Chapter Four: Hot on the Trail

Kito straightened a moment, pausing in his work and wiping his brow. He looked about him slowly, this was definitely not something that he had seen himself ever doing. "How the mighty have fallen," rang through his head. Here he was a seasoned combatant, a leader in charge of forty to a hundred troops at a time, trained his whole life for war. Now he found himself reduced to construction work for a bunch of Norms. Sighing heavily he took of the leather gloves that protected his hands from the wood he was stacking. His strength and stamina were definitely a bonus on this job but rewarding to him it was not in any sense of the matter.

The others around him continued on with their work preparing the site for the new building that was going up here, oblivious to his own pause in work. This was drudgery worse than any perimeter patrol, any stake out that he had ever been assigned. He again regretted his decision to leave his life in Manticore. He would definitely trade it in a heartbeat for what he was reduced to. He did not regret freeing Max nor returning her to her husband, but the consequences of his own actions had left him in a position he was not nearly ready to be in.

He thought about Tima a moment and how well adjusted she seemed to be. But her story was far different than his was, she had only spent five years in training loosed on the world at age five. She was accustomed to the life on this side of the wires. He was now seventeen, and spent all but the last three and a half months sequestered into the life that was Manticore. He had lived, breathed, sweat and bled for Manticore it was in every fiber of his being. This world was vastly different, even if he had been in it before. Those trips were always with the knowledge that he would be able to get back to his perfectly ordered little world. He no longer had that safety net.

He found himself dealing with fits of depression that he knew was attributable to culture shock. There were days he literally could not function in this society, and he was in serious hot water with his boss for burning so many sick days so early in the job.

Kito's eye moved the man's direction as he scoffed under his breath. He was a thick man, and Kito didn't mean in a muscular way. He was named Murray and he was fat and pasty with dark sweat stains under each armpit and spiking down the middle of his shirt. He smoked big nasty burning weeds called cigars until they were mere nubs in his mouth, then he would proceed to chew the stump until it was soggy and falling apart in his darkly stained teeth. Kito could easily outwit him not to mention physically outmaneuver him. But he was trying to lay low and stay out of Manticore's radar, therefore his physical prowess had to be toned down considerably to keep from exposing himself.

Kito grimaced as he put his gloves back on and picked up another stack of six 2X4X12's and moved it to the general area it was needed. He was about to set it down when a feeling like a low voltage shock started just behind his left ear. Without knowing he had done it he dropped the stack loudly, drawing attention from the others on the site with him. His hand immediately went for the site of the distinctly uncomfortable feeling, rubbing it hard as if that would make the feeling dissipate.

Every muscle taut he looked quickly around him looking for someone he knew, looking to see the tracking device they were trying to use to locate his presence. He'd felt that a few times now, each time it had caused him to flee when the signal strummed over his still in place implant. But for some reason it they had seemed unable to find him and for the life of him he couldn't figure out why. There was nothing that he could recall happening that might have shorted it out or damaged it in some way. But the fact remained that it was inop, and that was every function the device was capable of, from two-way to tracking… Lucky for him. Otherwise he would definitely be dead now.

Slowly the pain faded away leaving him standing and shaking in the middle of the site all hands staring at his frozen form. Murray waddled his way over to Kito looking at him with general concern. Somewhere deep down that surprised Kito.

"Buddy I think you need to go lay down," He said in a deep raspy voice.

Kito's gaze moved sharply to the pudgy face a full head and a half below him, "What?" He whispered still keenly listening for that electric vibration that told him they were still searching, but the feeling was gone.

"You're a little pale, you been drinkin' water?"

"I'm fine," Kito insisted weakly.

"That's not a request, son that's an order," The pudgy man said sternly, "Go home and get some rest before you fall over!"

Kito's mouth thinned but he nodded gathered up his few possessions and turned away feeling shaken and weak. Murray was right, for once, he didn't feel so good. It was like the implant was short-circuited sending electricity into his system rather than functioning in the capacity it was created to. Slowly he made his way back to Tima's place.

Kenai walked along the street slowly following up on a lead that he thought might pan out. One thing he was sure of was that the people on the outside were a greedy lot and were easily persuaded to give over just about anything for the right amount of money.

The woman he had contacted had given him information on a man matching Kito's description applying for a job at a newly started construction site in the area and he was now headed that direction. Kenai pulled the tracking device out again turning it on and allowing time enough for it to accomplish a couple of sweeps.

"Nothing," Kenai grumbled looking at the negative results that were spat up onto the screen.

He heard the site well before he saw his objective, there was the sound of heavy machinery, hammers pounding nails, and saws chewing through wood. As he got there he stepped confidently through the gate looking over the motley crew of men and women constructing the framework for what would be a two-story mansion for some rich out of towners.

He frowned when he did not see Kito among those present. Sighing Kenai moved up to the closest of the workers stopping the diminutive woman as he asked, "Have you seen this man?" He asked in a shout over the din around him as he handed the woman a picture.

She looked Kenai in the face with a hard expression, "Yeah the foreman just sent him home," She shrugged not looking at him anymore as she continued, "He had some sort of seizure, just stood there in the middle of the yard board stiff and shaking. I don't know what came over him. What's your interest…" she looked back to the spot to find that he was not there anymore. She looked around a moment then shrugged turning back to her own work.

Kenai rummaged through the papers on the desk in the office sorting through the employee information that was haphazardly stacked there. His heart leapt as he found a file with Kito's picture blatantly in it. He was listed under an alias, as would be expected, he quickly memorized the number where he was reported to be living, hoping that he had not given over a false address. Most likely not, it would be the only way that he could get his paycheck. Kenai smiled tightly as he straightened.

"What are you doing in here?" A rough voice said from behind him.

Kenai didn't even blink he whirled on the man backhanding him hard. The man hit the opposite wall causing the whole trailer to shake with his impact. The now unconscious man slid down the wall and Kenai made a break for it, looking to casual observers like a dark streak across the dun colored dirt lot.

Kenai looked through the window of the apartment that was purported to be where Kito was staying. There was going to be no slip ups on this assignment, Kenai was not going to move in on the place until he was sure that Kito was there. So far he had seen no sign of him.

Kenai sat back against the rough brick face backing the balcony he was perched on, pulling out a ration bar and chewing on it methodically. He wondered how much longer it would be before he was able to get confirmation on his information.

It didn't take long, as he noticed motion inside the apartment in question. His heart beat faster as he got a good look at Kito passing by the window. Slowly Kenai stood his eyes narrowing and refocusing at the same time. He smiled tightly as he began to move off his perch. He stopped short as another person crossed the window. His breath caught in his throat as he recognized the woman, it was Tima!

"Two for the price of one," He whispered, "This is even better."

Again he started to move away toward the route that he had pre-planned to get to the rogue Transgenic. And again he froze as yet another familiar face passed by the narrow view of the window. The X-5 from the market! They all were in contact with each other? And if that were true where was the exceptional man that he had seen with her at the street market? This time he waited, curious to see if the man was with her. He watched as they all sat at a table near the window discussing something.

He looked away again as a thought occurred to him. He had to relay this information back to base, back to Torri. He was ill prepared to take on three Transgenics, besides they would want to know about the man, that he was here in Seattle and knew Kito and Tima.

It was time to return. They would not be happy that he had not completed his objective, but he would more than make up for it with the information he did have. And he would definitely need backup.