The Second Guy Fawkes

The crowd cheers and screams, half of them already forgetting what for, watching Ryker as he keeps his eyes fixed on the announcer across the room. The attention was obviously unwanted, but Ryker always finds a way to grasp it anyway.

He thinks it's his looks.

The Ikari leader grasps a rail and pulls his body over a glass fence on a higher platform, keeping to the edge of the club to keep away from pushing through people. The music reclaims its throne to captivate the ears of everyone within its reach, and the people swarming the echoing cave are happy to be taken control of. Walking to meet the announcer at the highest platform, Ryker sends a glare to a man with a black cowboy hat with a neon red outline, dressed in a trenchcoat of his own with jeans and a sturdy belt. The man sends back a smile as Ryker stands up to his level.

"What was that supposed to be?" Ryker asks, growled and rusted. A woman in a crop-top and shorts hands the man a neon blue drink in a long, thin glass.

"A fantastic reveal, don't you agree?" The man responds, walking back into a triangular opening that leads to the backrooms.

"No one asked for it, Nero," Ryker answers, following him slowly while his hands rest in the pockets of his trenchcoat.

Nero fixes his hat. "No one is asking for you to do what we've got planned, either, but here we are," he says, unlocking and sliding open the metal doors to a more compact room with a roundtable. Two other soldiers in different attire than anyone in the crowd stand over a hologram on the table that lights up the room and shows a map of the entire city. "You made it just in time for the discussion."

"Last time I checked, the discussion began on my command," Ryker grunts. Nero walks to the other side of the room, sipping on the drink as it slowly drains from its glass.

"Your tag ringed," Nero counters, "We know you were chased on your way here. We didn't know if you would've made it." The other soldiers watch Ryker as he throws another glare. Nero chuckles.

"How much time do we have?" Ryker asks, swiping his finger through the hologram to make it move.

"Two hours, maximum," Nero answers with a wince from the strength of his drink.

Ryker curses. "That's it?"

"We've already got everything prepared, don't worry. The only thing we have to do now is get there," Nero assures.

"Run this through with me," Ryker asks. The two other soldiers, leaning in their crimson uniforms, listen in as they gather information on what the Ikari's next mission is.

"The Kaiyo tower. It's the new central for the city and where the Queen vibes. We've got to get to the rooftop to throw one of those," he points to a glass box holding a metal ball the size of a fist with black carving marked all around it, "A little grenade into the cannons where they'll be shooting the fireworks for their celebration. With all the explosives together, we'll have that tower crashing down harder than this one did an eternity ago. That boom there will be the Ikari way of showing independence."

Ryker taps on the black band wrapped around his wrist to put a two hour timer that will help him keep his actions in check. He looks up to Nero, who gives him the orb after taking it from the glass.

"What else?" Ryker asks without an ounce of excitement for the action.

"Right now, the explosives aren't even at the tower yet. They're being transported there as we speak, and if you need an update on where they are, there's someone I know who is tracking their every move," the cowboy continues.

"Where can I find them?"

"Remember the old Club Oxygen building?"

"Yeah."

"The place got sold after it shut down for suspicion, and now some freak turned it into their own little paradise. The owner knows more about the plan, she's a friend of ours, trust me," Nero finishes.

"Cool, thanks," Ryker says, looking at the old club from the hologram before turning to leave.

"Woah, wait, that's it?" Nero throws his hands up.

Ryker pauses. "What do you mean?"

"I don't get to know what my job is?"

"Sit here and be good," Ryker answers.

"I'm not your pet. I want to help be the second Guy Fawkes, fella," Nero argues.

"You'll help by not helping. I don't need your mouth running with my footsteps," Ryker says.

"I can shoot," Nero prompts.

"...and you'll miss," Ryker responds, leaving the room to fog in internal fumes. As much as Nero is good for gathering all the intel for the rebellion, Ryker is the one to dig his claws into the ground. He does everything in the frontline, and while he prefers to work alone, he doesn't want to see anyone else getting hurt. The Ikari had already fallen to the Kaiyo after the war, and Nero's underground is the only thing left painted red for a reason.

Ryker treads back to the elevator slowly, this time giving little care to keep himself away from the crowd, even with a tick pulsing on his wrist. The music keeps the same volume even after he reaches the exit, the earth helping the sound contain itself in the massive room. He smiles at a woman giving him a glare as he walks out. She wears the same tattered, wrecked outfit as the rest of the Ikari, and Ryker finds interest in those who can't stand him. Rather than appealing to his fame from awe and inspiration, his dark reputation has led him to be something to fear and cower under.

As for the Ikari, they do the same.

He's the guardian to their survival.

Their bridge to the future.

He hates working alone, but his intentions for his work are beyond selfless. He steps back onto the elevator platform and waits for the outlined glass to rise. Looking out past the black marble and red streaks bleeding against patterned stone walls, he finds the hundreds of individuals traversing the shelter and understands that he has only two hours to bring their visions to the eyes of the world.

Tonight, the wrath of Ryker will cover the earth in ashes.