An L-train zoomed above pedestrians trying to snake
their way down the Chicago street, their heads looking down whenever an armored
vehicle appeared on the road. I kept my head down too, wolfish ears twitching at
the humid air through my black hoodie. The last thing I needed was an Archangel
or suspicious police officer trailing me.

            Ever
since the Defiant's last stunt a few weeks ago, in which we mercilessly defaced
Jackson Park's extravagant Monument of Faith (where the Museum of Science once
stood), security had grown tighter. Who knew spray-painting a large statue of
Devout America's first and 'greatest president' would anger the ruling
political party?

            Our
hackers confirmed that there'd been a steady rise in random arrests by
Archangels, as well as an abundance of spy bots detected on online forums, trying
to search for perceived traitors speaking their minds. Johanna and the rest of
us were pissed about this—well, a lot of things to be honest, but we finally
decided to do something today.

            “Ugh,
how long again?" I groaned into my hidden earpiece. “I've been circling the
Supreme Court building for hours…"

            “Hour
and a half, actually...." Olivia spoke up. “And keep your trap shut. You've
been failing to do that for the past two hours, Lowell" The otter no
doubt was smugly laughing on the other end.

            “Well
excuse me, Liv, but I thought we wouldn't be taking as long—" I hushed my tone
when a crowd neared, “And I've checked over and over again. The patrol's not
changing anytime soon, so when're we gonna get started already?"

            “When
we get the signal, Lowell!" Donald replied on the other end. “And Johanna is telling
me to tell you to do two more laps. We need to be careful, sonny."

            Relenting,
I did just that. I casually disappeared into the crowds and went with the flow
of the winding bodies along the sidewalk, avoiding eye contact and blending in.
For the hundredth time, I turned left and crossed the street before doing the
exact same thing. Once again, the police patrol sat parked down the road, and
the officers inside were having some conversation in their seats. Once again,
the cameras along the south side of the target building remained pelted with
black paintballs.

            And
once again, the unmarked white van stood parked opposite the entrance. Seeing the
crowds of furs waltz on by without a care in the world, distracted either by
the sounds or their handheld phones, none of them suspected that the driver, a
senile gray bear, was a criminal suspected of aiding and abetting wanted
'terrorists', nor that three more sat inside the back, waiting for the goddamn
signal like I was.

            Finally…a
series of loud booms erupted down the street. Everyone ran screaming and
confused in the opposite direction, unaware that the only explosions occurring
were taped and being played on hidden stereos.

            In
the ensuing chaos, my fingers managed to pull my bandana up over my muzzle. I
nearly found myself pulled with the tide of bodies trying to flee, but managed
to break free and run for the entrance. Olivia, Donald and Hector were already
at work erecting the tombstone up.

            “About
goddamn time!" I muttered, then looked back to an approaching police car. No
doubt ordered to stay back as the rest of the force mobilized toward the fake
explosions. “Dammit, who do you gotta fuck to do a protest?"

            Normally,
the Defiant would do something like this during the evening, but at the risk of
the Archangels having it torn down before any of them could be seen…yeah. And
unfortunately for me, I lost the pool to choose who would be the one to keep
the fuzz off their tails.

            So
that was what I did, picking up a random glass bottle off the ground and tossing
it at the fender of the police car. The red and blue lights flashed angrily.

            One
of the officers shouted, “Halt in the name of God's law!"

            “Not
today, zealots!" I laughed before bolting for it.

            Amid
some shouting, I lured the officers away from the building and towards the
crowds gathering a block away. Some alarmed pedestrians spotted me and tried
stepping away, no doubt giving them a better shot, only for me to duck into a
nearby alley. My footpaws pounded at the concrete with each step, aware they
were closing in on me. Gripping onto my backpack and pulling out a Molotov, I
steadied my running and lit the thing.

            A
single toss behind me and flames erupted from the ground.

            “Woah!
Don't let him get away!"

            “After
him, now!"

            A few
officers avoided the cocktail fire. Damn it.

            I
didn't know how long I could run before a voice erupted in my ear.

            “Where
the fuck are you, Low?!"

            I
checked my bearings when I jumped onto a street. “Twelve and Addams! Hurry!"

            Gunshots
thundered behind me, but thankfully I didn't have to worry about the next
barrage. Not when a certain white van screeched into view towards me. Smirking,
I willed my legs to run faster towards it. It swerved around onto the sidewalk,
nicking a poor station wagon before the back doors flung open. I dove right in
before Olivia could squeeze the trigger, and we ducked when a few bullets
dented the right-side door.

            “Damn,
now we're gonna have to scrap this, Lowell!"

            “Hey,"
I objected between deep pants and growls, “I…distracted 'em...didn't I?"

            “You
did…a decent job," Olivia snickered beside me, helping me up as the car swerved
and shook until it came to a steady speed. “At least we left our message."

            I
couldn't stop myself from grinning. “Indeed."

            Across
Devout America, other Defiant cells were erecting their own tombstones in front
of civic monuments that once meant something. For Chicago's Supreme Court
building, we left one that had a simple engraving:

            R.I.P.
DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA

            Much
like Jesus, I hoped it would also resurrect itself from the grave.