5. P R E D A T O R S : Nightmares

Part II: CHAPTER III

Renee and Abidan were conversing in low tones as Bari led their search through the A! District, discussing how best to address the current situation for what must've been the hundredth time in the past two days.

However, their conversation was interrupted when Renee's communicator let out a rather urgent-sounding series of beeps.

Abidan looked down at her pocket sharply. "Is that your emergency channel?" he asked, concerned.

"Yes," Renee replied, looking equally anxious. "Hold on." She reached down, pulled out the communicator, and put it in her ear. "This is CN1," she said, remaining professional.

"Hello, Chairwoman Derschwitz," a calm female voice replied. "This is the Prime Minister."

The color drained from Renee's face. "Pri—Prime Minister," she repeated, inwardly scolding herself for stammering. "I—it's an honour. What can I do for you?"

"I'm not calling to ask for favours, Chairwoman," the Prime Minister responded. "I'm calling because it has recently come to my attention that your resident military has been reactivated without authorization."

Renee hesitated. "Well, I... I assume all Xirxine militias have been reactivated," she replied uneasily, "what with the attacks and—"

"They have," the PM interrupted, "with the consent of their respective governments."

Renee narrowed her eyes. "Forgive me, Prime Minister," she said slowly, "but I don't believe it would've been wise of us to simply wait for your authorization while our citizens were slaughtered."

"I'm well aware of that."

Renee blinked, surprised. "Oh. Well... then... why are you calling?"

"To issue a warning," the Prime Minister answered. "I'll give you an exception this time around, but for future reference, please make sure to check with me first before activating your forces during a period of deactivation."

Renee pressed her lips together. "Yes, Prime Minister."

The Prime Minister paused before letting out a sigh. "Good. Now that we've got that out of the way, is there anything you'd like to tell me about? Because I'm sure you already know what I have in mind."

Renee's complexion became even paler. "Ma'am?"

"The reports are worldwide, Chairwoman. The monsters that appeared yesterday seem to be converging on a single geographic location, which just happens to be in the country I'm running."

Renee frowned. "With all due respect, Prime Minister, we only just found out about that. We didn't exactly have time to pass it on between then and now."

"...I see. Very well—I'll take you at your word on that."

"Thank you." Renee exhaled inwardly. "Is that all?"

"For now. Oh, one more thing: we've requested assistance from the United States military, so you'll soon find your haven surrounded by both our forces and theirs."

"Alright. Thanks for the heads up."

"Mm," the PM grunted. "Take care, Chairwoman."

Renee closed her eyes and removed the headset, exhaling outwardly this time. "Okay. It's okay," she reassured Abidan. "We're clear."

Abidan let out a sigh of relief as well. "Thank goodness. Let's move on, then."