Thousands of years after Earth became uninhabitable, humanity colonized other planets and moons around the solar system. Amid rising crime rate, the Galactic Space Force (GSF) set up a legal contract where registered bounty hunters (known as Coyotes...
Planetary News: Mr. Shoelaces has struck again. This time he robbed a kindergarten in Oracle, Venus, after the children took off their shoes to wash their feet before prayer. Be careful and protect your shoes. His operation is growing.
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Over the last hour, Wolf learned Andy and Andina hosted a gossip podcast spewing rumors and dirt on politicians, government officials, and celebrities around the system. They said something relating to the Science Division in The Universal Authority that caught his attention. Apparently, some of the explorers who were sent to other galaxies in search of habitable planets a long time ago were on their way back.
It was all hearsay without confirmation from TUA. But if Wolf had learned anything in his life, it was there was some truth behind every lie and rumor.
"Why are you on Venus?" Wolf asked after the episode ended and Olivia disconnected her wristpad from the surround system. He glanced at her, but she didn't spare him a look, gazing outside and taking in the fresh air while the wind blew her hair.
"Personal reasons," she replied.
"This is a one-way trip, you know that, right?" That got him a glance from her. "Once we get in, we can't leave until after we're purified. Whatever that means."
"It means they're turning you into a cyborg."
Wolf stopped the car and turned to her. "What do you mean?" There was nothing he hated more than having cybernetic implants. As long as his human body parts worked, he used technology for assistance and not as an enhancement.
"I thought you knew. Why else would you go to Coupon?" She raised her brow. "Don't tell me you fell for their Jesus shtick. It's a scam. They are organ traffickers."
He narrowed his eyes. "Why are you telling me all of this?" There was something she needed from him, that was obvious now. But what that was remained to be seen.
"I sat here thinking and realized; if I'm going to survive in Coupon, I need your help. You have jurisdiction here, meaning you can do things I can't—and that's very important. I thought about deceiving you, but then it would've been a waste if you found out about my plans and derailed them. I'm not your enemy here, and you aren't mine. Inside that city is a dangerous group of women who are using religion as a shield for their inhumane acts. And I need your help."
"What do you need from me exactly?" Having heard how direct hyenas were, Olivia spoke in riddles instead of getting to the point. What wasn't she telling him?
"I just need your assurance that when the time comes, I can count on your help."
"With what?" Now he was curious to know what her true intentions were. He was good at reading people. But he just met Olivia. It would take time before he knew what she was thinking by just looking at her.
"You'll find out when the time comes. For now, it's best you don't know." She looked at him. "What do you say?"
She was right, they needed each other. He had Wednesday in his corner, but it wouldn't hurt to add a hyena. They had a different thought process during bounty hunts. And if he was going to survive the red zone hunt, he needed someone who looked at the world differently from him.
He gave out a hand. "If you don't backstab me, I won't either."
Olivia smiled. "Deal." She shook his hand. "You never told me your name by the way."
"I did; it's Wolf."
"Not your codename. Your real name."
"Wolf."
"Wait, your parents gave you an animal's name for a real name?" She laughed out loud, looking more comfortable now that they were on the same page.
The topic of his parents was always a sour issue for him. He never knew them as much as he wanted—they passed away when he was young. But they were coyotes; he was sure of that.
"Yeah," Wolf answered. "It used to be my mother's codename. Before she died, she registered me into the GSF as the next owner. It's as if she knew she was going to die." Tears welled up in his eyes, and an overwhelming ache pierced his heart, making him grip his shirt.
"Sorry for your loss."
"There's no need to be sorry. It wasn't your fault. When I turned sixteen, the GSF contacted me and said if I didn't become a coyote soon, they'd give the codename to someone else—there were a lot of high-ranked coyotes who wanted it."
"I won't lie, it's a cool name."
Wolf smiled. "Yes, it is."
"So you were pressured into becoming a coyote?"
"Something like that." He chuckled before scratching the back of his head. "But I'm glad the GSF did so. If they hadn't, I wouldn't have known what my mother or father looked like. They had recorded hundreds of their hunts that got transferred to my account, giving advice on how to deal with different situations."
"I'm glad you have that."
"Thank you." He looked at her. "What about you? How did you become a hyena."
"Look, we've arrived." Olivia pointed ahead.
He gazed at her for a moment, and she gave him a single glance before she looked out of the window. She avoided talking about her life, and that was fine. Wolf wasn't going to pressure her into it if she wasn't comfortable. Just because he opened up to her, didn't mean she had to do the same.
Coupon City had a large artificial dam beside it. The sound of water flowing became louder as they got closer to the city; its oceanic smell similar to those on Earth during its prime years. The dam was connected to two others, which were found in the cities that bordered Coupon: Euphoria to the East, and Candreva to the West.
"I can't get a signal from inside," Wednesday said for the first time since he and Olivia started talking. "It seems the city is surrounded by an electromagnetic field, jamming my connection to the internet. Now I understand how there's nothing about Coupon online. No information can get in or out without the nuns' permission."
Wolf wanted to ask the AI a question, but he didn't want Olivia to know of her existence. It was as if Wednesday had read his mind, she said, "They must be using a private satellite to communicate with their followers on the outside. You need to find where they're broadcasting from and connect me to it. From there, I'll know everything about them and we can send the data to the GSF. Nod if you heard me."
He nodded.
"The other cars are moving," Olivia said.
After he drove through the electromagnetic field, Wednesday said, "I have lost my connection to the internet. We are on our own now."
A nearly twenty-foot metallic gate stood before them with a guard station on each side. One was for cars that entered the city, and the other was for those that left. Each station had two nuns on top in purple habits and white veils, and the one inside wore a pink habit with a white veil. The nuns above carried plasma rifles, while the ones inside held datapads, checking IDs before allowing entry or exit.
Wolf drummed his fingers on the steering wheel while waiting for the nun in pink to give him the go-ahead. She took out a small gun and shot a circular green tape at the side of the hover-car.
"You can go," she said.
"That was easy." Wolf drove through the gate.
"All sorts of people come here seeking salvation. If they make it hard, then a lot of them wouldn't be able to enter," Olivia said. "It's easy because the hard part starts now. You're in their territory, and I don't know if you've noticed, but our connection to the outside world has been severed. They are in control here, watching our every move."
Wolf looked at her. "We're like mice in a lab, huh?"
