<strong><em>~Quantum Urbs, Gorditz District~</em></strong><br/><br/>'Guys, I don't think we're doing this right.' 'And you're an expert all of a sudden?' 'No, but all I'm saying is maybe we should stop and think this through before we try the interrogation thing again. I'm pretty sure we're not supposed to kill them until after we ask them questions.' 'No, no, no. We're supposed to kill one, then ask the others the questions.' 'I thought we were supposed to only leave one alive to ask questions?' 'Whatever! My point is, we can't just kill them all, because then we won't have anyone left to ask!'<br/><br/>The Cherubim had been working on their interrogation techniques for hours. Picking off stragglers from larger groups proved rather easy, but things quickly got complicated after that. Andiun suggested they try shooting their victims in their external limb joints to encourage cooperation. Soriun argued that they'd get better results if they asked nicely first, then shot them. Mikiun was no help at all; whenever a victim was cornered he tried to swoop in before the others could stop him and dismember them with a small laser scalpel he kept in his emergency response kit. Soriun was almost positive Mikiun was suffering the effects of some sort of virus or programming flaw, as he kept swinging the scalpel in random directions and shouting at the biologics such things as "Don't worry, I'm a professional!", "Open your mouth and say 'Ahh'!", and "I promise, this won't hurt a bit!". They tried to make him stop; the combatants weren't responding well at all. More often than not, they simply passed out before any questions could be asked.<br/><br/>Tracer rounds streaked past, lighting the night sky with blinding flashes of magnesium oxate. Smoke hung oppressively in the air, and explosions rocked the surrounding buildings every few minutes. Emergency sirens wailed in the distance, offering false promises of hope and safety, and the streets stank of death and fear. The drones drifted lazily among the chaos, their light-refracting stealth systems allowing them to blend in almost seamlessly with the scenery. Occasionally a rocket or stray bullet would nick their personal security perimeters, and they would turn as one toward the errant weapon's source and unload screaming, invisible death on their unwitting attackers. It was the most fun they'd had in months.<br/><br/>'OK, OK. Let's go try this again. We're bound to get it right eventually,' Andiun said. Mikiun giggled and swiped his scalpel through the empty air, and Soriun sighed as he searched desperately through his files for anything marked "patience".<br/><br/><strong><em>~Quantum Urbs, Medellin District~</em></strong><br/><br/>Cody and Isaac crept quietly through the war-torn streets, sticking close to the shadows and away from the smoldering fires that sputtered and sparked in patches. Etriun hovered close by, leading them through a maze of city side streets and back alley paths that scans indicated were the emptiest. They hadn't spoken much since Cody grabbed his jacket and the three of them had evacuated Benson's apartment. Cody had wanted to run upstairs and warn the elderly couple that lived above him to get out too, but before he could reach the stairwell, the apartment building was hit with another explosion. From the feel of the shockwaves, Etriun estimated the blast had come from upstairs. Cody wanted to continue upwards, but Isaac had grabbed his shirt tail between his teeth and held him back. Finally, he assented and left with the dog and drone; hopefully, the old folks had already made it out, but if they hadn't, at least they'd been together in the end.<br/><br/>As the trio ducked down another alley, Cody stopped and leaned against the wall, looking up at Etriun. "Say...do you know what's going on? What all the fighting is about?" The little Cherubim swiveled around and focused on Cody. "Negative. The only chatter on the unencrypted channels indicate that a war has broken out between the government and unknown paramilitary forces, and that several thousand children are being forcibly extracted by both factions for purposes undisclosed. Unfortunately, it seems some of my circuits are still damaged; I can't access the encrypted networks. And I still can't raise my squadron!" "Well, I'm sure they're out looking for you, right? So don't worry about it. We'll find them, Etriun." "Yeah, you're probably--Hey!" "What is it?" "I just had an idea about how to signal my squad! Wait here, I'll be back in a couple hours." "Wait! You said your circuits are damaged; how are you going to contact them?" Etriun giggled and spun a 360. "Oh, don't worry about that. They'll get<em>this </em>message!" He said as he pointed his nose cone straight up and blasted out of the alley.