The Rat

Avea was still clutching the stone when she awoke. Blinking away the cloudiness of her vision she could just barely make out the lining of the steel walls that ran along the ceiling, where a loose flickering over light hung. Her body felt heavy with a deep aching in her bones. That was when she heard the two hushed voices above her, Avea followed the sound of the voices and felt the tension leave her body realising she hadn't left Brigg's bunker. Recognising the blurred outline of Brigg's hunched body and Bebop's spherical bodice floating in the air beside him.

"Would you keep your bloody voice down bot!"

"She should be awake by now... check her pulse!"

"She has a pulse."

"You didn't even check."

"I've checked it five times."

Avea tried to signal to Briggs and Bebop that she was awake, but her mind kept trying to submerge back into the darkness. She fought against it, rising out of the dead blank depths towards the blinding surface, but struggled to break through. She tried calling out to to Bebop and Briggs, but the two were so engrossed in whatever argument they were having they didn't notice her stirring beneath them. Finally she unleashed a pained groan, the noise strained and whiny against her ears, but the hushed voices went quiet. "Bout time you woke up," Brigg's gruff voice broke through the haziness of Avea's mind. She never thought she'd be happy to see Brigg's scraggly bearded face peering down at her, along with those creepy lenses glowing bright red. "Now that i've seen your ugly mug, I just might pass out again," she said, her voice thick with grogginess. Brigg's chuckled, "your right bot I think she does have brain damage." Avea gave a small smile, but her facial expression was strained, as all those terrifying memories began swirling inside her mind. Briggs lenses flashed red, but before he could inquire further, Bebop cut him off antennae firing with sparks.

"V what happened?"

"You should lie down."

"What did you see?"

"No wait tell us what you saw then lie down!"

Bebop was flying back and forth above her trying to examine her, but the sight of the whizzing blur of orange made her want to hurl. "Back off bot she'll tell us when she's ready," Briggs said, shoving Bebop away with his large calloused hand. Bebop's antennae sparked in anger, but Briggs gestured subtly to Avea who was cradling herself like a wounded animal. Bebop huffed, steam erupting from its bodice, flying across the room to give Avea some space, but not before muttering "toogit" at Briggs. Brigg's growled at Bebop's sass, before crouching down beside Avea handing her his flask, "take a swig." She listened, lifting the flask to her lips. The moment the sharp liquid hit her tongue, she coughed violently, the burn searing down her throat like fire. It caught her off guard, leaving her gasping and blinking through the sting.Briggs let out a throaty chuckle as she coughed and sputtered everywhere, "ugh what is that?" Avea spat grasping at her throat where the aftertaste left a harsh tingling. "Liquid courage" Briggs said, the humor vanished from his face and Avea felt his body grow stiff. The air between them grew dense, heavy with unspoken words and the weight of something about to break.

Avea glanced down at the stone still clutched in her hand, rubbing her thumb over its smooth surface. It was hard to believe that this stone showed her mother's memories, and still somehow make her feel more like a stranger. Avea had always known that there were cracks in her mothers stories, but she'd never thought that those cracks would leave her entire world shattered at her feet. "She lied to me about everything," Avea whispered. Unable to stop seeing visions of shadow wraiths rising out of the black waters and surging towards her mother. Her wild eyes staring right through Avea filled with a terror that chilled her to the bone.That familiar dread began twisting in her gut so tight Avea thought she might throw up her 'liquid courage.'

"Secrets are a heavy burden kid, your ma never wanted that weight on your shoulders" Briggs finally said. Avea stared ahead, a vacant expression on her face, "it's still a lie." Brigg's was silent for a long moment those red lenses fixed on the stone in Avea's hands. He took another swig from the flask, "seventeen years I've been holding onto to that damn thing, should've known it was cursed" he said solemnly. "How is it that you knew about her, and I didn't?" She asked, failing to conceal her resentment. Briggs clearly heard the anger in her question, because he replied in his stoic manner, "it's not that simple kid." Avea felt the hot fury stirring inside her erupt, "it is actually because she decided to lie and keep me in the dark for my entire life about who she really is and now she's left me all alone!" Avea was now screaming at Briggs, "with the most dangerous grim reaper in T'alli to tell me the truth when it should have been her." She was out of breath now after pouring out all of the rage she hadn't realised had been pent up inside.

"I need to find my mother and bring her home. Because I can't..." Avea felt her chest constrict and her vision disfiguring. There was too much air and yet not enough to pull into her lungs. She felt the room spinning on its axis once again, she blinked frantically trying to see straight. "Kid? Kid listen to me" Briggs held her face with his one good hand forcing Avea to meet his six lenses. "I have to find her, I can't...why didn't she tell me?," she shoved Briggs away, but her chest became unbearably tight and her breaths were shallow. "She was just tryna to protect you kid." Avea couldn't help the hysterical laugh that escaped her lips, "protect me is that a joke?!" She tried to remember her mother's voice, breathe Avea...slowly in and out, the shaking stopped, and her breathing eased slightly. There was a part of her that hated that despite everything that it was the sound of her mother's voice that seemed to soothe her.

"Protect me how?"

Brigg's released a heavy sigh, "I'm to take you out of T'alli to the Drishire ring, I got a couple of contacts that'll get you a new identity and then ..." "You're going to leave me there?" Brigg's silence was all the confirmation she needed. This was her mother's plan to have Briggs smuggle her out of T'alli and ditch her in another ringed prison? "I promised your mother a long time ago that I would help you, this is me keeping that promise" Brigg's voice wasn't gentle, no warmth, only the command.

Everything in the room had gone so still, so silent, as Avea came to the realisation that this was really happening. She was going to be taken away from her home with no chance of ever seeing her mother again. The air between Avea and Briggs seemed to grow cold and distant. Sensing the shift, Briggs stood straight, every muscle taunt and alert.

"Your ma never wanted it to come to this, but after last night T'alli's just ain't safe for you no more."

Avea didn't particularly care, and right at that moment she felt the boiling anger that had almost consumed her mere moments ago turn stone cold. "Listen kid you're better off there." "In the DRISHIRE ring! Why not just drop us off at the smog bog?! Bebop screeched. Avea couldn't help but agree with Bebop. The Drishire ring had a reputation for being a dingy dumping ground, from the drifters that wandered in looking to scrounge up scraps, to the canal waste that swept in from neighbouring rings. She wasn't exactly surprised that Briggs was going to leave her at the Drishire ring, but she was surprised that her mother thought she was willingly going to leave her behind. "I can't stay, there are certain individuals in Drishire who would not take kindly to seeing my face." "Not surprising" Bebop said, from behind Briggs, clearly no longer bothered with keeping silent. Brigg's glared at the bot, "get some shut eye, we depart at zero hundred hours soldier." Soldier? Avea's eyebrows shot up in surprise, that wasn't a word she'd expect to be in Brigg's vernacular. "Kid...I meant kid" Briggs coughed to cover up his mistake, before hastily leaving the bunkroom. Avea stood in the darkness, the moon stone was still in her hand."A military man" Avea hummed in curiosity. Lifting the stone up to her face, watching how even in the darkness, the light seemed to dance inside it. A brief moment of silence passed, "we're not going to the Drishire ring are we?" Bebop asked, already knowing the answer. "Nope." Avea glanced down at the stone in her palm, she did have a way to get to her mother. The portal was still there. A plan was starting to form in her mind, but first she had to escape Brigg's lair.

Brigg's underground lair wasn't just dark, cramped and smelly, but also impossibly secure. It didn't only lock intruders out, but also locked them in. Avea only knew of one way out, she had to find that damn elevator. The two began cautiously walking through the lined hallways of Brigg's hideout trying to retrace their steps back to the elevator. However, it was becoming quite apparent to Avea that she should have been paying more attention the first time."This is pointless we're back where we started" she said, after ending up back in front of the bunker. No wonder Brigg's didn't bother locking her in the bunker, this entire hideout was a steel trap maze. "Briggs can certainly build a cage I'll give him that" Avea said.

"I'm gonna be broken down and sold for scrap pieces in the Drishire ring" Bebop shrieked. "We're not going to Drishire Bebop, trust me this cage isn't gonna hold me." "I'll be rust by then, neither of us can see a way out." That made Avea pause an idea sparking in her mind, "wait Bebop you're memory drive, it would have recorded everything on the way here." She turned to Bebop who swiftly dodged to the side, "come here." "Okay, but be gentle I hate when you...aaahhh," Bebop screeched, as Avea grabbed the bot reaching into its hardware to activate the memory drive, playing back the recording of the route to the elevator. She followed the directions until she finally recognised the rickety door of the elevator shaft. "There it is" Avea breathed, she made to move towards it, but was cut off by the sound of clanking boots.

Briggs.

Avea grabbed Bebop jumping behind the steel wall. Clank, clank, clank. The sound of boots grew louder, then, suddenly, his distorted shadow stretched out beside her, long and sharp in the dim light. A clunky black boot thudded to the ground beside her, its leather cracked, streaked with dried blood, and wrapped in the rattle of dangling chains. Avea held her breath, a bead of sweat began trickling down her forehead, as she pushed herself further into the wall. If Briggs caught her trying to break out he would drag her back to the bunker, this time with no chance of escaping. Avea remained silent, her eyes fixed on that boot praying that it wouldn't take another step forward. The boot turned walking away and Avea almost crumpled to the ground with relief. Peeking out from behind the wall, she watched Brigg's hunched back walk towards the elevator, pulling the rusty grate back. "The reaper's taking the elevator, what are we going to do?" Bebop hissed. She had to think fast otherwise she was going to be stuck down here until Briggs came back to dump her off at the stink ring. Her eyes began frantically scouring around, until they landed on the narrow space above the elevator. Bebop tracked the movement of Avea's eyes, "no bad idea," but Avea didn't have time to second guess herself, she quietly scurried down the hallway, scampering up the side of the elevator, before sliding herself into the narrow gap so she was lying on top of the elevator. Bebop shimmied up beside her, "so instead of going to the stink ring we're going to be crushed on top of a janky elevator?" Avea held up her finger to Bebop, warning the bot to stay silent.

The top of the elevator box was covered with tangled wires and frayed cords, and was so unsteady beneath her that Avea wasn't convinced it could hold her weight. Briggs began whistling that haunting tune beneath her, and before she could rethink her decision the elevator box shot upwards. The roaring whoosh of air flew past Avea and she swallowed her scream scrambling to hold onto the frayed cords. She could feel nothing except the pressure of the unrelenting speed of the elevator forcing it way upwards. Even her screams couldn't be heard over the horrendous grating of the metal elevator against the shaft, the sheer sound of it made Avea's head pound in agony. Driving up and down, side to side in the abandoned shaft, she struggled to keep her grip on the frayed cords as the elevator lurched to the side without warning almost throwing her over the edge. Bebop had retreated into its bodice like a shell, while Avea could feel her arms burning from the strain of holding herself up. She had to pull it together, but she was breathless and bloodless desperately clinging onto the thick cable cords.

Just when her arms were about to give out she saw a ledge jutting outwards, they were shooting right towards an opening. Avea nudged her bot with her foot indicating that it was time to move, they were shooting towards it. She got onto her feet, fighting the crashing weight of gravity, as she steadied herself on top of the elevator. Knowing that one wrong move could end with her being sliced in half. Avea no longer holding onto the anything prayed to all gods that the elevator would not lurch sideways. She had to time this perfectly, and then suddenly the ledge was in clear sight. "NOW Bebop!" she cried out, before leaping off the top of the elevator reaching for the ledge. The elevator flew past and she landed with a thud tumbling into the opening crawl space. Avea rolled onto her back and started to laugh with relief. "That was ..." she said between gasps, the adrenaline pumping through her veins. "Stupid, dangerous, reckless?" Bebop exclaimed hovering over Avea's face. "It worked didn't it?" Bebop huffed indignantly at her response. The two of them let the pipeline lead them out onto a dirty rooftop that was situated so high that Avea could see into the crux ring. Where the merchants resembling ants in a colony lined the clean streets on their way to work. Avea turned her head back to look at the Valent ring where thick smog rose up to meet her and the sun didn't quite meet the narrow dwellings. From up here they looked like two completely different worlds. Avea didn't have time to stare, she began running along the high wires the fastest way to avoid the heavy foot traffic below.

The smog concealed her well enough, "so what's the plan exactly?" Bebop asked. "Get to the portal" Avea said, leaping from one rooftop to the next. "How?" Bebop said struggling to keep up with her. "Same way as last time" Avea said, but she peered below she saw a swarm of guardwatch patrols marching in the same direction. "Are they following us?" Avea whispered under her breath. "They're heading towards the border" Bebop said, the two of them followed the guardwatch officers and sure enough they ended at the border. They had all the patrols down there scanning the border wall with their electronic batons, each wearing their standard issued wristbands.

There was no way to sneak through.

The border was a fortified divide, concrete barriers topped with coils of rusting razor wire, built upon an unforgiving stretch of scorched earth. Watchtowers loomed at intervals, their searchlights sweeping the perimeter like cold, unblinking eyes. Warning signs, faded and bullet-pocked, lined the fences. Lethal Force Authorized. Beyond the border, the outlands lay barren, dust-choked and silent, while inside, order was maintained by boots, drones, and the ever-present hum of surveillance. It wasn’t just a border, it was a line between obedience and disappearance.

Avea continued to stare down at the guardwatch officers that were now shifting into formations and moving to different stations. "What is going on here?" she murmured, distracted by all the commotion below. She leaned closer, trying to listen in to the officers conversation, but she was too high up. "We have to move to lower ground," Avea said, already moving. "Uhhh V?" Bebop's voice said from behind. "Not now Bebop I'm trying to listen" Avea murmured, sliding closer to the nearby officers. "No but..." There was something in the bot's metal claw. "Bebop not now" Avea said again, shooing Bebop away with an impatient flick of her hand. "I don't understand why there down there?" crouching lower she still could only hear the faint murmurings of voices. There were never this many guardwatch officers at the border, "they're looking for you." "What?!" Avea turned to Bebop who tossed a flyer into Avea's face. She grabbed the flyer and sure enough there was a printed picture of her face with a large bold print.

WANTED FOR ILLEGAL RACING, REWARD *500.

"No he didn't" her jaw tightened, every muscle in her face rigid, as the rage flared up inside her again. She'd been framed for the running the illegal racing circuits in the outskirts. Bebop was right, the officers below were scanning her face on the flyers retaining it into to those wristbands. Cyrus had set her up, now she was a fugitive.

"Well this just got more complicated."

Everywhere she turned, another one of those flyers was staring back at her. The portrait on the flyers reflected a rather sinister looking version of her, like her evil doppelganger had replaced her. Her face had been drawn to appear bony with sunken cheeks and hollow eyes, but what had struck Avea was the sly smirk on her face that made her look as though she had a proclivity for destruction. She threw her hood over her head and kept her head down trying to remain invisible while moving between the bodies in the crowd. Bebop's flyer was also plastered up next to hers, who had been drawn to appear thuggish, described as Avea's 'muscle'. She almost laughed at the absurdity of it all, but there was a voice in the back of her mind warning her that this wasn't the end of Cyrus's scheming.

She had to find a way out, and time was not on her side.

.......................................................................................................................

"Where are we going?" Bebop's voice came from the inside of Avea's jacket. Bebop was too noticeable to have flying around and they couldn't take the risk of someone recognising them in the street. Avea had to tread carefully. Everyone may know that these charges were bogus, but one thing Valent citizens took seriously was money. Not one of them would hesitate to turn her over for that reward sum. "We're going to see the rat" she said under her breath. "Not the rat?!" Bebop hissed. "We're are out of options" Avea replied, turning down into a dark laneway.

Damon Scyther, was known in the valent ring as the rat. Not because of his small demeanour, beady eyes or crooked smile that resembled that of a feral rodent, but because he was a low life snitch who gathered dirt to bargain to the highest bidder. Disloyal in every sense, except with his information. It was his code and his currency, to be loyal to no one except the truth. Her mother had always warned her away from the rat, she always told Avea to "never cross a double crosser". Their paths had crossed before, but no matter how many times the cunning rat tried to make a deal Avea had resisted. Now it was different. She was desperate to find a way past the border to get to the portal, which wasn't going to remain open for much longer.

Avea continued walking down the laneway peering over her shoulder to make sure no one was following her. She stopped when she found the metal lid at the end of the deserted laneway, that had a closed eye burned onto the top. The blind eye. That was what was required of those who ventured to the underground. "Maybe there's another.." "There isn't" Avea said cutting off Bebop.

She couldn't turn back now,

She crouched down her dirty hands pulled opened the heavy metal lid, and and with one quick glance over her shoulder crawled inside before closing it behind her. She was met with pitch darkness, having to use Bebop's faint light to guide her down the ladder rungs. It wasn't long however before she heard the loud sounds of the underground, and as her feet hit the ground she moved towards the chaos ahead.

As she continued forward, a sudden flood of blinding light burst from the tunnel's end, crashing over them like a wave. The underground unfolded before her, into a chaotic, vibrant sprawl. Her eyes darted in every direction, overwhelmed by the havoc of the underground. All the vendor stalls were crammed along the laneways selling all kinds of things she'd never seen before. As Avea walked along, the steam hissed from hidden vents, mixing with neon signs and swirling smoke. There was a peculiar sound above her, Avea stretched her neck back noticing the rusted railway tracks overhead, bringing supplies down in carts from the surface. The underground had been built out of the old mining sector, where the rails had once been used to transport found valuables until the mine ran dry. Now the rails supplied the deadly kind of valuables, the kind that folks craved or crooked. She kept walking down the main lane past all the vendors selling the potent liquids and glowing veils. Surrounded with all sorts of Valent noises from loud bargaining to drunken laughter to enraged shouting. It was like a bustling hub where dirty secrets were shared for all to know, a hidden world beneath the surface.

Avea couldn't help but think that this was the worse place to lay low.

She could feel the shiftiness in this place, the kind of place where you wouldn't want to make eye contact with the wrong person or stand in one place for too long. There may be blind eyes all around, but one would have to be a fool to believe that people weren't watching. Everyone down here had an ulterior motive, and Avea knew better than to let her guard down. She kept to the side of the main laneway with her hood over her head. They may be underground, but she was still a fugitive with a price on her head. Bebop was hiding inside Avea's jacket, but there were so many sounds echoing through the air that the bot kept trying to poke out to have a peek. "Bebop you have to stay hidden" Avea murmured barely moving her lips. Bebop let out a huff of steam, retreating back out of sight. Her mouth began salivating at the smells wafting into her nose, reminding her empty stomach that it'd been hours since she'd last eaten. There were vendors everywhere dishing out an assortment of skewered meats, steamed buns, soggy greens and a sloppy sludge to customers sitting in front of the vendors. It took every ounce of restraint within Avea to not crawl over there on her hands and knees.

She ducked her head low, heart kicking against her ribs as she spotted two figures loitering outside a grimy food stall, its flickering neon sign half-burnt and buzzing like an angry insect. The scent of oil, charred meat, and something chemical clung to the air like a second skin. They were racers from the Silent Slinger Clan. Terror struck Avea, like a spear driving into her ribs. She recognised the one hunched near the front immediately, lithe frame coiled like a predator at rest, her face partially obscured by strands of oil-black hair. The very same racer who had chased her through the tunnels.

The other clan members sat perched on the bent stools, almost statuesque. The girl flicked a matte-black lighter between her slender fingers so quickly the only thing visible was the brief, hypnotic flash of a purple flame bursting to life and vanishing again. It cast faint glow on her sharp cheekbones and the jagged piercings lining her brow. Every flick of the flame felt more threatening, as Avea shrank further into her hood, praying the noise of the underground drowned the thunder in her chest. Neither of their eyes lingered on her and Avea almost shuddered in relief quickening her pace until she was out of of their eye line.

The rat didn't stay in the central part of the underground. Turns out being a self proclaimed snitch meant no one wanted you around to see their misdoings. It didn't matter though, Damon Scyther was a true rodent and like any rodent he always found the scraps. Avea moved away from the noise until all that could be heard was her own footsteps and the occasional screech of the empty barrels rolling along the railroad. The silence was eerie, and the colour of the neon signs had dimmed to a dull green. She cast a quick glance over her shoulder, half-expecting to find eyes trailing her. You didn't want to get caught visiting the rat, he was as detested as you could get in the Valent.

Away from all the crowds Avea reached into the inside of her jacket pocket, a small smile crossed her lips feeling the cool surface of the stone graze against her fingers. "Still got it" she sighed, the tightness in her chest easing. "You think I'd let some snatcher pull one on us?!" Bebop exclaimed. "You got distracted" Avea said, walking ahead as a small cloud of steam fired out of Bebop, "I was scouting for potential threats". "Uh huh" Avea nodded her eyes peering down at the translucent stone. Suddenly it started to glow, the ground disappeared beneath her feet. She felt herself get swept up into the stone's whirlwind, but instead of fighting against its strong hold she let herself surrender to it. Succumb to the feeling of weightlessness and allow it to guide her into her mother's memory. It was only when Avea felt the rush of the fleeting memories slow to a halt did she open to eyes.

She stood once again in the tunnels, the familiar dark stone walls around her pulsing with an otherworldly glow. Light streamed across the cave like liquid, reflecting off the damp rock and casting shifting patterns on the curved ceiling and around the eight celestial markings. Ahead of her, the portal shimmered into view, its swirling surface clearer than ever before. She could almost see through it, a glimpse of somewhere, but it was shrinking rapidly, drawing inward like the last breath of a dying star.

Then, like smoke caught in a sudden wind, it vanished leaving nothing but empty air and silence. Avea blinked, her breath hitching as she looked down to find the glowing stone cradled in her palm, its surface cool and pulsing faintly against her skin. And just like that, the cave's glow retreated, revealing the gritty sprawl of the underground once more. The echo of power still hummed faintly in her bones, but reality had returned and with it a terrifying realisation."V what is it?" Bebop asked, "The portals closing we have to hurry".

Avea could feel her hands start to turn cold and clammy when she spotted the shop on the deserted laneway. PAWN SHOP had been scratched onto the wooden sign, giving no impression of being a legit business. "Charming" Avea said standing outside of the splintering door. "Creepy's more like it" Bebop said now trying to see inside the grimy cracked windows. Avea swallowed the lump forming in her throat, before opening the door and her her surprise it swung open seamlessly without even a hint of a creek.

The inside of the shop was dark and dusty. Candlelight flickered through green-tinted glass lamps, casting strange shadows on the walls, that seemed to stalk around them. The entire shop seemed to hum with unsettling energy, like it was breathing. Glass jars lined every inch of the warped wooden shelves, each one clouded with age and filled with strange, disturbing things suspended in murky liquid. Some jars cradled gnarled roots knotted like infant limbs, others contained shriveled blackened animal hearts. A few displayed delicate weaponry no longer than a finger daggers, claws, or crossbow bolts, each intricately forged with ticking gears and tiny steam valves.

Bebop leaned in, squinting through the greenish tint of one particularly grimy jar, then recoiled.“Are those… eyeballs?” the Bot squeaked, voice barely above a whisper. Sure enough, a pair of pale, human eyes bobbed lazily in the viscous fluid, staring blankly in different directions. One blinked, or seemed to as the jar rattled slightly on its shelf. The sight of the helpless pair bobbing inside the jar made Avea retch, "that's disgusting". "Actually those are an incredibly rare set", a nasally voice said, from behind the shelf. Avea froze at the sound of the voice, and the silence hung heavy in the cluttered shop.

She couldn't see him, but she knew it was the rat. "I'm sure you plucked them yourself" she said, in as uninterested voice as she could manage. As though the items in these jars didn't disturb her, and make her insides coil in disgust. The rat poked his head out from behind the shelf with a toothy grin that sent shivers up Avea's spine. "I knew it was only a matter of time before you came knocking at my door Outborn."

Avea kept her face still refusing to reveal any hint of emotion, this was strictly business, and she couldn't let him see how truly desperate she was. A brief silence passed before the rat said, "I must say you've gotten yourself into quite the dilemma pissing off Cyrus Elrod of all people". Damon Scyther even moved like a rodent keeping his arms tucked in and his small head cocked slightly to the side as he examined her. "Yeah well I didn't think he'd be this much of a sore loser". She hated the way he was looking at her, like he wanted to tear her apart and store the pieces of her in those glass jars. "Indeed", the rat limbed behind the countertop, his left leg dragging behind him. Avea followed, her eyes trained forwards in an attempt to not look at the rest of the disturbing objects lining the shelves. "So what does the outborn need from little ol me?" Avea didn't miss the twinge of glee in those beady eyes.

"I need a way to get past the border patrols without being detected", Avea said. Her voice remained even, knowing that the rat was particularly skilled at detecting lies, from the pitch of a voice to the slump of shoulders, he could always sniff it out. "Valuable information will cost you". Avea's spine snapped suddenly realizing that she'd forgotten the most important thing about the rat. His payment. "Ah no payment how unfortunate" the rat said, pretending to shake his head in a disappointment. Avea could feel her pulse race, and as the rat stared at her with those beady eyes, she forced herself to remain composed. "What do you want?"

Payment to the rat was a delicate matter, it could be anything from a feasible sum, to divulging classified information or completing an obscure task. Or the worst a promise debt. Where you'd owe the rat a favour. Everyone knew the rumor of Warren Whitby. An old bartender, honest enough man for the Valent who went to the rat and refused to pay the promise debt. Two days later he had been snatched by the guardwatch for embezzlement of funds from the core council.

Never to be seen again.

"The talking bot would do nicely" the rat said, peering inside Avea's jacket where Bebop was rattling with terror. Bebop shot out, "NO DEAL!" Avea ignored Bebop's outburst staring down the rat, "the bots not on the table" she said calmly. "Well you don't have anything I want so...wait hold on" the rats beady eyes lit up with a truly feral delight. Avea looked down a realised that the moonstone was glowing inside of her jacket. Her heart stopped, no please, she thought but it was too late the rat had already seen it. "What do we have here?" the rat asked his nasally voice sounded slightly awestricken. "A stone. I found it in the outlands" Avea trying to deter the rat, but her attempt was futile. "Not like any of the stones I've seen" the rat said, those eyes lifting up from the stone back to her those black beady eyes now filled with insatiable hunger. "On the counter".

That was it, the final price.

Avea slowly reached into her jacket wrapping her fingers around the stone. The rat’s beady eyes darted between the moonstone in her palm and the bot buzzing just behind her shoulder. The sound of the smooth stone hitting the counter sent a shudder through Avea. The stone hadn't revealed anything to Briggs, and Avea was sure it wouldn't reveal anything to the rat. It was a gamble, but if anyone could keep a secret better than the rat it was her mother. The rat snatched the stone off the counter holding it up high to the filthy light waiting for something to happen. When nothing did his face scrunched with frustration, "told you it's just a stone" Avea said, trying hard to contain her smugness.

The Rat jerked his head slightly, and in that brief movement, she caught the cold, murderous gleam that stripped away the mask of prey to reveal the predator lurking beneath. "We'll see, if there's one thing I know how to do, its get secrets out of uncooperative things" Avea didn't miss the implied threat there. Still seeing the rat holding her mother's stone with his long dirty nails, quickly turned the smugness to resentment. It was the only thing her mother had left behind, but she needed to get to the portal before it closed. "I gave you your payment, now do I get out of the Valent undetected?!" At her command, the rat placed a bracelet on the countertop, not a bracelet Avea realised, but the electronic wristband that the guardwatch patrols were wearing. "The guardwatch are installing a security system along the border... and those wrist bands are your only way out." "How did you get one?" Avea asked, cautiously picking up the wristband. "A lovely guardwatch officer kindly donated it to me" the rat said, "more like you robbed his corpse" Avea muttered.

The rat only gave her a sly grin, as Avea slipped on the wristband. Watching as it lit up on her thin wrist, the green glow alight in the dark abandoned shop. "I said undetected you really expect me to just walk past the border patrols with my face on every corner?" Avea asked. "Unfortunately your fee doesn't cover that... unless you have something else for me," the rat said, beady eyes staring into her own. Avea flinched slightly under the scrutiny of his stare, the panic began to flare inside her realising that this was beginning to feel dangerous. The rat lurched across the counter, and Avea jumped backwards in shock as the rats dirty nails scrape along the wood. "No I got what I came for" she said, grabbing the wristband and making a break for the door. "I do have something else free of charge", the rat said slyly from behind the counter. "Not interested" Avea quipped her hand reaching for the grimy door knob, "not even if I told you that a certain clan lord was going down to the underground tonight to investigate a secret energy source?"

Bebop was behind her trying to push her through the door, but Avea's legs refused to move. How could Cyrus know about the portal? "Ummm my little ears happened to overhear Elrod telling his numbskulls that his freak cyborg rods detected a blast of energy from the outlands", Avea fist was almost crushing the door knob, "come on V its not worth it" Bebop said quietly trying to urge her forwards. Her back was turned to the rat, but in the cracked door glass she could see him tossing her mother's precious moon stone, he was taunting her with it. She gritted her teeth resisting the bait. "I don't know anything about that" Avea said, before crossing over the door threshold and shutting the door behind her.

Neither Bebop or Avea uttered a single word, until they're hushed voices were concealed by the raucous noise of the underground laneways, "what could Cyrus possibly want with the gateway?" Avea asked unable to hide the rising panic in her voice. "He doesn't know what it is, only that there is something down there" Bebop said, "he probably thinks its excess machinery from the core council or the Genesis mission?" Bebop replied. Avea was no longer worried about being discreet, as her hurried footsteps overtook those blocking her path. She'd wasted too much time being baited by the rat, and how she was in a race with Cyrus Elrod to the gateway. She was trying to form a plan in her mind while moving past bodies, too distracted to notice the hunched body dressed in a long trench coat, the hem stained with oil and scorch marks standing in front of her. It was only when Avea's eyes snapped up did they meet Brigg's robotic lenses, "kid?" she saw the word form on his lips. "Oh no" Bebop screeched. "Briggs?!" Suddenly Avea turned forcing herself back into the crowd, but she could feel Brigg's massive frame advancing towards her, with intimidating force.

She pulled her hood further over her face and pushed past the bodies ignoring their curses. Brigg's huge frame towered over the crowd, and blocked the the main exit. Forcing Avea to find another way outta here. "Bebop eyes" Avea said too afraid to look behind her. "Angry grim reaper on our tail" her bot said, staring outwards directly at Briggs who wasn't as discreet about shoving individuals out of the way. Avea started to hear the startled cries around her.

"That's the grim reaper".

"Whats a reaper doin here?"

"Move I'm in the red."

"V Brigg's doesn't look happy". "Don't worry Bebop this is the underground, he can't do anything down here" a giant claw lurched towards her crashing into the nearby vendor stand. Screams unleashed around her as people frantically began clamoring for the nearest exits. Avea whirled around eyes wide with alarm to see Brigg's robotic arm retract the claw. "Or maybe he can" Avea said, breaking into a sprint, she no longer cared about blending in. Dropping low, she skidded across the ground, crawling frantically between people’s legs. A way out, she had to find a way out. Chaos erupted all around her, shouts, crashing bodies, and frantic footsteps, as the crowd scrambled to get out of Brigg's way.

The claw launched at her again, but she rolled out of its reach just in time. The Corpse-maker caught another unlucky bystander’s leg, dragging them down with a thud, along with two others who were caught in the fall. Without missing a beat, she leapt over the tangled bodies and vaulted atop vendor carts. One angry vendor shouted at her, "watch it scrounger!" Avea barely paused, quickly stuffing a few steamed buns into her pouch. Which only angered the vendor more, who cussed her out. Avea didn't pay attention, as the sounds of destruction grew louder; Brigg's was closing the distance between them.

"V the carts" Bebop exclaimed, sure enough, the transport carts were trundling above, suspended from rusted rail tracks that curved along the cavern ceiling and led toward the surface.“Good eyes,” Avea said, springing to her feet and sprinting toward the corroded iron pillars that supported the rail system like skeletal arms. High above, a cart clattered along the track, its metal frame rattling as it was about to make the incline upwards.

“WATCH OUT!” V shrieked.

Avea dove forward, the razor-sharp claw slicing through the space where her head had just been. She hit the ground hard, dirt and debris kicking up around her, but she didn’t stop. The cart was halfway up the track, her last chance to escape closing fast. She hauled herself upward, muscles burning with every movement, her limbs trembling as they strained to lift her toward the groaning cart above.

Avea snuck a quick glance behind and instantly regretted it. Brigg's was right there, his usual cool detachment had vanished, replaced by something far worse; pure, murderous rage. As he charged through the hysteric crowds, his eyes blazed with fury, as the Corpse Maker morphed back into the metal claw, snapping out from his arm like a predator scenting blood.

Crowds scattered, screams echoing through the underground, as his claw tore through vendor stalls and sent crates flying. Avea didn’t dare slow down, scurrying up the corroded pillar, her eyes locked onto that cart rolling along the tracks. "Bebop hold on" Avea cried out to her bot, who was clinging onto her back, buzzing with panic. Nearly at the top of the railway pillar, Avea grabbed hold of another crooked rung, her fingers slipping on the rust-flaked iron. The cart was nearly overhead now, gears groaning as it creaked along the track.

She had one shot.

She climbed, inch by agonizing inch, until she was suspended above the rail track, ready to drop into the speeding cart below. But just as she reached out, fingers brushing the edge of the rail, a cold, solid force clamped around her ankle, like steel jaws snapping shut.“Ahhh!” Avea screamed, clinging to the shaky railway pillar with every shred of strength she had left. Her fingers dug into rusted metal as she dared a glance down. The mechanical claw was locked tight around her ankle, its grip unrelenting. Below, Brigg's stood amid the chaos, jaw clenched, his expression a mask of fury, lenses flashing like warning lights.

"Kid, I swear, you best get on down from there ‘fore I gotta resort to some... unruly methods," Briggs yelled to her.The claw tugged harder and one of Avea's arms slipped, "Bebop don't let go!" she kept thrashing, trying to shake off the claw that had slithered around her ankle like a serpent tightening around its catch. "I swore to your mama I'd keep you safe and hell if I ain't gonna bleed to make good on that." Out of the corner of her eye she saw the cart making its descent towards her,"you also promised that you'd protect her" Avea said, her eyes pleading with the Grim Reaper. That made Briggs hesitate, just for a breath and Avea felt the claw’s grip around her ankle loosen. “You couldn’t keep your word to her back then,” she said, “but let me keep mine now.”

"Let me save her."

Confliction flashed over Brigg's face and Bebop took that moment of indecisiveness to slam into the claw, breaking its hold on Avea. The robotic arm retracted back into Briggs arm hold, and as the cart came speeding past Avea didn't hesitate throwing herself into it and taking off along the rickety tracks.She craned her neck over the edge and to see Briggs watching her from the ground his face completely devoid of emotion. Avea couldn't ignore the slight pang of guilt, as he begun to get smaller and smaller until the sight of him finally disappeared."I hope you have a plan" Bebop said. Avea plonked down in the rickety cart, opening her pouch and pulling out a slightly squishy steam bun. She took a bite out of it, savouring the taste of the charred chewy filling.

"Not yet, but I have until the end of this track to come up with one."