Phoenix Phire

Quicksilver\'s pretty face wore a happy smile when she used her back to nudge open the door to Dex\'s place. The smile faded only slightly when she noticed both Thumper and Stiletto sleeping on his couch. The coffee table was littered with dozens of images taken by the off-site team. She could hear the low voices of Mongoose and Gadget conversing in the kitchen, but she ignored it and headed upstairs to the loft.

Dex was sprawled diagonally across the bed, his long frame stretched out while sleeping peacefully on one side. Being tired herself, she slid in front of him and then eased backward until her back touched his chest.

"Darsi?" Dex\'s voice accompanied the opening of one eye. Then, by instinct, he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer. "Just get back?"

"Yep. The Bottom Feeders are still here. You should lock your doors."

Dex chuckled sleepily. "We were studying the initial images from the off-site location."

The incessant buzzing of the bedroom\'s only stationary hud made both of the bed\'s occupants sit up.

Dex eyed the hud warily. "Isn\'t that the..."

"Yep. Any world alert event activates the room huds." Darsi kissed the side of his face before leaning over him to activate it.

No video or audio feed accompanied the alert. Instead, a single line of text moved across the bottom of the screen.

[World Alert]

IAW UN Mandate 343-11, the Candian Province of Quebec, has seceded from Canada.

"The hell?" Darsi combed her slender fingers through her blond hair, effectively pulling it out of her face. Then, reluctantly she climbed out of bed, pulling her bedmate with her. "This is too big to ignore."

Dex groaned and pulled back. "I disagree... Few things are too big to ignore. I just went to sleep an hour ago."

Instead of arguing, she stepped close and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.

Dex smiled and rested his chin on top of her head. They stood like that for a handful of seconds before curiosity got the better of him. "What\'s your play here?"

"No play, partner. I missed you." His chest muffled Darsi\'s words.

"Sneaky..." Dex pulled away but maintained a grip on her hand when she headed down the stairs.

The rest of the Bottom Feeders were already sitting on the sofa; both Stiletto and Thumper looked exhausted. Thankfully, Mongoose was pouring coffee for everyone by the time the two stragglers arrived.

"Thanks!" Darsi returned Mongoose\'s smile with one of her own before picking up two cups and handing Dex one. "Anyone know what this is about?"

Gadget shook his head slightly. "I can tell you about UN Mandate 343-11, but as far as Quebec seceding, I don\'t think anyone saw that coming."

Dex seated himself on one of the chairs that faced the sofa while Mongoose pulled up a news feed on the coffee table\'s hud. As expected, the sudden departure of Quebec was the focus.

Gadget turned down the volume on the hud so they could talk. "343-11 was passed by the UN nearly a year ago."

Unexpectedly, Stiletto interrupted the brief. "I remember, the conspiracy forums had a field day with it." Her duo-colored eyes darted between Dex and Darsi as if trying to decide who to focus on. Then, after settling on Darsi, she continued. "They said it was a trap to break up North Korea."

If Gadget was bothered by the interruption, his calm face didn\'t show it. Instead, he nodded slightly, agreeing with the comment. The situation in North Korea hadn\'t changed much in fifty years, despite the virtual world movement. For the most part, they remained a closed-off regime with a single dictator running the country. "For once, those forums may have been onto something. Since being invited into the UN, North Korea has improved its relations with the other world powers. The delegate signed the Mandate without protest."

Darsi sipped her coffee, her blue eyes studying the hud while Gadget spoke. "I\'m jetlagged; give us the Cliff notes."

"The Mandate is a path to secession. A territory within a nation has the right to secede if certain criteria are met." Gadget sent a quick file to everyone so they could read the brief. "Summing up, the secession has to be voted on by both a popular and legislative vote. If the popular approval vote reaches eighty percent, the governing legislature will make the decision. The legislative must reach unanimous consent."

Dex whistled softly. "Seems unlikely that either of those should have happened, especially in Quebec."

Gadget was about to continue his brief when the hud changed again.

[World Alert]

Quebec will become the first All-Virtual nation. On the heels of its secession from Canada, the restructured parliament announced that it would immediately implement plans to move all of its operations into a virtual environment.

"Something like this..." Gadget\'s wrinkled face looked troubled. "This isn\'t something that happens quickly or without planning."

"What about the population," Stilleto asked? "Local businesses? Are they seriously going to push everyone into VR?"

Darsi sighed heavily and leaned back in her chair. "I don\'t like it. There are a lot of dangerous things happening all at once."

Dex jumped when Quicksilver nudged him, a sign that he should give some input. "Agreed... We could do some investigating before the situation develops further. We\'ve seen what Origin can do with a human Relay. But, of course, in an all-virtual setting, a Relay wouldn\'t be required."

Stiletto waited until Dex glanced at her before speaking. "We have to assume that this is related to Origin. Perhaps it isn\'t, but we can\'t take that chance. It called Kenji an Avatar. The way it gave orders showed a complete disregard for human life."

Gadget muttered a curse under his breath. "I think the correct path here is careful investigation. We don\'t need to get involved directly. I\'ll put it up on the job board for the 8th and 9th levels."

Mongoose flashed a smile at the older man. "Does this mean we get a few days off? We\'ve been working our asses off lately."

Instead of commenting right away, Thumper stood with coffee in hand. "Give the investigation task to Nova. Now that we know about her connection to the Secret Service, she should use some of their resources to help us out."

Dex shook his head. "That\'s a lot for one person. Let her focus on Quebec\'s sudden secession. Then, we can have someone else look into how the new government is going to accomplish a virtual nation."

An hour later, the Bottom Feeders went in separate directions. Quicksilver returned to her room after sharing an omelet with her partner. Dex managed to grab a quick shower and a ten-minute nap before his hud buzzed him awake. He frowned at the caller ID before turning it on. "Good morning."

"Morning, Dex." Nova smiled politely. Her short black hair hung over her forehead, dark makeup coupled with a pale complexion made her look like a goth vampire. "You\'re staring... Something on my face?"

Dex nodded. "Lots of makeup. Why keep up the Goth cover now that we know you\'re an agent?" He regretted the words as soon as they came out. "Sorry... forget I said that."

She wrinkled her nose at him, her discomfort evident by the sudden flush of her complexion. "I want to. Just remember that this is me and not my cover."

"Noted," Dex said. "Did you need anything?"

Nova stared at him for a few seconds, the awkward pause extending past their comfort zones. "I was hoping that we could talk."

"You mean comfortably?" Unfortunately, Dex possed the stereotypical nerd\'s conversation skills when it comes to the opposite sex. His comfort level with Darsi had reached the point where it was no longer an issue. "I can do better. Honestly, I\'m still angry with you."

"Anger is a good starting point." Instead of frowning, the goth hacker smiled. "Even if it cost me my job, I promise to be completely honest with you from now on."

"So says every liar." The words slipped out before he could censor them.

"Ouch." Nova\'s dark lips pursed slightly. "I\'ve agreed to take the Quebec job."

Dex hadn\'t read the mission brief since Gadget was the one who posted it. "Can you handle it? It isn\'t really Infiltrator work, but you should be able to manage it."

"You saying that makes my next question a bit awkward." Nova paused for a moment, considering whether or not to ask anyway. "Could you accompany me?"

"Yes." A new arrival answered the question. Darsi flashed a smile at Dex before turning toward the hud. "He\'s on board. Do whatever background and research you can. Dex will contact you tomorrow."

Dex watched as Darsi turned off the hud before Nova could continue the conversation. "I really don\'t want to go."

Darsi laughed at his expression before pushing him back onto the bed. "Worry about that tomorrow. We both need some sleep." Then, without any hint of shyness, she rested her chin on his chest. "Just a few hours, then we can go on a ride."

"Fine with me, but I\'m riding your Ducati." Dex waited while she moved into a more comfortable position, her head tucked under his chin with her arm draped over his torso. "Why does it have to be me who helps her? You could do the same thing."

"I could... but there\'s a fifty percent chance I\'d end up punching her in the face," Darsi muttered against his neck.. "I\'ll make it worthwhile later."