{"sf1_id":750118,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Chasing the Devil","author":"Volcan MacAingeal","words":18163,"posted_at":"2014-08-28T14:02:00.000Z","tags":["Cyborg","Death","Dragon","Dragoness","Female","Guns","Human","Hurt/Comfort","Hyena","Male","Sparrow Haw","The Os-Nadarra Sentinels","Violence (not In Yiff)","Wolf","breakdown","police","raid"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/750118-chasing-the-devil","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/750118","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=750118\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"\nThe Os-Nàdarra Sentinels\nChapter 3: Chasing the Devil\n \n-The hidden lab of the I.T.O.U.E, August 1st,\n2010-\n \n            The playing video illuminated the room as Kyle watched\nthe recorded battle of Volcan against the strongest member and third gang boss;\na man known as Warwick Torison, former Canadian armed forces before he was\ndishonorably discharged for his extreme brutality, according to the files the\nI.T.O.U.E had on him. The man's superhuman physique however was the result of\ndrugs and enchantments cast upon him by The Mana's leader, not of his own\nstrength, which although put him under the I.T.O.U.E's radar, did not make him\na target for the retrieval teams.\n            But in the video, Kyle watched as he saw Volcan fighting\nto protect several people who the gangsters had taken hostage, including a few\npolice officers; the fight was recorded on the dashboard camera of one of the cop's\ncruisers but the I.T.O.U.E had hacked it from the police database, looking for\ninformation on Volcan that they could use against him. Although Kyle could see\nsome weaknesses to exploit, the actions of the phoenix were... nothing like he\nexpected. He wasn't fighting like someone who just wanted to kill, and he was\nfighting to defend mortal people; the type of people the I.T.O.U.E were\nsupposed to protect as well, from ones like him\n            Yet... if Volcan was the enemy... why was he...?\n            A knock on the door broke Kyle's train of thought; he\nlooked over his shoulder as the door opened, and an anthro cat stepped into the\nroom. \"Commander Two; the doctor's been calling for us. Why haven't you\nresponded?\"\n            \"Sorry; I think my communicator was off,\" replied Kyle,\nstanding up from his desk and closing the lid of his laptop before he adorned\nhis helmet. \"Let's go.\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n \nThe\ncommanders of the three retrieval teams stepped into the main lab, and\napproached the man in the lab coat sitting at the far end of the room. All three\nmen were in full gear, hiding their faces, but were unarmed, and stood at full\nattention as they lined up, expertly, before the eyes of Jacob Rex. \n            \"You wanted to see us, sir?\" The first commander, his\nsuit emblazoned with blue stripes around the midsection and shoulders,\ninquired.\n            \"Yes,\" Rex began. \"I have a new mission for you three.\nI've been working on some plans for our mission, and I think I'm almost ready\nto put them into play, but there are some things I need you three to do for me\nfirst, and I want you to see to it personally, since the second in command for\nteam one, Observer One, already failed.\" His words made the first commander\nflinch...\n            \"Are we going after Volcan Skilerain again, sir?\" The\nsecond commander, indicated by his suit bearing white stripes as opposed to the\nblue of the first, asked.\n            \"Yes, but we must take a different approach,\" replied\nRex. \"I made the mistake of underestimating Volcan Skilerain before; we\napproached him without assessing just how dangerous he, or those associated\nwith him, really are. Cannot make that mistake again or it may cost us more\nthan just four dead men and four destroyed cyborgs next time.\"\n            \"What is it you want us to do, Dr. Rex?\" The third\ncommander, decorated with green stripes, asked.\n            \"I have compiled a list of Volcan Skilerain's associates,\nboth current and those he met during the gang war that hit the city not long\nago,\" replied Rex, standing up from the chair, and hobbling on a can towards a\nnearby table, where he picked up a piece of paper, and approached the\ncommanders. \"Make copies, assign teams, and send your men out to observe and\nassess these individuals. I want to know who among them are threats to us;\nreport in to me each day with your findings. I want to know what they do in\ntheir daily lives, from when they wake up to when they have dinner; everything.\nUnderstood?\"\n            \"We will do as you command, Dr. Rex,\" the second\ncommander promised.\n            \"Good,\" returned Rex. \"Remember, do not make moves to\neliminate any of them until I say so, understood?\"\n            \"Yes sir.\" All three replied.\n            \"What about Skilerain himself?\" The first asked.\n            \"We'll get to him,\" Rex assured the commander. \"You'll be\nable to redeem your seconds' failure soon enough, Commander One.\"\n            \"This isn't about that, sir,\" replied the Commander. \"My\nsecond failed because he lacked insight; that reflects badly on my unit. It's\ntime I remind the others why we're ranked First. Skilerain is not dangerous, my\nmen are not incompetent. Only my second was.\"\n            Rex tilted his head curiously. \"Was?\"\n            \"I don't tolerate incompetence,\" replied Commander One.\n\"He has been discharged, and disposed of. Currently I lack a second, so I lead\nthe team myself from now on.\"\n            Rex smiled grimly at the commander. \"Cold, and efficient.\nThat is why you're ranked first.\" He looked at the other two commanders. \"You\ncould learn from him, quite a lot perhaps.\"\n            \"With all due respect, sir,\" replied the second\ncommander. \"I can forgive one or two failures from my team members as long as\nthey learn from their mistakes; failures happen, it's what lets us learn at all.\nIf they don't, then I'll remove them, but you lead teams with respect, not\nfear.\"\n            \"To each his own,\" returned Rex, before looking at the\nthird commander. \"And what are your thoughts on the subject?\"\n            \"My men follow orders,\" he returned. \"We don't think\nabout what those orders are; if it is for the cause, then there is no reason to\nquestion it.\"\n            \"Now that is an\nattitude I like to see,\" returned Rex. \"Unwavering loyalty and devotion to the\ncause, mixed with cold, calculative efficiency.\" He smiled widely. \"Now, prove\nto me my faith in your ability is not misplaced. Go now, carry out my\ninstructions, but at all times, be ready to use your weapons. We are in this to\nsave our world, but it must be done carefully.\"\n            \"Yes, Dr. Rex.\"\n \n \n-Unity Falls, August 7th 2010-\n \n            \"Chief?\"\n            Gregory stirred as he heard his name being called, and\nsat up from his desk, rubbing his eyes before he elevated his gaze, and saw the\nconcerned face of Constable Tanner Phillips staring back at him. The hawk let\nout a mild yawn, running a hand down his face before he turned his attention\nback to the Constable.\n            \"Sleeping in your office again, eh boss?\" He asked.\n            \"Damn... what time is it?\" Gregory asked, groaning as he\nfelt a slight ache in his back. \n            \"It's two hours past the end of your shift,\" returned\nPhillips. \"Wife has phoned twice now, looking for you. I had assumed you left\nuntil I walked past the office here.\"\n            Gregory groaned and put a hand over his eyes. \"Shit... I\nprobably scared her half to death; that's the second time this year I've done\nthis.\"\n            \"Guess you got a little absorbed in your work?\" Phillips\nasked, looking down at the spread of papers laid out across Gregory's desk. He\nnarrowed his eyes as he examined the content written on some of the papers,\neven picking one up and looking carefully at it. \"The crest on this page isn't\nfrom our station.\"\n            \"No; it's from the RCMP in Windsor, Ontario,\" replied\nGregory.\n            \"Why there?\"\n            \"A kidnapping similar to that of Vernardo Glaseros' took\nplace there two years ago,\" the chief explained. \"Adolescent girl, human, but\nwith supernatural abilities; she had the power to levitate. She was taken by\narmoured men and one unclear suspect with metal implants, according to\nwitnesses, and for some reason her powers weren't working when they came after\nher.\"\n            \"Fits the bill,\" stated Phillips.\n            \"I have another one from Thunder Bay, and one from\nVictoria that also fit,\" added Gregory. \"Notice what they all have in common\nthough?\"\n            \"They're miles apart; what could they have in common?\"\nPhillips asked.\n            \"Think hard,\" replied Gregory. \"Picture all those cities\non a map, Unity Falls as well, and then see if you notice the connection.\"\n            The African American police officer thought back to the\nlast time he looked at a map, and took a moment to remember where the cities\nGregory talked about were located. At first, he didn't see anything in common;\nThunder Bay was placed near Lake Superior, Victoria was on Vancouver Island,\nsouthernmost point of the isle, Windsor was very close to the border to the\nUnited States, and Unity Falls sat directly on that border; he could not...\n            The conclusion hit him like a ton of bricks.\n            \"All of the kidnappings are near the American border,\" he\nstated.\n            \"Exactly,\" returned Gregory, clapping his hands. \"Now\nyou're thinking like a detective; the most minute detail could be the one that\nsolves the case. Remember that.\" After a nod from Phillips, the chief\ncontinued. \"On a hunch, I called in a favor from an old friend of mine on the\nMontana half of the city; asked him to check for cases across the northern\nStates that fit this profile.\"\n            \"Did he find anything?\"\n            \"Plenty,\" replied Gregory. \"Identical kidnappings, all of\nsuperhumanoids, have occured in Washington, northern Idaho, North Dakota,\nMichigan, even right in New York. He managed to slip me one bit of information\non the Idaho cases as well; the perpetrator or perpetrators were all tracked\nback across the border between Canada and the States. \n\"The\nI.T.O.U.E are using the national border as a safety net, crossing it after\ncommitting their crimes where the police from the states or provinces they\nattack can't follow them, and we already know they have stealth technology;\nVolcan and Rikyuu both confirmed that, so they're using that to sneak over the\nborders unseen by the Border Police of either country, and go into hiding until\nthey're ready to move again.\"\n\"They\nturned the jurisdiction of the police forces into a shield,\" continued\nPhillips. \"Canadian cops can't chase them into the States; they kidnap someone\nhere, then hide over there until the heat's off, or they move on to a new\narea.\"\n\"And\nvice versa,\" added Gregory. \"Commit a crime in the US, and then hide here in\nCanada where nobody is tracking them anymore.\"\n\"They\ncertainly know how to cover their tracks, I'll give 'em that,\" remarked\nPhillips. \"But how does this help us find them?\"\n\"With\nall this evidence I can convince the Montana sides' police department to help\nus find the I.T.O.U.E,\" replied Gregory. \"With the heat on them on both sides\nof the border, they'll either have to move on or give up, and wherever they go,\nI'll make sure every cop in Southern Canada knows how they operate.\" He\nclenched both hands into fists. \"This insanity has to end, now.\"\nPhillips\ncontinued to look through the folder in his hand before coming to a photograph,\nexamining it carefully. \"Did you see this photo?\"\nGregory\nnodded, turning his attention to some folders in front of him. \"The girl was\ntaken from a shopping mall; surveillance caught the crime but couldn't identify\nany of the suspects. They were all wearing tactical gear and face masks,\ncarrying automatic weapons.\" He began to yawn, covering his open beak with his\nhand and clenching his eyes. \"Damn I need coffee.\"\n\"I\nthink I can identify one,\" stated Phillips.\nGregroy\nstopped yawning abruptly; his beak actually clicked shut and his eyes shot\nopen, immediately rolling to stare at Phillips. \"You can?\"\nThe\nconstable turned the photograph over in his hand to show it to Gregory. \"See\nthe one at the front, carrying the revolver?\"\nGregory\nlooked closely at the photo, and even took it from Phillips to get a better\nlook. \"I didn't see that before...\" He admitted. \"That's not who I think it is,\nis it?\"\n\"Just\nmight be; he fits the description,\" replied Phillips. \"Revolver, black coat,\nconcealed features, if we could see his left hand I wager we'd find a glove.\"\nGregory\nnarrowed his eyes at the photo. \"But why is he there?\" He asked. \"He's a\nprofessional assassin, not a lowlife kidnapper.\"\n\"I\nheard he used to hunt Vampires,\" remarked Phillips. \"Maybe he's just like any\nmercenary; do anything for money.\"\n\"Perhaps...\nor it's someone pretending to be him,\" offered Gregory. \"There are only two\npeople I know who can tell us for sure.\"\n\"Who's\nthat?\"\n\"The\nonly people who fought him and lived,\" replied Gregory. \"Volcan Skilerain, and\nXavier Sinclaire.\"\n\"Xavier?\nThe mercenary?\" Phillips asked.\n\"Yes,\nand the only recorded person to have ever beaten Devilshade in a fight; he may\nbe our best bet to finding and defeating him.\"\n\"Gregory,\nthat crazy fox has a rap-sheet as long as I am tall,\" Phillips pointed out.\n\"Yet you want to meet with him?\"\n\"He\nwas on our side during the gang war,\"\nreminded the chief. \"I have no reason to believe we can't trust him.\"\nPhillips\ngave no response to that statement, and simply dropped it, moving onto the next\nsubject. \"So how do we find him?\"\n\"That,\nI'll have to ask Volcan about,\" replied the chief. \"He's about the only person\nI know who might know where Xavier lives; even if he doesn't, he'll at least\nknow how to find him.\"\n\"I\nsure hope you know what you're doing, boss; considering going to a mercenary\nfor help. Not many of them do anything for free.\"\n\"I\nknow... and I hope I don't regret it later either.\"\n \n~~~~~\n \n-Two nights later, Unity Falls Concert Hall-\n \n\"Fire dances\nin my eyes!\nThe eyes of fire~!\nMirroring the\nanger in my soul\nLook into the\neyes of fire;\nSee my\nrage... feel my pain!\"\n \n            Vinge let the word pain drag out in one long syllable,\nhis voice echoing from the speakers all around the concert hall as Volcan and\nPavan strummed away the last riff with their guitars, and Brent pounded the\ncymbals on the drums repeated-ly until the music finally stopped, and one brief\ndrum-solo ended the song, and cued the roar of applause from the audience, who\nthrew up their arms and bounced on and off the floor in a frenzy.\n            \"Ladies and gentleman, thank you for coming out here\ntonight; we're glad you could all join us this spectacular evening, and we\nthank you all for making this fund raiser concert a success!\" Vinge said into\nthe microphone. \nVolcan\nstepped up to the front of the stage, requesting the microphone from Vinge, and\nspeaking into it. \"Some of you may or may not know, this concert was to save a\nwoman's life, a woman who was afflicted with a rare disease, and one who's very\nspecial to our new singer here,\" he put a hand on Vinge's shoulder. \"That\nwoman, his mother, will now be able to continue her life thanks to all of you.\nOn behalf of both of them, thank you all. We hope to see you all again next\ntime; maybe we'll even have something new to show you all! So long and\ngoodnight!\"\n            With that, the stage went dark, and the members of Winged\nFury gathered their instruments and carried them backstage, the roar of the\ncrowd following them until they were out of sight, and slowly it began to quiet\ndown outside, the satisfied fans making their way out.\n            \"Phew,\" breathed Brent, picking up a towel and dabbing\nhis forehead. \"I'm beat... and damp; amazing how hot it gets out there.\"\n            \"How do you think Vinge feels?\" Pavan remarked. \"Never\nhear him complain about it.\"\n            \"If you ever hear him speak at all,\" added Brent.\n            \"I'm standing right here, you two,\" reminded Vinge.\n            \"Really? We didn't notice,\" joked Pavan. \"I thought it\nwas a little chilly in here.\"\n            \"Alright, Pavan; don't start teasing him,\" Volcan\ninterjected; he knew Pavan meant nothing malicious by his jokes, but ever since\nVinge joined the group, Pavan made a habit of poking fun at the ice phoenix,\ntrying to get some sort of reaction out of him, but Vinge's patience against\nPavan's jest was like the wind trying to push a glacier.\n            Volcan chuckled as he realized the irony of that\ncomparison.\n            \"So, seems you boys are keeping busy.\"\n            Volcan and his bandmates turned to the voice, and spotted\na familiar face at the backstage entrance. \"Gregory?\"\n            \"Hello, boys,\" returned the police chief, stepping up to\nfour musicians casually. Volcan immediately took note of the chief's change of\nattire; he wasn't wearing his police uniform for once, rather he was dressed in\na black button-down shirt and light blue jeans.\n            \"Barely recognized you in those clothes,\" said Volcan. \"I\ndon't think I've ever once seen you out of uniform.\"\n            \"I'm off duty,\" replied Gregory, shrugging. \"The city was\nactually quiet tonight; I think you may somewhat be responsible for that.\"\n            \"Me? I haven't been out busting heads tonight,\" said\nVolcan.\n            \"Even criminals enjoy music,\" remarked Gregory.\n            \"He's got a point there, Volc,\" added Pavan. \"It honestly\nwouldn't surprise me if most of the street crews were here tonight.\"\n            \"Alright, granted,\" admitted Volcan. \"Although, Greg, I\nhave a feeling that you didn't come here just to compliment us on our music.\"\nHe looked the hawk in the eye. \"Is it about the I.T.O.U.E; are they back\nagain?\"\n            \"Well, yes this is about the I.T.O.U.E, but no, they\nhaven't returned yet,\" replied Gregory. \"But I believe I'm getting closer to\nfinding them; I've just come across a clue that may take us right to him.\"\n            Volcan's crown of feathers flicked visibly at Greg's\nwords, and Vinge's eyes widened almost to dinner plates as the words reached\nhim.\n            Volcan approached Gregory, and asked him very\nmatter-of-factly, \"what have you found, chief?\"\n            From his pocket, Gregory produced a photograph and\noffered it to Volcan. Brent, Pavan and Vinge stepped over as well to look at\nthe photo. \"Look at the front,\" directed the police chief. \"See the one with\nthe revolver?\"\n            Volcan scanned over the photo, eventually spotting the\nperson with the revolver, and feeling a sense of dreaded familiarity wash over\nhim as he saw the owner of the hand that gripped the powerful firearm... A\nfigure garbed in a padded, black trench coat with an attached hood that obscured\nmost of his face, revealing only his mouth, chin and the tip of his nose, but\nnot enough to identify the wearer.\n            \"Where was this taken?\" Vinge asked.\n            \"You know, by law, I can't tell you that,\" replied\nGregory. \"I can however tell you, it took place two years ago; the target was a\nsuper humanoid girl, only adolescent, with the power of levitation.\"\n            \"What is the I.T.O.U.E's interest in super humanoids?\"\nBrent asked, shaking his head. \"Supernatural beings like phoenixes and dragons\nare among the oldest life forms on the planet, and then humans learned how to\nuse magic for six thousand years. It's only in the last two centuries that\npeople with strange powers have begun appearing.\"\n            \"Humans are especially bad for mistreating anything they\ncan't understand, even if that thing is one of their own species,\" stated\nVinge, scornfully.\n            \"Don't judge too harshly, Vinge,\" Volcan intervened. \"I\nsaw just as many anthros in that hit-squad that came after me as there were\nhumans. It's in the nature of mortals to fear anything they think they'd have\nno defense against. Of course,\" he turned his attention back to the photo,\n\"there's some out there that have proven just the opposite.\"\n            \"So, that's him then?\" Gregory asked.\n            \"No mistaking it,\" replied Volcan. \"That's Devilshade.\"\n            \"Whoa, Devilshade?\" Pavan asked. \"You can't mean that\nsame famous assassin, could you? The guy we were talking about just last month?\"\n            \"Infamous, Pavan; infamous,\" corrected Brent.\n            \"Whatever!\"\n            Volcan nodded. \"Yeah, that's him alright; he's got all\nthe toys. A .44 magnum revolver, a hooded trench coat probably filled to the\nbrim with concussion grenades, various types of ammo and a few pounds of\nplastique.\"\n            \"How do you know all that?\" Vinge asked.\n            \"Oh right, you weren't with us yet when we had that talk.\nWell, it's like this; the bastard was sent after me during the war,\" replied\nVolcan. \"Nailed me with a fire extinguisher grenade and knocked me into a coma\nfor hours.\" He glanced over his left shoulder, at the wing folded up behind\nhim. \"Broke my wing too; I couldn't fly for weeks.\"\n            \"Ouch...\" said Gregory. \"What else can you tell me about\nhim?\"\n            \"Not much; he took me down pretty damn fast,\" admitted\nVolcan. \"He was fast, not superhuman fast, but like Vinge; he saw my muscles\nflex and suddenly he knew I was going to make a move, using my twitches like\ntelegraphing.\"\n            \"So, combat training,\" remarked Vinge. \"Defensive kung\nfu, and probably judo; both of those focus on reading the muscle movements of\nyour opponent to determine what they're about to do.\"\n            \"Doesn't watching their eyes do that too?\" Brent asked.\n            \"Not always; some are good at controlling their eyes to\nmake them unreadable,\" replied Vinge.\n            Volcan passed the photo back to Gregory. \"For any more\ndetails, you'd have to talk to Xavier. I was knocked out, and Aisuours took me\nto safety; it was only the three of us when we were attacked.\"\n            \"That's another reason I came to you,\" said Gregory. \"I\nneed to find Xavier for that purpose, but I don't know where he lives.\"\n            \"Even I don't know where he is; he has several safe\nhouses all over Alberta; possibly more in other provinces, and he changes them\nregularly,\" replied Volcan. \"I only have a contact number for him.\"\n            \"That's all I need; I simply need to talk to him,\"\nreplied Gregory. \"I'm hoping he may also know where to find Devilshade.\"\n            Volcan grimaced at that. \"I wouldn't count on it,\" he\nadmitted. \"Xavier's good, but so is Devilshade; he's probably very good at\ncovering his tracks.\"\n            \"Well, it's worth a try,\" returned Gregory. \"If I want to\nfind a group that's evaded capture since before the end of the Cold War, I have\nto follow every possible lead; this photo proves Devilshade has had\ninteractions with the I.T.O.U.E; if he has been in recent contact with them, he\ncould be our connection to finding them and finally putting an end to their\nschemes.\"\n            Volcan nodded, and reached into his pocket for his\nwallet, from which he produced a phone card and passed it to Gregory. \"There's\nXaviers' number. Don't try tracing it; he has it heavily encrypted, and you'll\nfind yourself looking for him in Oslo, Tokyo, New York and London alike before\nyou even come close to where he really is. Believe me, Brent already tried.\"\n            \"It had a spike waiting too,\" muttered the hyena.\n            Gregory scowled. \"Why do the dishonest folk always have\nthe best technicians?\"\n            Volcan shrugged in response. \"I really have no idea.\"\n            Gregory passed the card back to Volcan. \"It may actually\nbe better if you speak to him on my behalf.\"\n            \"Why?\" Volcan asked, quizzically.\n            \"I'm a cop, he's a mercenary; our types don't see\neye-to-eye.\"\n            \"You have a point there,\" admitted Volcan. \"And, he knows\nand trusts me; we did watch each other's' backs during the war. I'll talk to\nhim.\"\n            \"You sure Xavier will even agree to meet him, though?\"\nPavan asked.\n            \"Knowing that guy, it's hard to say,\" replied Volcan.\n\"Even after practically living with him for a while I still can't say I know\nwhat goes on in his head.\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            The next morning, Gregory received a call from Volcan;\nthe phoenix had managed to contact Xavier and convince him to meet with the\npolice chief, but preferred it be in a public place of Greg's choosing. The\nchief agreed that may have been the best course of action, since if Xavier\nshowed up at the police station, the cops there would probably try and arrest\nhim.\n            Gregory asked Volcan to tell Xavier he would meet him at\nthe Sunset Coffee shop, west of C-Plaza; Volcan agreed to pass on the message,\nand also made sure to get a preferred time, since Greg would need to meet him\nbefore his shift began that afternoon. With that done, he put on only half of\nhis uniform, leaving off the overshirt and used his personal car to get to the\nshop where he'd meet Xavier.\n            He wasn't waiting there long before a figure in dark\nclothes entered the shop and caught his eye; a black fox with white hair that\nshadowed much of his face. Nine tails trailed behind him, most of them covered\ndue to his trench coat, under which he wore a black shirt, dark blue jeans, and\nthick, black leather boots. When his gaze met Gregory's, the chief saw a single\nblue eye, but the other was obscured by his hair.\n            The fox made his way over to the booth where Gregory sat,\nand slipped into it on the opposing seat. \"So,\" he began. \"A little bird told\nme that you wished to speak with me.\"\n            \"That I do,\" replied Gregory, pretending not to notice\nXavier's obvious pun, although the expression on Xavier's face seems to\nindicate he did not care that he had. \"About a certain assassin you fought\nduring the war.\"\n            \"Devilshade.\"\n            Gregory nodded in response. \"I'm currently pursuing him\nas part of a case I'm working; I need to know what to expect if I come across\nhim.\"\n            \"So you're not here to try and convince me and my crew to\nturn ourselves in?\" Xavier asked, turning to a waitress who approached and\noffered to take his order for him. \"Just a water, please; not staying long,\" he\nsaid, before turning back to Gregory after she left.\n            \"No, I'm not,\" replied Gregory.\n            \"Well at least you sound honest,\" returned Xavier. \"Well,\nsince Volcan spoke on your behalf I suppose I can trust you for a few minutes;\nI know that bird well enough to know he wouldn't lead me astray, so, ask away,\nand I'll answer what questions I can.\"\n            \"Thank you,\" stated Gregory.\n            \"Before I do, though,\" interjected Xavier, watching as\nthe waitress returned with his glass of water. \"I'm just curious, why exactly\nare you after Devilshade; did he kill someone here in the city?\"\n            \"He may be connected to a group I am currently pursuing,\"\nreplied Gregory. \"That's all I'm at liberty to say; you should know I can't\ndiscuss ongoing investigations with anyone outside of the department.\"\n            \"Alright, fair enough,\" returned Xavier. \"Well, for\nstarters, as you may already know, he uses a high-powered handgun, particularly\na .44 revolver, and keeps multiple types of ammunition; armour-piercing,\nhollow-point, and even these strange rounds that emit a high-pitched shriek\nafter they're discharged. Not lethal to get hit with, especially if you're\nwearing any armour, but they can leave your ears ringing for hours.\n            \"I also shot at him several times, but it seems he had\narmour my guns couldn't punch through through and he was working hard to keep\nme at a distance, so I couldn't get any closer. He had a lot of combat training,\nwas a crack-shot with that magnum of his, and in his coat he carried at least a\ndozen different kinds of secondary gear and other tools. He dropped a building\non me during our fight by demolishing its supports with C4.\"\n            \"So he has access to military hardware,\" said Gregory. \"Previous\nconnections with the armed forces, perhaps?\"\n            \"I doubt it,\" replied Xavier. \"Some of the stuff he used\nlooked hand-crafted; nothing the military uses are made by hand, it's all done\nin factories on assembly lines. I think he makes the stuff himself.\"\n            \"But how would he even have the schematics for something\nlike that?\" Gregory asked.\n            Xavier shrugged. \"Honestly, I have no idea,\" he replied.\n\"Normally I'd say something about him buying it in the States, but not even the\nBlack Market can get a hold of plastique.\"\n            Gregory sighed. \"Great... so he's a hitman and a\ndemolitions expert. He's not going to be easy to take down. This complicates\nthings even further... as if finding him won't be hard enough, I'll need an\nentire SWAT team just to get near him.\"\n            \"Well... that's about all I can tell you,\" said Xavier.\n\"I actually don't know where Devilshade is.\"\n            Gregory looked at Xavier with a deadpan expression.\n\"You're joking... you can't tell me where he is?\"\n            \"I'm afraid not,\" replied Xavier. \"My team tried to track\nhim after he and I first fought but the trail went cold several kilometers\noutside of the city. I did a lot of damage to him in the fight, though; I can't\nimagine he could've gone far.\"\n            \"You think he's still in the city?\" Gregory asked.\n            \"I'm quite certain he is,\" replied Xavier. \"A month ago,\nThird Division was investigating a murder, right?\"\n            \"Yes, but what makes you think it's connected?\"\n            \"The guy killed was a top leader of the Sylvia Syndicate,\nright?\" Gregory gave the nine-tailed fox a quizzical look. \"Trust me, I'm well\naware of these things.\"\n            Gregory grimaced. \"Okay, let's assume he was,\" replied\nthe chief. \"Again, what makes you think it was him?\"\n            \"Firstly, because none of the gangsters in this city have\nthe stones to challenge the Sylvia Syndicate,\" explained Xavier. \"Secondly, if\nthey used a hired gun, a hit on someone like that would cost a damn king's\nransom, more than any of the smaller gangs could afford to pay, or be willing\nto. And third, the round the killed the crime boss was a .44 Magnum round.\"\n            Gregory narrowed his eyes at Xavier. \"How would you know\nthat?\"\n            \"I have my sources,\" replied Xavier. \"And before you ask,\nno, it wasn't me; the guns I use aren't .44's.\"\n            \"So you think he's taken a job here?\"\n            \"I'm not saying it's definitely him, but it's about all\nyou have to go on.\"\n\"Can\nyou give me an exact location to where you lost his trail?\" Gregory asked.\n\"Maybe my forensic teams can find something you missed.\"\n            Xavier shook his head. \"If there had been anything to\nfind, we'd have found it, trust me on that. Sorry Chief, but nobody on your\nside of the greenery is going to be able to find out where he is; only those\nwith underworld connections would have any chance of knowing where he is.\"\n            \"What're you saying?\"\n            \"If you want to find Devilshade, chief, you have to start\nby looking for those who hired him and right now the ones you should start with\nare those who'd have the motive -and the courage- to take on the Sylvia's, and\nyou'll have to find a way to get them to tell you.\" Xavier stood up from the\ntable, downing his glass of water in one long swig before setting the glass\nback down. \"So, you have a decision to make, Chief. Sometimes, to catch a\ndevil, you have to make a deal with one first.\"\n            With that, Xavier left a toonie of the table as a tip to\nthe waitress, and marched out of the coffee shop without another word to the\npolice chief. Gregory watched the mercenary leave, before folding his hands\nunderneath his chin and propping himself up on his elbows, slipping into deep\nthought as he considered Xavier's words. Unfortunately, the strange fox was\nright; if Gregory wanted to find someone like Devilshade, he'd first have to\nfind someone connected to him, like an employer. His forensic team had found\nnothing except for the bullet casing from the discharged .44 at the crime scene\nXavier had been referring to, but without the gun it was fired from, there was\nno way to trace it back to its owner.\n            Gregory ran a hand down his face, knowing what it was he had\nto do... but he was loath to have to, because as Xavier had said, he'd have to\nmake a deal with one devil to track down another...\n            He perked up a second after that thought ran through his\nmind. \"Although... maybe not.\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            The Casa 'Del Gato Night club, named so for the feline\ndancers that made its star attraction, was still at the slow hour when Gregory\nand Obsidian arrived; the parking lot was empty except for the staff cars, and\nthe only person in sight was the bouncer standing by the front door to check\nID's of patrons coming to the club.\n            They knew the bouncer; his name was Jason Takayama, a\nhybrid of a pitbull and a crocodile, with a canine physique, but a body covered\nin brown scales and a crocodile tail growing from his lower back. He was tall,\neasily dwarfing either of the police officers in height, had blue eyes, black\nhair and was very fit. He wore a black shirt, with 'Security' stitched over the\nleft pectoral, dark blue jeans and green shoes, and wore a radio on his belt\nwith an earpiece running up to his left ear.\n            He recognized the two as they approached; Jason had\nfought alongside Volcan during the Genocidal War, and was known for when he\ndefeated General Maxim Boleslav, the ex-Spetsnaz officer who led the massacres\nin Unity Falls. Jason had fought the man, and thanks to being younger and much\nmore fit, he was able to defeat him, and end the slaughtering of anthro\ncitizens across the city.\n            \"Chief Vinson, and Obsidian?\" He asked quizzically.\n\"Well, didn't expect to see you guys here, although by the uniforms I'm\nguessing you're not here to party.\"\n            Gregory shook his head. \"No; we're here on duty,\" he\nreplied. \"We need to see your boss, Mr. Agostina.\"\n            \"One sec,\" replied Jason, picking his radio off from his\nbelt and holding it up to his muzzle. \"Front door to Management.\"\n            \"Go ahead,\" a\nvoice replied few seconds later.\n            \"Hey, Carlos; do you know if Russel's in yet?\"\n            \"Yeah; he's in the\noffice. Why?\"\n            \"Couple of police officers out front here; they want\nto see him.\"\n            \"They got a warrant?\"\nThe responder asked, with some aggravation present in his voice.\n            Jason looked at Gregory, who shook his head. \"We only\ncame to talk to him; nothing else.\"\n            Jason turned back to his radio. \"No, they're just here to\ntalk to him.\"\n            \"Tell them to buzz\noff, and not come back unless it's important.\"\n            Jason scowled at the radio. \"The fuck is his problem?\"\n            Almost as if on cue, another voice chimed through the\nradio, one with a European accent that couldn't quite be placed, but still\napparent. \"Now Carlos, where are your\nmanners?\" The voice asked, in a smug tone. \"Jason, show the officers up, please.\"\n            \"You got it, boss,\" returned Jason, putting the radio\nback on his belt. \"Well, there's your clearance; follow me.\"\n            The two police officers followed Jason into the club.\nDuring the trek, Obsidian looked at Gregory. \"You sure about this, chief?\" She\nasked, keeping her voice low.\n            \"It's the only way,\" he replied. \"Like Xavier told me,\nthe only way we're going to find one devil, is by asking another. And there's\nno one bigger than Russel Agostina.\"\n            Jason glanced over his shoulder. \"Don't mean to\neavesdrop, but did I hear you say 'Xavier' back there?\" He asked.\n            \"Yes,\" replied Gregory.\n            \"It wouldn't be Xavier Sinclaire, would it? How's he\ndoing?\"\n            \"Oh right, he was with you and Volcan during the gang war,\nright?\" Obsidian asked.\n            Jason nodded. \"Yeah; guy was a tough son of a bitch but\nhard to figure out.\" He snickered. \"Although, watching Volcan spar with him was\nsometimes pretty funny, especially since bird brain couldn't keep up with him.\nThat guy was fast.\"\n            Obsidian giggled. \"Bird brain... the number of people who\ncall him that,\" she remarked.\n            Gregory cleared his throat, eyeing both of them with mild\nannoyance.\n            \"Oh... sorry chief.\"\n            Jason led the pair over to the stairs beside the bar\ncounter, and up the steps to the second floor, where they entered the assistant\nmanager and security office; two desks, on either side of the room, both with\nlittle signs that marked who used them. But they didn't stop there; he led them\nacross to another, short set of stairs that led up to another door, which he\nascended to and knocked.\n            \"Come in!\" A voice called.\n                Jason looked back to Gregory\nand Obsidian, nodding to them and pulling the door open. They thanked Jason as\nthey passed and stepped through the door into the office, coming into a room\nilluminated with white neon lighting, emitted from a sign over the window to\ntheir left, which read 'RUSSEL' in great, bold letters made of shaped neon\nlights. The carpet and walls were both black, the only colour in the room being\nthe redwood desk, where the person they had been looking for sat, his feet\npropped up on the desk.\n            Russel Agostina was an avian like\nGreg, only he was a crow, with a long, narrow beak, golden eyes, and\ncharcoal-black feathers. He wore a two-piece formal suit, without a tie, and no\nshoes -not that avians needed shoes, or could wear them, due to the size of\ntheir feet. He bore an irritatingly smug expression that could make even the\nmost patient man want to strike him, regarding the two police officers with a\nfriendly smile, but his eyes alone gave away a man who had many secrets.\n            Russel was of Italian descent,\nhaving immigrated to Canada over ten years ago, though how and why were\nunknown, and somehow, he had come into a vast fortune in record timing;\nofficial records stated that a relative of his in Italy had passed away and\nleft him his vast fortune, but ever since Russel appeared, crime had reached a\nhigh in Unity Falls, so Gregory suspected that the crow, however legitimate a\nbusinessman he seemed -running both a barber shop and a night club- may have\nbeen involved in something illegal.\n            Unfortunately, he'd yet to find\nenough evidence to prove it...\n            Gregory hated this man; he knew for\ncertain that Russel was not the model citizen that the world was deceived into\nbelieving, but no matter how many times the UFPD investigated Russel, he was\nnever once found guilty of the charges brought before him, due to no reliable\neye-witness reports, bullets found on the scene didn't match the firearm\nregistered in Russel's name, he always had an alibi with countless people to\nverify it, and he had never been found in possession of any illegal\nmerchandise.\n            A clean slate on the front, but\ncoated in dirt on the back, was the best way to describe Russel. It frustrated\nGregory endlessly, knowing such a monster lived in his hometown, untouchable\neven by the law...\n            Russel looked at Gregory with\nintrigue. \"Chief Vinson. I suspected it might be you,\" he said. \"Let me guess;\nyou're here to ask about some incident that happened a few nights ago, that\nonce again, you think I was involved in?\"\n            \"No,\" returned Gregory. \"I'm here\nabout something else entirely; I need information, the type of which I think\nonly you can provide.\"\n            \"Oh. Well now, that's a gemstone of\na different colour,\" said Russel, flicking something up towards the ceiling,\nsomething shiny and reflecting the lights of the neon sign, before catching it\nin his hand.\n            \"Was that a conflict diamond, by any\nchance?\" Gregory asked.\n            \"Look again, good sir,\" replied\nRussel, holding out his hand and revealing the gemstone; it was greenish in\ncolour and perfectly cut. \"This is not a diamond at all; it's an emerald, which\nI specially ordered and was thinking of putting in a piece of jewelry, as a\ngift for a lovely friend of mine.\" He studied the emerald in between his\nfingers. \"What do you think; a ring, necklace, maybe bracelet?\"\n            \"Cut the bullshit, Agostina,\" said\nGregory, scornfully. \"I came here for info I know you have; I want to know the\nlocation of an assassin known as Devilshade.\"\n            Russel clenched the emerald back in\nhis fist, and rolled his eyes to look at Gregory. \"And you think I have this\ninformation because?\"\n            \"You're the owner of a night club;\nsometimes things are whispered here that people won't say publically, right?\"\nGregory asked. \"Maybe his recent employers let something slip while visiting\nhere, or even just a rumor regarding him?\" He looked Russel in the eye. \"Well?\"\n            Russel stared back into Gregorys'\nexpectant gaze for a moment, before his smile broadened he leaned back in his\nchair. \"Well, perhaps I have heard something, but you know, information like\nthis is quite dangerous; I'll need something in return, if you want to know\nexactly where to find your hitman.\"\n            \"And why should I do that?\"\n            \"Well for one, you'd only be asking\nabout someone that dangerous if you were after him,\" replied Russel. \"However,\non the topic of 'dangerous', what guarantee do I have that he's not going to\ncome after me as revenge for giving away his location?\"\n            \"So you know where he is?\" Obsidian\nasked, eyeing Russel suspiciously.\n            \"Maybe,\" replied Russel. \"Like your\nboss said, in this business, you hear things. But information is a commodity\nnowadays, so if you want what I have to say, I want something in return.\"\n            \"Alright; I make no promises but\nname your terms,\" Gregory returned, spite in his voice.\n            \"Firstly, I want you to quit\ninvestigating me the instant something happens around here,\" began the crow. \"I\nunderstand you have a job to do, but please, tell your officers to quit\npointing fingers unless they have a good reason; this invasion of my privacy is\ngetting annoying and I am a very busy man; my time is precious.\n            \"Secondly, there's an associate of\nmine who's in prison right now, falsely accused of murdering someone he didn't\neven know to begin with; he was denied bail or early parole. I want you to\narrange for the courts to reconsider, and allow bail so that I can get him\nback. He handles some very sensitive matters for me.\"\n            \"No deal,\" retorted Gregory. \"You're\nasking me to turn a blind eye to you, and\nrelease a convicted murderer from prison; forget it. Neither you or him are\ngetting any such slack.\"\n            Russel shrugged. \"Then I suppose we\ncan't do business; I'm now having some trouble remembering the rumors I heard.\"\nHe rolled his eyes about as if searching for something in the room, no longer\neven looking at Gregory.\n            \"I guess we can't,\" agreed Gregory,\nwhich immediately brought the crows' attention back to him, eyeing him\nquizzically. \"We appreciate your time; we'll see ourselves out.\"\n            Russel watched the two officers\nleave, a suspicious expression on his face until the two were out the door, and\nonce it shut, his gaze drifted to his desk. \"He gave up far too easily,\" the\ncrow whispered. \"I have a feeling the joke may be on me this time...\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            \"Did you get it?\" Gregory asked,\nonce the two officers were out of the club and heading back to their police\ncar.\n            \"Was like reading a childs' book;\nhis thoughts were very clear,\" replied Obsidian, tapping the side of her head.\n\"I know exactly where Devilshade is.\"\n            Gregory beamed at her. \"Excellent\njob, Obsidian; I'm sorry I had to ask you to do something so underhanded, but\nit was the only way.\"\n            Obsidian waved it off. \"If this\nbrings us closer to bringing down the I.T.O.U.E, I'd do it again,\" she stated.\n\"Especially if it means we can protect others like Volcan, or Vinges' father,\nfrom suffering their cruelty. I'd read every mind in this city if I had to.\"\n            Gregory nodded to her. \"And that, we\ncan agree on,\" he said. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him, and he hummed as\nhe contemplated the idea that entered his mind.\n            Obsidian glanced at him. \"Something\nup?\" She asked.\n            \"Just an idea I had,\" replied\nGregory. \"One I might bring up to a friend of mine in the parliament sometime.\"\n            \"Going to share?\" Obsidian asked.\n            \"Officially Sanctioned telepaths for\nthe police force,\" replied Gregory. \"Performing what I like to call 'Psychic\nEvaluation'; authorized mind-reading that lets a telepath examine the memories\nof a suspect to confirm their stories if they have no alibi's, or even to\ndisprove their alibi's if the need arose.\"\n            Obsidian smiled and nodded. \"That's\nactually quite an idea,\" she said. \"Although telepaths would have to remain\nclassified, or people might start targeting them.\"\n            \"Also a good idea,\" agreed Gregory,\ngrinning. \"If this were approved, the law system could change for the better.\"\nHe shook his head. \"But let's worry about that later; we've still got a job to\ndo.\" He looked at Obsidian. \"So... where is Devilshade?\"\n            \"You're not going to believe it, but\nhe's actually quite near the city, just like Xavier said,\" replied Obsidian.\n\"And he's hiding out in the woods.\"\n \n             ~~~~~\n \n            As Rex finished the last touches of\nsoldering on the new microchip he had been working on to upgrade his cybernetic\nsoldiers, his computer emitted several beeps, indicating someone from the\nretrieval team was trying to contact him. He shut off his soldering equipment,\nand turned to the terminal, approaching it and pressing a button on the keypad.\n            \"Report,\" he commanded.\n            \"Dr,\nthis is Retrieval Team 3. We have an update.\"\n            \"What have you found?\"\n            \"We've\nbeen watching the police chief of Unity Falls, Gregory Vinson, as you\ninstructed,\" the voice on the other end reported. \"It seems he is actually leading an investigation on your organization,\nas you suspected. The problem is, sir, I think he is getting close.\"\n            \"What makes you so certain he is?\"\n            \"According\nto our findings, he is searching for the hired gun you enlisted for a capture\ntwo years ago; the one who called himself 'Devilshade'; we've patched into\ntheir radio frequencies now. It looks like they may be mobilizing to seek him\nout, and detain him for interrogation; several cruisers are heading for the\nwoodlands outside the city even as I speak.\"\n            Rex listened to the report attentively, considering everything that\nCommander Three was telling him, and felt a chill creep up his spine; if the\npolice had found Devilshade, the organization could be compromised, for\nDevilshade actually had, on his very person, a piece of Rex's own cybernetics\ntechnology. If it could be analyzed, his enemies would better know how to fight\nhis cyborgs, which were his best weapon against Empowered Beings. Not only\nthat, but if Devilshade were to talk and reveal the location of his hideouts...\nno, Devilshade didn't even need to\ntalk; the UFPD had their very own telepath to extract the information from him!\n            No\ndoubt she uses her powers to control them, he thought to himself. Yes... she's making them seek me out because\nshe knows I'm a threat to her kind, and that I may know a way to stop them when\nthey make their move; that must be it! Nothing can be done for those officers;\nthey have fallen already.\n            He glanced back at the terminal, pressing the transmitter button again.\n\"Find out where they are heading; if they have found Devilshade, do whatever it\ntakes to beat them to his location and eliminate him before he can be captured.\nYou are authorized to deploy your full squad instead of standard operation.\"\n            \"As\nyou command sir,\" Commander Three promised. \"If they have found Devilshade, we shall not let him compromise the\norganization.\"\n            \"I expect you to keep that promise, commander. Over and out.\"\n            With that, he ended the transmission,\nand glared at the screen before him, seeing his reflection in it. \"I will not\nlet mind-controlled police officers impede my mission,\" he stated. \"I'll save\nthis world from Empowered Beings if it's the last thing I ever do.\" He turned\nback to the workbench where he had been before, eyeing the microchip he had\nbeen putting the finishing touches on. \"And this is the first step; with my\ncyborgs' upgraded with enhanced combat prowess, nothing will get in their way.\nI think I will call this model... the Centurion; not a bad name. Like the Roman\nCenturion they shall spearhead my mission. Now... back to my secret weapon,\nproject 'Aerial Savior'.\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            \"Alright, men; listen up,\" Gregory\nbegan to brief the SWAT Team on their mission. He was dressed in tactical gear,\nwearing a kevlar assault vest, and carrying and AR-15 on his back, in\npreparation for the upcoming operation. \"Rangers are currently sweeping the\narea for our targets' hideout; we have the general location and layout though,\nsince it's the only structure in this area; it's a private property that used\nto belong to a plantation owner who lost possession of it during the depression\nin the 30's.\n            \"The map is old, but since the place\nhasn't been owned in eighty years, it should be accurate,\" he continued.\n\"However, the foundation is going to be a little decrepit so watch where you\nshoot; try not to hit the support beams or the whole place will come down right\non our heads. But that's not the only danger; the target himself is to be\nconsidered armed and extremely dangerous; just because it's only one person,\ndon't turn your back on him for a second. Despite that though, we need him\nalive; the information he could give us vital, and without it, there's a very\ndangerous group out there who'll keep roaming freely.\"\n            \"Understood, chief,\" the SWAT\nsergeant, Timothy Green -a pale-skinned, blonde haired and green-eyed human-\nwas his name. Unlike the other officers, he wasn't currently wearing his helmet\nor face mask; the other three officers were completely makes by those said\nitems; each of them were canines, that much was apparent, but what colour their\nfur, eyes or what their species were could not be determined. \"You're certain\nhe's alone, though?\"\n            \"Modus Operandi dictates that the\nfugitive known as Devilshade has never been seen in the company of anyone else,\nbesides an incident two years ago where he was hired by the very organization\nwe're pursuing,\" replied Gregory. \"He'll be alone, but don't assume that's an\nadvantage; this man has proven he's a one-man special operations force in the\npast, so face him as if you were fighting one of those. We know he carries a\nhigh-powered handgun; a .44 magnum revolver...\"\n            \"What is this guy, some sort of\nDirty Harry fan?\" One of the officers asked, eliciting a laugh from the other\nofficers, which earned each of them a glare from both Gregory and Timothy.\n            \"Don't treat this like you're going\nafter some everyday low-life,\" stated the police chief. \"Devilshade fought\nVolcan Skilerain once and nearly killed him -I found that out from the source.\nWe have to approach this cautiously. You are the leading team, but myself and a\nfew other officers will be accompanying you as backup.\"\n            Suddenly, his radio buzzed, bringing\nhis attention to his shoulder. \"Ranger 1\nto Alpha 1-0-1.\"\n            Gregory raised his hand to the\nreceiver on his shoulder, pressing the transmit button and holding it as he\nspoke. \"Go ahead.\"\n            \"We've\nlocated the area and have set up a perimeter, two kilometers due west of your\nposition. There are signs of recent activity here; someone is definitely\ninside.\"\n            \"Hold position, Ranger 1; do not enter the building, but stop anyone\nwho tries to come out,\" instructed Gregory. \"We're on our way. Alpha 1-0-1\nout,\" and with that, he released the transmit button, and turned to Timothy.\n\"Alright men, this is the moment; keep the sirens off, we don't want Devilshade\nto hear us coming. Let's go!\"\n            The SWAT team adorned their helmets\nand ran back over to their armoured van, promptly climbing aboard and starting\nthe engine, while Gregory strode over to his cruiser where Rachel Hernandez waited,\nalong with Obsidian and Phillips, all of whom climbed into one cruiser, with\nRachel at the wheel. Once everyone was on board, she started the car and sped\noff, following closely behind the SWAT van.\n            \"Obsidian,\" began Gregory. \"I need\nyou to make a call for me.\"\n            \"To who?\" The dragoness asked,\npicking her phone from her pocket, while Phillips fitted himself with a suit of\ntactical armour \n            \"To Volcan,\" replied Gregory. \"Tell\nhim I want him and as many of his friends as possible nearby.\"\n            \"Chief, this is a Police matter,\"\nRachel reminded. \"Volcan can't be anywhere near here.\"\n            \"He can't help us take down\nDevilshade,\" Gregory corrected. \"That is for us to do. However, if someone else\nshows up, then they're fair game.\"\n            Rachel looked at Gregory. \"You think\nsomeone else is coming?\"\n            \"Call it a hunch,\" replied the\nchief. \"Just a gut feeling that the I.T.O.U.E is not going to simply allow\nDevilshade to tell us about them.\"\n            \"But they don't know we're after\nhim,\" Phillips pointed out.\n            \"They\nknow we're after them,\" Gregory\nreturned. \"And if they think we're closing in on them, they'll want to tie up\nany loose ends that could endanger them.\"\n            \"So we're not just here to apprehend\nDevilshade,\" said Obsidian. \"We're going after him in order to protect him.\"\n            Gregory nodded. \"I may be reaching,\nbut I'm hoping it'll also convince him to cooperate with us,\" stated the police\nchief.\n            Rachel smiled incredulously at\nGregory. \"That is kind of reaching,\nchief; what makes you think he'll even listen to us?\" She asked.\n            \"You have a better idea for catching\nthe single most dangerous human being in the entire western hemisphere?\"\nGregory asked, looking at her sarcastically.\n            She chuckled in response. \"Nothing\nthat hasn't been tried before.\"\n            Obsidian was dialling Volcan's\nnumber when she paused, and turned to Gregory. \"Greg... it just occurred to\nme,\" she began, prompting the chief to look back over his shoulder at the\ndragoness. \"If we contact Volcan... what's to stop Vinge from coming too?\"\n            \"Vinge?\" Rachel repeated. \"The kid\nwho was on trial the other week, who Volcan had put in his custody?\"\n            \"The same one,\" replied Gregory,\nrubbing his chin in thought as he considered the question.\n            Obsidian raised a valid point; if Vinge\nwas with Volcan -which, by order of the court, he had to be at all times, then\nit was possible Vinge would want to get involved, hoping to find some\nconnection to his father; Gregory had already learned, thanks to Obsidians'\nconsensual 'Psionic Evaluation' of Vinge that the Ice Phoenix still wanted to\nfind his father. Not to mention, if Vinge got involved, then if he did anything\nto interfere with the investigation, Gregory would be forced to arrest both him\nand Volcan.\n            The hawk looked back over his\nshoulder at Obsidian. \"I guess we're on our own,\" he said. \"Our friendly\nneighborhood phoenix can't help us this time.\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            The officers approached the\nplantation house cautiously, keeping their footsteps as light as possible as\nthey ascended the front staircase and approached the door. \"Mount up; check the\nlock,\" Timothy ordered, keeping his voice low.\n            The first officer, a canine armed\nwith a Remington 870 shotgun, reached over and tested the door, turning the\nhandle carefully. It didn't budge. \"Door's locked; clear to breach?\"\n            \"Let's keep this quiet, and play it\nsafe,\" Timothy instructed. \"Rogers, pick the lock. Johnson, use the wand; check\nunder the door.\"\n            The shotgun-carrying officer slung\nhis weapon over his shoulder, and knelt down, lifting an thin, dual-view camera\ndesigned to slip underneath the doors, slowly pushing it underneath the door\nwhile Rogers, an officer carrying an MP5 sub-machine gun, produced his\nmulti-tool and worked on picking the lock. After a moment, Johnson looked up;\n\"No one in sight, sir,\" he reported, \"and no signs of booby traps on the door.\"\n            \"Door is unlocked; we're clear to\nenter,\" Rogers reported, putting away his multi-tool and elevating his MP5 once\nagain.\n            \"Alright, get in there and clear;\nkeep quiet, stay in two's,\" instructed Timothy. \"Eddison; you're with me.\" He\nlooked over his shoulder at Gregory, who stood at the bottom of the stairs with\nhis officers. \"Chief, you better join with the Rangers and keep the perimeter\nsecure, in case he tries to make a run for it.\"\n            Gregory shook his head. \"They can\nhandle it,\" he assured. \"It's going to take all of us to take this man down.\"\n            Timothy clearly wanted to argue, but\nafter a brief hesitation, he agreed. The officers quietly stepped into the building;\ntheir weapons raised, and promptly cleared the foyer before they split up and\nstepped over to nearby doors to the left and right to check the other rooms,\nall of the officers calling out 'Clear!' after checking the rooms.\n            \"Keep clear of the stairs,\" Gregory\nadvised his officers, once he looked up and saw the open ceiling, giving a\nclear view of the second floor. \"I don't trust those walkways up there.\"\n            \"Think he's watching us?\" Obsidian\nasked.\n            \"I don't see him up there,\" replied\nPhillips.\n            \"Me either,\" agreed Rachel.\n            \"Just in case,\" replied Gregory.\n\"Remember, he's an assassin; sneak-attacks are his specialty.\"\n            The three officers agreed.\n            Timothy and his SWAT officers\nreturned, regrouping in the foyer before moving on to check additional rooms of\nthe group floor as well. They were not gone long, however; they appeared back\nmoments later, and Timothy approached Greg and his officers. \"Okay, this floor's\nclear,\" he reported to them, \"he must be upstairs.\"\n            \"We'll never be able to climb those\nstairs without making a sound,\" Phillips pointed out.\n            \"Looks like our entry is about to be\nrevealed,\" said Timothy. \"I'll go first; all of you, cover me until I get to\nthe top.\"\n            \"Got it, boss,\" returned Rogers.\n            \"Careful, Sergeant,\" said Gregory,\nstepping over to the railing and aiming his rifle up to the opposing walkway on\nthe second floor, while officer Johnson did the same for the other side.\n            Cautiously, and with expert\nfootwork, Timothy ascended the stairs, making his steps as light as possible.\nThe stairs groaned in protest, the creaking of the old wood enough to make\nGregory cringe. Timothy turned about once he was halfway up the stairs,\nascending the rest of the way in a backwards fashion so he could watch the\nupstairs doors, aiming down the sights of his Colt C7 rifle. Once he was at the\ntop, he motioned for Eddision to join him; the officer, keeping his MP5 aimed\ntowards the left, while Timothy continued to watch the right.\n            Once both were upstairs, the other\ntwo SWAT officers carefully ascended to the upper level, followed soon after by\nGregory and his officers. Timothy took notice that only Gregory and Rachel\ncarried anything other than handguns; both of them wielded AR-15's, but the two\nconstables, Obsidian and Phillips, both carried only their sidearms;\nstandard-issue Sig Sauer pistols. \n\"You know, if you two needed some better gear, I had\nsome spare tactical firearms in the van we could've lent you,\" he whispered to\nthem as he ordered Rogers and Johnson to search the rooms on the left,\naccompanied by Rachel and Gregory, the rest following him to the rooms on the\nright. \n\"I'm... more comfortable with my pistol,\" replied\nObsidian.\n\"A handgun is all I need, sir,\" returned Phillips,\nconfidently.\nTimothy quirked an eyebrow at Phillips. \"Well,\nokay,\" he returned, and took point, Eddison coming up behind him, with Phillips\nand Obsidian at the rear.\nThey came up to the first door; Timothy tested the\ndoor, finding it unlocked, and pushed it open, aiming into the room beyond, only\nto pull back a second later. \"Hall closet; empty,\" he whispered, and continued\nto the second door on the right, the last except for the ones the others were\nentering; the four of them disappeared into the room.\nMeanwhile, for Gregory's group, they entered the\nfirst room; the room looked like it had once been a bedroom, but it had been\ngutted long ago, only for something new to be put in its place. Shining\nflashlights into the room, they saw the left and back walls were both lined\nwith workbenches, covered in tools, copper bullet casings, lead jackets and\nmore. The items were clearly placed there recently; they were not covered in\ndust like the rest of the floor, they were clean, some of them brand new,\nincluding the vice mounted on the corner of the workbench. \nGregory approached the bench while shining his\nflashlight about the room, confirming nobody was inside, and examined the\ntable, eyeing a few components in the corner between the two walls. \"Looks like\nsome unfinished flashbangs over here,\" he informed.\n\"Flashbangs; the guy makes his own tactical\ngrenades?\" Johnson asked in disbelief.\n\"I've found something else over here,\" Rachel\ninformed, eyeing a cylindrical object that somewhat resembled the unfinished\ngrenades Gregory had found. \"Not sure what it's supposed to be; probably\nsomething of his own design.\"\n\"This room's clear; let's move on,\" said Rogers,\nalready stepping back out to head on to the next door.\n\"Rogers, slow down!\" Johnson hissed. \"Don't get too\nfar ahead.\"\nThe others rushed back out to catch up with Rogers\nbefore he went too far. Just as they approached the door and Rogers was about\nto test it, the sound of creaking wood filled their ears, coming from inside\nthe room they were approaching. The officers froze at the sound, Gregory putting\nhis ear to the wall to listen, before he looked at Rogers and nodded to him.\n\"Open the door; bang it,\" Gregory instructed,\nkeeping his voice low.\nJohnson walked around Rogers, standing on the\nopposite side of the door from him, hand on the doorknob, while Rogers reached\nfor a flashbang on his belt, reaching for the pin on the flashbang to activate\nit...\nThe instant his finger closed around it, however, a\nhorrifying thing happened. The wall behind Rogers exploded, and an arm -a metal\narm- struck the officer in the back, sending him sprawling to the floor, while\nhis flashbang rolled across the floor over by Johnson and the pin going flying\nacross the room.\nThe flashbang was armed!\n\"Back!\" Gregory screamed, turning away and releasing\nhis rifle as he threw his hands over his ears, while Johnson dove away from the\ntactical bomb before it could go off. Rachel covered both of her ears and\nclenched her eyes shut.\nThe flashbang went off, the explosion deafening, and\na flash of light bright enough to blind anyone who had not shut their eyes in\ntime, filled the room, along with a small cloud of smoke and dust from the\nforce of the blast. The ears of the officers were left ringing, and Rogers, who\nhad been facing the bomb when it detonated, was blinded, after recovering from\nthe initial blow to the back of his head. He rolled around in pain, covering\nhis eyes with his hands and screaming through his facemask; the goggles he wore\nhadn't been enough to protect him from the flash.\nGregory opened his eyes, just in time to see a dark\nfigure leap out of the room, over the banister and down to the floor below.\nTimothy's group appeared from their side of the building, the sergeant aiming\nover the banister down to the floor below. \"Freeze!\" He barked.\nWhen Devilshade failed to complete and headed for\nthe front door, Timothy fired a warning shot, shooting two rounds through the\ndoor. He deliberately missed, of course, but it was enough to make Devilshade\nreconsider and back away from the door, seeking cover beneath the walkways.\nWhen Gregory stood up and looked at the assassin,\nthe man was just as Xavier described; clad in a black trenchcoat with a dark\nbrown vest worn beneath. In his right hand, a dark chrome revolver with a\nwooden grip was held in an upright position, his face was shadowed by a hood\nattached to his coat, hiding his features quite well in the gloom of the unlit\nfoyer. The metal-clad arm Gregory had already heard of was concealed by the\ncoat as well, but he knew that was what had struck Officer Rogers before.\nAs soon as Gregory revealed himself, the assassin\nsaw him and aimed his revolver up towards him. Gregory dove down just before\ndischarge, the loud .44 revolver belching smoke as the powerful bullet tore\nthrough the wall where his had been less than a second before. In retaliation,\nRachel took aim with her AR-15, firing a short burst at Devilshade. The rounds\nfound their mark; the assassin fell back against the wall behind him, but there\nwas no blood from any wound whatsoever.\nRachel was forced to duck as Devilshade took a shot\nat her as well, feeling the draft of the bullet as it whizzed past her shoulder\nwhile she dropped to the floor. Devilshade turned and ducked for a nearby door,\nheading into another room. Seconds later, they heard a window opening in the\nroom, only for it to shut again following some voices shouting from outside;\nDevilshade had spotted the Forest Rangers waiting outside for his attempt to\nescape.\n\"We've got him cornered!\" Timothy called as he and\nEddison rushed downstairs to pursue the assassin. Meanwhile, Johnson was\nchecking his partner, Rogers, and reporting his injury due to the flashbang to\ndispatch; they replied shortly after that paramedics were enroute.\nObsidian ran over to Gregory and Rachel. \"Are you\nalright?\" She asked them.\n\"We're okay,\" replied Gregory.\n\"I don't know how the heck Devilshade is,\" she said.\n\"I'm sure I hit him, and these AR-15's are loaded with armour piercing rounds;\nwhy wasn't he hurt?\"\n\"You sure they're armour piercing?\" Johnson asked.\n            Rachel pressed a toggle behind the\nmagazine on the rifle, ejecting it and taking a look at the rounds inside.\n\"Yeah, no doubt; 5.56 NATO armour piercing. Even an assault vest wouldn't stop\nthese at the distance he was from me.\"\n            \"He must've upgraded his armour,\"\nstated Gregory. \"Dragonskin, maybe; only type of body armour that could\nwithstand rounds of that size.\"\n            \"Now how the hell did he get his\nhands on something like that?\" Rachel asked.\n            \"No idea, but it only makes our job\nharder,\" stated Gregory. \"Still, that armour doesn't cover everywhere; he's\ncornered in that room. If we use a stingball grenade or another flash...\"\n            \"That is not going to work,\nofficer,\" a cold, morbid voice stated from behind the four officers -and one\ndisabled one, due to Rogers still being unable to see. The voice had no shred\nof conscience in it, so toneless and menacing it made the feathers on the back\nof Gregory's neck stand up, less than the cocking of a revolver that followed\nit\n            Slowly, Gregory, Obsidian, Rachel,\nand Johnson peered over their shoulders, to find the trenchcoat-wearing\nassassin was standing directly behind them, his revolver aimed straight for\nGregorys' head. Devilshades' hood did not fully obscure his face at the current\ndistance but it was still enough that Gregory could not see him very clearly,\nexcept for two dark blue eyes that glared at him from under its shadow.\n            \"Pardon me,\" he said, correcting his\nuse of the word 'officer' before. \"Police Chief Vinson.\"\n            When...\nand how... did he get back up here? Gregory demanded in his mind; he had\njust seen Devilshade flee into a room on the bottom floor, with Sergeant Green\nand Officer Eddison in pursuit, yet somehow, without even making a sound, he\nhad dispatched the two officers and come back up to the second floor, as\nimpossible as it seemed.\n            \"This guy moves like a stalking\nwildcat,\" Rachel remarked, a pang of humor in her voice despite their\npredicament.\n            \"You should never take your eyes off\nyour target, not even to plan,\" Devilshade returned.\n            The clicking of a gun sounded from\nbehind Devilshade, and the voice of Tanner Phillips spoke with a one of\nwarning. \"And you should make sure you do a headcount when you take hostages,\"\nhe stated. \"Now, put down the magnum; you're under arrest.\"\n            \"I was wondering where you had\nslipped off to,\" Devilshade remarked, but didn't relinquish his gun. \"Officer\nPhillips, isn't it? The UFPDs' best shooter; Chief Vinson was smart to bring\nyou on the operation against me.\" Suddenly, his left arm twitched, and Phillips\nrecoiled from something, grabbing at his side with his left arm.\n            \"Ow! What the hell?!\" He demanded,\nbefore his body suddenly went completely limp and he fell to the floor, eyes\nwide and staring straight towards the other officers, conscious but immobile,\nand he grunted, trying to speak.\n            \"But trying to arrest me... it\nsimply isn't going to happen,\" Devilshade added, his voice low. \"Don't worry;\nthe paralysis only lasts two minutes; once it runs its course, you'll just have\na case of the shakes for an hour or so.\"\n            Gregory sneered at Devilshade.\n\"Threatening and assaulting officers of the law is a sure way to raise your\nalready high bounty, 'Devilshade',\" he stated with spite.\n            \"Yes, so every cop I've ever evaded\nkeeps telling me,\" returned the assassin. \"But I'm not going to stand here and\nmonologue like a megalomaniac while the drug I gave your officers wears off;\nI'm leaving, and if you try and stop me, I'll blow this building and drop it\nright on your heads.\"\n            \"You're bluffing,\" Johnson accused.\n            \"Is your life and those of your\ncoworkers worth wagering that I am?\" He asked, coldly.\n            Johnson didn't answer.\n            \"I thought not,\" stated Devilshade.\n\"Now, I'm going to count to five; remove the magazines in your guns and toss\nthem away before I reach that, or the chief loses his some brain matter. And\ndon't forget to eject your chambered rounds too; don't go for your sidearms, or\nhe's dead. One...\"\n            \"Do as he says,\" stated Gregory,\npressing the magazine release on his AR-15.\n            \"Two...\" Obsidian and Rachel ejected\nthe magazines from their weapons and pulled back the sliders to eject the\nchambered rounds, which clinked to the floor at their sides, placing their guns\nwith Gregorys' after he emptied his.\n            \"Three,\" the assassin continued.\n            \"Johnson,\" Rachel stated.\n            \"Fine,\" the officer returned,\nbegrudgely.\n            \"Four...\" The sound of Johnson\npumping his shotgun multiple times, with shotgun shells hitting the floor each\ntime he did, filled their ears, and then he dropped the weapon over the\nhandrail, clattering to the floor below.\n            \"Five,\" Devilshade finished, raising\nthe barrel of his revolver to angle away from Gregory. \"Smart... now, I'm\nleaving, and you are not following me; once I'm a kilometer away you'll be safe\nto leave the building. I'll be out of range for remote detonation.\"\n            \"And how do we know you'll not just\nblow it up when you're outside?\" Obsidian asked.\n            \"You're a telepath; you should be\nable to see I'm not planning to,\" Devilshade retorted, earning a surprised look\nfrom Obsidian. \"As I was saying, I am...\"\n            Bzzt!\n\"Ranger 3 to Alpha 1-0-1! Please respond!\"\n            Devilshades' gaze shifted, looking at the radio on Gregorys' shoulder.\nAs soon as the assassins' eyes left the hawks', Gregory lunged at him, using\nall the strength in his legs to propel himself faster than even the assassin\ncould react. He tackled Devilshade straight in the ribcage, and twisted both\ntheir bodies about, using his legs once more to push off of the wall and force\nDevilshade towards the railing. The old wood snapped effortlessly from the\ncombined weight of both men hitting it, and they tumbled over, heading for the\nfloor.\n            The drop was short, but somehow,\neven in that short span of time, Devilshade pushed Gregory back enough to plant\nboth feet on the police chiefs' stomach. They hit the ground, the jolt momentarily\nstunning both of them, but Devilshade pushed with his legs and angled his hips\nupward, pushing Gregory over his head and throwing him off. Gregory hit the\nfloor a meter away, scrambling back to his feet; he didn't have time to draw\nhis sidearm, so he pulled his nightstick free of his belt, and just as\nDevilshade leapt back to his feet and aimed his gun, Gregory delivered a\nbackhand swing with his nightstick.\n            Devilshade was holding the gun right-handed,\nas was Gregory with his nightstick. The backhand swing was timed perfectly and\nstruck the revolver from Devilshades' hand, sending it flying across the foyer\nand disarming the contract hitman. Gregory immediately went in for a\nknockout-strike, but Devilshade caught his weapon with that dreaded left hand\nof his, squeezing tightly until Gregory could hear the wood starting to\nsplinter. Gregory grabbed him by his shoulder, and tried to push him off\nbalance; the two men grappled with each other, stumbling about the room as they\nfought for control.\n            Gregory was actually slightly bigger\nthan Devilshade, and so had a little more weight to throw around.\nUnfortunately, because of that bionic left arm, Devilshade had the strength of\na machine on his side. All Gregory could do was keep pulling him about, using\nhis greater size and mass to keep the assassin from getting a solid foothold,\nuntil finally, he managed to wrench his nightstick free, twirl it around and\njab Devilshade hard in the thigh with\nthe pointed butt-end of the club.\n            Devilshade winced from the strike,\nthrowing off his balance entirely; Gregory seized that moment to jerk himself\nback, twisting his body and using his hand on Devilshades' right shoulder to\nsend the assassin stumbling, where Gregory tried to tackle him from behind. But\nDevilshade let himself fall forward, catching himself with his hands and\ndelivering a punishing kick to the underside of Gregory's beak.\n            Gregory fell flat on his back,\nfeeling a searing pain shoot through his shoulder blades as his wings were\ncrushed under his weight, but managing to keep his head from hitting the floor.\nHe looked up, seeing Devilshade coming at him, his left fist drawn back to\nstrike...\n            Time seemed to slow down as the\nfront door, and the wall around it, suddenly exploded inward, debris flying\ninto the room and striking both the downed Gregory and the charging asssassin;\nDevilshade was thrown off and stumbled instead into the railing of the stairs,\nsaving Gregory from a lethal, potentially fatal punch. But when he turned his\nhead to find out what had entered the building, it was not a welcome sight...\n            The one who had come through the\nwall was a huge figure with a metal-clad face and body, and arms ending in\ngiant, spiked maces like the medieval-era morningstar used by knights of old Europe,\nand long legs -disproportionately long mechanical legs that made the creature\ntaller than it would have been if the legs were organic.\n            Gregory dropped his professionalism\nbriefly for one snide, irritated remark, directed more at himself than anything,\nsaid in a low, condescending tone. \n\"I fucking hate it when I'm right...\"\n \n            ~~~~~\n            \n            A\nfew minutes earlier...\n            \"Retrieval\nTeam 3 to Command Center; we have located the target, but the police got here\nfirst and already have him cornered inside an old plantation house, two\nkilometers due west of the city of Unity Falls. Visual confirmation puts UFPD\nSpecial Weapons And Tactics on site, along with six forest rangers and unknown\nnumber of police officers.\"\n            Rex folded his hands in front of him as he peered at the terminal,\nshowing a view of the scene from an onboard camera of the R.T.3s' Retriever\ncraft, which was still cloaked and in midair above the forest clearing where\nthe plantation house sat, abandoned for years and in surprisingly good\ncondition, despite not being maintained in decades. It was shame that such\nfine, old architecture was about to become a battleground. But one cannot decontaminate the world without a bit of harsh\ntreatment... He thought.\n            \"Proceed with the operation,\" he\ncommanded. \"If the police and the rangers get in your way, you are authorized\nto eliminate them all. But the assassin must die, one way or another.\"\n            \"By\nyour command; R.T.3 we are clear to launch. Begin the attack, I repeat, attack,\nweapons free; assume all targets hostile. Deploy the cyborgs.\"\n            \n            ~~~~~\n \n            It was only after the initial shock\nof the Cyborg appearing in the plantation house that Gregory registered shots\nbeing fired outside. The appearance of this cyborg was no coincidence; the UFPD\nofficers had been followed here, and the I.T.O.U.E was not intent on letting\nthem capture someone who could compromise them.\n            He snapped back to reality when he\nsaw the cyborg lumbering towards him, its big arms waving like pendulums in a\ngrandfather clock with each step it made. He scrambled to get back to his feet,\nbut in his franticness he found little purchase, succeeding only in crawling\nback from the abomination, but paused when it stepped over him, seeing it was\nmaking a beeline towards Devilshade, not the police chief.\n            Rachel and Obsidian appeared over\nthe railing of the walkway above, both of them armed with their reloaded\nfirearms. They shot at the cyborg, smoke and fire belching from their guns as\nthey tried to keep it from attacking Devilshade. Obsidians' standard-issue pistol\ndid very little to harm the cyborg, but Rachels' armour-piercing 5.56\nammunition yielded greater success. After six or so shots directly into its\nhead, the cyborg went still, teetered over and hit the floor loudly. Seconds\nlater, the floor splintered and groaned before it suddenly collapsed, sending\nthe metal-clad behemoth falling to the underground level.\n            Devilshade used the distraction\nprovided by the cyborg to slip out of the foyer before anyone could stop him;\nJohnson came charging down the stairs, leaping across the hole left by the\ndowned cyborg and landing deftly before retrieving his shotgun and beginning to\nreload it, while Obsidian came running down the stairs, Gregorys' AR-15 slung\naround across her torso, and went over to Gregory, followed soon after by\nRachel, who carried the still half-paralyzed Phillips down with his arm around\nher shoulders, and guiding the half-blind Officer Rogers around the hole. His\nhearing had returned, thankfully, but his eyes were still burning from the\nflashbang.\n            \"Are you okay Greg?\" Obsidian asked,\nconcerned.\n            \"Yeah; I'm fine. The cyborg wasn't\nafter me,\" he replied as she helped him back to his feet. \"It was here for\nDevilshade; where'd he go?\"\n            \"Son of a bitch ran into the kitchen,\"\nreplied Johnson. \"I heard a door shut; sounds like he's gone down into the\nbasement. If I hurry, I could still catch him.\"\n            \"Forget it,\" Gregory stated. \"He's\nprobably going for a safe-room or for more firepower; either way, we have\nsomething much worse to deal with now. Go check on your Sergeant and Officer\nEddison; we're going to need them.\"\n            \"Yes sir,\" returned Johnson. With\nthat, he ran across the foyer into the room where Timothy and Eddison had\npursued Devilshade before; through the door, Gregory could see someones' legs\nsticking out from around the corner, but a movement following Johnsons' entry\nrevealed they were not dead. Devilshade likely paralyzed them with the same\ntoxic darts he used to incapacitate Phillips.\n            Obsidian unslung the AR-15 on her\nback and passed it to Gregory. \"You're going to need it,\" she said firmly. \n            He agreed, and accepted the rifle\nfrom her. Rachel set Phillips and Rogers where they'd be out of the line of\nfire, and joined the other two officers as they hurried towards what used to be\nthe front door of the house. Outside, they saw the forest rangers using their\njeeps and the SWAT van for cover as they exchanged fire with numerous men,\ngarbed in police-issue tactical gear and bearing on their shoulders that\nwretched, inverted-pentagram insignia and lettering that identified them as\nmembers of the I.T.O.U.E. Gregory did a quick head-count of the interlopers,\ncounting a total of twenty at least, give or take, and three more cyborgs,\nwhich were lumbering towards the forest rangers slowly, the rounds from the\nrifles and handguns used by the rangers doing little to impede their advance.\n            \"Gregory!\" Obsidian exclaimed. \"They\ncyborgs; they have the same weakpoints as a human being, and their legs are\nhydraulic- take them out and the whole cyborg will come down!\"\n            \"How do you know?\" Gregory asked.\n            \"I'll tell you later; we have to\ntell the rangers!\" Obsidian returned.\n            \"Alright,\" he returned, and looked\nat Rachel. \"Stay here with Johnson; if Green and Eddison can still shoot, get\nthem out here. We're going to need their rifles!\"\n            \"What about Devilshade?\" Rachel\nasked.\n            Almost as if on cue, a loud hissing\nsound was heard, and something flew out from along the southern end of the\nhouse, striking one of the cyborgs directly before exploding, engulfing the\nmechanized monstrosity in smoke and flame; metal pieces, skin, muscle and even\nthe mace-hand of one of the cyborgs were sent flying, showering the I.T.O.U.E\ngunmen. The cyborg toppled over, hitting the ground with a clamour, half of its\nleft side blown apart straight down to the bone, but no blood flowed from its\nbody, only a blackish substance that closely resembled oil or hydraulic fluid.\n            The three officers glanced over to\ntheir immediate right, where the rocket that had downed the cyborg came from,\nbut saw no one just yet. \"I guess he's behind the house,\" Rachel remarked,\nsarcastically.\n            \"The cellar must have an external\ndoor,\" stated Gregory. \"He's trying to clear a path so he can escape. We have\nto get to him before he does so; Obsidian, you're with me. We're going after\nhim.\" He peered back into the house and called out. \"Johnson; how is your\nteam?\"\n            \"They're okay; Devilshade only knocked\nthem out,\" he called. \"He didn't use that dart like he did with Constable\nPhillips; Sergeant Green is coming around now.\"\n            \"If they can still shoot I want your\nteam assisting the rangers and prepare to pull out,\" Gregory instructed. \"Whether\nwe detain Devilshade or not, in ten minutes, we're out of here.\"\n            \"Yes, sir,\" returned Johnson.\n            \"Alright, let's go.\"\n            With that, Gregory and Obsidian\ncharged back into the house, and began to search for the cellar door, while the\nfirefight outside raged on.\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            The steps groaned ominously as\nGregory descended down the ladder leading from the kitchen down into the\ncellar; with each step he fully expected the whole ladder to come away from the\nwall and spill him onto the floor below. Thankfully, it never did, and he\nreleased a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding when his foot touched\ndown on the basement floor soundlessly.\n            Obsidian descended down the ladder\nshortly after, and stood next to Gregory, both of them carrying their handguns\nto compensate for the enclosed space of the cellar. In the next room, they\nheard gunshots, and could see the gleam of sunlight coming through the door,\ntelling them that Devilshade was still fighting the I.T.O.U.E gunmen trying to\nreach him.\n            Obsidian glanced at Gregory. \"Think\nhe's booby-trapped the door?\" She asked.\n            \"If he did, he'd have no way back\ninto the house, and it'd be his only escape route with those men out there,\"\nGregory pointed out, carefully approaching the door and testing it, confirming\nit was unlocked.\n            He glanced at Obsidian, their gazes\nmeeting until the two nodded to one another, and she walked behind him, her\npistol aimed past his shoulder as he slowly opened the door; a light squeak of\nprotest sounded from the hinges, but the sound of gunfire easily drowned it out\nin the room beyond\n            They spotted Devilshade at the top\nof a short flight of stairs, armed with an RPG-7 and his magnum, which he was\nshooting at unseen targets outside the cellar doors at the top of the stairs.\nHe ducked back as a burst-shot of bullets hit the wall above him, and\nretaliated with another shot of his magnum. No return-fire came after.\n            His gun clicked, and he cursed\nloudly before pulling it back and reaching into his coat pocket for more.\nSuddenly, one of the I.T.O.U.E gunmen appeared at the cellar door and shot him\nin the chest with their modified SMG; the shots sent Devilshade reeling, and he\nfell down the stairs, grunting painfully as he hit the floor followed by a\nplume of dust upon impact. The attacker took aim to fire again...\n            But Gregory was faster. He leapt\ninto view, took aim with his Beretta, and squeezed the trigger three times in\nsuccession.\n            Bangbangbang!!\n            The full metal jacket, 9mm rounds in the high-powered pistol punched\nclean through the I.T.O.U.E gunmans' armour, all three shots in his centre-mass\ntorso, and he fell to the ground outside, dead before his body hit the grass.\nObsidian ran up beside Gregory and used her telekinesis to slam the door shut\nand slide the bolt into place.\n            \"That'll buy us a moment,\" she said.\n            Devilshade got back to his feet;\nGregory started to approach him, only for the assassin to turn and aim his\nmagnum at him again, but Gregory didn't flinch. \"You're out of bullets,\" he\nstated.\n            Devilshades' eyes met his for a\nmoment, never lowering the weapon and waiting to see if Gregory bought his\nbluff, but the hawk had distinctly heard the click of the revolver; he knew it\nwas empty, and reloading a gun in the short span of time since he had fallen down\nthe stairs was impossible, even for someone as fast as Devilshade. Knowing\nthis, Gregory didn't even raise his own firearm, but Obsidian, standing beside\nhim, had hers aimed straight for him, her finger on the trigger and her eyes\nnarrowed.\n            Devilshade let his arm drop, the\nbarrel of the magnum now facing the floor. \"Well, Chief Vinson,\" he said in\ndefeat. \"You've managed to succeed where others have failed and have captured\nthe most wanted human in all of the west,\" he added with dark humor, \"they\nbetter give you a medal for it.\"\n            \"Capturing you was only a second\npriority,\" returned Gregory. \"I'm here for the same reason the I.T.O.U.E are.\"\n            \"You're here to silence me?\"\nDevilshade asked.\n            \"I'm here because you may have\ninformation that can lead us to bringing down the I.T.O.U.E,\" corrected\nGregory. \"If you cooperate, I can make sure your prison sentence is shortened.\nIf not, then you're facing charges of numerous counts of murder, including of\nseveral politicians and officers of law, espionage and of course, all of your\ncounts of assault today; that should add up to a total of twenty five years.\"\n            Devilshade grimaced beneath his\nhood. \"And what is it about them you think I can tell you?\" He asked. \"How do\nyou know if I'm involved with them in any way?\"\n            \"Your left arm,\" replied Obsidian.\n\"The cybernetics of it match those used in the I.T.O.U.Es' cyborgs.\"\n            \"And we have photographic evidence\nof you with one of their retrieval teams two years ago, which on that note will\nadd kidnapping to your growing list of charges,\" added Gregory.\n            \"Impressive,\" said the assassin,\nglancing at his arm. \"You're right; some of the tech of this arm does belong to\nthe I.T.O.U.E, and yes... they contracted me to help them apprehend of a highly\ndangerous super humanoid two years ago.\"\n            \"Highly dangerous?\" Gregory echoed,\nhis face filled with disbelief. \"She was a little girl!\"\n            \"I know; that's why I left,\"\nretorted Devilshade. \"Broke the contract, and got out of there before they knew\nI was gone. Left a message for Rex too, telling him to go fuck himself; an\nassassin I am, but I don't target\nchildren.\"\n            \"Then you know where to find him?\"\nGregory asked. \"Devilshade, you have to tell us how to find the I.T.O.U.E...\"\n            \"I can't,\" the man interjected. \"And\nno, it's not because I feel I still owe him any loyalty, or because of some\nprofessional silence. It's because I don't know where they are currently.\"\n            \"Currently?\" Obsidian repeated.\n            \"They change bases after every\noperation,\" replied Devilshade. \"The only one I saw was the one near Windsor;\nif he has one here in Alberta as well, I did not see it.\"\n            Gregory felt his heart sink, and the\nchief very suddenly felt heavy. All of this; this operation, the investigation\nthat led up to it, the fighting back the bile at the thought of turning to a\ncrime lord for help to find Devilshade, putting the lives of numerous officers\nof the law in harms' way to track down one of the most dangerous human beings\nin the entire world...\n            And it was all for nothing...\n            \"My god...\" he whispered.\n            \"Chief?\" Obsidian asked.\n            BOOM!\n            The cellar door suddenly exploded,\nshowering all corners of the room with wooden shrapnel; Gregory cried out as a\nsearing pain shot up his left leg and he keeled over, looking down at his leg\nto see a chunk of wood imbedded in his calf. The sight of it made him want to\nretch, but he knew there were bigger things to worry about at that moment as\nfour figures descended down the stairs.\n            Gregory had lost his gun when he'd\ncollapsed, but Obsidian, miraculously untouched by the previous blast, still\nhad hers; as the I.T.O.U.E gunmen entered, she shot the nearest one with her\nfirearm, delivering four shots to his torso; one of them turned to her to\nretaliate, but she projected a blast of telekinesis towards him, sending him\nflying across the room. However, the first one she shot didn't stay down; his\narmour had prevented any of her rounds from landing a kill shot, and he aimed\nat her with his MP5, delivering a short burst directly to her stomach.\n            Obsidian screamed in pain and fell\nonto her back, clutching her stomach where the bullets had hit. She pulled one\nhand away, and there was blood; not much, but it meant at least one of the\nbullets had penetrated her body armour, and even now she could feel it in her\nbody, gritting her teeth against the burning agony from her midsection.\n            The other two gunmen moved to finish\nthem off, but one of them jerked as a crackling sound filled the room, and he\ndropped to the floor with a pair of wires and metal prongs stuck in his back.\nDevilshade, the wires leading from the wrist of his bionic left arm, was up,\nand in his right hand he held Gregorys' Beretta. In nine successive shots, he\nkilled all three of the men; a shadow filled the cellar doorway, prompting him\nto aim at the fifth gunman trying to enter. Three shots later, the man fell\ndown the stairs, his body joining the others.\n            Devilshade turned the automatic\npistol about in his hand, noticing the slider was stuck back, revealing an\nempty chamber inside. \"Not as powerful as my magnum, but for such a low caliber\nand large clip, not a bad weapon,\" he commented before tossing the gun over to\nGregory, the empty beretta hitting the dirt by his leg, and began to walk\ntowards the cellar door.\n            \"Wait...\" Obsidian called weakly.\n            Devilshade glanced over at her. \"You\nbrought this on yourselves, officers,\" he stated, before callously turning away\nfrom the bleeding dragoness, and ascending the cellar steps, until he vanished\ninto the daylight beyond.\n            \"Obsidian,\" Gregory called to her,\nas the hawk rolled onto his front and pushed himself up with his hands,\nfighting his way through the burning sensation in his leg. \"We... have to get\nout of here... now...\"\n            Obsidian rolled onto her side, and\ntried to push herself up with one hand, using her other to keep pressure on the\nwound in her stomach to slow the loss of blood. She had little success however,\nuntil Gregory limped to her side and helped her get to her feet, putting her\nfree arm around the back of his neck. \"Can you walk?\" He asked.\n            \"Yeah...\" she replied. \"Yeah, I can still\nwalk, but your leg...\"\n            \"It's nothing compared to what will\nhappen if we don't get away,\" returned Gregory. \"Come on; we have to do this\ntogether.\" He put on of his arms over her back, evenly distributing their\nweight between one another, and made their way over to the cellar steps.\n            They climbed out of the cellar and\nback into daylight. As they emerged, the revving of a motorcycle filled their\nears, and they saw a sportsbike, with Devilshade in the drivers' seat, speed\npast, racing off behind the I.T.O.U.E lines and fleeing into the woods. Several\nof the I.T.O.U.E gunmen shouted after him, and broke off their engagement with\nthe police to pursue, the others shortly following after, except for the\ncyborgs they had brought with them.\n            They made their way around to the\nfront of the house; now that the shooting had stopped, and found their fellow\nofficers, or what were left of them. Two of the park rangers had been killed,\nas had Officer Eddison with the SWAT team. Half of the remaining rangers were\nwounded, and Rogers, who only now finally had his sight and hearing back, had\nstill managed to take a shot in the leg, which he was bandaging with gauze at\nthat moment.\n            Rachel, still on the porch and\nsurprisingly unscathed, leapt over the balcony railing and ran up to the too.\n\"Are you alright?\" She called.\n            \"We took some hits,\" replied\nGregory.\n            Rachel plucked her radio from her\nbelt and held it to her muzzle. \"Dispatch, this is Alpha 1-0-4; team lead and\nConstable K. are severely injured and in need of medical attention. Where are\nthose EMT's?\"\n            \"Two\nminutes out, 1-0-4.\" The response came.\n            But Gregory wouldn't last that long;\nnot because of his injury, but the realization of how completely fruitless the\nentire operation had been. Several officers were wounded, rangers were dead or\ndying and in the end, the man they had come to retrieve had escaped. He felt\nlike he had become hundreds of pounds heavier in an instant as he felt the\nburden of his mistake take its toll, sinking to his knees, not even hearing the\nvoices of his fellow officers as he wept...\n \n            ~~~~~\n \n            Volcan, Pavan and Vinge burst\nthrough the hospital doors and, despite the protests of the nursing staff,\nsprinted up the hall to the room where the receptionist at the front desk had\ndirected them to. Their wings nearly knocked over several staff members as they\nbulled their way down the hall until they finally reached the room marked 309.\n            Outside stood the familiar light\nbrown wolf with a two-tone hair colour -front blond and the rest dark brown-\nthey knew as Rachel Hernandez, the second-in-command of the Canadian UFPD's\nfirst division, second to Gregory himself. With her were Rikyuu, Brent, Ayane\nand Tsume, the fore and lattermost of which were seated on the floor, with\nTsume holding Rikyuu comfortingly in her arms as the dragon, seated in a fetal\nposition, silently wept.\n            Volcan strode up to Rachel, panting.\n\"Is she okay?\" He demanded.\n            \"She'll be alright,\" assured the\nwolf. \"The rounds didn't hit anything vital but she lost a lot of blood, and\nthey're worried her stomach may have been nicked too, so she's still in surgery\nfor now. But they've assured me she'll be okay.\"\n            \"And Gregory?\"\n            \"Physically, all he got was the\nworlds' biggest splinter in his leg,\" replied Rachel. \"But... emotionally, I\nthink his heart may be torn up.\"\n            \"Why?\" Vinge asked. \"Because\nDevilshade escaped?\"\n            \"Because he failed,\" replied Rachel.\n\"Or so he feels like... He launched a raid on a single target, suspecting but\nuncertain the I.T.O.U.E might intervene on it, and not only did he fail to\ncapture his suspect, his men and several Rangers got pulled into a firefight\nthey weren't ready for; he's blaming himself for the whole thing.\"\n            \"The operation was botched, but not\nbecause of him,\" Pavan stated.\n            \"Yeah; the odds of the I.T.O.U.E jumping\nin were...\" Volcan began, but Rachel interjected.\n            \"Before we even launched, he\nsuspected they were coming,\" she explained. \"He wanted to call you and your\nfriends in to help.\"\n            \"Why didn't he then?!\" Volcan\ndemanded, frustrated.\n            Rachel looked at Vinge. \"To keep him\nout of it,\" she said bluntly.\n            \"Me?\" Vinge asked.\n            \"Gregory felt that if you were\nbrought anywhere near some of the I.T.O.U.E's men, you'd get it in your head\none of them would take you to your father,\" Ayane spoke up, explaining on Rachels'\nbehalf. \"But if you did anything that compromised the operation, it'd be a\nviolation of the court agreement you and Volcan are both bound to, and you both\nwould be in jail now.\"\n            \"You mean he didn't trust me,\" Vinge\nsaid, scornfully. \"I want to find my father, yes, or at least learn what became\nof him, but I'm not a fool; I wouldn't have done anything to negatively affect\nthe raid!\"\n            \"In situations like that, Vinge, we\ncouldn't simply take your word for it,\" returned Rachel. She wasn't her usual,\nchipper, wisecracking self, showing that she was just as upset by this defeat\nas Gregory was. \"And the mayor is throwing a fit too; one officer dead, several\nmore wounded, suspect got away, and we didn't even manage to capture any of the\nI.T.O.U.E members alive; we got one of the cyborgs, and have sent it to a\nsecret location to be examined, in case the I.T.O.U.E try to get it back\nagain... not that it'll do any good.\"\n            \"Why?\" Volcan asked.\n            \"Devilshade didn't know where to\nfind the I.T.O.U.Es' base,\" replied Brent. \n            \"What?!\"\nPavan barked, a little too loudly and prompting two nurses to shush him.\n            \"Was he telling the truth?\" Volcan\nasked.\n            \"Obsidian said she read his mind as\nhe spoke,\" replied Rachel. \"He wasn't lying; he didn't know where the I.T.O.U.E\nare either. In the end... we went through all that effort for nothing; Obsidian and Gregory were\ninjured fruitlessly, and we're right back where we started, with no further\nleads to follow.\"\n            Volcan was mortified...\n            Gregory was doing all of this for\nhim; putting his life and those of his team in danger to stop the I.T.O.U.E, to\nprotect Volcan, and maybe even to give Vinge the closure he needed. Now the\nhawk was in the hospital, emotionally and physically wounded, without being\nable to succeed. The phoenix felt sick, sick down to his bones; he didn't feel\nlike someone like him deserved to have a cities' protectors put themselves in\nso much danger and expend so many resources, just to keep the I.T.O.U.E away\nfrom him, and yet they fought on still.\n            In his mind, Volcan pictured himself\nwalking behind a row of Police officers carrying riot shields, forming a wall\nbetween him and a horde of cyborgs outnumbering them three to one, their eyes\ndead-set on the phoenix and clubbing every cop in their way as they tried to\nreach him, all the while the phoenix didn't even look, didn't even see them\ndying for him.\n            He gagged.\n            The phoenix turned to a nurse\nwalking past. \"Washroom; where is it?\" He asked.\n            \"Up the hall that way, fourth door\non the right,\" she replied, directing him back the way he had come before,\neyeing him curiously as he turned and hurried away from the others. Even as\nPavan and Ayane called after him, he kept going, nearly tripping over a cart\nwith medical supplies until he reached the washroom and almost tore the door\nclear off it hinges as he pushed it open, not even bothering to turn the lights\non before he sprang over to the toilet, facing into it... and retched.\n            The door opened a second later; the\nlights came on to reveal Pavan at the door, with Vinge, Ayane and Brent\nappearing a moment later. They cringed as they saw Volcan vomit into the toilet\nagain. Brent left the washroom while the phoenix let out the contents of his\nstomach into the toilet; some water splashed onto his shirt, damping his\nfeathers behind it with a sizzling sound but he didn't notice. Tears streamed\nfrom his eyes after he stopped vomiting, his whole body shaking as he fell away\nfrom the toilet and caught himself with his hands.\n            \"Volcan...\" Pavan said as he stepped\nover to his friends' side, kneeling down next to him and putting a hand on his\nback. \"Dude, what's the matter?\"\n            \"It's all because of me...\" Volcan\nsaid. \"The UFPD, the Rangers... they're all doing this to protect me, and dying\nfor it...\"\n            \"Volcan, that's not true,\" Ayane\nargued. \"The UFPD is doing its job; they're trying to bring a group of\ncriminals to justice. It's not just you they're trying to protect, it's\neveryone in the city.\"\n            \"But the I.T.O.U.E... no, Jacob Rex\nis not after them!\" The phoenix bellowed, his eyes reddened from the tears\ncoming from is eyes which, unlike the water that had splashed him before, did\nnot seem to dampen his feathers at all, or put them out in any way, like they\nwere some sort of supernatural fluid and not actually water -which, given his\nheritage, probably were exactly that.\n            Volcan punched the floor with his\nhand, cracking the tile he struck with his inhumanoid physical strength. \"The\nI.T.O.U.E want me; Gregory is doing all this to protect me, to help Vinge get\nhis father back and to prevent my family from losing me; he doesn't want my\nmother to lose her son or my brother to lose his only sibling. It's me the\nI.T.O.U.E want and the UFPD is fighting my battles for me while I lounge at home strumming a guitar, sleeping in my\nown bed and stuffing my face while people, including one of my own best\nfriends, bleed for me!\"\n            He shot to his feet, nearly throwing\nPavan into the wall, but then teetered and began to fall over; Vinge darted\ninto the restroom and helped Pavan catch him before he hit the wall head-first.\n\"Whoa, Volcan; take it easy!\" Pavan exclaimed.\n            \"You have to calm down; you're going\nto give yourself an anxiety attack,\" urged Vinge, letting Volcan lean against\nhim for support. \"Slow, deep breaths; steady yourself.\"\n            Volcan slowed his breathing, using\nPavan and Vinge for support while he desperately tried to relax himself. Over\ntime, he was able to regulate his breathing to a proper level, and stood up on\nhis own, though Vinge and Pavan stayed at his side in case he relapsed. \"Bloody\nhell, Volcan; I've never seen you like this before,\" said the Wind Phoenix.\n\"I've known you for a long time and you've always been so steadfast.\"\n            \"Even I have my limits, it seems,\"\nadmitted Volcan. \"I just... I just can't believe that Rex is going to such\nlengths, just because he hates beings like me, Vinge, or Pavan. This time he's\ntargetting me; I don't know why, since there are plenty of phoenixes out there\nmuch stronger than me. But I can't stand by and let others fight my battles for\nme; Obsidian and Gregory got hurt, several officers died, and they're no closer\nto stopping Rex.\"\n            Brent arrived back, poking his head\ninto the bathroom and passing Volcan a can of ginger ale. \"Here, to help you\nsettle your stomach, and rinse out your mouth.\"\n            \"Thanks,\" returned Volcan, accepting\nthe ginger ale from the hyena and pulling on the tab until the can fizzed and\nopened. He took a short sip, swishing it around in his mouth for a moment\nbefore he spat it into the toilet, which he noticed he forgot to flush, and did\nso after closing the lid, then took a proper drink, knocking back the entire\ncontent of the can and taking a breath once it was empty; as he exhaled a cloud\nof steam left his beak, but didn't seem to cause him discomfort.\n            \"There's only one thing to do now,\"\nVolcan stated. \"In this situation, it's gone beyond what the police are\nequipped to handle.\"\n            Vinge looked at Volcan suspiciously.\n\"What exactly do you plan on doing?\" He asked.\n            Volcan looked back at Vinge, and at\neach of his friends briefly. \"What I have to,\" he replied. \"When Rex attacks\nagain, I'm going to face him and his goon squad head-on. I'm not going to ask\nyou guys to help me...\"\n            \"But we're going to anyway,\"\ninterrupted Pavan, prompting Volcan to turn his gaze towards the Wind Phoenix.\n\"You're not facin' this alone, buddy-boy; when someone messes with my pal,\nthey're getting the business end of my fist.\" He jabbed playfully at the air\nwith both fists to emphasize. \"When he comes back, I'm gonna be there, I'm\ngonna whoop some ass, and I'm gonna make sure those guys go crying for their\nmommas for messing with my friend.\"\n            \"Count me in too,\" agreed Brent.\n\"I've got a little something cooking at home that might prove useful for this.\"\n            \"You can count on me as well,\"\nagreed Ayane. \"And though he's not here to say it, I know Rikyuu will help you\nas well.\"\n            \"You bet he will,\" a voice called\nfrom outside; Ayane turned her gaze outside, seeing Rikyuu and Tsume standing\nnearby. The phoenixes stepped out of the rest room to meet him; his eyes were\nstill red and mildly puffy from his earlier weeping for Obsidian, but behind\nthat, he looked steadfast and determined. \"The I.T.O.U.E hurt 'Sid, and they're\nout to get my friend... I'm not going to let them get away with either.\"\n            \"And don't think I'm going to let\nyou leave me out of the action either,\" Tsume stated firmly, flashing a wide\ngrin to Volcan. \"I've been itching for some real action, and these guys are\njust begging for a knife where the sun don't shine.\"\n            Volcan looked at each of his friend,\nfearing for their safety, but feeling more confident at their willingness to\nhelp him. He allowed himself a weak smile. \"Thanks guys,\" he said.\n            Vinge stepped forward. \"Well, if\nwe're going to take on an organization like the I.T.O.U.E ourselves, then I'd\nsuggest we formulate a plan with which to challenge them.\"\n            \"Sounds like you've already got\nsomething in mind?\" Volcan inquired.\n            \"I might have some ideas,\" replied\nVinge. \"But to be confident in them, I'll need some information on the\nI.T.O.U.E's operational methods.\" He looked at Volcan and Rikyuu respectively.\n\"Tell me everything you can; the weapons they carried, those cyborgs they used,\nand most especially, the device they used to cancel out your powers.\"\n \n \n            End of Chapter 3\n"}