AN: Sorry about the late chapter. these last few weeks have been packed and crazy including family gatherings, drama and even a bit if summer illness.


Xero laid her partner gently onto the bench and pressed on her ring communicator.
-NO SIGNAL-
It read across the screen.
"What?" she said concerned, "I'm supposed to have signal around here," she said searching through recent memory or the last time she had ever lost signal anywhere.
Xero's train of thought was broken by the moaning sound her partner let out. She looked at him and for a moment hesitated to leave his side. But she saw few alternative options.
"I will be right back, I promise," she said, placing a hand on top of his now burning forehead.


Eyes watched as Xero left the bench and the agent. This was what they were waiting for.


Xero ran less than 12 feet away from Zero and the bench, her communicators signal jumped from 0G to 5G. "That's unusual, she said as she dialed for an MEV" (Modifyer emergency vehicle).
"Access code?" A voice on the other line of the communicator asked in a demanding tone.
"11-24-64," Xero said as she turned back to her unconscious partner.
"What is your emergency agent Xero?"
"My partner has collapsed due to a previous injury. We need assistance immediately."
"We are sending someone to your location right now. Just stay where you are."
"Thank you," Xero said as she turned back to her partner hoping to get back to him as soon as possible.
She stopped, her feet stuck to the ground as though she was glued in place, her heart aching as though she was just struck with lightning. What she saw, or actually what she didn't see had frozed her in place.
He was gone. Her partner was gone. Zero was gone.
She ran to the bench she had laid him on a moment ago and looked around frantically. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something, or rather someone.
She turned quickly towards the road and locked eyes with a person… a creature shrouded in a gray robe, crystal white eyes looking back at her. Just as soon as she saw the creature it was gone, it using the manhole to cover the sewer it had crawled out off.
Xero quickly ran to the man whole. "At best this creature… person…. Whatever it was, saw what happened to Zero. At worst it has him."
Xero felt a cold shiver go down the spine as she heard the familiar moan from within the sewer. "Zero!" that cold shiver was replaced with a burning anger as she removed the manhole and jumped inside the sewers, no plan in mind, no back up contacted, no nose plugs to deal with the foul smell.
"Zero!" she yelled into the darkness.


The figure in the gray robe stopped at the sound down the pipe that they had come from. The creature in gray turned towards a figure dressed in a brown robe next to them.
"She's following us. She wasn't supposed to do that" the figure in brown said in a panicked voice. "What are we going to do."
The figure in gray was hesitant for a moment. "We capture her too," the figure said. "That creature leaves us with little choice."


Xero walked down the sewers, a pocket-sized flashlight (courtesy of her utility belt) helped her walk through the muck down below the streets. She could still hear a moan from within even the sounds of splashing in the… water. "Zero," she whispered. The sounds getting closer and closer.
"...Xero." a faint voice said in the distance.
Xero ran toward the sound of Zero's voice, her heart racing, thoughts of the mysterious figure she was following escaping from her mind.
As she turned the corner she saw him. She saw Zero at the end of the tunnel laying on the ground, his arm draped across his wounded shoulder, his skin a sick gray color she had never seen before.
She ran to him. "Zero I can't believe I almost lost you, I need to get you out of here before-"
Xero was cut off as a figure in gray ran at her from the right side of the tunnel, a conjoined section she hadn't noticed. The figure collided with her and pinned her to the wall.
"Quick," the figure in gray yelled to another figure in brown, "get him and go."
"NO," Xero yelled as she fought against her attacker, its hands as cold as ice. Xero quickly rolled one of her feet behind her attack and with all her weight, pushed against them, pushing the attacker in gray to the ground. Xero started to run after the one in brown.
She was suddenly stopped as her attacked grabbed onto her foot and as if by magic froze it to the ground in a block of ice.
Xero's attacker was quickly back on their feet, ready to flee.
Xero quickly pulled out her flamethrower and freed her foot. She then attacked a grappling hook (courtesy of her utility belt) and shot it at her opponent's feet before she could escape.
Xero's opponent fell to the floor, into the murky water.
Xero quickly ran to the end of the line until it suddenly went limp. Xero quickly pulled the end to herself only to see that it was cut. She looked around, her opponent nowhere to be seen. Xero looked around frantically, her eyes darting back and forth, the sound of splashes surrounding her. To Xero's unawareness, a figure cloaked in gray rose from the sewer water behind her.
The figure was suddenly on Xero's back pushing all of its weight down on her, Xero's face coming closer and closer to the murky water. At that moment Xero looked into the murky water and saw her attacker. A woman around her age, with snow-white hair and crystal clear eyes.
"Please," Xero pleaded with her attacker, "let me take him back. He's injured. I can lose anyone else again. I've lost too many already."
The attacker suddenly stopped, Xero's pleas appearing to strike a chord. "Who have you ever lost," the voice said coldly, devoid of compassion.
"My parents. They left me when I was 7. They never came back," Xero said, a few tears sliding off her face and into the murky water.
The attacker was looking at the murky water now. Her glances not on Xero, but to herself, the thought of what she was doing suddenly striking her. "What am I doing," she whispered to herself. All the pent up rage unleashed on an undeserving, standard… human.
The attacker suddenly moved off of Xero. Rage, anger, even fear was all along across her face.
Xero turned to look at her.
Xero's attacker shook her head, an idea, a bad one at that, formed within her head. "Your modern medical technology can't save him. We can."
Xeros attacker suddenly extended out her cold hand, "I can't believe I am offering you this, but if you come with me peacefully I can help you get to your friend.
Xero looked at her attacker's hand, and like jumping into a dark sewer system or fighting an opponent with magic, Xero didn't hesitate. "Whatever it takes."


Xero's attacker pulled on the chain connected to the cuffs that were now wrapped and restraining Xero's hands. She continued to lead them further and further into the sewers.
"So," Xero said unhappy, "what do I call you?"
"Shut up," the former attacker said.
Suddenly Xero's communicator ring went off.
The attacker looked startled. "Who is that? What did you do?"
Xero remained calm. "It's my communicator. I'm going to answer it."
"You say anything about where you are and you can forget about seeing your partner again," she threatened.
Xero just shook her head in understanding and answered the communicator. "Agent Xero here."
"Mrs. Whitman here. I just got a notification that an MEV was sent to your location. But neither you nor your partner was at the location. Care to explain?"
"Oh, Zero is just a little sick, the long day has worn him down. Nothing to worry about. If anything he was just messing with me by pretending to be sick."
Mrs. Whitman sounded unamused. "Remember agent. No more mistakes. Using Modifyers resources to play games is teetering along that line."
"Don't worry, it won't happen again," Xero said reassuringly. " I'm going to get him back."
Mrs. Whitman didn't say anything else as she hung up.
Xero looked at her communicator ring for a moment before turning to her attacker. "I did as you asked. Now take me to my friend."
Xero's attacker looked at her for a moment and nodded. "We're almost there."
"And where is there?"
The attacker lead Xero toward a large pipe opening. "Welcome to Redemption, an underground city under your own Forgo City."
Xero looked at the brightly lit underground city, old buildings were pieced together by any means possible. Down on the streets below Xero saw creatures that were as large as regular people, and to some extent, looked like regular people. But many had what looked like hybridized features such as scales, fur or feathers. Some looked like oversized bipedal animals.
Xero's attacker looked at her again. "My name is officer Copo Nieve. I am part of an organization known as the MPC (Mutant protection Corp). We work around the clock to foil the schemes of any wrongdoers within this town. And you and your friend are under arrest."