Work Text:
Error! Error! Error!
The large blocky red letters and dump of random numbers were taunting him as they flashed over and over. Valko grimaced as he sat back in his chair, the screen illuminating his face. He could taste the copper rolling over his tongue and trickling down his throat from where he had bitten down on his lip with his fangs.
Error! Error! Error!
No matter what button he pressed, what sequence of numbers he tried to enter into the command prompt, nothing worked. Those same words flashed like an insult, reminding him that somewhere out there was someone smarter than him. And that someone was likely also after the data that Lucius coveted so greatly.
Aether Cores.
He had to admit, Valko did not understand the obsession everyone seemed to have with the nearly mythical protocore. It promised power, sure, but such power always came with a cost. It was not something humanity had the capacity to properly wield. But when did that ever stop the greedy from reaching too high and burning?
A knock on the door snapped him from his musings. It opened before he could even say anything, his secretary hurrying in.
“Chairman Ao,” she greeted with a bow. “The Colonel is here.”
Valko sighed. “Thank you, Ming. Let him in.”
Ming bowed again and disappeared. Valko rolled his shoulders back to try and ease the ache that had settled there before pushing against the desk with his foot and wheeling over to his worktable where everything was set up. He had just opened up his toolbox when the door opened again and Ming guided their guest through the door. The Colonel was a tall man, barely shorter than Valko himself, with dark hair and violet eyes. As always, he was immaculately dressed in the red, black and white of the Farspace Fleet. He smelled like apples and petrichor.
“Xia,” Valko greeted with a nod.
“Ao,” was the curt reply from Caleb.
“You know the drill,” Valko said as he pointed to the worktable. Caleb nodded and undid the buttons of his coat before shrugging it off and draping it across a chair. He did the same with his shirt and gloves and then moved to the worktable and sat down. Valko shuffled closer on his chair and motioned at Caleb’s right arm. “Any issues?”
“Just the joint in the thumb getting stiff again,” Caleb replied as he held out his arm.
Valko hummed and slipped his glasses on from where it rested on the top of his head. He then placed a soft press against the spot between where the radial and ulnar vasculature would normally be located on Caleb’s arm. The skin graft peeled away silently, revealing the mechanical underneath. Silence fell over the room as he got to work looking closely at the intricate parts and adjusting where necessary. Caleb watched in silence for a bit, but eventually got bored so he occupied himself by looking around the office instead. Violet eyes narrowed when he spotted blocky red words flashing on the widescreens.
“Did you try to hack into Akso’s database?” Caleb asked.
Valko paused his tinkering and frowned. “No.”
“Huh,” Caleb hummed. “Hunter’s Association, then?”
Valko looked up at Caleb, eyebrow quirked. “What gave it away?”
The corner of the Colonel’s lips twitched, as if he was trying to fight a smile. “I recognise Obsidian’s warning messages.”
“What?”
That got Valko an actual amused smile. “You have no idea, do you? The numbers are code. Obsidian is cussing you out for daring to encroach on their territory.”
“Am I supposed to understand any of what you just said?” Valko asked as he returned to his tinkering.
“Lucius has not warned you about them?” Caleb asked, surprised. “I am surprised. Not many things scare the old man like Obsidian does.”
Valko’s ears perked at the possibility of learning about one of Lucius’s weaknesses. Valko despised the old man. Just like he despised most of the vile cowards who worked for EVER. He only cooperated with them and the Farspace Fleet because it benefitted him. One day he would cut them loose - and what a wonderful day that will be.
“Enlighten me,” Valko encouraged.
Caleb narrowed his eyes, considering. He glanced between the screens and the redhead, contemplating. On the one hand, he did not trust Valko, but on the other, he distrusted Lucius even more. The enemy of your enemy is your friend, and all that.
“Obsidian is the Association’s top secret agent,” Caleb whispered. “Ever heard of the Fountaingate incident?”
Valko hummed. “Yes. EVER’s databases were scrambled. To the point where almost an entire decade’s work was lost. Are you saying we have Obsidian to thank for that?”
“Amongst other things.”
“Where does Akso fit in?”
“Guard dog. They are responsible for its very effective firewalls which have frustrated Lucius for years.”
Valko hummed again as he swapped tools. “Sounds like someone I would very much like to meet.”
Caleb had to fight back a satisfied smirk. ‘Oh, and she would very much like to meet you too, EVER’s lapdog.’
“What were you looking for?” Caleb asked. In for a penny, in for a pound. He hissed when he felt Valko pull on the wire responsible for the minimal sensation the mechanical arm was capable of, disconnecting it. He swapped his tools again, eyes now solely focused on his work.
“Very talkative today, aren’t you, Xia?” Valko stated, voice aloof.
Caleb shrugged. “We both want to get Lucius what he wants, we may as well help each other.”
Valko scoffed, but said nothing as he wiggled the spent wire out and moved to replace it with a new one. He could smell the deceit on the other man, and it had him curious. What were the Colonel’s true motives? How deep did his loyalties to Lucius run? Perhaps playing along would get him answers.
“A prototype was stolen recently,” Valko explained, still focused on his work. “I want it back.”
“So you hacked into the Hunter Association’s database?” Caleb asked incredulously.
“They always have their fingers in the protocore pie,” Valko shrugged.
That was true.
“What kind of prototype?”
Valko looked up and grinned wolfishly. “The ‘we won’t need an Aether Core anymore’ kind.”
Caleb’s eyes widened. What the fuck? What could possibly be able to achieve that? And why did Valko just casually drop that?
Valko snorted at the look on Caleb’s face. “Did you think Lucius would just sit and wait idly?”
Caleb swallowed thickly at the implications. This was not good. Not good at all. “Why are you even telling me this?”
“You asked,” Valko said with a shrug. “Besides, you reek of deceit. I have a suspicion we both despise Lucius. Perhaps we could come to an agreement?”
Caleb’s eyes narrowed. “You’re not going to give the prototype to him.”
It was not a question.
Another wolfish grin. “Fuck no.”
Valko finished installing the new wire. He let go of Caleb’s arm and sat back and motioned to the other man to do a test drive. Caleb scrunched his nose and flexed his fingers.
“Thumb feels better,” the Colonel stated. “I can get you the location of your stolen prototype.”
Valko tilted his head to the side. “And how exactly are you going to circumvent our dear friend’s firewalls?”
‘I will just ask her,’ Caleb thought, but did not dare say it out loud. “The Fleet has its methods.”
“Hm,” Valko hummed as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Alright, I’ll bite. What do you want in return?”
“I will let you know.”
The encrypted email came two days later. Valko had to stop himself from crushing his desk when he read it. The fools were going to sell the prototype to the victor of a Midnight Hunt. To be hosted on the outskirts of Linkon.
Near home. Near the pack.
What in the N109 Zone type of bullshit was this?
He ground down on his teeth as he continued to read the email, pausing when he came to the bottom.
Careful, chairman. My information is never free. And you owe me, not the Colonel. - O.
He blinked, then barked out a laugh. Well, well, well. The Fleet has its methods, his ass. Colonel Caleb Xia had unfettered access to Obsidian and had not shared the information with Lucius.
How utterly delicious.
Darkness loomed over the city as Valko settled in the shadows of a roof alcove, the sky covered by gray clouds but the energy of the looming full moon intense. It was the night of the Hunt, and he could see the gathering of greedy rich fools inside the skyscraper across the street. They all appeared unbothered, champagne in hand and benign chatter being their main form of entertainment while they waited for the main feature.
Several alert messages had already been sent through the city’s emergency system. The Hunter’s Association was well aware of what was happening. Valko had chuckled when his phone had pinged several times. Whoever had coordinated this event either wanted the Association to get involved to make it more interesting, or they were stupid.
He was leaning more towards stupid.
After all, the upstarts behind all this were EVER goons. Valko had uncovered that with his further snooping and had scoffed. What the end goal was here he was unsure about, but infighting and backstabbing amongst the various factions were not uncommon. Sometimes he wondered how EVER ever expected to get anywhere with their true goal when they were so busy undermining each other.
No matter, he was going to put an end to this nonsense tonight. And the more EVER destroys itself from within, the quicker he will get what he wants and can wash himself clean of them.
His phone pinged again. He quickly glanced at it, expecting another warning from the Association about “large beasts” but instead found a text message from Ingrid.
Meme Mistress 🤓: Where are you?
Baby Bro 🐺: Out.
Meme Mistress 🤓: No shit, Sherlock. Did you see the Association’s warnings? Too close to home. Gran is throwing darts.
Baby Bro 🐺: I pity the walls. And yes, I saw. I’m dealing with it.
Meme Mistress 🤓: The fuck you mean you’re dealing with it?
Baby Bro 🐺: Don’t play dumb, sis. 😑
Meme Mistress 🤓: VALKO AO are you gatecrashing the Association’s mission 🤨?
Baby Bro 🐺: No comment 🙃.
She was typing again, but the sound of a door opening nearby had Valko on high alert. He pocketed his phone and shifted so that the shadows covered him. His ears twitched as he listened to the footsteps coming closer. There were more than one pair. He inhaled deeply, letting the scent of his prey wash over him. Nothing pleasant - sweat, overabundance of deodorant, gunpowder and lingering notes of lunch. He grimaced and reigned his sense of smell in. Better he just focus on listening.
They were trespassing on his territory. He did not need any advantages. Everything around him was the advantage. He was the predator, they were the prey. If they thought otherwise, they were fools.
One stepped into his periphery. Valko smirked and shifted into position.
Gotcha!
They released the Wanderers ten minutes into Valko’s crusade. He heard the unearthly scream first, a henchman groaning under his boot.
Then it launched itself at him.
He grunted and spun to kick the creature away. The Wanderer howled as it went flying. Valko straightened and rolled his shoulders as the Wanderer also gathered its wits. Golden eyes narrowed and tail twitched as Valko took measure of the thing.
It shared characteristics with him. Dark fur, claws, fangs. He did not like the implications of that. What on earth was EVER cooking in their laboratories?
More of the same type emerged from the shadows, alongside goons and mercenaries hired to participate in the Hunt. It probably would not be long before Hunters joined the fray as well. Valko scowled at them all. He cracked his neck and shifted into position.
Time to beat them all to a pulp. There was only room for one victor. And this was his territory. He hoped his big “fuck you” tonight would make Lucius squirm.
Trespassing on someone else’s hunting grounds…that’s not very nice.
Adrenaline pumped through his veins as another Wanderer crumpled underneath him. Valko inhaled sharply as he took a brief moment of respite. The city was loud, gunfire echoing across the foggy night sky. He had heard the telltale mechanical sigh of a Hunter’s firearm just moments before. The Association had officially joined the party. He wondered how long until he ran into one of them.
The never-ending noise did nothing to hide the footsteps approaching him from behind.
He waited.
Bang!
His ears twitched as he pulled on the threads of his Evol, the ladder leading to the upper roof shredding away from the nearby wall and flying into his waiting hand. He lifted it behind and above him, the bullet that would have ended things prematurely colliding with the metal loudly. He turned slightly to look up at the fool who had attempted to harm him and smirked. The mercenary startled and stepped back, but before he could turn tail and run, Valko dropped the ladder, spun and leaped up into air, Evol humming under his skin. Metal fragments went flying as he landed on the mercenary with a drop kick. The man did not even have the chance to scream.
His phone vibrated in his pocket just as more mercenaries materialised from the darkness. Valko smirked as he pulled the device out and answered it.
“Hello?”
“Ingrid is going to murder you,” a strong feminine voice sang, amusement clear in its tone.
A mercenary leaped at him, and Valko dodged without even blinking.
“I told her I was busy,” Valko retorted as he kicked another mercenary out of the way and then strolled across the rooftop as if it was just another Tuesday. “And why are you doing her dirty work for her, Artemis?”
“Did you forget what day it is?” Artemis asked, amusement still very clear in her voice.
Valko quirked an eyebrow just as a Wanderer leaped from the opposite rooftop and aimed right for him. “Enlighten me.”
“It’s Greg’s first full moon. Can’t be a family reunion without you.”
The Wanderer opened its large maw and howled before attempting to take a bite out of his arm. Valko huffed, momentarily dropped his phone and leaped over the creature while pulling metal towards him, encasing his hands and wrists. He used the added strength to smash into the Wanderer, and used the momentum to kick it across into another that emerged from the shadows mere moments later. He caught his phone just before it made contact with the ground.
“A family reunion, huh?” Valko asked. “Pass. Tell Auntie, Cous and Grandma I said hi.”
Artemis clicked her tongue. “Nuh uh, baby brother, that is not how this works. You promised Greg. Also, what on earth are you doing? What’s all that noise?”
Valko’s ears twitched when the echo of a Hunter’s firearm rang through the space to his right. There was a Hunter nearby. A Wanderer leaped over from the same vicinity, leading to him kicking up a manhole cover and throwing it at the creature’s maw like a frisbee.
He paused momentarily when an unusual scent suddenly invaded his senses. Something floral and earthy, with a saccharine undertone - completely out of place for this metropolitan wasteland. He reigned in the temptation to sniff the air. No distractions.
The Wanderer roared.
Valko leaped up and then straight down to kick the monster in the face, just as he noticed a flash of silver from the corner of his eye. His kick landed at the same time as the burn of the Hunter’s energy pistol. He spun to land back on his feet, his gaze landing on the woman in a carbon fibre mesh suit, one pistol aimed at him, the other holstered with several kunai around her waist.
“I’m entertaining a friend,” he said to his sister. He hung up before she could ask any further questions.
Gold met lilac.
Hair the colour of the moon, pale eyes, sunkissed skin, soft curves. She was not in the standard Hunter’s uniform, nor did she carry herself like one. Her pistol was the only dead giveaway to her profession, and it remained trained on him. She looked him up and down, then tilted her head to the side and smirked.
“Chairman.”
Valko blinked.
And then it clicked. His grin turned wolfish as he too tilted his head to the side. “Obsidian.”
Silence as they sized each other up.
He had to admit, she was beautiful. There was something almost otherworldly about her. He could not really explain it. Her silver hair complimented her lilac eyes. And those eyes…Endless. Wise. Intense. A shiver ran down his spine when he realised her hard stare reminded him of Xia. There was something there. A kinship. It went beyond the colours being on the same spectrum.
That, or he was losing his mind.
The silence broke as a helicopter emerged from the clouds, a group of mercenaries armed to the teeth onboard. A sniper took aim, the red laser dot focusing on the center of Valko’s chest. He growled.
Obsidian aimed at the sniper without even looking, and fired a series of consecutive shots. The man crumpled, and his friends onboard the helicopter raged as they all leaped onto the roof, opening fire.
Obsidian flashed him a smile, and then he was presented with a showing of a dangerous dance. Valko’s eyes widened as the woman cut through the mercenaries like butter. She barely even flinched. Every move was like a choreographed performance. She was no prey. She was a predator in her own right.
A group of reinforcements joined, and Valko had to shake himself out of his stupor to rejoin the fray. No way was he going to let the spy outshine him. They moved around each other as if they had done this before, as if this was not at all their first meeting. She read his movements like clockwork, and he responded to her cues based on instinct alone.
Who was this woman?
The last mercenary fell and for the first time in several hours, silence fell over Linkon. Not a true silence, of course. No city truly ever sleeps. But the gunfire faded, and the howls of Wanderers ceased.
The Hunt was over. Two fighters remained. He was under no illusion that this would likely end positively. She had said her information was not free. But what demands would she make?
Gold met lilac once more.
The clouds that had obscured the night sky parted, revealing the moon in all her glory. Valko shivered as he felt its call, his blood simmering under his skin. His inner wolf rattled at its cage, howling to be released. His instincts exploded into a crescendo when that same light kissed the skin of the woman standing opposite him. The glow elevated her. His heart lurched at the sight.
Smack!
He did not even see her move. One moment she had been standing several feet away, the next, she was in his personal space, hand curled into a fist. The force behind her punch was immense. He stumbled backwards, eyes wide, cheek stinging. He lost his footing, and had to basically do a backwards somersault to get back on his feet. He had barely gotten his footing before she threw herself at him, knocking him onto his back, straddling his hips and pressing down on his neck with her forearm.
And here he thought her providing him with information meant they would at least not be enemies.
“Hey!” Valko exclaimed as he blocked another punch. “Are you insane?”
She huffed, but said nothing. Valko grabbed the arm pressing down on his neck and sat up. He pulled her close, his nose brushing against her ear.
“Look, I was trying to help-”
She shifted, which caused her silver hair to tickle his nostrils and cause him to inhale deeply. He froze as her scent washed over him, a shockwave shooting through his entire body like a powerful electrical current.
Moonlight.
Jasmine. Green tea.
Ocean spray. Lavender.
Antiseptic. Sandalwood.
Gunpowder. Coffee.
Baby powder. Floral fabric softener.
Almonds. Frankincense.
Apples. Petrichor.
“Your scent…”
There was so much. It overwhelmed him completely, to the point where his thoughts became muddled and his heart rate sped up, the organ beating violently against his ribcage. His grip on her arm tightened as the world tilted on its axis. It honestly felt like the ground had opened up and he was in freefall. The beast within was roaring loudly, gnashing at its confines, desperate to be released. He did not even register burying his nose in her hair and inhaling deeply once more.
A mantra echoed through his mind, despite all the conflicting scents that were so intricately interwoven with her own: Mate! Mate! Mate!
And to confuse him even further, another scent lingered underneath it all. Something cloying, high notes and distinctive. A shiver ran down his spine, his ears twitched, his fangs ached, his tail thumped against the ground. He recognised the scent. He knew he did. It was right there, the memory, on the edge of his consciousness, taunting him.
He grunted as he pushed back and rolled them until he was on top. She hissed and struggled against him, her lilac eyes aflame. Their eyes met, and it was as if he was truly seeing her for the first time. There was a mole under her left eye. He had to bite down on his bottom lip to prevent himself from making an embarrassing noise at the discovery.
Beautiful.
And as that thought settled itself amongst the other rushing thoughts in his overactive brain, the memory of the sweet scent clicked into place.
He went rigid above her, golden eyes wide, heart racing, and his gut sinking. Saccharine sweet and subtle. The beginnings of something new. Vitality. A woman at the height of herself, a bright beacon, glowing and magnificent. He thought of his cousin thirteen years ago, with Greg. Of his sister just two years prior, with his nephew.
“You’re pregnant,” he gasped, voice hoarse.
Her struggling ceased and something flashed in her eyes. Surprise, confusion, fear…
He regretted opening his mouth the moment that fear vanished from her face but remained etched onto her very being. He could smell it on her, strong and overpowering. His inner wolf raged. How dare you frighten her!
“What?” she asked with a hiss, voice cold and deadly, rage dancing on her face.
He let go of her, getting up and scooting away as if she had burned him. He lifted his arms in a placating gesture, hoping that he came across as non-threatening. A cold sweat broke out over him, his mind racing.
She was pregnant.
Is that why she smelled of so many others? The jasmine and green tea was all her. That he had been able to determine just now when she had been underneath him. But the rest? Subtle. Foreign. Imprints left on her being. One of those lingering presences he now realised carried the sweetness of apples and the earthy aroma of dry soil after rain. A familiar scent, one he had noted earlier that week accompanied by a cold violet stare.
The green-eyed monster was desperate to break free. Valko bit his lip, fangs drawing blood, hoping the sting would help distract him from his loud instincts.
It did not help at all.
“How the fuck do you know?” she demanded as she raised her arm to aim her gun at him again. She was angry. She was beautiful when angry.
His stomach dropped. What was he supposed to do? Run? Tell her the truth? None of his grandmother and sisters’ stories about meeting your mate covered this sort of scenario!
So, he did what he did best. Used humour. He smiled and pointed to his ears on top of his head, then announced with a tone of exasperation: “Not really human.”
She paused at that, lilac eyes flickering to his head, then back down to his golden eyes. She blinked. And then he watched, amazed, as blood rushed to her cheeks. He had to bite back a whimper and practically chant to himself not to get hard. This was ridiculous - horny because of a simple blush!
“Oh,” she said with a soft sigh. “Oh.”
Her shoulders sagged and he breathed a sigh of relief when she lowered her weapon once more.
“Fucking hell,” she huffed. “This is the real world, not bloody fanfiction.”
She scrunched her nose and she looked him over again, eyes pausing on the ears and the brief flick of his tail, which had been uncontrollably swaying and wagging behind him. It did little to hide his tumultuous emotions.
“So,” she began, a gentle breeze carried her soft voice over to him. “Uh, your reaction just now…”
He froze. Oh hells. She noticed. Of course, she noticed. What did he expect? She may be human, but she was the Hunter Association’s top spy. What her innate senses lacked, her observation skills made up for.
“I-“ he began, but trailed off. What was he supposed to say? You smell like Mother Nature. Like the moon and stardust. Like everything right in the universe. You smell like home.
She completely knocked the sails out of him when she asked her next question: “Am I your mate?”
He blinked. She blinked back.
“How do you even-“
She cut him off with a laugh. “Not my first rodeo with non-humans.”
What did that even mean?
She shifted onto her knees and shuffled closer to him, her scent and warmth seeping into his being. He held his breath as she paused mere inches away from him, lilac eyes sparkling with curiosity and amusement. His ears twitched and his fingers ached to reach out and touch her.
“You are not what I expected, Valko Ao,” she whispered, her warm breath tickling his cheeks.
It was his turn to blush madly. He swallowed thickly and gave her a toothy smile. “Right back at you, Obsidian.”
She clicked her tongue, the same way Artemis always did. The similarity startled Valko.
“Sumire.”
He blinked, stumped. “Huh?”
She rolled her eyes. “Get your brain out of the gutter, wolfboy. My name. It is Sumire.”
Sumire.
Sumire.
Violet.
It suited her. She had told him her name. She wasn’t running. She knew he was not fully human. She knew what she was to him. And yet she wasn’t running.
Hope soared through him.
“You are taking this very well,” he said softly as he tilted his head to the side.
She huffed. “Like I said, not my first rodeo. And I felt it too.”
He gaped at her. “But you’re human.”
She shrugged. “I do not think I felt whatever it is you felt, but I felt…something.”
“Now what?” he asked, voice small.
She grinned. “Now we go pick up that prototype since we are both the victors of the Hunt. Then you take me out for dinner.”
He barked out a laugh. “Just like that? What about-“ He trailed off and gestured to her middle, which was still flat regardless of the life growing there.
Sumire stood up and brushed dirt from her trousers before cheekily responding: “I do not think the others should join us quite yet. Caleb can though, I suppose. I have been told I owe you for his arm.”
What?
Others?
Valko’s eyes narrowed as he considered again the fragrances that clung to her, in particular the scent of apples and petrichor. “Xia is the father?”
She looked at him deadpan. “I don’t know. He could be.”
What?
She laughed.