April 15, 2021. 01:49. Burnaby.
"Where? Where is the gun broadcasting to?" I ask quietly, my voice low and tight. My heart hammers as possibilities flood in. Who could be listening?
Shock hesitates, eyes darting over the data feed. "Uh… back to the Richmond docks. That's—weird. And it's broadcasting our voices."
The van falls into an uneasy silence as the revelation sinks in.
Whoever built this weapon knows exactly where it is—and where we're taking it.
"What do we do?" Tetra asks, his voice breaking the tension. "We can't just keep driving with this thing—"
"We disable it," Mister states flatly. "Shock, can you shut it off?"
Shock nods. "I can, one sec." She rapidly types in the air, finishing with a flick of her finger. "Done! It's completely off. Now what?"
Azure frowns, her gaze fixed on the box. "I don't think… we can just let this slide." There's something in her tone—fear, maybe recognition. "We need to investigate this." She looks back at us, expression firm.
Mister exhales sharply, gripping the steering wheel. "Fine. Artemis, let Wissen know what's going on. We'll figure the rest out once we're in Richmond."
I nod and pull out my phone. "Give me a minute." I push down the unease gnawing at my gut and type out a quick message to Wissen.
"Got the railgun. But there's a tracking device inside. Investigating now. Give us a bit."
The reply comes almost instantly.
"Understood. Meet outside the Dead Kings' HQ once you're done. Dante and I will be waiting."
Satisfied, I set aside my phone. "Alright, he's been notified."
Mister nods, his focus shifting back to the road as he accelerates forward.
I glance at the railgun. Its faint glow pulses softly, almost hypnotic. It's beautiful. The tracking device sits in Azure's hand; she hasn't put it down. I make a note of it, then tighten my grip on my duffel bag. My instincts scream at me to stay alert.
I knew this mission was off from the start.
…
April 15, 2021. 02:08. Richmond.
The moment we reach Richmond docks, the engine dies and silence takes its place. I stay still, masking the tension crawling up my spine as I scan the scene through the window—then push the door open. We step out, boots crunching softly against the gravel.
My hand finds its place on my pistol without thought. The docks are unnervingly still—eerily cleaner than before.
The wreckage from earlier is gone. No bullet casings. No blood. No trace of the chaos that tore through this place hours ago.
It's too neat. Too deliberate.
Shock is the first to speak. "Uh, is it just me, or is this place, like… way too clean?" Her voice is low, stripped of its usual levity. She tilts her head toward a security camera perched high on a wall overlooking the lot. "Lemme see if I can find out what happened."
I narrow my eyes. "No, it's not just you."
My gaze drifts to the water, where the waves lap gently against the docks. No one at all.
Just empty air and the sound of the tide.
Azure stands close, her posture taut, eyes darting like she's tracking something unseen.
I nudge her lightly. "You good?"
She stiffens before brushing it off. "Yeah… let's just focus on finding the receiver." Without waiting for a reply, she strides toward a nearby warehouse, head turning every few steps as if she expects someone—or something—to appear.
I raise a brow but don't push. That kind of evasive answer usually means one thing: she's hiding something. And she's not doing a great job of it.
Shock snaps her fingers, her eyes flickering with a faint glow. A hum rises from her bag. "Okay, the signal's coming from… there." She points toward the far edge of the docks, near the waterline. "Also… ummm… the cameras showed a bunch of masked people here earlier, and they just—took everything."
Tetra frowns, rubbing his arms. "Wait, what? Azure and I checked there already—there wasn't anything." His brows knit, confusion plain on his face. "And what do you mean 'masked people' came and took everything?"
Azure's voice cuts through, barely above a whisper. "I think I know why."
Before she can explain, a low humming drifts through the air. I freeze. The others do too, eyes snapping toward the source just as mine do.
No words pass between us. I raise a hand, motioning for silence. Then we move forward, slow and cautious.
The cold wind surges past us, biting and urgent, as if the night itself is pushing us forward.
A lone woman stands at the edge of the docks. Silver hair, dyed and gleaming under the moonlight, drifts across her face. Faint cybernetic lines trace her cheeks, pulsing with a quiet rhythm that feels disturbingly alive. Glasses glint as she hums to herself, swaying gently—like someone waiting for a bus, not standing in the middle of a ghostly dock. Strange.
Then her head turns, smooth and precise, as if she'd heard us all along. A smile spreads across her face—warm, polite, out of place.
"Ah," she says, voice soft and melodic. "Hello. Nice to meet you."
Muscles tighten around me; weapons shift. My hand hovers near my pistol.
"Uh… who are you?" Tetra blurts, his tone caught between confusion and disbelief.
The woman's smile doesn't waver. "Oh, where are my manners?" She adjusts her glasses with delicate fingers. "I'm Jenny. It's a pleasure to meet you all."
Something about that voice—it's too even, too composed. Every instinct in me screams to stay ready. But nothing happens. The docks only grow quieter. Jenny clasps her hands behind her back, waiting as if this were all perfectly ordinary.
No one speaks. The air feels heavy. Her unshakable calm grates on me, that fixed smile daring us to break first.
She has to be connected to Autumn Blade somehow, but I can't tell how deep the link runs—or how dangerous she might be.
Mister finally steps forward, his movements deliberate. "Jenny, is it? What exactly are you doing here?" Despite the situation, his voice carries that usual calm edge, a politeness sharp enough to cut.
Jenny tilts her head, silver hair catching the light. "Oh, I'm just… enjoying the view. The water's calming at night, don't you think?"
Beside me, Azure shifts, her hand brushing her jacket as if to steady herself. Whatever's going on here—it's not right.
Tetra glances at the water, then back at Jenny. "You're… 'enjoying the view'? At two in the morning?" His frown deepens, suspicion edging into his voice.
Jenny chuckles softly. "Mhm!" She nudges her glasses into place with delicate precision. "I'm a bit of a night owl—and not exactly from around here."
"Not from here?" Mister presses. "You mean outside the local area?"
Her smile widens. Hands slip behind her back. "You could say that. I'm here on vacation. Let's just call it… an interest in Vancouver."
A whisper rises behind me. Shock's hand lands on my shoulder. "Y'all, this is getting really weird. Should we—"
"Please," Jenny interrupts, her voice smooth as silk. "Let's keep this civil. I'd hate for things to get messy."
Her glasses catch the moonlight—or maybe it's the faint pulse from her cybernetics. It flares once, almost alive.
Everyone in the group tenses. My hand drifts toward my pistol, though something about her presence makes me hesitate.
That calm isn't arrogance—it's the confidence of someone holding all the cards.
Mister raises both palms, showing they're empty. His voice stays even. "No one's looking for a fight. If that's not your goal, then tell us what you want."
Jenny's smile softens, just a hint. "Honestly, I told you—I'm just visiting. Vancouver's beautiful at night." She pauses, the glint in her eyes shifting to something almost knowing. "Still… I am waiting for something. Let's call it a hunch."
A faint shrug. "If you want to know more, though…" Her gaze drifts across the group, playful, sharp. "Answer a riddle for me, and I'll tell you what I can."
Mister crosses his arms, the rest of us trading baffled looks. "Alright. Let's hear it."
"Okay, so, riddle me this," she begins, her voice dropping into something low and hypnotic, "Why does Winters always chase after Autumn?"
The words linger like fog. We stare at one another, lost.
The hell? That riddle doesn't even make grammatical sense. "Does"? Why not "do"? Winters is plural—right?
But then I notice Azure—her face pale, breathing uneven. She takes a step back, hand clutching her jacket tight.
"What kind of riddle is that?" Tetra asks, brow furrowed. "Never heard that one before."
Jenny laughs softly, the sound carrying a strange, hollow edge. "A simple one. But if you can't answer…" She spreads her arms in mock sympathy. "I suppose I'll have to leave you to think it over. Don't worry—I'll be back soon."
Without another word, Jenny turns and starts toward the edge of the docks. Her movements are too smooth, almost gliding, like her feet barely touch the ground. I tilt my head, mind buzzing from the mental gymnastics this night's turned into.
No one moves to stop her. Fear—or maybe disbelief—roots us in place as she slips into a narrow alley. The silver shimmer of her hair fades, swallowed by the dark.
The silence that follows is heavier than before, broken only by the slow slap of waves against the pier.
No one knows what to say. Jenny's words hang in the air long after she's gone, and the tension needs somewhere to go.
Remi's the first to move, muttering a casual "meh" before pulling out his phone.
Tetra and Shock split off, scanning the dock for anything the rest of us might've missed.
Mister stays where he is, hands behind his back, gaze fixed on the dark water as if it might still hold answers.
That leaves the two of us.
"Artemis," Azure whispers, voice trembling. She leans close, her breath warm against the cold air. "We can't just let her walk away like that. She's dangerous."
I study her face—tight jaw, restless eyes tracking the direction Jenny vanished. "And what do you want me to do?" My voice stays low, flat. "Chase her down and start a fight we don't need?"
Azure's expression hardens, a flicker of frustration breaking through her fear. "You saw her. She's not normal. We can't just ignore that."
It's strange, seeing her like this—the calm, teasing version of Azure replaced by something anxious and unsteady. I snort, brushing her worry aside. "None of us are normal. We've got enough to deal with already. Unless you've got one solid reason, I'm not biting."
She opens her mouth, then closes it. A sharp exhale. "Fine. I just… have a bad feeling." Her eyes drop, but not before I catch it—the flash of fear she's trying to hide.
Liar. You're scared out of your mind.
If this had anything to do with the railgun, I'd press her for answers. But it doesn't—and I've got no energy for mysteries wrapped in riddles tonight.
Time drags. The others regroup, trading uneasy looks. Nothing new. Nothing useful. Mister finally breaks the stillness. "Let's head back. We've wasted enough time here."
Reluctantly, we pile into the van. The engine hums to life, its sound oddly comforting after all that silence. The docks shrink behind us, swallowed by the night.
I glance at Azure. She sits stiff, staring out the window, fingers tugging at her jacket's edge. Whatever Jenny is—or whatever she's waiting for—it's shaken her more than she'll admit.
The others don't notice, too lost in their own thoughts.
Maybe that's for the best.
…
April 15, 2021. 03:15. Vancouver.
We return to the Dead Kings' HQ.
The building's rough edges are a welcome change from the sterile calm of the Richmond docks. Graffiti sprawls across the walls, scars from old fights etching stories into concrete. It's messy, loud, familiar—unlike the mystery that is Jenny.
Neon lights buzz overhead, their faint hum washing the cracked pavement in pink and blue.
I step out, and the exhaustion hits like a wave. My legs ache, my eyelids drag, and the thought of my bed is almost painful. I pinch my thigh to stay awake.
Azure catches my eye—still pale, still unsettled. Her jaw's tight, gaze fixed anywhere but on the rest of us. Whatever Jenny did to rattle her, it's sticking.
Wissen and Dante wait by the entrance, framed in the flicker of a faulty sign. Their expressions are neutral, maybe a bit too practiced.
Wissen raises a hand in greeting. "Welcome back."
Mister returns the nod and gestures to Tetra, who hauls the railgun case forward. "I apologize for the delay. We took longer than expected. While tracing the receiver, we ran into a woman connected to it, but she wasn't worth the trouble of pursuing."
Wissen's gaze snaps to the case—sharp, calculating. A flicker of approval crosses his face. "Good call. Don't chase anything tied to Autumn Blade. The complications aren't worth it."
Tetra passes the case to Dante with a grunt. "Uh, just a heads up—the railgun's got a battery. So, there's limited shots."
Dante nods slowly. "Understood. Was that by design?"
"Yeah," Azure answers before anyone else can. Her voice is flat, distant. "It's a prototype. Incomplete. Whatever plans you've got for it, plan around that."
"I see." Dante inclines his head and carries the case to Wissen's limo, disappointment shadowing his face. "I'll make sure my family's aware of this… development."
Wissen watches Dante disappear, then turns back to us. "If you need a ride, we can arrange that."
Mister shakes his head before anyone else answers. "Appreciate the offer, but we've still got a matter to attend to. We promised Blake we'd deliver our report personally."
Right—forgot about that. I shake my head and pull out my phone to call my own vehicle.
"Makes sense." Wissen's eyes flare a faint blue as he checks something unseen. "Your credits will transfer shortly. I'll take my leave, then." He pauses long enough to offer a polite wave before slipping into the limo.
"See you," I call after them, waving lazily. Shock gives me a sly smirk before breaking into a quiet giggle. I arch a brow but let it slide.
A few seconds later, my phone vibrates. €$10,000—nice. A small win in an exhausting night. It won't buy much, but it'll keep my supplies up for a while.
I let out a slow breath, feeling the edge of tension finally loosen. Almost done.
Wissen's limo glides away, its taillights fading down the cracked road. Once it turns the corner, I follow the others inside, ready to finish this night for good.