The cool night air rustled Jolt’s fur as he leaned against the balcony’s gilded railing, the distant hum of the metropolis below a dull murmur beneath the pounding bass of the party inside. He rolled his shoulders, the fabric of his designer suit stretching across his frame as he reached into his pocket and produced a sleek, ornate cigarette case. With a practiced flick of his claws, sparks danced at the tip of his finger as he lit the cigarette, the dim glow illuminating his features for a brief moment before he exhaled a slow, deliberate stream of smoke. It curled into the air, dissipating like the hollow laughter drifting from the open doors behind him. Another gathering of spoiled Naturals, all too eager to indulge in their gilded ignorance.

His ears twitched at the sound of yet another vapid conversation about yacht upgrades and gene-modded pets. He resisted the urge to groan. If he had to listen to one more self-satisfied Natural drone on about their newest toy he was going to lose it. Instead, he turned his gaze outward, taking in the cityscape sprawled beneath him. The skyline was a dazzling display of neon and chrome, holographic billboards flickering with advertisements for luxury enhancements and synthetic pleasures. But beyond the glitz, beyond the towers that scraped the heavens, something else caught his eye, a sudden flash of orange and blinding white in the distance. Then came the tremor, vibrating through the balcony beneath his paws.

"The hell!?"Jolt muttered, his ears standing at attention as he squinted toward the horizon. The explosion had come from one of the industrial sectors, one of the biofactories, if his mental map was right."ROFA wouldn’t pull something that flashy..."he mused under his breath, already calculating possibilities."Why hit a factory full of lab-grown? Unless..."He didn’t wait to finish the thought, there was no time to waste and he was not one to miss out on the fun.