The boy had been living a life of luxury since working for Rutan Kaarzee. Cain had managed to bag himself a three bedroom house, big enough for them to live in comfort. Not, as she had first suspected, on the streets.

How had he managed to get through the identity checks?

There was, of course, the possibility he'd told Rutan about his past. She hoped not, he had already broken enough of their rules. On the other hand, revealing his cybernetics, on a human at that, would always be a talking point. Maybe Rutan didn't care where Cain came from. As long as he could make good use of him.

Vixen had followed Cain home and watched through the window. His sister was in there. Vixen's heart sank. Di'jon wanted her to kill him. She wasn't ready to do it just yet.

She needed to gather intel first. At least, that's what she told herself. Maybe she was stalling. The time would come when she would need to make a decision. For as long as she could justify her actions, she would take all the time she needed to figure it out.

She spent her night up a tree in their back garden. Her body clock was well-tuned and she woke frequently throughout the night.

The orange shine of Displincia's sun pierced through the darkness. Vixen's eyes shot open. There was motion from within the house. Instinct told her to move.

Cold morning air whipped against her scaly face. An icicle jolt shot through her spine. She dropped out of the tree and angled herself in a place where she could see the front door. A few moments passed by as she remained still and invisible.

Cain emerged from the house wearing the same green leather jacket he always liked to wear during their practice sessions. She'd jibed him about it plenty of times. Even accredited it for the reason she kicked his ass. It was too tight. You need the freedom to move when you're in combat.

Once he reached the bottom of the street, she made her way after him. Each step he took, she made sure to be twenty behind. Every corner he turned, she gave herself a moment before she followed. They turned into a damp alleyway. The thick smell of urine and smoke lined the air. Vixen winced as she stepped through a puddle of water. It could have been rain or it could have been something more disgusting. She didn't want to think about it.

This was the closest she had been to him since the day he betrayed them. He was the most promising student she'd ever had and look at him now. Nothing but Rutan Kaarzee's little puppet. She had been the one to draw him out of the gutter. If it wasn't for her, he would be dead. He owed a debt to her he could never repay and yet still that wasn't enough.

"Cain," she cried.

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She regretted it the moment she said it.

He stopped in his tracks. She could hurry away now. Maybe he would think her voice was a figment of his imagination.

No. She needed answers.

He turned and his face dropped.

"I'm not here to hurt you," she said and she meant it too. "We need to talk."

He dashed off. His cybernetic feet could carry him quite the distance but she had the advantage of experience. She ran up the wall and launched herself into a flip then landed in front of him.

"Stay away, Vixen," he replied. "I don't want to have to kill you."

She smirked.

"I miss that cocksure attitude," she replied.

"Here to bring me in?"

"In a fashion," she said. "You know what you did was wrong, don't you?"

Cain shook his head. "I don't take orders from you."

She opened her mouth to say something when a metallic screech rang from up ahead. They both looked to the sky as something crashed through the atmosphere. An explosion in the distance sent a shockwave which picked her up off her feet and threw her across the floor. Cain steadied himself with his cybernetic feet. He looked in her direction and, before she could stop him, he ran up the wall.

She pushed herself up as another explosion boomed in the city. She followed him onto the rooftop. "There's nowhere else to go, Cain!"

He didn't stop this time. They jumped from one rooftop to the next. The black dome-like spaceships dropped bombs onto the city in the distance. Squeals of terror like animals at a slaughterhouse, ricocheted through the air.

The destruction was worse than anything Vixen had ever witnessed. She'd never seen those ships before. How would Di'jon react if he could see this? Would their priorities shift?

She didn't have the authority to make that decision. She was sent with a clear mission statement. If she didn't fulfil it, she could be in trouble with Di'jon as well.

Cain dropped to the street below. Vixen followed, hot on his tail. Another shockwave. She staggered into a wall. He ran up the street and off into the distance. A wail of terror caught her attention.

"My baby! My baby is in there!" screamed a Vaxorian lady with shining orange fins. Tears caught in the back of her throat. One of the bombs had caused a blast to spread fire into the houses on the street. This lady must have run outside without thinking.

Vixen looked at the tracker on her wrist device and sighed. Then she turned on her heel and ran over to the distressed bystander.

"I need you to think straight, darling," she said in a calm voice. "What room is your baby in?"

"She was sleeping in her room on the top floor," sobbed the Vaxorian lady. With this information in mind, Vixen launched herself at the building.

Fire whipped up around her. Sweat formed on her forehead. She pulled up her cloak to cover her mouth as she rolled in through the smoke. Another crash made the room tremble.

She pulled back as debris clattered down in front of her. The Vaxorian baby wailed at the top of its lungs. She could hear it coming from the other room. Vixen ignored the blistering heat that washed over her as she ran through the door and into the hallway. The baby's cry grew as she drew nearer. She used her training to remain calm as she kicked her way into the room and scooped the child up from her cot.

Vixen coughed through the smoke and hurried back the way she came. She smashed another window with her gnarled feet then leapt to the floor.

The Vaxorian lady burst into tears as she retrieved her baby from Vixen. She didn't have time to stay. Another set of bombs spiralled through the sky in the distance. She looked down at the tracker she had placed on Cain. It had blinked off. If she was going to find him, she was going to need to do it through other means.

She closed down her wrist device and ran back in the direction of Cain's house.