The streets of Hollow Bastion were once again stirring to life, taking the first breath of the morning as the lifeblood of the city moved about, living out their daily lives. Pepper was not a citizen of this city, nonetheless she found herself walking among it's denizens. Her eyes scanned the decrepit architecture, the cracked roads, and crumbling alleys. If the people were the lifeblood of this city, then the city was a dying body. Rika trailed behind her, following her to the meeting place of her future employer. Convincing the thief to come with her had been easier than anticipated, little negotiation was required. The young woman had a strong ego, and it was too easily coaxed. 

They eventually arrived to a part of the city that was not quite as ghetto as the rest, here, the populace could at least pretend that they still lived in the city they once upon a time could call Radiant. On the sidewalk the crowd was beginning to thicken, and among the people she could see a change in social class. Scarves wrapped nonchalantly around necks, berets tipped so precariously one could swear it was a sign of high class to have them just on the edge of falling off of one's head. The men and woman here were more well off than others, or at least they liked to appear so. Stepping under a veranda, Pepper held out an open hand to show Rika the way to her employer, for she was seated right before them. "Master Aeva, I have the woman you requested." She spoke in a clear voice, as if forcing Aeva to ask her to repeat herself would be a sin. She had done as she was told, however, she still wished to be of assistance. Her eyes looked to the cup of coffee in her hands, judging from the steam rising from it and the amount still in the cup it had just been filled, so bringing her more was out of the question, that was the waiter's job anyhow. A duo of posh men a table over were speaking, and she heard them mention the announcement that had been given via the eyesores sprouted all over the city. "Master, I will leave you to your business, however, if you wish to deal with the announcement given by the Empire, I can hack into the speakers and monitors." She said.

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"..Idiot?" Shizuka muttered the word that had just been spoken to her with such contempt. She lightly kicked a can with her sneaker bound foot, watching it tumble with a loud clang down the jagged street. "That woman surely wasn't with the Empire, I've never been wrong about that sorta thing before..." She let out a sigh, disappointed with herself for leaving such a bad impression on a new friend. She would have to make that up later, she wasn't really an idiot after all. "But Innocent? Funny." She chuckled derisively, kicking the can into a bin. She would have to forgive Rika for being so presumptuous, she knew she looked as if she were born to bear the moniker of an airhead, but she wasn't as naive as she let on. She reached into her pocket and grabbed a keychain. The accessory was a simple chain with a steel heart motif, however, the chain was broken on the end, rendering it useless as a keyblade attachment. "Isn't that right, Capell?" Shizuka's reverie was cut off as her badge vibrated, and Trisean's voice rang in her ears. He was panicked, and more than upset over the turn of events Nomis had laid out. "H-hey, hold on, I don't think it's that serious, we should be able to handle this.. right, Ace?" She said.

"I don't know what type of game Nomis is playing, but he's doing it wrong. If he believes the destruction of an empty building on property that the Empire owned is enough of a crime to make us look bad, he should think again. The Empire is bleeding this city dry, we are the one's trying to save them. I trust them to know that." Ace's voice echoed into her ear. Shizuka grinned and nodded.

"That's right, the people are on our side, we should believe in them."

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Ryoko looked up at Salforge's face and stretched her mouth into a hungry smile. "Those rebels are getting cocky, and they're spread about the city like cockroaches, we'll find one, and we'll squash it until it tells us where all of it's insect brethren are hiding." She patted the mercenary on the shoulder and began to walk for the exit. "I do hope you know how to hunt, Tin man." 

Out on the streets of the city Ryoko could see a car approaching. It was a dark green military truck with tinted out windows. "Those must be the special forces I ordered, I do hope they're all they claim to be." She didn't bother greeting them or telling them their orders, they already knew what to do. "Here should do..." Ryoko mumbled to herself, having stopped by an alley that placed her and Salforge in a blind spot to those in the street and sidewalk. She snapped her fingers, and five bat like beings materialized above her. "Reconnaissance Heartless, it's amazing what a little experimentation will do to those things." She said. The Heartless soared into the sky, and flew off in different directions. Their bodies vanished, becoming invisible in the blue sky. "Those Heartless have an appetite for strong hearts, it shouldn't take them long to find one of those Unbound brats."