One skyscraper in Lyrsium towers above the rest where grandiose letters mingle with the clouds, ‘Aegis Industries’. Atop this behemoth resided an extravagant conference room with beautiful, hand-crafted woodwork. Over a dozen individuals sat around an immense table. Some were physically present, while others were holographic projections. At the head sat a man who looked in his fifties. Everything about him appeared pristine. He wore a perfect-fitting tailored suit. He had well-groomed, short, feathered auburn hair without a single strand out of place, and a clean-cut beard following his jawline. His faded blue steely gaze observed the others bickering amongst themselves.

“This is utter nonsense,” bellowed a man.

“Who cares about some bottom-feeder’s brains blown out?” snarled a woman.

“The ‘bottom-feeder’ was wearing an Aegis suit. Our Aegis suit,” chided another.

“This’ a disaster.”

“Do we really even know this information is factual?”

“How’s this even possible? It’d be one thing if it was without a suit, but with?”

“Maybe it’s just a hoax by BioMach to tank our stock?”

“Fool, what do they have to gain? It’d hurt everyone, especially our competitors, not only Aegis.”

“It’s unprecedented.”

“No shit, sherlock. This might be the first ranged death to a suit-wearer that had their helmet up.”

“What’re we gonna do? What if some news outlet tries to push it out to the public?”

“Would you listen to yourselves? It’s embarrassing to hear department heads, board members and branch presidents ramble like scared children! We have President and CEO Weihelm. Humanity’s ‘Aegis’!” a man said. He gestured to the man at the head of the table.

“I’m telling you, BioMach ain’t got the resources to pull this shit off while keeping it under-wraps. I bet it’s those Argonix fucks.”

“Again, this doesn’t benefit our competitors, either. How about you two rub more than one brain cell together?”

“Shut your—”

“Cease,” Weihelm said. His stern, clear tone rang throughout. All other speech stopped in abrupt fashion and they turned toward him. “Artemis.”

A woman who sat nearby stood up. She wore a white chic blouse with slim black pants, appeared in her early forties and, like Weihelm, seemed as if she had meticulously placed every hair. She had medium-length blond hair with white streaks that framed her sharp-featured face. The vibrant green of her eyes stood in stark contrast to the chilly demeanor she exuded.

“Yes, President Weihelm,” Artemis said. A few of the others grumbled under their breath. She looked at the center of the table. “Esteemed board members, I request you desist with any further discussion. Please, hold further questions until I am finished.”

“Do not interrupt,” Weihelm said.

“We have word of preliminary findings.”

Artemis tapped at a watch-like device around her wrist. The room’s lights dimmed and a photo-realistic projection of the Praetor appeared above the table. Within only her vision, her IRIS HUD showed a virtual keyboard at her lower peripheral along with various GUI elements in augmented reality. A miniature model of the same Praetor projection also displayed in her IRIS. The large projection reoriented in response to her hand movements manipulating the smaller, as well as some taps on the keyboard.

“We instructed they were not to perform any intrusive investigation. Despite its additional aesthetics applied, they provided a serial number. This confirmed authenticity of the suit. It is an Aegis. They could not observe any modifications to the suit itself without a dismantling. Therefore, until we conduct our own autopsy, we will move forward with the assumption it has not been altered. As you can observe, a projectile of unknown origin pierced a current generation Aegis suit. Its firing apparatus remains unknown.” The projection moved about to illustrate the hole from front-to-back of the Praetor’s head.

“Furthermore, it subsequently penetrated the skin, skull and exited the other side with extraordinary damage inflicted. By all accounts, this was a singular bullet fired. There is currently no evidence of any further incidents at this time. Nothing has been found of a perpetrator. Our own teams have been dispatched to take over the location. Furthermore, they’ve taken possession of the body by now. Rest assured, we shall exhaust our resources to their fullest with this investigation.” Weihelm tapped his fingers twice on the table.

“Esteemed board members,” Artemis announced. “Out of respect for your positions, we have informed you of the current situation, and determined your continued participation to be unnecessary at this time. You are all hereby placed under strict orders to await additional information while maintaining silence on all that you have learned. To be absolutely clear, so there is no room for interpretation - you will be terminated should you fail to comply with this mandate. We will provide updates as we deem necessary. You are excused.”

The Praetor disappeared as light again filled the room. Board members scoffed and grumbled as projections disappeared while the others exited the room without contest. Weihelm’s unflinching gaze ensured none even glanced in his direction. When the last left, he stood, then proceeded to the nearest window overlooking Lyrsium. Artemis remained preoccupied for a time, typing in the air, which reflected on the keyboard in her IRIS.

“Viktor, are you sure it was wise to dismiss the board entirely?” Artemis tapped away.

“You well know half of them are useless sycophants,” Viktor said. “They behaved as expected, scared schoolchildren unaccustomed to crisis. The few that didn’t behave like spoiled brats aren’t worth the fat of the rest. I’m sure I need not say more.”

“Of course.”

“Artemis. Is there any possibility of this being an elaborate hoax or fraud of some kind?”

“No.”

Viktor sighed. “My apologies for such a moment of weakness. As ever, your candor is a tonic.”

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“Accepted.”

“Thank you. Despite my best efforts, perhaps I, too, have dulled from complacency. You don’t last as long as I have without the occasional stormy seas. Even though I foresaw the possibility of such a day, I’d grown sure the wind would warn me. It’s undeniable I’ve been consumed with Project Avalon. Did I miss something? How is it that Aegis’ flagship is now threatened by a wholly unknown force, Artemis?”

“I lack sufficient data to comment at this time.”

Viktor chuckled. “I expected that, yet asked anyway. Only twenty or so years have passed since we changed the world overnight.” Artemis gripped her wrist so much so that her hand trembled. “It is our responsibility to ensure the stability of that change. Our stewardship must be uncompromising. On the cusp of Project Avalon’s unveiling, we mustn’t falter.”

“Agreed.”

“You understand. Appreciated. Aegis Industries is at your disposal.” Viktor stared intensely at the city below. “I will smother any private concerns should they arise. I trust you with the rest, Artemis.”

“Of course, Viktor.” Artemis moved to exit the room.

“Do not forget, Aegis’ legacy is at stake. Project Avalon is so close to revolutionizing us again.” Viktor reached out an open palm toward the city while Artemis left. My legacy. His hand closed into a fist.

The moment the door to the conference room closed as Artemis entered a hall, a man appeared, trailing a step behind her. Unlike Artemis, he had a disheveled appearance. His clothes were simple, loose, and unassuming, obscuring his build. He slouched, had unkempt shaggy brown hair, a thin beard, and dull brown eyes. They walked without a word. The hall matched the extravagant conference room. They soon reached an office with immense wooden double doors. An empty secretary’s desk sat to the side where a nameplate read ‘John Tolra’. The man opened the doors with such haste that Artemis’ stride continued unabated inward. The extravagance of the office would rival a palace. Atop a grand desk sat an engraved plaque ‘Artemis Vigard | Chief Operations Officer | Vice-President’. As the doors closed, she let out an exhaustive sigh. Then, the moment the man turned to her, his entire demeanor changed. His posture straightened as he strode to a cabinet. His movements were sharp, militaristic.

“It went as expected,” Artemis said. She lowered herself into an exquisite chair. “Both the pitiable behavior of the board and his smoldering rage beneath.”

The corner of Artemis’ lips upturned ever so slightly as she raised her hand. In almost the same moment, the man slid a glass half-filled with a pristine clear liquor into her grip. She sipped at it while he moved into a kneeling stance a few steps away. She looked to shelves lined with awards and plaques. Her gaze grew increasingly distant as it drifted to a digital picture frame at the heart of the shelves. A young boy wearing an oversized lab coat exuded a profound glee while presenting a peculiar object to a young blond girl with green eyes.

“‘Legacy,’” Artemis whispered with a light guttural growl. What a farce. Finally, Aleksandr. His suffering will finally begin. She closed her eyes and took a swig. Then she looked to her side and sighed.

“Aelfric, how many times must I tell you to stop that when here?” Artemis snapped her fingers at a chair opposite her. “It’s been how many years?”

“My apologies, Lady Artemis.” Aelfric sat upright in the chair as instructed.

“Have the council ended their meeting yet?”

“Yes. They again requested I pass on their expressed remorse for not notifying us sooner. They failed to hide their clear contempt, however.”

“They long for the days when they only answered to themselves. How have they responded to our competitor’s requests?”

“They claimed to have rebuked them.”

“Expected. They’ve likely shared everything by now, then. Anything else of note?”

“Their duel system has been suspended.”

“It’s unexpected they could reach that conclusion so soon.”

“Is this an issue?”

“No. Merely expected the chaos to result in more disarray. Such a unilateral decision is likely to cause a great deal of discord in their ranks. I thought they would only suspend after the next.”

“Does this impact our timeline, Lady Artemis?”

“Perhaps.”

“They also requested we allow them to participate in the eventual manhunt.”

“Is that so? I suppose they haven’t obtained their positions by behaving like Aegis’ board to crisis. I admit to some curiosity about how they’ll handle the morning.”

“Have you decided then, Lady Artemis?”

“Yes. Proceed with Foxtrot.” Artemis glanced to her window. The peaks of other corporate skyscrapers poked into the horizon. “Alpha-G.”

“Understood.” Aelfric stood.

“I’m sure I need not say more?”

“No, Lady Artemis. I’ve ensured the preparations.” Aelfric moved to one knee, bowing his head with his arm across his chest. He then moved to exit the room.

“Aelfric.”

Aelfric came to an abrupt stop at the doors and turned. “Yes, Lady Artemis?”

Artemis glanced at Aelfric, then her eyes darted to the picture on the wall. “Nevermind.”

Aelfric nodded, then exited. Artemis downed the remainder of her glass. Then, after mere minutes had passed, Aelfric reached a heliport on the roof. The turbines of a sizable autonomous drone spun in place. It had a sleek exterior with ‘Aegis Industries’ branded upon it. Its door retracted, revealing a luxurious interior. His gait possessed no wasted movement as he strode within. As soon as he sat, the doors closed, and the drone took off into the city below. Similar drones taxied their patrons about between the towers of neon advertisements. After a short time, the drone landed atop a dilapidated warehouse building. He exited, descending into the warehouse as the drone returned to the sky.

The warehouse appeared empty save for a modern semi-truck with an unmarked, standard large trailer attached. Aelfric walked along a catwalk above, tapping away at a watch-like device on his wrist along with his IRIS until reaching the trailer. He leapt below to its roof, barely making a sound as he landed. He proceeded through a hatch that had slid open. Lights illuminated an inside that stood in stark contrast to its outer shell. It looked as if someone had ripped an engineering lab from a building. At the front, a grand machine occupied all the surrounding space, from edge to edge. It held aloft the back of an Aegis suit. Aelfric approached a locker. With care, he removed his entire face and hair, revealing a significant difference beneath. He had jet-black short hair, amber eyes, and a cleanly shaven face. He stripped, placing his clothes with great care into a locker alongside his facial disguise. Then he slipped on a form-fitting jumpsuit, which adhered to every contour of his athletic, muscled physique.

Aelfric approached the machine, and a monitor projected as he did. The screen displayed ‘Aegis’ with various model numbers listed. As he touched the screen, it changed to ‘Argonix’, with a similar listing. After pressing one, the machine sprang to life. The Aegis suit receded into the machine, and after a few moments, a different suit shifted into place. Aelfric backed into it and with a click of the port on his neck, a suit deployed across his body. Aesthetically, it appeared quite different from the Aegis. Soon after, he exited the trailer. Mere moments later, the truck drove out of the warehouse.

Meanwhile, in the underground arena where Yuna’s duel with the Praetor had taken place, many people moved about. Bright lights illuminated the entire area as they searched every inch of the area. The arena floor behind where the Praetor once lay had been dug up. Two men continued to dig while another watched. One’s shovel entered the ground in a peculiar way, as if hitting a pocket.

“Hey! Think I’ve got something,” one man yelled. A moment later, the arena went pitch black.

“The hell?” the other man asked. They stood in silence until a commotion emanated from the entrance of the area. “What’s going on?”

“How should I know?” the man standing above them called.

“Whatever, just give me some damn light. You want to risk someone else getting the credit, moron?”

“Oh, shit. How’s this?” The other man shined a light produced from his wrist while the man dug with his hands.

“Good enough… almost got it.” A brief time passed. “The fuck? How’s there liquid here?” The man stopped as the light abruptly disappeared.

“How unfortunate,” Aelfric said.

“Who the—?” No further sound came from the man.

“My sincerest apologies,” Aelfric whispered. “It seems I miscalculated time. Please find some solace that your sacrifice serves a greater purpose.”

A short time passed as numerous shouts filled the area. Sources of light projected about to and fro in a mad search until the area’s lights returned. Over a dozen individuals lay unconscious, strewn about from the entrance towards the arena. Within the hole, one remained unconscious, while the other lay on their side against the dirt wall. Blood trickled from a precise slit along their throat into a pool. Their chest, too, bore a precise wound.