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Location: Nulline Enforcer Compound.

Time: 10:10am.

Year: 2092, April 9th.

I slowly opened my eyes and looked around the room. I was lying in a small single bed. I forced myself up and felt a small throbbing in my head. I tried to remember what had happened last night. I only remembered the firefight in the warehouse; I had killed around a dozen men. I groaned and stood up, stretching and hearing two clicks in my arms. I was still dressed in my Arch-Angel suit.

I looked around the room. The walls were completely blank, and the only pieces of furniture were the bed, a metal chair, a small wardrobe and a table. I looked over to the door, which read out: KOBALT KAIKEN. I realised that this was my room for the duration that I was here. I wondered who had brought me here. I didn't remember walking into the room, so someone must have dragged me in...

"Arch-Angel Kobalt Kaiken." A voice overhead called out; "Report to Captain Trask Vern in one hour; floor zero-seven, mess hall."

I looked around the room. I noticed a small speaker next in one of the corners. It took me a while for me to realise what the voice just said. I groaned inside; I still had to have a shower and put on a new change of clothes. Luckily for me, every room had a bathroom fitted in; for extra luxury. I opened up the small wardrobe and found three sets of clothes. They all matched the casual wear that the Enforcers often wore; a simple grey shirt with a matching pair of faded grey jeans.

I walked out of the room, fully cleaned and dressed. The corridor was empty except for the small groups of Enforcers, walking up and down in their black suits. I noticed a large number six on the wall, meaning I was one floor below Captain Vern. I could hardly manage to walk up the large flight of steps once I reached them.

The mess hall was almost completely full. The only spare spaces were between the regular soldiers and the Elite Enforcers. Captain Vern was sitting with the Elite Enforcers who I'd met yesterday; Agustus, Roland and Millard. Vern met my gaze and signalling me over to the table. I walked over and took a seat next to him.

"Corporal Dane told me about the riot downtown." Vern began; "I'm not surprised how it turned out, considering your skills."

I nodded, keeping quiet. I didn't want to talk about the other night. I had completely lost my mind; and enjoyed the fight too much for me to be considered sane. I looked around at the group. They were wearing a different set of clothes; it looked like the regular Enforcer clothing with pieces of thin, crimson red metal strapped almost all over it, with only a few parts of the leather coat still showing.

"We could use people like you." Vern continued; "And it just so happens you may just have an opportunity to become one of those people."

Vern indicated the three-man party sitting opposite from us. I noticed that they were had black metal helmets, striped with more red. It was a full helmet, but with a clear visor at the front. It was like a smoother form of a motorcycle helmet.

"I'm referring to ‘Hellfires'; the best of the best." Vern continued. "We've even prepared a suit of armour for you; just like what Agustus and his squad are wearing. They're planning a major drug bust tonight, and you're going to assist."

I looked at Vern, and back at the Hellfires. I could imagine myself in a suit of armour like that. I turned back to Vern and nodded.

"When will we be leaving?" I asked.

"Seven o'clock in the evening." Millard interrupted. "You'll be meeting us at the Compound's North exit. Don't be late."

With that, everyone but me and Vern got up and walked away, putting on their helmets. Five minutes later, Vern got up and patted me on the back, walking away. Now I was left by myself again. I figured that I should get something to eat to keep me from starving before the mission, so I got up, and returned with a small tray of food.

After eating, I rotated my seat around so that I was leaning against the wall. I closed my eyes and tried to relax; but before I knew it, a couple of young Enforcers had come up to me, looking with interest. They were both a couple of short, grey wolves that looked only a few years older than me.

"Hey, you're the new guy, right?" One of them asked. "I heard about that riot bust last night. Not surprising considering you're an Arch-Angel, right?"

"You could say that." I muttered, opening my eyes and leaning forwards. "If Corporal Dane didn't shoot out the lights, though, it'd be much harder."

"I heard you use a unique gun." The other Wolf began; "One that no one's ever seen before, and that it shoots steel spikes that could rip through bone."

"That's right." I said, choosing to indulge in their interest; "Not enough ammo, though. I always have to reuse the spikes."

"I also heard you can see through anything." One of them said; "And you can survive anything; even a Demon."

I stayed silent and nodded. I knew where this would be going. The wolves would ask me about myself for a while, and one of us would have to leave. The wolves had read my expression, and began to leave.

"We should go." One of them said; "But when you're not busy, I'd love to buy you a drink sometime."

I sighed once they had left. I blinked rapidly and got up, heading for my room. I needed to get a few more hours of sleep, then I'd get straight to training, and then I'd be off to see if I had what it took to become a Hellfire.

I pushed open my door and stumbled in, falling onto my bed. I twisted around so I was facing the inside of the room. I noticed a large box squatting in the corner of the room; but before I could get up and see what was inside, I had fallen asleep.

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Location: Nulline Enforcer Compound.

Time: 15:30pm.

Year: 2092, April 9th.

I kept having odd dreams ever since I became an Arch-Angel. I figured that it had something to do with my eyesight, and how it affected my dreams. In some dreams, I would simply be falling all the time, no matter what way I turned. In other dreams, everything would be dark, or I wouldn't be able to see anything.

This dream was different, though. This time, I was in a hospital, just standing in one of the corridors. I looked behind me, and saw the lights go out one by one; the darkness getting closer and closer. I turned and ran as fast as I could, not in control of my body. I wasn't even sure why I was running. I would still be able to see in the dark because of my eyes.

I ran through every corridor, every staircase and hall until I suddenly stopped. I was now in control of my body, but even though I wanted to move, I felt pinned to the floor. I turned my head and saw something sitting cross-legged, surrounded by lots of pieces of paper with drawings on them. It looked like a child; a hairless otter or some kind of monkey. It was strange; simians had been long extinct even before the twentieth century.

The child stood up, head bowed. Its jet black hair reached down to its knees, which hid the face. The child flinched, and slowly looked up, meeting my gaze. Its eyes were replaced with two red marbles, and its teeth were razor sharp and dripping with blood. Suddenly everything didn't go dark, but the lights were beginning to shine a dark shade of red.

The child started to scream, and I felt a force coming from the child, which threw me back against the wall. The force was getting stronger and stronger, but I didn't feel any pain; even though the walls were beginning to crack and break up. I closed my eyes tightly, and started to laugh. No sound came out, but I kept laughing and laughing until...

I opened my eyes quickly, but didn't move or panic. I had experienced enough bad dreams to get used to them. I was sweating, though. I got up and rubbed my face with my hands. I would have to have another shower. After that, I would have to check that box that I had left in the corner and see what was inside.

It took almost no time to wash all the sweat off of my fur. This gave me plenty of time to check my package and skip straight to training. I had noticed that my eyes were a little bloodshot, and the tip of my tail-fur was starting to turn a dark shade of grey. I decided to ignore it. Maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me...

I walked back into my room and tried to pick up the box in the corner. It felt as heavy as a block of lead. I tried again, and barely managed to drag it along the tiled floor and up to my bed. I dropped down and breathed in deeply. The box was made from basic cardboard, and was badly sealed. It barely took me a minute to tear through it all and remove the item.

Inside I found a set of clothing. It looked like the kind of armour that Hellfires usually wear. Instead of the usual crimson red metal, the coat was equipped with dark blue metal. The helmet was striped with dark blue lines, and the set came with a jet black shirt and pair of trousers. Under it all was a small note from Vern.

The letter read: DON'T BREAK IT. GOOD LUCK WITH THE DRUG BUST.

I screwed up the note and left it on the bed. Then I took off my shirt and trousers and began putting on my armour, which was lighter than it seemed. I stared at myself in the mirror. I put on a pair of leather gloves and small boots that came with the set, and finished off by putting on my helmet, and setting off for the training room.

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Location: Nulline Enforcer Compound, Training Room.

Time: 18:50pm

Year: 2092, April 9th.

I had spent most of my time on the treadmill. I still had to adapt to having some extra weight; including my armour, my rifle, around twenty steel spikes, and maybe a couple of combat knives to go with it. I also had to get used to my movement. The armour had made it harder for me to move as fast as when didn't wear it.

Unfortunately, I had lost track of time, and I didn't have long before I had to meet the Hellfires down by the entrance. I had immediately stepped off of the treadmill, almost falling over, and rushed out of the room. I was sprinting all the way through the building until I reached the last corridor, where Millard, Agustus and Roland were standing, holding their weapons in their right hands.

"About time you showed up." Agustus called out. "We were staring to think you weren't coming."

"I lost track of time, sir." I called back, managing a short salute. "I'll try to correct that next time."

"Don't worry about it." The wolf replied. "It happened to me too when I was an initiate. Can't tell you how angry my superior was."

I smirked slightly, and walked on through the entrance. The outside wasn't very warm, and I could tell that a fresh breeze had entered the building. Unfortunately, my armour made it so that I couldn't feel the breeze at all. Millard and Roland groaned quietly.

"Will we ever get to feel the wind again, sir?" Roland joked. He wore a very thin suit of Hellfire armour. Not surprising for an Avian.

"Only if you want to take off your armour." Millard retorted in a deep, croaky voice. "But the chances are that you'll be less...protected."

"Cut the chatter, Hellfires." Agustus called back, ending the argument. "I'm lucky I don't have a comms unit set into my helmet; otherwise I'd have to shoot myself from hearing your arguments."

I was surprised. None of the helmets had a comms unit attached at all. We all had to be in earshot of each other if we wanted to work as a team.

"Sir?" I asked; "Why don't we have comms units? Don't we all need them?"

"Not really." Agustus replied bluntly. "All Hellfires are given individual objectives, often in different areas, meaning that we have to be able to work as an individual, but also as a team. There's no point in asking for help. It's just something you'll have to get used to."

I nodded and stayed silent, walking on into the streets that surrounded the compound. They all seemed like very good company, and had the personality to match. Roland seemed to be the quiet, but quirky one. Millard was more of a joker, but had the strength to match. Agustus, on the other hand, was serious, but also comforting. They were all very nice people.

"Ever enjoyed a kill, Kobalt?" Agustus asked suddenly, still looking head on down the streets.

"The riot last night." I replied briefly. "I kept knocking down crates and messing with peoples heads."

"That's the first time I've ever heard of that kind of enjoyment." The Wolf laughed. "Very original. I think you'll fit in fine here."

That was the least comforting thing I had heard, but I didn't speak up. To them, it was good that I was starting to lose my mind. Maybe I was just overreacting.

Maybe it was just part of becoming a Hellfire...