“I’d rather not have a Celica sized dent in my wall if you don’t mind”

“Wren I’m sad”

“And from how long you’ve been standing in my front room thudding your hood against the wall, i’d say you’re also mentally broken”

“Yeah well…. You’re rude”

“Your face is rude. So tell me again, what happened?”

“Nothing, that’s the issue” Shadow sighed at this point, reversing from the wall to look at the Super Corsair. Wren pulled a concerning look, as if waiting for the car to continue.

“Do you think he wanted things to go further? I mean… He didn’t seem to… hint at anything in particular, he just… danced with me, drove home with me and then… well that’s it!” The Celica continued, waving her left tire around to emphasize her point.

“Do you think I missed an opportunity?”

“To exclaim your undying love? Play it cool Shadow, come on”

“It’s not undying you fool. I just… ugh.”

“Hm… yeah… sounds like you have a total grip on it”

“Wren I work with him, what the blinking hell should I do?”

“When you get more stressed you turn more British”

“Wren!”

“Shadow!”

The Celica decided this was the point to take a deep inhale, closing her eyes and blocking out the urge to launch for her friend. Perhaps for once she knew what it was like to be on the receiving end, though Shadow would always become the more childish one in the end and win.

“Right…. Maybe… it will go away on it’s own. The more I work with him, the more I could see faults I don’t like about him… or he might get on my nerves… and then I won’t be quite so heavily into him”

“So… you’re going to try and ignore your growing crush on your boss”

“Yes”

“By... being with him more”

“....Yes”

“Ok, Shadow, that plan will 1000% fail”

“You don’t know that”

“....Yeah, you’re right, I don’t see how in any way that this could fall flat on it’s face. At all. At any point.”

“Yeah, yeah Mrs-I-Slept-With-My-Patient-On-Duty, tell me again how things are done”

“....Shut up”

“Besides, I’m sure after a while the novelty wears off, I’ll be back to viewing him like a colleague again”

“......”

“Oh come on Wren, what’s the worst that could happen?”

“Hm… So you want me to move here permanently.”

“It makes sense, Skipper. I have my commitments here, my job is something I worked incredibly hard to achieve… you can have a flight school anywhere.. CHROME is here”

“So you would happily let me give up everything I have in the states”

“Skipper… I just don’t know how else we would… you know, raise a family.”

The male Corsair blew air from his cowling flaps in irritation, looking his wife up and down for a few moments. An uneasy silence fell on the two, both Corsairs staring at one another as the tense seconds ticked past. It was perhaps a decision that for most couples was easy enough to come to… despite the looming changes that would need to be made, the choice to have children for most was at least a happy one. Though for Wren and Skipper, this was fraught with problems and issues, with Skipper still living in the USA, and Wren working in CHROME, it was hard to coordinate any order in their lives.

“This is something we both agree we want… why is it so hard?” Wren tried again softly, gazing at her husband, perhaps a soft plea in her voice.

“You need to face the fact that you need to give some things up” Skipper seemed to respond vaguely, causing Wren’s prop to spin a little in annoyance.

“Why is it always the woman who has to sacrifice?! Why can’t you give some things up?”

Unbeknownst to the planes at this point, a black figure had approached the kitchen window, seeing a small gap where it had been opened, snagging it with her hooks and pulling it open a little more. Shadow was still adamant she didn’t want to use Wren’s front door any time soon, and now only tried to break in during the day when she knew Skipper was around. The Celica waited until the window was level in front of her, before balancing once more on her back tires, using her suspension to push herself up. She was about to pull herself through fully when she heard the raised voices of the Corsairs. Concern flicked across her face as she heard the discussion echo through the hangar, always used to the more… quiet and loving embraces that the two gave each other, not the sharp tones that were being used now.

“A second ago you complained that it wasn’t reasonable for me to ask you to move, why is it so okay for you to ask that of me?” Came Wrens voice from the next room, which only drew a silence after it.

“Skipper answer me!”

“You are always so damn obsessed with work and achievements Wren! Always! You CAN’T have both, you can’t BE both!”

“I’m just applying logic to the situation! I make more money than you do! It makes sense to do things my way!”

A slight growl could be heard from Skipper, a noise that made Shadow back out just a little, unsure of where she stood. Their voices were only getting louder…. And it worried the Celica.

“OOH Here she goes again! ‘I make more than you, I’m better than you, I live in a damn dream world where I ALWAYS GET WHAT I WANT BECAUSE I’M SO MUCH BETTER!’ “ Skipper shouted, deliberately mocking her British accent, his voice laced with venom.

“THERE’S NO SHAME IN WANTING TO SUCCEED! IT’S NOT MY FAULT YOU SPENT HALF YOUR NAVAL CAREER STANDING IN YOUR OWN WAY!”

“IT’S NOT MY FAULT YOU’RE A SNOBBISH, RANK OBSESSED BRIT!” Skipper spat, still mocking her accent. Shadow’s heart was crashing by this point, hearing the hurt and vile insults they threw at one another…. Didn’t they love each other? What was going on? They were the most loved up married couple she knew… what had gotten into them?!

Wren’s voice was audibly shaking, her form hunkered down a little more as burning hot tears started to spill down her sides. The heartache and trauma was already starting to take it’s toll, exhausting the plane physically despite the raging anger that had seized them both at this point. It was so rare for them to fight this badly…

“Awww is that stiff upper lip beginning to wobble ‘Dr Goodyear?’ DOES SOMEONE NEED A CUP OF TEA AND A-”

“MY FATHER WAS RIGHT I NEVER SHOULD HAVE MARRIED YOU!” Wren cried out in rage, shocking both Skipper and the Toyota, whom was scrambling backwards now as fast as she could, tires spinning as she spun and bolted away, the fight having shaken her too. Skipper could only stare numbly at his wife as the insult she had slung at him sunk beneath his plating. There was another silence, though this time, there was a thick tension behind it that could be sliced with a knife. The male seemed to look away for a moment, before slowly turning, facing away from her and her already sobbing frame. She watched him with pleading eyes, her anger ebbing away far quicker now than she knew what to do with. After hurling that at him, knowing full well everything they had faced… she could see the hurt in his very movements.

“Skipper… I didn’t mean that….” She spoke softly, fresh tears rolling down her sides, only to be met by more silence. She felt empty, the feeling burying itself fully within her form, slowly gutting her from the inside out… she couldn’t believe she could ever have launched such a remark his way. She weakly started to follow her husband, trying to call his name gently, knowing that they had gone too far with this fight… too far.

Shadow was gunning her engine hard as she fled, slaloming through the london streets around the lazy evening stragglers, some in couples and others enjoying the last of the warmth the sun brought. The Celica’s engine rumbled and growled as she pushed it harder, trying to make sense of the fight in her head… it wasn’t right. She knew that they had been speaking of having children but.. Surely that wasn’t right. Not to fight like that… they were so happy… so loving… this was ruining them! Before she knew it, she had pulled into the street that she lived on, rounding the corner too fast and clipping the curb with her tire. She hissed out as a bolt of pain shot through her axle, cursing herself quietly and trying to scold herself to be more careful, beginning to limp a little as she spotted the top apartment that she and Finn lived in, noting that Finn’s bedroom light was glowing rather brightly. She slowed right down as she made her way into the apartment lobby, taking the lift to the top floor and slowly limping once more to the door. A panel extended to take her tire print, which she slid across gently, the door opening immediately afterward. She rounded the corner to the front room area, the room shrouded in darkness due to no occupants, which suited her fine. Instead, she made her way to the large windows she often enjoyed looking out of, gazing out at the view of London before her and sighing lightly. She didn’t notice the silent form of the Faultless peer into the room, having heard her arrival, only to be mildly surprised when she didn’t appear in his doorway. He flicked the light on with his tire, watching Shadow almost worriedly.

“Carlisle? What’s wrong? You came home later today, I was waiting for you” He spoke, glancing to the open plan kitchen area as he spoke. She didn’t respond to start with, causing concern to spark through his expression.

“.....Shadow?”

The use of her first name caused her to look up just a little, knowing he always resorted to that when it was a little less formal. She lowered her hood a little and began reversing round, finally looking to him. She had to lift her injured tire up in order to do so, and this was something he spotted immediately. Before he had a chance to comment, she spoke.

“Please don’t be mad…. But… I was at Wren’s earlier”

“Why would I be mad?” He started, though seemed to click in his mind as to what she was perhaps doing at Wren’s, he then seemed to sigh just a little. He was perhaps a little more concerned with her sudden strange demeanor however to bring her up on it as she began to speak again.

“They… they were fighting”

“Skipper and Wren? Couples fight Shadow, it’s normal”

“This was different though… they sounded like… well, like they really hated each other. They were hurling insults and he was imitating her… I didn’t think this whole ‘having kids’ thing would…. Tear them apart”

Finn could see at this point that what she had perhaps witnessed was disturbing something deep within her, perhaps a part of her she usually locked away. He momentarily thought about trying to subdue it, though the idea that she was trying to lock any part of her away… was perhaps dangerous from an agent point of view. He knew he would have to try and work out what was wrong, without her even knowing what was wrong herself.

“They’ve been married years Shadow… They don’t hate each other. Marriage is very complex and it takes work, sometimes arguments just happen. I’m very sure that they can patch things up”

“Is that all marriage is? Just… arguing?”

“No. But it’s part of it. Unfortunately, the rows can be rather scary to watch”

“Were you ever married?”

Finn a little startled by the question, though seemed to recompose himself after a few moments. Shadow had asked once before about his past, to which he had been hesitant to tell her anything, though this wasn’t a question that demanded details.

“No, I was not”

“But why do the fights look like they hurt so much?”

“Because no one knows your weaknesses better than your partner”

“What if they turned against you? What if… they didn’t love you any more? And then used your weaknesses against you?”

“...Shadow…. Most married couples are not like that…”

“My parents grew to hate each other though. They’ve been married for… well, years. They only came together because they had the same sense of twisted mind… but they hated one another so much that they would take their anger out on each other in fights so viscous, others that got caught up in it… were killed” Shadow seemed to stare at the floor, her tank twisting as she thought back to the painful memories. Finn fell silent as he watched her, having finally found out what the deep issue was… and it was something she had willingly offered up. She had a skewed vision on marriage… and was desperate for her friend not to turn into what she had experienced as a child with her parents. He felt a sorrow build up for her, though it was also mixed with an urge to show her that what she grew up with… it wasn’t right. Not everyone was evil and wanting to break her in some form. He wanted her to know that no matter what… he would never harm her.

“Your parents have shown you a terrible example… Shadow… no one I’ve ever known has ever been like that…”

Shadow seemed to be avoiding her mission partners gaze, her eyes flicking to the walls as she tried to make sense of it.

“I just don’t want her unhappy”

“They’ll work it out Shadow…” He spoke gently, moving to her side and tapping her bad tire.

“What did you do? It looks painful” He spoke in a low voice, eyeing her injured wheel with suspicion. She had it more tucked beneath her, as if trying to shield it away, though knew that she couldn’t have fooled him.

“I only clipped it… it’s just sore” She tried to brush it away, though he nudged her gently.

“Come on, looks like you might need tea”

“That’s your answer to everything”

“Well, is there any other way?”

The previous nights sleep had been a disturbed and broken one for Shadow, spending a lot of the night watching one of her most prized possessions that sat upon her bedside table. It was a photograph taken when she first joined CHROME, pictured with both Finn and Leland either side of her, she always remembered that day with ease. It was a fond memory she treasured, and after Lelands death, she had put the photo in a frame and kept hold of it ever since. Though now, she was very carefully making her way through the halls of the medical bay, slipping into Wren’s office for their usual start to the morning of tea and biscuits. It occurred to Shadow that things were not all ok as she rounded the doorway, peering in to see that Wren was facing away, cleaning parts of the counters furiously. She knew the plane loved cleanliness, but this was ridiculous. The Celica mentioned nothing for now, lazily watching the plane as she seemed to take her first world problems out on the floor, cleaning it so hard, Shadow began to have a genuine concern that it could erode away. Wren seemed to reach a natural stopping point, glancing up to Shadow in a tired manner, only to witness the Toyota drive across her sparkling, shiny floor. There was a moment that the elevators on the Corsair twitched, fresh irritation crashing through the plane before noting what Shadow was actually doing. For the first time in their friendship, Shadow had actually brought biscuits into the office. Wren watched, dumbfounded for a moment, before Shadow settled in her usual spot.

“So what’s wrong?” The Celica asked, eyeing Wren up and down carefully.

“Wrong? Nothing is wrong”

“....I’ve never seen those worktops glisten quite as bright as that… it could very well blind someone”

“You’re not funny”

“Au contraire”

“Stop learning words off of Finn”

“Soo…. nothing’s wrong?”

“No”

“At all?”

“Nope”

“Right…. Say, how do older men work?”

“What?”

“How would you say…. Get one to like you?”

“.....This is about Finn isn’t it”

“No, where on earth would you get that assumption from?”

“Well because you-”

“I like the name Valiant”

Wren seemed taken aback to start with, eyeing the Celica with suspicion, rudder twitching in caution. Despite the almost child-like way that Shadow presented herself in front of everyone, she was an agent first and foremost… she was more than aware of what was going on at all times, even if she didn’t let on. She had been trained to the highest standard… and Shadow had a clever way of making others forget that part. Wren found she had been holding her breath, exhaling slowly once her lungs started to ache for air, flicking her gaze away to examine the tiles on the wall. She felt the threat of tears begin to sting her eyes as she tried to keep a lid on her emotions… she couldn’t cry. At least not in front of Shadow.

“That’s… a nice name, yes…. Where did you hear it?” Wren managed to speak, though her voice felt thick, quivering a little to which the Celica no doubt picked up on. Indeed, the car only watched Wren, as if waiting for her to continue the conversation.

“Shadow… what do names have to do with how older men work?”

“Oh, nothing really. Unless you think there’s a connection” Shadow said carefully, watching the planes expressions. There was another moment that passed, perhaps slightly more tense as the two seemed to have a psychological struggle, seeing who would win out. Eventually, it was Wren that gave in.

“Skipper and I are having problems”

“There we are” Shadow smiled to Wren, moving to set the kettle on.

“What happened?”

“It’s complicated”

“I have time”

“Ok well…. The other week we were at my parents house, and my mother asked when we were… gonna have kids. Skipper hinted that he wants them… but it won’t happen right now because I work too much... “ Wren started to explain, letting her gaze fall to the floor in defeat. Shadow moved quietly round the office, bringing together the tea and doing it in such a manner that she could only have learned off of her older mission partner.

“Apparently it’s too much for me to ask him to move and quit his flight school…. But it’s ok for me to give up everything here. In fact, it’s expected. I don’t understand why there’s a double standard”

“Have you tried talking it over in such a way that he understands? Weighing up what each of you would be giving up? Cause you’d still be making sacrifices even if you stayed in the UK…”

“...No. We both started talking… then ended up shouting…” Wren sighed, looking down as Shadow slid her finished tea in front of the plane.

“There’s too much milk in that”

“....Shut up and drink it”

“.... Better luck next time Shads”

“Anyway…. Perhaps you need to approach it in a different way. You’re both looking at what you would lose… not what you would gain”

“...Have you been listening to Finn? You’re being very grown up”

“Excuse me, I’m the most mature agent there is”

“.....Au Contraire”

“Now look who thinks she’s being funny. Continue your tale of woe, come on”

“Hmph, well, When i mentioned the money thing, he naturally took that as an attack on his manliness, because he’s a backward, old fashioned, infuriating man!”

“....I think you should remind him how much you have been through together... Or I could tell him”

“Shadow I don’t think that’s wise”

“In all of our time as friends together…. Trust me this once.”

“You keep blowing yourself up. No”

“I only do it so I can chit chat with you some more and not get suspended for spending my work days doing nothing”

This statement prized a small smile from Wren, despite the ludicrousy of it all, she was grateful that she had one friend that was perhaps willing to do that, even if she hoped the Celica was joking. It was a moronic way to get out of work, to say the least. Shadow returned the smile, taking a grateful sip from her tea, before the shrill call of her radio alarm sounded, indicating that someone was trying to get hold of her. The Celica instantly recognised Angry’s number, proceeding to answer her radio with a little more sophistication to her voice. Well, she had to keep up appearances for her boss.

“Agent Carlisle” She spoke, glancing to her wing mirror as Angry’s voice could be heard booming through the device.

“Carlisle, I need you to report to my office immediately.”

“Roger that, Over” Came the Toyota’s reply, before giving Wren an apologetic smile.

“Looks like I’m in trouble again… I’ll catch up with you later”

“Please don’t try to play therapist with my marriage Shadow”

“Sorrycan’thearyoubye!”

The night was still rather young when Shadow finally arrived on the Russian port, a chill to the air that caused her breath to rise as a swirling fog before her, the cars body shuddering just a little as she adjusted to the cold. This mission was a big one… her first solo mission. Without Finn by her side, she was certainly feeling the anxiety set in now… there was no backing out. It was no hidden fact that Finn and Shadow in the past several months had been hitting the big missions hard, coming out successful in almost every one they participated in with rather high results. CHROME was no stranger to gossip either, their success flooding amongst the agents, and before long even Angry was singing their praises. The older agents often gathered round to compare their learning partners, and it was agreed that Finn was a phenomenal teacher, as well as Shadow being an exceptional student. Due to her high praise, she was only growing more popular too, having even banished the ‘carlisle’ exterior from some vehicles minds, becoming her own car, only judged for her achievements and her attitude. Angry soon began predicting good things to come from her, and therefore became more than eager to place Shadow on her own on a mission, and truly test her as an agent.

All her success however didn’t rest easy on one car in particular.  The yellow Suzuki watched in envy and disgust as Shadow and Finn got all the credit and praise for stuff that he could do too! It wasn’t his fault that his mentor was so stupid and slow. If his partner hadn’t held him back, half their missions would be over and done with far quicker. To his dismay, he was often described as brash, and over-confident, as well as perhaps a little stupid, only in this job for the glory and this only caused Jace to become even more unreasonable… he wanted to be the greatest agent that ever lived. To prove all those naysayers wrong and become an unforgettable presence… he’d dreamed of trophies and medals at this job.. Not to be under the shadow of someone who’s lights didn’t even function correctly. It was this reason, when he caught wind of Shadow’s first solo mission, that he did a little agenting of his own. Waiting for her to be absent from her office, judging by the way Finn had been waiting at the bottom of the ramp to drive home with her as usual, it wasn’t long before the Celica emerged from her office and move toward her partner. Once they had vanished, Jace took to punching in Shadow’s code on her door, having watched her earlier, and entered into the empty room. He quietly and slowly made his way round the office, picking up smaller bits of paper, glancing through the draws, before spotting what he desire. Her mission papers.

What he read only made his heart sing. This was a mission that Shadow truly couldn’t afford to go wrong. She had been ordered to bring down an entire drug circuit… closely associated with her family. If this mission failed, it would either look as though she emotionally couldn’t handle it, or that she was still aiding her family in their illegal endeavors. Having the perfect mission to ruin Shadow on, he proceeded to book a ‘holiday’ for himself, before then arranging to get to the mission site a day before Shadow did. The Celica suspected nothing, and now, as her gaze swept the empty horizon before her, she could not even begin to suspect what was to come. She lowered her form to the floor a little, immediately taking cover in the dark shadows that the night brought, staying behind a large shipping container for now, locating a small barred off ramp entrance up ahead. She knew from the provided intel that the circuit lay beneath the surface, so knew this was her quickest way in. She also had the knowledge of how her family operated their own rings, and with this one being in close connection... It was bound to be done in a similar way. With a growing confidence, she slipped past the docking ships, her exterior changing to a silver paint, her stripes staining blue, as she wore her more undercover disguise to throw others off. If any of her family were here, she knew she couldn’t fool them altogether, but it would make them hesitate at the very least. It took merely minutes to get past the barred entrance, the ground sloping steeply into a pitch black interior, one that consumed the Celica as she slowly descended down it. She felt the cold prickle through her metal slowly as the darkness closed in around her, the feeling that someone was watching her becoming unshakeable. She inhaled deeply, though the damp walls only filled her lungs with air that felt dirty and unclean, and the car had to stop herself from coughing or choking it out.

The slope evened out a little, allowing her to ease up on her brakes a little, the red glow almost eerie as it followed her through the dark, and she could see a faint light up ahead. Keeping her vigilance about her, she slowly made her way toward it, seeing the flickering lights of what appeared to be a large room some way away, though the closer she crept, the bigger it seemed to be. She braked softly to a halt a few metres from the door, now seeing that it was in fact a very large warehouse storeroom interior, the building scaffolding being visible against crinkled metal plating. Large shelves towered above her roof, stacked high with boxes and canisters of varying sizes and colours, clearly some kind of order being put in place. These were probably filled to the brim with drugs and weapons, though they also provided her with cover, as she could hide behind different racks, all being set out rather like some illegal supermarket.  A quick GPS sweep showed her that there were assailants round the back edges of the room, no doubt watching out for invaders such as herself, though she had no desire to get caught. She slowly rolled forward, looking around quickly and repeatedly, before bolting to the left, seeing large pipelines running the length of the building for her to drive on and hide behind. She used her grappling hooks to swing herself up, landing as quietly as she could, before jumping onto the next pipe, and the next, before she had nearly reached the ceiling, staring down at the organized chaos. She saw armed pitties making circuits one by one, a similar strategy used by her parents. She kept her body low and drove silently along the large pipeline, noticing a large hole in the wall to which the pipes vanished into, taking her above offices and large rooms. They were all dark, save for the second to last, which contained some very official looking vehicles, all male, sitting round a table with a map of the dock spread across it.

“The next batch will be here in 4 hours, then we can ship the mother load out to the Carlisles” One was saying, which earned a smirk off the others. They were speaking in Russian, though Shadow’s translator enabled her to understand what they were saying with ease, even if she couldn’t speak it back.

“This is the biggest shipment so far… business is booming fellas. Another load like this and we can finally turn France into the hell hole it was designed to be...  heck, we could even take England down with it!” Another chorused, earning laughter from the others. Shadow dropped her body a little more on the pipeline, silently documenting it all.

“We’ll be sending our load midday tomorrow, should reach the Chatham dock in England in about 2 days…. From then, it’s the Carlisles to do with it whatever they wish” A third spoke, who seemed to be the leader. The others were nodding in agreement, beginning to murmur their thoughts to one another, whilst the Celica was backing out. She had a lot of what she needed already… photos of the faces behind it all… a location and time roughly as to when the shipment would hit England… this was brilliant! Satisfied, she began reversing away, leaving them to carry on their little meeting whilst she made off with valuable evidence. She was still growing in confidence, and managed to turn, using her magnetic tires to stick to the steel below her, before moving back along the pipelines securely. She finally got back to the main room, planning her escape as she paused, assessing her surroundings and trying to get a good judgement when a loud alarm sounded, twisting red lights on the ceilings now glowing as several pitties and cars swarmed into the room, causing Shadow to reverse back in the top corner more, looking down at those below. She couldn’t be seen, thankfully, but her heart crashed hard as she saw all exits closed off and locked. She was trapped.

“Intruder! Intruder!” Someone was shouting, causing the others to panic and speed up their searches, clearly having been alarmed by something. Shadow’s mind raced now, trying to think of what she could possibly have done to alert them to her presence. When her mind came up with nothing, she saw a flash beneath her, and froze in place, trying not to be seen. A door opened, and the leaders she had just spied on were now rolling through, causing everyone to pause and look to them. The one she had guessed to be the leader came forward, looking to address his goons.

“We have been informed that there is an invader among us… either looking to steal, or to bring us down. Find them, and kill them” Came the command, before the search resumed once more. Shadow scanned around her quickly, knowing that with nowhere to go, she would be found soon enough. It was at this point she noted the window in the center of the wall, though up on her level. If she could get to that…. She’d be scott free. Not to mention all that breaking in at Wrens… it would come in handy finally. She inched her way along the pipes, freezing every time someone drifted beneath her, but continued on with determination. She was getting close, when an urgent whisper came her way.

“Shadow!”

She stopped once more, her heart racing so hard it was making her feel sick. She just wanted to get out… She looked to the level below her to see…. Jace! His mere appearance shocked her, and she immediately wondered what on earth he was doing here, though didn’t have much time to ask.

“Jace?”

“Shadow help me! I’m stuck, my tire is jammed! I wanted to help out and be your back up in case you needed me!”

Shadow stared at the Suzuki in disbelief, unable to truly believe he was here… on her mission!

“You shouldn’t be here! It’s a solo mission!” She hissed back, keeping her voice down as much as she could.

“I’m sorry Shadow! I just wanted to help! But… I’m stuck!”

She couldn’t help but feel infuriated, having him barge in on her mission… no doubt it was him that set the alert off! She scowled at him as he sat watching her with pleading eyes, as she decided whether it was in her best interest of not to assist him. She felt the anger roll through her, and for a moment, reasoned about leaving him… though her rage never lasted long, and as it ebbed away slowly, she cursed herself for ever thinking such thoughts. She couldn’t leave a fellow agent… and this could well be a test set by Angry to see how she would react. Without another word, she snagged his axle with her grappling hook, slowly winching him up, freeing him of whatever it was that was holding him back. She carefully hoisted him up to the pipe she resided on, as he panted gently from the effort.

“Thanks… I owe you one”

“Yes well…. We need to get going”

“Oh, but…”

“What?”

“I thought you would have wanted to say hi to your family…”

“...What?”

Before Shadow had a chance to ask anymore, she was rammed heavily in the side, her breath escaping and leaving her gasping for air. Another hit and she was slipping off the edge, her magnets scraping at the metal as she tried to keep grip.

“Jace.. what are you doing!” She managed to hiss, though only received his smirk to begin with.

“Finishing what the Carlisles started”

Pure fear shot through her frame at those words, just as a final shove from him caused her to lose what grip she had, sending her dropping to the floor. Shots rang out, as well as shouts and cries as the Celica plummeted toward the floor, the panicked car trying to find enough breath in those last moments before she hit the floor.

“Mission Compromised! 44.7154014 Latitude, 37.76-”