The patrons cheered aloud in unison, their eyes glued to a huge screen that took up most of the wall at the far end of the long interior.

Duke laughed as he joined in the cheering, lifted his pint glass, and took a big swig from it; he turned to look at Noa, who was sitting back with her boots up on the table as she sipped almost detachedly from everything around her,

“Hey, Noa! They scored!” He tapped the small round table between them.

She smiled and nodded curtly at him, then gave him a deflated “Yay” before she proceeded to empty her pint glass.

He frowned. “Fuck is wrong with you, Noa? It’s our district team!”

She got up from her chair. “I’ll tell you about it when I get back.” She then made her way to the bar, gently pushing against patrons while she made a tight channel toward the bar.

As she reached the counter, the svelte, silver platted skin bartender smiled at her. “More of the same hon?”

Noa smiled and nodded, her arms crossed under her as she leaned on the counter’s top. “And we’d like some shots, three each; you pick the poison?”

The bartender smiled warmly at her as she poured drinks into fresh pint glasses. “I’ll bring it personally.”

Noa smiled and winked at her, extending a hand toward the register at the bar, her HUD indicating the deduction of funds toward payment of the drinks,

Tip? A message flashed up under the payment total.

Noa smiled, nodding to herself as she added the tip to the payment and picked up the glasses.

The bartender smiled wide as she saw how much Noa had added to the total amount.

“Thank you, hon! Be sure to come back all the time, ya hear?”

Noa chuckled and nodded curtly at her before she turned around, only to be met by a huge man blocking her view and way.

“Hey, blud” The man smiled leerily at her, his eyes were the color of blood with small vertical slits in the middle, and his right arm was fully chromed, large steel plates in brass. His temples had a mix of steel-like lines arching out from his eyes to his ears and down his thick neck, with what seemed like dark-colored ink of a circle around a multi-colored rhombus on each temple.

She looked up at him, at his clothes, at his obvious arm chrome, and the telling ink on his temples, and thought to herself, ‘Great, Apostate fuck’

She looked up at him, her expression stone-faced. “Out of the way, big guy.”

He shook his head slowly. “I’ve been watching you, you and that sissy lil boyfriend you got in tow; I’m thinking you could do with some good celebrating after our win tonight.”

Her right eyebrow cocked up. “Him? He’s not my boyfriend, and no, I don’t have any reason to celebrate. Now get out of my way.”

Her eyes glared at him as they stood motionless before he smiled and turned to his side.

She nodded and started to walk past him when she felt his hand grabbing at her, to which she spun and smashed one of the pint glasses in her hand onto his face, spilling the beer all over him.

“Don’t start,” She hissed at him, just enough for him to hear.

He stood there and just glared back at her, wiping the beer from his face. “Oh, just you wait, blud.”

She shrugged, turned around, ignoring his tone, and returned to their table. She sat down and returned her boots to the top of the table while she took a sip of her drink.

“What? You only got the one?”

She nodded and looked in the direction where the minor altercation had just happened.

“I got us both one each, but some kerb Apostate made me spill it; got shots coming, though.”

“Well, alright! You da man!” He pointed both hands at her. “... or woman...” He shrugged when she frowned back at him.

“I don’t watch these things because they are designed to keep everyone in a state of ignorant bliss,” She suddenly blurted out.

“What? What are you saying?” Duke leaned in.

“You asked why I don’t care for those things.” She nodded at the screen, where a blue-haired commentator was reviewing the highlights of the game that had just played on the big screen.

“So I’m telling you why I don’t bother with watching them.” She sorely missed Anya; with her, she didn’t have to pull back on her ideas and words.

Duke frowned and shook his head, sighing out in exasperation. “Really? Damn, you are one weird lady Noa. Didn’t take you for some conspiracy-spinning lady.” he leaned back and grinned, his fingers tapping on the table before he got up.

“You know what, I’ll go get the drinks on me. That gig paid off very well!” He smiled as he started making his way through the crowd back to the bar.

Noa’s fingers tapped and moved on the pint glass in her hands, information scrolling on her HUD as she searched on Mira. Going through every still, her eye camera captured during the encounter, and every single one of them showed a blurred-out figure on the screen where Mira was supposed to be.

She sighed and cursed at the tech she knew was doing that, wishing in some ways it had never been invented when her mind responded to her that she was an avid user of the same tech, and so was Anya.

She rolled her eyes at herself just when the same large man from earlier plopped himself on Duke’s vacant chair.

“Hey, blud,” he grinned. Three other similarly built and chromed men walked up behind him, and her eyes noted their similar group affiliation.

Noa sighed and looked at him expressionless, her fingers waving aside to push the information she was going through away on her HUD. Her boots were still on the table, and the large-built Apostate leerily looked down at what he thought were her exposed thighs.

“Yes?” she didn’t try to hide the disgust in her tone.

He just smiled lecherously, his eyes going up and down Noa.

“I’m just wondering why you’re only wearing that trenchcoat and nothing else.”

She looked down at herself; the com-suit she was wearing was back in nude mode. Then she looked up at him and shrugged. She glared at the man opposite her as she leaned back, one hand moving down to caress her pistol in its holster as her eyes scanned the other three men behind him. Their IDs came up on her eye HUD, crime record, implants installed, registered or otherwise.

He chuckled and looked at one of them behind him. “Check it out. She’s checking you guys out too. I think she’s more than just a blud,” he said before turning back to her. “So how much for the four of us, toy? And we have two more if you want them to join in.”

Noa rolled her eyes. ' Oh boy,’ her mind wondered, and yet it gave her an idea. She needed to get rid of this cloud hovering over her since that encounter with Mira, and what better way than to take it out on some scummy Lowbies?

“Really? Where are they? I gotta see them.” She smiled, her demeanor perking up.

The big Apostate laughed out hard, slapping his thighs. He turned and signaled at the other two he had mentioned, motioning them to come over.

“This toy wants to take us all on!” He turned back to Noa, his face filled with amusement.

“So, how much then blud? We can go to our crib.”

Noa scanned the two, their information flashing up on her screen as she looked at him and shrugged.

“Why charge when it's going to be so much fun, right? How about right now? Outside?” She downed the remainder of her glass.

All the men laughed, and a couple of them high-fived each other as the one opposite Noa stood up.

“You got yourself a deal, blud.”

She smiled as she stood up and walked past him while he hungrily looked at her. As she walked past the wall they had made, she bumped her hip against one of them and pushed her way through some lively chatting patrons before she paused.

“You kerbs coming?” She smiled as she changed her suit to combat mode and pushed the door open before stepping out. She needed this in her almost two years as a merc and more than a decade of training; she had never been laid low like what had happened with Mira.

Her mind reasoned that it was because Mira belonged to a rare and very seldom seen breed of those in her line of work, a combat digger. Someone who can perform a dig or hack on the fly in the middle of a fight, which, to Noa, seemed like something out of a movie plot or a sci-fi story, perhaps even magical. Her revelry was broken when she felt water droplets start to land on her head.

‘Again?’ Noa sighed heavily and looked up before turning toward a parking lot she knew was to the side of their building. She scanned the gate to the lot and walked to the middle of it. The lot was filled with parked cars and vans on either side of her as she turned and saw them passing the gate.

“Be a dear and lock the gate, will you?” She purred softly and smiled, turning so that her side was facing them. Her hand moved down to undo her pistol from its catch in the holster.

The large Apostate grinned and stepped forward, to which Noa raised a hand toward him.

“Not so fast.”

He frowned, his face puzzled yet excited as she grinned, looking at his friends.

“Blud’s going to give a show,” he laughed as he stood where he was, arms crossing. “Go ahead, blud.”

She unfastened what buttons that held the trenchcoat on her and let it slide down her arms and body, showing off the com-suit she had on, now in its selected mode, while simultaneously pulling her pistol out of the holster and deftly aiming it at one of the Apostates before a loud report emitted from her pistol. The man’s head jerked back as the bullet entered and blew a hole at the side of his skull.

They stood frozen, shocked at the change in the mood. The lead Apostate blinked a few times before he seemed to jerk his hands to his side, his eyes turning red.

“Oh, so this is the kind of fun you want? Get her boys.”

Instead of running, Noa rushed forward low and slammed her baton into the groin of one of them before she spun and shot another. His body flipped back and slammed to the ground.

Another still rushed at her; a long, slender blade swung in her direction as he screamed out in anger. She side-stepped and rose behind him, the barrel of her pistol inches from the base of his neck before she fired another shot, which sent him hurling into the pavement of the lot.

A large warning sign flashed on her HUD, and she dodged eerily quickly to her side, a burst of rounds hitting where she stood before she spun and fired at the assailant, which sent him slamming back onto the ground.

The man she had struck earlier was on the ground on his knees, nursing at where she had hit him. The large Apostate that was now standing alone gawked at her in shock.

“How… how did you move so fuckin fast?” He shook his head, never having seen what he just saw.

She stood to the side of the man on the ground and smiled, the satisfaction she felt etched all over her expression.

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“You lowbies need to learn your place.” She sneered at him, darting a quick look at the man on the ground who was beside her now.

As she focused her gaze back on the lone standing Apostate, long and slim appendages slid out from behind her back and embedded themselves into the man on the ground. The man suddenly jerked his head back while his hands slumped down to the side.

Recharging Stimulants.

A small message flashed on her HUD as she stood and holstered her weapon, her baton still in her right hand.

“So, were you just going to stand there all night and watch?” She purred at him as she sighed, gritting her teeth, and leaned her head up slightly as the wave of new stimulants fed into her bloodstream.

Her neck and jaw tensed as she sighed deeply, a smile forming on her lips. She focused her attention back on the large man, who had taken out a large pipe-like object. His hand was as if pumping it up and down while he looked around, a slight hesitation in his movement.

Her brows frowned as she looked at him, somewhat puzzled he didn’t try anything while her stimulants were being recharged. She proceeded to replace the baton in her hand back onto her equipment belt and turned slightly so her side was facing him.

“Hey, kerb crawler, snap out of it.” The large man had already started slowly backing away toward the gate and almost tripped over one of his friends. He shook his head as he looked at Noa. Her suit’s camo option meant that her whole body was transparent, and he could see what was behind her. The water from the rain was the only reason that he could make out her body clearly as she turned to step closer, a dark blade in her right hand.

“Who in the fuck are you?”

“Me? Nice of you to ask; I’m Noa Essedar of House Essedar.” She stepped closer to him, and the side of her lip turned up in a smirk.

His face showed that he recognized the name as his back bumped into the still-locked gate.

“You’re from High Rise? What are High Rise bluds like you doing here?”

Noa smiled in reply, “So, are you just gonna use that… bat? Hammer?... Pipe? Or.. are you gonna at least try to hurt me with an actual weapon?” She nodded to a small automatic that lay on the side of one of the bodies. “Like that one... Go ahead; I won’t stop you.” She smiled while nodding slowly.

“Fuck that, you are fucking crazy!” his free hand moved up, tapping the side of his head on a small rectangular plate embedded just behind his ear, indicating he was making a call. Barely a moment passed before Noa was right next to him; the sharp sound of the blade hitting metal rang out as she sunk it into the same spot at the side of his head and dug in, eliciting a pained scream from him while she twisted the blade and then jerked it out to the side before she slammed her baton against his nose.

He grunted heavily as his stand wobbled, his large build falling back against the gate, his eyes blurry from being watered up from the smash on his nose. Blood poured out from the wound at the side of his head, cut-up wiring exposed under the flesh.

Noa stepped back, watching him while he stood, ready.

“No calls today, kerb,” she purred teasingly.

“You’re fuckin dead!!” He suddenly screamed out, his large, chromed arms swinging wildly as he charged blindly forward.

“Atta boy, lowbie,” Noa smirked as she side-stepped his onslaught, proceeding to slash her blade deep into the top side of his thigh just above the right knee, cutting deep to the side before she withdrew the blade.

His momentum carried him forward as his right leg gave way, sending him crashing into a parked vehicle. Before he could turn, Noa was already behind him and to his right, her blade plunging in several times before she stepped back, and the large man slid onto the ground, gurgling for air as his broken ribs and perforated lungs bled.

Noa turned him around and squatted in front of him. “What was it you wanted to do to me again?” she tilted her head as she looked at him, her tone cold.

He looked at her as he gasped; her face did not show remorse, pity, or fear.

She tilted her head back, letting the rain fall on her face while the com-suit changed into a matt black color, and nodded.

“I know why the rain keeps falling in Lowbie town. If it weren’t for the rain, you people would just make it smell and look even worse.” She wiped the blade against his neck before standing up and stepping back, making sure he couldn’t strike before she turned and headed back into the bar.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Why are you all wet? Did you go out for a stroll in the rain?” Duke seemed to fuss at her as she sat down on her chair again, noting the shot glasses and two more filled pint glasses on the table, with yet another in Duke’s hands.

She shrugged, “I wanted to feel how the rain is…” She bit her tongue, the rest of the sentence flowing in her mind, before she nodded curtly and smirked, “... Yea, it's pretty nice, the rain.”

Duke’s brows frowned, shaking his head as he slid three shot glasses to Noa’s side. “You are so freakin weird, Noa.”

“Are we gonna be getting more gigs like today?” Duke raised a shot glass and emptied it, followed by Noa.

“Probably; I’ll make sure to update you if anything comes by; good show on that last gig, by the way, Duke,” she smiled before taking another shot.

Duke chuckled. “Thanks, appreciate the compliment,” before he slammed back another shot.

“So, Noa, no last names? Just Noa? And how did you come to work in this sort of business?”

He leaned back now, sipping on his drink.

Noa shook her head. “Not gonna share any personal information with you, Duke, no offense, but we barely know each other. Don't start getting cozy now; I like your work; you don’t say much during a job, and you know your rigs well… but... Let’s keep it like this until I say so… okay?”

He raised his hands as if to signify acceptance, “Hey, whatever the boss lady says, I’m just trying to make conversation.”

“I like my post-gig drinks,” Noa paused, acutely feeling Anya’s absence, “but that doesn’t include post-gig conversations.”

Her left hand moved, calling up the data feeds of search parameters she had input when they had arrived earlier. As she scrolled the feedback, her right hand started texting Bug Bunny.

“So, any leads on your favorite legend?”

“None, which was expected. Although, I did find some unusual activity on the channels the Hyenas usually use.”

“Oh? And?”

“And, it's gone really quiet; the only chatter that frequently keeps coming up are signs indicating they are pulling back everything, including the assets they have in the other gangs. I do, however, have information on her from, say… 20ish years back. If history is your cup of joe?”

“Twenty years? Really? How does that help, Bun buns?”

“It helps in seeing who she was, maybe? And it's 20ish years. Plus, I need to redo my history digs. Apparently, what rumors of her aren’t entirely true; you’ll know more when you go through ‘em.”

“Ok, send ‘em over then.”

Data Received

“Got ‘em, thanks, Bun buns, you the best.”

“Heck, yea, I'm glad you keep telling me that because it's only the truth!”

Noa chuckled to herself as her eyes looked at Duke, who had struck up a conversation with a pink-haired female patron sitting at a table next to theirs, whose eyes kept darting back to her.

She leaned back, her hands moving as discreetly as she could, and went through the files that Bug Bunny had sent her.

There were rare images of Mira, countable on a single hand, looking slightly younger than she looked when Noa saw her, with significantly less chrome, as far as the photos showed. Mira was either barely seen to the side of a photo or only her side and back could be seen in each of them.

‘Mallifar and Essedar in Alliance of the Century’

The headline made Noa sit up straighter. In the images that followed, there was a younger Richard and a man who seemed to stand on equal stature with him, judging from their body language in some of the images.

Bug Bunny had circled in a couple of the images in the background, her face somewhat blurred due to focus. She was standing behind that other man, with a note scrawled over the circle - Mira.

‘Hmph... ' Noa read on, scrolling through other news linked to the one that piqued her curiosity immensely. She recognized the name; House Mallifar was Essedar’s biggest rival before the Wars of Rebirth, around twenty or so years ago. At least, that was how she remembered being taught by their tutor, who liked to tell stories that weren’t published in the books they used in their home school whenever she noticed Noa getting bored.

She tapped her communicator, and Bug Bunny’s icon appeared on her HUD.

“Yes, Noa?”

“What do you know of the Wars of Rebirth?”

“Oh, you mean the one where Essedar kicked every other noble house into submission? That one?”

“Yes, yes, that one.”

“Well, the gist of it: Essedar was trying to push for a reform that would have destroyed Mallifar’s sway over the quad cities and of the region, and Mallifar responded by using a combo of their underworld and corporate assets. The other major houses pitched in behind Essedar, and it escalated into a full-fledged war, with the smaller houses choosing their sides AND switching sides whenever it suited them… Why? What’s going on in that mind of yours?”

“Hmm, well… I dunno, just… I remember a different story.”

Bug Bunny chuckled on her end. “You think? Everyone was taught the official version, but the streets and people remember other stories that didn't make the news sheets.”

“So, what was Mira’s connection with Mallifar?”

“Ah, this was the part that I mentioned, where everyone got it wrong. The reason why she was in High-Rise then? Not because she was leading some Hyenas to help…” Her words hung in the air

“And? Don’t pause now!”

Bug Bunny chuckled slightly before she continued, “First, is this note to myself, which I will share with you. If you think you know, you don’t… Anyway… She was apparently the security head for all of House Mallifar’s interests within the quad cities and beyond. At least that’s the impression I got from the news, official and unofficial, including some dug info.”

Noa scoffed, “You’d think a digger like her would refuse to be seen in public.”

“Well, Yes, but if I remember correctly, at certain meetings, all key high-level personnel have to be present; too easy to have clone imaging otherwise, back when anti-clone imaging tech was still in its infancy.”

“Huh, really, now why didn’t I know that?” Noa felt her pride pricked.

“Because it's not your field of expertise, Noa, you can’t know EVERYTHING now, can you? Besides, I do know that you aren’t one for rules anyway,” Bug Bunny chuckled.

Noa scoffed yet smiled, nodding to herself. Her mind made a note to ask Richard more about this,

”Okay, I’ll go ask my connections on this, might be a good lead to look into.”

“Noa, High Rise is your field; ain't no way a poor lil pleb from lowbie town can even know how to maneuver there.”

“You aren’t poor Bun Buns.”

“Says the girl who has everything.”

Noa chuckled. “Fine fine. Okay, buzz me if anything comes up on the Hyenas, and for that matter, Brotherhood, and Apostates.”

“Apostates? They’re just a sideshow in all these.”

“Yea, still, one never knows.”

“Did you go and stir up trouble again?”

Noa’s reaction was immediate “No? Why’d you say that?”

Bug Bunny laughed on her end. “Damn Noa, I know you can be restless at times…. Okay, well, I am keeping tabs on all of them anyway; if anything comes up, I’ll be sure to let you know…. How’s Anya doing anyway?”

“Anya is doing well. She’s gonna be home soon, but right now, she is supposed to go through post-op drills and other good stuff to make sure her network is a hundred percent with the new circuits that were replaced.”

“Thank goodness for that; give my love to her, will ya?”

“Will do, Bun buns, and thanks.”

“Hey, we’re all in this together. Always a pleasure working with you, Noa.”

The line went dead. Leaving Noa with her thoughts.

She continued reading on, perusing through the rest of the information that Bug Bunny had sent her.

After a while, her hands waved to the side, and the layers of images and information on her HUD disappeared before she turned around, her eyes searching for Duke. She found that he had moved to the table next to theirs, saying something that made the pink-haired girl there laugh.

Her body still felt very much alive from the fresh use of the Stimulants earlier, and she looked around the place, still somewhat crowded with people. She needed to sleep, take a moment off this new knowledge, and then come back with a fresh mind. Yet she knew that sleep was far away, not because she wasn’t tired, but because she knew herself enough to know so.

The pink-haired girl was laughing again when Noa sat down on the side of the table. The girl went wide-eyed as she looked at Noa, then at Duke.

“Jess, meet Noa, Noa, Jess,” Duke enthused.

Noa smiled warmly, offering her hand to Jess. “Hey Jess, nice to meet you.”

“H..Hey.” She hesitated as she shook Noa’s hand.

“So… you guys decided where to fuck yet?’ Noa blurted out, making Jess giggle, her eyes wide as she grinned rather shyly at Duke.

“What the heck, Noa, some decorum, please,” Duke retorted, feigning insult.

Noa leaned forward in her seat. “Look, I know you guys wanna do it; I was just asking.” She looked at Duke, then at Jess, who still wore a look of surprise on her face.

“And why would you wanna know?” Duke’s arms crossed, his face wore a curious expression.

“Because I’m bored and restless, and I think Jess here… wouldn't mind if I joined… would you... Mind?” Noa purred softly at Jess, who was blushing red, and slowly shook her head.

“And you? Would you mind?” Noa turned to Duke, who was now wearing an equally shocked expression.

He looked at her, confusion on his face, curiosity in his eyes.

“Well… I… um…”

Noa clapped her hands on the table, then got up and smiled. “It's settled then; I know a nice hotel near the area,” she paused as she looked at the both of them, seeing them starting to get up but still hesitating.

“Well? We haven’t got all night; let’s go then.”

Duke looked at Jess, then at Noa, his face a mess of confusion and curiosity as he shrugged and got up, then turned to Noa.

“Listen, Noa…are you s…” He shook his head as he cut himself off; his mind tried and failed to comprehend what was going on.

Noa’s face looked concerned as she grasped Duke’s shoulder gently.

“What? You can tell me. We do our kind of work together. The least you can do is tell me.”

Duke looked at Noa and hesitated before he decided just to say, “Are you sure? I mean, heck, I would not say no to this, but… ya... Are you sure?”

Noa looked at Duke, confused; her face slowly changed to a deep red as her lips pursed together tight, as if she was fighting something, then finally busted out in a hearty laugh as she slapped Duke’s shoulder.

“Goddammit, too easy, Duke. Give a girl some chance to drag it out and enjoy herself more. Why don't you?’ She giggled, punched Duke’s shoulder lightly, and nodded.

“Yep, I'm sure, about not doing it with the two of you, nothing personal.” Her shoulders shook slightly as she continued to smile widely and giggled while her mind piped in, ‘Actually, it is very personal’ - “But you kids have fun now.”

She smiled and winked at Jess before she sat down again; her hands moved, which indicated to Duke that she was already perusing through something on her HUD.