[hr][center][h3][u][b][The Den][/b][/u][/h3][/center][hr] The soft glow of the topographical holo-map in the center of the darkened Command room flickered blue against Wolf's skin. She lay reclined in one of the chairs next to a terminal underneath what used to be a window. The openings sealed with bulkheads and covered with screens and monitors to prevent any light escaping to the outside. Wolf lay still with one eye closed, her cyber-eye open and occasionally flicking this way and that. A Nuero-Optic cable was spooled out of the base of her neck and into the console. She was asleep, or part of her was at least: the organic part. Her neural net was alive and awake, operating the drones with support from The Den's considerable array of servers and Virtual Intelligence agents. Scans, topographical readings, information information information... though that part of her brain had been partitioned so it could work autonomously. It was like living with an alternate personality that thought in Radar pings and Firing Solutions, fuel, ammunition levels, and threat assessment. The Den was always on vigil. The Den never slept. [color=8dc73f]Hunter-Killer[/color], or [color=8dc73f][b]HK[/b][/color] was on watch, soaring lazily far above the settlement in a wide pattern like a wraith in the dark. Its insulated thrusters made nary a sound, or at least not one that would register on the ground from this height. The occasional stray bit of light from the ground glinted off the payload of Maverick anti-tank missiles nestled against [color=8dc73f]HK[/color]'s belly. A seismic ping caught [color=8dc73f]HK[/color]'s attention, and the nose-mounted targeting pod swiveled to find the source: apparently a group of people standing on the Den / ShieldTown barrier wall... suspiciously. One of the figures flew away after being spoken to... the reaction was played back and analyzed in a separate window while [color=8dc73f]HK[/color] observed. The fleeing entity was identified as [color=8dc73f][ShieldTown-Guest02][/color], and was logged as helping during the unscheduled Hunt event. Judging by her reaction [color=8dc73f]HK[/color] logged the well-dressed male as [color=8dc73f][Suspicious-HotGuy01][/color], and flagged him as [color=f26522]Threatening[/color] as evidenced by the fact he was poised to attack as [color=8dc73f][ShieldTown-Guest02][/color] was fleeing. [color=f26522][Suspicious-HotGuy01][/color] and a trio of others [color=8dc73f]HK[/color] didn't have the angle to identify shepherded a woman off the barrier wall and... [color=8dc73f][GIMBAL LIMIT][/color] [color=8dc73f]HK[/color] lost the scene and banked sharply, reorienting to restore surveillance but the group was gone. The camera flicked back and forth, scanning the surrounding area before [color=8dc73f]HK[/color] rewound the video. [color=8dc73f][Processing] . . . [Identifying. Gait analysis] . . . [Insufficient Data.] [Facial recognition scan. Processing] . . . [Match Found. Subject identified - ShieldTown-SpecialGuest-Aegis01. Status: [s]UNCONSCIOUS[/s]. ACTIVE.] [Analysis: SpecialGuest Abducted.] [Running PATH_TO_VICTORY.SIM] . . . [Wake Host.] . . . |[/color] Wolf jolted awake, flinching as the Neuro-Optic cable disconnected from the terminal and swiftly spooled into the back of her neck, snagging a strand of hair as it went. HK had posted a list of objectives and waypoints in her HUD. She skimmed the summary on the way to the armory, briefly poking her head into the infirmary where that majority of The Den's other residents and ShieldTown's physician lay sprawled out in various states of exhaustion. It had been a rough day. It wasn't over yet. She swung herself down to the wall lithely from the repulsor sled, adjusting her tactical harness and shouldering her silenced submachine gun as she approached HK's waypoint cautiously. The sim played back in her HUD, and she chewed her lower lip in thought. [b][color=#7270db]"Trace to origin,"[/color][/b] she muttered, deciding that uncovering what happened might give her a clue to where they went with Aegis' guest. He would not be pleased if someone absconded with her in the middle of the night while Wolf was on watch. [color=8dc73f][Processing] . . . [Waypoint Updated] - |[/color] Wolf slid down the wall to street level, following HK's rooftop path simulation from the ground and darting quietly through the intersections. The path led her towards the center of town where Alex's house was, and she recognized the three story building looming over its shorter neighbors as she ducked into a dark alley nearby. She crouched to the corner, peeking silently and looking through the holographic sight towards the house. Broken glass on the ground glinted under a street lamp, and the remains of a demolished night stand lay crumpled underneath the broken window. She was about to step out and investigate closer when a lithe figure tore away from the darkness of an adjacent intersection and ran silently straight up the wall, hooking fingers on the window frame and pulling themselves up slowly to peek inside. Wolf held her breath, leaning out from cover to train her weapon on the intruder. The figure turned suddenly towards her as though alerted by a noise. Wolf flinched as a pair of gleaming, slitted amber eyes locked with her own, her muscles locking up involuntarily for a fraction of a second before she squeezed the trigger twice. The figure became a blur, launching across the street and out of sight as the rhythmic SLAP of supersonic rounds flattening against the building's reinforced side echoed into the night. Wolf threw herself around the corner, bracing against the wall to protect her back and swiftly checking first the alley behind her, and then the surrounding rooftops. [b][color=#7270db]"Identify,"[/color][/b] she whispered, quieting her breathing as the black furred, wolf cyber-ears of her namesake perked up, flicking this way and that to zero in on any sounds of movement. [color=8dc73f][Processing] . . . [Enhancing Image] . . . [Running Low Light Filter] [Subject Identity - ShieldTown-SpecialGuest-Aegis01 - 96% match.] - |[/color] Wolf exhaled, relaxing against the wall and letting her heart pound out of her chest for a bit. Good thing she didn't land any hits. Alex would be much less furious about her shooting up the side of his house than he would be if she riddled his guest with bullets thinking she was a creeper. Wolf allowed her weapon to fall to her side on its sling as she approached the front door, and rapped her reinforced steel knuckles on it. The light under the door suggested Dean was still awake, and she was rewarded after a couple impatient minutes of waiting when he answered the door, sipping a freshly made cup of tea. [b][color=#7270db]"Hey uh, your guest- [i]*snrk*[/i],"[/color][/b] she snorted, the corners of her mouth coiling into an amused smile at the state of his dress: warm flannel pajamas, signature beanie and oversized fuzzy slippers. [b][color=#7270db]"Cute slippers,"[/color][/b] she grinned. [b][color=#7270db]"Anyway, your guest is out and about,"[/color][/b] she explained, tilting her head back towards the shattered glass and ruined nightstand behind her. [b][color=#7270db]"I think she was trying to get back in? But... I maybe uh... kinda-sorta spooked her?"[/color][/b] she admitted sheepishly. [b][color=#7270db]"I spotted her with some suspicious looking folk and came to investigate; caught her trying to climb back into that broken window. You know, you should tell your guests to use the front door like civilized folk,"[/color][/b] she chided, clucking her tongue and rocking back and forth on her feet awkwardly, hoping he wouldn't bring up the gunfire.