Snowfall

Boiling the Water

"I knew some of those agents. They had friends, family, lives. Now they're just gone..." Sparrow stared at the ground. She had been sitting against the car for some time now. "I should've done more. I could've-"

"You did what you could. This isn't your fault," Angel assured, giving her shoulder a comforting squeeze.

"Your boss sent them on a suicide mission. The only ones capable of slowing it down now are Mettalion's best and me," Ace stated, staring at the ripped open sewer lid very close to the carnage. The lid was bent in half like a paperclip. "At least it isn't being subtle anymore. It feels confident enough to reveal its presence wherever it goes."

"So we can track it," Sparrow was on her feet and by Ace's side in a heartbeat. "We're taking that thing down now."

"I'm not going to stop you, but I am going to advise caution. This Hunter is going to be beyond anything you've ever dealt with. It's already gotten ugly, but the situation will get worse if we don't catch and kill this Hunter. We need clear heads. Understand? You jump in all fire and fury and that Hunter will kill you in an instant. You want to avenge your friends? Stay focused and calm," Ace gravely told Sparrow. His eyes bore into her grimly. She matched his stare.

"I understand. I'll keep my cool. We have a job to do," she replied. Ace nodded.

"You sure she's the supervisor?" Angel asked jokingly. Sparrow flushed and spun around to protest, giving Ace the opportunity to chuckle for Angel and himself. Angel kept a straight face.

"I am the supervisor! I don't go around acting all shady and mysterious!" Sparrow retorted.

"Shady? What's that mean? It doesn't sound like a compliment," Ace asked. Sparrow flashed a smile of victory and led the way to the ladder into the sewers.

"It means suspicious," Angel whispered as she approached Ace. He sighed and followed Sparrow down, Angel right behind.

"I'm not shady."

"You are too!"

*

"I'd ask if you were sure you were smelling it right with all this sewage if it weren't for the obvious trail," Sparrow, holding a hand over her nose. These tunnels were far worse than the other ones. The air was putrid. Ace was leading with Angel and Sparrow close behind, the little floating disk just above them to light the way. There were large, heavily imprinted human footprints leading through the sewers.

"It's scent is rather rather strong for someone used to smelling them. They all smell similar. It's become so reckless I doubt you'll need me to track it; it did leave a clear trail with its feet," Ace stated.

"What if it's on purpose? Like it knows it's being followed," Angel asked, causing them all to stop. Ace turned around.

"Do you think it's gotten that smart already?" His eyes showed there were gears turning in his head.

"Could be. It was smart enough to hide its trail, and now it isn't. It's gotten strong, but the cunning never stop being clever," Angel answered. Ace turned back around and thought a moment.

"If we have a smart and powerful killer on our hand we are in trouble," Sparrow sighed.

"Angel, we need to get ahead of it. Any idea where it might go? That disc has the whole city mapped out," Ace asked, keeping his back to them.

"You know them better than us, Ace. Where do you think they would go?" Angel retorted.

"You're right," he swallowed. "Don't watch."

"Don't watch what? We're all just standing around," Sparrow asked, raising an eyebrow at him. Suddenly something popped loudly, and Ace shuddered. "You okay? That didn't sound good." Ace grunted wordlessly. Angel put a hand on Sparrow's shoulder and shook her head when Sparrow glanced at her. The two watched silently as a few more popping sounds came from Ace and he shook and began to grow larger.