First Draft

UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0500
DATE: 2143.06.27

	A dull, steady, throbbing pain coursed through Yuri, centering from her
stomach. Her head felt as though it had been used for a soccer ball by a
bunch of over-active grade-schoolers. 

	Noises hovered at the edges of her mind, either voices or machines, she
couldn't tell. Her eyelids felt like lead, her mind telling her that opening
them might be a bad idea. Deciding to heed her brain's advice, Yuri simply
lay there. Gradually the noises became more distinct. They were, in fact,
voices.

	"Is she going to be okay?" one voice asked. From what she could tell, it
carried a hint of worry. It also sounded strangely familiar.

	"She'll be fine." another voice replied. "She's gonna have one bitch of a
headache, though."

	That settled it, they were talking about her. Two men, possibly more. 

	"So, what are we gonna do about this little cluster-fuck?"

	//Ok, three guys.\\ Yuri ammended.

	"Do I look like I know?" the first voice asked angrily. "Doc and Ozzy are
dead, someone's released that damn bug, and that invisible motherfucker
whacked our only lead!"

	Yuri mentally started, the pain in her head quickly clearing. The virus was
released? It was time for some answers. Opening her eyes, she rose from
whatever she was lying on...

	Or at least she tried to. She rather unceremoniously discovered that she
was quite thoroughly bound. Thick black straps were wrapped tightly around
her arms, both above and below her ample breasts. Her wrists, legs, and
ankles were also bound. She took in her surroundings. 

	The space was quite cramped, with surveilliance equipment taking up most of
the far wall. The lights were very dim, the screens on the far wall casting
a strange glow on the three seated before it. 

	"Looks like our guest is up." remarked the tall one in the middle. Light
reflected off the glasses he wore-a fact in and of itself unusual in an era
where corrective surgery or cybernetic replacement were both practical
options. Yuri shot a withering glare at the three as she assessed the new
conditions. She was tied helpless on a small padded bench in a cramped space
with three men that didn't look to be very kind and caring folks.

	She had several questions about the virus, who these people were, and also...

	"Where's Kei?" The three just looked at each other, their faces unreadable
in the shadows. Yuri suddenly got very worried about her partner.

	"We're sorry about your current...ah...situation, but we felt it
necessary." the tall one in the middle said. The light from the monitors
reflected off his round glasses as he looked at her, giving him an alien
appearance. "After all, we can't have you running amok in here."

	"Where's...Kei?" She said, her eyes narrowing. The worry changed to a
mixture of fear and anger. If they've hurt her...

	"I wish I could tell ya." said the smallest one. He looked like a twig. "I
CAN tell ya that she ain't here, and that we don't have her."

	"Bullshit." Yuri spat. "Where is she?" He sighed and repeated his response.

	"That invisible...killer took her off somewhere." The one in the middle
said. Yuri's heart caught when she heard it. The thing that attacked them on
the roof that night had Kei. Recalling the previous night, her memories
ended when something sent her flying against the side of one of the hangars.
That bastard had nearly killed them the first time, now he had Kei...

	Tears welled up, stinging her eyes. Kei's words from the previous night
came back to her.

	"You're the only friend I've got. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."

	A sob managed to get past her lips at the thought of what could quite
possibly be Kei's fate.  She slumped on her side, a feeling of utter despair
consuming her. Briefly, she wondered if Kei went through this after the lab
explosion on Dubahl, while they were investigating the destruction of Flight
005.  Kei had thought her dead, and had tried to drown her sorrows in booze.
At the moment, Yuri felt like crawling into a bottle herself.
	
	However, being tied up made that a bit problematic.
	
	The first man, the one with the familiar voice, said something she couldn't
quite catch to his bespectacled colleague.
	
	"I wasn't planning to for a little while."
	
	Planning to do what?  Actual fear made itself known, now.  Who were these
people?  Almost certainly no colleagues of the now-dead assassin - were that
the case, she was certain, she wouldn't be alive now.  One of 3WA's 'black'
teams, dispatched as silent backup?  Possible, for they too apparently
perceived Bryant as a lead... No, then she wouldn't be tied up.
	
	"No, Specs, I mean forget it."  Again, that maddening familiarity - where
did she know that voice from?  The man got up from his seat, stepped closer,
and turned on the overhead light.

	It took a second or so for Yuri's eyes to make the adjustment; when they
did, though, the reason for the voice's familiarity - and the concern she'd
thought she'd heard in it - became instantly clear.

	"You!?"

	Having a pretty good idea as to Yuri's emotional state at that point in
time was one thing; seeing - and hearing - the evidence of those emotional
processes, Ryozo quickly realized, was another entirely.  Without a
convenient, let alone appropriate, response readily at hand, he stood there
for a while, just watching her.

	All things considered, he really couldn't blame her.  There was, however,
one thing he could - more properly, should - do.

	"Twigy, Specs, would you two please step outside?"

	His remaining colleagues looked at each other momentarily - something he
did not see, not having turned to face them.

	"You sure that's smart?" Twiggy wanted to know after a moment.
	
	"No, I'm not."  Somehow, neither of them thought further dispute would do
any good.  They exited the van, closing the door behind them.

============================================================================

UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0555
DATE: 2143.06.27

	|| The Ooman hung there helpless in the shadows of the room, its muffled
cries the only sound. Its heat signature was bright, the reds glowing like
coals. Whether this was from fear or anger, the Hunter didn't know nor did
it care.

	The female's shrill noises had become extremely tiresome after only a few
seconds. Fortunately, the cloth it wore around its head fixed that. The
Hunter didn't have anything in the way of sedatives, and wanted to ensure
that the female lived. After all, the best bait is live bait.

	The Hunter looked at the small, triangular thing it had pulled from the
female's ear when it had placed the gag. It appeared to be a transmitter,
and the other was sure to have the mate. This solved the problem of luring
the Prey to the bait quite nicely.

	The Hunt would end tonight, and it would return home with many trophies. ||

============================================================================

UNDISLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0607
DATE: 2143.06.27

	"What, you're not gonna pass me around with your friends," Yuri asked in
contempt. 

	"No."

	"Then you just want me yourself," she said. "Go ahead, pencil-dick. I can't
stop you."

	Ryozo's face flushed from a mixture of embarrassment and anger. "Listen up.
I'm not..."

	"Did you enjoy it? Did you enjoy watching me and Kei..."

	"WILL YOU SHUT UP?!" Ryozo's face was contorted in anger, his eyes almost
shining. "There's a lot we have to talk about."

	"What about?" she asked. Though her face was still hard and unforgiving, at
least she seemed willing to listen. Ryozo thought for a moment, wondering
where to start. After a few moments of quick deliberation, he decided that
his name would be as good a place as any to start.

	"My name's Ryozo Hibiki," he said. "My team and I have..."

	"Been following us," she interrupted. "I gathered that."

	"We were hoping you'd lead us to the Bio-container," Ryozo continued.

	"I get it," Yuri said, realization dawning on her features. "You're that
guy's buyers aren't you?"

	"I'm afraid not," Ryozo replied. "We're with ViralTech."

	"Then you're mercs," Yuri said.

	"I really wish you'd stop jumping to conclusions, Yuri," Ryozo said in an
exasperated voice. He began to squeeze the bridge of his nose with his thumb
and forefinger, a nervous habit he thought he'd kicked a long time ago. "Now
I'll take it from the top. Please hold all questions until I'm finished." He
paused for a few seconds, making sure that Yuri would let him finish.

	"We're part of ViralTech's military.  As you might imagine, due to the
nature of the corporation's work, our orientation is primarily defensive.
Needless to say, the theft represents a great embarrassment; my team was
tasked with its correction.  And no, we really had no idea exactly what was
in that container..."

	"I'm sure you didn't," Yuri said sarcastically. Ignoring the verbal barb,
Ryozo continued.

	"We followed you because we had bupkis. I mean absolutely no clue as to
where it was. We thought you might be able to dig up a few leads for us."

	"And that's why you broke into the Angel, shot Mughi, and stole that Bloody
Card."

	"Huh?" She had thrown him a curve with that statement.

	"Don't play dumb, asshole," Yuri spat, "You and your goons broke into our
ship!"

	"That wasn't us," he protested. Ryozo didn't like what this implied. Was
there another team on Corix? Why wasn't he informed?

	"That Bio-container isn't the only reason you're here," Yuri said. "You
stole my Bloody Card with that goo on it."

	"Why would we want one of your fucking weapons?" Ryozo's patience was
wearing dangerously thin. He could feel his pulse pound in his temples as
his temper rose. This was turning out to be a disaster, just like the rest
of the mission.

	"Because Kei hit that invisible hitman of yours with it!" Some more pieces
of the puzzle slid into place. It was now  obvious that there was, in fact,
another covert team on Corix IX. But who were they? Who did they work for?
In any event, they had something to do with that invisible thing. 

	"Yuri, that murderer isn't one of ours," he said, trying to keep his voice
calm despite the questions stampeding around in his head. "In fact, we may
have a common enemy."

	"Come again?"

	"The thing that attacked the two of you on that roof killed two members of
my team last night. One of them was a very close friend of mine." Yuri's
features seemed to soften slightly, though it could have been Ryozo's eyes
playing tricks on him.

	"So, did you kill Sarah Bryant?" she asked. At least she didn't assume he
was responsible. That was SOMETHING.

	"No, we didn't. And to answer your next question, we don't know who it was."

	"Now who's jumping to conclusions?"

	Ryozo suppressed a light chuckle. He knew this next move could prove a
fatal mistake, especially given Yuri's reputation, but he had little left to
lose. He wasn't too damn clear on what he had to gain, either.

	"Listen, Yuri, that thing killed two friends of mine, and probably killed
your partner as well. On top of that, we have that virus on the loose. What
I'm trying to ask is, are you willing to help us?"

	Yuri was absolutely stunned at the question. For a brief moment, she
wondered if she heard him right. Was he asking for her HELP? "You're
kidding, right?"

	"No, I'm not," he replied. "After all, I really don't want to hurt you..."
he left the sentence hanging in the air. From the brief startled look that
crossed her face, he knew the threat registered. 

	"All right." Ryozo regarded her warily. He had a bad feeling about untying
her. After all, he was well aware of how well-trained 3WA Trouble
Consultants were. He was a fair fighter himself, but he didn't really feel
up to pitting his skill against hers.

	"I'll release you now," he said, "but remember, we're in this together. Try
anything funny, and I will not hesitate to send you to join your partner."
Once she nodded her agreement, Ryozo undid her bonds.

	Once the thick straps were released, Yuri lashed out at Ryozo, catching him
squarely across the chin. He staggered backward a couple of steps. Seizing
the chance, she bolted for the door. Maybe she could catch the other two by
surprise...

	Something landed on her back, forcing her to the deck of the van. Yuri
began to struggle, but whatever was holding her down was too heavy. The
doors of the van opened to reveal Specs and Twiggy, both aiming firearms at
her forehead.

	"Wait!" Ryozo stepped in front of her, holding down the guns of the other
two. Yuri looked at the three in puzzlement. If all three of the men were in
front of her, and there weren't any more in the van...

	//What the HELL is on top of me?\\

	"Jikken," Ryozo barked, "heel!" The weight left her back, and what was one
of the strangest thing she had ever seen stepped in front of her.

	It walked on four legs, and looked like a large Earth timberwolf. It was
made of a shimmering orange-colored substance that Yuri couldn't identify.
It looked almost liquid, but held it's shape like any solid.

	Ryozo reached down as if to scratch the strange creature behind its head.
On contact the creature's shape changed, becoming long and pointed at the
end. In seconds, it became a red Japanese baroque-style umbrella.

	"Care to try that again," Ryozo asked. Yuri pulled herself to her feet, and
glared at Ryozo.

	"I had to try," Yuri quipped. "Now, would you mind telling me just what the
hell that thing really is?"

============================================================================

STARCOM SECTOR--OFFICE OF CHIEF MEDICAL EXAMINER A. EDWARDS
TIME: 0700
DATE: 2143.06.27

	The Pit had been cleared of the victims of the mutated virus minutes
earlier. Eagerly, Arthur stepped out of the orange space suit he had been
obliged to wear while performing the autopsies. The damnable things were hot
and uncomfortable under even the best conditions, and he was certain that
much more time spent wearing the bulky suit would result in chafing of epic
proportions.

	He left the suit on the cold metal floor of the decontamination chamber. A
green light shone from the cieling immediately, incinerating the suit.
Simultaneously, jets of blue gas shot from the floor, engulfing him
completely in the sweet smelling fog. In seconds, the gas dissappated, and
the Chief Medical Examiner stepped through the thick steel doors into the
hallway leading to the offices of his staff. He took a seat on one of the
benches, as his assistant underwent the same decontamination procedure as he.

	Mizky walked out of the chamber, her bob of red hair dull and flat from the
helmet of the suit.

	"How many was that again," she asked in a tired voice.

	"That last victim was number fifteen," Edwards answered. "I've never seen a
virus spread this fast."

	The strain of RRF they were facing had a considerably shorter incubation
period, likely of merely hours instead of days or even weeks. The rate of
infection also seemed much greater

	"The lab reports no progress on courses of treatment," Mizky said.
"Antibiotics aren't helping, neither are any drugs. People are usually
killed withing twenty-four hours of infection."

	Arthur held his head in his hands and silently railed against the
unfairness of it all.

	"What are we up against?" Whatever it was, he had a feeling that the worst
was yet to come.

============================================================================

STARCOM SECTOR--TOWLER MEMORIAL--SPECIAL QUARRANTINE UNIT
TIME: 1200
DATE: 2143.06.27

	"HOLD HIM DOWN, DAMNIT!" 

	The two orderlies, dressed in the space suits provided by the Ministry of
Health and Medicine, struggled to hold down the wildly struggling man.

	He was thin, almost emaciated. His skin, while severely flushed, had a
yellowish tint to it. He was most likely a junkie.

	The thin man fought with a strength and fierceness Dr. Towler found
astounding. The two orderlies, being over six feet tall each and
well-muscled, still had to strain to keep him somewhat immoble.

	His screams of rage and agony filled the quarrantine chamber. Blood spurted
from his nose, and spurt out from his mouth with each racking cough.

	Dr. Grayson Towler approached the raving man cautiously, brandishing the
hypodermic needle almost as a weapon. He waited until the orderlies managed
to restrain him before drawing blood from the diseased man's arm.

	Placing the hypodermic in a sterile container, he stepped into the
decontamination unit and shed the suit. The hospital had four such
quarrantine units, and all of them were filled. Where to put the victims of
the mysterious disease would be a logistics nightmare, if not for the fact
that they died so blasted quick.

	In his six years of practicing medicine, he had never seen anything like
this. He had no idea how many people Takahashi had infected before being
diagnosed, but the thought made him shudder. Even if she had infected only
one in every five people she met...

	As he stepped out of the chamber, he saw two hermetically sealed containers
on anti-grav carts being pushed by orderlies. The containers, he surmised,
carried the corpses of two more victims.

============================================================================

UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 1222
DATE: 2153.06.27

	Specs tried in vain to comfortably adjust his frame between the Trouble
Consultant and the monstrous feline. Yuri had insisted they retrieve him,
citing that Mughi would soon come looking for them. 

	Now, trying to find a comfortable position between the two, he idly
wondered if bringing the damned creature aboard was really that good of an
idea. Twiggy, seated on the opposite side of the van, cast him a look that
seemed to say "You agreed to it, you deal with it."

	Mughi glared at the red umbrella in the far right corner, propped against a
small seat. It had taken some effort for Yuri to calm Mughi once he had seen
the creature Ryozo had named Jikken. Ryozo himself kept a white-knuckled
grip on the pseudo-umbrella's shaft, in case Jikken decided it didn't like
Mughi.

	Thankfully, so far violence hadn't erupted.

	"So, what's the game plan, chief?" Ryozo started at Twiggy's question.

	"I have no idea," he replied.

	"That ain't exactly reassuring," Twiggy remarked.

	"Well, how much do you know?" Yuri asked. 

	"Pretty much what you do," Ryozo answered, "almost zilch."

	"Word from the ME's office is twenty-six victims so far," Twiggy said, "all
dead within hours of infection."

	"Christ," Specs whispered. Whatever was done to the original virus, it had
to have been a doozy.

	"How are you getting word from the Medical Examiner's office?" Yuri asked
in disbelief.

	"One of my 'special programs.'" Twiggy said, his voice full of pride. His
narrow face broke into a beaming grin at the chance to show off his
technical expertise, as it always did. "I put a mole in the hub of the ME's
network by way of a mundane data file..." the looks on Ryozo and Spec's
faces stopped him in his gloating. "Getting to the point, we know what they
know."

	"Which isn't that much," Yuri said.

	"More or less..." Twiggy trailed off as he said it. "Also, they just got
done cutting into the guy what whacked Bryant last night. Fingerprints came
up nil, same as the DNA scan."

	"What databases were they checking?" asked Yuri. "There might be a match in
3WA's Criminal Database."

	"Actually, they ran it through the Central Computer," Twiggy replied. "They
got bupkis. On every DNA scan file at that."

	"Twiggy," Ryozo said, "can you run that guy's code through ViralTech's
databases?"

	"No can do, boss," he answered. "To do that, I gotta have a copy of the
guy's DNA pattern scan."

	"Can't you get it?" asked Specs.

	"Yeah, if we wanted to get noticed in a big hurry," Twiggy said. "I hate to
admit it, but as secure as their Autopsy Data Storage units are, hackin' in
by remote would take more time than we got. Plus, there's a damn good chance
we'd get busted. The stuff they got in there is often criminal evidence, so
they protect it like it's their balls."

	"But that mole program of yours..." Yuri began.

	"Just transmits what it can before the data gets stored," Twiggy explained.
"It ain't the most detailed info, but it's all the program can safely
transmit. A DNA scan ain't exactly like a small status report, y'know."

	"You said 'remotely' earlier," Specs said, "would it be possible to get the
data directly?"

	"Yeeessss..." Twiggy said almost reluctantly. "What are you gettin' at?"

	"We could get the scan, and run it through VT's databases to see if there's
a match," Ryozo said.

	"Whoa, whoa, WHOA!" Twiggy exclaimed. "Just what the hell are you tryin' to
do?"

	"Remember, someone broke into Yuri's ship," Ryozo explained, "and you know
how well secured 3WA ships are. Someone also terminated our best lead. These
two events can't be coincidence."

	"What makes you think ViralTech's involved?" asked Yuri.

	"Well, the Corp didn't tell us what was really in the Bio-Container,"
offered Specs, "What else have they kept from us?"

	"We still have the recording of Bryant's last words," Ryozo said, "Maybe we
missed something on it."

	"What about that Englesson guy?" Yuri asked.

	"I haven't run a check on that yet," said Twiggy. "Call me crazy, but that
felt a little staged."

	"Check it anyway, Twiggy," Ryozo said. "Right now, we need all the leads we
can get."

	"No prob, boss. Now for the million credit question," Twiggy took a breath,
"How are we gonna get the DNA scan from the guy what whacked Bryant?" 

	"Do you really have to ask that?" asked Ryozo. 

	"You DID say you could get the data directly, didn't you?" Yuri teased.

	"Well, yeah, but..."

	"But what? Get the scan and send it. Twiggy, you'll go with Specs. If you
two get stopped, I want at least one of you to be able to effetively
bullshit your way clear."

	Specs nodded while Twiggy heaved a defeated sigh. "All right, just let me
get a copy of the specs of the building."

	"About how well secured is it?" asked Yuri.

	" I don't know. That's why I need the blueprints," Twiggy said. "Gimme
about an hour."

============================================================================

UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
OUTSIDE STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 1244
DATE: 2143.06.27

	The sun blazed in the clear sky, shining its golden light down on the
tarmac of the small airport. 

	Barely covering three square acres, it was used mainly by recreational
pilots with small engine aircraft. It's one runway was cracked, but still
usable for ships without Vertical Take-Off and Landing capability. 

	Through the muggy haze at the far end of the strip, a small cart moved
toward one of the three hangars alongside the runway. The white golf-cart
sized vehicle came to a stop outside the giant roll-up door, a middle-aged
man in blue overalls stepping out of the cart. He pressed in a code on the
panel next to the door, causing it to rise.

	The door was well-oiled, as was evidenced by how quickly and quietly it
rose along its tracks. The man steered the cart into the hangar.

	The main source of light was what sunlight came through the skylights.
While somewhat dim, it was more than sufficient to see by. He stopped the
cart again by the sole plane in the hangar. Leaving the cart, he stepped up
to the plane.

	It was a small single-thruster automated model. The design, while up to
code, was more or less obsolete. The plane could cover the distance from the
airport to, maybe, the middle of StarCom Sector and back, but wouldn't take
first place in any stunt show. It required no pilot, it would simply take
off and do its thing by itself. At least the owner paid cash for it to be
stored there, so close to the city.

	Hauling a large black case out of the back of the cart with an agrav
handle, he easily maneuvered the case to the cargo port on the small plane.
Within seconds, the case was loaded, the port shut, and the man on his way
back to the building in the airfield he called home.

	He had absolutely no clue that he just helped sentence countless millions
of people to a horrible death...

============================================================================

STARCOM SECTOR--OFFICE OF CHIEF MEDICAL EXAMINER A. EDWARDS
TIME: 0115
DATE: 2143.06.27

	The lobby of the Chief Medical examiner's office wasn't posh by any stretch
of the imagination. The white tile floor, walls, and ceiling were clean,
though bare. The benches had thin green cushions on them, and looked about
as comfortable as a sheet of jagged plywood.

	Twiggy and Specs walked through the lobby, noting that the reception desk
was curiously empty. Not pausing to wonder at that, the two passed through
the nondescript door leading into the main thoroughfare. Twiggy took the
lead, setting a brisk pace. The two looked for all the universe like they
belonged there. Specs was a couple of steps behind him, eyes roaming over
the spartan walls.

	"Ok," Twiggy said in a soft voice, "The Data Storage Room should be right
around..."