FSE

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The building shook again, klaxons blaring as Caleb's console flickered twice before going out. The only light remaining in the room was Aurelias' flashlight.

"Warning. Backup generator one has overload. Floors twenty, twenty-one, forty, and sixty are currently on fire. Suppression systems are offline. Employees are required to evacuate and avoid these floors. Backup generator four is under severe load and cannot power all essential systems. Power has been rerouted to floors seventy and above. Primary power remains offline."

"Fuck!" Caleb shouted, his teeth bared. "You may have done too good of a job, foxy. I can't access any of Kyota's systems from here anymore."

"There's no wireless on this floor, or in the stairwells. Can't exactly call them off." The orange fox tossed his laptop into his backpack. "We really should get off this floor. Power up above, right?"

The ebony wolf nodded. "Yeah, just takes me a bit close to the Metropolis for my liking. But I'm seeing this through. C'mon."

Aurelias placed the back of his paw against the metal door and snapped it to himself, cradling it and cursing loudly. "About those protection techniques?"

Pulling up a translucent console from thin air, Caleb scrolled through the sea of ethereal runes searching for something as Aurelias watched. After a minute, he hit a few buttons on the keyboard, then dove back into his hunt. The slim fox wanted to ask what he was doing, but he'd be pissed if someone interrupted his flow, so left the stocky wolf to work. Another moment and a pair of keystrokes later, a hissing noise sounded on the other side of the door.

"You got the suppression systems online?"

"With what power?" Caleb said with that shit-eating lopsided grin of his. "I just created a pressure differential in the pipes to force water our way. Not exactly online, but close enough."

"Close enough," Aurelias said, shaking his head and wagging his tail. "A good hacker is a lazy hacker."

The wolf raised his eyebrows. "Quoting me? Flattery will get you everywhere, foxy."

The pair left the security room and headed down the hallway, water splashing under their feet. The flicker of fire still illuminated the passage, but it was well away from their escape route.

"Lead the way, foxy, you've got the light."

Aurelias whimpered. "No more stairs. Whatever happened to lazy hackers?"

"This is being lazy. It'd be more work to try and get the elevators running, and we need to hit floor seventy. Besides, I didn't get my workout today, so I could use the exercise." Caleb flexed his arms once for emphasis, making the biceps bulge and the fox stare. "So move."

The two of them trudged upwards in the dark. It was a lot less lonely now with the hunky wolf around, but Aurelias couldn't help but question his own motives. He had no real reason for continuing, and if he were smart, he'd get out while the going was good. Caleb had used him in a terrible way, endangering his life. It wasn't like the wolf had actively tried to get Aurelias in trouble. He remembered when they first encountered each other Caleb had given the tiger his description, so it was conceivable that he would have to run away regardless. But to trick him into 'saving' the elder hacker who clearly needed no help being saved, well, calling it rude would be a gross understatement.

"So did you mean it back there?" The low voice echoed up the stairs, settling in the fox's chest.

"Mean what?" Aurelias said.

"That you hoped I liked you."

"Oh."

Another flight of stairs passed wordlessly before Caleb piped up again. "Well?"

"I... Yeah, I did. But I'm still struggling with the fact that you're a complete asshole."

More silence.

"Why are you still here then?"

Aurelias stopped and whipped around, the flashlight blinding the wolf momentarily before the fox pointed it lower. "Sorry about that." He sighed and continued. "I need you to promise me something."

"What?" The stocky wolf's ears flopped down and his tail tucked between his legs. His eyes pleaded with Aurelias, but for what the fox couldn't be sure.

"Don't pull that shit on me ever again. If you want to make a plan involving me, let me know and actually, you know, involve me." The slight fox crossed his arms and tapped his foot on the concrete stair. "I want to like you, but I can't unless you at least respect me."

The minimal illumination from the flashlight reflected in Aurelias' eyes, like his fury made manifest, and the intensity of the fox set the wolf on his heels.

"Look foxy, I said I felt... no, you're right. I do respect you. You're one hell of a hacker, and I should treat you like it. I'm sorry."

Aurelias nodded and tossed the torch to Caleb, who scrambled to catch it. "Good. You take point. My night vision is better than yours anyhow. I can see the steps fine." He waited for the wolf to pass, but Caleb had other ideas. Once they were on the same step, the bulky wolf grabbed the skinny fox by the waist and smashed their muzzles together. After the thick tongue's invasion of Aurelias' mouth abated, they both stood in the stairwell panting.

"Go on! We've got a job to finish," Aurelias said, swatting Caleb's ass with an open palm and making the wolf yip.

There was a noticeable spring in Caleb's step as they continued their climb, making Aurelias' chest swell. Perhaps things were going to work out okay after all.

That is, until all of the lights came back on. The stairway flooded with amber strobes and Caleb started swearing again.

"Alert. Primary power has been restored. Suppression systems have been restored. Backup generators one, two, and three remain offline. Employees are advised to continue evacuations."

The ebony wolf kicked open the door to floor fifty-seven and Aurelias jumped through behind him. "Wireless should be up. Check the forums while I find a working terminal."

"On it," Aurelias said as he slumped to the floor, giving his weary legs a break. The Internet was indeed available, and he wasted no further time navigating to the forums to figure out what the hell was going on.

There were a number of posts about furs getting kicked out of Kyota's network, and all the script kiddies DOSing the server were pretty much out for the count. Even a couple of the more experienced hackers had been evicted from the system when the power came back, bringing up hardened firewalls which isolated the network in emergencies. Apparently one known as Hedge took out the main power by inducing a hard reset, and was having difficulty inducing a second one thanks to the extra security measures.

"What if we could do it from the inside?" Aurelias typed.

"The breakers are on floor fifty-one. You could do it manually, but whoever got power back is likely down there in the first place," Hedge responded immediately on the forums.

Well, nothing I can't handle, probably, he thought as he felt the braille on his discs.

"Caleb!" Aurelias yelled. "Want primary power down?"

"Fuck yeah I do. Can you do it?" The wolf sounded as if he was in an office a couple doors down the hallways.

"Yeah. Gotta get to floor fifty-one."

"Do it. I'll head up to seventy. Use your laptop for light. I need the flashlight." The muscular wolf appeared, walking up to the slim fox and licking his muzzle. "You know, I could get used to this partner thing."

"I don't know how much time I can buy you. Do what you need to do fast so we can get out of here."

The pair split up: Caleb going up, and Aurelias heading down. The fox was loathe to leave the wolf, partly because he knew he was vulnerable alone, and partly because he wasn't entirely sure he trusted the lupine yet, despite their heart-to-heart earlier. It wasn't that he didn't think Caleb was being sincere, he just didn't know if Caleb could overcome his own nature and not leave the fox to the wolves, so to speak. But unless primary power was disabled again, it wouldn't be long before both of them would be captured by security, leaving him with little choice in the matter.

The fifty-first floor required a security override on the door, like the fortieth. The same code worked, too. Aurelias wondered who the password belonged to, but let that train of thought fall to the wayside when he heard voices respond to the open door.

_Sounds like two._He slipped inside and put his back to a pillar, his big ears swiveling around, like fox radar. The stomps of one fur echoed loudly through the concrete room, as if he wasn't trying to hide his presence. Now was the time, the test of his abilities as a magical hacker.

Grabbing a disc, he knew what he had before he checked the braille. He snagged a second disk and threw them, one in the corner behind him, and the other in front of the probable security guard.

"Activate Lux Splendida. Activate the Adramelech Protocol."

Light bloomed and the screams of the unknown fur followed, ostensibly blinded by the flashbang. Over in the corner, the rendering algorithm that would bring his Adramelech monster into existence ran -- bright points moving through the air, outlining the shape of the creature's wings.

"Jerry?" The second fur's voice called, tinged with worry.

The first guard, Jerry, grunted before answering. "We're under attack!"

Aurelias stole a glance around the pillar to see a hulking lion in a navy security getup rubbing his eyes and snarling, trying to restore his vision. The other fur's steps were closing in. Adramelech's body, outlined in magical fire, began to fill, but the horse-bird hybrid would require a little more time to coalesce.

"Activate Nox Pallium. Activate Iactare Tactis."

Two more discs exploded into mystic shards. Aurelias was concerned he was burning through his optical discs at incredible speed -- he'd never had to use four spells in such quick succession in the past, and if he was using Sorcery, he was certain he'd have passed out by now from the draw. However, necessity dictated his strategy. He moved away from his pillar, completely silent thanks to Iactare Tactis, through the impenetrable darkness, touching his way around pillars to the wall opposite Adramelech. It didn't take him long to find the edge of his spell and back into the light.

Both guards shouted from within the inky cloud, until they were drowned out by the roar of the beast. The darkness dissipated as the fiery creature charged into it, leaving trails of scarlet across his vision. Aurelias would have loved to keep watching his best spell in action -- he had been a little busy with avoiding Caleb the last time he activated it -- but he had work to do.

Aurelias sucked in a sharp breath, nearly gasping with glee. The guards had left the computer terminal unlocked. Displayed on the monitor was a wireframe of the Kyota Industries HQ, with floors previously on fire marked in red. Backup generators one through three were definitely beyond repair, as the system wasn't even registering their existence any longer. Fire suppression, cameras, lights, elevators, and computing were all functional. It looked like the pair had been trying to restore the security drone systems from here, but the indicator was a defiant crimson.

Another scream from Adramelech shook the room. The noise was like rocks scraping together, and fur stood on end involuntarily. The guards' reply was far more worrying.

A shot rang out, piercing the cacophony and the mythical horse-bird. The creature wasn't programmed to screech in pain, but Aurelias was positive that it just did.

"Firearm discharge detected on floor fifty-one. Lock down engaged. Security personnel report to floor fifty-one immediately."

The fox cursed to himself. His escape route would be cut off unless he succeeded in disabling primary power, as the doors were electromagnetically sealed. Cut the power, cut the magnets. It just meant that he had one shot at this. If he couldn't pull this off, the guards were likely to capture, maybe even kill him.

This wouldn't be the only terminal on the floor with direct access to the power systems, so he couldn't just blow it up. What was it that Hedge did? A hard reset! Aurelias glanced around the screen, checking the menu items: Settings; Diagnostics; Maintenance. Emerald eyes reflected the monitor display as they darted back and forth, reading the screen after selecting maintenance. He could reroute power manually from any given floor, discharge capacitors for replacement, or he could... there! Hard reset the system.

"Warning. Resetting the system will take down primary power for up to thirty minutes after. Proceed?"

"No!" shouted the lion guard, jumping back from the fray with Adramelech.

BANG!

Red. He might've screamed, but pain destroyed Aurelias' senses. A moment later, his vision cleared enough to realize he had been shot in his right arm. Only a single bullet wound marred his arm, however, so the projectile must have lodged itself near or in his bone. The limb hung limp, all but useless, but somewhere in the recesses of his mind he knew it could have been much worse.

The lion, however, had been shredded by the burning claws of Adramelech. The creature was truly a cruel creation, as any wounds it inflicted were cauterized, making it that much harder to heal later. Incredibly painful, but not as messy. Not that there was much left of the lion. His shot at the hacker had made him very vulnerable. Aurelias would have felt a twinge of sympathy for the poor guy, except he shot Aurelias moments earlier. Only the second guard, still a mystery to the fox, remained.

Letting go of his injured arm, Aurelias placed a bloody paw on the keyboard and hit proceed. A moment later the lights pulsed then disappeared.

"Warning. Primary power is offline. Backup generators one, two, and three are unavailable. Backup generator four is under severe load and cannot power all essential systems. Power has been rerouted to floors seventy and above."

Adramelech was still shrieking, doubtlessly attacking the guard still. The noise was a programmed intimidation tactic, to bully assailants into making a mistake or cower in fear. But the noise also allowed Aurelias to track it. He grimaced as he placed his paw back on the hole in his arm, stemming the flow of the warm and sticky blood.

The screen flashed with a single button: Restore Power. Battery powered on a separate circuit so it could be invoked even if all systems were out. Fuck that.

He lowered his good paw into his pouch and grabbed another disc. It was an awkward motion, as the container was by his dominant arm, the one dripping all over his feet and the floor. Placing the disc on the console, he dragged himself to the edge of the room, behind a pillar. The room was lit only by the fires of Adramelech and the glowing monitor, but his night vision helped him navigate. Every step jarred his injury, and he had to bite his tongue to keep from whining out loud.

Adramelech had finally been deleted. The creature's screams no longer echoed through the room, and instead replaced by the remaining guard's panting. Holding deathly still, the fox stopped breathing, trying to stay hidden in the shadows. It didn't help the pain. He heard the guard walk over to the console.

"What the?"

"Activate Ignis Fragor."

The heat of the explosion, the stench of scorched fur, and the lack of oxygen all made Aurelias sway and threatened him with unconsciousness. Tears squeezed from his eyes, clearing the stinging smoke from them.

He hoped Caleb was getting what he needed, as there was no way Aurelias was going to be much more useful. Injured, losing blood, and down to a handful of spells which consisted of flashbangs and silencers, there was little more he could do. With fifty flights of stairs ahead of him, the fox began the arduous journey away from Kyota Industries.

* * * * *

"Hey, foxy."

Aurelias wakened and groaned, a dull pain in his right-arm forcing him to roll over. "Caleb? Where am I?" The fox opened his eyes to see the stocky wolf sitting by the bed, smiling.

"You're in a clinic, in the Undercity. You made it here by yourself. Well, in a cab." The white walls were in need of a scrubbing, and the plain sheets were a bit threadbare, but otherwise the décor confirmed he was indeed in a clinic.

Bolting upright, Aurelias winced. "Oh, shit! Now I remember -- I'd been shot! And you..."

"I finished the job," Caleb said, placing a paw gently on the back of the orange fox's neck. "Kyota Industries is done. Their HQ needs severe repairs, and now the authorities have enough information to shut down the entire company. We did it." The wolf kneaded Aurelias' neck softly. "I saw the security footage, before I wiped it. You did one hell of a thing down there, foxy. I don't think I could've pulled off what you did."

"But I screwed up. I left blood and fur everywhere, and the cab I used my old account to pay for it. And what about the doctors here? Their systems have all of my information."

"Hush, I'm not planning on throwing you under the bus again, foxy. I've taken care of it. Well, most of it. Enough to keep the cops buys for a few more days. Couldn't do much about the blood and fur, but Vancouver is nice, right?"

Aurelias' eyes widened. "I have to leave the Undercity? And you?"

Pushing the fox to make him scoot over, the bulky wolf sidled onto the bed. "I never said you'd have to leave me," Caleb said, nuzzling Aurelias.

With a great big grin, Aurelias draped his arm over the ebony wolf. "Vancouver is definitely nice."