“So uh… you know a whole lot about snakes… is this a snake thing or an Augment thing?” Hydramental asked as he looked over the skin.

“Um… Augment I think… But then again, I mostly know about their venom,” I said as I followed him. There was still a crowd looking on from the closed gate but they had quickly been joined by flashing police lights. It was almost comical how quickly they showed up after things had already been taken care of.

“Cool, at least that much I can follow. Though I guess it would be more common knowledge if there was a snake that was basically a slimy little worm phoenix.”

I knelt down by the skin, looking over the large shell and trying to piece things together. When I selected the husk, to my surprise another loot window opened containing 2 "Viper Skin" items. I highlighted it out of curiosity.

"Viper Skin. This is an Advanced Crafting Item. Adds +2 to Toughness and a 20% reduction to all Poisoned debuffs. This item can only be attached to leg, head, or torso items. Given you'd probably stab your eye out if you tried to sew, this item must be brought to a Tailor in order to be attached to a requested item. Once applied, this item cannot be reused."

I was surprised it came with two of the items, but I wasn't about to start complaining as I pulled the items into my B.E.L.T. I looked over at the gate and found that the crowd was still watching, so it seemed likely if one of them had been filming. The empty husk left me positive that Sal must have escaped somewhere, and it was possible that one of the onlookers had managed to catch it on film, even if it was just a direction he headed. I was just about to vocalize this thought when I noticed Hydramental as he hopped off the side of the train.

“Are you sure we shouldn’t keep in contact? Just in case?” I quickly called after him. He stopped, turning back to me with a cocky grin. Though the aggression he had been showing seemed to be gone, the smug look on his face made me almost want to just punch him.

“Look bud, you might have needed help taking these guys on, but I don’t plan on needing any help again. I’ve got a map, I’m going to train up and get stronger, and then take down this Sal asshole on my own,” he said. He was only a few steps away from the side of the destroyed train car, but he turned his back on me again, stretching for just a moment. “Now, even though I want to do it for the points, I don’t think I can rightfully claim this place. Even my P.A.I. is telling me that I'd get jack shit by trying to vocalize a claim in these conditions. But you know what, I’m gonna hunt this snake bastard down, on my own, and then my position will be undisputed and without having to be a part of some bullshit team. Because I’m the one who is gonna be the protector of this place.”

“To what fucking end?!” I barely stopped myself from shouting. Sure, it was probably clear to anyone watching that we were arguing, but the last thing we needed was for them to think we were about to get into an actual fight. I let out a long slow sigh, “Look dude, I don’t know why you think you’ve got to prove yourself but it took both of us to take this guy down, why the actual fuck are you being so stubborn? I’m not saying we need to be glued at the hips or anything but like, a little teamwork now and then isn’t the fucking end of the world.”

Hydramental turned on me and in that moment I was almost certain this was going to turn into a fight. His stare could cut through glass and every bit of perceived aggression I had felt from him so far was a drop in the bucket to the almost malevolent energy that seemed to be coming off of him. He walked back toward me and his voice lowered to a near growl.

“It. Is none. Of your fucking business. I told you I appreciated the assist, I’m big enough to admit that I didn’t do this on my own today. But I don’t owe you anything beyond that. I don’t owe you any fucking help in the future. As far as I’m concerned, we kept each other alive this time, that makes us even. Now, if you want to keep pushing me, then let’s fucking go, I don’t give a fuck if we are both Guardians, according to my P.A.I., as long as I don’t kill you, it won’t affect my team choice. So what’s it going to be? Are we gonna fucking fight? Cause if we aren't Loophole, then we’re fucking done here.”

I don’t even think I did it on purpose, but my hands had raised, palms facing outward as I felt myself instinctively wanting to take a step backwards.

“Sheesh, what’s got his panties in a bunch?”

“Not now, Angie!”

“Just, take a breath man, I’ve already had more than enough fighting for right now,” I said. Silence held between us for only a moment before Hydramental let out a derisive laugh.

“Then you are in the wrong fucking line of work,” he said as he turned his back on me and walked away.

I held my tongue this time, not seeing the point in drawing the argument out any further. It would have been nice if he could have toned it down given just how close in proximity our territories were to each other, but I wasn’t going to beg either. I watched as he marched off, stopping only to talk to Lt. Nester. I wasn’t necessarily expecting to see him there, but it made sense that he’d be among the cops answering this call. Hell, at this point it almost felt like Axio was playing puppet master.

None of the cops passed through the gate to actually enter into the yard and although I now felt off kilter, I still wanted to search the train cars a bit more thoroughly, especially if they were going to give me the space to do so.

First I headed into the snake room, moving to the refrigerated cabinet and looting the rest of the vials that had been stashed within it. When all was said and done, I had 31 vials of viper venom and 14 vials of anti-venom. I was just about to turn to head back for the map room when a thought occurred to me.

"I can loot anything that is game generated or has stats, right?"

"As long as it meets those parameters and you can lift it for at least a few seconds. I do believe there are some size restrictions, so don't expected to be putting a car in your B.E.L.T. anytime soon," she explained as I looked back at the cabinet. I walked over to it, tested it just slightly and found with my increased strength I could lift it up and off the ground. Just as I felt my grip begin to loosen, I pulled the item into my B.E.L.T. and watched as it vanished from in front of me.

"Well that's kinda cool," I said with a laugh.

"Was that a pun?"

"Um... yeah sorta?"

"And you question my taste in humor," she groaned.

I took one final look around the room, making a note to let the cops know about the vipers before I turned and headed back for the destroyed car.

I made my way back through the debris and into the room with the maps. Hydramental really had been focused too much on just the bigger details and while the maps were absolutely useful, I couldn’t get it out of my head that that wasn’t the only useful thing to be found.

The mission parameters were painfully unclear, and the idea that the reward could be variable indicated, at least to me, that the maps were simply the tip of the iceberg.

“How much are you allowed to tell me about these missions?” I wondered as I began to search through cabinets closest to the door.

“You know, I’m sure I’ve said this at least a few times already, but believe it or not, at my current level I am only given the information for enemies, loot, and all the other things you encounter as you discover it,” Angie explained. “And yes, that means all my wonderful descriptions are, for the most part, improvised, you’re welcome.”

“Great…”

I wasn’t exactly expecting that she would just have all the answers waiting for me to ask the right question, but it was still worth a shot.

Searching through the cabinets one by one was going to take far longer than I really had the patience for, and since I had recently leveled it up, I decided it was time to try out the newest skill in my arsenal. I moved toward the center of the car, trying to make sure as much of the space was within my local area as possible. I took a deep breath in and started to concentrate, activating my Area Sense. The ability almost should have been assaulting, with a barrage of new information suddenly becoming available to me, but like most of my powers so far, it felt disturbingly natural. It was practically like it was a natural extension of my senses.

I concentrated specifically on my search, and that helped me focus through the noise. For the most part, the cabinets lining the edges of the train were completely empty, but as I reached toward the furthest edges of my area, I felt something out of place in a cabinet near the back. Granted, it might have felt out of place because everything else was empty, but that did still make it out of place.

I deactivated my ability and wandered over toward it.

The cabinet was still pretty dusty all things considered, but there was a small fireproof safe lodged onto the bottom most shelf and noticeably less dust in the area directly around it. It took a bit of effort, but I managed to pry the box free. To my complete surprise, there was a sticky note attached to the back of the box and I stared at it in disbelief.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“New Achievement! Eyes Like a Hawk (Or Maybe an Owl?) Your keen eyesight has revealed a secret mission objective that was concealed from all but the most observant, or you know anyone who refuses to look in the cabinets. Whether you're a hawk, an owl, or just someone who spends too much time zooming in on screenshots, you've earned this. This is a Gold Level Achievement. Reward: Phase Points Gained! Bonus Mission Objective Found (NEW): Total Value: 250 points.”

“Is… is this actually the code? Did they literally break the one rule about NOT writing down a password?”

“Are you really going to complain?”

“I mean… yeah kind of, I’m not even a tech guy and even I know this is a big no-no,” I said as I set the whole box down onto the top of the cabinet. “Though I guess by video game logic it makes sense, the ones I’ve played don’t tend to hide passwords and shit that far away from where you need it.”

“You know, your video game knowledge is very inconsistent.”

I ignored her as I put the code, 1-0-0-2-2, into the front of the safe. It popped open, revealing a small notebook, an empty vial, and an overly ornate silver key. I added all of the items to my inventory and in response, my mission tracker shook violently on the side of my vision.

“MISSION UPDATED! Something’s Cookin’ in Hudson Yard. You came, you saw, you beat up a bunch of grunts and survived a giant snake man. That’s pretty impressive all things considered. But you weren’t done there, were you? Nope, you searched and you searched and you found the one thing those poor Vipers were hoping you wouldn’t find. Return to Lt. Nester to complete this Mission and receive your reward.”

“NEW MISSION! The Snake Key! Mission Type: Investigation. This key was designed with frighteningly perfect precision. It features a sleekly etched snake coiled up the shaft of the key and two small rubies inlaid into either side of the butt of the metal. Where does it go? What’s it for?! If you really thought I was going to tell you any of that by now I’d really be worried about your mental capabilities. This is an Investigation after all. Figure it out buddy. Reward: You will receive an S:Tier Loot Box. No, I didn’t misspeak. Yes, I am just as surprised as you are. I sure hope you get it.”

“Dare I ask if something else is hidden or should I take you at your word that I can go turn this in?”

“Would I lie to you?”

“Yes. Absolutely you would. You’d think it was hilarious,” I shot back quickly.

“Oh you know you’re starting to like it,” she laughed.

“I’m not encouraging you if that’s what you’re implying,” I briefly thumbed through the notebook and found that it was actually Sal’s journal, with the handwriting in a surprisingly neat cursive. Within it, there were pages of diagrams, with very little explanation for the numbers, times or random words scattered throughout. I pulled it into my B.E.L.T for the moment and moved on.

With that done I walked my way back through the debris of the destroyed train car. The crowd had noticeably started to disperse, with only a handful of civilians lingering as the officers in uniform waited. It had been as if they were waiting for me to fully clear the scene, as they entered the yard the moment I stepped through the gate.

Lt. Nester approached me with a hand extended and a wide grin on his face. “Well you certainly know how to clear a drug den. Though I’m gonna be up to my neck in paperwork over that destroyed train.”

“Heh, well to be fair, that was kind of the other guy’s fault,” I said with a shrug. While the Lieutenant hadn’t told me that he was in contact with multiple Augments, I was curious to see how he’d react to me referencing him all the same.

“Yeah, which is why we took most of the insurance requirements out of his reward. Can’t say he didn’t get the job done, but we also can’t abide wanton property destruction either, y’know?” Lt. Nester said with a shrug.

"Trust me I get that. I went ahead and cleared out the rest of the car over there. I managed to find this notebook from the guy who was running this place, I'm guessing you guys might want that?" I asked as I pulled the notebook back out and held it out to the officer. He grabbed it from me and thumbed through it briefly before handing it back.

"You go ahead and keep this for now, I don't think any of my guys are gonna want to be hunting down that creature," He said with a nervous laugh, looking over toward the destroyed train.“Now, seeing that you were able to shut down their whole operation here, the suits up top have authorized payment for your services. They never really explained to me how it all gets delivered but at this point I know you guys have your whole own system and to not question it.”

“MISSION COMPLETE! Something’s Cookin’ in Hudson Yard! Reward: You have received 3500 credits and a 10th Precinct Police Communicator. Bonus Reward: You have received an F:Tier Loot Box. This bonus was granted for finding the Secret Mission Objective.”

“Phase Points Gained! Mission Completed (NEW): Congrats, you completed a mission. These are a dime a dozen so don’t expect a lot of points but every one counts I suppose. Total Value: 50 points.”

On top of those two notifications, I also received a Level Up notification that I wouldn’t be able to handle until I returned back home.

“You should be getting an official communicator through your channels. You’re going to need to register your name into our system but once you do, you’ll be looped in on any police related activity happening near you,” he explained.

“Huh… I stopped some dude’s last night after getting an alert, how’s this different?” I asked. I probably should have asked Angie but it had slipped out before I could stop myself.

“Well as I’ve mentioned, we acknowledge you Augments have your channels. But just think of the communicator you’re receiving as an official channel through the 10th precinct. The more you help us, the better the rewards will be. Captain Peralta likes to incentivize you guys because it keeps us normal fellas from getting eaten alive by giant snakes, y’know?”

“Yeah, I suppose that makes sense, but like, why give it to me now and not before you sent me on this mission?”

Lt. Nester seemed to squirm for just a moment before he relaxed. “It’s uh, sorry it’s just protocol. We’ve had Augments in the past that pretended to be heroes just to get access to our gear, common protocol now requires you all to complete an active task for us before we set you up, even then the communicator you will receive will only have access to specific channels initially.”

“Huh,” Was all I could say. The logic didn’t exactly add up but that was more than likely due to Axio’s influence more than anything. I could try to push it, but the code scrawled onto the wall of The Common Ground flitted through my head. Whoever had written the code had made it a point to include a rule about not disabusing the Non-Sentients and it felt like pushing the subject could only lead the officer down an unproductive path. Instead of dwelling on it, I decided to just move on, remembering the last detail I had meant to give the Lieutenant. "Oh, by the way, the car that's easier to get in has a whole bunch of snakes caged up, they're all venomous too, I'd make sure your officers don't go sticking their hands in the cages."

“Good to know. Now how about you go on and clear out. My boys are working on booking the fellas that didn’t run off, but we still need to do a detailed run down of the scene. If we get any more reported sightings of the big guy we will pass them your way. Oh, and do me a favor, if you got a map of your neighborhood like Hydramental did and you do come across any more of these dens make sure you report them in, someone is always on the other end of that communicator and will make sure you are properly compensated for your services,” Nester explained before turning to the few officers that hadn’t entered the yard, “Well what are yah waitin’ for!”

I waved as they passed and then took off in the other direction in a light jog. I noticed as a few pedestrians pulled out phones, not so secretly taking pictures as I ran by them.

“Should I have told him about the key?”

“Why would you? It gave you a separate mission on its own.”

“I don’t know… just feels like withholding evidence sort of? Is that the right term?”

“Eh, I think you’re overthinking it a bit. Trust me, no normal cops would ever actually be dealing with these missions. If there’s an “important” piece of evidence, it was meant for you to find, not them. Why do you think the officer insisted you keep Sal's notebook?” Angie explained. “Though if something does have to be turned into someone specific, the mission parameters will list that.”

“Okay, that actually makes sense,” I said as I turned a corner and kept moving. It might have been a good idea to find a place to change back and blend back into the crowd, but even though I had told Hydramental I didn’t want to fight him, I still knew I needed to collect more points. “You know what would be really useful? A map upgrade for my interface, they have those right?”

“Yeah, but I think they might be a little pricey,” Angie responded.

“Hmmm, welI guess I could kill two birds with one stone. Get some more phase points, clear out a few of the dens on this map I collected and gather maybe enough credits to get a map upgrade,” I said as I finally turned down an alley just to take a break. I must have gone at least three blocks from the trainyard but it had barely felt like I had worked up a sweat. A thought crossed my mind as I materialized the Viper den map of Hell’s Kitchen into my hand. “Actually… depending on where these are I might be able to kill a third bird too.”

“That’s already three birds, you’d be killing a fourth if you tried that too,” She replied, clearly already aware of where I was going with it.

“Well you’re not wrong,” I briefly eyed the phone icon on the side of my screen and the briefest start of a plan formed into my head. Angie had gotten into very specific detail about the Secret Identity protocol, and I really needed someone I could talk to about my powers with. I set the map onto the top of a closed dumpster, scanning it until I found exactly what I was looking for. “There, this den is right near the diner, I think it’ll work perfectly.”