1 Chapter 1

A hyena hustled down the street in the dark as a light rain fell, throwing a glare in the direction of anyone who looked as if they would even think to walk his way. He stuck to the streetlights and kept his head down, the last thing he wanted was an unnecessary altercation. On an ordinary night, he might have hidden in the shadows, preferring not to be seen. He hated the Inner Ring; the abundance of pompous and self-important rich people meant more security. Security meant Imperials, and Imperials meant trouble. Imps always made things more difficult. They cared little for anyone's actual safety and more for padding their pockets. The armed soldiers in the street are what made him cautious, so long as none of them stopped him he'd be alright.

Turning a corner, he flicked the water off his black leather jacket and popped the collar up, his boots clicking with every step. His destination was in sight, 'The Dynasty'. A black sign with neon-lit yellow letters on a stark white building with glass doors and a massive, opaque, circular window at the top level. This put a smile on his face but was quickly replaced with a frown as he remembered the frantic call, he had received it only mere hours ago. He ran a hand through his soaked ginger hair, he did so purely of a calming habit, the last thing he needed was a courser tailing him and running his ID.

"Rae, chill- slow down, what the hell are you talking about?"

The hyena set his revolver down on his bedside table, as he had been cleaning the weapon. But the sound of the hushed voice on the other end made him nervous, was something wrong?

"Kota, I got something big. I don't care what you got to do but I need you down at Dynasty ASAP. We need to talk, business."

"Why can't we meet in the Outskirts? Fewer Imps and it's safer."

An exasperated sigh was the response, which was to be expected. There was no arguing with Rae. "Trust me, you won't want to be there. Now get your ass here. Don't tell anyone and trust nobody."

Before he could get another word in edgewise, Rae had already hung up.

As far as he knew, nothing spooked Rae and knowing now that something could get to even the strongest mind was intimidating although he would never admit it. It had to be important.

It had to.

Before he knew it, he was in front of the nightclub's glass doors with golden trim. Knowing her it was probably real gold or something close to it, she was never one to skip on quality. With a deep breath, he patted the holster on his thigh and marched into the crowded venue. Upon entry, the strong smell of alcohol and smoke among other smells hit him. As nice as this place was from the outside, nobody would guess that Dynasty was a strip club. As a matter of fact, one of the few that existed in the Maelstrom Helix. Rae's father had connections and the place kept the Imperials away, serving as a money maker and a safe haven. Kota swam through the crowd of drunken patrons with a look of disgust as dim lights flashed, music boomed, and bodies moved. He'd never understand how Rae could stomach a place like this.

After what had to be 15 minutes of pushing through people, the hyena made in across the main floor and up a flight of stairs to the VIP level, making his way over to a door where a massive polar bear in a suit armed with an automatic rifle stood. The weapon in his massive paws had the name 'Yuri' scratched into it. The gun looked like a toy in his hands, Kota knew that in a fight he really didn't need a weapon as the bear was already plenty dangerous. They both knew each other, but he knew that Yuri had a job to do with no exceptions.

Just as he moved to block Kota's path to the door behind him, Kota flashed him a golden medallion. "Rae called me in. It's important, Yuri."

The guard wordlessly stepped aside and opened the door. The hyena was met with a room hazy with a thin layer of smoke, the culprit stood in front of a massive glass window behind a desk that overlooked part of the Inner Helix. Large bookshelves with books of varying ages lined the walls on each side and a dark wood wine rack sat by the door fully stocked. The figure motions for him to take a seat, once he did the stark white wolf stepped out of the silhouetting light from the window and sat on the edge of the desk. The wolf was dressed lavishly in a black suit with a black tie, taking two more long drags off the cigar before slowly putting it out.

"Alright," Kota lightly tapped his foot worry tinged his voice, "What's the 411? It's gotta be serious if you called me to come through Inner."

The wolf's electric blue eyes locked onto the hyena's golden-green, in her hand a small disk-shaped object and a glass in the other with a golden liquid inside. She began tossing it up and down as she paced back and forth as if looking for the right words, swishing around her drink around.

Her synthetic deep female voice almost sounded nervous, "My info guy, you know him, right? Our contract supplier."

"Please don't tell me you called me up for a contract?"

"If only it were that simple. You see I had this thing show up here a few days ago, I've been messing with it for a bit. I figured it was a gun part I ordered or a secret message from the Truth. But apparently, it is some type of message; however, you're going to like this..."

"Wait a minute. You played it already?"

"Well, a little bit. Just to make sure it wasn't a bomb or anything, ya know?"

Rae lumbered past the seated hyena morph and tossed the object on the floor. The instant it contacted the floor it opened and projected a hologram, image frozen of a grey rabbit with fear in his eyes. Kota nodded at the wolf and the video played. The rabbit was replaced by a shield icon, Kota opened his mouth but instantly shut it as a voice started.

"My name is... My name is not important. But you will refer to me as Epsilon. I have a job for the mercenary known as K0TA and his synthetic partner. But realize that if you take this task you will be putting your life in serious peril. Do understand the importance of anonymity, as if your identities are discovered you will be executed as this is treasonous, no trial, nothing. The High Council will make you disappear, nobody will come looking for you. You can never return to your normal lives. Because I know how to take down the Imperials, after all, I am one of them." Kota takes a glance at Rae, who is completely entranced by the message. A sigh is released, "At this point in the message, it is assumed you have already accepted the task. I don't have much time, as I speak this is most certainly being tr-traced. I know how to cripple the Imperials and turn the tides of this civil war, how to let Earth really see their true colours. But in order to do all that, you need to find me and my morph counterpart they keep us where they create all the freaks and such, you must take us to place called The Kanter. Not too far from Maelstrom. I know this sounds fishy but I can't do much more until you are further along. K0TA, -SAVE US-"

The Shield flickered and Rae's eyes widened. "That was... unsettling- Kota! 86 the thing, it's been tapped! We gotta get out of here."

"You idiot! You didn't realize that the first time you watched it?!"

"Oh, go to hell! I only listened to the first bit! Like skimming a letter from a cousin you hate!"

The hyena smashed the small device under his boot cursing under his breath as a tapped device could only mean one thing, Imperials would hot on their tails. His ears perked as he heard glass shatter and turned to see Rae with her paw over a switch, he gave her questioning glance as she flipped it.

They had to scuttle the place, it was a landmine of evidence of all the things they've done and held too much information. They turned toward the second bookcase as it moved revealing two black duffle bags, there was no turning back as they both took their respective bag. Dakota unclipped his revolver from his waist and began nervously twirling the gun on around his index finger. Meanwhile, Rae began priming the explosives and Dakota grew more and more impatient.

"Can't you do this any faster?"

"Trust me, this ain't a job you wanna rush..." She twisted the primer and smiled as the timer began, "Two minutes, then this place is a smoking crater. I only regret not being able to see how my old man rigged the charges in the place. Yuri will make sure everyone is out before then. It'll distract the Imps long enough for us to find our DZ, you didn't leave anything in the Outer, did you?"

"Not a trace, other than a nasty little surprise for any Imperials who discover the hideout. Let's take the alleyways and- "

A huge grin grew across Rae's muzzle as they rushed down the stairs, he hated that smile. That damned smile. It gave him shivers. The last time he saw it they- no, Rae had blown up an Imperial outpost while he had still been inside, he had just narrowly escaped the blast. He barely got out with scorched fur.

"I got something better. The Hellfire is preparing to riot tonight, they're done with trying the peaceful way to get what they want. We can use the cover of the fight to slip out practically undetected. Just a few blocks from here. That device gave me coordinates to an old safehouse. Seems this plan of theirs is pretty well thought out, now shake a leg. It's gonna get messy, mate." She burst out the back door back into the pouring rain with Dakota close behind, their boots clicking against the pavement occasionally hitting large puddles and the hyena keeping a hand close to his holster.

"Explain again how this is a good idea to get in the middle of a civil war? I mean, I'm all for synth rights but you do realize that they'll think we're helping them!" Dakota launched himself over a chain-link fence.

His synth partner followed with very little effort, "There's nothing wrong for fighting for what's right... Besides. You worry too much. Here we are. Waypoint is marked in your visor, get there by any means. We can't get caught here. Wait for my go."

Dakota began taking his equipment out the bag and getting suited up. As his visor slid over his eyes it crackled to life, he glanced at Rae and it gave her a bright blue outline. He strapped on his belt and loaded his ammunition into their respective pouches, shouldering his rifle expertly and twisting on the silencer and his ammo counter sparked to life in the bottom right of his visor. Stuffing a metal plate under his vest, he didn't want to take a bullet. The last thing in the bag was and engraved handgun, unlike the revolver on his hip that was shiny and new, this weapon was old.

'Sweetheart~ Sully'.

The hyena gently ran his fingers along with the cold steel engraving with a warm smile, the smile melted away back to a scowl as he holstered it across his back. Now wasn't the time for that, he glanced back at Rae and she began spinning her handguns she was dual-wielding. She returned his glance and held up five fingers and counted down.

The shouts from the street ahead of them grew louder as they echoed into the alleyway.

Four.

They checked their ammo and ditched the now-empty bags.

Three.

Dakota planted his feet.

Two.

A massive explosion rocked the entire street and Dakota nearly lost his balance as he shot out from the darkness and into the crowded street that erupted into a massive brawl. She had somehow screwed up the detonator, despite her claim of having a handle on it.

"Dammit, Rae!"

The synth darted out from cover before bursting down two Imperials with her pistols, "What did I tell you? You don't rush a demo job! Just make your way to the DZ, I'll meet you there! Go! Go! Go!"

Dakota bellowed out his battle cry, "Let's do this!"

Rae's distraction worked perfectly; more or less, as Dakota slipped by much of the crowd, indiscriminately unloading rounds into anyone who blocked his path. He'd encountered little resistance as he advanced. Gunfire lit up the street like a deadly game of flashlight tag. About halfway to the zone marked on his map, Rae's voice crackled through the communicator in his visor, her voice was full of static as he strained to hear her.

"Caref-... Heavy-... Rollin-... Cover-..."

He didn't have time to react as the asphalt at his feet exploded, launching him across the street and crashing into the roof of a nearby car. He swore and spit some blood out of his mouth, tumbling off the roof taking cover behind a car as the tank rolled down the street. His ears rang in protest of the noise and sudden movement but he forced himself to his feet.

"Kota- out of the street- BTR-!"

Knowing full well his firearms would be basically useless against the armoured tanks, he tucked his rifle under his arm and took off running. The rumble of the tanks began to fade but he kept his pace, not willing to take any chances. He dipped off the street into the safe darkness of the alley, his partner hadn't sounded too good a moment ago.

"Rae? Rae, acknowledge?" He checked the waypoint and as far as his visor could tell, it said she had been through here... In fact, she was right where he was standing, but somehow 30 meters below the street? "Repeat your last? Rae we don't have time for this, we gotta move. Sound off!"

He heard another tank coming up the street and struggled to see as his visor began to malfunction, Kota took a defensive position in the alley, pointing his gun at the street. He took three steps backwards but his feet met empty air midstep and plummeted into the abyss below him.