Predator Code (Tales from Wildhearth #1)

Chapter 27 - Empty Halls and Sabotage

A metal-walled passage stretched off into the distance, studded with globes of light embedded into the ceiling. Empty for now. For a moment, Jett found herself frozen, every instinct in her body willing her not to take another step. In the end, the evolved portion of her brain reasserted itself, and she looked back.

"Come on," she whispered, beckoning Karno inside.

He slipped in behind her, and together they padded their way down the passage as quickly as they dared, even soft steps echoing faintly in the empty space. According to the schematic, halfway down this passage, they would find a vent to get up into the filtration system: a labyrinth of broad shafts that ran the length of the underground bunker system that ensured the inhabitants could breathe properly, buried as they were in the foundations of the city.

It didn't take long for them to reach the location marked by the schematic and sure enough, embedded above their heads was a thin metal grate. A shudder of relief passed through her as she looked at it—confirmation that their schematic accurately reflected the layout of the enforcer base. She exhaled a calming breath and nodded to Karno.

"Boost me," she murmured, reaching into her belt for a screwdriver. He cupped his paws together, and she stepped up, one footpaw in his grip, the other on his shoulder as he eased her up towards the vent.

"Hold still."

"Bloody Peace, what do you think I'm doing?" he hissed back irately. "Just get on with it."

Biting back a retort, Jett reached up, balancing precariously as she unscrewed the bolts, holding the grate in place with painstaking care. One by one, the screws dropped into her waiting paws until she was able to gently ease the grate from its housing. Passing it down to Karno, she reached up, grabbed the lip of the vent, and heaved herself inside.

The interior of the vent was wide and flat, icy cold and humming with the filtering mechanisms that festooned the walls. On all fours, Jett awkwardly contorted herself around until she could reach back down through the empty space. Karno handed her the grate, angling it so she could ease it inside before she dangled out again, bracing herself against the walls of the shaft as Karno gripped her paw.

She only needed to lift him for a moment. One good jump from his powerful hind legs and a solid yank from Jett was enough for him to latch onto the lip of the aperture. Clasping his forearms, Jett helped drag him up into the cramped confines of the filtration system. As she bundled him up into the shaft, she became acutely aware of his musk again, their bodies tangled together as they shuffled awkwardly into a sitting position on either side of the grate.

She extracted herself, cleared her throat, and swept her paws back through her headfur, taking a moment to catch a breath. Karno clasped his muzzle with both paws and breathed in deep through his nose. Only then did she notice the tremble in his shoulders, and the realisation hit her like a slap in the tail.

For all his breezy confidence, the wolfkin was scared.

And why in the Peace and Fire wouldn't he be? What they were doing could charitably be described as crazy (and if you were feeling uncharitable, you might justifiably call it suicide). These were the power-hungry murderers who'd purged his friends, wrecked his life, and forced him into exile in a district where you couldn't draw breath without being reminded of the fact.

Jett felt the tremble in her own paws and sat on them for a moment, trying to stifle the sensation and get a hold of her own nerves. A stab of sympathy shot through her as she examined her companion. The person she saw in front of her was not the person Karno had chosen to be. Just like her, a new version of him had been forced into existence by Hera and her machinations.