We started to move across the rooftops once again, only to be halted by a certain drone.

"Who the fuck is with you, mate?" Boreas snapped. Oh shit, I turned off my comms again...and he just forced them back on. "I see you disappear into an alleyway after this fucker, and then you both reappear without a care in the world."

Alannah placed a hand on her chest and feigned indignation. "Now, is that any way to address an old friend?"

"A-Alannah?" my partner stammered, "You're a bloody bounty hunter? fuckin' hell...Why did you keep this from me? I thought you were just an informant?"

"Who would've thought the gunsmith would also be a bounty hunter?" I heard Alex chime in, yawning to himself, "Surprise of the century..."

"I will duct tape your mouth shut, you little shit!" Boreas snapped, only to groan, "Start talking, Alannah. Last I checked, you were an informant."

"I am, but I've also helped out in...Other ways," She explained, fiddling with a loose bit on her belt, "For especially deadly bounties Cylus went on, I helped even the playing field out. I didn't know your best friend and partner was such a gentleman, but I certainly don't regret helping."

"Oh yeah, she's definitely into you, mate." Boreas mused, snickering when I growled at him.

"Oh yeah, for sure," Alex chimed in, "Watching through Cylus' HUD is freaking hilarious. Have you noticed the amount of times he's looked at her?"

"It'd be difficult to not notice," my partner replied, only to snicker again when another growl rumbled in my chest.

"Don't go any further," I warned them. Turning my attention to the masked bounty hunter before me, I sighed, "How long have you been a hunter?"

"Ever since Boreas and I got away from our old job," she answered, "At first, my shop almost closed down several times. Since I wasn't bringing in enough of a profit from my weapons, I decided I had to get my hands dirty."

I made to reach for her hand, but stopped myself. "No one like you should have to deal with this life."

"No one like me?" she echoed, tilting her head to the side in question.

"You're...You're a good person–Someone who shouldn't worry about a bounty being tagged on their back." I elaborated, feeling my heart hammer in my chest. "You deserve...Peace. Peace and quiet."

She huffed out a dejected laugh. "You know nothing about me, Cylus."

"I want to know more about you, though." I found myself saying before I could stop myself.

She was silent for several moments before responding. "Well, let's get through this first."

I nodded to myself, feeling like an absolute fool.

"Ah yes, I almost forgot you gave our friend your actual name." Boreas mused to himself, humor painfully apparent in his voice.

I sighed. "Yes...Yes I did."

Seeming to sense my unease, she playfully nudged my shoulder and chuckled to herself.

"Don't lock up on me now, silly." she continued. "Aren't you supposed to be the system's most feared bounty hunter?"

Yes, but right now I feel like a schoolboy all over again. I thought to myself. However, I fell back into my killing calm when another guard came into sight. Like a spectre, I traversed the jigsaw layout of rooftops and snuck up on my prey. It was as simple as pushing him off the roof.

"Why the hell did you do that?" Alannah hissed while my target fell screaming to his death.

"It'll serve as a distraction." I told her. "The guards in this area will be drawn to the sound of their fallen comrade, giving us the opportunity to get close to Turbohead's hideout."

"Huh." she mused as we resumed running across the rooftops. "Smart."

When we got close enough to our destination, Alannah and I dropped down into an alleyway. When we reached an exit in the maze, I frowned.

"Looks like Turbohead's lair takes up an entire block." I mused, taking note of the chain link fence that sat before us.

"It suits his ego." Alannah grumbled, stalking up to the fence. "See any guards around us, Boreas?"

"Nope, the perimeter's clear for now." my friend responded. "From what I can tell, all of the outdoor guards were stationed on the rooftops around the compound for some reason."

"A lot of bounty hunters travel through the alley maze we just skipped across." Alannah informed us. "Typically, all these blokes have to do is aim down and shoot at whatever idiot was stupid enough to go through the alleyways."

"See Boreas? Going on the rooftops wasn't a stupid idea."

"Up yours, jackass." he growled. "Keep moving."

I snorted. "Right away."

"For once, the old fart was right and you were wrong. Just admit it, Boreas." Alexander chimed in.

"I will admit nothing of the sort, and you are walking on thin ice."

"Really now? I wouldn't have been able to guess."

"Can I hit this kid, Cylus? Is that considered child abuse?"

"I will bite you, Boreas. Don't try me."

"Oh, I'll do you one better. Come here, you prick!"

While my best friend chased Alex out of his work room, Alannah and I continued moving forward.

Since the chain link fence wasn't much of an obstacle, Alannah and I were able to scale it and reach the other side with relatively little effort. Once we touched down on the other side, Alannah and I worked on devising a plan.

"This building has several entry points." She informed me. "Obviously, going through the front doors would be incredibly stupid."

"What do you suggest we do?"

"I'll lead us over to a bay area where supplies are delivered. Through there, we'll make our way upstairs."

"Is that where your brother resides?"

Alannah shuddered. "Yes...he always loved to stare down upon the lower city while our mother cowered before him..."

I couldn't help but shudder myself. "H-How do you know this."

"I was trapped in this cesspit for a year," She muttered, disgust lacing her every word, "Working for my brother as a goddamn drug mule, among other things..."

Her voice cut off, and I could tell she was on the verge of tears.

"Hey," I began, reaching out my prosthetic hand and placing it on her shoulder. "It'll be okay, Alannah. We're here to bring Tobias Slangen to justice."

"Is that how you see it?" She prompted me, seething hatred barely contained in her voice.

A growl rumbled deep within me. "You want revenge, and I want to shoot his kneecaps out so he can't flee."

"Why do you wish to do that?"

"He hurt you. No one should abuse their own kin."

And with that, I removed my hand and motioned for Alannah to lead the way. She nodded in response and led me around the vast expanse of the complex before us.

"I'm spotting some surveillance cameras near several key entrances, Cylus." Boreas informed me. "Proceed with caution."

"Thanks for the heads up, mate." I breathed. "It seems Alannah has a way to get us in."

"Good–Wait, how?"

She sighed. "It's a long story."

"Fair enough...I'll leave it at that."

"Thanks..." Alannah murmured.

We left the conversation at that, and I followed the gunsmith as she led me to an area that looked like a loading dock: the dark concrete before us had two trucks sitting on it, and dark figures carted crates back and forth between the vehicles and a large opening in front of the trucks.

The instant we saw the trucks, we both pressed ourselves against the wall.

"This all the stuff?" Someone shouted.

"Yep! This is all the supplies your boss ordered."

"Even the...Special stuff?"

"You know it. Your boss is throwing one hell of a party tonight, so I made sure to bring all the goods."

"Awesome! Alright boys, let's get this inside!"

"We'll wait." I breathed. "Boreas, fly through the loading door and scout out the area."

"Got it."

We waited for roughly twenty minutes before the two trucks drove off. After the dust had settled, I peeked around the wall and noticed that the door had been left open.

"Boreas, make sure the surveillance cameras are dealt with." I told him, only to frown. "Boreas?"

"Hold on. I'm working." he replied. a few moments later, he breathed out a sigh of relief. "Alright, I found a terminal, and I was able to install my virus."

"Really?"

"Yep, I now have access to all cameras in the entire building. I'm currently jamming them...Done. Alright kiddies, go forth and conquer!"

I rolled my eyes. "With pleasure."

Alannah and I stalked forward and stuck to the shadows as we approached the loading bay doors. It was as simple as walking through the entryway and closing the bay door with the crank of a lever.

As the garage-like door crashed closed behind us, I took in the warehouse that enveloped us: shelves upon shelves loomed above us, and heavy shadows lingered everywhere I looked.

"Where now?" I prompted Alannah.

"Most of the first floor consists of this warehouse, so there should be an elevator nearby." she mused. "I haven't been here in a while, so bear with me."

"Take your time. As long as we're not discovered, we can proceed slowly."

Alannah nodded and led me through the massive warehouse.

"Wow..." I found myself breathing. "This is...Quite impressive."

"Just be glad we're nowhere near the Turbo stashes. That shit has a habit of going airborne."

I couldn't help but cringe. A few moments later, I saw a set of double doors ahead of us. "That was easy."

"Hmm...Should we try those doors?"

I shrugged and drew my knife. "Worst that can happen is that we'll have to cut our way through drugged out idiots."

"Oh, you have no idea how correct you are." Alannah murmured. "My brother's goons have a bad habit of snorting lines of Turbo while on duty."

"Makes our job easier. Let's just hope most of them OD."

The laugh that left my friend was more than a little chilling. "All we can do is hope."

Our boots made barely a noise on the rough concrete floor as we approached the doors. When we finally reached them, I grabbed the door handle and gently pushed on it. With a soft creak, the door started to open. I peaked through the crack and noticed the area ahead of us appeared to be a focal point between two wide hallways. The low light quality made it hard to see what was ahead.

"Have a handgun?" I prompted Alannah.

In response, she removed a small side arm from her belt and held it at the ready.

After a few heartbeats, I pushed the door and held it open for Alannah to get through. When I turned to study the room before us, I felt my jaw feather. Before me sitting on the ground in a state of drugged out euphoria or simply sprawled on the ground were countless individuals. Their ragged, filthy clothing told me they were residents of the lower city.

"What...?" was all I could manage to get out.

"They're people under the 'protection' of Tobias." Alannah supplied, shaking her head. "They got addicted to Turbo too quickly for them to realize they were being duped, so they essentially became slaves to my sadistic brother. They do...Anything for him."

"Anything?" I repeated, staring at a little girl as she shook her unmoving mother's shoulder.

"Anything. Most of these poor bastards only last a month or so. Oh, splendid. There's an elevator."

She wasn't wrong: stepping over the groaning and silent bodies, we found ourselves staring at a dented and rusty door. Pushing a faded button, faint rattling could be heard before the doors opened horizontally to reveal a dim elevator interior.

"Please, you first." I murmured.

After Alannah and I got into the elevator, I looked at her: "How many floors are in this building?"

"Six. However, there's a sub level." she informed me. "We don't want to go there."

"Why."

"You don't want to know."

"Fair enough. I take it your brother's on the sixth floor?"

Alannah nodded, and I pressed the top button indicating the sixth floor.

As the doors closed, I heard the girl I walked past call out to her mother who probably wouldn't wake up.

Damn all of this to hell...