[center][color=orangered][h2]Intel[/h2] [sub]6:00[/sub][/color] [i]Themerlinhawk and Wind Wild[/i][/center] Speeding down the halls of the Academy, Andri checked his watch. Six AM. Time was running out fast. He had only until noon to make his move against the Renegade. While the principal had no direct command over Andri’s own life, the Peacekeepers did and once Lucien was out of the Academy’s jurisdiction, going after him would be considered a criminal offence. And yes, it was ludicrous to go after someone of his calibre with so little time to prepare but the pictures he’d seen in Ein’s office had left him no choice. It wasn’t a matter of throwing his life away, like the demon had assumed. It was something far less heroic, something much dirtier. It was the fact that he’d recognised the victims. Lucien had made this very personal and to settle it, Andri would have to meet him in person. But he still wanted to be prepared for the encounter. It was pointless if he died trying to extract his revenge. And there was one person that could help prevent that better than anyone. His name was Ian Snyder and he’d become a professional at hunting angels. Not in the sense that he was a legend - his methods were often criticized by teachers who prefered it when the Wielders were more versatile but Andri had the hunch that lack of versatility wasn’t Ian’s problem. Everyone had something they did best and while Andri’s own forte was security and protection, Ian’s was slaying angels. Simple as that. So, if you have to learn, learn from the best. The problem was getting in touch with the man. Since the incident with the Illuminati two decades ago, the Academy had ensured that all Musicians and Wielders were connected with each other thanks to a special link awakened between their Shards. It was weak enough that it didn’t interfere on a daily basis but a small directed current of essence evoked by a certain thought ensured an instant telepathic connection between two to four people. It had proven useful over the years and prevented quite a few casualties because it meant that reinforcements could be called at a moment’s notice and it was almost involuntarily triggered in nasty situations. In fact, that had been what had saved himself and Kanna that fateful night. But using it with Ian was not an option. Andri didn’t know much about the man but he knew enough to decide that he should stay as far away from his senior’s mind as possible. And as he didn’t reside at the dormitory, the only other real option was a phone. Making sure he’s far enough from anyone, Andri leaned on a tree and started browsing his contact list. Ian had graduated long before he even obtained his Shard and as far as the Wielder could remember they’d met only once during an official demonstration. He could only hope that he’d received, and kept the number, for whatever reason. Striking gold, the young man smiled to himself and brought the phone to his ear, praying that Ian was over with whatever he was after tonight. The angel spat blood at him and in annoyance he simply shot her in the head. It was a waste of time. As he wiped the blood off his mask he heard the beeping of his phone. Tapping the side of his mask it triggered the receiver in his ear. “This is Ian what is it?” Standing up from the angel’s corpse he took a canister from his belt and began spraying down the warehouse with an aerosolized solution. It was a gift from Lazarus since Ian had a knack for creating situations which could get him in trouble. Walking back to the whole in the warehouse he flicked a match over his shoulder and the whole place went up in flames. Looking down at the blood spattered PDA in his left hand he listened to the line. [i]Thank God.[/i] Andri thought, leaning back against the tree with a small sigh of relief. “Hello, Mr. Snyder. My name is Andri Yrjan and I’m one of the Academy’s Wielders. I was wondering if I could ask you for an advice… in regards to the winged.” Ian made a face behind his mask. [i]Who the hell was this guy?[/i] Releasing the magazine from the gun in his right hand he replaced it and holstered the gun. “Um. Why exactly do you want advice on angels? Not only that but why did you think to call me of all people. It's been years since I was at the academy and I don’t think we’ve ever met.” With that Ian pushed his mask up off his face before taking a cloth from the breast pocket of his tac vest to wipe his face of any extra gore. “We have met… but that is unimportant.” The other man’s face became serious as he stared at the leaves overhead and picked his next words carefully. “There’s been an accident. One that can’t be dealt with through our regular channels. I’m going after a very powerful angel but I can’t rely on the Academy for support. I’m not asking you to tag along but I would appreciate your expertise. All things considered, you seemed like the best person to ask.” Frowning Ian walked off down the street to retrieve the rest of the gear from his rooftop perch. “So. Who is it you are after because I can only think about half a dozen Angels worth calling me over that are powerful enough that the academy doesn’t or can’t tangle with. One of which I’ve been trying to deal with for the past week. A few of which work for her and two of which I seriously doubt you are going to be able to tangle with.” Ian hooked himself back into the climbing harness and started back up the side of the building towards his sniper's perch. Andri frowned slightly. The man knew his job. But as it was, he saw no reason to hide the truth. It wasn’t that he had any sort of unfounded trust in Ian, more like he had very little to lose. “I’m sure you’ve heard of him, and you’re probably right that he’s out of my league. His name is Lucien.” Andri held his breath then, waiting for Ian’s reaction. “You’re out of your fucking mind.” Ian finished climbing back onto the roof. “Lucien will kill you and move on without even considering that you existed. As I said. You picked one of the half dozen who will literally just rip you apart. Why do you even care? He’s got a vendetta against the high council. How does that involve you?” Andri’s eyes moved slowly from one leaf to another. He could tell Ian that he’d been recently possessed and that meant his life wasn’t as valuable to others as it once was. That he wanted to ensure that he had a legacy, however small, and this was probably his best chance because his life expectancy was cut short. That Lucien’s latest victim had been a friend and just thinking about it made his blood boil. And that he definitely didn’t want anyone else he knew to suffer the same death if he could help it. But instead he just scoffed. “Come on, you can’t be that far behind. He might be after the Archangel but he doesn’t mind trampling over anyone standing in his way and has been doing so for decades. With Hazumi gone the Academy has no way of tracking him down so the casualties are bond to become even more. I’m not crazy and I know I can’t do it alone, I’ll find allies but I don’t know how many I need or what to expect from him. I’ve made up my mind and you can’t honestly believe your words can change that. All I’m asking is if you’ll help give me a chance.” Picking up his sniper Ian gave the wall a look like he was talking to an idiot “You’re actually set on committing suicide aren't you? Call Lazarus. He can probably tell you where the angel is. Although he’ll also tell you that you are committing suicide. If you want any kind of a chance you need to make sure he doesn’t see you coming. At all.” ‘Suicidal’. That made three times in half an hour. “Any idea how I can do that? Is it true that he can’t sense any essence? Also, I’ll need Lazarus’ number.” Finally they were getting somewhere. The watch was burning a hole in his wrist. Ian shrugged “I don't know about that but if he’s after someone and he doesn’t know he’s being hunted I somehow doubt he’ll see a runt coming at him from behind.” Collecting his things Ian walked down the stairs and out the back of the building. “As for Lazarus.” Ian looked at his phone and hit the button to bring up his contacts before sending the number for Lazarus. “Becareful. Lazarus might just tell Lucien you are after him if he thinks that it might get you to back off. Honestly I still don't get why you are after this guy..” “Because I am suicidal.” Andri shrugged. [i]Or simply long dead.[/i] He took the phone off his ear to glance at the screen. He brought it back up with a thoughtful twist to his lips. The picture Ian had painted of Lazarus warning his target didn’t sit right with him. He probably wouldn’t make the call after all. Not to mention that Lazarus himself had been a teacher at the Academy and was Hazumi’s life partner. It was hard to imagine anyone being more overprotective. “Thank you for your help.” He concluded his conversation with Ian. “Pray for me, if you do any such thing. And nasluka to you too.” Ian made another face. [i]Who the hell is this kid.[/i] “Yeah whatever kid happy hunting.” With that Ian hit his ear piece and killed the line. “Look Koshmar do you remember this guy at all?” [i]Yes, you met him once in passing.[/i] “That's just disturbing that you remember stuff like that.” Koshmar chuckled in Ian’s ear.