So welcome to the next episode of 'Nanocowie should be doing physics but here he is on his laptop at the back of class not listening.' It's been a while hasn't it? I've jumped into a couple different things recently not the least of which were exams so that was terrifying. Formatting on chapter 2 of Digital Mess is fixed, and I've also been enjoying Darling in the FranXX, so you may see something of the sort later in the season. This one however, is due to my love of the XCOM series. I've re-imagined ADVENT into a criminal shadow corporation, which over arches many different terrorist cells across the world. Exalt, the Death Eaters, and many other terrorist groups will be placed under ADVENT control. XCOM, the origination, does not exist and the alien invasion, hasn't happened, and won't happen. Quick warnings. Death, Edge, Powerful!Harry, OCs based on my playthroughs of XCOM 2 WOTC. (Honos is my Savant Skirmisher, kicks major ass.). As well as some Tsun/Yandere traits. Enjoy my people.

"Potter! Report!" Shouted the leader of the Reapers, Volk, as the young man dressed head to toe in a dark brown trench coat with a dark mask covering his face ran into the room, slid into position and fell to his knee. As the youngest member of the resistance it was hard for Harry to earn much respect, or even recognition, within the ranks, so he had to follow the rules.

"Twelve dead, no casualties on our side." Harry reported, not showing how tired he was. It was tough work taking out members of the terrorist cell ADVENT without making a sound, but it was what was expected of him as a newer member of the Reapers. Harry could still remember the day when he was found by Volk, pilfering one of their safe-houses for safety

Flashback

A 9 year old Harry cursed as he heard the spell-fire behind him get progressively closer to hitting him. He knew it was a bad idea to try and steal from wizarding terrorists without proper training but he was so goddamned hungry that he couldn't wait any longer. He yelped as a small cutter dragged along his cheek, drawing blood as he jumped into an alleyway to avoid the other spells. What he didn't expect was when the floor gave way and he fell down the drop into a dimly lit room. Shaking the feeling of the impact from his legs he looked back up and saw that the trapdoor had swung shut and grunted. He didn't expect this turn of events but he was going to welcome it.

Looking around he saw that the room was mostly occupied by crates. Cracking one open with the small crowbar provided by the wall he looked inside and nearly jumped for joy, canned food and hard tack biscuits! Taking one of the biscuits he quickly dug in to sate his aching stomach and pried open a can of peaches, savouring the first fruit he could remember in years. After finishing his meal he explored around again and found more crates of different things, like ammunition, clothing, medical supplies hell even some weapons! Taking out one of the small, well made knives he gave it a twirl. He was sure that he could use something like this. He hadn't stayed on the street for nothing after all. Resourcefulness, stealth, and mobility is what they had taught him, and he was going to use all of it.

Finding a small camping bed in one of the crates he unfolded it quickly and dropped into it, savouring the feeling of an actual bed as he quickly fell asleep, unaware of what awaited him in the next morning.

POV change

It didn't take long for Volk to join a group of Reapers on an expedition to one of their safehouses when he heard that a small child had found it. The safehouses of the Reapers were one of the things they prided themselves on, but somehow a mere child had managed to find it while the smartest minds of their opposition couldn't find a pattern to them. Jumping across the roofs with his team behind him he dropped down from the fire escape he was perched on he kicked the small hidden button under a pile of rubbish and watched as the trapdoor opened.

Nodding to one of the Reapers behind him, a young American woman called Kelly, he dropped down into the room with her following him as the rest of the Reapers took watch over them. As Volk bent his legs to absorb the impact he looked around the room and realised that there was no child around, only the remnants of his presence. That was until he heard a small gasp and quickly turned around to see Kelly being held in a headlock with a knife to her neck, her spine specifically. Looking around the woman he could see the young boy looking deadly serious at him as he said. "Who are you people, do you own this place?"

Volk slowly raised his arms, dropping his Vektor Rifle on the ground as Harry put his back to the wall, with Kelly following unwillingly. Volk said evenly. "We do, we are not looking for a fight however, we only wish to fight ADVENT."

Harry nodded at him and twirled the knife in his hands, still dangerously close to Kelly's neck which caused her to gasp as Harry pushed her forward gently towards Volk. Harry dropped the knife and raised his hands as Volk looked at him appraisingly. "I know that there must be others above, so you win. All I ask is that I can feed and arm myself before I go back out onto the street."

Volk growled, ADVENT must have chased the boy before he found the safe house. "I have questions. What is your relationship to ADVENT?"

Harry growled at the ground and cast his eyes down before saying. "A sect of them called the Death Eaters ruined my life, I find that stealing from them is unwise but gratifying."

Volk looked at him evenly and said. "Explain."

Harry slid down the wall before falling into a comfortable position. "On my first birthday my home was attacked by their leader Voldemort. My sister managed to cause some kind of magic and made him vanish, reflected the killing curse apparently. My parents were out but when they got back they seemingly forgot I existed apart from when I needed to carry something, so I left. It's been...4 years since I left? But my progress has been less than satisfying."

Kelly gasped next to him and Volk's demeanour darkened heavily, yet another tragedy perpetuated by ADVENT. "Damn bastards, what are you good at kid? A child is less noticeable, and that's what we do."

Harry vanished from sight and Volk felt a small tap on his shoulder. Spinning around he didn't see anything before he heard a small yelp from Kelly and saw that she had her mask taken off and her hood taken down. Looking back to where Harry used to stand he saw the boy standing there swinging the mask around on his finger. Volk smirked at the candor of the boy and extended his hand. "I think we can find a use for you. What do you say kid? Want to finally try and make a difference?"

It only took a couple of seconds before Harry's hand met his own.

End Flashback

Volk nodded at the young man and said smartly. "Good, is the TVIP secure?"

Target V.I.P missions, Harry's speciality. Harry smirked under the helmet he had taken from one of their enemies and said. "In a cell, and I found something on him. It looks like a datapad but our hacking can't crack it."

Volk grimaced and said. "Good job anyway. I also have some news. The Skirmishers have asked for a rendezvous, apparently they want to negotiate a truce. I want you there, you're not as intimidating visually. You will be going with Lieutenant Dragunova, and you will be meeting with Prator Mox, along with an unknown Skirmisher we've not heard of yet."

Harry grimaced at the name of the former ADVENT terrorsow. At least 20 Reapers had been wiped out by that man alone and by sending him the Skirmisher's leader Betos was not showing any signs of being afraid. Getting back up to his feet Harry slung his Vektor Rifle across his back and asked. "Understood, when do we leave for this rendezvous?"

Volk smirked. "They wanted to catch us off guard, but we do not rest. Tomorrow you will be deploying to Dark Zone 12 and you will meet them on the overpass. Don't screw this up Potter, we can start to focus more heavily on ADVENT if we stop fighting them."

Harry nodded and bowed before leaving the War Room, passing by a couple strategists who clapped him on the back. Making is way through the darkened corridors of the Reaper Base he saw a couple of the more experienced Reapers smile at him mockingly while he evenly just walked by them. It didn't take long for him to reach the barracks and flop down into his cot, exhausted. Looking around he noticed that Lieutenant Dragunova was standing behind one of the bunks and asked. "You want to talk about the mission?"

Dragunova made a small annoyed noise at being caught and said. "Leave the talking to me, and keep an eye out for any ADVENT in the area. I don't want my record smirched by you."

Harry smirked and waved her off, claiming. "Sure sure, just don't go crying to Volk when you fuck it up."

Dragunova just scoffed and walked over to her own cot and dropped into it. Harry took off his rifle and began to service it, pulling off the magically enhanced scope and pulling out his wand to reinforce the enchantments on it. While he was only 14, and he wasn't formally trained in magic, he learned a few things from the captive Death Eaters he took for fun. Making sure the zooming and self cleaning enchantments held on the scope he moved onto the barrel, ensuring the suppression was enabled, then onto the stock, making sure the recoil dampening charms were in place.

Finishing up his maintenance Harry checked the time and saw that it was about 9pm. Reasoning that he already had dinner out in the field before he came back to the base, he took off his helmet and trench coat, revealing his toned torso as he pulled on a light black t-shirt and getting under the covers of his cot he quickly got to sleep, intent on getting up earlier than usual in the morning.

Timeskip

Harry awoke with a start as he felt his small electric alarm around his wrist zap him awake. Turning off the alarm he got up out of the cot and saw that most of the Reapers were still asleep, Dragunova included. Smirking at the sight he pulled on his trenchcoat and decided to forgo the mask, instead throwing it on his tactical rig. Grabbing the Vektor Rifle from under his cot he switched off the safety and gave it a quick fire at the door, watching as the bullet buried itself into the wood without a noise. Nodding satisfied at the result he quickly threw a cleaning charm on himself and walked out of the barracks, nearly running towards the hangar.

Arriving at the hangar he saw a sight he didn't expect to see, Volk himself was standing there in front of the transport they were going to use. Volk noticed him and nodded approvingly. "Good, where is Dragunova?"

Harry shrugged and walked over to one of the benches lining the walls, sitting down and pulling out his rifle. "She was asleep when I left, but she should be awake by now. What do we have to work with sir?"

Volk motioned for some engineers to bring over a crate to him. "Dragunova could learn something from you. You'll have two claymores each, 20 clips of ammo, and a distraction beacon."

Harry whistled at the lineup. Obviously Volk didn't want to take any chances with that kind of firepower. "Got it. Do we have any intel on the unknown Skirmisher?"

Volk nodded and pulled out a clipboard. "We found out a little from our moles in their ranks. Apparently they are a 14 year old female, she managed to escape from their forced recruitment and in doing so kill the entire cell on her way out. Don't try anything with her, she should be stronger than most of the Skirmishers we've faced."

Harry nodded and heard a quickened set of footsteps from the corridor and saw Dragunova run into the hangar with Volk looking at her disapprovingly. "4 Minutes late Dragunova, get your ass in the transport. If you need debriefing ask Potter."

Dragunova made a small 'tch' as she walked into the transport truck. Harry nodded to the engineers and they loaded the crate onto the trunk as he nodded once more to Volk. "We'll come back with good news, I promise."

Volk nodded and Harry got onto the truck in the back. A masked driver got into the front and all of the doors closed when the engineers were clear and the garage door opened, revealing a ramp out of the underground complex. Harry could feel the truck spinning up and grabbed onto a stabilizer as the truck went from 0 to 60, speeding out of the hangar. When the truck stabilised he let go of the stabilizer and looked over to Dragunova who was sitting in silence looking over her rifle. Harry laid down on the seat and grabbed a small catalogue from under the seat. It wasn't much but it was something to keep him amused.

After maybe 4 hours they arrived at the mission location. An abandoned city which was removed from most maps due to the nuclear waste surrounding the area. Harry saw a soft red light in the corner and stood up, grabbing his rifle. Dragunova stood up to and went in front of him in an attempt to show dominance over him. Harry smirked and watched as the light turned green, and the door on the back of the trunk swung open. Harry checked his rig and saw that he had his claymores and ammo, along with the distraction beacon on his hip.

Jumping out of the trunk he took a quick scan of the area, not noticing anything moving. Nodding to Dragunova he said. "We're clear, overpass is 2 clicks to the north. Rules of engagement?"

Dragunova nodded and said. "Shoot, but don't kill. We don't want you hitting the Skirmishers do we?"

Harry sighed and ran off into the direction of the overpass with Dragunova frantically trying to keep up with him. Harry had spent lots of time on the streets, and so he knew the nuances of parkour as he jumped between surface to surface. Arriving at a junction he held up his arm to Dragunova and peeked around the corner and sighed. 7 EXALT troops were patrolling down the street away from them. Looking back at Dragunova he whispered. "7 Hostiles. 3 Assault, 2 Heavies, a Sniper and a Medic. We don't have to hit them."

Dragunova nodded and the two stealthily crossed the road and climbed up a rain drainage system onto the roof. Running along the rooftops Harry could see the overpass and fell to his stomach, giving way for Dragunova to do the same. Harry pulled out the binoculars from his tactical rig and took a quick scan of the area. He could see signs of a small battle but nothing else. Frowning at the sight he looked over at Dragunova and said. "Where are they? I doubt a couple of ADVENT could take them down."

Dragunova smiled conspiratorially and said. "I don't know where they are, but hopefully they're wounded."

Harry shook his head disgustedly at her and jumped down onto the overpass, aiming around with his rifle. Looking around he saw a small trail of blood leading up into a nondescript truck and walked over to it, hearing Dragunova jump down behind him. Getting up to the truck he tried the handle and felt the door creak as he opened it, and in his face, the barrel of a bull-pup.

Harry quickly dropped his rifle and help up his hands. Peering around the barrel he was met with the face of a beautiful young woman with glowing gold eyes and dark, luscious hair. Realising that this was one of the Skirmishers he said. "I don't wish to fight, I am Reaper Harrison Potter. This is Lieutenant Reaper Elena Dragunova."

He saw the suspicion in her eyes but she dropped the barrel of the bullpup and said. "Skirmisher Priestess Kaitlyn Helskid. My Elder was injured by a mine laid by EXALT forces in the area."

Harry nodded and Dragunova pushed him out of the way. "Where the hell is Mox?"

Harry sighed and grabbed the barrel of her rifle, sealing the insides of it. "Don't be aggressive Dragunova. This is a peaceful meeting."

Elena was about to make a swing at Harry before the twin talons of a ripjack curled around her wrist. Harry looked over at Helskid and saw that she looked rather angry. "I am in agreement with Potter. This is a rendezvous to negotiate a ceasefire. Please, come in."

Harry nodded gratefully to her and grabbed his Vektor Rifle and jumped up into the truck with Dragunova walking in behind him reluctantly. Inside it was dimly lit by the flashlight of a bullpup and Harry could see the helmeted visage of an Elder Skirmisher in the corner. Nodding to him Harry said. "Prator Mox. Your skills in combat are feared by many."

It was a veiled attempt at courtesy, but both of them knew exactly what Harry was referring to. Prator Mox was a feared sight among the Reapers, but he was not seen recently among Skirmisher raids on the Reapers. Mox shifted around, holding his leg as he responded. "My thanks young Reaper, my people speak highly of your skills as well."

Dragunova felt insulted at the fact that the Elder had addressed Harry first and said rudely. "I don't know what you Skirmishers are up to, but we're not going to fall for it. Volk will..."

She didn't have a chance to continue as both Harry and Kaitlyn hit her on the back of the head at the same time, knocking her out. She looked gratefully up at him as she said. "Thank you, she was not conducive to a peaceful meeting."

Harry nodded in respect to her and turned back to Mox, saying. "I am sorry for the words of my...colleague. I assure you none of the rest of the Reapers believe in the same things."

Mox cut him off with a baleful laugh. "Don't attempt to lie to me young Reaper. It is commonly known that the Reapers wish to see an end to all traces of ADVENT, even their most harmed group."

Harry sighed and shook his head, taking down his hood. "You're right Elder, most of the Reapers do want to destroy ADVENT in its entirety. But what you have wrong however, is that you are the most harmed group."

Kaitlyn jumped in with and angry voice. "How dare you! We have bled under them, died under them! How can you say we are not the most harmed group!?"

Harry held up his hand to her, silencing her. "It is the people. The people who live today under their shadowed rule who are the most harmed. They are so beaten down that their fight was taken out of them. They are who the Reapers fight for, and it is what we hope you will fight for too."

Harry's communication unit flared up and he heard the voice of Volk from it. "Potter, we have confirmation that ADVENT forces are on their way to your location. How are the talks going?"

Mox spoke first, slowly. "Volk, I am convinced. Your young Reaper is right, the people are the ones who come first."

Mox's com unit flared to life. "I am also convinced. Volk, I am willing to continue talks, and I wish to establish an alliance of sorts. However, I wish to keep my people safe. As a sign of good faith, you are invited to have your Reapers join us at our base until they wish to leave."

Harry smiled contentedly. Talks were successful, he was successful. Volk spoke up again from Harry's communicator. "Betos, I have no wish to allow Dragunova to be kept with you, but Potter is allowed to make his decision on the matter."

Harry looked around and he saw Helskid and Mox looking accepting of the deal and said. "I will happily stay with you until you wish me gone Elder Betos. Volk, what am I to do with Dragunova?"

Volk made a small hum as he asked. "Can you get her back to transport?"

It was at this moment when Helskid spoke up. "We have limited time. I will transport your Reaper back to your transport, and then arrive back here."

Volk said a quick "Yes." and Kaitlyn pulled up Dragunova, putting her on her shoulder. With one final curious look at Harry she jumped out of the trunk and grappled away. Harry closed the door to the truck and looked back at Mox. "I have some medical supplies on my rig, you want me to patch up what I can?"

Mox nodded gruffly and Harry got to work. Bringing out the medical pack from the small of his back he professionally pulled out the shrapnel from his leg and bandaged it tightly. "There, that should keep you going until transport arrives."

Mox nodded and motioned Harry towards him. Harry was startled but he heard him speak in his ear. "You have done much for us. I give my blessing for you to pursue Priestess Helskid as a romantic interest if you wish."

Harry blushed furiously and said nervously. "I hardly know the girl! Also we have much more important things to do and I..."

That was when he heard a small laugh from Mox and realised he was kidding him on. Realising the craziness of the situation he also began to laugh, the first time he truly had in a very long time. When they were done Harry looked over at Mox and asked. "So, what kind of training do you offer your soldiers?"

Mox stood proudly as he said. "We have them train for 3 years before testing them, learning close combat and quick movement. In the end our soldiers are expected to take down an entire squad of ADVENT troopers before we field them in true missions...Argh!"

Harry whistled and said. "Intense. Our training mostly comes from our background. If you die during training, tough shit in our case. It's kept the weakness out of our ranks."

Mox nodded impressedly, but offered some advice. "Be careful you do not lose yourself in cruelty, lest you become what you fight. It is something that we have to watch out for in our ranks too."

It was at this time when Kaitlyn jumped back into the truck without Dragunova. "Your Lieutenant is back on her transport and awake. Shall we proceed to our transport?"

Mox nodded and stood up to the surprise of Kaitlyn. "Elder! How are you standing?"

Mox nodded at Harry and said. "Young Potter provided some medical aid to me. It would be prudent to add first aid to our initial training."

Kaitlyn looked back at Harry and bowed low to him, causing Harry to blush heavily as she said. "Thank you for assisting my Elder, please, follow me."

Harry nodded and jumped out of the truck. Opening the comms to Volk he asked. "How long till they're on us?"

The comms flared to life. "4 Minutes."

Harry smiled and said. "Enough time."

Bringing out one of his claymores he waited until Mox was out of the truck and planted it on the door, but inconspicuous enough to not be seen if not looking for it. Looking over at Kaitlyn he asked. "How far away is your transport?"

She looked down at her watch and said. "They are free to join us in 3 minutes. When we give the signal they will arrive in a minute."

Nodding he looked up to one of the roofs. Looking back to Kaitlyn he asked. "Can you get us up there? Might as well take out some ADVENT while we're at it."

Kaitlyn nodded and Harry brought out the distraction beacon. Setting it to sound like a car alarm he dropped it in the car and pulled out the trigger. "Get us on the roof, I'll show you how a Reaper handles things."

Kaitlyn looked amused but acquiesce to his wishes. Walking over to him she looped her arm around his waist with a quick motion. Aiming her arm up at the top of the roof she let her grappling hook fly, attach to the roof and reel back, bringing the two soaring through the sky as Harry rolled out the impact, inadvertently falling on top of Kaitlyn. Mox also appeared at the top and laughed at the sight of the two of them. Harry shook his head and quickly got off of her with a quick "Sorry." Kaitlyn looked like she wanted to say something but held it back at the sight of her Elder, not admitting to herself exactly how fast her heart raced at that moment.

Harry set up his Vektor Rifle at the roof and donned his mask, throwing the hood back up. The internal targeting systems took aim at the claymore and adjusted the power of the shot and the trajectory. After a few minutes Harry said to Mox. "Call the transport." Mox nodded and hit a button on his comms unit. After a minute of pure silence Harry saw the first signs of ADVENT and smiled ferally. A General had shown up. While ADVENT had ranks far and wide throughout the world, and Generals were plentiful, a kill on one of them was one hell of a blow in an area.

Hitting the trigger on the beacon the beeping began and the ADVENT party ran over to the truck with their weapons drawn.

Harry waited, the sound of his breathing being the only noise as the General opened the truck doors. He breathed out, and pulled the trigger. The claymore exploded into a massive fireball as the entire ADVENT patrol was ripped apart by the combined power of the Shrapnel Claymore and truck exploding.

Harry stood up and gave out an insane laugh at the power he felt at the kill, and behind him Mox and Kaitlyn looked at him in slight awe. Mox came up to him and put a gauntleted hand on his shoulder. "It will be an honour to work with you, Reaper."

Harry looked back at Mox with the same insane smile on his face. Pulling off his mask he said as his dark hair fluttered across his lightning bolt scar. "And I can only hope to impress, Skirmisher."

It was around this time when Harry heard the whirring of the Skirmisher VTOL and saw the terrifyingly decorated aircraft coming towards them. Packing up his rifle across his back he fell into step behind Mox and Kaitlyn as ropes descended from the craft. Watching as the two jumped onto their ropes Harry tentatively went over to his own and put his feet into the stirrup. He heard Kaitlyn say above the whirring. "Pull on the cord, it will bring you up." Before she herself was hoisted up.

Giving the cable a sharp tug he felt the mechanism working as he was hoisted up into the craft quickly. Jumping off the rope into the craft he could see the pseudo tribal decorations inside the craft and nodded appreciatively. Bringing out his comms unit he opened the channel to Volk and said. "Mission complete, secondary objective cleared. ADVENT general is deceased. Orders?"

He heard Volks impressed voice say. "A General eh? Good job Potter. Rest up and learn what you can from the Skirmishers."

Harry made a noise of affirmation and asked quietly. "What's going to happen to Dragunova? She nearly cost us the peace?"

Volk sighed and said. "She will be redirected to ADVENT, and kept away from the Templar. If our old enemies can be peaceful, the Templar could be the same. If we all unite together we could start to do serious damage to ADVENT. On another note, this is the 4th General you've killed, enjoy the promotion."

Harry nodded happily. "Understood, Potter out."

Kaitlyn looked at him impressively. "4 Generals? You must be skilled Potter."

Harry looked at her and shook his head. "Please, call me Harry. And it's no big deal, hell TVIPs are my speciality."

Kaitlyn nodded happily, glad she could call him by his first name. "Well, I insist you call me Kaitlyn, or Kait. I am more specialised in eliminating large groups of ADVENT myself. I took down a group of 20 when I escaped from them."

Harry nodded respectfully. "Impressive, you'll have to teach me some stuff while I'm at your base. Also, if we manage to establish this alliance I'll get you a map with our safehouses."

Mox perked up at this. Taking off his helmet Harry saw his scared and wrinkled face with dark golden eyes. "The hideouts of the Reapers are some of the most impressive things we know of your people. How are you able to keep them so secretive?"

Harry smirked. "We stay in the shadows. With a combination of gene-coding and buttons we can allow only Reapers into our safehouses. Volk recently had our security upgraded on them as well, and we keep them off the grid. Everything is close-circuited through to our home base."

Mox nodded impressed. Kaitlyn was determined to not be outdone however. "Well...The Skirmishers have grappling technology, what do you have in the means of transport across the battlefield?"

Harry sighed and said. "We haven't figured that out yet. We just can't get it right."

Kaitlyn smiled happily at the opportunity. "Well, if you are to give us access to your safehouses we would happily assist you in the field."

Harry looked incredibly intrigued at the offer and said. "That would be...incredible. If we had access to that kind of tech..."

Harry began to think of the possibilities and Kaitlyn walked over to him, sitting down next to him. Mox looked at the two with a grin and brought out a medpack from underneath his seat to work on his leg while Kaitlyn began to disassemble her own gauntlet, showing him the inner workings. Harry was looking enraptured at the surprisingly simple mechanics behind it and took her arm and brought it closer to him, not noticing the blush coming from Kaitlyn as he looked down into the various pulleys and winches.

The two continued like that for a while until Harry's comm's unit flared to life. "Potter, Dragunova just arrived back here and claimed that you assaulted her during the OP. What the hell is this about?"

Kaitlyn held her finger up to Harry and he allowed her to take the comm's unit from him. "This is Skirmisher Kaitlyn Helskid. This Dragunova accused us of conspiring against you and made threats to myself and my Elder. Harry merely silenced her, with my help, before she could represent you in a bad light permanently."

Harry could hear the arguing coming from the comms unit and eventually it all quieted down and Volk spoke again. "Understood Helskid, thanks for clearing that up. Rest assured Dragunova will be...disciplined, and her interactions with the Skirmishers will be limited heavily."

Kaitlyn nodded satisfiedly and handed the comm's unit back to Harry, who said. "Sir, alert our engineers and prepare them for schematics. Helskid has demonstrated how their grapple technology has worked, and in return I have promised them access to our safehouses."

Volk grunted. "A good trade, good job Potter. When are the talks going to begin between me and Betos?"

Harry looked up at Mox questioningly and he pulled out his comm's unit and whispered into it before looking up at Harry. "Give it three days, and we'll send over a transport. We can exchange our offerings around the dinner table."

Harry relayed it in and Volk made a noise of affirmation. "Got it, I'll get the gene-code lab ready to bring in some Skirmisher DNA. Volk out."

The comm's unit died down and Harry sighed. Kaitlyn smiled at him sadly, not happy with the way that all the responsibility poured onto him was so daunting to him. A small voice echoed throughout the transport. "Approaching Homebase, prepare for landing."

Harry looked around and saw a stabiliser on the roof and grabbed it, putting on his mask and hood. Kaitlyn put on her own helmet as did Mox as the craft landed down into what Harry assumed was a hanger. From what he saw out of the window they were situated in a savannah somewhere with a complex around them. Everything went dark out of the windows and a small green light flared up above the door. Mox hit a button on the side and the door shunted open, forming a ramp down into the hangar which was decorated in a tribal fashion.

Pelts, armour and tapestries hung from the walls while there were engineers running around getting ready to perform maintenance on the craft. Harry could see a regal looking Skirmisher walking towards them which caused Kaitlyn and Mox to fall to their knees. Harry stood firm, knowing that he was representing the Reapers as a whole at this time and saluted her in his own way. "The hunt will not end, as will we. Greetings, Elder."

Kaitlyn gasped at his manner and tried to motion him onto his knees before the Elder walked up to Harry and held out her hand. "It is good to have you here Reaper, I am Elder Betos. Please, remove your mask. We are working towards an alliance you know."

Harry nodded and threw his Vektor Rifle over his shoulder, feeling the strap hold it to his back. Pulling off his mask and bringing down his hood he felt the scrutiny of the Skirmishers as he hung his mask from his rig. Looking back up and shaking her hand he said. "It is an honour to be here Elder, thank you for your hospitality."

Betos smiled at him and motioned for the other two to stand. As they did another Skirmisher came up to Harry with a crate and Betos said. "Complements from myself. However I hope you do not mind sharing a room with another Skirmisher, as my people are still unsteady with you being here."

Harry looked around and saw some of the Skirmishers were not so discreetly holding their Bullpups ready to fire on him and sighed. Pulling off his Vektor Rifle and his knife he offered them to one of the guards who took the rifle but left the knife. Harry confusedly said. "Sure you don't want to hold my knife too? It's been one of my main weapons."

The Skirmisher laughed behind his helmet. "I assure you, a Skirmisher will not fall to a Reaper in weaponed combat. Your firearm will do to alleviate our worries."

Harry pouted but sheathed his knife, giving it a small twirl as he did. "Well, I'm not sure if that's an insult but I'll forget about it. Anyways, I'm fine with rooming with somebody else. The Reapers all share a hall."

Betos' eyebrow went up and the rest of the Skirmishers looked curious. Kaitlyn clapped her hands suddenly and said. "How about we retreat to the mess hall? Perhaps we could share details on our cultures."

Betos nodded smartly. "That is a good idea Priestess. If anybody wishes to hear of the lifestyle of the Reapers, please join them in the mess hall."

Kaitlyn grabbed Harry by the arm and lead him from the hangar while most of the Skirmishers in the room followed them. Harry quickly grabbed the crate from the ground and hefted it up onto his chest. Walking through the halls Harry noted that the Skirmisher base was much more homely then the Reaper base, with rugs and tapestries decorating the corridors. Eventually they reached what he assumed was the mess hall and Kaitlyn seated him down at the middle of the table. Harry was reminded of a large mead hall as the rest of the Skirmishers took their place around him. Harry decided to speak up first. "So then, what do you guys want to know about the Reapers?"

One of the older Skirmishers called out. "What is it like staying together in one room? How do you keep your privacy?"

Harry rubbed the back of his head as he pulled his coat around himself. "We don't. In the Reapers we abandoned our humanity, for humanity. We don't care about things like privacy or bonds, we just want to kill ADVENT."

Another Skirmisher spoke up, this time a middle aged woman. "What kind of luxuries are afforded in the Reapers then?"

Harry laughed out. "Luxuries? We don't get them. If we want something we find it in the field. We get a cold shower every week, food is nutritious but not tasty. We are a military, we only need a fight to have a purpose."

The Skirmishers fell silent at that and Harry decided to throw up his own curiosity. "Anyways, what do you guys do around here?"

One of the Skirmishers spoke up. "We are never put out for more then three missions in a month. We are given credits based on our performance in our jobs and we can exchange them for our luxuries from one of the vendors around here. We have our own rooms and we have a solar heater which supplies enough hot water for each of us."

Harry whistled at the list. "Damn, nice lineup. What kind of training do you offer to your operatives?"

None of the Skirmishers spoke up but instead fidgeted around before Kaitlyn spoke up. "We have no official trainers which we are provided with after our initial field training. If we want more training, we learn it from someone else in the barracks in exchange for credits."

Harry blanched. "Well shit...In the Reapers any Major or Colonel is expected to train the younger Reapers in stealth, accuracy and battlefield tactics and utility when off duty. If we are killed in the field, tough shit you didn't prepare enough."

The Skirmishers were hanging onto every word and Harry leaned back in his seat. "So, anybody going to take me in? I'll need somewhere to stay for the next three or four days."

A couple of the Skirmishers raised their hands before wincing and putting them down. Following their eyes he saw Kaitlyn glaring at them from his side and she looked up at him and said. "You're more than welcome to stay with me Harry."

Harry grinned down at her roguishly and said. "Thanks Kait, I'll try not to get in your way."

Kaitlyn nodded happily and stood up, motioning for Harry to follow. Harry got up and grabbed his crate from where he dropped it and followed along with her. As they walked through the corridors Harry said to Kaitlyn. "Hey, do you mind if I grab a shower before heading off to train? I can imagine I smell pretty bad right now."

Kaitlyn looked at him confusedly before she got close to him and took a sniff, gagged and took a sniff of herself. "You're right, we both need showers. I'll take first, if that is okay with you."

Harry nodded and they walked in silence until the reached her room. Kait swiped a card over the scanner and allowed him inside. Her walls were decorated with different memorabilia and Harry even saw a couple Reaper coats and masks hung from the walls and he winced from the sight. Knowing the protocol for finding Reaper equipment in the field he asked Kaitlyn who was looking at him nervously, obviously having forgotten about what she had in her room. "Mind if I take the ID tags off these things? Where did you get them anyways?"

Kaitlyn timidly came up next to him and pointed out various coats and masks. "I obtained these ones from a Reaper camp a few years ago. It was a three way battle between the Reapers, Templars and ourselves. I found these off of one of their bodies."

Harry pulled off one of the masks and hit a button on the inside, releasing a small pair of tags from inside. Looking down at them he didn't know the reaper who held them and continued to grab more and more tags until he had stripped all of the masks and hung them back up. Noticing that Kaitlyn had gone into the shower already he dropped them into his pack before bringing out his knife and prying the crate open.

Inside were general toiletries, aerosols and clothes while also containing a grapple gauntlet. Whistling at the shiny new piece of kit he fitted it onto his arm and felt the trigger. Reluctant to fire it inside he took it back off and put it back into the crate. Taking out the clothes and toiletries he took off his trench coat and tactical rig and put them down into the crate in the space left from the clothes.

Waiting patiently he dropped his comm's unit into the crate as well and closed it back up. At this time Kaitlyn opened up the shower door and walked out in only a towel, which caused Harry to blush and look away to the confusion of Kaitlyn. She was wreathed in steam and was looking angelic with her hair draped over her shoulder. "What's wrong Harry? Are you feeling well?"

Harry nodded and motioned down across her body. "Sorry, but you'll want to get dressed. I...I'll grab my shower now."

Moving past her he entered the shower and locked the doors behind him. Dropping his clothes he put them into the laundry basket and jumped into the shower. Quickly turning it to a cool temperature, not just for reminding himself of home in his mind. Quickly shampooing his hair and soaping himself down he rinsed off and got out of the shower. He never really saw the appeal of a shower for comfort and usually saw it is a utility. Toweling himself down he got into the clothes provided and stepped out of the bathroom and saw Kaitlyn dressed in a short sleeved t-shirt and jeans. Nodding to her he brought out his combat shoes, with an extra amount of spring in the sole to keep him light on his feet. Grabbing the grapple gauntlet from the crate he looked up at Kaitlyn and said. "I'm ready to go." Walking out with her she locked the room and said. "To the training court then?"

Harry nodded, moving into his operative mindset. Looking around he saw that there was no good places to hide in the corridors, he would have to rely on the rooms to hide himself in the event of an assault. When they reached the courtyard he saw that there was only a couple of Skirmishers milling around, as opposed to the twenty or so Reapers in the courtyard he remembered.

Looking around he saw Kaitlyn standing next to a series of elevated platforms and walked over. She nodded professionally at him, showing a fully business side of herself as she pointed up at the platforms. "This is the grappleground, where we train to use our grappling capabilities. The trick to using it is to think of the trajectory as a harpoon, and aim accordingly."

Harry nodded and aimed the gauntlet at the platform. Pulling the trigger on the inside he felt a small shunt move his trajectory down a bit as he missed the platform. Feeling the gauntlet roll back he aimed it back up at the platform, slightly higher this time. Feeling the shunt go again he felt it thud into the wood of the platform and was jerked forward and was pulled harshly up to the platform.

Pulling himself up he felt a small ache in his arm and readjusted it back into position, wincing at the feeling. Taking aim again at a higher platform he fired again and was ready for the force of the grapple this time and tensed his arm as he was brought soaring through the air and rolled out this time as he nearly fell over the edge.

From the ground Kaitlyn was looking surprised at his skill with the grappling hook. It seemed like he was at home in the air as he soared from platform to platform quickly. She laid her face in her hand, curling her fingers up across her cheek as she admired his skill. Up in the air Harry looked up over the walls of the compound and bathed in the heat of the afternoon sun as he looked over the Savannah.

After he was finished he jumped down from platform to platform until he hit the floor of the training ground and smiled ferally at Kaitlyn. "I can make very good use of this. What's next?"

Kaitlyn smiled satisfiedly and turned her back to him, grabbing two ripjacks from a rack. "I will train you in using our ripjacks. They function as claws that can destroy any ADVENT armour in one swipe."

Harry nodded and took the ripjack offered to him. Attaching them to his gauntlet he watched as Kaitlyn attached hers in one motion and said. "Now then, try and hit me."

Harry jumped forward and went for the attack, only to find himself on his back with two ripjack claws around his neck. He saw Kaitlyn looking annoyed as she took the claws back and let Harry get to his feet. "It looks like your arm strength is not yet enough to use one effectively. I think weights would help you before you try and learn the ripjack."

Harry sighed and said. "If you think so. I think I'm going to stick to my knife, it serves me well."

Kaitlyn nodded and put away the ripjack she had on herself, as well as the one Harry was using. Turning back to him she held up her arms in a fighting stance and said. "Now then, I think it would be best if we learn normal close combat now. I trust you know how to fight bare handed?"

Harry nodded and brought up his stance. He never fought competitively but when you were on the street you used everything you had, and used it well. In turn he said "Best of three submissions wins, permanent debilitation is forbidden."

She nodded and shouted out to one of the other Skirmishers. "Give us a countdown."

The Skirmisher lazily said. "3, 2, 1, go."

Harry and Kaitlyn rushed towards each other and dodged out of the way of the punches that didn't fly. Both of them made sporadic swings as they rushed around each other, ducking and weaving under their blows until Harry saw an opening and hooked his leg under her leg. Bringing her down he laid on top of her panting and said. "1 to me."

Kait nodded and Harry got up from her. The two took their stances again, Harry panting while Kait was breathing heavily as the Skirmisher said again. "3, 2, 1, go."

The two rushed each other again but Harry ducked, the worst thing he could do. Kaitlyn held her fist down and Harry felt the knuckle crash up his jaw, causing pain to jolt through him. Kait jumped down onto him and help his arms behind his back. Harry quickly said. "Yield." And Kait got off, albeit slowly.

The two got back into position and Harry analysed the situation again. Kait was breathing heavily but he was much more tired. After the past two fights he decided to try and bring out one of his best assets, his legs. The countdown started. Harry looked deep into the golden eyes of Kait and saw that she was dead serious as well. "Go."

Harry kicked his speed into overdrive as he appeared in front of Kait and kicked out at her leg, not noticing her fist making its way into his crotch as he did. He felt the fist hit him but grit his teeth as he felt the pain spike through him before she carried through with the punch, bringing him over herself into a pile of the floor. Jumping onto him from behind she got close and personal as she kept him down. Not noticing his position below her he felt her warm breath on his cheek as he said. "I yield."

Kaitlyn nodded and fell to her side, falling into vertigo for a second before getting up again. Panting Harry stood up slowly and leaned against the wall while Kaitlyn got up and stretched her arms out. Looking over to him she worriedly asked. "Are you okay? You look dead on your feet."

Harry shook his head while still panting. "My...I usually use...Long range combat...I can't hold up...physical engagements for long."

Kaitlyn nodded and threw him a water bottle offered by another Skirmisher. Harry gratefully downed the water and passed it back to Kaitlyn while uncomfortably shifting his legs. It wasn't as if it didn't hurt, but Harry had been stabbed by knives in much worse places before. That girl could sure give a punch. Kaitlyn noticed his discomfort and smiled coyly. "Oh? You're in that much pain?"

Harry glared at her and stretched out his back. "Surprisingly, yes I am. Anyways, I've got to work on my stealth."

Kaitlyn nodded and walked off to spar with a couple other Skirmishers while Harry began to analyse what he saw from the top of the compound. There were a couple garden areas where they grew their food, which would be brilliant places to hide if he needed. Readjusting his gauntlet he fired it off into the grappleground and flew up again. Quickly jumping to the top of the grounds he looked around and held still for the next twenty minutes or so. When he was certain the Skirmishers had forgotten about his presence he jumped down from each platform to platform silently until he got to the last platform and jumped down into one of the bushes lining the sides of the courtyard.

Checking how many Skirmishers were paying attention to him he began to move from bush to bush quickly. Eventually he made a round around the entire courtyard and aimed his grapple at the grappleground, pulling himself to the first platform. Quickly recovering he pulled himself up to the next platform, the next, and finally he hit the top where he looked up at the sun, calculating his time. "7 Minutes huh? Not the worst I've done."

He heard somebody calling his name from the ground and peered over the edge. He saw Kaitlyn with her hands cupped around her mouth shouting up towards him and quickly got down from the platforms, landing gracefully next to her. "You called?"

She nodded and said. "We couldn't find you, last time we saw you you were up on the top. Is this one of the skills of the Reapers?"

Harry nodded, proud at awing one of the Skirmishers he had come to respect, not to mention his pride being healed after that fight. "The Reaper's shadow is their greatest ally. What did you need?"

Kaitlyn brought out a small comms unit and handed it to him. "Your master Volk called for you, but he couldn't get you on your unit."

Harry nodded gratefully and took the unit from her. Setting the radio to Volk's channel he opened it and said into it. "Potter here."

A small amount of static flared up before he heard Volks voice saying. "Potter, good to hear you. We've had news come in from Betos, she's talking to the Templars and managed to negotiate a rendezvous. I need you to talk to their leader soon, he managed to get wind of you opening relations with the Skirmishers and he is weirdly interested by your name."

Harry gritted his teeth, realising that this guy was some kind of wizard. It was a loosely kept secret within the Reapers, and as far as he was aware the Skirmishers were not aware of magic yet. "Damn, they might have found me. When is the rendezvous?"

Volk made a noise of anger. "I know, but we need to work with this. If your abilities are leaked to ADVENT we could have major problems later on. Tomorrow they are sending another kid your age, seems like we all had the same idea when it came to younger soldiers. We know their name though, 'Dementor'. We both know what that implies. You're heading to Special Zone 4."

Harry blanched. Dementors were one of the most feared creatures in the magical world, able to drain the happiness and even the soul from their victims. "We do, and I'm pretty damn scared. Anything else?"

Volk grunted. "You can bring one backup, but they're not bringing anyone else. Take Helskid. Three teenagers, it'll send the right message of unity. I've got to go. Be at the Zone for 0900 hours."

Harry grunted and said. "Potter out." Before cutting the connection. Looking over at Kaitlyn he said. "You down to come with me on this next op? We're making contact with the Templar."

Kaitlyn nodded and looked down at her watch. "It is now around dinner time. Join us for dinner, and I will speak to Elder Betos."

Harry nodded and followed the Skirmishers walking out of the courtyard. He was fairly certain he would be feeling the pain in his arm tomorrow but he didn't think it would affect his performance too heavily. Arriving at the mess hall he saw the Skirmishers taking various meats and vegetables from a serving table and went over himself. Grabbing a plate he loaded it with a large amount of vegetables before heading off to an unoccupied part of the table.

It only took a couple of minutes before Harry finished his meal, Kaitlyn hadn't even finished loading her food up. Often times Harry had to quickly eat on the transport to a mission. Standing up he wiped his mouth off and walked over to the top of the table to where Betos was sitting. "Elder, I assume you know the plan for tomorrow?"

Betos nodded wizened as the rest of the Skirmishers fell silent at his impudence. Betos spoke up with an imperious voice. "I am aware of the situation. You and Priestess Helskid will be deploying at 0700 hours. Your rifle will be returned to you at the start of the operation, and should you complete your operation successfully the Templar known as Dementor will be invited to join us. We have obtained more intelligence from your networks that Dementor is a 14 year old female who specialises in sabotage and spying."

Harry nodded and smiled. "Thanks Elder. I won't let you down."

Betos nodded with a smile and Harry walked out of the mess hall, not noticing her eyes looking at him contemplatively. Volk had told her that this operation would be slightly more risky then the last operation but she had waved off his concern, saying that she had full faith in Harry and Kaitlyn's capabilities. Harry arrived back at Kaitlyn's room and sighed when he saw that it was locked.

Bringing out his wand after checking that nobody else was around and pointed it at the lock, casting. "Intentia Alohomora."

The electronic lock buzzed open and Harry smiled happily. The use of the prefix Intentia made nearly all spells work on digital materials. All it took was learning how to tone down the magic used in a spell to keep the electronics working. Stepping inside he looked around and reveled in the decor of the room. It was themed much like a waterfall, with the shower being the focal point of the room.

Looking for a space on the floor he realised that there was no room for him to actually lie out on the floor, and with no couch to speak of he opted for the next best solution. Going over to the closet he opened it up and saw that it was full to the brim with clothes. Sighing he closed the door, not before taking a peek at some of them and imagining Kaitlyn in them. Stretching out his back he grabbed his trenchcoat and pulled it around him, zipping it up to keep in the warmth. Attaching his electronic alarm he set it for 0645 hours and leaned himself back up against the door of the closet. While it wasn't the worst arrangement he ever had it was pretty uncomfortable, but consoled himself with the images of the dresses Kaitlyn had in her drawer. He was a teenage boy who had just met a pretty girl for the first time, could you blame him? Eventually he managed to lull himself to sleep, falling deeply into his dreams.

Povchange

Kaitlyn watched as Harry finished talking to Betos and walked out of the mess hall, presumably to go back to her...their room. She was positively baffled by the Reaper, it went against everything they knew about them. Most Reapers they had met were ruthless towards them, even Harry's teammate, but he was even so kind as to patch up her Elder in a show of good faith.

As she finished loading her plate she was motioned over to the head of the table by her Elder Mox, as well as Elder Betos. Not showing her surprise at being invited to the head of the table with the Elders she walked over, bowed, and sat down at a seat next to Elder Mox. Betos smiled over at her and asked. "Priestess, what do you make of the Reaper?"

Kaitlyn pushed around her food on her plate and looked up at the ceiling before responding. "He's...Intriguing. I want to be his friend, and know more about him. I've never met anyone so enigmatic or...attractive I guess you could say."

Mox chuckled much to her embarrassment. Looking down at her he ruffled her hair and said. "Well, we always want to become more like our old selves. However, we still need to review everything we know about the Reapers so far."

Another Elder spoke up at this, this one being Elder Honos, their chief strategist. "The Reapers are too formidable to keep up hostile relations with. That was the intent of the ceasefire wasn't it? Eventually we would get to a point where our aces would face off against each other, giving ADVENT room to take out the surviving group. It was fortunate that we sent Priestess Helskid, considering we didn't know they were sending the Spectre."

The Spectre, the name Honos and the rest of the strategists held for Harry. He first obtained that nickname when he managed to capture one of the V.I.P's they were capturing from right under their noses during an operation. Kaitlyn looked over to Elder Honos and asked. "What do you make of the Templars then? If we are to rendezvous with them, what do we have to expect?"

Honos sighed and pulled out a small datapad with a file on it. Honos was one of the more human looking Skirmishers in their ranks, with only his iris' being turned golden and his face avoiding too much alteration. "All we have on the Templar's name is the nickname Dementor, no idea what it means though. She's also around your age, being fourteen or so based on the Reaper's intelligence networks. By the way Betos, we should begin planning for relays being built between us and the Reapers."

Betos nodded and said. "I'll divert our extra funding towards the project, don't worry."

While being the leader figure of the Skirmisher's, Betos was still an excellent finance genius, and so handled the budgeting within the Skirmishers. She was the main reason why the Skirmisher's could have so many luxuries, due to her incredible balancing. Kaitlyn frowned at the thought of another woman in Harry's life, surely she was all he needed...Wait what!? Shaking her head at the thought she finished her meal while the Elder's conversed. Sighing as she finished her meal she yelped when she remembered Harry leaving and stood up abruptly. "Harry should still be locked out!"

All of the Elders laughed at her demeanor while she blushed at the stares of the rest of the Skirmishers. Before she could leave Mox called after her. "By the way, you've helped seal the Reaper Skirmisher Alliance. Well done Sister Helskid."

Kaitlyn gasped at the promotion and bowed hurriedly to him while saying. "Thank you Elder Mox!" Before running out of the mess hall towards her room. Arriving there she didn't see Harry standing outside annoyed like she expected, but the green light on her lock signaling somebody was inside. Walking in slowly she quietly called out. "Harry? How did you get in here?"

Not getting a response she closed the door and looked around, jumping when she saw him sleeping against the closet. Realising the discomfort he must be in she knelt down next to him, checked that he was deep asleep before cooing in his ear. "Oh you don't have to do that Harry. You can sleep in my bed with me...You don't need anyone else do you?"

She had no idea why these thoughts and words slipped past her lips but reasoned that he was still asleep, so she continued. "Of course you don't, you have me don't you? Let's get you into bed, I'll join you in a couple of minutes."

Picking him up, surprised at just how light he felt for how large he was she took off his shoes and trench coat, lovingly putting them into his crate. Putting him into the bed she watched as he flinched from the lack of contact and smiled when he quieted down again when she stroked his hair, falling back into his peaceful sleep. Getting out of her day clothes she put on a loose pink nightie and slipped under the covers with him, clapping twice to make the lights go off. Cuddling up to him in her tired stupor she curled her arms loosely around him and whisper again in his ear. "There's nothing to be afraid of, I'll always be with you..."

As she fell asleep she didn't notice the small glow that appeared around them, yellow and red in hue. The aura swirled for a moment before splitting off into two small lights, containing equal parts yellow and red. The two lights shot into their chests, glowing inside of them for a moment before dimming down, leaving the two in peace...