ruins and their family was slaughtered by the beast of an undeserving wasteland.

Mathias promised himself some determined thoughts- He would make this hell work in his favor, he would reunite his family as a whole once more and they would all benefit from the terrors of Sovereign. Somehow he would right the wrongs and turn this awful chapter of his life into a profitable situation.

Outside seemed much less active than Zachary had assumed. From the initial hype he had pictured parades of people storming the streets and the military forces being... actually, he couldn't imagine the military would be so easily toppled, now that he thought about it. It would seem more likely that such an uprising would be bloody and terrible. He needed to find out what was going on before he jumped into any battles. Driving slowly down the street, the kinetic cores humming as they levitated the carriage off the ground, Zachary glanced around and noticed a glimmer of blue in the sky. Then he remembered the skyways. Once they had been passages of traffic throughout Sovereign, but since the cataclysm only the military had the technology to drive on them, at least the only ones until now. Zachary turned down another street and headed up one of the on-ramps to the major skyway bridging across the entire city.

Beneath him, the solid concrete ground dropped away and was replaced by a shimmering blue magnetic kinetic shield. The height of the carriage shifted slightly with the change in terrain, but otherwise the carriage seemed to not notice that nothing but magic was holding it in the air. Zachary knew how skyways worked better than most people, having worked on them before. While it is almost impossible for a carriage to fall off a functioning skyway, it is very easy for a person to fall off, since although the kinetic shield provides a solid surface, that surface also lacks any friction and repels things that get too close. If a person were to set foot on an ordinary skyway they would just slide off and fall (although skyways for foot traffic do exist, those for carriages generally do not incorporate such technology). The reason carriages can't fall off is because they are made of metal, and the polarity cores attract the metal to the skyway. Someone in metal boots would similarly be capable of traversing a skyway, but that is not common knowledge. It is for those reasons that the skyways had been mostly ignored by the people of Sovereign in the past year.

Zachary, in his small one-man carriage, was now perched high above the city's main road, cruising along slowly and watching the city below. While he was in no way hidden, it was extremely unlikely that anyone would look skywards and notice him, and even if they did there was not much they could do about it without first getting up to the skyway too. Zachary was now in a perfect position to observe the activities of the city, and the rebellion did not seem to be going well. In one place, he saw a band of civilians which had gathered together as rebels and were now marching down the streets. But in another place he saw another such band gunned down by rapid-fire plasma rounds from a small group of soldiers which they had attempted to charge. There were not many bands gathered, at least not many which he could see, but there was an even lower amount of soldiers around the city. It seemed that they were not doing much to quell rebellion throughout the city. But as he traversed further north he saw that the military were concentrated around their base. From up here he could see the soldiers scurrying around their base like ants in the distance. And in front of the base he saw a concentration of civilians as well, which looked like a crowd of rioters. Blocking their way were soldiers arranged like riot police. And they looked like that because that was exactly what was happening. Vanguards, in their metal armour, blocked the street with an impenetrable line of their kinetic shields while the crowds were doused with water cannons. Occasionally there was a flash, presumably weapon fire, although from where Zachary was looking from it could be from either side.

Zachary shook his head. Even if they could break past the line of soldiers acting as riot control, he could see tanks and mores soldiers beyond them, which would swiftly cut down any true threats in a maelstrom of plasma, explosions and lightning. Clearly whatever support the Golden Mercenaries had promised was yet to arrive, and even then it had better be good support or else it will be a tough, bloody and probably battle indeed. He turned the carriage around and drove off, heading back the way he came so he could return to his workshop and figure out what to do.

As he was descending from the onramp a man in a black uniform and blue beret stepped out and blocked his way. Zachary put his foot on the brake and stopped about a meter in front of the man. Four more men then appeared and formed a semicircle in front of Zachary's carriage. These men seemed tough and disciplined, and they were also armed, although at the moment their weapons were not drawn. Their sudden appearance intimidated him, and through his mind raced contingency plans. Back up and escape along the skyway; charge forwards and knock them down; disarm them with telekinesis; draw his wind cannon and knock them aside. One of them stepped forwards and addressed him.

"Zachary Mason?"

Zachary was caught off guard. No one had used his full name for a year. He hadn't shared his name with many people in this apocalyptic wasteland either, so how these people knew him was beyond him. Given a few moments to regain himself, he answered, "I am. And who are you?"

"We are representatives of Mathias Winters," the man replied, in a surprisingly formal manner, "Mr Winters has heard of your engineering prowess, and wishes to employ you for a short project."

Zachary paused to digest this. Even after being in hiding for a year, trying to keep his engineering projects secret for their safety from thieves, there was someone who was going to hire him to be an engineer. For a moment he recalled memories of times passed, where he aspired to become a professional engineer, and now even in this god-forsaken place that goal was still somehow possible. It seemed almost too good to be true, so he was cautious.

"Who is Mathias Winters?" Zachary asked cautiously.

"Mr Winters is a powerful man, owner of a large estate and protector and provider over a large extended family. Mr Winters is always looking for new people and skills to add to his family, and at the moment he wants you and your skills as an engineer, Zachary Mason. If you decide to join Mr Winters you shall benefit from his supplies and protection."

My my, they have skills in persuasion now, don't they, Kaa'is commented to Zachary.

What do you think, Kaa'is, Zachary asked him, with-in his own head.

Powerful men are dangerous men, especially in a place like this. We must exercise caution with him. But at the same time, we don't have much reason not to go, Kaa'is said.

It did seem like a good opportunity. But, just to make sure, Zachary had one more question to ask. "And if I don't decide to join?"

"Then it shall be a sad loss for Mr Winters and a missed opportunity for all of us," the foot-soldier replied, formal as ever.

"So he wants to hire me for this project even in the middle of a city-wide uprising?" Zachary queried. The foot-soldier simply nodded. "So where do I go?" he added.

"Mr Winter's estate is towards the north. It should not be hard to find, because it is perpetually covered by a light snowstorm. If you come with us we shall lead you there," the foot-soldier answered.

"I'll make my own way there. First I need to make a stop and pick up my tools, otherwise engineering's going to be tricky," Zachary said. He let the carriage slowly crawl forwards and the men parted to let him past. "I'll probably beat you there if I'm not held up," he called behind him to the men as he left. Then he pushed forwards the throttle and drove off at speed.

Sector Zero - Near the Entrance

Miles released a small sigh as the 'leader' of the refugees he had been traveling with continued his argument with the security protecting the entrance to the base of the Golden Mercs. Miles and the group had been standing outside for almost an hour, and the boredom was beginning to eat away at him. Tapping his foot, he finally couldn't take it anymore. Kneeling down he took the case off of his back and set it carefully on the ground. Lowering himself the rest of the way to the ground he removed his violin from the case. With the first draw of the bow all of the refugees gathered around him, happy to finally have some entertainment.

---

"I swear we're not lost, trust me, I practically lived there," Kisheto said as he peered through every nearby window and open doorway. It was a pretty empty road, as no one traveled through the particular set of alleyways that served as the only way to enter it - the actual road had been blocked by fallen buildings. Arianna sighed softly, looking around. To be honest, she didn't care if they were lost, or directly in front of their little secret entrance. She just wanted to be in a safe place where she could sit and ignore the world around her for a while. She moved a little ways down the street, her eyes searching around for this bank that held the elevator. Whispers of thoughts skimmed the edges of her range of hearing and she tensed lightly, worried that it was another military squad. "I hear people," she murmured to Kisheto, looking in the vague direction of the thoughts.

Kisheto raised a brow and walked over to where Arianna was standing. He took a few steps towards the direction of a barely-passable alley, and after a few more steps, he heard the sound of a violin gently echoing through the passages. "Wow... that's nice..." he said softly before walking towards the direction from where the sound came. Arianna furrowed her eyebrows, wondering what he meant. She moved forwards, following him through the tight alley. As soon as the violin's music reached her ears she relaxed a little, her eyes looking a little less tired than they were before. The music seemed to rid her of the drained feeling she had felt a moment ago, and she felt much calmer as well. As the music and thoughts grew louder, she could see a group of what looked like refugees, some men that didn't exactly look military, but acted it, and a man with a violin.

---

"Look, our boy Hector's got strict policies on this sort of thing and you've made your case, but it isn't gonna make me change my mind. Everyone gets screened. The fact that you feel so 'offended' by a simple screening makes me suspect you, and you should know we have plenty of hosts within our shelter. But they've all done what I ask you to do now, and that's get fucking screened." The mercenary was obviously annoyed, and one of his squadmates reached over and patted his shoulder while telling him to calm down.

From a narrow space in one of the nearly-blocked alleys, Kisheto stepped out along with Arianna. "Ohhh, yeah, we just went a bit too far and then... alright, I see, I know where we are now," Kisheto said as he nodded and crossed his arms, looking around to collect his bearings. The violin continued to play and Kisheto smiled as he found its source, only to look on in curiosity at the sight of what appeared to be a debate between mercenary and citizen.

"Why are you guys having a party out here?" Kisheto said as he walked up to the group. Arianna followed slowly, watching the Golden Mercenaries.

The mercenary turned to Kisheto and frowned, "Whatdya... wait... aren't you that kid?" he said with a strict undertone. Kisheto froze, looking as guilty as he believed himself to be. He knew that he had caused a huge drawback on the Golden Mercenaries' mission when he accompanied them. "Uh.... yeah, look, I'm sorry about the whole, you know..." he began before the mercenary began laughing. Arianna quietly listened to the conversation and the thoughts of those around her. Especially the thoughts of the violin player. She glanced over at Kisheto and the Mercs, wondering why they had begun laughing. She then smirked lightly as she heard how Kisheto tricked the Mercenary into letting him go through the thoughts of the men. It seemed just like Kisheto to do something like that. She then turned her attention back to the violin player, enjoying his soft music over the thoughts crowding her mind.

"Ay, Trevor, this is the kid that duped Johnny!" he said to the mercenary that had motioned for him to calm down. The two began laughing and the rest of the mercenaries joined in soon after. When it died down, the lead mercenary nodded to Kisheto, "You trying to get through, kid?" he said, to which Kisheto responded with a confused nod.

"Right," the mercenary continued, "I'll ready the lift as soon as I take care of this bunch..."
Kisheto nodded and then looked to the man who had been arguing with the mercenary. He then turned towards the source of the music. "You're trying to screen these guys?" Kisheto asked, noticing that the mercenary was just as enticed by the music as he was - they both just refused to show it. The mercenary shrugged, "Protocol's protocol lil' man."

Kisheto scoffed at his comment and then shook his head, "Yo, these people are trill as fuck. Just let 'em in already. I mean, is Locks still around? Imagine the magic he and that guy could make together," he said with a nod in the violin-player's direction. Arianna glanced back over at Kisheto and the Merc. "Is the Golden Mercenary base not a place to help those in need and plan to protect them?" She asked, curious why they wouldn't just let them in. The Golden Mercenaries were no doubt the best place for anyone to go if they needed shelter. The mercenary sighed and shook his head, "Look it's just for the sake of safety, I mean, if we let ANYONE in before screening them, like..."

Kisheto chuckled, "If they tried anything, we'd just whoop their ass," he said with a grin, "Let's just get in and let Hector deal with 'em." The mercenary looked to Trevor who shrugged in response. After a moment of contemplation, he nodded. "Fine, but if he asks, I insisted on screening," he said before motioning one of his squadmates to prepare the lift.

Kisheto nodded and smiled, "Sweet, appreciate it." As the mercenary left to open the bank vault and prepare the lift, the rest of the squad formed up around the alley, readying themselves to continue their patrol. In the meantime, Kisheto looked to Arianna, "Yo, you're gonna love it down there. It's... it's just amazing," he said. Arianna smiled softly. "Are the beds nice?" She teased lightly before watching the violin player once more.

Melody, remind me why is our group so adament about not letting anyone know what I am? It seems like a silly thing to do really. I mean the Golden Mercs already admitted that they have hosts here. Miles' thoughts drifted whimiscally around in his head, his hands continuing to play the kage enhanced music. Melody let out a chime like laughter before responding to her host. Miles you have to understand their position. They have no idea how this band of mercenaries treats the hosts that they have in their group. If they were to let them know what you are you might end up in a holding cell with others like us. Miles nodded slightly, an understanding smile pulling at the corner of his lips. The last few months he had been keeping the morale of the group, protecting them from the horrors of their new world. Now it would seem it had taken it upon themselves to protect him. Between speaking with Melody and playing his violin, Miles still hadn't realized the two newcomers, nor the fact that they apparently convinced the Mercs to let his group in.

His already split focus was broken when a young boy tapped his shoulder. Pulling the bow away from the violin he turned his attention to the child, George. "What is it George, do you have a request? I know you have always been fond of my music." George shook his head a bit, instead pointing in the direction of the group who were busy preparing to enter the base and then to the young man and woman that had appeared. "Oh I see, well thank you George. Why don't you run along and help your mother, I will be right behind you guys." As the child ran off Miles took a moment to place his violin gently back in its case. Tossing the case onto his back he started towards the new individuals.

"I am Miles Gershwin, may I ask who you two are?" Miles cocked his head to the side a bit, his lips spread in a grin.

Kisheto had been waiting near the bank's entrance as the the vault doors were worked open. As Miles approached him and Arianna he chuckled; Locks is gonna like this guy, he thought in his head before replying to his introduction. "I'm Kisheto, local hero," he said with a chuckle before extending his hand to Miles, "Nice to meet you, Miles."

Miles took Kisheto's hand and gave it a firm shake, his smile growing at the first introduction. "It is good to meet you, it isn't everyday that one is in the presence of a hero."

Arianna couldn't help but chuckle a little at Kisheto's not-so-humble introduction. She held her hand out towards Mile's with a soft smile. "I'm Arianna. I love your violin music."

Releasing Kisheto's hand he quickly took Arianna's, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Arianna, and thank you. It is always fantastic when someone enjoys my playing."

Finally, the vault's doors opened, revealing the large elevator. "S'all good," said the mercenary. Kisheto looked over and smiled as he turned back to Miles, "Man, you guys are in for one helluva sight," he said before walking over towards the lift. Arianna followed, chuckling. "I'm sure it will be."

"Every sight is a treasure Kisheto. I have seen things that most people will never get a chance to, but even after all of the wonders I am ever amazed at the beauty in this world." Miles chuckled softly, before following after the two.

Sector B - Abandoned Skymall Rooftop

Ishigo opened up a canteen that rested upon his hip and took two sips of his water. He sat on the edge of the skymall's roof, eyeing the grounds below on one knee. Victor's speech had definitely caused a commotion worthy of the military's attention. But he knew the real intention of his speech, and even then, he felt impressed at Victor's ability to empathize with what he assumed to be the state of the survivors in Sovereign. He knew they were afraid, and that for the majority of them, it would take much more than a speech to call them to action. He wanted them to find Hector with the hope that he would manage to rally them to rebel as one. What impressed Ishigo most, however, was Victor's confidence in his weak understanding of what the 'mutants' were capable of. He had guessed hard, but he had guessed right. Gathering the hosts into one united cause would make for one hell of a blow to the military's forces.

'It was as unwise as it was successful. Dumb luck, really,' Jin spoke from within Ishigo's spirit, and Ishigo simply nodded.

"Sometimes, dumb luck is all you need," Ishigo replied. He continued to look over the visible streets, watching for any peculiar signs of movement, specifically those that seemed unnatural for an ordinary human. After a few minutes, Jin chimed in once more:

'Ishigo... Do you feel that? The resonating spirit?' he said. Ishigo raised a brow, "I... think I do. Is that not you?"

'No, it is distant, but it approaches as we speak. It grows stronger with ever-'

A mass of ethereal energy manifested before Ishigo, a raw display of Spirit itself, before slowly forming into a corporeal mass, one resembling a young man in his early twenties with white hair and a cocky grin. "Why sir, do you sense a disturbance in the force?" The boy replied, putting his hand out to shake Ishigo's. Ishigo had flinched and tensed as he had appeared, but didn't prepare his guard in the case that he set off an overly-combative tone. Instead, he took the boy's hand and simply looked at him with a curious stare.

"You've got that badass aura surrounding you, so I'm guessing you're one of the guys around here not to be fucked with. I'm Yugeto," the boy said with a sincere smile. Ishigo squinted as he looked at the boy; it was strange, as Ishigo was always the one practically hunting down the kages. Yet here he was, falling victim to a reversed role. Not only did he find himself slightly caught off guard, he found it surprising that boy appeared so comfortable with his surroundings - it was as eerie as it was mysterious.

'Yes, he came out of thin air, but no, I don't sense any kage. It's... it's just him, Ishigo. That, or his kage is exceptionally well at hiding. Steel yourself regardless.'

Ishigo took a deep breath and replied, "Well met, Yugeto," he began, knowing that it was too late to pretend that this was some ordinary encounter, "you've piqued my interest."

Yugeto clasped Ishigo's hand, and his smile quickly contorted into a devious and corrupted grin. "Well met indeed. Didn't your big-savior Kage tell you never to talk to strangers?" Yugeto asked, as a silverish aura shot out of Yugeto's body, and a black one out of Ishigo's. "Black, huh?" Yugeto asked. "That's a new one, pal." The two auras then intermingled, and slowly flowed into Yugeto's body. "Have I sated your interest, yet?" Yugeto inquired once again, as he felt the vitality of Spirit surge throughout his body. "Relax, it'll make things quicker for me. Not that you can exactly move so easily, right?" Yugeto said, before letting go of Ishigo's hand; the flowing continued regardless. "Golly, maybe if I take enough of your Spirit I'll get me one of those little dudes in my head to talk to!" Yugeto joked, albeit in bad taste.

Ishigo winced and tensed up as he felt himself grow weaker by the second. He let out a grunt of effort as he tried to flee from whatever range that "Yugeto" had, but to no avail as he felt his legs give in underneath him. 'JIN...' It felt as if even thinking cost him more spirit than he could afford.

'I'M DOING EVERYTHING I CAN, JUST TRY TO MOVE AWA- AGH!'

Ishigo's hand then shot up as he felt a strong pain shoot through the center of his chest, as if some spiritual center of his was shattered by the sudden loss of spirit. "What... is... this....?" he mumbled, forcing himself to speak as he tried his best to block his spirit from escaping.

Yugeto's own aura began to grow darker as he absorbed the black spirit. Yugeto chuckled, as if he had just told himself some inside joke. Deciding to tease his newfound "friend", Yugeto walked back over to Ishigo, got close to him, and whispered "Once you go black, you never go back, eh?" before doubling over in laughter.

Ishigo chuckled in disbelief. He was in some strange company, and the fact that he was seconds away from hitting stasis didn't help. "You... you talk too much..." he said as he felt Jin shift within his spirit.

'This is not going to be pleasant...' Jin said, his voice growing louder by the second. He then exerted an exaggerated amount of spirit through a channel that Jin could feel. It was the only time he had ever physically felt spirit flowing through him, and it gave him a strange, burning sensation. He groaned in agony as the massive flow of spirit shot towards his palm, but as soon as the pain peaked, he fell to his knees, having stopped the draining at the cost of a huge loss of spirit.

'Breathe Ishigo, breathe.... he can't drain you now... You did well in holding our spirit. I'm impressed.'

Yugeto's body shook as the flow of Spirit into his body was abruptly cut off, and Yugeto too fell to his knees, coughing and gasping for air. "Fucker...I didn't think you'd be able to pull that off..." Yugeto said in between breaths. "D-damn lucky your Kage saved y-your ass this time...that spirit is somethin' else." Yugeto coughed up a bit of blood, before slowly getting to his feet, staggering as he walked towards Ishigo. "Y-you fucking aloof motherfucker..." Yugeto spat. "Good job, you asshole. Fucked up my whole feng-shui or whatever, I was gettin' real strong. Well, you can keep your damn Spirit, clearly there's no point in trying again. I mean rea-"

Ishigo had been regaining his senses on one knee as Yugeto approached mid-rant. As he finally felt his breathing rate return to an acceptable rate, Ishigo lunged at Yugeto, jabbing at his head and then spinning around to give him a strong elbow strike to the abdomen.

Yugeto ducked the jab, but took the brunt of the elbow strike, hurting his ribs and doubling back. "Y-you sneaky son of a bitch!" Yugeto's arm began to tingle with spirit, a raw energy that looked quite like silver-tinted pure light, opaque when dense and translucent when not so dense, that was then launched at Ishigo, surrounding him and slowly closing in on him to encapsulate him. Meanwhile, Yugeto's body began to be surrounded by the same energy.

Ishigo looked at the capsule that began to encase his body and he quickly stepped backwards, morphing into his own shadow and slipping backwards before the capsule could trap him. He then shot forward as a shadow on the ground, shaped like a spear. As he neared Yugeto, half of his body emerged from the shadow, and a cord of shadows also emerged, connecting to his arm. Within his hand, he held a solid, black spear, which he thrust at Yugeto with full force.

The mass of Spirit that was encapsulating Ishigo went rushing back to Yugeto, who used the raw Spirit already surrounding him to act as a buffer between himself and the Spear; Ishigo's spear of shadows began to glow the same silvery light that Yugeto's Spirit had, as he began to convert the shadow back into raw-spirit as the mass of energy Yugeto had sent forth earlier lingered under Yugeto's feet; from here, it was a battle of willpower, and an impressive one at that; two warriors with iron wills butting heads can only result in chaos.

Ishigo clenched his teeth and grunted as he strained to maintain the force he exerted into thrusting his spear at Yugeto. At every breath, the spear fell backwards, only to be pushed forward towards Yugeto when Ishigo regained the ability to push back. It was a near stalemate, though Ishigo knew that Yugeto had the upper hand - he was manipulating the spirit at will.

I'm going to try it. Ishigo thought as he continued to use all his might to push the spear forward.

'RIGHT NOW?! YOU'RE USING 100%![i]' Jin replied. Ishigo felt a small moment of retreat in his own strength, nearly losing the impasse. He struggled to continue, writhing in pain as the muscle in his arm threatened to tear. However, he inched closer and closer, until he finally let his other arm emerge from the shadow. The move caused Ishigo to gain a huge advantage in the power struggle, but Ishigo held on as his hand drifted to the ground near Yugeto.

"Y-you.... seriously.... talk too much," he said as his hand met the edge of Yugeto's shadow. Ishigo then pushed forward on his second arm with all his might - only seconds later, he let go of his spear hand, causing Yugeto to force it forward, winning the struggle. But the spear did not make contact with Ishigo. No, Yugeto was unable to push the spear any further, as his hand was caught by an unseen appendage. Behind him, Yugeto's own shadow had sprung from the ground to grasp his arm behind him while simultaneously hooking its other arm around Yugeto's neck. The arm that held his neck in place slowly formed into a blade shape, threatening to cut Yugeto were he to struggle.

Yugeto spat at Ishigo, then smiled slowly. "You play games too, eh?" Yugeto was impressed with the clever feat Ishigo had pulled off. "Me too. Except I cheat." The mass of energy that was lingering under Yugeto's feet split, partially covering Yugeto as Yugeto's shadow dissipated because Yugeto's corporeal form began to lose shape. The other half partially covered the part of Ishigo's shadow threatening him. "You're the best there is, soldier. But I've gotta go. I know you like games so I promise we'll finish this game another time," were Yugeto's last words before his mouth dissolved into Spirit that floated away from Ishigo.

Ishigo crouched as he regained his breath, looking up to see the strange, silver aura fly away mysteriously.

[i]'What exactly just happened? What kind of power was that?' Ishigo asked. However, this was one time where not even Jin had the answer, 'I do not know, Ishigo. But never has there been a time where I feared for your life as much as I did just now. You should head back.'

Ishigo stood up slowly, looking at the ground feeling slightly defeated. "There's no way we won't be seeing him again..." he said as he looked up at the sky around him. "Yugeto, huh? I'll be ready next time."

Vates
Rather than following Mr.Winters down, Vates decided to wait awhile and watched from his roof as his guest left the area. Their little meeting could have went south rather easily for Mr. Winters was a man he knew to have a bad temper, and whilst he chose to cautiously avoid the subject, he thought he might a have a kage. “Edward…” Janus whispered and before Vates could reply a vision ensued:



“Wow Janus, did you actually just give us a useful vision? I’m impressed.” Vates joked as he shook off the brief dizziness. He knew the bank he saw and now knew where he could find the mercenaries. The men on the rooftop meant little to him, but he’d be sure to avoid either of them if he could. The lair however was somewhere he recognised after thinking upon it… it belonged to Iktomi and he had clearly moved on. “Looks like he’s spinning his webs somewhere else” Vates muttered.

“Then I am I to assume we will be heading elsewhere?” asked Janus, ignoring the barb about the visions.

“Correct. I wouldn’t see Iktomi now anyway. If he’s giving out my location then he can’t care very much about my wellbeing. If he doesn’t care about my wellbeing then he probably doesn’t think I’m any use to him. And if he doesn’t think I’m any use to him then…” Vates furrowed his brow in frustration for a moment, “No. Instead I might as well head to the Golden Mercenaries and see what’s going on first hand. If I think they might stand a chance then I might even be able to help them.”

At that Vates finally left his sanctuary and felt a horrible twinge in his stomach when he realised he might not get a chance to come back. His worries weren’t so much with leaving the comfort of his apartment, but rather at leaving Marley, the boy turned beast he felt indebted to. There was nothing he could do for him now however.

---

Chief marched along the narrow street and he towered over the remnants of his gang. Some had not come back from hunting Vates, but most simply came back empty handed. Those that came back empty handed were not by his side now, although the remains of some filled his belly. His devouring left him even stronger and larger and he now stood at a whooping 7ft6. He wore no shirt, just a layer of wiry black hair and heavy scars. His black cargo pants had been roughly hewn together from multiple sets of trousers; they had to given his monstrous size. His boots were made of metal, crushed and bent into shape by his own powerful hands. “How much further?” he demanded with a strong voice, although it now seemed to have permanently adopted a slight metallic ring to it.

“If those refugees were right then we’re not far off. About another half an hour of walking.” replied Luca, his tattoo-laden second-in-command. Luca paused a few seconds after speaking and looked up at one of the overshadowing buildings. On the roof stood a mysterious woman in sleek black armour with a rifle on her back, watching the gang passively. “Shit, someone’s watching us!” he hissed as he tried to point her out. However by the time he or the others looked back up she had gone.

“Could be the Golden Mercenaries have look-outs. Not that it matters, I’m sure they’ll accept us with open arms…” Chief smirked, “Or else I’ll rip their arms off.” It was hardly the wittiest remark but the gang laughed along anyway, knowing better than to risk piss off their leader. Luca was surprised at the decision to join the Mercs and couldn’t help but wonder if Chief would willingly take orders from someone else. Then again it would only be for a short while, for Chief already made it clear that as soon as they were finished breaking the military that the Mercs would be just as much of an enemy.

Double post because I'm a selfish bastard who wanted the 200th post >:D