Tales of Remnant

by MCkimchi

Hello everyone! This is the first draft of "Tales of Remnant" a little spinoff a friend and I wrote together. It follows Rico, a dust smuggler in Mistral who finds himself too deep with the notorious Spider and Adler gangs (and possibly something even bigger). We plan on writing at least two more of these, but we would love some feedback and see how this one does.

Chapter 1

"Man I hate the cold.", I whispered to myself.

My breath lingered in the air as the moonlight shone through it. The balconies above me limited the snow that was slowly drifting to the ground. Shadow Town was a bad place to be at night, especially like how I was, standing on the side of a dark alleyway. It was a place of robberies, gang activity, murder. But I had gotten used to it nonetheless. I saw people occasionally move on the street in front of me but none dared to travel alone I noticed. Sounds of footsteps behind startled me at first but then I realize why I was even in this place. I placed my hand on the hilt of my dagger underneath my cowell just in case it was someone else but then I heard a familiar gruff voice.

"It is awfully cold out here.", the stranger said.

"It is but I didn't bring my winter coat.", I replied. The stranger stopped next to me facing the street that I was looking at.

"A shame, but it sure is good to know that it's you Rico."

"The same could be said for you as well Damson. How was your travels?" Damson walked in front of me and faced me, his hood concealing his face.

"Good but the woods outside of Haven are acting up a little bit more than usual. More grimm activity and the occasional White Fang encampment."

"The White Fang..?", I scoffed, "...why do you think they are way the hell out here?"

Damson shrugged, "Beats me, as long as I can travel without being disturbed that is all there is to it." He put his hand on my shoulder, "But how are You doing here in Mistral is my question?"

I looked at him and saw two perfect blue eyes from a sea of black that was the shadow of his hood. "Things are getting a bit weirder here in Mistral. I took a walk down the main street to the black market and I saw Spiders harassing people for no reason…"

"And?"

"I had a couple of my acquaintances look into it and it seems like the gang's here are making a power play."

A surprised look came about on his face, "Does this mean our business is being harmed in any way?"

"It doesn't seem like it… From what I could gather is that the Spiders are now the top dogs down here."

He crossed his arms, "As long as you can still keep doing what you are doing you should be fine. Lay low and keep your buyers holding on a thread. Ever since Atlas closed its borders, it really is hard to acquire the Dust your buyers want..", he pulled a small satchel from the side of his belt, "...Now I actually have to leave the kingdom in order to get what they need."

"Unrefined Dust… What did you do before Atlas closed its borders?", I asked.

"In short, I go to my contact who already brings in shipments of Dust into the city and pay him to get the unrefined stuff he receives on the side of all his orders. That's all changed now. I have to leave the city and…"

He trailed off. A couple walked down the alleyway we were in. Damson put the satchel back on his belt and reached for his pistol in a holster strapped to his leg. The couple hurried past us and their footsteps came to a mere crackle of snow and dirt in the distance.

"You were telling me about how you operate now…", I said.

Damson kept looking over my shoulder at the couple who passed by,"Perhaps a later time. This isn't exactly the right place to be talking about that."

I gave him a confused look, "What's gotten into you lately? Don't tell me that you got a price on your head."

"On the contrary Rico, I have my own sources telling me of several new crack squads out to stop the underworld Dust ring."

"What?..",I questioned.

"They say that selling and distributing unrefined Dust was and still is illegal, but they want to find a way to stop people from acquiring the stuff in the first place."

I gave out a small laugh, "Well then they should have done that a long time ago…" I stopped, "But what is it about this stuff that I sell exactly do?"

"There are stories that people like to experiment on Unrefined Dust to understand its components and uses..."

"...So basically the Atlas military want to stop the research and development of their own products.", I finished.

Damson gave me a rude look, "No you dimwit, Atlas knows what they are doing to the impurities of the Dust. Poisons, medicine and other stuff can be made of the impurities. Snake oil I call it but the impurities do some pretty nasty stuff to a person. I'm talking getting an arrow to the shoulder laced with the stuff and not feeling it until many many days later."

"That is a slow way to die."

"Yes but it is an effective way to take someone out. Other impurities cause different effects if you convert it to a poison."

I shrugged, "I say that is pretty neat. But is that the reason why these people are after you? Just because you smuggle it through the kingdom?"

"No, they are after me because they know that if I were to be caught, they would find a whole lot of information." He smirked. "But…. I am in good company," , he looked into my eyes, "...considering you aren't going to turn me in anytime soon."

I shook my head, "No I don't believe I will. Where else would I have to make money?"

He nodded, "You could always get an ACTUAL job instead of doing illegal things like this."

"Meh.", I said.

He nodded again, "Alright, your hear about any news from Beacon or Vale?"

"No, the CTC towers spiel is messing up communication world wide. You'd think that Atlas would have a better way of securing its towers and figuring out a fallback plan if the tower were to fall."

Damson didn't seem impressed by what I said. "Now that is the Haven you're talking about."

"Hey! I left that place and good riddance because that place was holding me back..", I interjected.

He laughed, "I'm just messing with you Rico, I know that you have a profound hatred for that damned place."

The snow kept flowing down from the maze of wires and balconies, but it built up significantly over the time Damson and I talked. "We should get this done and over with, I've got to meet another contact on the other side of town.", Damson replied.

I grabbed a small pouch and handed it to him. "This has your royalties and the fee to pay for the Dust."

"The price has gone up but in this case I will let you slide, but next time be ready to cough some more lien because it's hurting me as an entrepreneur.", he winked.

He gave me the satchel and I put it on my belt underneath the cowell. "You still rockin' that sick hair of your's or did you dye it to another color again?". I scoffed and then pulled back my hood ever so slightly. Under his hood a smile "Huh, you cut off a bit. Going for the short hair route?"

"You bet Damson, it is about time I did that. Let the past be the past you know?"

He looked up at the moon, "Yeah, I guess so…."

"I guess it is time for us to leave now.", I said.

"Rico, I have something I need to ask of you before I go." His face had a hint of concern, "I want to ask you, have you ever considered going out on an adventure?"

"An adventure…?", I said with surprise. I had never left Mistral, and this was an odd request to leave the only place I ever knew. "...what kind of adventure?"

"The kind where it will make you big bucks, where you wouldn't have to live in a dump like this. I have a contact out on the western coast of Mistral. There is a small town called Copperas Cove. There you will meet up with a friend of mine, his name is Bi Song, and from there I will meet up with you there. I can't give you all the information now but I promise that it will be a score of a lifetime." He put his arm on my shoulder again. "That is of course if you are wanting to leave this place behind and start anew."

He was referring to the life I've already made within the underworld. I looked at the snow-covered ground. "I will consider it Damson, if it means a lifetime supply of money maybe I'll take up on your offer."

A laugh, "Always wanting to get the most out of everything eh Rico?"

"You know it man."

He punched me in the chest, "You take care of yourself out there. I heard that the police are in on cracking down dealers too. Be safe and stay out of sight."

I looked back at him, "You too man, and thanks for helping me out."

Damson smiled again and then left behind me back the way he came. I put my back to the wall and looked both ways of the alley. Damson left before I could even catch a glimpse of him leaving, only a trail of boot prints being filled up by the ever increasing snowfall. During our conversation, I had almost forgotten that I was nearly freezing out in the cold weather.

'Bout time I left', I thought.

I slipped my hands in my pockets and walked down to the street that I had my eyes on the whole time I talked to Damson. One thing I couldn't shake from my mind was how and why he told me to go on an adventure like that. The wind picked up and the snow drifted around my legs as I walked down the street. Taverns and bars lit up the street and the sounds of laughter, the clinking of glasses and the snore of a drunk made me smile. I enjoy the underworld, the sights the sounds and the people make this place seem more lively than the other sectors of Mistral. This is the life I chose to live, crime excites me to be more ambitious, more daring than I ever was. I made connections, established a name for myself in this wretched hive of scum and villainy. But then I remembered back to what Damson said. Living here isn't the life for me, I wanted to make a name for myself and I did.

But what if history will remember me for this job Damson is talking about. He hasn't let me gone astray so far so maybe, just maybe, I should do this job. I kept pondering about it then stopped. Let time tell and we shall see what it does for me.

Chapter 2

The snow picked up and I kept walking, wind brushing against my feet. It felt like minutes of icy steps in the snow until two bimbos got shoved out of a bar and ran into me. The guys looked beyond being drunk, with their purple clothes all stained with dried up beer and alcohol. They dressed as if it was a uniform, but then my eyes caught on their distinctive eight-legged markings.

I recognized their faces; it was from a couple nights ago where I stole a bunch of money that they won at a game of cards. They seemed too drunk to even pose an actual threat. I shrugged off the feeling that they would bother me.

"These guys, of all the damn thugs and thieves in this town why did it have to be them, and make them that they are also Spider members?!", I hissed through my teeth. I attempted to walk past them intoxicatedly on the floor, but the one closest to me shot out his arm and caught my ankle.

"...MM...HEyyy!", he said with a slur in his voice.

"Shove off man, let go of my leg!", I shouted.

The other man swayed his way up on his knees,"..N…N*hicc*..Now thas' not a way ta ta..lk to ya save-yours!" The guy's hand tightened around my ankle as he shouted at me, "WE NEED YOUR MONEYYYYY!"

"THE ONLY THING YOU ARE GOING TO GET BACK IS A FACE FULL OF MY SHOE!", I shouted back as I struggled to lose his grip on my ankle.

I reached for my knife as his other hand leached at the sides of my pants making me lose balance and fall to my left knee. His breath made me want to vomit, just by smelling it alone would have made me drunk. The man's eyes grew bigger as he saw complections of my face.

"YOu! YOU! Yo..'re the one who...who…"

His burp intoxicated my lungs as I grabbed his arm and press down on his pressure points. It only made him more angry, "...tha' made...no...no….thi's not right.."

I took the opportunity by punching his arm as he was under thought. The man on his knees finally stood up with unease in his step, hurled all over the ground and dropped to the vomit covered road, steam rising from the puddle itself. I decided to punch his face, I didn't want to get to this point but I had no choice. His grasp loosened and then he gave way. He shook his head after the hit to his head and looked at me with hatred in his eyes.

"You're the one who stole from our table that one night at cards! YOU BASTARD!"

"We don't have to fight man, It was only-",

I stopped mid-sentence. Snow erupted from the sides as he threw himself against me and I fell with him to the ground.

"That money was supposed to be for my dues I owed to the gang and you just stole it!", he said angrily, "Now I owe the gang everything i have and you just up and had to ruin it for me!"

I shoved him off of me, kicked him in the chest and crawled backwards. He grunted and grinded his crooked teeth. I stood up and he did the same, The light from the bar and the moonlight illuminated the road and for a second, it was calm. He drew his knife without hesitation and charged at me. I smirked for a second, drew my hood further over my head and clenched my fist, this is gonna be good. He took a swing with his knife at me, I took a step back and took advantage of his swing and strike at his neck as hard as I could. The snow underneath my foot didn't make it easier as I tried to pivot, and I had missed my shot, only to punch him on the shoulder with my pinky knuckle.

"AHH, SHIT!", I cried out in pain. The man attacking me laughed. "Come at me then punk!", I said to him.

He threw his knife at me and went for a punch at my chest. The knife almost struck true but I side-stepped the blade as it whistled by my face. A blunt force struck my shoulder blade and I cried out in pain again. I turned around and faced my assailant fists up, back to the bar, and ready to take a shot at him. He did the same and taunted me by giving me the 'come at me' gesture. An inner rage shuddered through my blood, I spun myself towards his position and with all my might I swung my fist at his head. At first he stopped the brunt of the blow with his arms but I was simply swinging too hard. The side of my fist hit the side of his head and tilted further and further as I saw him fall down from my swing. His eyes rolled back into his head as he went still.

"MY GODS! Did you kill him?!", his buddy cried out from behind me. He crawled his way over to his buddy. "Gurk?! Gurk, com'on wakeup!"

The man shook Gurk and checked his breathing. I held my hand from the pain from before and I watched as I heard the sigh of relief as I assumed Gurk finally returned to consciousness. The man looked back at me, "You could've killed him!"

"Yeah but I didn't did I? He started the fight-"

"Yeah but he had every right to!" he blurted, "You may have gotten it away the first time by stealing from us but you won't get away this time!"

I scoffed at the man. "Do you really think the police would really come after me, with such outrageous claims? You have no proof to say I stole from him and they would just rule it as self-defense on my part." I gave him a shrug. "You got nothing on me."

The man's yellow teeth gnarled at me, "We will see about that…"

"Hey!", a voice piped in from behind.

I didn't realize that the light was blocked by other people who came out from the bar and stood behind me. A girl significantly shorter than me came out in front of me and had her hands on her hips.

"If you boys are done here maybe you should get off of our turf!", she said in an adorable voice.

The men behind me grunted in agreement and the man next to Gurk gave an astonished look about his face. I smiled and crossed my arms. Gurk groaned with pain as the man raised him up on his feet and proceeded to walk away.

"I know who you are Rico Wilker, this won't be the last time you see us ! Don't mess with the SPIDERS!", Gurk hastily spat out as he was being carried away down the snowy street.

Men behind me spat in their direction, and I heard one of them yell out,

"Don't come back here you Spider hoodlums! This is Adler territory!" and the rest of them yelled together.

The snow turned into little wisps in the winds and landed with steam coming off of my face and skin overheating from the fight. The little girl looked down the road until they were no longer in sight. She turned around and my eyes gazed at her, but I couldn't help but recognize the beauty she had. Atop with a headband littered with flowers and leaves surrounded her almost-silky look of brown-red hair and cat ears that poke out from the tangle of leaves. Her white skin glowed in the moonlight and pale blue eyes reflected the stars. She definitely could charm her way out of a deadly situation. She snapped in my face,

"Remnant to Rico, are you there?"

I smiled at how stupid I was to get caught in her trap.

" Yes I am here, recollecting myself from your abruptness in my fight."

"Well now isn't the time to dawdle in the cold. Can we please go inside?"

The men behind me moved up to lend her their jackets and she accepted one and began to hobble back inside the bar. I turned around and I followed her into the bar. It was something about her that made me lose my concentration but I couldn't figure it out. I let it go and followed her and her entourage of gangsters into the bar. I looked at the sign next to where the door should be but I couldn't make much sense of the scratched out paint and wood markings on it. One of the gangsters came up and noticed what I was doing,

"Look at how the wood has been etched out.", he said.

Following his finger that followed the markings and I figured it out. Up close it made no sense but from afar it was the Crest of the Adlers.

He winked at me, "Just in case the other's don't know where they are", and laughed as he went inside.

It amused me, because the Spiders were trying to be the top dogs around town and now they just got asses handed to them by a scoundrel and scared off by a rival gang.

A small girlish laugh came from within the bar, "Why are you still standing outside the door like a lost child? Something in your way?"

"Now now, that isn't a way to..to… to say to a friend now…"

I remember that voice. The voice that had an unease to it every time, no matter the moment. A skittish young man hunched over the counter with Evee looking at a datapad and every so now and then he would look up and track his eyes on every patron behind him. I shook my head with amusement.

"Rookie calm down, it's just me. No one is here to hurt you man." He looked up at me as I entered the room.

"Y..y.. don't know that!" He took one sharp glance around the room and laid his eyes on the datapad once more. Evee rubbed her hand behind Rookie's back.

"It's okay brother. No one is here to hurt you."

It was something that I had never seen before with Rookie, but he slowly stood straight and looked into his sister's eyes. Something about these two gave me a feeling. Even in the past when I first met them, their uniqueness stood out in the underworld being two young teenagers with a story. I walked up to where Evee and Rookie sat at the bar. The night had gone a little old, but the people sat down and enjoying their time said a different story. Smoke and the smell of alcohol mixed with men who probably don't bathe often flooded through my nose and into my lungs. It seemed like the only thing about this room that smelled good was the half-ignited fireplace near the right of the room. But nonetheless, That's the smell of the poorer side of Mistral, and I enjoy it. I sat next to Rookie and Evee, and then A sharp pain dug into my side.

"What are you smiling about dork?" Evee giggled and gave me one of her iconic smiles.

I returned the smile, "Nothing, just thinking back to where you two and I had our first big score here in Mistral."

"T..t...the one where we made a name for ourselves?", Rookie asked.

Evee nodded, "It was when you and I went after that Council agent looking for a colorful character who broke multiple laws in Vale right?"

"Yeah we were just starting out our careers, and then an opportunity presented itself to help us."

"Look at us now, we are now a common name if people need information or even to get some connections down here. Your point Rico?", replied Evee.

"St..stop trying to rush him sis! I want to hear him out."

"Well just think of given a similar chance to make our mark in history?" Evee's eyes lit up with curiosity. "Is that so?"

"We...we...we're listening Rico. Wh..what kind of score?" The twins leaned in closer with interest.

I drew my arms over their shoulders. "I heard from the grapevine of a 'big score' that has yet to be exploited in the western region of Mistral. We have to venture off there and meet a contact of mine. From there we will be given more information."

Rookie leaned his back against the counter. "S.s..s..so you're saying that we have to go all the way to somewhere in Western Mistral just so we can start the mission? WW...wh..what a waste of time if you think about it."

"Don't knock it until you try it brother. Maybe we should try and do something bigger than what we do here."

Rookie glared at Evee. "We already live a very easy job. We have one of the more prominent gangs protecting us and we have a steady stream of customers and income. What else is there to ask for?"

"I know but I want to go out and have a challenge instead of finding someone a contact to obtain black market goods or even stealing from the richer neighborhoods in Mistral. We should be going for bigger fish! This is another chance for us Rookie!" Evee stood up off her chair and raised her arms in the air. "Join me or not brother, but I am all in."

Rookie's face showed concern. "If you really think that we have to go on this mission with Rico….I..I...I…"

"You alright man?", I asked.

He shivered like he was about to burst into tears. Rookie recollected himself and stood up off his chair as well. I guess confidence struck his skittish out of the park but what he said next surpassed my expectations.

"I guess it is time for a change."

He pushed in his chair and left. "I..I...will see you both in the morning. W.. can talk more then...good….", his voice trailed off down the hallway leading to the bar's rooms.

Evee yawned, "I guess it is time to hit the hay. You get rest too Rico. The Adlers have the rooms so don't worry about anyone breaking in."

She winked at me and majestically walked down the hallway to her room. I nodded at the bar tender and he nodded back. I barely picked up his gruff voice as he spoke,

"Your room, down ta' tha' lef, fiffth door dwn'."

I thanked the man and walked down the hallway, leaving the musty room of drunk men and women. I entered my room and there wasn't much inside. A simple bed with a pillow and blanket, that was all. To light up the place a single oil lantern flickered the room with the little flame it had. I took off my poncho and set it next to the bed on the ground. I tended to not take my gear off when I sleep because of anything but tonight I was feeling a little extra safe. The Adlers have full control of this territory, surly it wouldn't fall in a day. My eyes closed and sealed themselves shut. The last thing I remember is a dream, and a weird one at that. Clocks. Why were there three clocks?

Chapter 3

Tik. Tik. Tik. I opened my eyes. My eyes seemed a little foggy, and it hurt to keep them open. I tried turning my head and it felt slow. My head concentrated and my neck finally moved more fluidly, but something isn't right. I'm not really awake. The room still looked the same as it was when I fell asleep. Something was off though. The light that shown through the window was a shimmer of green and blue light, with miniscule red dust glowing in the air. Was there a window before? I shook off the thought. I forced my head to look around the room and see what the hell was going on. Everything was still the same other than the window and the...

Three clocks mounted on the wall opposite of my bed, equally separated apart from each other, all ticking at different times. Those things were the ones that kept making that noise while I was sleeping. I tried to get up and out of bed but my body wouldn't budge. My mind felt like I had already moved but my body didn't follow suit. A split second later my arms and legs agreed to do what I asked them to do. The blanket was brushed aside and my feet felt the cold embrace of the wooden boards underneath. My soul felt the goosebumps before my skin reacted to the sudden chill. The feeling lingered long after I settled to my room temperature. I know this isn't real. This couldn't possibly be real, there was no window when I came in, and there were no clocks on the wall. I smiled, so that means I have finally become aware that I am in a dream, I could do whatever I felt like doing. I stood up from off the bed and inhaled deeply. The air was sweet and crisp as the morning would be but it isn't. I imagined it that way and was pleased with the outcome. The first test of it being a dream. A knock on the door.

"Huh?", I whispered, puzzled even because why would there be a knock on the door if I didn't think of it?

I slowly meandered to the door and tried to look through the cracks to see the other side. Nothing. Before I opened the door one of the clocks struck midnight, and then a couple seconds later another ring, then vice versa. All the clocks were ringing the bell chimes for Twelve o'clock, but at different intervals of the bell chimes. I tried thinking them to stop or even go away. The bells still rang in my room. I frowned at the inanimate objects and turned around again to the door but there was no door anymore.

A black abyss materialized in front of me where the door was and slowly sucked the air around me. The red dust that once floated around the room left their spots and gave out their last bits of light in the room as they too flew into the black abyss. I thought nothing of it until it became harder and harder to breathe. Emptiness filled my lungs, I coughed up the last bits of air and and started to feel the strain of not being able to breathe. I fell to the floor clenching at my neck, suffocating and waiting desperately for a miracle to happen. First a whisper. Something in the void, a voice was calling towards me, and entered my head. It was oddly majestic, but at the same time, it gave off a sinister tone.

" e."

I tried to breathe but still no air. Black streaks crawled the sides of my already-blurred vision.

" d. s."

The whispers echoed in my head, but i couldn't focus. My lungs pressed harder against my rib cage, I let out a faint sound.

"...I….can't…." I closed my eyes and choked.

The void let out a rush of air. I felt the coolness of the breeze and took a deep breath. The lungs thanked me for that, but in my head i heard the faint voice again.

" l."

I opened my eyes to see the door returned and faced the wall to where the clocks had turned into Twelve o'one. What was that voice that was in my head? Why was it so.. surreal? am I still in a dream? I looked out the window and the color was still the eerie green-blue pattern. Nothing was on the other side of the window except for the light shining through. My mind couldn't make heads or tails of the situation. What did the voice mean by "...you shall fail…"? It made no sense and I decided to not pay any mind to the thought. The clocks kept ticking. Their noise, consistently paced, and it annoyed the hell out of me. Taking my gaze away from the window I glared out of the sides of my eyes at the clocks. "Why are there three of these pieces of garbage?" I asked myself. I walked over to the wall and as soon as I laid my hands on the first clock, minutes ahead of the other two clocks, I felt my body shoot back to the bed. I hit the bed hard and hit my head against the backboard. It didn't hurt but for a second I saw my vision get hit with black streaks again. Incoherent whispers lingered in the air.

"Oh no..." I silently muttered to myself.

Something about the future and messing with time and.. I shook my head to clear everything up and the sounds and the sights disappeared. A dark figure, grew up out of the ground before me. Its body was surrounded by dirt and dust, making it impossible to see who or what it was. It was very tall and looked menacing with its fingers, like narrow claws and thin structure. I reached for a weapon off of my belt and my boot but they were gone. The figure kept moving towards me and extended an arm towards my face and the fingers consumed my head and it held me in place. I struggled to get him off of me. I punched and flailed around but to no avail. The voices flooded my head and told me to go looking for something...no...someone.

" r… r… e… e…"

I stopped struggling. I've heard of that voice and that exact saying. Could it be?

"Grandfather?" I muffled through the hand.

There was no reply. A knock. I opened my eyes and stared up at the ceiling. I smelled the air and I was back in the land of reality. I shut my eyes and a tear streamed down my face. If only I had more time. But time was never on my side. Another knock on the door.

"R.I.C.O, Rico, Rico, Rico!", I heard behind my door.

The girlish voice was undoubtedly Evee doing her old chant to wake me up when we used to live together.

She chirped again, "It's time for you to wake up sleepy-head. Someone is here to see you, so you better not keep him waiting!"

The creaking from the floorboards grew more distant as she walked away. How is it that she can make a dull situation better? I wiped the dried up tear streak from my face and sat up once more on my bed. This time it wasn't a dream, yet it felt so real when I was in my own head. Well it was time for me to wake up. Honestly it felt more like a nightmare than a dream. I set my feet on top of the cold floor boards and the chill was felt through to my soul. I stood up and gave out a long sigh, arms extended into a stretch. The small pops here and there gave a little life back into my nerves as my body slowly began to wake up. I didn't feel the same effects I had when I was in the dream. The odd sensation of being ahead and dragged simultaneously was gone. Whispers bounced around in my head but echoed into silence. Forcing myself to wear the same uniform made me grimace, I needed a new outfit since I became an actual person down in the underworld. I loaded up my gear and tightened my boot laces. Today felt like it was going to be a good day. All I have to do is sell my Dust and go about my business.

I opened the door and tasted the crisp morning air. The nightmare made me forget about the overwhelming scent of the room. The stench invaded my sinuses, and then my stomach grumbled. I walked down the hallway to figure out the culprit that made me so hungry. Bacon, eggs, toast, and jam was being served to all the morning-goers. Mostly travelers and merchants were chowing down on morning grub, which made me act a little off edge. Where did all the gangsters go? It didn't matter anyway. My eyes adjusted to the morning light that shone through the windows and looked for the twins. It took me a second but I walked over to a booth in the far side of the bar, out of sight. Rookie and Evee were already eating and with someone new as well. An older gentleman took a big bite out of his toast smothered in butter before he even saw me walking towards them. He wiped his mouth with a handkerchief etched with the Adler mark and stood up to greet me.

"Come come, sit over here .", his deep voice beckoned.

I stood in front of the table before I made a move to sit down on the worn-down benches.

"And who are you exactly?", I asked.

He gave a knocking motion on the side of his head.

"Stupid me, I am a representative of the Adler leadership. Call me Uhu. It isn't often that I can go out and seek people that aren't exactly on our special guest list, if you know what I mean." He winked at me. "But as I said, I am needing… My apologies, the leadership is in need for someone of your skills."

I raised an eyebrow, "Needing of my services? What kind of job needs my expertise?"

"Well if you would care to join us for breakfast Rico maybe we can talk it over.", Evee jutted in.

I looked at her and she kept her sights on me as she nibbled on a pancake. I sat down on the hard surface, the bench croaking under the stress of my weight being added to it. A waitress came over and took my order and minutes later a steaming pile of eggs, potatoes, and pancakes landed on the table in front of me.

"Go ahead and eat Mr. Wilker.", Uhu said.

He smiled and gazed at me with his ocean-blue eyes and cleaned up his plate, waiting for me to finish. I dug into the eggs and potatoes. Evee slipped a pancake out from the side without me even noticing. Funny thing was I gave it to her but don't remember ever giving to her in the first place. Silly Evee, I knew exactly how she got that pancake. Rookie passed her the syrup and looked at me, with eyes laughing at the basic trick she used on me. For once, It seemed like he was at ease. I listened to the soothing sound of conversation behind me as they enjoyed their breakfast. I nudged her in the side.

"I'll get you back for that, Evee!" I said to her, jokingly. I continued eating my delicious breakfast, then I decided I wanted to strike up a conversation. "So what brings you here to find a person like me?" I asked.

He took another swab on the corners of his mouth with his handkerchief.

" , permit me to ask you this. What is it that you most desperately need in a place like this? Lien? Dust? Weapons?" He looked straight into my eyes, sending odd chills down my spine. His lifeless eyes pierced into my soul, so unnaturally. Even though he seemed neat and clean, He did have a way of intimidating me with his facial expressions. "It isn't that, is it ?"

I shook my head.

He leaned back against the wall of the booth. "The Spiders and several other minor gangs are proposing a meeting together. A 'peace summit' if you will."

"And what does that have to do with me ?"

"..Uhu will do, and I haven't finished yet. This gathering of other gangs has the potential of ruining our business operations here in Mistral. Would you like to know that they are planning to take over as the head dogs running the underworld at this time?"

Rookie piped in, "Well they have been making rather big power plays, From what sis and I have gathered, it looks like they have seized all the banks running down here in the lower levels."

Uhu pointed at Rookie, "Exactly. They have started their campaign to run us out of our own territory. But get this. In their fumbling towards being a bigger gang to rule the underworld, they left out a big chunk of their resources scattered about the entire city."

He pulled out a scroll with a map of Mistral, lower and upper levels. Red dots appeared and a detailed map of secret underground hideouts and tunnels showed on the screen.

"We have detected massive amounts of stolen technology and goods that you may find helpful, should you ever need a fallback plan."

I let out a small scoff. "Basically you are saying, for my services you will give me the information of these hideouts and then I have to help you. Right?"

"Not at all ." He set his elbows on the table and leaned in "I never said anything about an offer or a trade being made. I simply was giving you information that you may find useful."

"Is this your form of good cop, bad cop Uhu?"

He grinned. "Consider it a friendly gesture from the Adlers to you. We simply need someone who is good at their job. Follow orders and get paid. No questions asked of course."

I set aside the plates before me and leaned in. I actually was impressed by his way to convince me of doing a job for him. "I'm interested. Go ahead Uhu."

"I am pleased you have taken the opportunity to work for the Adlers. As I said before, the Spiders are making moves, but this one was….how should I say this. Unexpected. Seeing a rival gang seeking sympathy with the other crime bosses around Mistral is a normal way of doing business without bloodshed, but this time it is a form of combining arms against us and the other Crime lord here in Mistral."

"So the Toras are also being affected by this summit?", I asked.

He sipped from his glass of water. "Yes. We have proposed an agreement to look into this matter but they have some grudges against us. Instead of working against a possible threat, they cling to the ideal that they won't be harmed like how we have been facing. In recent months, the Spiders have attempted to close all our assets in the banks to bleed us of our money, but to no avail. However they have found a method to cripple our Dust market."

He paused and looked around the busy tavern. His eyes tracked every person, as if they were looking for something very specific. I sipped on my drink.

"In what way does the Spiders have an advantage on us with the Dust market?", Rookie questioned.

Uhu took one more glance around and joined back into the conversation. "Rico, as I understand, you have a place in dealing Dust correct? Especially of the illegal type?"

I felt the rush of anxiety coarse through my veins. How does he know my activities? I swear I was precarious about my movements in this blasted town. Getting lost in my thoughts, I forgot I was still in the conversation. Evee's and Uhu's voices kept going in the background. A sharp nail poked my leg under the table and I felt the cold stare of Uhu's eyes again as I came back to the conversation.

"So Mister Wilker… as I was saying before, you DO deal in unrefined Dust correct?"

I crossed my arms and lowered my voice defensively. "What makes you so certain of what I do in this town?"

"Because ….we have connections that tell us your impact of the market, and not to mention...on Our territory. So we, the Adler leadership, have come to an agreement to let you continue your operations in complete secrecy; however, we hold a bargaining chip against you. That is why we have generously given you full knowledge of the Spider supply dumps and safehouses, in good gesture of course."

My ears felt like bursting into flames after hearing what Uhu said. I had almost forgot there was people all around us, their conversing with each other seemed to come to a halt. Who do they think they are blackmailing him, just so they have someone do their dirty work for them? The auda-

"Are we in an agreement on the terms before I begin ?", he interjected.

I half-assed a shrug towards him. "I don't know, seeing as though you have the means to turn me into the authorities, or even worse… so I have no choice in the matter."

Uhu smiled, his teeth white and shining under the overhanging light above our table. "In that case let me introduce you to our plan for you. The Adlers are having a meeting tonight at an abandoned restaurant, called the Schwarzen Bar. But before you make it to the meeting we have someone for you to seek out and follow."

A small USB disk was retrieved from under his jacket. He reached out with his hand,

"Your scroll please."

I reached down and fetched my brown scroll. I handed him my scroll and he snatched it out from my fingers and inserted the USB into a side port.

"Now what I've done to your scroll , is that I have placed a tracker on your scroll but also have a program running on it now to lead you to your next objective or tasks as we deem fit. You may also receive messages from us and etc. For now those are your instructions."

He held the device with three fingers and I opened my hand to let it fall in my hand. Before he placed the thing in my hands he grabbed my wrist and drew me closer. His breath and clothes smelled faintly of medical sanitation and sweat.

"Remember , we are always watching. Do as we asked of you. Find your contact, follow her direction and meet us at the Schwarzen Bar. Until directed otherwise, you are to speak to no one of this meeting or your job.", he whispered.

I grinned. "It is my pleasure doing business with you Uhu." He dusted himself off as he scooched his way off the seat and stood tall. He faced to the windows, which had been opened and the drapes flowed with the wind. Several dying rose petals flew in the doorway and the windowsill. He walked over and picked up one of the petals.

"Winter is coming , and even the Adlers do not know whether or not we may survive. But perhaps we will…" He let it sway down to the ground and he crushed it underfoot leaving a trail of broken bits and pieces all over the floor. His white coattails following in suit out the door. I watched from the seat and stabbed what was left of my pancakes.

"Well shit, now I've got more problems on my hand….", I grunted quietly to myself.

Chapter 4

My scroll gave out a small beeping noise. The sun was out and the snow laden road had turned brown and black from all the foot and vehicle traffic. I had made my way into the busier part of Mistral, the market district. Shops and street-side stands were open and groups of people were shopping. I continued down my path to the marker on my scroll's map mode. A convoy of black SUVs grumbled past me with tinted windows and markings of the local police force for the market district. Looks like they are on patrol, I guessed.

I kept my hood up and looked at the other people, making sure I wasn't being followed or being accused of suspicious activity. The two SUVs moved a couple hundred feet in front of me until they halted. Policemen with their brown leather uniforms jumped out of the SUVs from every door, even the back hatch. Total of eighteen policemen stopped in front of a toy store and set up a checkpoint of sorts on the road. Their red and blue lights turned on abruptly and blinded me for a second. Five of the officers entered the store and from the looks of it, as I walked closer to the checkpoint, ordinary people and workers of the store were being apprehended. I heard the sounds of struggle and another police vehicle with its sirens blaring. I looked behind me and a blacked-out van pulled up to the checkpoint and picked up the people leaving the store with either handcuffs or an injury. It was odd though, why did the police arrest these people? I neared the checkpoint and turned my scroll off. A policeman was erecting a portable barrier until he saw me walking up to them.

"Halt!", he yelled at me. Before I could speak he cried out to me, "Take your hood off and walk slowly towards my voice!"

I shouldn't take my hood off but if I don't then the police will think differently of me. I raised my arms in surrender and slowly drew my hood back.

"Now move towards my voice."

I complied. The snow slushing underneath my feet as I followed his orders. I remembered back to what Evee told me before I headed out of the bar. "You know if your cover is blown, you will end up in prison.", she said nervously.

"I know but then I have you guys to bail me out...again…"

Her grin imprinted in my mind as I stopped when the officer told me to. He came out from behind the barrier and took out his scroll. An image blipped up on his screen after a couple beeps and my profile popped up.

"You have an extensive criminal record Rico Wilker. You're lucky that I won't have to arrest you today. Any weapons or illegal items on you that I should take interest in?"

He raised an eyebrow to me. I cursed myself. I forgot to stash away the unrefined Dust I had on me.

"Not at all officer, any particular reason as to why I am being checked?", I asked.

"For your safety and wellbeing. This district is incurring a high number of illegal activities and dealings, so as a countermeasure, we have been dispatched by the Mistral Council to seize and arrest anyone affiliated to these claims.", he replied.

"Does that also mean people entering the district as well?"

He ignored me. Another officer came over and looked at me. A face that was all too familiar.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the great Rico Wilker himself…", his groggly voice boomed.

He was a heavy-set man. His guts spilling over the tight belt wrapped around what was once his waist. The man stood at an impressive height, towering over me and the other officer.

"Hello again special agent. Eating well?", I patronized.

His bushy moustache rose in disapproval.

"You still breaking the law?", he growled as he got up in my face, still smelling of whatever he ate this morning. I gave him a smiling grin. I shook my head jokingly,

"You know it agent! Everyday. You know you haven't given me your name yet after all the years../"

His breath stank as he spoke.

"My name isn't important to you petty thugs. I could have you arrested for what you said you wannabe-gangster." He pressed his pointer finger in my chest. "Probable cause you little shit. Want to go back to jail?"

I dropped the smile.

"No sir, I do not."

The previous officer tried to push him away from me.

"Sir..", his voice quivering a little. "He hasn't been found guilty for anything yet. There is no nee…."

The special agent pushed him aside, his voice booming once more, "You said yet! That means he hasn't been searched. Let's see what our local Dust-runner has in store for us."

Grabbing my arm, he took me behind the barricade and towards one of the parked SUVs. Officers left of the road and to the right were staring at me as I was being hustled towards the car. Half-way there and then we abruptly halted.

"Stop!", a voice called out.

A woman in the same leather uniform as the officers but with unique gold embroidered into the fabric walked towards us. Fancy. She wore an aviator's mask and helmet which was odd in this kind of environment stood in front of the car, hands on her hips. Her eyes were a magnificent blue-gray with white traces. One someone could never forget.

"Why are you dragging this man here Special Agent Halbur?", her muffled voice asked. He stood at attention.

"Ma'am, I am going to do a thorough check on this low-life." Her eyes squinted at me, looking up and down.

"I understand that you may want to search him because he is wearing a hood but that doesn't mean you have to apprehend him and do a full-body check on him." She lowered Halbur's arm and gently pushed him away from me, his face showing displeasement. "Raise your arms please."

I lifted my arms parallel to the ground. Her hands patted me from the top down lightly. She hurried through the pat-down.

"You're clear but you must stay here for everyone's safety", she said and headed off to an SUV with its trunk popped up and what appears to be communication gear lighting up the space.

My eyes followed her, still thinking about her eyes. Halbur's heavy hand landed on my shoulder, giving me no choice but to follow through. My butt hit the asphalt with what sounded like a crack. The pain that shot up my spine didn't feel good either. The agent looked down on me and spat a patch of ground next to me.

"That's disgusting Special Agent….", I paused.

He narrowed his eyes at me, because for sure he knew what I was going to say next.

"...You know, in all the time we have worked together, you never bothered to let me know your name…Halbur…", I smiled snarkingly again.

It felt good to do the same spat to his face but with his own name. Judging by his face, he didn't like it one bit. Slushing his feet under the melting snow, he carried his heavy-body over where the lady was, still on the radio and in deep conversation. I sat there, in the middle of the blasted checkpoint. I looked behind me; officers were stopping people coming in the market district through separations of their now-complete waist high road barriers. In front the same SUVs were still parked lights flashing and a similar barrier was set. And I was sitting in the middle of it all. The police weren't looking in my general direction and the lady or the agent were in the heat of a very noisy disagreement. They argued loudly. I was surprised to see Halbur not hit her. I remembered the old times he and I were in conversation and I argued with him to the point where he agreed to a fight. Whoever won would be free to leave or take me to jail. I ended up meeting some new friends behind a metal door that night. Those were the times, maybe I should have stayed in that business. Then I remembered that it also wasn't as profitable as what I am doing now. That was the past and now is now.

Knowing that I had to hurry and complete my job gave me urgency to get out of this situation. They can't find out what I am doing and I can't afford to get caught. Checking behind me and in front of me. The police and the two were still not paying any mind in my direction. I crossed my legs and slowly rose up, my hand on the pouch I store smoke pellets in. Just in case. Concentrating on my movements, I slowly made my way to the first car and hid behind the trunk door. No one noticed me moving. Now was my chance. I walked on the sidewalk and drew my hood up and joined a crowd of people moving through at the same time. The barrier facing the market district came up. Closer and closer,every inch mattered. It was as if time had slowed for a minute, until I heard the agent's booming voice.

"GET HIM!" My legs moved before my mind said to move. Couple more feet and I could run and hide somewhere in the marketplace. A leather gloved hand shot out in front of me and took a hold of my arm. The officer yanked me and the ground embraced me once more. My back and my head hurt the most. Winded and dizzy, I couldn't make heads or tails of anything. A shadow blocked out the surrounding lights and sky. Through my tunnel vision those same sky blue eyes lulled my sight. Continuing her gaze at me she spoke,

"Why did you have to make this harder on yourself Rico Wilker? Now I have to take you down to the station for evading checkpoint protocols." Her eyebrows lifted. "Proud of yourself?"

I hesitated, "...N..n..no ma'am."

She looked at Agent Halbur, who showed up laughing.

"Rico Wilker, of all the months I have caught you, this one takes the cake..hahaha" Tears welled up in his eyes.

Clearly my fiasco has been amusement to him. Two policemen picked me up and stood me upright, one placing my arms behind my back cuffed together.

"Looks like you get what you want Agent.", the lady spoke.

Halbur's yellow stained teeth disgusted me as he smiled. The agent motioned for the officers to follow and I dragged along. We headed to a vehicle, to which I presume had just arrived. In bold letters, MISTRAL POLICE, was written on it. It was a much larger vehicle and meant to transport prisoners or more officers. Agent Halbur opened up the back door and pointed to get in there.

"I'll be seeing you later punk.", he jabbed. My arms were released and a hand held on my cuffs as I took the few steps leading inside. With their heads sulking over the floor, three people were sitting sparsely from each other. One a brown-haired woman with tattered clothes smeared with mud and two men, both with the Adler mark on their shoulders. They had mud covered boots and clothes, but they wore leather armor laden with empty holsters and sheaths. Judging by the looks of it, assassins would be my best guess.

As I took the last step into the enclosed space, a shove from behind sent me crashing to a seat next to the woman. Across from me, two new faces with solemn looks about them checked on the new passenger. The door clanged and the last glimpse of the outside light was shut off from me. Inside there was one tiny light that lit up a small portion of the room. A sudden jerk and the car started moving. Faint whimpers came from the lady. I could tell she was scared for what was to come. Her body shook under the dim lighting and a tear would fall every so often. I tried to let out a comforting gesture but I couldn't think of one to do without using my arms. My voice ended the silence.

"Ma'am, you're going to be alright. There is nothing to be afraid of." She lifted her head, and looked straight ahead of her. Her wispy hair shaking with her fear.

"It isn't them that she is afraid of pal.", the Adler sitting in front of me said. The other guy grunted as if he was laughing. "More like afraid of what we are going to do once we let the others know of what she did to get us in this situation."

I was confused. "What do you mean guys?", I asked carefully.

"Who do you think you are to ask us that? Are you an Adler or are you a Spider?", the first one questioned.

I sighed,"Uhu sent me on a task, that is all you need to know." I looked at the one in front of me, a look of surprise.

"Didn't expect that to come from the infamous Rico. I thought you were better than working for gangs."

I frowned. "Let's just say we have a mutual understanding in the recent events and the need for action."

He nodded. "I understand. Uhu sent us on a mission to take out a couple minor leaders from the Spider gang but this…" He spat at the feet of the woman, "...This bitch gave our position away and turned us in. She was accused of gang affiliation and now here we are, stuck in this stupid van and heading off to jail."

His head leaned against the wall of the van. His counterpart spat at the woman's feet as well. She didn't pay any attention to them.

"If only…", he snarked.

"Your names gentlemen?", I asked. The one in front of me was Joyce and the other guy was named Thornton. Indeed they were assassins and part of the Adler gang. They questioned me of why I worked for Uhu but I never answered nor hinted of my true purpose.

"But all this doesn't make sense.", I said. They both looked at me puzzled.

"What makes you say that Rico?", asked Thornton.

"How did the police know about our activities in the Market district? Seems too predictable."

"Maybe that we have a mole or something. You're right Rico, even if I was in a different district, the police were there to pick me up. Whether or not this lady has a part in it, being handled by the police felt like they expected us to show up."

Joyce agreed. Something didn't add up. We knew that we had our jobs for the Adlers but it felt too much like a set-up. Suddenly the van stopped from our steady pace. A moment of silence as we didn't know if we had made it to our destination or something else. The van's engine started up again and we moved once more. A little too aggressive of a driver, I could tell as I was being rumbled around in the back. Minutes passed until we stopped finally. The door's locks clicked and everyone except the woman had our eyes trained on who was coming to get us. A crack of light and then a metallic pinging noise.

Someone threw something in here with us.

The door shut and the locks were settled back into place. My ears rang from the sounds of both the woman screaming for her life and the loud bang the object emitted. I shook off the pain but I couldn't stop the ringing. Thornton and Joyce being yanked out from their seats and out the door. Two armed men entered the room. Their muffled voices incoherent and slurry. I couldn't concentrate. The last thing I remember was the final pleas of mercy from the woman and the reply of a firing gun.

Chapter 5

I felt my feet being dragged behind me and digging into the slosh on the street. I was being carried by two men in purple clothing. Their grip dug into my wrists and armpits. My vision lapsed in and out, but one thing was certain. Joyce and Thornton were dead. I squinted my eyes as I was being dragged away from the vehicle and managed to see two lumps on the ground. Trails of blood from the lumps streamed down hill. I don't remember if I heard other gun shots besides the one they shot at the woman, but common deduction dictated that they were also killed.

My captors threw my body on the ground a good ten meters away from the transport truck. I closed my eyes and attempted to get the constant ringing noise to stop. The grenade or whatever it was sure made my head hurt like a son of a bitch. My head panged with pain and I couldn't focus. I had no control over my body, I was seated on my ass on the curb but I let my body slump, and then I let my body go and fell back to the ground. Laughter came from my captors who I heard behind me.

I opened my eyes and I looked up at the sky. Poofy white clouds hovered overhead and dropped the occasional snowflake here and there. The sun shone weakly through a break and hit the sides of the buildings. It was some time since I got transported away from the checkpoint. I looked at a building,and in bright rust lettering "Fidalya's Realestate Inc.". I was confused. Mistral didn't have very many places that were run down.

"Unless…", I whispered. I shifted my view to the other buildings around me and I saw broken windows, rusty signs, and moss growing on the sides of buildings.

"What's wrong there guy? Don't know where you are?", I heard behind me. The voice was deep and with a bit of tenacity. I layed down on the ground like an idiot.

"Where are we?", I asked.

"Definitely not where you were supposed to be.", another voice said. This voice sounded much younger than the first person. He piped in again, "But definitely in the right spot and…"

He stopped when sounds of heavy footsteps came closer, this time being from where the van was.

"Is he still alive?", a feminine voice asked. A voice I haven't heard in a long time.

My head started hurting less and I forced myself to get up. I turned my head to the feminine voice and let my eyes a second to adjust to the street lights beaming down on me. The figure in front of me had on a purple and blue faded outfit and stood right over me with her hands on her hips and what looked like a handle of a pistol or something.

I took a glance from head to toe to get a better picture with who I am talking with. A Spider Lieutenant? A Mistral Police Investigator? Or was it a bounty hunter trying to collect some easy Lien? She wore a nice pair of black leather boots laced from the ankle up with unique embroidery stitched on the sides. A clean pair of white pants and a leather holster belt to hold it up looked nice for her outfit, and to top it off, she wore a white shirt under a fading purple and blue jacket which had its tails falling just short of knee height.

"Funny seeing you here like this Rico….",the female said as she let out a helping hand. I felt weird with this kind gesture. I looked at the hand and saw that her hand was very small and wearing a fine black leather glove. Feeling stupid I dropped my head and looked down at the ground.

"I still see that you are suffering from the present we gave you in the truck.", I saw the shadow of her hand going back to her side. "But don't worry, we will…."

"You'll what.", I interjected sternly. She picked back up with more authority in her voice,

"We will take care of you… and when I mean take care of you, either you listen to what we tell you to do or you will be dealt with personally."

She grabbed my hair and lifted my head to her eye level. It caught me off guard and I grunted in pain as I looked into her blue eyes.

"Look at you Rico. We could have been on better terms than this, but you forced my hand to come all this way to grab your ass for the boss." I gave off a half grin,

"You could never get away from me could you Darby?" She let go of my hair and smacked me across the face.

"And let me remind you who I work for. She sent me on this stupid mission just to pick you up, and you know who I am referring to." I knew all too well that the leader of the Spiders wanted me dead, especially after I affiliated more with the Adlers.

"What shall we do with him ma'am?", one of the guys behind me asked.

"Rico and I will have a private conversation at this time gentlemen."

"..But ma'am..", the older one quivered, "...orders were to guard the target with extreme caution. We can't let you…"

Two rounds fired off and the older gentleman stopped. Dust casings rang as they bounced off the floor as a bloody body hit the floor. My ears began to hurt again. Darby was yelling but I don't know what or who she was yelling at. I covered my ears in anticipation for another set of shots to be fired but never came.

The younger man grabbed my arms and forced them behind my back. I felt the zip ties tighten and restricting my ability to move. The man behind me had shaky hands. He shivered with fear, I could tell it was because he was fearing for his skin. Darby had her elegant silver pistol in her hand and her eyes turned fiery red. The man behind me forcefully attempted to stand me up with an unfruitful tugging. He ended up just dragging me up and down in one spot. I looked at Darby and noticed her frustration and anger. She holstered her weapon and pulled out a scroll. Turning around she called someone important, or something, I couldn't tell.

"Help me please", a faint whisper pleaded. My ears were still trying to recover from the blast and the shots of Darby's pistol. I looked behind me and the young man's complection of that of a scared deer. I muttered something to my surprise and agreed with the young man. I felt him rummaging around for something until I felt the restraints getting looser.

Darby was still occupied with her call and I picked up snippets of her conversation.

"...well of course we are going to bring him in for… No ma'am, I will not fail you this time… It shall be done ma'am." The young man patted me on the shoulder and whispered into my ear.

"On the count of three, start running in the opposite direction. She can't get us both if we are fast enough." I nodded my head. My head started racing and I could feel my heart beating faster.

"One… two…." My wrists were free, "Three!", the man yelled.

I directed myself to start running left, uphill. The young man ran further down the alleyway and threw a small smoke bomb. I coughed as the smoke filled my lungs.

"NOOO!", Darby screamed.

My legs grew tired as I ran further and further uphill. The abandoned buildings looked as if they were telling me to run. I ran faster and faster. Several shots went off. I stopped running and looked for some cover and concealment. There was another alleyway where the nearest headlamp didn't shine. Large pieces of trash were strewn about everywhere. I shoved some out of the way to make a small hiding hole in case Darby went after me. As I looked downhill to where I was being held, shots were exchanged between Darby and the young man. And then silence. For a moment I wondered which one had died, but after a few moments, it became obvious. The young man had fought courageously. The distinct sound of Darby's handgun went off again and the streetlamps beaming onto the street below began to pop like balloons.

"Damnit", I whispered. I should've seen this coming.

I felt goosebumps running along my arms and legs; I needed to act fast. Rummaging around my belt, I tried to find something to conceal my movements if I were to escape from Darby. My ears picked up the heels of her boots clacking against the concrete surface.

"There isn't much time left Rico", I muttered.

The darkness really could conceal me if I ran away but then I saw her. I could almost feel the laser pointed right at my chest, but even through the veil of darkness, her eyes glowed with hate.

"It is tragic for me to do this Rico. We were truly meant for each other", she said in her softest tone.

I stood up and raised my hands in surrender. I tilted my head back in the event she would kill me.

"Fuck you….", I said.

Something like a can hit the ground and rolled over to where Darby generally stood. A ping and then a major electrical shock sparked through her entire body. She screamed out in pain, and the faint smell of burning flesh tanged my nose.

"Quick, RUN", a voice yelled.

The street suddenly was illuminated by a flare of some kind. I couldn't see quite clearly but what appeared to be shadows were running towards me and Darby. The electricity stopped and all I could see was Darby mustering the strength to face her opponents. One shadow quickly disarmed her and another tackled her to the ground. Darby's body hit the ground with a meaty thud and her aggressor attempted to strangle her. I felt the tug of someone grabbing my arm leading away from the hand to hand I was observing.

"Come on Rico, now isn't the time to waste standing like this!", I recognized the feminine voice.

The stranger dragged me down the alleyway to another road with abandoned buildings. I looked at my rescuer only to be greeted by the pale blue eyes of Evee. I gave a smirk,

"How'd you find me?"

Evee didn't say a word but kept pulling me to follow her. We stopped at a run down convenience store. The lights worked miraculously and it was well away from where I saw Darby last. I checked behind us to make sure no one was following us. Everything was silent and it looked fine for us to be at the location for a second. I turned my head back to Evee, to which she promptly gave a hearty smack across my cheek.

"Ow… What the hell was that for Evee?!",I said to her angrily.

She gave me the look she did back when we were merely hood rats seeking for adventure but would always get caught up by the local huntsmen or police. The look of disapproval.

"One, for trying to evade the local policemen. Two, because you didn't check in with the dust authorities that were waiting for the shipment. Which brings me to my third point, for getting in this whole charade with the highest lieutenant of the Spiders. Good job by the way. I had to call in a favor for this situation because of you…", she ranted on and on. I lost track of what she was saying but I kept my eyes down the road to make sure Darby wasn't nearby. Evee continued,

"What do have to say for yourself Rico? Because right now I believe I have every right to be mad at you". Headlights of a couple of trucks beamed down the road.

I dragged Evee behind one of the counters and held my hand over her mouth. Evee tried to force her way out from my grip. I whispered in her ear,

"It's because you still care for me. And now isn't the right place or time to be doing this.", I let my grip go and made her see the trucks screaming down the road.

"First off, I do care, but not in the way you think Rico.", she said with her arms crossed.

I nodded, "Ok, so what now?". Evee pulled out a small pistol.

"This is only for emergencies Rico, I don't have enough rounds to help us fight a war." I gave a worried look.

"What kind of war are we talking about now Evee?", I asked. She pulled out her scroll and began to look for something.

"It's a war we never wanted in the first place." I took a look at the pistol Evee gave me. It was crude yet something I could work with. I noticed the markings of Atlas on the hilt of the pistol.

"Evee, a question.".

"Yeah?", she piped.

"Where did you get this pistol?", I asked. She received a call before she could answer my question.

"Yeah… I have Rico here. Ok...OK….Understood Sir.", and then she hung up.

"To answer your question, It was smuggled here into Mistral.", she stopped, "Rico, I'll be honest with you, we need you to do something on the behalf of the Adlers."

I narrowed my eyes, "And that would be?..."

"We need you to do a job for us. Did you ever talk to Damson about a man named Bi Song?" My memory was fuzzy but the name sounded familiar.

"Yeah and what about him? And how did you know about that person's name?" Evee stared into my eyes.

"Rico, you know we have sources everywhere, and frankly the Adlers want you to… take out Mr. Bi Song."

"What?!"

"Now don't be alarmed. I know Damson said that there would be a huge reward for a job in question but now isn't the time to argue with me on this."

"What about Damson then? Are you going to have me kill him too because of association? I know what the Adlers are like. The only difference between the Adlers and the Spiders is what you believe in achieving." Evee took a calm breath,

"I suggest holding your words for later because if you don't do this job, you are setting us a meeting with death." I looked out at the street once more and tried to get my head away from what Evee asked me to do.

Tires screeched out from nowhere and stopped in front of the convenience store. A black SUV with no markings of any kind started pouring about a dozen men armed with Atlesian weaponry and blacked out armor. Adler special forces. Rookie rolled down the driver side window with a smile,

"It's good to see you two again. How was dealing with operative Ocenia?" The troops set up a perimeter and gave an all clear to Rookie. I was befuddled.

"Why did you come here Rookie?"

He shrugged, "Probably because Evee texted me to come get you up and out of Mistral." I was confused,

"Why do I need to be out of Mistral?"

"Evee didn't tell you? O..oo..oo dear.", Rookie stammered.

"Shut up brother", Evee said between her teeth, "He means that you, Rico, have to continue your mission on taking out Mr. Song. Here are his coordinates." Evee handed me a small harddrive and then made way to the car.

"Come along now Rico, we have to get you on the next shuttle out of…" *BOOM*

The street blew up in flames. Tracer rounds skimmed off the hood of the car and shattered through the glass of the convenience store. Across from the store the whole abandoned building lit up like the night sky. Adler troops returned fire but were either tending to the wounded or pinned down. Rico pulled out two canisters of colored smoke from his pack and threw them at our attackers. The air filled with green and orange smoke. Our attackers stopped firing rounds and gave us some breathing room.

"GET TO THE CAR… NOW!", Evee yelled.

"Respectfully, no ma'am. We will hold them off.", a trooper said.

Some of them then set up makeshift barriers as cover. Others maintained security. A heavy round went off, and then another explosion even closer to us now. Another trooper yelled,

"THEY HAVE THEIR MORTARS ZEROED IN! GET OUT NOW!", and then the street lit up again with gun fire from both sides.

Pistol in hand, I booked it to the SUV. Rico did the same and got in the driverseat. Evee had a tablet out with our current location pulled up and muttered to herself,

"Now we've gone and done it.." I realized that this was the beginning of something much bigger than I thought. "Rookie, get us the Hell out of here.", she said.

The vehicle jolted forward and swerved out of the parking lot. I looked back at the firefight we left behind and saw someone emerge from the smoke. The troopers dropped like flies in her presence. She looked defeated but not given up yet. Darby executed the troopers without even looking at them and pointed her pistol at us. I saw her lower her aim and pointed in our direction, but I knew she was pointing for me.

"It's official guys. The Spiders have denounced the Adlers and called for the coalition of gangs to aid in their efforts to wipe us out.", Evee said.

It was my fault, and I knew it. She looked at me and held my hand in hers.

"Rico, there were a lot more turning factors that led us to war, but this was the first shots against gang on gang. Don't break yourself down now Rico.", she lifted my chin, "Stay strong and carry on. Rookie and I will try our best to hold our ground, but you have to go on this mission for the Adlers. It is imperative that Mr. Song does not continue his operations. You will know why."

I nodded and looked into her eyes. She was tearing up.

"Don't cry", I said. Evee sobbed slowly,

"It's because we have been together this far and I… we are not used to seeing our best friend go on a life or death mission…", she wiped away her tears.

"But I know you will be strong for us and we look forward to seeing you again." I gave her a smirk, "The gods shall defend…"

"...Till the end", Rookie finished.

The SUV stopped and I knew exactly where we were. Evee handed me a pack from the seats behind ours.

"This will get you as far as Copperas Cove, but from there we can't help you. Good luck Rico." She pecked me on the cheek with a kiss. I blushed and looked at Rookie. He became surprised,

"I'm not doing the same for you brother, you're gonna have to go without one." I chuckled.

I jumped out of the SUV with a pack and the pistol Evee gave me. The car then drove off with a trail of snow whiffling in the wind. I stood before a small building labeled, "Mistral Private Airport". The ground was wet and the air was cool. My stomach churned with the thought that now I have to fix everything. I took one look around to make sure I wasn't followed, and then proceeded into the airport.

Surprisingly enough The facility was empty. No furniture, lights, or people. I held onto the hilt of my knife and tread further inside. The building showed age with moss and rust building up in the pipes. The further I went, I noticed a set of double doors illuminated behind a counter from which the light came. I made my way to the counter and was surprised to see something in working condition.

The screen had windows open with rosters and lists of departures and arrivals, who were on what shuttles and so forth. None of it interested me so I closed the pages until I arrived at something that stood out. A map of unregistered flights and their course. It appeared to be an in real time depiction.

"Interesting, isn't it?" I pulled out my pistol and aimed it towards the voice.

A female with light sky blue eyes and short curly dirty blonde hair emerged. She looked young and very short but was well equipped with gear I have never seen before. Her attire was similar to mine, a poncho with twirling gold embroidery that made its way to her hood, which two pointy cat ears poked out from. She was very beautiful and I couldn't resist a small smile.

"You know, take a picture. It lasts longer.", she said with a hand on her hip, smirking. I lowered my weapon,

"Who are you?", I asked.

"Definitely someone that could ask the same about you. What are you doing in a place like this? More importantly, why are you looking through my research?"

"Research?", I questioned.

"Yes, research. I have been looking for a job with either the Adlers or the Spiders to make a quick fortune. I hear they need special mercs for securing their cargo.", she said.

"Why not go to either faction? They practically run the underworld you know.", I said. She shook her head and came up to the computer with me.

"Look.", she pointed out, "I need to know which one would be more profitable. And this computer is connected with the Mistral Air database, showing me everything about anything flying over Mistral's airspace. It was complete before the towers fell but now it's harder to track down unregistered flights." I nodded,

"So your intent was to find which faction brought in the most pay and then you would join, right?" She shrugged,

"I wanted to make sure I was doing it the smart way. And from what I've heard, the Adlers have a big payday coming soon. From where though, I don't know."

"How did you figure this kind of research by the way? Tapping into the network is pretty hard. Especially from some mercenary.", I asked curiously. She pulled a card out from the computer, locking the computer with a background symbol that looked familiar. She looked into my eyes and winked at me,

"It's a trade secret of mine, and besides you wouldn't understand." I watched her walk through the double doors. She turned around and I caught the glimmer in her eyes obscured from the hood. "Coming?", she asked,

"I do have a job to finish so don't take too long getting your bearings for the flight ahead." I was astonished,

"The flight ahead? How do you…" She cut me off,

"I'm Klein by the way. A real cute girl hired me to take you on a one way trip to Copperas Cove. So let's go.", she said in a cheery voice. I walked outside and followed her onto the tarmac.

"The name is Rico.", I said.

"I know, but I had to be sure. Evee sure did mention your handsome charms.", she flirted. Outside the air got colder and was very dark. Klein led the way to a ship that was dimly lit with a flood red walked in silence, but I had so many questions running through my mind.

Once we got there the ship was more defined. It was a standard Atlas gunship but with multiple modifications that give its sleek look. Instead of the rounded nose it was made triangular. The wings were rusty but packed with loads of munitions. The whole thing was painted in a pitch black with the same markings I saw on the computer. A circle with a paintbrush, but I couldn't make heads or tails of it.

" I found this old thing crashed a while back and had it souped up for fighting shape. Took me a lot of time and Lien to even get it running.", she said. Klein gave out a sharp whistle and a dog sized animal came out from the ship. I grabbed my hilt again.

"What is that?", I said cautiously. Klein crouched, grabbed the animal and hugged it. "It's my puma, Tigris.", she said as she let go of the puma. It came over to me and sniffed my hand. Klein smiled,

"She likes you. She just doesn't let anyone near the ship like that." Tigris playfully bit my hand and then dragged me to ship. I got inside the ship with Tigris following. The lights turned on with Klein at the helm, and then the ship gently rumbled to life.

Inside the gunship were special modifications that I assume Klein did herself. A bed and a kitchenette were installed next to the cockpit. To the rear was a restroom and what looked like two closets, one with munitions and weapons, the other being a personal one. The walls were painted pink and blue with seperate murals here and there.

"Very artistic I see.", I said.

"Sorry about the mess, but I rarely have anybody else ride in my ship.", she squeaked behind the aircraft's console. "When was the last time you ever flew?", she asked.

"I have never been on an airship let alone leaving this town.", I said sadly.

"Then looks like this'll be a fun one for you.", she piped. The puma took the seat next to Klein and looked outside. "I hope you are ready for take off.", she said as I felt the ship rise. I looked outside and saw the lights of the city twinkle in the moonlight one last time. The feeling in my stomach came again. I knew I wasn't ready for the task ahead of me.

"Yeah me too."