With meticulous precision, Noa had destroyed any recording devices and storage units of the three she encountered with the prescribed shock from her steel baton. The smell of burnt flesh invaded her senses as she bolted off to the west. Away from the direction she had left the now partially burnt bodies. She was glad she wore gloves, suddenly distinctly remembering the cold cadavers she had touched as part of her training.

  For once, the smell of the alleys was a welcomed change as she sprinted off, stopping once she had gone a few blocks away. She paused, checking the routes out of the small backstreet she was in. The alleys split into two opposing paths. One led back to the main street, where the building she was supposed to monitor was, and the other back to where she had parked her bike.

  Without hesitation, she turned left; she had a mission to complete, and she had already left coverage of the building for too long. Her nose wiggled at her distaste for the smell where she was at. Her thoughts refocused on the next step as she held the mission close to her mind; her senses abuzz as her ever-alert eyes scanned around her.

  An unidentified number appeared on her communicator as it buzzed.

  She paused and frowned as her mind raced. She was not one to answer calls from numbers she didn’t know unless it was mentioned before.

  Yet, her communicator proceeded to pick up even when she had let the ringing continue, much to her surprise and annoyance.

  “Noa? Don’t hang up, it's Henderson.”

  Her brows relaxed somewhat at the familiar name and voice.

  “Henderson? Why are you calling?”

  “Hassan called. Asked me to check on you. Everything daze?”

  She checked her surroundings. The back walls of the buildings were mostly windowless, safe for small air ducts and hatch-like openings that no one but the smallest person could fit through. As she broke out onto the main street, pedestrians milled about her, and her eyes scanned everything and everyone.

  No one paid her any heed; everyone was engrossed in their own world, and it suited her very well as she chose a route hugging the front of the building she was alongside.

  “Somewhat, why?”

  “He passed the word that the initial reports and rumors we have for New Tuman checks out and told me you were in person at location.”

  “Yes?”

  “Okay. Additionally, he mentioned you have some items House Intel may have attached to your gear?”

  Noa frowned. ‘What the hell?’... “Um.. yes? Why?”

  “Daze. I’ll get authorization to access so I can know where your loc is.”

  “This isn’t an Intel mission, Henderson.”

  “I’m aware. I won’t interfere unless needed.”

  Her eyes involuntarily squinted. “You better not barge in unannounced.”

  He chuckled, highly aware of how skilled, yet volatile, Noa was and how well she was trained. “I will. You have my word on that.”

  The call ended as Noa arrived at the location near the cafe entrance she had picked out earlier. She paused and nonchalantly fished out her tablet, her fingers sliding onto it. Her head was bowed, and she seemed fully focused on the screen, although her main focus was on the building she had seen Ally and her companion disappear into.

  She noticed a CP vehicle hovering slowly, conveniently right above the low-rise buildings in the immediate area. Inwardly, it worried her, but her mind reminded her that she had done all that was told could be done. ‘Recordings are uploaded at the end of patrols,’ Hassan’s voice echoed in her mind.

  She checked her gait as she joined the pedestrians on their way to the cafe she had initially identified. Usually, she disliked too many people around her, but now it gave her a sense of security. More bodies around where she was walking meant fewer chances of picking her out.

  As she was about to enter the cafe, she noticed Ally’s blonde hair in the corner of her eye, and this made her pause before she turned slowly as if checking for something. Every moment, keeping an eye on her query - who had started moving away from the entrance toward the direction of where more of the manufacturing facilities were located.

  Ally was on her own now and walked more urgently than before, her head wildly swiveling.

  Noa watched as her blonde query walked off, then waited for a few moments to make sure that no one else exited the building and that no one was keeping an eye on Ally.

  She set out at a brisk pace and called the number before that called her.

  “Noa? All daze?”

  “Yep, daze, listen, Intel has interest in this area, I take it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can you do me a favor?”

  “Depends, what issit?”

  Noa explained it to him, keeping the information limited to what she felt was needed. She pointed out to Henderson the building Ally had just exited and explained what she needed help with.

  To her delight and relief, he consented and assured her she would receive a breakdown of what he could uncover.

  Time went by. Noa’s senses were still acutely aware, fired up still by the combat sim she had taken earlier. They had left the low-rise, better-maintained building area and were now back to where it was almost exclusively manufacturing facilities, way past where she had first found her at the bar.

  The number of pedestrians tapered out. Heavy Transports were appearing as well. Some lifted off and headed toward their designated destinations, and some came in to land. She noticed one in particular that bore the markings of House Xela and immediately concluded that it was Ally’s ride home.

  Ally slowed her pace, prompting Noa to look around. She searched for a good vantage point to peer over the multiple lines of fences that ran around the perimeter of the manufacturing facility that Ally was next to.

  As her HUD zoomed in on Ally, she noticed Ally's quick exchange of YeeBee shards with the guard before she walked in as if she belonged there. As Ally headed deeper, there was no viable place where Noa could get a clear look into the compound.

  Her mind raced as she looked around, noting the name of the facility and the owners, who were a subsidiary of the Xela House corporate arm.

  She dialed for Hassan.

  “Yes, Noa?”

  “Update. Ally entered into a manufacturing facility owned by House Xela. Any way we could get into their cam footage?”

  Hassan took a moment before replying. “Yes. I’ll pull some favors from Intel. Is that all?”

  “As far as Ally is concerned, for now, that’s it. I spoke to Henderson; he’s gonna check out the building she last entered. Should be receiving an update on that soon. I also had to take out three undercover CP who made me.”

  “Ok, good work Noa. Your main objective was not to get caught or discovered. I trust your call neutralizing the CP. Don’t dwell too much on it, please.”

  “So that’s it? Do I come back in?”

  “Not yet. I’d like you to check on Henderson before you get back.”

  Noa drew in a deep breath and huffed softly before she nodded.

  “Ok.”

  “Then come back. We’ll debrief. I’ll send the transpo to the previous location where it dropped you off.”

  “Copy. See you later.” Noa said as she started returning to the cafe she had designated earlier.

  —----------------------------------------------------------------------------

  “I accessed the building cams and have located the apartment they went into. No sign of whoever was with her, you can come up. Unit 10-3, that’s third floor.”

  “On my way.” She replied as she mounted the short flight of stairs just past the door into the residential low-rise, hopping onto the staircase all the way to the floor.

  The place looked fairly well-maintained and decorated. Noa smirked as she looked around, concluding that whoever decorated the interior was going for some historical look, mood, and vibe with the place. Noting the fake wooden paneling along the walls in the staircase area and the same along the corridors.

  She paused, the tip of her boot pressing against the carpet. Her nose wiggled again, and she deduced that the distinctive smell was most probably from the carpeting.

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  Unit 10 was at the end of the corridor she had picked. It seemed to overlook another street that joined with the main road.

  Henderson stood there, hands on his side, as he looked slowly around the room where the walls met the ceiling.

  The room was sparsely decorated, with walls in two shades of cream and brown on the corresponding axis. A large double bed sat in the middle, pushed up against one of the walls, while one wall had standard windows. A door to the bathroom was in one corner of the room, and two low shelves flashed to the walls.

  Noa cleared her throat, which didn’t elicit a response from him. Instead, without stopping what he was doing, he motioned for her to wait.

  She shrugged and started looking around herself. The bed was neatly made, and everything seemed pristinely placed. Her mind again wished she had gone through her own implant installation, musing that the soft she would get would probably help her more than what came with the temporary HUD she was using.

  “Spot anything interesting?” Henderson was looking at her.

  Her lips quickly turned into an upside-down arch as she scrunched her nose and shook her head. “Nothing unusual for lowbie town, I guess.”

  He scoffed and smiled. His hand moved back and produced a small chip before passing it to her.

  “You got port to view?”

  Noa took it from him, her face not hiding the fact she wasn’t thrilled with how he knew so much about what implants she may or may not have before she nodded.

  She sat down on the edge of the double bed and inserted the chip into a reader connected to her HUD.

  “What am I looking at?”

  “Hidden cams: Had them ID’ed and sent the network numbers the cams are slaved to to our diggers. Probably remote linked.”

  The images on her HUD had notes under each of them. One note was easy to deduce, while another made her tilt her head sideways as her brows frowned.

  “What’s ‘dum cam’? It's not real?”

  He smiled and nodded slowly. “Yea, it appears like a functioning cam, but the connection doesn’t tally.”

  Noa frowned. “How can you tell?”

  He chuckled. “Digger told me. I only use their tools; anything more, it's their game.”

  She minimized the images and looked at him.

  “Anything else?”

  He shrugged as he leaned against one of the two low shelves in the room.

  “What’s your take on this? Why is this High Rise girl fraternizing with some CP?”

  She shrugged. “That’s what I’m here to find out.”

  He nodded before turning slightly, opened one of the drawers close to him, and dug something from it. “I think it may have something to help with that.”

  He tossed a clear plastic zip bag to Noa, who caught it effortlessly.

  She turned the bag around and scoffed, a smirk slipping onto her lips while two fingers gently pressed at the small cylindrical tubes inside the bag.

  “Recognize those?”

  “Mhm, dispensers. These particular ones are commonly used in lowbie town… and some High Rise peeps for recreational drug use.”

  Her mind raced, was this one of the reasons why Ally was being blackmailed? By some lowbie? Even more, a lowbie CP at that. She shook her head slowly. Although this wasn’t news, she knew some High Rise kids were into lowbie party drugs, a fact she never understood. The risk was too high, getting caught meant demerits and a higher risk of High Rise deportation for the offender.

  She waved the bag at him and he gave a curt nod. “That’s yours; I have mine. Will have to go have it tested to see which drug they used it for.”

  “What do you think?”

  He huffed as he smirked. “I’m not one to speculate, defo party drug, though.”

  She nodded. Her mind built a picture of Ally's trouble, and she smirked; Anya was going to be furious.

  ‘Still doesn’t explain why she’s with the CP, though.’ Her head voice chimed in, eliciting a low groan from her.

  “Something the matter?” Henderson was looking at her.

  She shrugged and got up. “Nope. Was that all?”

  “For now, at least.”

  “Okay, more updates when found, yes?”

  He dipped his chin.

  She turned and headed out before he called out.

  “Oh, and Noa.”

  She stopped, her hand holding the door open. “Yes?”

  “Good to see you on this. Keep up the good work.”

  She smirked, winked at him, and headed down the corridor away from the room. A hand held the clear bag as she shook it at him. “You keep up the good work.”

  —----------------------------------------------------------------------------

  The guard who looked over her bike was more than happy to have Noa’s bike off his hands. The knowingly expensive bike and its customizations hinted at where she could possibly come from, and he wasn’t overly keen on being involved with anything related to High-Rise business.

  When Noa returned, the transport that waited for her was at the same location when they dropped her off. The flight back was uneventful, as Noa kept to herself, processing the day she had gone through in her mind.

  Her thoughts hurriedly glazed over the time she had taken the three CPs out. A shiver ran up her spine when she recalled having to press against their heads with her baton before she released the electrical shock that was to nullify their recording implants within them.

  It was needed, she recalled what Hassan had told her, and she was not going to let anyone hurt Anya.

  The flight felt shorter than before as a jarring shake rocked her mind back to the present when it finally landed at the Essedar compound’s Security Complex.

  As she alighted from the transport, she took a deep breath. The air was so much better here than in Lowbie town. She could feel the freshness slide into her being. There was so much space around her that she felt as if she were expanding outward, embracing the air. A smile etched across her lips as she stood there and welcomed the feeling; her head leaned back slightly while her arms rested on her hips.

  “That’s a good look.” Hassan’s voice coursing her eyes back open.

  “Hmm? What look?” Noa blinked her eyes at her.

  He chuckled and shook his head. “A smile, rare to see that… Nevermind. Debrief, now, my office.”

  Noa nodded and turned, headed toward the small building where his office was located, which sat right off the landing tarmac.

  A lady she recognized from the House’s domestic team was walking away from the door. She carried a small steel briefcase under her arm while her other hand cradled a silver tray.

  “I didn’t know Security gets to call on Domestic?”

  He smiled and winked at her before opening the door and motioning her inside.

  —--------------------------------------

  Everything she recounted was recorded, and Hassan made sure she explained each item in detail without skimming any specifics and shortcutting.

  Throughout it all, Hassan listened attentively, only speaking when he asked questions.

  When the moment came for her to recount the brief combat she had experienced with the CP in plain clothes, she paused more than a few times. As she did so, she could feel Hassan studying her more intently than usual. It was odd but nothing new.

  At the end of her recounting, which took just under two hours, she sat back in her seat. A long, relieved exhale escaped her as she leaned back and rested her hands on her thighs, her ankles crossed.

  “So, no rounds fired, yes?”

  “Yes, yes.”

  He stood up and patted her shoulder.

  “Good job, Noa. Don’t worry about the CP; it couldn’t be helped. You had to do what you had to do. And I mean that. They didn’t only not play by the rules, they were trying to make their own.”

  His hand stayed on her shoulder as he looked down toward her as if waiting for something.

  She looked up at him, eyebrow raised. “Yes? I know. That was either them or me, and I dunno about others; I do love myself breathing and free.” She smirked at him.

  “Anything you wanted to add?” She asked, somewhat impatiently.

  He shook his head. “Nothing, just checking.”

  She huffed amusedly. “Is that all? I really wanna go get myself cleaned up.”

  He took a step back as he raised his arms. “That is all. I will liaise with Intel. It's good that Henderson was on hand to assist.”

  Her eyebrow cocked again. “You think? I don’t suppose I’ll get to know anytime soon why they hitched some of their hardware on my gear?”

  He smiled as if amused. “I will run this by Intel; if and when I get approval, you will know everything.”

  “Everything? Just not what’s needed?”

  His arms were crossed as he sat on the edge of his table; a chuckle rose as he shook his head.

  “I will make sure to get as much as I can get approved from Intel to be divulged. Ok?”

  She nodded curtly and spun around to head out the door.

  —--------------------------------------------------------

  Anya sat on her bed. The blinds on her wall-spanning windows were wide open, letting in the only light from outside into her otherwise darkened room.

  Her hand held a rectangular, thin touchscreen while her other hand flicked and moved on the screen, humming any tune that came to mind.

  Her communicator buzzed again, the incoming caller ID appearing at the top corner of her screen.

  She huffed, disgusted, knowing who it was, and ignored it, continuing on what was keeping herself occupied.

  Her eyes darted up when the call ended without her picking it up - 12 miscalls.

  She smirked. ‘Serves you right; I’ll deal with you soon enough.’, her mind mused.

  A knock broke the otherwise silent room, pulling her attention away.

  “Who is it?”

  “It’s Noa.”

  “Noakins?” She immediately slid the device off her lap before she slid off her bed, ensuring she wore something before opening the door. Excited to hear about Noa’s day, knowing full well her sister had spent it on the streets of New Tuman.

  The look on Noa chased those thoughts away as she regarded her sister. Noa stood rather relaxed. Freshly showered, her long silver hair looked freshly brushed as it rested on her shoulders and down her back, a smile on her face.

  “Babe. Everything ok?” She looked at Noa, concern etched on her face as she could almost physically grasp the feel of a different vibe from her silver-haired sibling.

  She smiled. “Mhmm.” Then, almost instantly pulled her into a tight embrace. It felt as if they hadn’t seen each other in ages when that was all but untrue.

  She wasn’t a stranger to bouts of sudden extreme affection from her sister. Ever since she could remember; Noa had always been affectionate with her, yet didn’t coddle her. This felt the same, yet something was distinctly different, and it wasn’t at all familiar to her what it was.

  Noa held on as Anya’s mind raced. Finding her own arms wrapping around her sister.

  “How was New Tuman?”

  She didn’t know what to say or if she should say anything.

  “Shhh, lemme enjoy this.”

  She almost chuckled. It was as if Noa had read what her mind was asking. Nodding gently, she embraced her sister back, reciprocating the tightness of her arms.