A shadow dropped down from the neon-lit skyline of the Margin.

She didn’t fall. She descended with a controlled grace. Her boots touched the rusted metal of the alleyway without making a single sound.

Enter Cassia.

She was a vision of lethal efficiency. She wore a sleek suit of dark stealth armor that swallowed the crimson light of the Auditor invasion.

A high-powered sniper rifle was slung casually over her shoulder. Her dark hair was cut into a sharp bob. Her silver eyes scanned the alleyway with the cold gaze of a predator.

She was a rogue Cosmic Bounty Hunter.

Judging by the flawless execution of that sniper shot, she was a former high-ranking Auditor herself.

Cassia walked forward. She casually reached up and plucked the glowing bounty puck out of the air. She tossed it in her palm like a toy.

"Four thousand Merit Points for a High-Auditor," Cassia smirked. Her voice was a smooth and confident purr. "Not a bad haul for a Tuesday."

Vane immediately bristled. The scarred frontiersman stepped forward with his heavy broadsword raised. His jaw was set in a mask of fury.

"Hand it over, Cassia," Vane demanded. His voice was thick with frustration.

"The city’s defense grids are down. We need that bounty to buy healing supplies for the lower wards. You can’t just swoop in and steal the kill after we did the heavy lifting."

Cassia let out a sharp laugh. It wasn’t cruel but it was entirely dismissive.

"Oh, Vane. Still playing the bleeding-heart hero, I see. I didn’t steal the kill, darling. I secured the asset while you two were busy playing games with the foot soldiers. Finders keepers."

She found Vane’s hero routine exhausting.

She respected his strength but his idealism was a liability.

Her silver eyes drifted past the frontiersman and landed squarely on Arthur Sterling.

She looked at the ruined expensive dark coat. She looked at the pitch-black sword resting casually at his side. She looked at the incapacitated Auditors on the ground.

A spark of professional intrigue lit up her eyes. She recognized the posture. She recognized the cold stare. He was a fellow shark.

"And who is the new intern?" Cassia asked and tilted her head.

"I’m the CEO," Arthur stated flatly.

He didn’t draw his sword. He simply stepped past Vane and closed the distance between himself and the bounty hunter. "And you are holding company property. Hand over the puck."

Cassia raised an eyebrow. She was entirely unimpressed by the intimidation tactic.

"Company property? You’re a long way from the core worlds, suit. Out here, the only law is who draws faster."

"Let’s test that," Arthur murmured.

Arthur moved. He didn’t use magic. He shot his hand forward and aimed to physically snatch the glowing puck from her grasp with blinding speed.

Cassia was faster.

As the motion completed, the crisp sound of the system chimed in his mind.

[Warning]

↳ Hostile close-quarters engagement initiated.

She didn’t retreat. Cassia stepped directly into Arthur’s guard.

Her left hand snapped up to parry his grab while her right hand drew a sleek knife from her thigh holster in a single motion. She slashed at his ribs to draw blood and force distance.

Arthur twisted his torso so the blade only grazed his coat. He countered with a brutal palm strike aimed at her collarbone.

Cassia ducked it effortlessly and swept her leg to take out his footing. Arthur hopped over the sweep and drove his knee toward her chest.

Cassia blocked it with her sniper rifle stock.

The impact rang loudly in the alley.

It was a breathtaking and lightning-fast scuffle. It was a dance of pure street-fighting against flawless corporate martial arts.

No spells and no auras. It was just raw and lethal skill. She matched his speed perfectly. She countered his every move with dirty and practical efficiency.

They broke apart simultaneously and skidded back a few feet.

Cassia was grinning with a wild look in her silver eyes. Arthur wiped a smudge of dirt from his cheek. His own predatory smile returned.

She was a true equal. She played the game just as ruthlessly as he did.

Arthur hadn’t met many people he couldn’t read in under thirty seconds. Cassia was already at thirty-one.

’System,’ Arthur commanded in his mind. He was intrigued by the asset. ’Analyze and Bind.’

[System Error]

↳ Initiating Target Scan...

↳ Target ’Cassia’ possesses equivalent Administrative clearance.

↳ Access Denied.

↳ Target cannot be Bound.

Arthur’s breath hitched. Equivalent clearance?

That meant she hadn’t stumbled into the Frontier by accident. Someone with her level of access didn’t end up in a slum alleyway by coincidence. She had chosen to be here.

She wasn’t just a rogue hunter. She had access to the foundational code. She was playing on the same board he was.

"You two boys fight well," Cassia chuckled.

She casually slid her knife back into its holster. She pocketed the glowing bounty puck.

"But if you’re trying to grind out Merit Points by fighting trash-mob Auditors in the slums, you’re going to die of old age before you balance your ledger."

Vane gritted his teeth and lowered his sword slightly. "What’s your angle, Cassia?"

Cassia looked at Arthur. Her silver eyes locked onto his pitch-black ones. The unspoken tension between them was electric. They were two predators recognizing each other in the wild.

"I like your style, suit," Cassia purred and took a step forward. "You fight like a man who knows how to exploit a loophole. If you want to make real money in the Frontier... you’re going to need me."

"Carry on," Arthur said smoothly. He entirely abandoned the fight for the puck.

Cassia smirked and leaned in close. "I know where the Regional Reserve is. The central bank where the Omniverse stores confiscated reality-energy." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"I have the backdoor codes. But I need muscle, and I need a tactician."

She looked between Arthur and Vane.

Neither man answered immediately. The offer hung in the ruined air between the three of them like an unsigned contract.

"We declare a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. We pause the local audits. And we rob the Heavens blind."