<strong><em>~Quantum Urbs, Atalia District~</em></strong><br/><br/>The streets below were lit up like landing strips laid out by a malicious imp. The Cherubim had flown for hours, circling apartment buildings and dipping into traffic as they sought more combatants. So far, the closest they'd come was a flock of miffed pidgeons they'd disturbed on an office roof, and an old woman who'd screamed and shaken a broom at Mikiun when he'd poked his nose cone through a window.<br/><br/>'Clearly, we aren't getting any results this way. Maybe we should split up.' Soriun suggested after buzzing in front of a fuel tanker. 'Hey, yeah! Let's try that. It could be a new game!' Mikiun added as the truck driver swerved into oncoming traffic. 'I don't know... Uncle Luke didn't really give us permission to split up,' Andiun countered as the tanker tipped over and ruptured thousands of gallons of fuel into the street. 'Yeah, but he didn't say we couldn't, either.' Soriun said, his words nearly drowned out by the massive explosion that rocked the street below. His sensors picked up the giant fireball that was gutting through the nearby buildings and wrecked vehicles, and the drones turned toward the chaos. 'Hey, are they having a party down there or something?' 'Must be. They've got fireworks.' 'Pretty...'<br/><br/>'So anyway,' Soriun said, steering the others back to the conversation, 'why don't we put it to a vote. Majority rules. Fair?' 'Sounds good,' said Mikiun. 'I vote we split up. Soriun?' 'I vote we split up as well. Andiun?' 'I vote we stay together. Etriun?'<br/><br/>Silence.<br/><br/>'Etch?' 'Etriun?' 'Etriun, come in?' The Cherubim turned this way and that, scanning on all frequencies and all directions for their lost sibling.<br/><br/>'Alright, I'm changing my vote. I say we postpone voting until we find the idiot. Soriun?' 'Agreed. Mikiun?' 'Aw, do we hafta?' 'YES!'<br/><br/><strong><em>~Quantum Urbs, Medellin District~</em></strong><br/><br/>Etriun was cruising low and slow over the streets of the Medellin District. His scans of police activity and ambulance service requests indicated this would be an excellent area to find combatants. He was hovering less then a foot off the ground, moving at almost five miles an hour when he picked up a lifeform reading directly behind him. He whirled around and came nose to nose with a very angry, very furry...something. Etriun backed slowly away and brought all sensors to bear on the biologic. His database informed him he was confronting a common alley cat, species<em>felis </em><em>catus</em>. Immediately he activated his speakers and broadcast a warning to the cat.<br/><br/>"Be advised. This unit is operating under Provoked Response protocols and will defend itself with extreme prejudice." The cat hissed and swiped with a paw, its hackles raised. Etriun performed a slow barrel roll, scraping his wings against the cooled pavement. "Say again, this unit is armed and dangerous. If you are designated Noncombatant, disengage immediately and evacuate the area." The cat raised its tail and whipped it back and forth and spat. Etriun's cameras focused on the whipping tail, following it like a clock pendulum. 'Drone Etriun, Combat Log entry 14552.68. I have been separated from my squadron and have encountered a possible hostile. Status is unconfirmed. I think it may be trying to communicate-'<br/><br/>Without warning the cat leaped and sailed through the air, landing atop the startled drone. Its claws extended and hooked onto the edges of Etriun's chassis and held on with a death grip as the Cherubim began thrashing and twirling in mid-air.<br/><br/>"Warning! You are in violation of Article 36 of this unit's Operating Procedure, 'No Unauthorized Passengers'! Offending subjects will be deemed Combatants and terminated with extreme prejudice!"<br/><br/>The cat didn't give a damn about Etriun's warnings or articles. All it knew was that it wasn't about to let some giant, ugly bird wander into its territory without repercussions. It tried to sink its teeth into the strange hard shell, but found no purchase. As the bird jerked and thrashed about, knocking over trash cans and banging into alley walls, it freed one paw and batted at the creature's head, but to no avail.<br/><br/>Etriun had had enough. As the cat attempted to scratch through his heads up display, he pointed himself skyward at an approximate 30-degree angle and launched himself into the air at Mach 2. For almost 3 seconds, the cat held on admirably. But unfortunately for it, nature did not design felines to withstand multiple G-forces without the benefit of external protection. Which it sadly lacked.<br/><br/>As Etriun climbed, the air pressure became great enough to pull several of the cat's claws out of place and it slipped off of the drone's backside, falling almost 60 feet before landing in an apartment building's tangled aerial meshwork. With a yowling screech, it flopped to the building's roof and zipped into the shadows.<br/><br/>'HA! Take THAT, ya big pussy!' Etriun thought happily.<br/><br/>It was the last thought he had before he lost altitude and the world went dark.