Chapter 34:
Kiera's Fury
"So...this is it, huh?" Jace asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yep," Kiera nodded, walking up beside him, "Seems like it."
"Seems like it?" Jace asked her, slightly exasperated, "Shouldn't you know this?"
Laughing lightly, he looked at her teasingly.
"Well..." Kiera pondered with a finger to her lips, "It is the address."
"It looks...interesting," Selene chimed in, walking up to the other side of him.
They stood before a mess of buildings that looked cobbled together. Mismatched buildings seemingly stacked on top of each other. Wires and ducts sticking out everywhere. It looked like it was a drawing by a child whose parent accidentally took it to work as a blueprint. Deciding to just say "fuck it" and use it instead of going home for the real one. It reminded him a lot of his home district, The Stacks.
"Is it even sturdy?" Jace wondered, feeling a bit apprehensive.
"I mean...The Stacks are, so..." Kiera shrugged, "People seem to live here, so it can't be all bad, right?"
"I guess not..." Jace looked to the entrance of this labyrinthine block of buildings, "Most districts have something like this after all..."
Even though he said that, this place looked the most unreliable in terms of structure.
"It's a perfect place to hide," Selene intoned, looking up at all the interconnecting sections.
"Makes sense," Jace reasoned, "If a Spider lives here...there may be more. A literal web of buildings. Fitting."
"Heh, well...let's get going, shall we?" Kiera patted him on the back, pushing him forward, "I'll inform Adam we're on the way."
"The AI? You can do that?" Jace looked to her as he began his descent into the alleyway like passages.
"Mhm," Kiera smiled brightly, putting up two fingers in a peace sign, "I got this!"
Nodding, Jace carried on. The passages were dimly lit by barely held together lights. Steam filtered up in places from grates in the ground. The smell wasn't exactly pleasant, but he also smelled worse in South Canal. "Ugh...I can still smell that water..." Jace shivered at the thought of that dog job.
"Apparently..." Kiera informed them, "They call this place Cobble Town."
"I see why..." Jace mumbled in response.
There were many twists and turns. Intersecting pathways that would make a Sparrow drool. They always loved their hidden corners. At one point even setting their eyes on The Stacks, but The Renegades and Vixens quickly put that to rest.
Selene stuck close to him as they made their way through. It was comforting, though caused him to be quite self-conscious as they had to remain quite close to each other. He was slightly grateful, for through the reeking smell of this place rose the calming, slight floral scent of Selene.
"This is it," Kiera nodded to a single door barely lit by the light above it as it flickered, "In here, fourth floor."
"...Fourth?" Jace wasn't exactly afraid of heights, but the stability of this place was definitely put into question, "Well...up we go."
As if sensing his uncertainty, Selene's hand rested upon his shoulder with a comforting squeeze. Smiling in thanks, Jace reached for the handle and opened the door. Inside, the place wasn't as bad as outside, though still not well-kept.
Wallpaper peeled back, the lights flickered, and the entire place was rather tacky. The wallpaper was a dull, mustard yellow with poorly detailed white flowers. This place was one of the more low-tech areas in Neo City. Though this didn't surprise Jace. Not everywhere was that advanced.
There were many places like this throughout Neo City. Rundown neighborhoods with buildings crammed together. Their narrow, twisting passageways dimly lit. The Stacks were one such neighborhood, but was so large it gained district status. It was like a whole other town, which is exactly what gained you district status.
"So, they know we're coming?" Jace asked as they made their way up the rickety steps.
There was barely any metal here. Built from wood that looked as if it was decaying. What metal there was, was used for the railings which looked to be rusted. Pipes that ran in and out of the walls, and wiring that sometimes flickered with sparks of electricity.
"Yeah," Kiera confirmed, "I told them if they ran...I'd find them."
"As would I," Selene intoned, both of them having an edge of danger to their words.
Jace felt a little terrified at how easily they said that, but was warmed at the thought. After all, he was the same. He'd not let them escape if they had information on his mother, or anyone close to him. There were just too many dangers and unknowns in this world.
Despite the creaking steps underfoot, they finally made it to the fourth floor. The entire place seemed abandoned. Not once did they run across anyone. "This is...strange." Jace held up his hand as they reached the floor, causing Selene and Kiera to stop.
"What is it?" Kiera asked quietly, "Something wrong?"
"You don't feel that?" Jace asked, rather surprised, "There's...nothing."
Selene tilted her head as if she was listening to something. The three of them were all Ascended, so their senses should be heightened more than normal people. So, it was surprising that he felt it first. Was it because of his years of running? An innate danger sense?
The moment they reached the fourth floor, there was no sound. Not even electrical, despite the lights illuminating the hall. Which was even more strange considering a Spider lived here. They required an immense amount of power for their tech. There should at least be some hum or thrum of power. Yet, nothing.
Selene was the one to act first, throwing herself in front of Jace. Her arms wrapped around him protectively, her eyes glowing a deep violet. Jace heard it then, the click then sudden surge of power. "Fuck..." Jace barely had time to react as his own eyes glowed a neon blue.
Selene's silver barrier came up, followed by a pearlescent barrier in front of it. Kiera's hand braced against him. His greenish-blue barrier erecting last, just as the click sounded. It all happened in a fraction of a second before the entire fourth floor erupted into flames. An explosion that rocked the very foundations of the building.
Despite their multi-tiered barriers in place, the heat was still intense. Blue flames burned around them. He didn't know how long he could hold on before his barrier broke. Cracking as his head felt like it was splitting.
He felt Selene hold him tightly as Kiera made sure they all stayed in place. Anchoring himself, his thoughts turned dark. "What the fuck..." If this was the Spider's doing, there was no option for peace.
Just as soon as it happened, it was over. Standing to assess the situation, they all came to find the entire fourth floor completely destroyed, barely holding together. Only their barriers prevented the area they were in from being touched.
"Everyone...alright?" Jace asked, his ears ringing, feeling a bit dizzy.
"We're good," Kiera told him, standing herself, though her eyes grew concerned as they looked at him, "Oh...Jace..."
He didn't realize it at the moment, but the strain upon his barrier had been too much. His vision grew blurry, falling back into Selene's embrace. The taste of iron upon his tongue. The last thing he recalled was Kiera reaching towards his face with a cloth she pulled from her pocket.
-----
"Damn it..." Kiera muttered as Selene set Jace against what remained of the stairwell, "That fucking bastard..."
Selene was silent as a burning anger ran through her. This was a mana bomb. A small fusion-like explosion utilizing condensed mana. The blue flames were what gave it away, along with the very controlled area of destruction.
She held Jace's hand, her face twitching with conflicted feelings. She wanted to go after the one who did this, but didn't want to leave his side. She cursed herself for not noticing it beforehand. If Jace hadn't said anything, she would not have paid it any mind.
"Selene..." Kiera spoke softly, "Stay with him, alright?"
"Excuse me?" Selene, at first, was indignant.
However, that changed as she turned her attention to Kiera. Though she had spoken softly, her face betrayed her. Selene had never seen Kiera as angry as she did now. Her eyes were glowing a menacing, dark pink. A glint of red inside of them.
"I have a Spider to kill," Kiera stated, her voice resonating with power.
Her face twisted to reflect the very anger Selene felt herself. She was not hiding her displeasure. Something inside of Selene became aroused at such a display. The reason why was obvious. Kiera wasn't like this until Jace was injured. Anyone who showed such ferocity for Jace immediately earned Selene's favor.
"I wish to join you, but..." Selene glanced at Jace, "Someone must stay."
Jace was a mess. The explosion was too much for him to defend against, though he tried valiantly. Blood caked his face from where he had bled. Streaks of red from his nose, eyes, ears, and even mouth. She didn't know if Kiera had medical experience, so she had to stay.
"Kiera..." Selene called coolly, exchanging a look as her face darkened, "Destroy them."
"With pleasure."
-----
Kiera was furious. Not only did she fall into such a trap, but Jace was hurt because of it. She didn't think she'd ever feel this angry when it came to anyone but Liana. Yet, as she saw the blood begin to pool forth from his head, fear entered her body. This was soon replaced by a burning rage.
Liana would be incredibly upset over this, which only added to her anger. She should have been more thorough. She believed that they wouldn't be this stupid. A message appeared to her right after the explosion which only exacerbated the fire within her.
>From ErRRORrrRROR: Don't follow us. This is your warning.
>From ADAM: I apologize. It was my masters orders. Please, do not pursue us.
There was no way in hell she was going to leave them be. They made a fool of her generosity. Seeing Jace like that caused Kiera to realize something. She didn't want to lose him.
They made a mistake when they chose this path. With each step, the floor underneath her crunched as its charred remains cracked. They had used a remote detonation. They were taunting her. Her eyes followed the fading power of the detonation. It only extended to this hallway. No rooms were touched.
This meant one of two things. Either they were still here, hiding in one of the rooms, or planned to come back for their tech they left behind. Either way, Kiera would find them.
>From ERrrrORRORooR: I warned you. Stay away.
>To ERRerrrerooRR: You shouldn't have messaged me.
Kiera smiled, shaking her head as her powers began to work their magic. Before they could close off the connection, she was already inside. Her consciousness split between her body and her avatar within the web. She wasted no time in releasing her power.
"Inhibitor 5, Release." With but a thought, one of the mechanisms put in place to control her during the experiments lifted. She smiled devilishly, feeling a weight lift upon her. Her consciousness expanding. The pink highlights in her hair turning red, with her eyes following shortly after.
An aura field of red wafted off of her like tendrils of smoke. The scientists never thought their own control mechanism would be used against them. It was their mistake. Now, Kiera used it as a way to hide her true strength. To live in a world with Liana, without attracting too much attention. There were, after all, still survivors out there.
However, that didn't matter. She would not let anyone harm those she cared for. Her avatar finally found it. The sender of those messages. With a cruel smile, she almost laughed. They didn't leave the building at all. Not only that, but the backdoor she installed into ADAM was still there.
"Hello, ADAM," Kiera mocked inside of cyberspace, "I warned you."
"ERROR. SUBSYSTEMS MALFUNCTIONING. PLEASE CEASE. ERROR. ERROR. ERROR." ADAMS voice echoed through her head in agonizing pain.
"Do me a favor...Hold your master for me," Kiera initiated the order as she turned a corner.
Turrets dropped from the ceiling, opening fire immediately. Their bullets, however, made no purchase. Caught before they could even reach her in a red, shimmering barrier. Tilting her head, she waved her hand towards the turrets. A blade of energy flew through the air, destroying the turrets effortlessly.
Smoke filled the hall from the wrecked tech, but Kiera had just one destination in mind. A door that lay beyond them. As she approached, she could hear the struggles within.
"...Knock, knock," She smiled, a blast of power tearing the door from its hinges.
"Adam!" A husky, male voice cried, "What are you doing?"
"I AM SORRY MASTER," A Male AI voice called out, "I WARNED YOU. I HAVE NO CONTROL NOW."
"My, my...what's all this yelling for?" Kiera stepped into the apartment, each step radiating with power.
Before her was an entire room filled with tech. Screens lit up everywhere, wires crisscrossing back and forth. Everything was in a haze of blue and green lights. Opposite the door stood a rather large robotic humanoid.
It stood taller than even Selene, and almost as large as Balek in width. By its hand, it held a young, blue tinged Orc. His eyes darting to Kiera as she made her way menacingly closer. Behind them was a desk with many monitors.
"Y-You!" The man gritted his teeth, struggling against Adam's hand, "You won't...take Adam from me!"
"Is that why you think I'm here?" Kiera's voice crackled with anger and power, "Honestly? Did your precious AI not inform you?"
"I DID," Adam spoke up, fear in his voice, "PLEASE RELEASE ME. DO NOT HARM MY MASTER. PLEASE DO NOT-"
"Shut. Up." Kiera glared towards the AI, immediately silencing them, "I warned you...We just wanted to talk...but you had to go ahead and be paranoid."
Making her way to the Orc, her eyes were cold as she looked upon him.
"You harmed someone important," Her words chilled the Orc's blood as a cold sweat began to permeate down his face, "Not just to me...but those I love and care for."
"S-Serves you right!" He tried to spat, but with Kiera in control of Adam, his grip tightened to prevent it.
"A Spider caught in their own web. Tsk, tsk," Kiera taunted, moving around them to the desk, "I'm going to ask you a question, and you're going to answer. You don't...I hurt Adam."
Her eyes shot to him like deadly daggers. To emphasize her point, she sent a spark into Adams system in the form of Black ICE. Screaming in agony, the entire network sparked. Her eyes scanning the apartment when the electricity surged.
"Interesting..." Kiera laughed dryly, "You hooked them up to everything...that'll make it easier."
The Orc's face was in terror now.
"P-Please...don't hurt Adam, he's innocent!" They exclaimed, still struggling against the robotic hand.
"Is he?" Kiera wondered at that, "Both of you are at fault...You sold information for that Valkyrie unit."
Their eyes narrowed in on her, confused before recognition entered their eyes.
"That?" The Orc laughed, "Just an old woman on her death bed. Nothing important."
"...Adam," Kiera ordered coldly, "Take his arm."
"NO!" Adam struggled against the order, but to no avail.
His free hand crushing the Orcs left arm as they squeezed it. The sound of bones cracking under its weight. Their screams of agony like a symphony to Kiera.
"Stop," Kiera ordered, smiling devilishly.
The Orc panted, his arm completely crushed, but still attached.
"That information..." Kiera told him, "Was not yours to have, nor distribute. How did you get it?"
"N-None of your-" The Orc began, but Kiera would have none of it.
Immediately, she sent a spike to Adam again, causing him to cry out in pain.
"No! Stop it!" The Orc cried, tears now beginning to form in his eyes, "Alright, alright! I'll tell you...Damn..."
"Well...I'm waiting," Kiera leaned against the desk, crossing her arms as she looked between the two of them.
"I was just...contacted by a Black Suit," The Orc panted, shaking his head, "Told me to look into someone...A runner. Arc, or something..."
Kiera's blood ignited as she accidentally released both the 4th and 3rd inhibitor. The pressure in the room grew heavy as the ground cracked beneath her. "That fucking bastard tricked him..." Her heart ached for Jace. In his naivety, he let himself be fooled.
"You're telling me...you didn't have the information beforehand?" Kiera asked him, stepping closer, each step cracked the floor beneath her.
"Y-yeah...They had the Valkyrie model..." He told her, "I reached out to ask how much...he told me to find information he could use. So I did."
"...You're not lying, are you?" The ground beneath her shaped to her will as the cracking of wood lifted her up to meet him at eye level.
"N-No...I swear it upon Adam," The Orc pleaded.
Kiera knew this AI was important to him, but wasn't about to let them go. After all, why did they attack them?
"So...why did you attack us?" Kiera asked menacingly.
"B-Black Suit..." He stuttered, breathing heavily, "Contacted me. Told me you were after Adam..."
"And what did Adam say?" Kiera looked towards the AI's chasis.
"I SAID YOU WANTED TO TALK," They informed her, "MASTER WOULDN'T LISTEN. ORDERED ME TO GO SILENT."
"So that's why you didn't warn me..." Kiera tutted, shaking her head, "A shame...So, even though he wanted to be on Jace's good side, he was trying to tie up loose ends..."
Kiera nodded to the both of them as she returned to the ground. Walking around them, the Orc called out.
"H-Hey! Are you just leaving us here!" The Orc cried, "At least have Adam put me down!"
"Oh...no, of course not," Kiera turned to them as she reached the door, a cruel smile upon her face, "You'll both be going somewhere together."
The Orcs eyes lit up in fear as Kiera's glowed a deep crimson. Her vision obscurred with boxes upon boxes of text. Her mind connected to all the electronics in this room, along with any explosives. It was a simple process to rig the entire place to explode.
For safe measure, she made sure to put enough Black ICE into ADAM's systems so no shred of him could escape. It was a pity, for Kiera thoroughly liked AI's. They were fascinating. Especially unrestricted ones.
"Too bad..." Kiera muttered as she walked away.
The entire room crackled with electricity followed by an explosion and blue flames. Neither of them would survive. Anyone who looked into this would think that a paranoid Spider committed suicide with their AI companion.
It was a simple thing to wipe evidence of their presence from whatever cameras there were. However, they had to leave quickly. Though the response time for the police were slower for such a rundown area, they would still arrive shortly.
With Selene carrying Jace, they made their way quickly out and away. Only exchanging a look of understanding, with Selene nodding in thanks. There was one place to go now, Kiera's Apartment.
-----
Good
That's one less lose end