Dogs were man’s best friend. It was a classic saying, and for a good reason. They were loyal, trusted companions. For many people dogs were the rock that kept them anchored.

Markus hadn’t owned a pet for close to 20 years, and he had missed the company.

But while dogs were honest, steadfast, and plenty of other noble traits, they were also entertaining, especially when they were trying, with mixed results, to walk through several feet of snow.

Noodle sulked to his left, struggling to wade through the snowbank that was taller than he was.

His coating of shadows made the process doable, but the dog didn’t look happy about it.

He kept shooting Markus dirty looks that had far too much intelligence in them. Maybe something to do with Margie‘s Class.

He chuckled, and the yellow slits that the Skill replaced his eyes with narrowed.

Markus turned his attention away from the dog and back toward their destination.

They were coming at the strip mall from a different direction again, but he’d held off on activating his Skill until now.

Margie had said her buff would last for 20 minutes. Markus had kept track of the time as they walked; they had 15 minutes left. Not a lot of time to get in and out, but they’d make it work.

“Alright, Noodle, let’s pick up the pace.” Markus started running as he activated his Skill. His heavy winter gear obscured the amber light, but his face still glowed slightly in the night. The only way he could have covered that was to wear ski goggles, but he couldn’t justify the loss of vision.

The glow was annoying, but it should be faint enough not to matter, and he could always let the Skill drop if needed.

Noodle shook his head slightly, the inky shadows covering his form rippling with the motion, and started pushing through the snow in earnest.

The city was quiet. There were no cars in the distance, no dogs barking from porches—just the crunch of his boots in the snow and the quieter slide of Noodle’s gait.

The sky was thick with clouds, only a few patches of aurora-colored light slipping through the canopy to guide their way.

Markus wished it was thicker. The darker the better when skulking about.

As his Meter started to fill, the cold receded. He could still tell it was cold, his breaths puffing in front of his face, but it didn’t seem to matter anymore.

Nature's Cloak was making a strong case to become his favorite Augment.

With the speed their Skills gave them, they reached the mall in no time flat. Markus pulled to a stop in the snow. He could see the strip mall to his right, but that wasn’t his target tonight.

The spot he picked was nestled about a dozen feet from the corner of the road in a thicket of trees, and it offered a good view of the place he’d staked out earlier.

He laid in the snow, his white coat and snow pants blending in with the blanket of white.

Since he hadn’t slotted Meter Bank, his Skill bottomed out in seconds, and a wave of exhaustion slammed into him. He took a deep breath as his vision wavered slightly. He wasn’t sure how many times he could take a hit like that before passing out, but it wouldn’t be many.

Noodle grunted and sat down in the shadow of a tree.

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Markus blinked. Even though he knew the dog was there, he could barely make him out.

He pursed his lips and nodded. “Good boy.”

He raised his binoculars and waited. It didn’t take long.

With the System’s description of Carson and Markus’s own instincts, he had a pretty good guess on where the man would be.

Assuming this gang was crafty, they’d look into where Markus had been hiding. Maybe even check security cameras to see if he’d been in the parking lot.

And if they had figured out the spot he’d been watching from…

Markus didn’t catch it on his first few passes, but he kept at it.

The thing about people like Carson, assuming that Markus’s hunch was correct, was that they were vindictive.

Some people who joined gangs were lonely, angry people looking for a sense of community. Or maybe the promise of money and a better life. Others were hungry. They wanted money and power and the perceived status.

And then some people just wanted to feel tough and shove others around. Carson was probably the latter, and small-minded thugs and bullies didn’t take getting shown up well.

So if Markus was a spiteful little rat, he would hunker down somewhere he might get the drop on any unsuspecting snoopers.

He found the man on his third pass, tucked away against a tree with just the side of his face peeking around the trunk.

Bingo.

The man wouldn’t be out here by himself. Markus kept looking, and found two more people. One was lying in the snow off to Carson’s left, and another was hiding in a tree.

Tree guy had range, then—either a Skill or a weapon. The System limited guns, but a crossbow would kill Markus just fine.

He identified the two newcomers.

Joshua Harding

Age 34

Primary bloodline: Korean

Nationality: American

Thresholds passed: 1

Background: Joshua is a rowdy man with a good sense for fashion and a hankering for a good fight.

Likes: cats

Dislikes: ravens

Ren Fisher

Age: 28

Primary Bloodline: English

Nationality: British?

Thresholds passed: 1

Background: Ren is a right go getter. The kind of chap who wants to impress his boss and be a team player. Fortunately for his bosses, he is far more concerned with doing a good job than he is with the legality or moral implications of the job.

Likes: golf

Dislikes: cats

Markus paused as he read the second man’s information.

“Why is there a question mark next to British?”

The System sighed. “His parents moved a lot. He has lived in so many places that he does not really consider himself a citizen of any of them, but he occasionally thinks of himself as British, which is more than the others.”

”Huh. We all struggle with identity I suppose. Just a little surprised to see it pop up in a System message.”

That brought the count to a definite four. These three and the woman he had identified earlier.

Markus slowly rose from his crouch and reached into his coat pocket. The trail cams weren’t amazing, but they’d do the job. He placed one in the thicket of trees Noodle was waiting in, positioning it so it had a view of the strip mall.

That done, he turned to the dog and jerked his chin toward the building.

Noodle nodded, and they started running. Markus didn’t use his Skill, not eager to take the energy hit if he didn’t have to. It took them a minute as they crept their way over, but Markus quickly set up another round of trail cams once they reached the other side.

After that he had a few cams left over, so he walked to the back and set a few more up, just in case.

That done, he turned to Noodle. “Let’s head back.” The dog nodded.

Markus paused and stared down at him. Noodle had done something like that earlier, and he’d overlooked it, but now… “Just how smart are you?”

The dog snorted, his shadowy coating rippling, then turned and started running.

Markus chuckled and shook his head. Then he raced after the dog.