Kathrine stood in the silence. One lone candle flickered near the edge of the bar, making long eerie shadows dance and bounce off the walls. She could hear the mechanical click of a pocket watch that she held behind the counter. Finding actual, working, wall clocks was rare for Omega businesses, but pocket watches were common so long as you could keep them running. The floors, tables, counters, even chairs were all wiped clean, and all the mugs Kathrine used that night were soaking in a warm bath of bubbles to get the grime off. It was rather peaceful.

Checking her watch she noticed that it was getting into the early hours of the morning. Her coworker had long gone, and she had simply been passing the time doing meaningless chores to keep from going to her home. With a sigh she pushed herself off of the counter and was about to open the front door to leave when she saw something that made her very, very nervous.

A man, by the looks of it a Beta, was talking to someone who was obviously a Reaper. What is a Reaper doing here? What is a Beta doing here?! She thought to herself. Kathrine slowly eased herself away from the window, which was in such a position that, if the Reaper had turned around, he could blatantly see directly inside her store. The Beta was facing her direction, but she was unsure of where the man was looking and if he had seen her.

Moving slowly, Kathrine licked one finger and pressed it into the candle, putting out the flame. She grabbed a mug out of the tub it was laying in and shook off the water. Calmly, she edged behind the dark counter and poured herself a glass of the first bottle she grabbed. She wasn’t going anywhere just yet.

“My shift ended at 16:00, sir. I’m working on an extra assignment given to me by Alpha Linville. There was a printing error in the New Information Department, and he gave me the job of collecting the misprinted copies. I’m to be back at the train station by 19:00, so if you’ll kindly excuse me,” explained the Beta.

Jacob was unsure if the man was telling the truth, but if he was, he figured it would be best to let him fix the issue. He didn’t need an Alpha on his case while he was training to be a Reaper.

“You are dismissed,” Jacob responded.

The man nodded respectfully and went his own way. Jacob watched him disappear into a bar, and he began to wonder what prints went to a bar. Omegas were busy distracting themselves with alcohol from the problems their lives posed, not reading at a bar. Then again, the pages the man spoke of could have been propaganda, but the State wasn’t worried about the Omegas. Propaganda or not, intensive security or not, the Omegas were the Omegas—a lame bunch of people who could barely keep their lives together. They posed no threat to the State, and therefore propaganda wasn’t as common in the Omega districts as it was in the Beta districts. Maybe the man was lying. But the databases would give Jacob his answer.

Rule 34, Section IV: The database is a tool given to all ranks of Reapers. In the case of your rank, Epsilon, you will have access to basic information about citizens, work shifts and hours, and a list of recent permissions. Use of this information for personal gain is strictly prohibited. The databases will be used to help protect the State from traitors and traitors solely.

"And a list of recent permissions."

If the man was telling the truth, Jacob would be able to verify his claims on the database. Jacob had a newfound sense of urgency in his weakened body.

The sound of footsteps echoed throughout the hallway. James continued to walk into the dark, abandoned apartment complex. He was in the 5th floor of the complex where the supposed insurgent was held up in a room with the hostage. He then approached a door that had a small placard on it that said 513. This was it. James knocked on the door only to immediately hear someone scramble in a rush and then there was a distinct scream of a little girl. James' eye's narrowed. He heard a muffled but still audible "Get away! I'll shoot the girl!" James loudly said "Mr. Lee, my name is James and I am here as a negotiator. If you talk to me, then we can work something out." He heard Mr. Lee respond "Then talk!" James responded "Sir, I can't negotiate until I know that the hostage that you have is safe and unharmed. You have to open the door and let me in if we are going to talk." He soon heard the locks on the door rattle and then the door was opened slightly. "Come in slowly with your hands up." James was ordered. So, that's what he precisely did. He walked into the dark room and saw a nervous man, who looked like he was in his early thirties, pointing a pistol directly at him. In Mr. Lee's other arm was the little girl, about 7 years old based on how she looked. She looked terrified, but it didn't look like she had been injured or anything like that. That came as a relief to James for two reasons. One, the girl was safe, but two, the man wasn't completely out of his mind. People with political causes had some morality and sense of responsibility, so James was sure that Mr. Lee wasn't some psychopathic sicko.

"Close the door behind you and lock it." Mr. Lee ordered. James did as he was told again. Mr. Lee then asked "Are you armed?" James said "Yea, I'll take them out and give to you." He slowly reached into his pockets and pulled out his taser and handcuffs. Mr. Lee said "Drop them on the floor, and then sit down over there." indicating to a chair. James slowly crouched and dropped the items. He then proceeded to slowly walk to the chair until he finally sat down about four meters away from Mr. Lee. Mr. Lee then asked "What is that thing in your ear?" referring to James' earpiece. James responded "It's a radio. If you make demands, then I can tell the government to get it.", which was partially true. The earpiece was meant to do that, but it also allowed the other members of the team to know exactly what was going on in the room, allow them to hear everything and record it. That was standard procedure. Anyone thought to be a threat would have almost every conversation tapped into and recorded. In fact, you could bet that even most of the Reaper's homes and offices were bugged as well. After all, someone had to watch the watch dogs.

Mr. Lee appeared to have been satisfied with James' answer. But, it was clear that he was nervous still even though James was at his mercy especially when he couldn't hold the pistol straight due to his arm shaking slightly. It appeared that the people's fear of the government was such that even a gun couldn't make them feel safe either, and to this man James was a manifestation of the government. The Leviathan sat in from of this man. Perhaps James should give him more credit than he's being given. It takes a lot to stand against the government like what Mr. Lee was doing. Unfortunately, he probably wasn't going to stand for much longer. James heard in his ear "Get the girl out, Wolff. The second you do that. We have free reign." James opened his mouth and said "Mr. Lee, I know that you are not a murderer, and I'm not going to just ask you to surrender cause I already know that you're going to say no at this moment. But, will you please let that girl go? There's no need to involve innocent kids in the world of violence. After all, since I'm here. I'm probably a more valuable hostage than she is. I am a Reaper after all. Mr. Lee visibly tensed up at the word Reaper, but his eyes were those of someone thinking. James then heard his earpiece go off again. "Good. Begin in 15 seconds." James couldn't help, but mutter "What?" Mr. Lee yelled "What are they saying?" as his grip on both the gun and the girl tightened.

James heard "Wolff! Distract him for 10 seconds." Recovering from his small blunder, James said "It's nothing. They're just trying to prepare stuff if you let the girl go." Then the sound of footsteps could be heard in the hallway. Mr. Lee turned his head toward the door and yelled "That doesn't sound like...!" James sprang up from chair and leaped at Mr. Lee's arm. A quick, but deafening boom filled the room followed by the scream of a little girl. The pistol had went off. Perhaps it was the adrenaline, but James didn't feel any pain. He continued on his trajectory and grabbed the arm. Beginning a deadly wrestling match. The pistol went off again, but this time it was pointed at the ceiling. "BREACH!" The door slammed open, and some familiar, heavily armed men poured into the room and began to subdue Mr. Lee. James was pushed off by one of the men. He looked around the room and noticed the girl trapped in the tumble. He quickly walked over, and pulled her out. James asked her "Are you okay?" The girl looked scared still and began to stutter "I di-di-didn't do anything b-bb-bad. Please don't take me away." James was taken back by what the girl said, and a bit offended. Did kids also fear the government this much? James said "You're not in trouble. We're just going to make sure that you're not hurt and then take you back to mommy and daddy, okay?" as he tried to give his best reassuring smile. The girl looked a bit skeptical, but nodded. Just then Mr. Tweed walked in. James looked at him and said "Sir, I thought we were supposed to try and make him surrender." in a somewhat accusatory tone. Mr. Tweed said "Correction, we wanted to try and make sure that the kid got out safely. We did try." James then thought "Yea, for 20 damned seconds.", but didn't voice it.

Mr. Tweed then forcefully took the girl's hand and said sternly "Come on. We're going back to base." James said "Sir, aren't we taking her back to her home after a health inspection?" Mr. Tweed replied "Are you stupid? This girl interacted with a potential insurgent. She may know things from the time she spent with him. We are questioning her first before we do anything else." The armed men then finished arresting Mr. Lee and began to walk him out of the room. Mr. Tweed began to walk out as well, but then he said "Oh, good job by the way. You're still naive and have a lot to learn, but you did good today, kid. I'll put in a good word for you." He then left the room with the girl in tow, who looked back at James with pleading eyes. James shamefully looked down at his feet to advert his eyes. He prayed that the girl wouldn't be taken to the Room.

James then remembered. The first pistol shot. He looked all over his body, but there was no wound. He then began to look around the room. The victim was the wall right next to his chair. James sighed a breath of relief. He heard from his earpiece "You're lucky." It was Mr. Hayha's voice. "He missed by an inch and a half. Three inches to the left, and you would have a hole in your heart." It was clear that Mr. Hayha was watching the room still from somewhere. James walked to the window and began searching. It was to no avail. Mr. Hayha was a master at his art after all, but the fact that James couldn't see him sent shivers down his spine. Somewhere, Mr. Hayha was pointing a rifle at him, and even though James knew, unlike Mr. Hayha's victims. He still couldn't find the legendary sniper. James stepped away from the window. He gathered his things, and began to follow the rest of the men who had already gone ahead to the armored van. Today was not an easy day, but then again. The only easy day was yesterday.