He checked open source chat rooms. There were many discussions regarding the new calls for justice and over the top theories on who could’ve assassinated Ren Krong. The wild speculation plagued conversation. Fear and uncertainty ruled them all. Not a single thread was worth investigating. The feelings of the city’s populace were beginning to show. Caiden wondered if it would be safe for him to even leave Vantz’s apartment. He didn’t know what to do. Before he could formulate a plan, he received a call from Yvora, but it wasn’t a holo-video call, just audio.
“Hello?”
“Ahem! Oh, hey! Is this, uh, Caiden Nyx?” a male voice asked.
“Who is this!? And why are you calling me from Yvora’s phone!?” Caiden asked.
“Oh, yeah, about that. You see, my name is, well, you don’t really need to know that part. But, uh, we have your lady here, see? And, uh, we were told to pick her up. Seems like our partners need to borrow her for a bit.”
“I swear on your life that if you lay a hand on her, I will kill you. Slowly,” Caiden ominously.
“Holy shit! That was intense. Seriously, that all depends on you, kid. If you want to see her safe and sound, meet us at the new skyscraper construction site in Nova Central near The LoveMaars,” the man said.
“Put her on the phone. Now!” Caiden commanded. His voice deepened and intensified as the anger and anxiety thickened in his chest.
“Okay, um, wow. You’re, like, not in any position to make any demands, but since we gotta get our money and ensure you come out, here she is,” the voice said as he switched the audio call to a holo-video call. The visual feed showed Yvora unconscious but still breathing. She was tied up, and flopped over the shoulder of an extremely large man in a black suit. The voice on the call switched back to audio only.
“See there, bud? You believe us now? Hello? Hello?” the voice said.
Caiden cut the call. It was war time. He thought of Yvora. Nothing more, nothing less. He rushed out of his room and made his way out.
“Caide! Are you okay? What the…” Vantz asked.
“I’ll be right back,” Caiden said flatly as he stormed out to the building’s garage.
Caiden took a quick look around once he got to his hypercycle. Once he deemed the area to be safe, he materialized the gunblade from his right arm. It appeared in a flash. He checked his ammo, then transformed it to a sword, swung it around, making sure everything was in working order. He dematerialized the weapon then mounted his bike, put on his helmet, revved the engine, and rode toward Nova Central.
As usual, Nova Central was packed with bumper to bumper traffic. Eschewing the rules of the road, Caiden took to the sidewalks, dodging and snaking between pedestrians on his hypercycle. He took a sharp left down a back street and picked up speed, turning and weaving from street to street. He reached the outskirts of the new construction site. He parked his hypercycle near a wall, threw the chameleo-ware cloak over it, and made the rest of his way on foot.
The NOVO Lenses were active and glowing, scanning for threats, the nearby building structures, and any other types of specialized signatures. Caiden summoned his gunblade and put it into gun mode. The construction site for the new skyscraper was massive; it was a miracle there was even any room for it in this crowded part of the city. It was eerily quiet. Despite how busy it was a few blocks down, there were virtually no passersby.
The construction for the building was in the beginning stages, composed purely of cement and metal platforms that were supported by massive structural beams. It was fifteen stories high at the moment. Caiden crouched low, NOVO Lenses still activated he zeroed in on the building. Ten heat signatures? I need to get closer, get a good visual of Yvora, and see what strategy would be the most advantageous, Caiden thought as he hopped the fence and moved toward the building site. There were no Hover Surveillance Drones.
There appeared to be no one in invisi-cloaks or chameleo-ware. What was odd was the position of the heat signatures. Six of the ten were positioned in random locations. One far off to the east, maybe one thousand yards away, elevated fifty feet in another building. Must be a sniper, Caiden thought as he looked to confirm the positions of the other enemies.
Another two are at ground level on opposite sides of the building site. Must be the only ways in or out from ground level. Two more are in the adjacent building. It looks abandoned. Shit! Safe to assume those are snipers or some other sort of support, as well. But where is Yvora? Caiden wondered as he looked around and marked locations of the threats. There! Four stationary targets. Judging by the way they’re positioned, it's almost like they’re waiting for me.
Before he made another move, he closed his eyes and envisioned a variety of different strategies to preempt an attack. Then he began to incorporate contingencies, and other variables that may happen. None of his theories were certain, but if he went in there, guns blazing, both he and Yvora were sure to die. He opened his eyes, and they glowed even brighter than before. He was ready, he was angry, and he was willing to risk everything to save Yvora.
There were plenty of construction trailers and vehicles nearby which Caiden used for cover as he quietly closed in on one of the entrances. He was about twenty feet away from one of the guards protecting the front entrance. Caiden slowly peeked his head around the corner
