Ranma 1/2: Shadowrunner
Chapter 1: Prelude to the run.
by: James "Phoenix" Jones
NOTE: For all intrinsic purposes, this story takes place in the year 2053.
< > express thoughts
The van sat idly in the alley behind the Jusenkyo MegaCorporation's main headquarters. To the ordinary passer-by, this was not an uncommon sight, but the sight of the orc at its steering wheel was getting many unwanted stares.
"Damn 'em all." Said the orc. "You'd think de' never seen an orc before."
"Shut up, Jasper!" came a voice from the back.
The orc spun around quickly and said, "You shut up, Remote! I told ya' never ta' call me 'Jasper!'"
William "Remote" Harvard leaned forward and smirked. "Well... we gotta call you something and since you can't remember your real name, Jasper'll have to work."
"Both of you shut up!" said another voice. "You start fighting again and you'll get us even more unwanted attention!"
"Right, Banker." Said the two men meekly.
"I don't know why the frag, Kin-chan puts up with you two!" said Banker.
"Maybe because were both good runners?" asked Remote.
"Yeah right, Will." Said Banker.
"Ah come on, Nabiki!" said Jasper. "We ain't been running as long as you and your lover-boy have. But give us a little credit!"
Nabiki "Banker" Tendo, shot Jasper a crooked smile and said, "I'll have you know that Kinnosuke is not my 'lover-boy.'" Said Nabiki. "He's just a really, really good friend."
"Yeah, Banker." Said Remote. "I'll bet he's _real_ good." Remote suddenly shut his mouth as he heard the unmistakable sound of a monofilament whip being unwound.
"You were saying, Mr. Harvard?" Nabiki asked, idly twirling her weapon.
"I didn't say anything! Not a word!" he said. "You hear me say anything Jasper?"
Jasper was about to answer when there was a tap at the window. Looking to his left, he saw a young, dark-haired girl standing next to the van. "Yeah?" he asked.
The girl looked around nervously. "Is... um... uh.... are you Nabiki?" she asked cautiously.
"No." said Jasper.
"Is... uh... is she with you?" asked the girl.
Jasper was about to answer when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Looking back he nodded and motioned the girl to walk around to the side door. The girl quickly obeyed.
Grabbing the side panel, Nabiki slide the door open and said, "Are you Akiko?"
The girl nodded nervously. "Yes." She said. "I... I'm the one that called you."
With a quick motion, Nabiki pulled Akiko into the van and slammed the side door shut. The girl struggled briefly, but gave up a moment later.
"Okay, Akiko." Said Nabiki. "What's the job?"
Akiko breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I'm sorry... this is the... the first time I've ever done this."
Nabiki nodded sympathetically, remembering her first run. Again, she asked for details.
Akiko cast nervous glances left and right, exhaling and inhaling to calm herself down. "I... I need you to do a run for me." She said at length.
"Just calm down, kiddo." Said Nabiki. "We already figured on work, so just tell us the job."
"It's a very special research project my father was working on." Said Akiko. "They killed him a few days ago and now they think I might know who to finish the job. I... I need you to break into the building and steel the file. I'd do it myself, but I'm.... you know."
Nabiki regarded her coldly. "How much you willing to pay?" Nabiki asked.
"My dad was pretty well off. I... I've got three million nuyen in the bank." Said Akiko. "I'll give you all of it if you'll take this job."
Nabiki's eyes immediately began to take on an eerie glow. "Deal, Sister." She said.
Akiko breathed a heavy sigh of relief and handed Nabiki a small computer disk. "This has the layout of the building and all the current security codes." Said Akiko. "They'll all be valid until eight a.m. tomorrow."
"Wait just a minute." Said Nabiki. "Are you telling me that we've got to break into Jusenkyo Corp. to get this stuff?"
Akiko nodded.
"I don't know." said Nabiki.
"Banker." Said Will. "Three... million... nuyen."
"You're right Remote." said Nabiki. "Okay, Akiko, you've got some runners."
"Thank you." Said Akiko.
Nabiki nodded and opened the door. After a quick check of the area, Nabiki let Akiko jump out. The instant her feet hit the ground, the door slammed shut and Jasper pulled the van out of the alley.
Once they were moving, Nabiki turned to Will and said, "Call Kinnosuke and tell him to get the others together. I've got to check this data."
Will nodded and, with a quick flick of his wrist, opened up his phone and began to make the call. Nabiki slid the disk into her cyberdeck and began to do some checking.
***********
Later that evening, the group gathered in the van and watched everyone but the diehard workaholics exit the building at seven sharp. Turning to one side, Kinnosuke looked over his team. Six people in all.
"Okay." He said. "We go over the plan one more time. I want this nice and neat with a zero body count if possible. Remote, what's your job?"
Will looked up and said, "I hack the security system using those codes Akiko gave us. Once I'm in I crash the SPU and SNs that control the cameras and alarms on levels one, two, eight, ten, twelve, thirteen and twenty six. Once that's done, I'm rooted here for the run out. While I'm waitin' I drop out a couple of my rigs for Lone Star watch."
"Good." Said Kinnosuke. "Indigo?"
Jennifer "Indigo" Star looked at him sarcastically and gestured at the tacky business suit she was wearing. "Once the camera's go out, I go in." she said. "I distract the guard and give him the knock-out spray. Once that's done, I tap my comm. once to let you know I'm in."
"Check." Said Kinnosuke. "How's bout you, Wolf?"
Mike "Wolf" Rooks said, "Once the guards out of the way, I take his place and Indigo covers me from one of the alcoves."
"Jasper?"
"I go up to thirteen with you and Nabiki as back guard." Said the orc.
"Okay, sounds like we got it." Said Kinnosuke. "Any last minute stuff, Nabi-chan?"
"Yeah, don't call me that!" said Nabiki with a dry laugh.
"Seriously!"
Nabiki looked over the data quickly. "From the detail on this file it looks like it may take me about ten minutes plus to get it downloaded, its a whopper! I'm gonna say we've got a run window of maybe an hour tops."
"Everybody got that?" asked Kinnosuke. As they all nodded, he looked out the window.
The crowd at the building entrance was dying down and he signaled Remote who immediately jumped out of the drivers door. Running down to a telephone port at the far end of an alley, he took out his tools and began to work.
Remote quickly removed the plate covering the phone's front and opened the access panel. Unslinging his Allegiance Alpha cyberdeck he plugged the connector into the exposed data-port. As he brushed away the hair covering his datajack, he realized the first thing he'd do with his share of the money would be to buy a new cyberdeck! Pushing the thoughts to the back of his head, he snapped the cable in place.
With a quick tap of the control keys, the world around him faded away as his sim-senses kicked in.
******
Indigo walked up to the guard's station and said, "Good evening, sir."
The guard, a man in his early twenties, looked up from his coffee and nearly choked. The cause of this reaction was the fact that Indigo's clothes were much more revealing than the average female business suit. Wiping his mouth quickly and trying to hide his blush, the guard said, "Yes. Can I ... um... help you, Miss?"
Indigo smiled at him sweetly and said, "I was told by a friend of mine that there would be a job opening up here soon and I was wondering if I could get an interview scheduled."
At this the guard, looked at her, his face confused. "You picked a hell of a time to come and ask about that!" he said. "And for heaven's sake, I'm security not some damn receptionist!"
"Weeellll. I thought I might get to know a few of the people I'd be working with first." As she finished, she leaned over the desk suggestively.
The guard stood up quickly and said, "I don't know what you're trying to pull, but I suggest that... you..." The sentence was left hanging as the guard fell backwards. Indigo smiled and put the canister of knockout gas back into her pocket. She breathed deeply a few times, thankful of the gas-filter attached to her lungs, and when the air was clear, she tapped the comm.-link.
Immediately, the others ran in. Jasper and Wolf immediately grabbed the sleeping guard and dragged him to one of the alcoves, a few seconds and several knots later, the guard was effectively out of the running. Pulling off his coat, Wolf revealed a uniform exactly like the guards. Running behind the console, he took his position.
Indigo pulled off the suit to reveal a pair of skin-tight black pants, boots and a white sleeveless shirt. After grabbing the gun Kinnosuke passed her, she quickly headed to one of the alcoves and wedged herself in. From her vantage, she had a perfect view of the whole entrance.
Nabiki, Kinnosuke and Jasper moved around the console into the elevator. As the door closed he said, "Remember! We've only got about an hour, anything happens walk away and meet at the usual."
Wolf nodded and resumed his guard-like appearance as the Elevator doors slid shut.
*****
A few minutes later Nabiki, Kinnosuke and Jasper reached the thirteenth floor. The trio quickly exited the elevator and moved down the hall toward the data storage room. True to the data, the guards were not present and the only security was a large, vault-like door.
Pulling out a small device, Kinnosuke inserted two prongs into the door's computer lock. After punching a few buttons, the lock sizzled and the insides clinked. Pulling the door open, the trio moved in.
The inside of the data vault was enormous and each walls were lined with computers and data-disks; the room alone was probably worth a billion nuyen. Nabiki made her way to the main terminal at the room's far end as Kinnosuke walked to one wall to check the disks. Jasper remained by the door. Opening his trench coat, Jasper removed two shotguns and, after making sure they were loaded, leaned against the wall with his ear to door.
Nabiki took the seat in front of the main terminal and opened the case that held her cyberdeck.
"Banker?" said Kinnosuke.
"What's the deal, Kin-chan?" she asked.
"You need me to hitch in with you?"
Nabiki stopped for a moment and thought. "No, I don't think so." she said at length. "Why?"
Kinnosuke turned quickly and said, "I'm gonna grab some of these disks, there may be something useful on them we can sell later."
"Good idea." Said Nabiki. "I'll keep the screen on so you know what's happening."
"Check." Said Kinnosuke. "You be careful."
Nabiki pulled out the terminal connector and slid it smoothly into her Cyberdeck. Reaching to the side of her deck, she pulled out the connection link and snapped it into the data port on her temple. Punching the command keys, she felt her body shiver involuntarily as the real world fell away.
*****
After the moment of disorientation passed, Nabiki opened her eyes to take in her surroundings. The glimmering, light-filled world of the matrix greeted her and she smiled. Looking herself over, she saw that her matrix persona looked exactly as it should; a metallic gray version of herself covered in a metallic green kimono adorned with dollar signs.
The area around her was composed of numerous glowing light fixtures and several access nodes. Looking around, she was momentarily lost. Unsure of what to do, she launched a browse program. Immediately, a phone book appeared in front of her and she quickly thumbed through it. Finally finding what she was looking for, she canceled the program and looked for the right System Access Node. Leaping upwards, she grabbed one of the light beams and zipped off to her destination.
At the SAN, she flashed one of the access codes to the doorman construct and moved through. The area she entered was much larger than the access corridor and seemed to stretch out forever. The silicon towers stretched out for what seemed like miles and Nabiki couldn't help but feel dwarfed by their size. Immediately, she launched a sensors program and checked the readout. According to the radar screen that appeared beside her, there weren't any Intruder Countermeasures in the area and so far no alarms had been tripped.
Grabbing onto another light beam, she took a quick look at the SAN she'd just exited. Like the other side, a doorman construct waved to her as she zipped by and she waved back automatically. Checking her browse program again she found the area she needed and shot forward. Suddenly she stopped as she found a corridor ahead of her that shouldn't be there.
<Ice.> she said to herself. Quickly, the metallic Nabiki put on a Kabuki mask as her masking program took effect. A few seconds later, she found herself in front of the access IC and she felt her real world fingers cross. Almost immediately, the alarms sounded as Nabiki realized her Masking program had failed. Stepping back, she launched an attack program and watched as the dollar signs on her kimono began flying off toward the construct. After a moment, the IC crashed as the dollar signs sliced it to ribbons.
However, before she was able to get moving again, a wall of lightening appeared before her as a Barrier IC kicked in.
Nabiki swore and launched another attack program. As she watched the signs attack, Nabiki launched another sensor program. Immediately, the radar began to scream and Nabiki barely had time to shift her addressing to avoid the attack from the Killer IC above her.
As she shifted her attack from the Barrier to the Killer, she though <This is gonna be a long day.>
*****
Outside, Remote continued to stare at the screen in front of him. So far the street had been empty and that made him nervous. Absentmindedly, he wiped his forehead and found it covered in sweat. Flinging his fingers to dry them, he punched some more keys and rotated his drones.
The street around him was still empty except for the street lamps. Flicking on his wrist phone, Remote said, "Wolf, any activity on your end?"
"No." came the response. "Why? What's up?"
"I don't know." said Remote. "Just nervous I guess."
"Call Kinnosuke and see what he says."
"Check." Said Remote.
Terminating the connection, Remote did another quick check of the street. Still empty. Reactivating his phone he said, "Kinnosuke, you hear me?"
"I read you, Remote." Came the answer. "Problem?"
"Just to quiet out here." Said Remote. "It's got me nervous."
The line stayed silent for a moment. "Tell you what." Said Kinnosuke. "Move the van into that alley where you guys were this afternoon. We've got the whole layout and it's easy to get to. I'll clue in Wolf and Indigo and let 'em know the change."
"Check that." Said Remote.
Placing his drones on auto for a moment, Remote climbed into the driver seat. Starting the van, he moved away from the curb and into the alley. While the engine was still running, he flicked on the radio to check traffic.
"... And this just in. There's been a major traffic accident and small fire at the intersection of Davidson Drive and Shima Street. The Police have closed the area encompassing First Avenue, Lock Street, Ash Street, Kingston Avenue and Oak street to prevent tie-up at the scene. Citizens are asked to..."
Remote cut off the radio and sighed. The Jusenkyo building was located at the corner of Kingston and Oak, so he had nothing to worry about. <Just some stupid accident.> he thought. <Better let the guys know.>
Remote opened his wrist phone again began dialing when a click caught his ear. With a heavy gulp, he spun his head around to the left. The imposing visage of a troll entered his view.
*****
Kinnosuke had finished filling his bag with data disks while sparing sidelong glances at Nabiki's vidscreen. So far, she'd run into a few IC but it wasn't anything major and she'd had very little trouble getting by them. Flipping up his wrist comm. he called to check in with Wolf.
"Anything amiss with you, Wolf?"
"Nothing so far." Said Wolf.
Nodding, Kinnosuke punched the code for Remote's phone. The only answer he got was static. Shutting down the connection, he called Wolf back.
"Wolf, I can't raise Remote." Said Kinnosuke. "You try."
Wolf did as instructed, but the result was the same.
"Maybe his rigs are giving him interference." Said Jasper.
"Maybe." Said Kinnosuke. "Indigo?"
"Yeah?"
Kinnosuke paused for a moment and asked, "You know the back-way to the alley right?"
"Sure." Said Indigo.
"Alright, go check on Remote." Said Kinnosuke. "Be careful though. I've got a bad feeling about this."
*****
Indigo quietly opened the door to the alley and looked out. It was clear except for the van. Blinking twice, she kicked in her thermal-optics and moved forward. The world, now displayed to here in an array of colors told her nothing was amiss. Suddenly, she stopped as she noticed several pools of a rapidly cooling liquid on one side of the van.
Quickly, she drew her gun and inched her way around the van on the drivers side. When she reached the door she dropped her weapon in surprise. In the drivers seat, lay Remote. Or rather, what was left of Remote. His entire upper torso had been blown off, coating the entire front part of the van with blood and body parts. The far side door had been blown apart and the window had shattered.
Indigo knew that only an assault cannon at close range could do this kind of damage and she didn't want to meet it. Grabbing her gun, she ran for the door quickly. As she cleared the back of the van, she felt something rake across her stomach. Looking down, she found a long cut just above her belly button. She looked up quickly and brought the gun to bare, squeezing the trigger without aiming.
She was rewarded with a load yell. However, she didn't have time to celebrate as a she saw a small object flying toward her. Barely dodging, she moved to fire again, but felt something grab her neck. She tried to turn, but was not fast enough as a sharp pain flared in her back. The last thing she saw was the tip of a blade protruding from her chest.
*****
Nabiki felt her real world body exhale sharply as she finally found her way into the main area of the system. Looking around, she noticed several SAN and Slave Nodes. According to her sensors, there were no IC in the area, but she'd learned from hard experience that sensors could be fooled.
Immediately, she launched her mirror program. Beside her, a wire-frame duplicate of herself appeared. As her real world fingers tapped the cyberdeck keys, the mirror moved off to one side as Nabiki went straight for the spinning cube that marked the datastore. Inside, Nabiki could see the unmistakable shifting colors that marked a Scramble IC. After checking for other apparent IC, she launched a decryption program and watched as the colors slowly but surely sorted themselves out. Once the file was decrypted, Nabiki wrapped her arms around the sphere. Immediately, the data began to download.
Suddenly, her sensors began to wail. Looking to her right, she saw several bolts of silicon lightening slam into the ground near her mirror. Nabiki didn't need to be told what that was, there was no way to mistake the visage of a now active Black IC.
Nabiki watched with grim fascination as the lightning swirled and formed up into a gigantic dragon. As she watched, she activated the mirror and sent it as far away from herself as she could. A moment later, the Lightening Dragon attacked the mirror, blowing huge chunks of the wire frame in all directions. Nabiki turned away from the carnage and stared into the datastore. <Only twenty-five percent left to go.> she thought.
Through her sensors, she felt the mirror crash and the dragon move toward her. The dragon attacked but Nabiki was unable to move. She knew if she did she'd lose the data she already had. A moment later, she felt herself scream as the dragon's lightening breath slammed into her. Finally, the end of line marker appeared and she let go of the datastore.
Spinning, she just had time to run her shield program and open her fan before another blast hit. The shield held and, closing it, Nabiki launched her attack program. Enraged, the dragon slashed at Nabiki with its massive claws. She had no time to dodge as the claws raked her persona, tearing it and leaving glowing trails across her torso. She felt blood begin to drip from her nose as the lethal
bio-feedback flowed from her cyberdeck and into her datajack. Without stopping, she attacked again.
*****
Kinnosuke watched Nabiki's duel with the Black Ice and shook his head. He desperately wanted to help, but even if he hitched in, he realized he'd just be dead weight. Opening his communicator, he said, "Wolf, Banker just ran into a major IC. She's working on getting out but it may take a few minutes."
"Well, we got trouble here to, Kinnosuke." Said Wolf.
"What kind."
"Indigo isn't back yet and I think I... eerk!"
"Wolf?" said Kinnosuke. Static. "Wolf!?" he screamed. "Damn it! Jasper?"
"Yes?" asked the orc.
Kinnosuke unslung his shotgun and drawing his Uzi III said, "I think we're about to have company."
Jasper nodded. "How long till Nabiki's out?" he asked.
As if in answer, Nabiki screamed and fell out of the chair. Kinnosuke was by her side immediately; checking her over, he found blood pouring from her nose and realized she was still in the Matrix. Gripping the access cord, he pulled hard and broke the connection.
Nabiki inhaled sharply as the sim-sense suddenly disconnected. Shaking her head she said, "I got it."
Kinnosuke regarded her coldly. "Yeah and you almost got yourself killed."
Nabiki was about to retort when something in the room crackled. Both she and Kinnosuke looked up in time to see the cyberdeck sizzle and die.
Both swore and Kinnosuke said, "Screw the run, we lost Wolf and we may have lost Indigo and Remote. We're out."
"They... they're dead?" Nabiki gasped as she stood up shakily. As always, the wave of nausea that always accompanied her when she jacked out suddenly kicked in and she leaned against the wall heavily.
Kinnosuke nodded and said, "Yeah, and we will be too if we don't get gone." Finished, he moved to take what was left of Nabiki's cyberdeck.
Nabiki smiled at him weakly and said, "Leave the deck I got another copy of that file in my jack."
Kinnosuke said, "Alright then."
The trio moved into the corridor cautiously. Upon reaching the elevator, Nabiki punched the button and they heard a metallic voice say, "This Elevator is currently deactivated."
"Stand back." Said Jasper as he unsheathed his combat knife. With a lunge, he stabbed the elevator door and, twisting the knife opened it slightly. Leaving the knife in place, he grabbed the doors and shoved them open.
The three of them looked down at the dark elevator shaft and then back at each other. Kinnosuke looked at the bag on his shoulder and tossed it to the ground. <Not worth much if I'm dead.> he thought.
"Alright guys." He said, "Lets start climbing."
Moving into the elevator shaft, they found the maintenance ladder and began to climb down. The stopped on the fifth floor and exited the shaft. Looking out, found a three way intersection.
"Which one?" asked Jasper.
"Left." Said Nabiki.
Turning, they went down the indicated hall, only to stop suddenly a moment later. Standing in front of them was about two dozen security guards, every one armed to the teeth.
The trio cursed in near perfect sync.
"Don't move." Said the lead guard.
"Should we listen guys?" Kinnosuke asked sarcastically.
Nabiki and Jasper looked at each other and shook their heads. "Nah." They said in unison. Using his augmented reflexes. Jasper spun around and emptied both barrels of one of the shotguns into the lead guard. The blast sent the guard flying backwards into his cohorts and the dust kicked up by the blast provided the necessary cover for the trio to escape.
The other corridor was not much better than the first and contained almost as many guards. Immediately, the three of them drew weapons and attacked. Jasper's shotguns took out two more guards. Kinnosuke laid down cover-fire with his Uzi while taking out another with his own shotgun. Nabiki unwound her monofilament whip and, swinging hard, wrapped the wire around one guard's throat. With a tug, she cleanly removed the guard's head from his shoulders.
The trio rotated firing arcs for several minutes and had the advantage for several more. However, the battle fell out of their favor when Jasper went down with a leg wound. The orc screamed at Nabiki and Kinnosuke to get away and the two ran quickly.
The two reached the elevator and began to climb down. They made their way down quickly, as the guards above them began to fire into the elevator shaft. Kinnosuke screamed as several shotgun pellets slammed into his shoulder.
"Kin-chan, you okay!?" screamed Nabiki.
Kinnosuke grabbed the ladder rungs with his good arm while fire upward with his Uzi. "Nabiki get gone! I'll cover you!"
"I'm not leaving you, Kin-chan!" said Nabiki.
Kinnosuke looked at her coldly and brought his Uzi to bear on her. "I'm not letting you die too,
Nabi-chan!"
Nabiki looked at him for a moment and nodded. Quickly, she climbed down the ladder and was almost immediately swallowed by the darkness. Kinnosuke looked after her fondly, then returned to giving out cover fire.
Several minutes later, the shooting ended. The security guards began to clean away the corpses of their comrades as the commander walked through the mess.
"Damn it." Said the commander. "The boss is gonna be pissed when he learns we let one of 'em get away."
"You are quite correct."
Immediately, the commander froze, swallowed heavily and turned around. "Um... good evening, Sir."
Behind him, his boss stood passively with a crooked grin on his face. "You let one get away?" he asked.
The commander nodded slowly. "Yes sir, Mr. Herb." He said. "However, we have a live one."
"Bring him."
"Yes, Sir!" said the commander.
A few moments later, another security team dragged Jasper into the commander's presence. "Here he is, Sir." He said.
Herb walked to Jasper and said, "So, you managed to live a while."
Jasper didn't answer.
"There were six members of your team." Said Herb. "So far however, we've only found five of them. Where's the last one?"
"Screw you." Said Jasper.
Herb smirked. "You aren't my type." He said. "You look like an intelligent orc. In lieu of this fact, I'll make you a deal."
"A deal?" asked Jasper.
Herb nodded. "Yes." he said. "You see, you have a wound in your leg and it's quite simple to give you some more damage, I'd really rather not do that though, bullets are expensive. So, you tell me the name of your other teammate, were to find him or her and I'll let you live."
Jasper considered this for a second. He was young enough to start running again in a few days and Nabiki _had_ been giving him grief lately. "Anything else in it for me?" he asked.
"I should think your life would be payment enough."
"Nabiki." Said Jasper.
Herb looked at him questioningly. "What?"
"The other runner." Said Jasper. "Her name's Nabiki Tendo."
"Where does she live?"
"Twenty-two forty-one Park Road." Said Jasper. "Apartment fifteen."
Herb looked back at Jasper. "Thank you for your cooperation." He said. Turning to one of the guards, he ordered, "Kill him."
"What!?" shouted Jasper. "We had a deal, you bastard!"
Herb smiled sadistically and, with a lunge, grabbed Jasper by the throat. "The operative word in that sentence was 'had,' my young fool."
Jasper struggled against the man's grip, but even his augmented strength couldn't budge the hand. "We had a deal!" Jasper gasped.
"I know." said Herb. "But you broke one of the cardinal rules of your profession." With that, Herb's image began to shift.
"Jeez!" shouted Jasper. "You're a..." The sentence was stopped short as Herb's hand crushed Jasper's throat.
Herb shook his hand and licked the blood off his fingers. "Get me Mint and Lime." said Herb. "Send them to Twenty-two forty-one Park. Apartment fifteen."
*****
Nabiki ran into her apartment and slammed the door behind her. Immediately, her legs gave out and she collapsed against the door. Breathing heavily, she wrapped her arms around her knees to keep herself from shaking.
<I can't believe I just left them.> she thought. She sat there for several minutes trying to calm herself down. Usually in situations like this, she'd talk to Kinnosuke about them, but now he was gone and probably dead. Shaking her head, she reminded herself her datajack was still full of the file she'd hacked.
Standing, she made her way to her computer. Fortunately, she had another cyberdeck that she could use. Suddenly, she realized something.
"If they took the team out that easy, they probably can find me." She said. "Hmm... I've gotta dump this file to hide it, but were? I've got it!"
Moving away from her computer, she picked up her phone and dialed in a number. After a few minutes, the screen lit up and a young girl appeared on it. She was in her late teens with long black-blue hair and appeared to be rubbing sleep out of her eyes.
"Yes, Tendo residence." She said groggily.
"Akane."
At the name, the girl stopped rubbing her eyes and said, "Nabiki?"
Nabiki nodded and said, "Akane, I don't have time for small talk right now. Tell me something, did you ever get that datajack you were talking about getting?"
"Yeah, I did." Said Akane. "Why?"
"No time." Said Nabiki. "Meet me in the Matrix. Here's my code, I'll be there in five minutes."
"But..." the sentence died as Nabiki hung up.
*****
For the second time that day, Nabiki found herself in the Matrix, albeit this time in friendlier surroundings. Her personal connection was set up like a hot spring and she found it almost as relaxing as being at a hot spring in real life. Looking to the SAN that marked the entrance to her system, she sat on a console chair and waited for her sister. A few minutes later, Akane walked in.
Nabiki looked at her little sister's persona and felt herself smile. Like herself, her sister had made her persona a metallic gray version of herself. However, where Nabiki's persona wore a kimono, Akane's wore a metallic gold gi.
"Long time no see, Akane." Said Nabiki. She watched as the words printed themselves in front of her.
The gray Akane nodded and replied likewise. "Nabiki?" She asked. "What was so important that we couldn't talk over the phone."
Nabiki pondered that for a moment. Since her sister had gone in as a corporate intern, the two had lost a lot of contact and to the best of her knowledge, Akane still believed that Nabiki still had a legal job. "Well..." she said at length. "I just wanted to see what you looked like her, after all, have to make sure you're learning to program right."
"Nabiki." Said Akane. "You really had me worried. I thought you might be in trouble."
The gray Nabiki laughed even as she felt her real body grimace. <I am in trouble.> she thought. Suddenly, she moved her persona forward to hug Akane's persona. It wasn't the same as in real life, but it was still comforting.
It seemed that Akane hesitated a moment and then hugged back and said, "Was there something else?"
<Now or never.> thought Nabiki. "Actually, Akane, there is." Said Nabiki. "I was wondering if you could hold on to some files for me for a little while?"
"Of course." Said Akane. "But why do you need me to hold them? Don't you have IC on your computer?"
"Yeah." Said Nabiki. "But I'm replacing the computer and I'm going out of town this week. I don't really want to hold them in my jack until then." Nabiki felt guilty about the lie, but she reasoned it couldn't be avoided.
"Sure I'll hold it." Said Akane. "I'm upgrading my own computer today, but I'll hold it in my jack until I can transfer it."
Nabiki felt her real world body exhale deeply. Reaching into her kimono, she with drew a glowing sphere and handed it to the gray Akane. Taking it, Akane placed the sphere to her mouth and swallowed it. Several seconds later she said, "Okay, I've got it all. Jeez, Nabiki, what's on that thing? You almost cleaned out my memory."
"You have any left?" asked Nabiki.
"Yeah, but only about fifty bytes." Said Akane.
"Oh that's plenty." Nabiki countered as she with drew another sphere. The gray Akane took the sphere and swallowed it as well. Nabiki exhaled again. She knew it was a dirty trick to encode the data in Akane's jack so that it couldn't be removed without a password, but security procedures were security procedures. She'd lost too much data over the years to take the risk.
<Better make some small talk or she'll think something's wrong.> thought Nabiki. "So, Akane." She said. "How are you and Toma doing?"
The gray Akane grimaced and said, "He and I broke up last week. But, its been going down hill for a while now and I should have seen it coming."
"Sorry to hear that." said Nabiki. "I liked him, even though he was kinda young for my tastes."
"What about you and Kinnosuke." Asked Akane.
Nabiki fought hard to keep a smile, she knew she'd probably never see Kin-chan again. "He's out right now." She lied.
The gray Akane nodded. "By the way." Said Akane. "Some of the girls here at work are going to throw me a party next week for my birthday. You think you can make it?"
<Damn it!> Nabiki thought. <I forgot all about that!> "Um... well, Akane. I've been kinda busy and all." Said Nabiki. "But, I'll see what I can do. No promises though!"
"I know." Said Akane. "I honestly don't know what I'd do without you looking out for me all the time."
"Oh, you'd find somebody to look out for you." Said Nabiki. "And don't worry about Toma. A girl that's as cute as you will find somebody sometime soon. I'll bet every single guy in your office is practicing pick-up lines now that you're on the market again."
The gray Akane giggled and was about to speak when Nabiki's radar screen appeared.
"Damn." Said Nabiki. "I gotta go, Akane. That means I've got somebody at the door, Kin-chan probably forgot his keys again."
"Okay, Sis." Said Akane. "See you next week I hope."
"Later." Said Nabiki. A moment later, she felt her real world body unhook her data connector and the world of the Matrix was quickly replaced by the sight of the real world.
*****
Nabiki unplugged the connection and leaned back in her chair. She felt guilty about sending the file to her little sister, but it was a safe bet that they couldn't find Akane and that the file would be safe. And if what she'd seen on that file was true, it _needed_ to be protected. The realization still didn't help the guilt she got from lying to her little sister.
Suddenly, her alarm sounded and she spun. A second later, the door to her apartment was bashed in by a large wolf. Nabiki screamed and leapt for her pistol. Halfway there, she felt something slam into her chest that sent her flying into the wall.
As she lay there, gasping for breath, she watched in awe as the Wolf grew in size and took on a human shape. <Shape-Shifters> she thought.
Looking up groggily, she saw another man walked into her view.
The wolf man turned on the other and said, "Damn you, Lime!" he said, "Herb wants her alive!"
The man identified as Lime turned and grinned, "They're gel rounds, Mint, not worries."
Nabiki took in the features of the two men quickly. Mint was a dirty looking young man with a gray-black hair and bushy eyebrows. He wore a fur shirt and held a large pistol at Nabiki. The one called Lime had dark brown hair with black highlights and wore a tiger-striped shirt. From the way his eyes seemed to reflect the light, Nabiki guess he was also a shapeshifter.
The two argued for another minute as Nabiki considered making a break for it. The thought died however when they turned toward her. Quickly, she jumped to her feet and ran to the computer. Before the men could get to her, she punched the keypad hard. The computer sizzled for a moment and then exploded.
A moment later, Mint and Lime each grabbed one of Nabiki's arms and dragged her out.
*****
In the elevator, Nabiki fought hard against the Lime's grip, but even her cybernetically augmented strength couldn't get her free. As she struggled, she tried hard to keep down the slowly growing feeling of fear that threatened to overtake her. She had no idea where she was, all she knew was that she was scared.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the elevator doors opened and she was dragged out into a spacious office. Despite herself, Nabiki marveled at the intricate carvings and paintings that lined the walls. Finally, Nabiki and her "escort," came to a halt before a large, elegantly carved desk.
"Release her."
The moment the voice rang out, the man holding Nabiki let her go. Looking across the desk, she saw a large chair that had its back facing her. Unconsciously, she rubbed her sore biceps, as she waited for something to happen.
"Well, well, well." Said the voice behind the chair. "Miss Nabiki Tendo I presume?"
Nabiki said nothing.
"Answer him." Said the man behind Nabiki.
"Now, Lime, you must learn to be more cordial." Said the voice. "Miss Tendo is a guest here. It is not our place to give orders."
<Guest, huh!?> thought Nabiki. <Yeah right!>
A few seconds later, the chair swiveled around to reveal a young, handsome man with white hair dressed in a dark black business suit. He smiled sadistically at Nabiki and she shivered involuntarily. Waving his hand, he signaled Lime to leave.
Once Lime was gone, he smiled again and said, "You must forgive the means by which you were brought here my dear. My people are not normally so rough."
"Uh-huh." Said Nabiki, sarcastically. "May I ask what you want with me?"
The man smiled again. "You may, but first, allow me to introduce myself. My name is, Herb."
"Herb?"
Herb nodded. "And you are?" he asked.
Nabiki considered her options for a moment and finally gave him her name.
"Excellent." Said Herb. "Are you hungry?"
"No." Nabiki deadpanned.
"Pity." Said Herb. Flicking a button on his desk he said, "Miss Kurenai , please bring me my mid-day snack."
Nabiki watched silently as a door on her left opened and a young woman stepped out carrying a covered dish. The girl approached Herb quickly and sat the dish on the desk. Turning to Nabiki she said, "Are you sure you aren't hungry?"
Nabiki looked the young girl over quickly. She was kind of plain looking, with brown hair done in a ponytail, but she looked like somebody trustworthy. As Nabiki's mind tried to figure out if the girl could help her, she said, "No."
The girl curtseyed and quickly departed. Once she was gone, Herb lifted the cover of the dish and Nabiki gasped. On the dish a large, rat-like creature ran back and forth. Without a word, Herb reached down and grasped the creature by its neck. A moment later, Nabiki heard a sickening crack as Herb snapped the beast's neck. Lifting the creature to his face, Herb opened his mouth and bit into the creature's side.
Nabiki turned away quickly and fought down her urge to vomit. The sight was disgusting, but the slurping sounds that echoed throughout the room were even worse. A moment or two later, Herb said, "You may turn around now, I've finished my snack."
Turning, Nabiki saw his face was covered with blood and she suddenly felt sick again. Looking at the floor, she noticed several bones littering it. Immediately, her knees gave out and she collapsed.
Herb laughed. "It takes a very strong stomach to watch me eat." He said sadistically.
Wiping her mouth, Nabiki said, "What do you want!?"
Herb laughed again. "Short, sweat and too the point. I like that." He said. "The reason you've been brought her Miss Tendo is simple. You are a decker of exceptional skill and I am interested in acquiring your talents."
At this, Nabiki's mind immediately cleared. Looking at Herb she asked, "You... what?!"
Herb smiled sadistically and leaned up against his desk. "I said I am interested in your decking skills. You showed great prowess in getting into my systems, and even greater prowess in getting away."
"That was what I was hired to do... my team and I." She said. "The team you killed!"
Herb laughed. "I didn't kill your team." He said. "My guards took care of that for me. Well... except of course for poor Mr. Jasper."
"You killed, Jasper?" Nabiki asked.
"Of course." Said Herb. "But why should you care? After all, he's the one who told me where to find you."
Hearing this, Nabiki fears dissipated into angry. <Jasper you bastard!> she though. "I don't give a damn about Jasper." Said Nabiki. "But you killed Kinnosuke!"
"Oh... yes." Herb said thoughtfully. "Your boyfriend."
Nabiki's eyes narrowed. "How'd you know that?" she asked, her voice dripping acid.
Herb laughed again. "Miss Tendo, you are obviously very smart and very observant." He said. "However, you don't seem to be thinking clearly. You and your team have performed numerous runs against me and my organizations for nearly a year now. Oh... don't look so surprised, after all, informants can be paid by either side. Did it never occur to you that maybe, just maybe, you and your team were never supposed to come back from this run?"
Nabiki took a step backwards as realization struck. "The whole run was a setup, wasn't it?"
Herb nodded.
"But... but the client said that... that..." She left the sentence hanging as another door opened. Through the door walked a women in a black Ninja outfit. As the woman removed her mask, Nabiki gasped. The woman was young, probably in her late teens with long black hair done in a pony tail.
"Akiko?" Nabiki asked.
The woman shook her head in amusement. "Guess again."
"Nabiki Tendo." Said Herb. "Allow me to introduce Miss Konatsu Kenjo, one of my most accomplished assassins. I believe you know her as Akiko Megumi, the woman who hired you for this assignment."
Konatsu smiled and mock bowed. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Tendo." She said sarcastically.
Nabiki stood shaking, her mind still torn between fear and berserker rage. "You bitch." She said coldly.
Konatsu laughed and Herb dismissed her. Once she was gone, he turned back to Nabiki and said, "As you see, I never intended for you to succeed in this run, however, since you did, I think you are more than adequately qualified for employment in the Jusenkyo MegaCorporation."
"You aren't serious." Said Nabiki, her mind working overtime trying to figure a way out of her current situation.
"Oh, I'm quite serious." Said Herb. "You see, I have numerous shadowrunners in my employment; street samurai, bodyguards, mages and the like. However, the one thing I have a shortage of is experienced deckers. Granted I have a few, but not many. A decker of your skill would find herself working for a _very_ high wage in my Corp. What do you say?"
Nabiki looked Herb squarely in the eye and made a show of trying to decide. "You've got a hell of a way of putting out a 'help wanted' sign." She said.
Herb looked at her coldly for a second and then smiled. "Well, I really must apologize for Mint and Lime." he said. "The two of them tend to be a little... overzealous at times. So, will you accept my offer?"
"Not in a million years." Nabiki answered coldly.
Immediately, Herbs face lost all semblance of kindness and his eyes flashed in anger. "Why?" he growled.
Now it was Nabiki's turn to smile. "Oldest rule of the run, chummer." She said. "Never, ever cut a deal with a dragon."
For a brief moment, Herb's smile returned. "Indeed you _are_ very observant." He said. "Tell me, did you figure this out before or after I had my little snack?"
"Before." Said Nabiki. "When you first smiled at me, I couldn't help but notice your teeth."
"My teeth?"
"Most human don't have ivory razor blades for teeth." Said Nabiki.
Herb looked at her coldly and said, "I'm tired of this charade. You have something that belongs to me and I want it back. Immediately!"
"I don't have it." Nabiki countered.
"My techs found what was left of a cyberdeck; the memory was erased." Said Herb. "However, I doubt a professional decker such as yourself would copy a file on the deck alone. You've got a copy inside your skull don't you?"
"So what if I do?"
"_If_ you do you are fortunate." Said Herb. "Because if you hand it over, I'll let you walk out of here under your own power."
"And if I don't?"
Without answering, Herb pressed a button on his intercom. A second later, Mint and Lime entered the office and took up positions on either side of Nabiki.
"If you don't." said Herb. "You won't be able to walk out of here at all."
"I don't have it anymore." Said Nabiki, as she cast nervous glances at Mint and Lime.
"Where is it then?" asked Herb.
Nabiki didn't answer. Before Herb could repeat the question, Mint spoke up.
"She'd just jacked out of her computer when we caught her, but she blew the thing up with a mini-bomb. Safe bet she sent your data to someone."
Herb's eyes narrowed into slits and began to glow. "Who did you send it to?" He asked.
<Can't let them find Akane.> Nabiki thought. "Screw you." She said.
"If I were human, I might take you up on that offer." Said Herb sarcastically. "Mint, Lime, take her down to Washu. If anybody can get the information out of her, she can."
"You've got to catch me first." Said Nabiki confidently. Flicking her wrist, the monofilament whip slipped out of her arm compartment and into her hand. Extending it, she swung it hard, catching Lime across the shoulder and giving him a deep cut. Spinning on her heel, she ran for the door.
Herb raised his arm, said a few words and watched in satisfaction as Nabiki hit his barrier spell. Nabiki immediately jumped to her feet and spun round , however, a bright flash entered her
peripheral vision and caused her to turn slightly. A second later, a flaming ball of energy slammed into her. She screamed as her arm exploded, sending her back into the barrier.
"Pick her up." She heard Herb say.
Nabiki shook her head groggily and checked her situation. <This is it.> she thought. Reaching back with her left arm, she felt along the back of her neck until she felt the vertebra at its base. Pushing down hard, she began to count. As she reached ten, she felt something click. <Sorry I can't make your birthday party, Sis.> she thought. <But at least this way you'll get to live to enjoy another one.>
Mint grabbed her roughly by her remaining arm and dragged her back in front of Herb. "I see the fights gone out of you." Said Herb, noticing the defeated look in Nabiki's eyes. "Good that'll make it easier for Washu."
"You want me to take her down there now?" asked Mint.
"No time like the present." Said Herb. "By the way, Mint, if there's anything left once Washu is finished, you're welcome to it."
Mint and Lime both grinned sadistically and began to escort Nabiki to the elevator. Halfway there, Nabiki spun to one side and wrapped her arm around Mint. The act was so surprising, he didn't even bother to push her away.
<Goodbye, Akane.> she though. <I'll say hello to our Parents and Kasumi for you.> With that thought, the world went white. The last thing Nabiki heard was Mint's scream.
Herb watched coldly as Nabiki latched onto Mint. <Begging won't help you now.> he thought.
Suddenly, a sound echoed in the office and a burst of red shot up in front of Mint. Herb watched in shock as Mint screamed and fell backwards, holding his chest tightly. Standing quickly, Herb ran to them.
Lime was already checking Mint when Herb got to them and the room was quickly filling with security guards and medics. Herb looked at Nabiki's body coldly. "What was that?" he asked to no one in particular.
"A cortex bomb." Said Lime. "Deckers use 'em sometimes to keep people from gettin' in their heads."
Without turning, Herb asked, "What about Mint, will he live?"
"Don't worry about him." Said Lime. "Use shifters are tougher than we look."
"Excellent." Said Herb. Kneeling, he flipped Nabiki's body onto its stomach. The lower part of her neck had been blown open as the bomb took her head off and Herb couldn't help but shake his head. If he hand not been use to such sights, it may have made him sick. Reaching into the back pocket of Nabiki's jeans, he removed her wallet and, standing, began to thumb through it.
Herb immediately found what he was looking for. In the wallet were several pictures of Nabiki with various people and several fake identification cards. However, one of them was not fake. Looking at the body, Herb said, "You broke one of the most important rules of the run, Miss Tendo. Never carry pictures, and never use your real ID."
Suddenly, Herb felt someone beside him, looking up, he saw Pantyhose Taro, he chief of security, standing before him. "What is it, Taro?" he asked.
"Are you safe, Sir?" asked Taro.
"Quite." Said Herb. "I have a job for you Mr. Taro."
"Yes, Sir."
Herb handed him the wallet and said, "Inside you'll find several pictures and an Identification for Nabiki Tendo. According to the Identification she is twenty years old which means she would have been born in Thirty-three. I want you to do a check on her."
"Am I looking for anything particular, Sir?"
"You are looking for _everything_, Mr. Taro." Said Herb. "I want a full records check. I want to know where she was born, where she went to school, what her favorite food is... _everything_!"
Mr. Taro bowed and said, "I'll get on it right away, Sir. However, such a wide search could take several days."
"Mr. Taro."
"Yes, Sir?" asked Mr. Taro.
"You have twenty-four hours." Said Herb.
Mr. Taro looked around nervously for a moment and said, "Um..., sir... I'm afraid that that is an impossibility."
Herb turned slowly to face him. "Then I suggest, Mr. Taro, that you find a way to make it possible." Said Herb. "And if you cannot, I suggest you shoot yourself."
"W-why?"
Herb grinned coldly, revealing he teeth. "Because," he said, his voice suddenly deep and rumbling. "If you don't succeed, and you're still alive, I won't be in _this_ form the next time you see me."
Mr. Taro swallowed nervously, he knew exactly what his employer was hinting at. "I'll get to it immediately." Said Mr. Taro.
"Excellent." Said Herb. "And Mr. Taro."
"Yes?"
"Get someone up here to clean up that mess." Said Herb, gesturing to Nabiki's body.
"Immediately, Sir." Said Mr. Taro, who ran to carry out his orders.
A few moments later, the room was cleared and Herb resumed his seat. Once there, he laid the picture of Nabiki he'd removed from the wallet on his desk. Resting his chin on his hands, he said, "You were very clever Nabiki Tendo. I would have enjoyed killing you. However, I think I'll enjoy hunting down the one you sent the data too. And I shall enjoy sending them to meet you."
Placing his hand over the photo, Herb let part of his shapeshift fade. He watched as his fingers elongated, his nails turning to claws. A moment later, he raked the claws over the picture, shredding it.
*******************************************End of Part 1
***BEGIN DISCLAIMER***
--All Ranma 1/2 characters are property of Rumiko Takahashi and the company that published them.
--I don't know who created Washu (the mad scientist of Tenchi Muyo fame), but I do know that it WAS
_NOT_ ME!!! So she too is the property of her creator and the company that publishes Tenchi Muyo.
--Shadowrun (an excellent game BTW) and all of its related, slang, equipment, races, etc. are the property of the FASA Corporation
--All of the above are used _WITHOUT_ permission. No copyright infringement is intended.
--Any other names that appear in this fanfic are made up and belong to no one in particular.
***END DISCLAIMER***
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Before I say anything else, I'd like to extend a very _big_ thanks to both James Palmer and Zen for being my pre-readers on this fanfic! I doubt I'd have gotten much done without their help.
First of all, yes, I realize that all of my stories so far have been crossovers with various RPG's. Sorry, but I write about what I know and what I like. I'm working on a few non-RPG x-over ideas, but there in the early stages and won't be out for some time.
The story should pick up after this and have more of the characters popping up throughout it.
Thank you for reading and I hope you're enjoying the story thus far. I hope to have the next part out sometime soon. C&C will be greatly appreciated, but please limit it to story content or the story itself. Please do _not_ comment on grammar or spelling. Also, if you feel the need to comment on anyone being OOC, you may do so, but please bare in mind this qualifies as an "Elseworlds."
NOTE: For anyone who plays Shadowrun, if you are interested, I've got a character sheet made up for most of the main characters in this story. If you'd like a copy, e-mail me and I'll send you one.
Thanks again.