While they were talking, suddenly the echo of gunfire cracked through the night like thunder.
Amanda's head snapped toward the sound, her instincts kicking in instantly. She whipped out her radio, pressing it tightly against her mouth.
"What's happening out there? Report!"
Static burst through first, then the panicked voice of a woman officer on the front line.
"There are several groups of armed people civilians, no! They're armed like mercenaries! They've got rifles—!" Her words stumbled over the noise of bullets hammering metal. "We… we can't use our abilities on them."
The transmission broke off with a harsh screech of static. The radio fizzled, the connection severed.
Amanda's eyes narrowed. Her jaw tightened. Slowly, she lowered the radio, her other hand reaching for the pistol holstered at her hip.
"…They're here again," she muttered darkly, almost to herself. The words tasted like venom on her tongue. "Traitors."
