"Excuse me!" came a female voice from behind them. Startled, the two
whirled to see a short Asian woman staring at them. She wore a white blouse
and skirt ensemble and a tag that identified her as Mizky. She had bags
under her eyes, probably from lack of sleep. "Who are you and what are you
doing here?"
"Uh...we...we're the new interns." Twiggy stammered, putting on his best
dazed-and-confused act. "We were just assigned here yesterday."
"That's right," Specs said with a short bow. "I'm Alex Stone, and this is
Sam Davis."
"I don't remember getting word of any new interns," Mizky said, a
suspicious look on her tired face.
"I'm really not surprised, what with all that's been happening," Specs
replied. "The paperwork's probably been held up in the system." Reaching
into the breast pocket of the white lab coat, he produced a small padd the
size of a credit card. Twiggy did the same, handing his to Mizky along with
Specs. She looked over the fake ID cards with a skeptical expression. Twiggy
and Specs kept their faces calm while she examined the cards.
"Follow me, I'll show you to your office," she said as she walked down the
hall opposite the direction they needed to go. Breathing a silent sigh of
relief, the two followed. In moments, they were escorted through a small
door in the side of the left hand wall.
The office wasn't much to look at. Two desks back to back in the middle of
the room with two chairs summed up all the furniture. The office itself,
while as clean as the rest of the building, was extremely cramped. If it
weren't an office, the two would have sworn it was a janitorial supplies closet.
"Make yourselves comfortable, gentlemen," Mizky said. "I'll see about
getting your paperwork straightened out." With that, she left the two alone
in the small space.
"Make ourselves comfortable? Shyeah, RIGHT!" Twiggy looked over at Specs.
"At least these doctors get paid a helluva lot."
"Only surgeons, specialists, and those who have a decent private practice,"
Specs said. "If you work for a government or a large corp, they'll ream you
six ways from Sunday." Twiggy stepped out the door, gazing in both directions.
"Coast is clear," he said. "Let's move. We don't have a lotta time." Specs
understood fully. The false IDs Twiggy had whipped up wouldn't stand up to
very close scrutiny. It was entirely possible that Mizky would learn they
weren't interns (though one had surgical training), and their time would be up.
Moving quickly, they navigated the halls until they found the door labelled
"Data Storage". Noting the keypad next to the door, Twiggy reached inside
his coat. He produced a small black rectangle roughly the size of a dollar
bill. The rectangle opened, exposing a small keypad. With speed and
precision born of experience, Twiggy pressed a few of the keys, and the
keypad's numbers began lighting up rapidly.
//C'mon, damnit, c'mon...\\ Twiggy silently cursed as the small computer
ran through the possible four-digit combinations of the numbers 0-9.
Finally, a beep sounded, and the door opened silently. Putting the small
device away, the two entered the room, letting the doors close behind them.
The Data Storage Room was a modest sized space done in the same antiseptic
motif as the rest of the place. The walls were lined with computers, each
networked to the others in the building, as well as the outside world.
Twiggy moved to the nearest keyboard, and activated a search.
Wasting no time, Twiggy produced a small device that resembled a disk
drive. Pressing a button on the top, several small lights flashed briefly.
Finally, the device beeped
The screen came up with a small window for him to type his search
parameters. In the first space, he typed "DNA Scans." In the one beneath
that, he typed, "John Doe." In the third and final space he put in last
night's date.
"Okay, now it's gonna look for unidentified DNA scans queued from
yesterday to today," Twiggy said to Specs, who was leaning over his
shoulder. A small bar appeared in the center of the screen with "30%" in it.
The number kept growing as the blue bar kept nearing the end of the
transparent one. Finally, a window popped up with "Results Found! 1 OF 1."
Suppressing a yell of triumph, he downloaded to scan to the small device. In
seconds, the download was completed and the device replaced. Switching off
the monitor, the two exited the Data Storage Room.
"OH! Mr. Stone," Mizky exclaimed, surprised. "I've...been looking for you!
Why aren't you in your office? And what were you doing in the Data Storage
Room?" Specs and Twiggy traded a knowing glance. She had found out. She had
to be dealt with.
"Madam, please, come with us," Specs said in a soothing tone as he grabbed
her arm.
"We ain't gonna hurt you," Twiggy added as he grabbed her other arm.
"Let me go! Let...mmrrpph!" Specs' hand cut off any further protest as the
two lifted her off her feet and quickly carried her down the hall. Just as
they rounded a corner, a janitor came behind, wondering what the noise was.
Concerned, he continued on until he saw three people disappear into one of
his supply closets. Taking a few moments to gather his courage, he gripped
his mop like a quarterstaff, and charged into the small space.
The battle was over almost before it began. The second he charged in, Specs
caught him with a clothesline, dropping him to the cold floor. Immediately,
he sprayed the janitor with a substance from a tiny metal cylinder. He
turned to see Twiggy had done the same with Mizky, for she was out cold. The
gas was some amazing stuff, rendering the victim unconscious while causing
short-term memory loss. The two then squeezed them into the small space, so
that the door could close and no one would be the wiser. Specs exited the
small closet, and Twiggy soon after. Specs hadn't noticed that Twiggy had
placed Mizky and the janitor in a potentially embarrassing embrace, and was
wondering what his partner was chuckling to himself about as they made their
escape.
============================================================================
UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0218
DATE: 2143.06.27
It took Twiggy almost no time at all to attach the small machine that
contained the DNA scan to the surveillance panel. After he made a few
calculations, he sent the scan along with the request for information on
Englesson. The transmission was sent in seconds, leaving the people inside
the van no choice but to wait.
"Well, that's that," Twiggy said. He leaned back in his chair, hands
interlocked behind his head and feet crossed on the panel.
"So, what do we do now?" asked Yuri. She sat across from Ryozo in the cab
of the van, while Specs and Mughi shared the bench opposite Twiggy and his
panel.
"I believe I speak for all of us when I say, 'This sucks'," Specs said.
"Let's see what's on the ol' idiot box," Twiggy yawned. Pressing a button
on the panel, the large monitor in the center flickered to life.
On the screen, an impeccably dressed man and woman sat behind a long desk,
the StarCom logo on the beige wall behind them. The man was droning on and
on about some news story or another. Twiggy was about the change stations,
when he mentioned an announcement from CEO Aria Holst.
The screen changed to show Holst in her spacious office, looking as
unflappable as always.
"Employees of StarCom," she began, "as you all know, an unknown virus has
begun to spread throughout the sector."
"Boy, is SHE the mistress of understatement," Yuri quipped.
"Despite the rumormills, there is no cause for alarm," she continued.
Everyone in the van just stared open-mouthed at her audacity. "However, on
the advice of the Ministry of Health and Medicine and the Cheif Medical
Examiner, I have decided to restrict all routes to and from StarCom Sector.
Until the situation is resolved, no one in the sector will leave by any
means for any reason. Also, no one will be allowed in. All recieving
facilities will turn away any shipments from outside the sector. All ground
traffic will be stopped at our border. Air traffic will be escorted around
our airspace.
All security personell have full authorization to use whatever means are
necessary to ensure that this does not spread outside the sector, including
but not limited to lethal force. Good day."
"Can you believe that little bitch?" Yuri asked incredulously.
"Well, did you expect honesty with a situation this serious?" Ryozo asked.
"That's how it works. Tell the wage-slaves what they want and/or need to
hear, and sweep as much of what's left under the rug as possible." Taking a
deep breath, he turned in his seat and stared down the alley in which the
van was parked. "I've been in this line of work too long not to know how it is."
A small red light on Twiggy's panel began flashing fervently, an annoying
buzzing sound chiming in time to it. The main monitor shifted to show a
screen full of codes blurring past. Straightening, Twiggy began to pound
furiously on the keys.
"Oh, not good. Not good," he said as he knelt on the floor.
"What are you doing?" Specs inquired as the others stared at him.
"Someone's gettin' a lock on us!" he shouted. Opening a panel, he began
furiously pulling at wires and circuit boards. "I'll try to kill the
connection. Ryozo, get us outta here!" Nodding, Ryozo keyed the van's
ignition. After the van left the pavement, he slammed the transmission in
gear, and stomped on the accellerator. The van shot out of the alley like a
bat out of hell, nearly causing a rather nasty pile-up. As the van
straightened itself out, it streaked off into the distance, leaving many
confused and angry commuters in its wake.
Inside the van, Twiggy continued to pull out wires. Finally, the panel went
dead, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "THAT was close," he whispered.
"Do you have any idea where the lock came from?" Yuri asked.
"Sorry, I was too busy tryin' to keep 'em from lockin' on us to trace it,"
Twiggy replied in an exasperated voice. He rose to his feet, and turned to
the front of the van. "Well, boss, you may have been right."
"I think a visit to ViralTech's CEO is definitely in order," Yuri said.
"Of course you realize," Specs replied, "that breaking into ViralTech is
considerably more difficult than sneaking into the M.E.'s office."
"I'm familiar with the Corix branch's construction," Ryozo said suddenly.
"I was trained there."
"Me, too," Twiggy said. "Just let me get this panel up an' runnin' an'
we'll get to work."
"Won't they try to track us again?" asked Yuri.
"Nah. I found their little toy." Twiggy opened his left hand, showing them
a small, rectangular device. "I get the feelin' that we've been snowed."
Ryozo kept steering the van through the midday traffic, which was rather
sparse when compared to a typical StarCom rush hour.
============================================================================
UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0544
DATE: 2143.06.27
|| The Hunter gazed about the grounds from its perch high atop the
unfinished structure. Oddly enough, there had been a drastic drop on Oomans
over the past day. The Hunter didn't bother to consider any possible
reasons, the damnable creatures were just too bloody odd.
The sun was beginning to set, and not a moment too soon. The Yautja was
eager for this whole affair to be over. It gazed over to where the bait was
set, hanging high above the unyielding ground beneath. The female uttered
another cry through the strip of cloth still wrapped tightly around its jaw,
but the Yautja paid it no heed. Were she to somehow get free, it was very
likely she'd end up a splatter on the hard surface far below.
Opening its meaty hand, the Hunter gazed at the small transmitter. Soon, it
would end. ||
============================================================================
UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0800
DATE: 2143.06.27
They had parked the van in a filth-strewn alley in the slums. Ryozo had
driven for over an hour, Twiggy cursing his panel all the way.
It had taken Twiggy longer than he had thought to get his panel back in
working order. For a while, the back of the van was a tangled mess of wires
and circuit boards. Eventually, he had managed to get the thing up and running.
He and Ryozo sat before it at the moment, with a schematic of Corix IX's
branch of ViralTech on the main screen. For the past two hours, the two had
been discussing various means of approaching the CEO. There were times when
the discussion had become rather animated, but the two still kept pounding away.
Yuri stood outside, a cup of instant coffee in her hand. The air was humid
as ever, and clung to her skin like a wet blanket. She sipped some of the
coffee and grimmaced. That instant stuff was horrible, though Yuri wasn't
all that big on coffee anyway. She tossed away the cup and leaned against
the back of the van. She realized that she hadn't had anything to eat since
the previous day when her stomach set to growling.
As if on cue, Ryozo stepped out of the van, a sandwich in each hand.
Silently, he offered one to Yuri, who accepted it in the same manner.
The sandwich wasn't the best she'd ever had, but at least it was food.
After a fashion, anyway.
"Penny for your thoughts," Ryozo said.
"What brings you out here?"
"I needed some air," he replied. "You?"
"Air." Yuri stared into the growing darkness of the alley, images of Kei
playing through her mind like a newsreel. Yuri couldn't shake the feeling
that she'd failed her.
"Thinking about her, huh?" Ryozo's question startled her. Had she been that
lost in her own memories?
"What would you know about it?" Yuri spat.
"Plenty," he replied. "I'd known Ozzy for a couple of years. He was a good
man..."
"Who?"
"Ozzy," he said, "a member of the team. That thing killed him."
"Wasn't there another?" she asked.
"Yeah," Ryozo said. "Doc." He almost choked on the word, as though the
memories were too painful to bear. "I'd known him all my life. He was older
than me, much older. I still remember when I was small enough to ride on his
knee." A small smile played at his lips while Yuri tried to mentally picture
the scene of a toddler Ryozo being bounced on this Doc's knee.
"Didn't he have a name?" Yuri asked.
"Yeah. Marion Jones."
Yuri's face took on an expression of thought. "I know that name," she said.
"Hey, me and Kei arrested him once!"
"Weapons charge," Ryozo said. "Not something he was proud of. He'd always
told me never to cross the Dir.." The look on Yuri's face stopped him.
"the...3WA. That's it, never cross the 3WA."
"He was a wise man," she quipped.
"At any rate, what I'm trying to say is..." He was interrupted by the sight
of one of Yuri's earrings flashing earnestly. A look of surprise crossed her
face, followed by intense joy.
"KEI!" she shouted as she charged into the van. Ryozo finished off his
sandwich and stepped behind her.
"SHE'S ALIVE!" she shouted over and over, the glee sending her voice into
the higher octaves. Everyone in the van stared at her as she hopped about as
though she had lost her fool mind.
"Uh, who's alive?" asked Specs.
"Kei!" she shouted in response. Twiggy noticed her flashing earring.
"That a transmitter?" he asked. She looked at him, hope evident on her face.
"Can you trace the signal?" she asked.
"Of course I can!" he said. Comprehension dawned on his face. "You can't be
serious!"
"You bet your ass I am!"
"Yuri, you can't possibly think she's still alive," Specs said.
"Even so, I can't just ignore her signal!" she retorted.
"Listen, Yuri," Ryozo said gently, "This is a trap. You know it and I know
it. Do you think that Kei would want you to throw your life away by walking
right into an obvious setup?"
"She's alive," she said. "I KNOW Kei is alive." She turned to face him, her
face set in determination. "And I WILL rescue her. With or without your help."
Ryozo was torn. He could let Yuri go on alone, which common sense said was
best. Or he could go with her, which seemed foolhardy at best, suicidal at
worst. He knew he should just let her leave, it would mean another loose end
tied up, for she had no chance of survival alone. However, he also knew he
wouldn't ever be able to look at his own reflection with any sort of pride
again.
Besides, he had a score to settle with that son of a bitch.
"Okay," he said, "I'll go with you."
"I may as well accompany you two lovebirds," Specs said nonchalantly.
"After all, I can't in good conscience let you do something this stupid by
yourself." They looked at Twiggy, who looked as though he desperately wanted
to be somewhere else at the moment.
"Ah, what the hell, who wants to live forever," he said.
============================================================================
UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
STARCOM SECTOR
TIME: 0849
DATE: 2143.06.27
Twiggy had traced the signal to a storage facility that was under
construction. The van was parked a discreet distance away from the site, so
as not to alert anyone waiting for them.
Inside the van, the team gazed at Twiggy's panel with interest. The main
monitor was split into two vertical sections, each showing an image from one
of the two remaining surveillance drones. The low-light enhanced images
showed much of the support structure to be exposed, with materials and
equipment scattered about the grounds.
"Where's Kei?" Yuri asked.
"Well, let's find out," Twiggy said. He guided one of the drones up to the
higher areas of the structure. There were more beams exposed upward to the
second and third stories. "Wait a sec, that's her!"
Kei hung out in space, over three stories into the air. The beam to which
her wrists were attached was suspended out away from the main structure by a
cable connected to the hook of a tall crane's boom. Yuri's heart momentarily
caught in her throat as she saw her friend hanging there helplessly, and had
to fight to keep herself from just charging out there.
"So, where is that bastard?" she whispered.
"I'm workin' on it," Twiggy said as he moved the drones about the structure.
"Maybe the infra-red scopes could help," Specs suggested. Without warning,
the images from the drones disappeared, replaced by white snow.
"Not anymore," Twiggy quipped.
"Well, it knows we're here," Ryozo said. "Okay, everyone ready?" They
nodded, and filed out of the van. Yuri was first, followed by Mughi. Specs
and Twiggy were next, with Ryozo and Jikken, who was in animal form,
bringing up the rear.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The muscles in Kei's shoulders burned from the constant strain of holding
her weight alone. She kept her eyes closed, trying to ignore the pain. She
knew she was bait, and that Yuri was the prey. The thought galled her, that
she would be used to lure her friend into a trap, but there wasn't much to
be done from her position. Part of her desperately wanted Yuri to come,
while another part just as desperately wished she wouldn't. If Yuri came,
she'd be alone against that thing. Opening her eyes, she cast a look to the
ground, which was mainly blanketed in darkness aside from small pools of
light. For a brief moment, she thought she saw movement. Focusing her eyes
in the direction it seemed to come from, she waited until she saw it again,
and again. Yuri had come, after all. Being a Lucien upgrade, she had rather
good night vision, and quickly found out that Yuri was, in fact, NOT alone.
One perverse benefit of being strung up like so much meat was that it gave
Kei a good, reasonably safe view of things. There was Yuri, two guys she
didn't recognize, and...
No, she was certain, it couldn't be. But there he was, that guy from the
club - Ryozo, she finally remembered - right there; he, Yuri, and the guys
she didn't know fanned out from the entrance, looking carefully in every
direction. He'd traded the jeans and T-shirt in for night-black
'utilities', but the yellow-and-black bandanna was still there. The
umbrella was gone, however, replaced by what looked to be a suppressed
SMG... and close at his side was some quadrapedal creature.
//Mughi?\\
Giving the lie to that assumption, the feline's growl sounded from
elsewhere nearby. When the new quadraped stepped into a pool of light,
however, Kei gasped in surprise. Timberwolves - well, the creature was
about the right size to be a large one - certainly weren't composed of
shimmering orange liquid...
//What is that thing?!\\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yuri's eyes strained to make out all the details in the darkness. Pools of
light were scattered here and there on the grounds, a sure sign the lights
weren't working properly. She was certain that was no coincidence. The soft
sounds of the others reached her ears as they spread out.
They had traded their normal clothes for black suits usually worn for
covert ops. The form-fitting material served not only to help them blend
into the shadows, but also helped to insulate body heat, therein making them
difficult to spot with infrared equipment. Not as though any of them thought
it would matter much.
She kept her small pistol up in a ready position, with Kei's electromag
holstered by her left hip. Ryozo had selected a suppressed SMG from the
cache stored beneath one of the van's floor panels. Specs had picked a SOCOM
energy pistol, resembling one of the SOCOM .45's of old. Twiggy, on the
other hand, opted for a plasma cannon that resembled a shotgun.
//C'mon, you son of a bitch,\\ she thought, //where are you?\\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|| The Hunter was utterly confused. It KNEW the Oomans were down there, it
had heard them. However, it couldn't see them.
In fact, the only living thing it could see below was a rather large
quadrapedal creature, surely not anyhting worth concerning itself over.
It shifted its gaze quickly to the left. Had that been movement? Or were
the Oomans over to the right? The Yautja shook its head angrily. Even if the
Oomans had discovered how to disguise themselves, their cleverness wouldn't
help them.
Silently, and with unearthly speed, the Hunter descended the scaffolding. ||
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryozo held his SMG low as he scanned the shadows above and around him. He
neither saw nor heard anything, which wasn't surprising. Everyone was doing
their utmost to prevent their movements from making noise. Though he had
only encountered the creature once, he had a damn good idea that it was well
suited to the kind of area the construction site provided; narrow beams,
chasms, and leaps that required super-human agility.
Whatever it was, it was hunting them. And it fully intended to bag them.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mughi stopped cold, his luminous yellow eyes glaring up at a beam that was
swathed in moonlight. A low growl escaped his throat as he bared his
sizeable fangs in anger.
Seeing the large feline in such a state of agitation, Yuri stopped, and
followed his gaze, heart thudding in her chest. She scanned the beam
thoroughly, not seeing anything. Of course, that meant very... little...
Suddenly, she saw movement, as though the air itself were running.
Unconsciously, she cocked her firearm. It was coming down, she had to warn
the others.
Something was strange, though. It was as if he couldn't see her at all. She
knew that the outfit she wore helped her blend in, but she was in an area
that was somewhat lit. That thing should have spotted her.
Mughi began to trot off in another direction, with Yuri close behind. If
Mughi could see it, or most likely smell it, then she had a way to find it.
As silently and quickly as she could mamage, she followed the huge cat
through the maze of support beams and assorted tools left scattered about.
Finally, Mughi stopped again, glaring at a shadow that moved silently among
the permasteel pillars. Had it become visible? She leveled her pistol at the
moving shadow as it moved toward another pool of light. She realized that it
was simply Specs after a few seconds. She almost relaxed, until Mughi
charged off in his direction. All hell then broke loose.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|| The Hunter stalked the moving object before it silently, with a grace
born of many years of intense training. It had underestimated the Oomans,
since they had figured out how to hide themselves from its sight. It had no
idea how they figured it out, but that wasn't important.
It's helmet picked up the disturbances in the air from where something
passed through. One that size had to be an Ooman, and it was very close.
Raising its hand, it prepared to strike when it heard something charging in
its direction. Turning its head, the Hunter saw the quadraped charging right
in its direction. ||
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yuri saw Mughi pounce at a point behind Specs. Hearing the noise, the
bespectacled medtech spun to see the huge feline bearing down on what looked
like a distortion of space. Eyes widening, he raised his SOCOM as he shouted
out to the others. Before he could squeeze off a shot, though, Mughi was all
over it.
The two collided with a loud thud sound. Flying for a short distance, the
two hit the ground, Mughi clawing and biting. It roared in pain and rage as
Mughi's teeth and claws went to work. The fur on Mughi's snout was flecked
with a glowing green substance as he bit into the distortion.
With a yelp, Mughi was sent flying backward. The distortion quickly rose,
green spots and rivulets on its body. Tendrils of electricity suddenly
coursed over its surface, and parts of it became visible. Finally, it was
entirely visible.
It looked to be a large human. Armor of some sort covered many of the vital
points, shins, forearms, groin, and chest with a featureless helmet
comlpeting the armor. Its forehead was impossibly large, long black cords
resembling hair extended out from the back of its head.
Oddly enough, its torso was largely exposed, covered in something that
resembled netting. It was gazing at its right wrist, the ruined gauntlet
throwing sparks.
Seizing the opportunity, Yuri hoisted her weapon. Before she could fire,
however, it raised its left wrist, and something slammed into her. She was
yanked back by the force of the blow, and came to a jarring stop agianst a
support beam. Her head cleared once the net began digging into her skin.
Screaming, she fumbled at her hip, searching for her pack of Bloody Cards.
Finally finding them, she struggled to pull one out of the pack. The netting
constricted her movements drastically as it cut into her. Shouts and weapons
fire sounded from ahead of her as she finally got a card into her hand. Once
out, the tegnoid alloy of the card's edges easily cut through the net. The
material fell to the ground, leaving Yuri with a great sense of relief and a
stinging pain all over her body. Wiping her forehead, she was somewhat
surprised when her hand came back bloody. The amount was nominal, though,
and she was certain not fatal. Looking about, she saw flashes of light from
various points around her, with the sounds of gunfire accompanying them. A
loud blast sounded from somwhere off to the left, Twiggy's cannon roaring
into the unfinished building.
Yuri ran out into the open, dangerous as it was, to determine how far out
Kei was from the scaffolding. Kei was, indeed, very far out from the exposed
infrastructure.
//Great,\\ Yuri groused, //JUST great!\\ In desperation, she ran over to
the crane, hoping to be able to lower her friend safely to the ground.
//DAMNIT!\\ The inside of the crane was ruined. Wires were strung over the
seat and floor, a hole melted in the control panel. Many of the components
inside were ruined as well. She exited the crane, and looked up at her
vulnerable partner, knowing that she was out of options. Growling in
determination, she started the climb up the surface of the crane's boom. It
was risky, but she had to get Kei in the clear. As she ascended, she notice
the shots tapering off, and sirens were far off in the distance. Whatever
else, they had to wrap this fast.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryozo fired again at the large shadow that bounded between the beams
suspended high in the air. He had never seen anything move like this thing
did. It was rather obvious that he was wasting his shots, so he ceased
firing. Specs had stopped seconds earlier, with Twiggy ceasing last. Ryozo
kept moving, not wanting to give that motherfucker a stationary target.
He was strapped for options at the moment. It may have lost its cloaking
technology, but it still had the advantages of strength and agility. It also
had the high ground which, in ths case, was a difficult advantage to
overcome. As he darted between the shadows, he saw a bright flash off to his
right followed by a small explosion. He saw Specs fly toward him, thrown by
the force of the blast.
"Specs!" he shouted as he ran over to his friend. Specs moaned as he
struggled to regain his feet.
"I'm all right," Specs groaned. "Just need a few seconds...to clear my
head." More blasts sounded from farther away, giving Ryozo cause to wonder
what that thing was up to. He looked up for any sign of it, when he saw Yuri
climbing up the boom of the crane which suspended Kei in space. At least she
was still okay.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yuri kept climbing, knowing that every second counted. Her hands and feet
struggled for purchase on the criss-crossed slats of the crane's boom as she
steadily made her way upward. She kept her eyes on Kei, knowing that looking
down would be a very bad idea.
//Hold on, partner,\\ she thought, //the cavalry's comin'.\\ Yuri's muscles
burned from the exertion of the near-vertical climb as she made her way
upward to her hanging friend. Pushing the pain aside, she continued the
ascent until she finally reached the beam from which Kei was suspended.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|| The Yautja cursed the creature that damaged its cloak. Once again, it
had underestimated the Oomans, underestimated their trickery.
None of the Oomans on the ground could see it, not that it could see them,
either. It was time to remedy that. The image from its helmet flashed,
showing everything in harsh tones of purple. About to switch light spectrums
again, it saw movment on the ground below. It had found them! But where was...
Looking forward, it saw the two Ooman females, one freeing the other. This
was perfect; neither would survive a fall from that height. Raising its left
gauntlet, it took careful aim, and fired. ||
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"KEI!" she shouted as she stepped uncertainly onto the beam. She froze, one
hand on the cable holding the long piece of permasteel aloft three stories
as it shifted with her movements. Taking a few moments to allow her heart to
slow, she ignored Kei's indignant muffled protests from below. "Yeah, yeah,
yeah," she muttered, "hang on." Fortunately, Yuri couldn't see Kei's
reaction to her careless remark.
Steadying her nerves, Yuri locked her ankles around the cable and slowly
lowered herself. Soon, she was staring into Kei's eyes. She looked none the
worse for wear, despite the bruises.
"Miss me, partner?" Yuri asked as she pulled Kei's gag down to her neck.
"More than anything," Kei said, relief and joy in her voice. "Now would you
mind getting me down from here?"
"Just a minute, Kei," She replied. There was roughly two feet of cable
suspending Kei's wrists to the metal beam. Yuri saw only one opportunity to
save her friend, risky though it was. Grabbing the cable near Kei's wrists
with one hand, she fished out another Bloody Card with the other. With the
card in hand, she approached the cable near the beam.
"Uh, Yuri," Kei began nervously, "you SURE you know what you're doing?"
Ignoring the question, she cut the cable. Kei let out a short scream as she
dropped, only to be stopped by her partner.
Muscles straining, eyes closed in exertion, Yuri began to lift Kei up onto
the beam. Removing one hand, she grabbed Kei by the back of her top. Kei
then grabbed the beam and began to pull herself up. Once astride the beam,
she pulled Yuri up, who took a position opposite Kei.
The two embraced briefly, but fiercely. Not wasting time, Yuri used the
Bloody Card to cut the cable wound around Kei's wrists.
"C'mon, Yuri, let's get outta here," Kei said as she slowly rose to her
feet. Yuri saw her wince as she did so, and swore she'd pay that thing back
for what it did to her.
Before the two rose completely, though, the cable suspending them snapped...
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Ryozo, Twiggy, and Specs hoisted their weapons, and took up positions
behind pillars, their firearms pointed upward. It hadn't shown itself, and
the sirens were getting closer. If they got caught...
They whirled when something hit the ground with incredible force, sending a
cacophony of noise to their ears. They saw that a metal beam had hit the
ground, sticking upward like an arrow shot from above. Following the
direction from which the beam fell, Ryozo's heart caught.
"Oh, damn..." Twiggy whispered.
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//It isn't FAIR!\\ Yuri hung helplessly by what remained of the cable. Both
hands were locked in a death grip around it as she hoped and prayed that she
wouldn't lose her grip. Kei kept a tight grip on her legs, their combined
weight almost proving too much for Yuri to bear.
"Kei," she grunted, "You've gotta go on a diet!"
"You're one to talk!" Kei shouted back.
Yuri decided not to fire back, given how serious the situation was. Her
hands were the only things keeping them from a bloody death, and from the
way things were looking, they wouldn't last long. Desperately trying to
think of a way out, she noticed three red dots just above her heart.
Looking ahead, she saw it, a shoulder-mounted plasma cannon pointed
directly at her. From its stance, it appeared to be taking its time, as
though it were waiting for her to scream, or beg for her life.
Closing her eyes, Yuri braced herself for the end. She wouldn't give that
motherfucker the satisfaction of admitting her fear.
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|| This was perfect. The two Oomans were simply hanging there, helpless.
There was no way either of them could reach a weapon, or survive the fall.
Readying its plasma cannon, the Yautja calmly aimed it at the female that
held them both aloft. It was almost too easy, really.
The shots that came from below and pocked the beam on which it stood came
as quite a surprise... ||
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Twiggy was the first to point out the three red dots that indicated the
creature's plasma weapon. Afterward, the three frantically scanned the upper
regions of the structure, until Ryozo saw it, standing in a patch of moonlight.
With a scream sounding in his ears, he raised the weapon and began firing.
The bolts from his gun hit the beam on which the thing stood, and looked to
startle it. Quickly regaining its composure, though, it ran along the beam,
and into the shadows. After a few seconds, Ryozo quit firing. He looked back
up at Kei and Yuri, who had begun swinging.
//What the hell are they doing?\\
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Yuri opened her eyes when the impact she'd been expecting never came. She
saw yellow bolts shooting from somewhere below, and the massive form of the
creature running effortlessly along the beams.
She let out a deep sigh of relief, and set her mind back to the task of
getting to the ground alive. Turning her head, an idea came to her. Were she
able, she would have kicked herself for not thinking of it sooner.
"KEI!" she shouted. "I'm gonna try to swing us over to that boom! Try to
grab it!" When Kei shouted her acknowledgement, Yuri began.
It was slow going at first, and they had some difficulty gaining momentum.
Eventually, though, they began swinging at a pretty good clip. The muscles
in Yuri's arms screamed in protest at the strain such activity put on them.
"Can...you...reach it?!" Yuri asked through gritted teeth. When they
approached the boom, Kei reached out with her right arm, the one closest to
the boom. The crossed metal slats remained maddengly out of reach of her
extended fingers.
"DAMN!" Kei shouted, "I CAN'T!" They swung back and forth in space for a
few seconds more, before Kei said, "Let go, kid."
"What?"
"It's the only chance we have!" Yuri, despite her misgivings, knew she was
right.
"Okay, kid," she said, "On three."
A swing out, then back in.
"ONE!" they shouted.
Out, then back in.
"TWO!"
Again.
"THREE!"
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|| The Oomans had gotten the best of the Hunter long enough. Anger coursed
through its veins as it climbed down to the ground. No Ooman got the better
of the Hunter... and lived. ||
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"WHERE ARE YOU!?" Ryozo kept his SMG pointed at the beams far above. He was
growing VERY tired of that thing just running around them. Why didn't it
come down and FIGHT?
He heard something land somewhere behind him. Spinning, he levelled his SMG
at the shadows. So it HAD decided to fight like a man. Specs grunted, then
screamed as he flew over a small stack of tools. He bounced off the ground
once before coming to a rest in an unconscious heap.
"YEEAAARRGGHH!" Ryozo roared in rage as he fired shot after shot into the
shadows. Twiggy's plasma cannon roared again and again, the bolts
illuminating the guts of the building. In one flash, he caught sight of it
dashing between pillars. "You are NOT getting away from me!" He fired
repeatedly, emptying the cartridge.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something flying toward him. Trusting
his instinct, he leapt back, the metal disk missing his face by mere inches.
To his surprise, the disk stopped in mid-air, and flew backward as though it
had a mind of its own. Before he could wonder what it was, something slammed
into his left side.
Ryozo twisted before he hit the ground, landing on his back. Like a furious
juggernaut, it charged him, claws at the ready. In desperation, Ryozo
kipupped, scrambling for a weapon. As it beared down on him, Ryozo's hand
wrapped around a long piece of steel. Baring his teeth, he waited until it
swung its meaty fist.
Letting loose with a yell, Ryozo swung low with the pipe. He caught it in
the midesction, though the creature didn't appear to be as hurt as it should
have been. He didn't pause, rearing the length of pipe back again, striking
the creature on the side of its helmet. On the third swing, it swung its
claws, slicing through the pipe as though it were paper.
Not wanting to give the thing a chance to do the same to him, Ryozo
charged, launching a kick at its midesction. His foot connected solidly with
its solar plexus. Ryozo fully expected it to drop, gasping for breath.
Instead, he barely had time to catch its fists in an attempt to keep his
head intact. Whatever this thing was, it was incredibly strong. Ryozo
struggled to restrain it, and was rapidly losing.
Twiggy saw Ryozo and the creature tangling out ahead. Having heard Specs'
yell, he had run over to check. Finding his friend alive, and beginning to
come around, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking at the battle raging across from him, he quickly assessed his
options. The only weapon he had was his cannon, which was practically
useless. As close as the two were, Ryozo would be injured by the bolt of
superheated plasma. Thrid degree plasma burns were definitely NOT pretty.
Grabbing the cannon by the barrel, he raised it as though the gun were a
club, and ran to help Ryozo. Not bothering to utter a cry, he swung the
weapon down in a savage arc, connecting solidly with the back of its head.
Raising the weapon again, he prepared to deliver another strike. Without
warning, it delivered a backward mule kick. The huge leg drove into Twiggy's
chest like a pile driver, sending him flying back.
After landing, Twiggy rose to his feet, albeit painfully. His cyberware
allowed him to absorb the massive impact better, but his demeanor as a
scrapper is what allowed him to rise. Not bothering to look for his cannon,
he charged again.
With a blur of motion, it twisted, flinging Ryozo like a rag doll. Despite
Twiggy's cyberware, Ryozo slammed into him, knocking them both into the
dirt. As they struggled to regain their feet, the creature bore down on them.
Before it could reach them, however, it was blindsided by Jikken. The
creature struggled with the liquid-like beast as it wrapped itself about the
wildly struggling creature.
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|| The Hunter struggled for breath as the amorphous substance wrapped about
its head and torso. As it vainly fought against the creature, the Yautja
wondered what it was doing there. Its kind had encountered such beings
before, but nowhere near human space before. Where had it come from?
The Yautja felt searing pain shoot through it's body time and again, just
as the creature oozed off of its torso. The display from its helmet faded,
then went completely black. ||
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