Author's Note:

First of all... I AM SO SORRY! It just seems like one thing after another. -_- My computer started having issues, I lost a large chunk of my material for this story and my Mass Effect one I was working on as well. So I have to re-write it all - AGAIN.

I know the intent was to post like... 6 chapters (I had all the way to 32 done!) in one week... but yea. That happened two weeks ago, and I was so bummed, it was hard to go backwards and rewrite everything.

But I'm over the "woe is me" phase and getting back into the swing of things. Now I just need to go back and copy text from the past 8 chapters so I have the entire story up until this point on my computer. 3

Anyways, sorry for the delay: you all wanted to know what was going on apart from the Guardians, so here it is -

we will get a glimpse of the "super creepy shape-shifting baddy" in the next two-three chappies. ^^

3 u all, and thank you!

-Love Kallen

Chapter 25

"It's been fucking months and still NOTHING!"

A large metallic table is flipped, sending bargaining chips, credits and lagers crashing to the floor along with Jack's feral, roaring voice.

Silence fills the room and the rank, stale air is thick enough to cut with a knife. At the moment, that knife was a literal knife which was being not-so-gently jammed into the wall beside a poor recruit's green-helmeted head.

The furious merc-leader spins around and pins a group with his venomous glare.

"YOU!"

The four attempt not to flinch, but some fail miserably.

"I want ANSWERS, and I want them TONIGHT!"

A flurry of 'yes captain's' and 'yes sirs' was half-heartedly thrown over shoulders as the small squad funnels out of the oppressing den in a flurry.

"That Berk will tell me what the fuck is going on with this scheme of his…" Jack circles the room, venting to his drunken and terror-stricken audience. "No more playing his fucking games! I wanna know what the fuck we are supposed to be doing!" Jack growls lowly again, before yanking a half-full mug of something from one of his top men's sloppy grasp.

"So far, we have raided the top three black-market sellers in the eastern district, monitored all shops in the area, and even tracked a freighter 200 light-years into the middle of bum-fuck space places, only to find that it was carrying nothing but poorly built mech units." Simone 'helpfully' supplies, cracking her knuckles as she walks forward, leaning against the nearest post.

"Thanks for the update Simone. I had no fucking idea of what we have done the past few months." Jack growls out, a few of the braver men chuckle at the exchange, but Simone just rolls her eyes before continuing.

"What I am trying to point out Captain, is it appears that none of these jobs are related to each other."

"Again, no shit Sim." A co-worker guffaws, receiving a rumble of mocking, manly giggles.

"Get to your point Simone…" Jack grounds out, taking another swig of his (well, of someone's) drink, before slamming it down.

"With all the respect in the universe, Jack… I think Berk is playing you."

There is a silence that drifts through the room.

Now she has their attention, and more specifically, Jack's.

"Every new-hire and freelancer out. Now."

In seconds the room is left with a roughly assembled team of sixteen.

"Repeat, Simone."

"Gladly," Simone strides across the room, closer to Jack, crossing her arms guardedly before she continues, "All of the jobs and the raids he hired us for during the first month seemed to be connected. Since the week-long siege on the Coriphius Tower, we haven't really had any legitimate 'jobs' – "

"Yea, they all seem more like bitch-men works, boss." A straggly bearded brunette adds in, earning himself a sharp glare from their "number one bitch."

"Yes… thank you Cratz." She turns back to Jack, who is still waiting for Simone, having blatantly ignored the drunken insert, "Anyways, he's right. These are more like errands. Some of these tasks he could've paid a smaller agency or team to do it if needed… but Berk has the money and people to do most of these things himself…"

"So what you are saying is he's been…?"

"Distracting us."

"But what would be the benefit of that? Or is he just toying with us? Seeing how long we will take these bitchy jobs until we riot or something? That's just stupid."

"Wouldn't think it past many of those upper-men to do something like that for fun – but that's not Berk's style."

"We are mercs. A fight team, we are no threat to anything he may want to accomplish – "

"Unless we were hired by a competitor, but in all contracts it's listed that we have no 'preference' and take no 'sides.'"

"Doesn't mean it can't happen."

"It's still not Berk's style. Have you ever met the bastard? My sister used to work for him. He's a giant, creepy but sophisticated bugger. He wouldn't give two shits about any of this."

Simone raises her voice in an attempt to re-focus the conversation. "So the question is –"

"What's his angle."

Silence blankets the room again.

"… I wonder…"

Everyone in the room looks towards one of their youngest members, John, "I wonder if it's not to way-lay us from being aware of what's going on around us."

The room just looks at him, the poor teen sweats as he attempts to re-gather himself, which is already difficult a job enough being the smallest – but being pinned by every roughian's stare in the seemingly-cramped room just added to the pressure.

"W-what I mean is… we've been so busy with this onslaught of tasks, errands and grunt work that we haven't really had the time this past month, until today, to all get together or to even think about anything other than our work."

"So… it could very well be meant as a distraction." A member adds.

"Yes, exactly." John grins triumphantly, proud to be making a contribution, "but what I can't figure out yet, is from what exactly…"

There is a hushed murmur throughout, everyone collaborating on what could have been missed. Jack furrows his brows as he stares at the filthy floor.

"Sir," a buff, emerald Zehoberi woman steps out from behind her comrades, urgency in her voice. "This may or may not be connected, but… our little pet is still with him… right?"

The leader gives her a 'no shit' glower, "Yes. We have been receiving checks each week. It's work is probably just as useless as ours is,"

The woman, Saiah, approaches Jack with confidence and urgency in her steps, a determination set on her thick brow. "Trono, Bard and I have attempted to track her UPS the other day, with no luck."

Jack's entire form goes rigid. Everyone holds his or her breath as the absence of their pet starts to sink in. It is at this moment that the rest of the group knows to get the fuck out, before one of them is permanently pinned to the wall.

He's so pissed, Jack sees nothing but red as he snarls, "What…?"

It is at this moment that the rest of the group knows to get the fuck out, before one of them is permanently pinned to the wall.

Bravely, Trono, one of the lieutenants, takes over for Saiah while she bites her tongue, undoubtedly as pissed off as he himself is.

"We're unsure how long the link has been disabled. It has ne'er failed us befo,' Keptin. Saiah, Bar' an' myself think the entire sit'ation is suspect." Trono rolls forward on his large, clawed feet, his rough, leathery hands clasped firmly behind his back as he reports dutifully.

Bard grunts as he nods in agreement, toying with the large toothpick hanging from his lips. "Boss, I don' know what to think of this guy… but regardless of how annoying that lil' bitch can get, it's an asset."

"Troublesome is more like it," Saiah mumbles in distaste.

The three pause, allowing their leader to process. After knowing him for almost a decade, they still aren't quite sure how he is likely to react to given situations.

They can only hope for the best, and pray that they won't end up like their group member Susilli after the "Garganton Incident" three years back.

Currently, Jack was about as red as his clothing and his hair. Breathing hard through his nostrils like an earthen bull, attempting to calm himself in order to collect his thoughts.

Suddenly, the tension in his shoulders dissipates as he moves across the room to his worktable cluttered with devices. His three lieutenants hold their ground as they wait with bated breaths.

"Well then…"

Jack turns and gives them a devilish grin.

"Looks like we will need to call on our little friend, surely he could help us out…"

Saiah smirks with Jack as Trono nods diligently and Bard lets out a heavy sigh.

"Damn… feel bad for that kid." He mutters, but is paid no attention to as Jack turns and leaves the room.

Minutes later, the room is plunged into darkness. Left empty, dirty and stale. Unbeknownst to the soulless room, a small, discrete red light is lit – blinking at the rhythm of a human heartbeat under the flipped-over metallic table as it processes all audio that had been recorded.

On the other side of the crime-ridden city, seated in his large, stuffed chair, Berk allows a small grin to set on his face.

"Good work, boy. Seems letting your little friend go free was the right choice after all."

"That is because now they will assume this was your intent, instead of whatever you are really doing, right?"

A sharp grin finally splits his gray face in half, "Yes, my boy. You are quite the smart one, aren't you?" he pats the kid's mussy blonde locks before standing to move away.

"Now you must think of another plan… they will be after you shortly."

Tan allows himself a prideful grin before reaching to grab his hand-made spying gadget off his boss's large, oak desk, "I think I have one already, sir."

AN:

Yea, will have to expand on this later... lots of new questions... yes? :]

R&R!

Kallen