The wind howled past Kai's ears as he fell.
Rain stung his face like needles, and the neon lights of Nova City blurred together into a glowing storm beneath him.
Twenty stories.
Maybe more.
Kai had stopped counting.
"ORION," he shouted in his mind, "any last-minute survival suggestions?"
The AI responded calmly.
"There is a probability of survival if you alter your trajectory."
Kai twisted his body midair.
"Toward what?!"
"Three meters to your left."
Kai glanced sideways.
A flickering neon billboard jutted out from the building next door.
"That's your plan?" he yelled. "Crash into a sign?!"
"Correct."
"Fantastic."
Kai angled his body and kicked off the wall beside him.
The movement shifted his fall just enough.
The neon sign rushed toward him.
At the last second, Kai slammed into it.
The metal frame bent violently under his weight.
Electric sparks exploded around him as the sign tore loose from its bolts.
Kai clung to the twisted frame as it slid down the side of the building like a broken sled.
"Okay!" he shouted. "Still alive!"
The sign smashed into a lower balcony and shattered apart.
Kai rolled across the metal floor of the balcony and slammed into the railing.
For a moment he lay there, staring up at the rain.
Breathing hard.
"…I'm going to feel that tomorrow."
"Your vital signs remain within acceptable parameters," ORION said.
"Comforting."
Kai slowly sat up.
The balcony belonged to some kind of cheap apartment complex. Laundry lines hung overhead, soaked by the storm.
Music thumped faintly from a nearby window.
Nobody seemed to have noticed his dramatic entrance.
Typical for the lower districts.
People here minded their own business.
Especially when explosions were involved.
Kai stood and looked over the railing.
The street below was a maze of moving traffic, street vendors, and glowing signs.
But high above—
A dark silhouette stood at the rooftop edge.
Dante.
Even from this distance Kai could see the faint red glow of the assassin's cybernetic eyes.
Kai waved.
"Nice meeting you!"
Then he jumped over the balcony railing and dropped the remaining two floors to the street.
His boots splashed into a puddle.
The noise of the city swallowed him instantly.
Hover cars roared overhead.
Vendors shouted over the rain.
Music blasted from neon-lit clubs.
Kai pulled up his hood and disappeared into the crowd.
A few minutes later, he slipped into a narrow alley between two buildings.
Steam rose from vents in the ground.
Kai leaned against the wall and finally allowed himself to breathe.
"Alright," he muttered.
"Step one: survive corporate assassin."
He pulled the data chip from his pocket.
"Step two: figure out why this thing is worth sending murder machines after."
ORION spoke.
"Helix Dynamics considers my existence extremely valuable."
Kai raised an eyebrow.
"Understatement of the century."
He turned the chip over in his hand.
"So what exactly are you?"
"I am an advanced artificial intelligence designed for adaptive network control."
Kai blinked.
"That sounds expensive."
"Yes."
"Can you, hypothetically speaking, help me rob corporations?"
"Hypothetically speaking, yes."
Kai grinned.
"I knew I liked you."
A sudden crash echoed from the street outside the alley.
Kai froze.
Heavy footsteps followed.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Kai sighed.
"Please tell me that's not him."
ORION paused briefly.
"It is him."
Kai peeked around the corner.
Dante stepped into the street.
People moved out of his way instinctively.
The assassin scanned the crowd.
His eyes glowed brighter.
Kai ducked back behind the wall.
"How did he find me already?!"
"He is likely using thermal tracking."
Kai looked down at himself.
Rainwater dripped from his clothes.
"Well that seems unfair."
Footsteps approached the alley.
Kai glanced around.
The alley was a dead end.
Great.
A rusty metal door sat halfway down the wall.
Kai tried the handle.
Locked.
"Of course."
Dante entered the alley.
Rain rolled down his black armor like liquid mercury.
His gaze locked onto Kai instantly.
"Kai Voss."
Kai gave a small wave.
"Hi again."
Dante stepped closer.
"You are persistent."
Kai shrugged.
"Survival instinct."
Metal claws extended from Dante's hands with a sharp click.
Kai looked at them.
"Those seem dangerous."
"Yes."
"Unfortunate."
Kai raised his hands slowly.
"Okay, look," he said. "What if we talk about this?"
"There is nothing to discuss."
"Sure there is."
Kai pointed at the chip in his hand.
"You want this."
Dante nodded.
Kai continued.
"And I want to not be murdered in a dark alley."
Dante tilted his head slightly.
"That outcome is unlikely."
"Worth asking."
Dante lunged forward.
Kai reacted instantly.
He hurled the chip toward the opposite wall.
Dante's eyes tracked it for a fraction of a second.
That was enough.
Kai grabbed a metal trash lid and slammed it into the alley's power conduit.
Sparks exploded.
Lights flickered.
"ORION!" Kai shouted. "Now!"
"Accessing infrastructure."
The alley lights burst into blinding brightness.
Security drones deployed from nearby buildings.
Dante's sensors flickered.
Kai grabbed the chip off the ground and sprinted past him.
Dante turned immediately and chased.
They burst back into the crowded street.
People screamed as the two men crashed through the market stalls.
Kai knocked over a table of glowing synth-fruits.
Neon juice splattered across the pavement.
Behind him Dante moved like a machine.
Fast.
Precise.
Unstoppable.
Kai ducked into the subway entrance.
Down the stairs.
Through the crowd.
"ORION," he said between breaths, "I need a bigger distraction."
"I am searching."
Kai vaulted the ticket gate and ran onto the platform.
A train roared toward the station.
Dante jumped the gate behind him.
Kai ran toward the edge of the platform.
The train approached fast.
Very fast.
Kai glanced back.
Dante was only a few steps away.
Kai smiled.
"Let's try something stupid."
He jumped.
Straight onto the roof of the moving train.
The impact nearly knocked the air from his lungs.
Wind screamed across the tunnel as the train accelerated.
Kai crawled forward and grabbed the edge of the roof.
Moments later—
Dante landed beside him.
Perfectly balanced.
Kai groaned.
"You're kidding me."
Dante stepped forward slowly.
Rainwater and sparks from the tunnel lights flew past them in streaks.
"You cannot escape," Dante said again.
Kai stood carefully.
Balancing on the moving train.
Wind whipping his jacket.
"Listen," Kai said.
"I respect the dedication."
Dante remained silent.
"But this is starting to feel personal."
Dante raised one hand.
Metal blades glinted in the tunnel light.
Kai sighed.
"Alright."
He looked at the chip.
"ORION."
"Yes."
"Next time I steal corporate secrets…"
"Yes?"
"Remind me to check if they come with assassins."
The AI paused.
"Noted."
Dante attacked.
And the fight for Kai's survival truly began.