A horse appeared behind the agent, who reacted with swiftness. His movements were an indication of his training. Within a few seconds, his handgun was drawn and he was already extending his arms. Of course, he might have expected to face off against a human being, not a horse. His eyes widened upon seeing the animal. He hesitated for a second, but that was all the time Epona needed. She controlled the horse to simply raise its hooves. Before the agent could fire off a shot, the animal had shot out both its legs. It’s blow landed right between the agent’s legs.

The man’s eyes bulged out as his hands reached for his precious jewels out of sheer instinct.

While the agent was distracted with his pain, Maitho twisted the man's arm and retrieved his handgun. Using the crook of his elbow, he wrapped the agent’s neck and squeezed. There was resistance, but between the blow to the nuts and the twisted arm, the agent was in too much pain to do much damage.

Maitho brought the agent’s unconscious body to a rest on the ground in order to avoid sounds that might give them away. Epona appeared beside him and pointed her gun into the home. There was a hallway that was devoid of life. But that didn’t mean the house was empty of occupants. If there were others, they might soon begin to wonder why their teammate was taking so long to return.

Brigid and Bevan were crossing the road, their pace fast but they weren't running. Maitho checked the windows of the houses on the other side that had a clear sight of them. The sun’s rays glinted off the glass, making it almost impossible to see through. He hoped that nobody was watching them or worse, had their smartphones or camera devices to record the strange figures with handguns behind the neighboring house. He really did not want to make his first appearance in a local news program as a criminal.

Press-checking the handgun to make sure that a bullet was chambered already, Maitho pressed himself against the wall beside the partly-opened door. He still had the gun Brigid had handed to him earlier tucked into his pants. It comforted him to know that he was thoroughly armed, even though he had no intention of using a kill shot. Or even using so many rounds of the handgun. He hoped a firefight wasn’t in his immediate future.

From his angle, he was able to see further into the room that the open door led into. It was an empty kitchen. Or at least it seemed that way. Maitho still wanted to make sure. He leaned inside quickly, his handgun following his eye movements.

No signs of life.

Bevan walked up to the unconscious agent's body and picked it up like it was a small bag. He draped the man over his shoulder. He disappeared around the corner where the narrow path dissected the gray house and the fence of the next property.

“You two head through the house,” said Brigid. “I’ll come around from the side with Bevan.”

Maitho nodded. He still couldn’t get rid of the image of her holding a weapon against an unarmed person. There will be time for conversations later. Right now, they had a mission to accomplish.

Holding his handgun close to his chest, but aiming the muzzle in front of him, Maitho entered the house. He instantly extended his hand and aimed down the sights. Where he looked, the gun pointed.

He heard the soft footfalls of Epona behind him. A few seconds later, he saw the light from the open door thinning. The room was losing brightness. It only meant that Epona was closing the door. A sliver of light still remained, indicating that the door was slightly ajar.

It was a smart move. Epona had closed the door enough to block out the view for anyone passing by the house outside, but she hadn’t attempted to shut it entirely. There was no guarantee that the doorknob, or just about any other part of the door, wouldn’t make a sound to alert any potential occupants of the house.

Maitho moved forward carefully. He didn’t know if Brigid and Bevan had already made it to the back of the house. When he entered the hallway, he found himself next to a staircase to his right. The wall to his left was devoid of any family pictures. There was a general absence of decor and accouterments that indicated that a family, or for that matter anyone else, lived here. Which only meant that the person or people who roamed the rooms and hallways preferred to keep their identities a secret or they were not planning to stay long. Near the staircase was a door, which Maitho presumed opened into the backyard. He spotted a window next to the door, but it was covered it blinds and prevented him from seeing outside.

Before Maitho could arrive at the foot of the staircase, a voice broke out from the upper floor. Someone was more than likely standing at the top of the stairs. “Antares, you done?”

For a second, Maitho didn’t understand the words uttered by the speaker. The sudden panic that flushed through his body blocked rational thinking. But his training had taught him to quell his emotions enough to allow rational thoughts to trickle through.

It occurred to him that the speaker was more than likely another agent. His words were directed towards someone whose name was Antares.

Who was defintely same man Maitho had rendered unconscious outside the house.

Maitho pushed his back against the wall while keeping his aim trained on the staircase. It allowed him to gain as much view as possible of the lowermost section of the staircase.

He pushed with his mind…

…but nothing happened.

He realized that he had used his powers for the maximum number of times for the day, realizing that it had occurred with his fight with Raiden.

He heard the sound of static and realized that the agent upstairs had activated his walkie-talkie. “Antares, check in.”

Maitho risked a quick look with Epona, who was aiming her weapon straight down the hallway, right at the back door. He understood her tactic immediately. With him covering the staircase, it was better for her to aim another entry point, allowing them both to ensure they avoided any surprises.

Of course, there was also the front door that they had used to enter the house. But there was nothing anyone could do about that and it currently posed the least threat.

A sound of a gun being unholstered reached Maitho’s ears. The agent upstairs had armed himself. There was the sound of soft taps on the hardwood floor above him. That meant there was at least one other agent upstairs, totalling the number of targets to at least two.

Maitho didn’t move. He forced himself to breathe normally to try to calm his racing heart.

That was when he heard the sound of a thud, followed by the sounds of two people struggling.

There could only be one reason for the sounds. Maitho walked forward, not dropping his aim. When he reached the staircase, he leaned in for a quick peek and returned to his original position. In the brief second he had taken to check the top of the stairs, he had noticed a figure.

Brigid.

Maitho stepped onto the stairs. He noticed the body of the agent at her feet.

“How many were there?” he asked.

“Just two,” came the response from Brigid, just as Maitho had guessed.

“These are not part of Cray’s army.”

“How do you know?”

“Not enough people.”

At that moment, Brigid fished out her phone from her jeans pocket. The screen blinked on and off. She was receiving a call. “What is it Quinn?” she spoke into the phone.

She listened for a few seconds. Then, while still on the call, she spoke so that everyone could hear. “Quinn says he saw movement in the other house and one of the agents enter the garage.”

Maitho walked up to one of the window near the staircase. Through the narrow slit between the curtains, he peeked out. He noticed he was looking at the back of the other house. For a few seconds, he spotted nothing. Then he noticed a small opening in one of the upper floor windows. A long object stuck out through the gap.

It was a rifle.

Maitho moved to the side. A shot rang out. A bullet punched through the window, aiming for the spot where his head was a second earlier. Finding nothing, it continued its journey and embedded itself into the the stairs.

“They know we’re here,” said Maitho.

“So much for stealth,” Bevan shouted from upstairs.

“There’s a shooter in the upper right window.”

“Could you make a small distraction?”

Maitho pushed himself to his feet. He wondered about showing his face at the window again. That could serve as the perfect distraction. But he knew that would be dangerous, since the shooter might already be aiming at the same spot.

Then it hit him. Maitho walked up to the back door, which faced not only the backyard, but the window the shooter was using.

Turning around, Maitho looked at Epona, who got down on her knees and extended her weapon. She was aiming for anyone who might be in her line of sight.

Maitho opened the door and stepped to the side, his back pressed against the wall.

The reaction was instant. The shooter released a volley of shots. Bullets punched holes into the door and the floor, blowing out chunks of wood and dust.

“Quinn,” said Brigid into her phone, “don’t let anyone escape through the garage.”

Maitho heard running footsteps on the upper floor. There was a crash, followed a couple of seconds later by the shattering of glass. Taking a peek outside, he noticed Bevan land outside, pieces of glass raining around him.

The red-haired Guardian didn’t wait. He began sprinting towards the back door of the opposite house. The shooter began firing again, but this time he had redirected his aim. Bullet holes appeared in the ground, following Bevan as he made his way towards his destination. Maitho stepped out, aiming his handgun towards the window. He fired warning shots by aiming for the frame. The rifle withdrew inside.

As a precaution, Maitho fired two shots at the top of the window, knowing that it was highly unlikely that at that height, the bullets would find any part of the human body. At least, he hoped that was the case. But at least it would serve as a warning.

Bevan had charged through the fences of both properties, leaving behind gaps in their framework. Without stopping, he kept running until he shouldered into the back door of the house, ripping it off its frame and sending it flying inside.

Maitho began chasing after the other Gaurdian. He knew he was risking a lot by being so exposed, but he couldn’t leave his teammate on his own. He heard footsteps behind him and knew, without a doubt, that Epona was covering his flank.

“I’m heading for the garage,” Maitho shouted over his shoulder. The easiest way to his destination would be through the house. He knew that Quinn had the front entrance of the garage covered. Which meant that it would make sense ot check any remaining points of entry into the garage. There should only be one more and it would be the one that allowed direct access from the house.

As Maitho neared the house, he heard several shots go off from different guns. He identified handguns. Then heard rapid fire, signaling the use of the rifle. There was also the sounds of objects breaking. At this point, he understood Bevan's methods. The Guardian was most probably ramming into objects and tossing people around.

He knew that Bevan had more than likely taken out any resistance near the back entrance of the house. Still, he didn’t want to risk running into an agent who had been in hiding. He performed a quick check, peeking in and retreating. Not noticing anyone, he entered the house.

He didn’t have to search long before noticing the entry to the garage. After all, an agent had opened the door and stepped into the house, a gun in his hands.

Maitho reacted, his training taking over. He fired off one shot. His aim ensured that the bullet graced the agent’s hand. The man dropped his weapon, clutching his hand. Yet this was a trained professional. He instantly recovered.

But that did little to help him.

Maitho had already reached him. His palm strike caught the agent below the jaw. There was a cracking sound. One or few of the agent’s teeth might need proper dental examination. Maitho followed up his first strike with a kick to the knee. The agent lost balance and fell down to his good knee. Using the opportunity, Maitho grabbed the agent’s head and slammed it into the frame.

Even before the man had dropped to the ground, Maitho stepped into the garage. A horse appeared next to him, placing its hooves on the chest of the agent on the floor, pinning him to the spot.

There were no other agents in the garage.

But Maitho did find Jennifer cowering in the backseat of a black sedan.