A/N: Many many thanks to those who've read, followed, and reviewed! You guys are awesome! :]

Sorry it took me a week and a half to get this chapter up. My external hard drive died [read: I tripped over it] so I've been trying to salvage that between doing schoolwork and writing this story. Unfortunately, my schedule doesn't look like it'll be improving much, but I'm going to do my best to update this thing at least once a week. Basically, I'll be posting chapters as I crank them out. This chapter was originally almost 7,000 words, but two different things happen, and I felt like there needed to be some separation. So there are two parts. And since I made you guys wait so long for this one, I'll be posting Part 2 late Saturday night.

Read on, and I'll see you at the bottom!

Chapter 2: Tonight's Defense, Part 1

I'd been able to follow the map for a few miles, but I gave up deciphering the unfamiliar street names after I realized I'd been circling the same city block for the better part of an hour. Since then, I'd pulled my nose from the folds of the map and walked due east towards the Gate. It was easier. All I had to do was look for the shine of the wall beyond the city-proper.

Since I'd elected to travel by foot, I wanted to blend in—not an easy thing with a wolfhound for a walking companion. Luckily, he served as more of a deterrent than an invitation to start a conversation. And for my part, I'd dressed to attract as little attention as possible: dark jeans, nondescript gray t-shirt, black messenger bag, braided hair with a few wispy pieces to hide the scar in front of my right ear. I'd entertained the idea of dying my hair black, just for that much more anonymity, but was glad I hadn't. There were more brunette heads bobbing about than I'd expected.

Assuming I was successful in not speaking to anyone, my face was the only thing that would give me away as a foreigner. Fair complexion and pale, almond-shaped eyes—decidedly not Japanese.

Bard plodded along beside me, tall enough that I could walk with my hand resting on his shoulders. I'd put a leash on him, but it hung slack in the small space between us.

I pulled out the slip of paper Jack had given me—right before he kissed me goodbye. I wrinkled my nose because I still hadn't figured out what to make of the gesture. It resonated in my mind like an echo, calling back to the way things had been before he changed. I'd spent the last few nights trying to remember if he'd kissed me like that the day he left. I'd decided he hadn't—that had been a day of severed ties and lines drawn in the sand. An ending. Which was why the kiss had me so rattled. How had that old habit—something I thought he'd set aside—resurfaced so easily?

I shook my head to dispel the cobwebs of memory and focused on the paper in my hand. The code DT-812 and a pair of coordinates were scrawled across the page in Jack's messy script—becoming a Contractor obviously hadn't improved his penmanship. His investigative skills, however, were another story. I'd been squeezing all my contacts at the observatories in the States and at Cambridge for reports of stars that had formed eight years ago between July and September. There'd been some promising leads over the years, but they'd ultimately gotten me nowhere. However Jack had managed to get his hands on such valuable information—my mind jumped to Li, the student astronomer—I owed him. Especially if it was good. And, although I doubted he'd intended for me to go looking for her alone, I'd know just how good the intel was very soon.

Still clutched in my hand, the edges of the paper fluttered in a weak breeze I could barely feel. I looked up and saw the wall towering over me, so immense that it seemed to be leaning in, as if studying me as closely as I was studying it. The nearer I got, the more I became convinced the wall, maybe the Gate itself, was breathing. Not so much as if it were inhaling and exhaling… more like it was pushing and pulling. Like waves on the shore. And I was caught in its ebb and flow, washing in with the tide.

I slipped the note back into my pocket and gave Bard's ears a scratch.

There weren't many other people on the street now. They'd thinned out, all but disappeared, as proximity to the wall increased and the sun sank towards the horizon at my back. Most of the buildings out this far looked like old, rundown residences—I didn't think the eastern edge of Shinjuku stood much of a chance of being a business hotspot. Anything that had been here and survived the Gate's appearance had probably been abandoned years ago.

By the time I reached the truly deserted district lying in the shadow of the wall, the sun was setting, and a palpable gloom hung over the ruined city. Gutted buildings loomed like skeletons in the murk, their rusting girders clawing at the air like exposed bones. Abandoned as it was now, it was hard to believe people had ever thrived here. Dozens of cars, their doors left open to expose the decaying innards within, lined the streets. Everywhere I looked, I found some remnant of the ghost town's former residents. Toppled food carts and collapsing storefronts, their windows bare and gaping like pairs of staring eyes, made the sidewalks nearly impassable. It was desolate and empty now; yet, at some point not too long ago, this place had looked exactly like the rest of Shinjuku.

"Anyone else around?" I asked Bard.

He lifted his head, nostrils flaring as he tested the air. After about ten seconds of this, he turned his brown, human-like eyes to me and shook his head.

"Guess we better keep walking, then." I unclipped his leash and continued down the rubble-strewn street. Bard bounded away from me, alternating between lowering his nose to the ground and sniffing the wind. I trailed him from a short distance. I was doing my best to create a mental map of the way we'd come, but I already knew Bard's nose was what would later lead us back to civilization. My sense of direction rivaled only my skills as a cook. Which were nonexistent.

DT-812 had last been active somewhere near here. I had nothing of hers that might give Bard a scent to follow, so my only plan was to wander. Maybe we'd bump into her, or, failing that, someone who knew where I could find her. It was up to the Fates. But that wasn't to say I was completely helpless. I was armed with two handguns. One was a twenty-two I'd modified to fire special darts I'd prepared beforehand. The other was a revolver I'd inherited.

We walked. About a hundred paces in, Bard paused and stared off at the wall with his ears pricked. I turned to listen. The faint drone of a siren, some kind of an alarm, drifted in on the wind.

"What's that mean?" I frowned and scanned what I could see of the wall for signs of a disturbance. "Is that PANDORA?"

Bard snorted and trotted away. I lingered a few seconds longer, still looking, before going after him. Eventually, the dull hum of the alarm stopped.

The light lingered somewhere between half-day and half-night much longer than usual. Was it just that the wall was reflecting the sun as it sank to the western horizon, or had being so near the Gate started to affect my sense of time? We wandered the maze of the abandoned city as dark slowly fell, taking so many detours down side streets and back alleys that I wasn't sure which direction we were headed anymore. Bard, though, seemed sure of every step he took.

When Bard suddenly stopped, his stilt-like legs freezing midstride, my adrenaline surged. He glanced back at me, catching my eye before purposefully looking up at the shattered second story windows of the building directly across from us.

"How many?" I hissed.

He wagged his tail. Once. Twice. Then, without waiting for my cue, he threw his head back and howled.

Two faces, one at each window, appeared behind the shards of broken glass still stubbornly clinging to their frames like jagged teeth. From this distance, I couldn't make out any details—just eyes, noses, and mouths.

Figuring there was no point in making small talk, I shouted, "Are you Contractors?"

Silence. Then low, swelling laughter. "Where do you think you are, sweetheart?" A male voice from the window on the right.

My arms tensed. Ever so slowly, my right hand traveled to the concealed holster on my hip. "Maybe you can help me. I'm looking for someone."

"We're not in a helping mood."

"I can make it worth your while!" After a long pause with no response—which I took to mean they were interested and I should continue—I said, "I'm Charlotte Sterne."

The person in the left window stood up, revealing a rather androgynous silhouette that was neither short nor tall, slim nor heavy. From what I could see, what little hair there was was cropped close to the head. "What did you say?"

I raised my eyebrows. The voice was female.

"I'm Charlotte Sterne," I repeated. A glance at Bard, his hackles raised and head lowered, told me he was on the defensive. The faint echo of alarm bells going off in my head threatened to rattle my composure. I reminded myself that any action I took now would be premature. I'd come here for a reason, and I wasn't going to screw it up before I even got the ball rolling. "Does my name mean something to you?"

"Not to me," the woman shouted, her voice a rough mixture of annoyance and intrigue. "But I know a guy who knows a guy."

"Will you take me to him?" Another long pause. I hoped my voice didn't give away how hard my heart was suddenly pounding. It thudded in my ears like a drumbeat.

The man turned his head and said something too low for me to catch. A few seconds later, the woman's silhouette disappeared from the window. I called Bard to me, my hand still hovering near my gun. He rose to his full height, head up and fur standing on end, adding to his bulk. His eyes were nearly level with my shoulders.

The shape of the woman appeared in the doorway. "Nice pony," she said, stepping over the metal and busted glass that littered the sidewalk. She paused once out on the street, and I looked her up and down in the sparse light. She was of average height, athletically built, though her black fatigues masked most of her body shape. Her hair, probably a dark shade of blonde, looked like it had been shaved off not long ago, and was just beginning to grow back. Her eyes were dark, recessed into her skull in sharp contrast with her protruding cheekbones. Compared to the rest of her, her face was oddly feminine.

When we were done sizing each other up, she sneered and turned away. Obviously unimpressed. I narrowed my eyes, but resisted the urge to express the same sentiment.

She set off down the street at a brisk pace. "Let's go, princess."

I shared a look with Bard. In our mutual distaste, we walked after the woman. She seemed sure of her path, and never once glanced back to see if I was behind her. Maybe she could hear the echo of my footsteps following her.

She probably just didn't care. Contractors were like that.

I unconsciously placed my hand on Bard's shoulders and knotted my fingers in his wiry hair. It was a habit I'd fallen into instead of using a leash; even though the leash made other people feel better, the physical connection was enough to keep him at my side. Now, though, I felt more like a freefalling skydiver clinging to a parachute release. As if falling through a wall of gray clouds, I didn't know what was coming, how close we were to hitting the ground, how much danger I'd gotten us into. I just knew that, probably sooner rather than later, the time was going to come when I would have to use my safety net and run.

The woman led us to a long, low building. An abandoned warehouse with high, rectangular windows with glassless frames. She took us in through the loading bay, where one of pull-down garage doors was standing open. Voices floated out on the night air, low and droning. She leapt onto the loading platform and walked inside. After a moment's hesitation, Bard and I did the same.

Instant regret.

We were interrupting some kind of meeting. Three men and two women were sitting on overturned crates in a circle. In the center, two more men were standing back to back. They looked like twins, except one of them was emitting a faint, blue glow.

My shoulders stiffened. Reflexively, I froze, standing midway between the gaping exit and the Contractors. They all turned to look at me, their expressions a mix of mild interest and annoyance.

"Found her," the woman said simply. She stood on the edge of the circle and crossed her arms.

The two men standing within the ring of people turned, their backs still pressed together, so the Contractor with his red, glowing eyes was staring me in the face. "That's not entirely correct, is it?"

The woman scowled. "What?"

"She found you."

"Whatever."

Like the flame blowing out on a candle, the blue glow died away, and the twin standing at the Contractor's back wafted away in a cloud of smoke. No longer obscured by the Synchrotron radiation, I got a clear look at him.

His black hakama and white haori made him seem bulkier than he probably actually was. He was tall; even from this distance, I could tell he towered over me. His black hair was tied into a ponytail. Wisps of it came loose and framed his dark eyes as he stepped out of the circle. Carefully, deliberately, he drew a katana from the scabbard on his hip.

I took a step back, ready to run.

"Don't be alarmed," he said in a honeyed voice. "I have no intention of harming you. This is my price."

Half-turned towards the exit, I watched as he took the hilt in both hands and leveled the sword in front of him.

"Kendo. Did you know there are seven basic kata when using a long-sword?" He raised the sword over his head, took three steps forward, and brought the blade down in a sweeping motion. "Ippon-me," he explained. "The first kata. It is strange without a shitachi to work with, but an imagined opponent is enough."

A low, continuous growl rumbled in Bard's chest. The sound of it vibrated against my hand.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"My name is Kane." With smooth fluidity, he took several steps back before advancing for a second time. The tip of the sword whistled through the air, cutting down an invisible enemy. "That dog. It was one of her experiments, right? Long-lived for a wolfhound."

I kept my distance, well out of range of the sparkling blade, and didn't answer. "I take it you're close to her."

"Yes, you could say that." For the casual way he spoke, he might have been taking a stroll and discussing the weather. "She's told me all about you and that pretty-boy Brit. I think it's all very interesting."

"What's interesting?"

"Your relationship to her, of course! Though you're not nearly as attractive as she makes you sound." He paused his remuneration long enough to meet my gaze and smile. It was like a snake opening its mouth to reveal the venom dripping from its fangs. "You're too pale for me. And too tall. I favor petite women—I find they're easier to throw around."

I clenched my teeth and felt my jaw pop. "I'm so disappointed."

The woman in fatigues uncrossed her arms and took a step towards me. If the threat wasn't clear enough, her eyes flashed red. "Watch your mouth," she snapped. When Bard's growl increased in volume, she angrily jerked her thumb at him. "And shut that dog up."

"You're all Contractors?" I asked, ignoring her.

Kane laughed, a sound like glass shattering. "My my, you are clever."

"Where's Hemlock?"

"She's not here, obviously. When that MI-6 agent showed up in Tokyo, she told me you probably wouldn't be far behind. So she made herself scarce and left you a welcoming committee." He brought the sword down in a killing strike. The blade hung in the air for a moment before he spread his arms as if inviting me in for a hug. "Welcome to Hell's Gate, Charlotte Sterne. Will you be staying long?"

"As long as it takes for her to come out of the shadows." I narrowed my eyes and stole a glance at the still-seated circle of Contractors silently watching. Not one of them had moved to get up since I arrived. The whole thing was strange. "She ran away with her tail between her legs. It's pathetic."

"Did you not hear me, princess?" the woman shouted, her eyes bulging. She started to advance on me, but came up short at Kane's warning.

"Stay where you are, Lyme." His smile was gone.

"Did you hear what she just said?"

"Yes. But remember your orders."

I swallowed hard and locked eyes with the woman. She clearly took it as a taunt—her hands balled into fists at her sides—but she didn't take another step. What orders, I wondered. From Kane? Or from Hemlock, the Contractor I was hunting?

My eyes widened as my brain struggled with the pieces. For a moment, just a brief flash, I thought I could see how everything fit together. But it was like trying to look at an image through opaque glass. The shape was there, but the details were lost to me.

Kane's voice pulled me back. "You'd do well to remember just how plentiful the shadows are in this city, Miss Sterne. And an unfamiliar city at that," he said. "You might need to pull out that map to find your way back to Shinjuku."

Something in my chest froze. I had to remind myself to breathe. My map was folded up in my pocket with Jack's note. I hadn't looked at it in more than an hour.

Kane smiled. "We have eyes everywhere."

I struggled to work moisture back into my mouth. "Since she knew I was coming, did she leave a message for me?"

"Afraid not."

I nodded, more to myself than anything. I was committed now. I had to take myself out of this free-fall. Serenely as I could, I met Kane's black eyes and returned his smile. "In that case, I'd like to leave one for her."

Hours of practice and endless repetition meant I had my gun free of its holster and aimed squarely at the Lyme's chest in a fraction of a second. Before my heart had completed a beat, I'd pulled the trigger.

Lyme cried out in surprise and stumbled back a step. Immediately, I adjusted my aim and lined the sights up with Kane's exposed neck. This time, I didn't fire.

When Lyme realized it wasn't a bullet that had hit her, but a dart, she screamed and ripped it out. "Bitch!" she screeched. "This is poison!"

Kane slid his katana back into its scabbard and heaved a sigh, blithely ignoring my gun. "And now you must go to Hemlock for an antidote." He threw me a narrow-eyed glare. "Very clever, Miss Sterne. Very clever. But I'm afraid this ploy isn't going to work."

Lyme, suddenly out of breath, looked at him in barely-restrained horror. "What? Kane, I have to—"

The shadow that materialized behind her pulled the blade of a katana across her throat. As she crumpled to her knees, hands clutching futilely at the wash of blood gushing from her neck, Kane's mirror image came into focus. The clone grinned at me and said, "This might have worked if you'd shot someone I actually care about. Unfortunately, that isn't anyone here."

The clone disintegrated into dust, dispersing like steam. The other Contractors continued to look on silently, as if incapable of reaction.

"However," the real Kane said, drawing his sword again as the blue glow faded. He began the first kata with cool efficiency. "Message received."

Too rattled to focus properly, I pretended not to see Lyme twitching on the floor, nor the pool of blood spreading outwards. I checked my aim and fired at Kane.

He deflected the dart as if swatting away a pestering fly. Almost too quickly for me to see, he reached inside his haori and pulled out a long, glass vial. He threw it. I scrambled backwards, knowing all too well what was inside.

Bard leapt forward before I could stop him. He caught the vial in his teeth; I heard the glass shatter.

"Bard, no!"

Realizing the danger, he dropped everything. Pieces of glass fell tinkling from his mouth to the concrete floor, splashed with the clear, innocent-looking liquid. He backed away from the broken vial and the toxin it had contained, already sneezing and snorting against its effect. I rushed forward to pull him away faster, but froze at the sound of Kane's quiet laughter.

"What a loyal dog," he mused. "My condolences. You should go now, Miss Sterne. I'll give you a head start. Let's say… as long as it takes me to finish seven kata."

I didn't stop to think about it. I told Bard to go and ran. We both leapt from the platform at dead sprints and bolted into the maze of the city beneath the wall. Bard surged ahead of me, his nose raised to the wind and his tail lowered. I raced after him, knowing he had to be close to panic. The toxin in the vile had taken away one of his senses—smell, going by his reaction. Hemlock had left me a message after all.

We ran and ran, taking wild turns and ducking down alleys that all looked the same. I kept glancing over my shoulder, expecting to see Kane and his clone closing in. But, always, there was only darkness.

A/N: Thanks for reading! If you notice any mistakes or stuff I've left out [like the lack of physical description for Charlie in the first chapter—thanks for catching that of fan and fic!] tell meeeeeee. I will listen to you guys. Probably.

Fun side note 1: Most of you probably got it, but Kane's name is pronounced Kah-nay.

Fun side note 2: Did you know Synchrotron radiation is an actual thing? I was all like, pshht, Anime science, but no. Real science.

Fun side note 3: I know absolutely nothing about kendo, except that I'd fail at it because I'd never make it past putting on those complicated training outfits.

HeavenlyCondemned: Thank you so much for your feedback! I agree, November needs some more airtime. He's too intriguing a character for me to leave on the sidelines—for more than a chapter or two, at least. :]

Also, I know I said Hei would be in this chapter… and he is. Just in part two. Check back Saturday!