I"ll combine these to make it easier to respond to stuff. Used pretty much
all of your grammar corrections.

David McMillan wrote:

 > Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot

 > Chapter 10

    Woo Hoo!  Everyone else probably got their C&C in ahead of me,

You don't have anything to worry about. I only had 2 other responses to
this, but SOABF has never generated much feedback, but I continue to plod
on.

 but why

should I let *that* stop me?  Bwahahahaaa!

Please, keep it coming. This is definitely C+C of the highest quality, and I
look forward to it when I post chapters of this.

 > five minutes before the frame ran out of power, but Dane knew that any
 > fight
 > against their current opponents would not last five minutes, win or

lose.

    OpponentS.  Hah.  Someone wants Our Lovely Heroines (and possibly

their

Annoying Testosterone-Poisoned Sidekick) out of the way.  Unfortunately,
that only narrows the suspect list down to about half the civilized

galaxy.

Well, we know from last chapter YSC want's them out of the way, or at least
Springer does.

 > from lasers to masers to projectiles, were concealed in the
 > extraordinarily
 > versatile attachment that cost more than a standard battle tank. About
 > the
 > only thing Dane couldn't do with it was scratch his nose.

    Not if wants to be able to smell his his next cup of coffee, at least.

Heh

 > backs. Slung across Harrison's were twin sledgehammers whose handles,
 > bristling with wiring and readouts, indicated they were no mundane
 > pieces of
 > wood and steel.

    Look, Maw!  It's John Henry!

Well, an evil version of him, I suppose

 >Artus had a large powerback whose cables fed into a
 > special
 > jackport that was embedded in the back of his neck.

    That's it?  Huh.  Does he really use his head like an anvil?  I'm sure
we'll see before long.

No. It's something else.

  > rear.

 > It appeared the tail should have dragged on the ground due to its

length,

 > but sensors kept it poised no more than three millimeters above it,
 > preventing the extra appendage from causing unnecessary destruction.

    He's going to have to counter that weight by leaning forward, though.
Like a kangaroo, or v-raptor.

Depends on how powerful his insides are. It's the future, dontch'a know? :)

The
 > cyborg's chassis massed at least two tons, and thumped loudly as he
 > plodded
 > toward the facility.

    Metric tons, or English?  (:)  I hope he's got big feet, or he's going
to sink out of sight like a German tank in Russian mud.

Yeah, in regular dirt he doesn't work out so well.

 > "Greetings," the sergeant said formally to Dane. His hand started to

rise

 > up, intending on a handshake, when it stopped as he realized what he
 > would
 > be trying to shake. He recovered and settled for a deep bow.

    Nice recovery.

Yep. He's not a total dip

 > ports in
 > her neck. A couple of small pistols and a bandoleer of shurikens were

her

 > only form of obvious weaponry.

    I'd watch those wires -- too easy to snag.  But then, I'm a big fan of
non-exposed wiring.

It's so that it's easily removable. She's going to use it to see through
walls later.

 > site,
 > all of them armed with at least high duty laser rifles. We also have
 > several
 > roving teams with heavier weaponry that operate in sets of four. We're

as

 > secure as humanly possible."

    Which, when you think about it, isn't very.  But what can you do?

Only the best you can.

 > complications that entailed. He bowed, and introduced himself. "Colonel
 > Milon Sancrest, formerly of Cartasia and a member of his Imperial
 > Warlord's
 > Black Troops." His chest puffed out in pride.

    I can almost hear the British accent.

Heh. He's about to learn that he's not all that and a bag of chips as
well.:)

 > Dane scratched his head. "Cartasian Black Troops? That name sounds
 > familiar."

    Oh boy, here comes the big insult.

Yep.

 > insult, Dane spoke, "We'll be taking control of the facility now. I'm
 > sure
 > you've been doing a... competent job, but the real professionals are

    Damn with faint praise, why don't you?

He's making sure he wins the pissing contest he's starting. Diplomatic Dane
is not.

 > Whisper added, "Of course, if we were breaking into this place, people

as

 > good as us wouldn't be waiting inside to deal with intruders, would

it?"

    That would depend on who they hired-- oh, this is a "nobody's as  good
as we are" joke, isn't it?

Yep. Of course, they're about to learn differently.

 > "Heh, there is that, and that's what'll make the difference when Big Z
 > comes
 > a knockin'," Dane said as began toying with his weapon's pod.

    Weapons pod.  No posessive.
    I kind of looking forward to seeing this crew get whittled down to

size

when Zeiram gets to them.

One of them, anyway, since Iria and the DP are on the scene as well.

 > tubbing,
 > massages, and a handsome man were all Dalia was looking forward to.
 > And then the SOS came in.

    Oh, crap.

Yep. Someone needs a ship and this was the easiest way to get one.

 > that working only with women in a confined space was always a bad
 > thing. The
 > only thing worse would be working with only women and one guy. That had
 > happened once. Never again!

    Killgore:  hey, why's everyone looking at me?

Heh

 > Dalia guided the Durango alongside the ship in question, another cargo
 > hauler, though of a different make and model. There were no visible

    That was quick.  Two light-minutes is quite a distance.  She must've
jumped it, or used warp drive, or something.  Not that the plot really
requires the author to bother describing this....

true. We'll leave it as 'it can be done in this era' and leave it at that.

 > signs of
 > distress, save for the main hatchway being opened ever so slightly.

    SETUP!

Yep.

 > Maybe it
 > was a systems failure. It didn't matter. The one great law of spacers

was

 > that any SOS was always answered. Tracy and the others would board the

    Yeah, and it's bastards like this who put cracks in the absoluteness

of

that law.

True, but Anton Scorphious is insane, so he sees nothing wrong with it.

 > to the
 > other ship and find out what happened to her crew. And if anything had
 > happened to them, there would be hell to pay.

    Gutsy lady, but she should realize that anything that could take out
three of her crew *that* fast isn't something she can deal with
singlehandedly.  But people are funny that way.

Well, her comrades weren't expecting violent trouble, and she is now, so
she's thinking she can handle it.

 > snapped off two shots, both missing the darting head, before it
 > clamped its
 > mouth on her neck and ripped her throat out.

    Damn.  Pretty much inevitable, but still... damn.

Yep. This is what Zeiram pretty much does.

 > "No way! I'm not getting any nearer to that bastard than I have to, and

I

 > don't trust him enough for him not to try something if we're trapped
 > on his
 > shuttle! The Kreeper V is perfectly capable of atmospheric landings."

    Wasn't it "Kreeper IV" before?  Or am I misremembering?

Shoot. I'd better reread it as well.

 > Yuri's side.
 >
 > "You're just laid back about him cause you got a little action in the
 > side,"
 > Yuri snapped testily.

    <choke>  Nice choice of words, Yuri.

Intentional, to be sure. :)

 > turn, nearly causing the jeep to roll over. Kei and Yuri, sitting next

to

 > one another in the backseat, were squished together as the vehicle
 > made the
 > turn.

    Oh, to be the filling in that sandwich...

Heh

 > it would be best if we didn't mention the little fact I slept with
 > Mikael in
 > Iria's presence. She's a bit testy about it.

    Gee, you think?
    Missing end quote.
    And, ladies?  You know about these ancient pre-space inventions called
"Seat belts"?

They would only get in the way. :)

    I *think* that's supposed to be "closed mouthed," or "close-mouthed"
(closed-mouthed?), but I'm not certain.
the
 > women's perspective YSC had figured out Scorphius was after something
 > specific and this was the place to steal it.

    Or at least the next piece of it.  Obviously, he's attempting to
assemble the scattered components of a doomsday weapon.  Or all the
Hello Kitty dolls he needs to complete his collection.

Probably the former. He's insane, but not that insane to do the latter. :)

 > Terrakon 6 was different from the other places Zeiram had hit. So far
 > Scorphius had been careful to only attack YSC facilities in isolated
 > spots
 > that couldn't do much to defend themselves against attacks. While in

the

 > distant past Zeiram had threatened all of Myce, that had been only

after

 > several days of preparation in creating an army of Zeirenoids. Now he

    Wouldn't that be "Zeiramoids," or "Zeiranoids"?

Probably the latter. Will change.

 > were large, and a number of military installations could send warcraft

to

 > the complex within a handful of minutes. Admittedly, it was unlikely

they

 > could bring their full force to bear in the middle of their own city,

but

 > they could take Zeiram down through sheer numbers if it came to that.

    One hopes.

Not this chapter.

 > mercenary
 > specialists like Killgore, to take Zeiram out. She doubted the

planetside

 > authorities would be kept in the dark for long once the big green
 > destruction machine showed up. Zeiram had a way of making his presence

    Heh.  How poetic.

And accurate.

 > known
 > wherever he went. Sort of like herself and Kei, once Yuri thought
 > about it.
 > That made her frown. They weren't like Zeiram. He went around
 > intending to
 > cause trouble. For Yuri and Kei, it was just something that seemed to
 > happen
 > once they arrived.

    ....I'm not saying a word.

Heh. Well, they try not to cause it, a little.

 > Since Kei had 'lost' the Lovely Angel's Bouncer, Killgore had offered

to

 > escort the women planetside in his personal shuttle, since his ship
 > wasn't
 > designed for atmospheric landings. Yuri was looking forward to the
 > idea of
 > cozying up to Killgore, especially with Kei out of the running since
 > she had
 > hooked up with her 'little brother' (Yuri was *never* going to let her

    Heh heh heh.

That is one that's hard to make people forget.

 > guardian,
 > and Yuri couldn't really counter the argument, so she agreed to travel
 > down
 > to the planet in the Kreeper V, leaving Moogi and the battered Lovely
 > Angel

    Isn't that Mughi?  Not that it matters, I suppose.

I've seen it spelled both ways. I'd better see how I used to spell it to
keep it consistant.

    Hey, can M fly the LA to provide fire support in this version?

Yep. The anime movies are included in this, as I mentioned the Affair on
Nolandia in the second half of this.

That'd

be neat to see.  What?  I like fuzzy pets with high IQ and
semi-opposable thumbs....

Hell of a back up as well.

 > The landing went smoothly, though Iria had insisted on hiring a
 > private jeep
 > to drive to the YSC facility instead of using the vehicle the company

had

 > provided to escort them there. In Yuri's opinion, Iria was being a

touch

 > paranoid, but as long as she was paying for the rental, it was her
 > business.

    Given that YSC obviously has something to hide, I wouldn't trust them
too far either.  Yuri's not paranoid *enough.*

Yeah, but she's trying to compensate for Iria's over the top reactions.

 > Assuming the madwoman didn't crash them into a wall with the reckless

way

 > she was driving.

    Pot, kettle, black?

I'm not sure if Yuri is shown as that bad a driver, but my memory of her
driving isn't the best.

 > quickly, she could do some shopping afterward before heading back and
 > informing headquarters of everything that had happened.

    That'll be a fun debriefing.  Not that I expect to see it for a while

yet.

Not for a little while, though the fic is 2/3 of the way done according to
the outline. We'll  see if it gets a little bigger or not, btu I don't think
it will.

 > "Here you go." Killgore handed over a wad of bills, which Cross
 > immediately

    <snerk>  I could almost get to like these guys.  Almost.

They're a lovable bunch of mercenaries with a secret agenda, aren't they?

 > "Not by much," Yuri added, running a hand through her hair to make try

to

 > make herself presentable. While now wasn't the proper place to flirt

with

 > Killgore, there was never a time when it was acceptable to not look her
 > best.

    Like, right after destroying an entire inhabited solar system?

Yuri: Only by accident.

 > Killgore walked up to a video monitor and stated his name and an eight
 > letter and number combination. A moment later, a panel slid back and

    Sug:  eight-digit alphanumeric code.

ironically, that word is in 'WP's dictionary, but 'trenchcoat' isn't. Go
figure.

 > several
 > other scanning devices came into play. They pored over Killgore, who
 > appeared bored by the entire procedure.

    Right up until the electrical anal probe...

You wouldn't get any visitors if you used one of those. :)

 >
 > "Let Dane know I'm coming in," Killgore said, a hint of

uncharacteristic

 > irritation in his voice. He turned toward the truck, not wanting to
 > walk the
 > distance to the facility. Just as he was about to enter the back of the
 > vehicle, a flashing light from high above caught his attention. "I

wonder

 > what that is."

    Uh.  Oh.
    Zeiram's doing the "orbital paratrooper" thing, isn't he?  But with a
ship, not a parachute.

Yep. He's crashing something big into it to help him enter.

 > was trickier with Killgore present. Dane would just have to put more
 > effort
 > into outmaneuvering his rival, while nailing Zeiram at the same time.

    Great.  A defense team divided against itself. Why don't you just
invite Z in the front door, you moron?

He's egotistical enough to think he's killing two birds with one stone. Also
a problem when signing on rival independent mercenary teams. They just don't
get along too well with one another.

Zeiram
 > showed up, and he was certain that time was coming soon. His hunter's
 > instinct was telling him something big was coming, and it was rarely
 > wrong.

    That's just the Angels.

Heh. Them too.

 > Maybe he'd get lucky, and Zeiram would knock off Killgore before Dane
 > finished the monster himself and earned the hefty bonus for successful
 > completion of the secondary objective. He handled the small cylinder
 > at his

    Wait -- Z is his *secondary* objective?  That's what that sentence
construction makes it sound like.  Now I'm going to have to go back and
re-read the last chapter again.

Will reword. Killing him is primary, getting a certain something else before
that is the secondary objective. A sort of 'if it proves viable' thing.

 > the
 > center of the facility."

    This is what we in the biz call a "lithobraking reentry."  Also the
"big hole" landing.

didn't know that.

 > Dane turned to Sancrest. "Impenetrable, huh?" He ducked under a
 > console and
 > waited for the inevitable.

    Cool under fire, I have to admit.

Yes, he is dangerous, as are the rest of his people, and competant, if a
little too cocky about his abilities and underestimating the opposition.

 > Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 >
 > "Get down!" Iria cried as she grabbed Kei and Yuri and ducked behind

the

 > jeep, using its body for additional cover. There wasn't time to figure
 > out
 > the trajectory of the ship as it spiraled down toward the planet. If

    <pedant>  "spiral" isn't really the appropriate word here.  A ship
re-entering hot will, by the time it hits visual range, look a lot like
a fly ball does to an outfielder.
    Just bigger.  Lots bigger.  And brighter, and more firey.  But the
trajectory will look pretty much the same.

Got it

 > large cargo hauler hit near them, it was over anyway, but if it struck
 > the
 > center of the facility or the far side, they would have a chance.

    Especially with the wall between them and the impact zone.  Frankly,
the jeep won't do much at all to save them, but the wall definitely could.

Will mention that.

 > and
 > inertia caused the front to buckle from the stress.
 >
 > There were no explosions, nor did the vehicle tip over. It rested
 > above the

    Wait a minute.  A spaceship crash in an anime and there aren't any
*explosions*?  What is this, Project A-ko?

Yeah, though I'd go against the grain. That and there were lots of
explosions when Kei had her homecoming on Myce.

 > ruins of the center of the sprawling complex, like a compact tombstone
 > dedicated to its own demise.

    Nice metaphor.

Thanks. I'm not good with descriptive imagery. I'm trying to use more
metaphors and similes to help make up for that. A good metaphor can be worth

 > xxxxxxxxx
 >
 > Dane poked his head from below the desk. He heard the impact, felt the
 > building tremble, and saw the lights in the control room flicker once.
 > Then
 > there was nothing else. Surprised, but in a pleasant way, he poked his
 > head
 > up and surveyed the room.

    I assume the control room is a respectable distance underground?

Yep. It's protected since its a nerve center of the facility.

 >
 > The technician that had first observed the spacecraft heading toward

them

 > pieced together what had happened. "The craft's decent was slowed at

    Descent.  There's nothing decent about Z.

I always make that mistake.

 > "but took out a major portion of the security forces here, as well as
 > causing so much chaos that if I wasn't paying attention, he'd probably
 > get
 > out of this without anyone firing a shot at him."

    You have to admit, this is something a little beyond anything a
corporate security force might expect.  More like a decent-sized
military force.

Yep, but the hope is the professional mercenaries can accomplish on a small
scale what an army can on a large scale when it comes to Zeiram.

 > their
 > units and patrol the facility in their pre-assigned routes until they
 > locate
 > Zeiram. He won't be hard to miss. He's big, green, has a head shaped
 > like a
 > giant mushroom, and will be trying to kill everything that comes into

his

 > line of sight."

    Concise and proffessional.  Too bad he's a backstabbing murderous SOB
who needs be die, badly.

That's coming. :)

 > they haven't been already. Zeiram's continued presence here is more
 > dangerous." And Dane wouldn't get paid for wasting time saving easily
 > replaceable personnel anyway. Everyone in the entire complex could
 > die, for
 > all he cared. Only Zeiram mattered.

    Like I said.

Heh

 > she rose
 > from her position behind the jeep. It had served as sufficient

protection

 > from the heat, wind, and debris kicked up by the crash. She hadn't

    But they're still outside the wall, right?  That should have protected
them a lot more than the jeep would have.

again, will mention.

 > embedded
 > in the facility, like an arrow driven into the body of an animal that

had

 > died instantly and fallen on the spot.

    Or like a spear stapling someone to the ground.

Heh, though I don't think of spear as 'stapling' things. :)

 > The security head tried opening the door, but the lights of the
 > scanner were
 > dark. "There's no power to the doors. I can't get them open."

    These are the doors of the central building, correct?

Yeah

 > point
 > to waste him. I don't want any heroics, so don't think you can take
 > him out
 > yourselves and get killed. Got it?"
 >
 > There was a collection of affirmatives and head nodding.

    Marked difference from Dane, here.  But then, K's got a better idea of
what he's facing.

Yep, Killgore has more men to deal with, so he has to be more formal to a
degree.

 >
 > "It's safer not to rely on you or your scumbag partners," she said

icily.

 >
 > The proclamation met with a host of angry glares from the men.

    Hmm.  Real scumbags wouldn't be offended, usually.  These guys have at
least some sense of being the "good guys."

Few people think of themselves as 'bad guys' they just rationalize what they
do, or else they wouldn't do it (usually)

 >
 > "Just find Zeiram. I'll take care of them later, when the time comes,"
 > Killgore assured him.

    Of course, that doesn't mean the Iria's wrong...

Yep. We'll find out later, just not this chapter.

 >
 > "I'd be great at it, since everyone would know that whatever comes
 > from my
 > mouth must be the whole and honest truth," Iria said, though the retort

    You'd *think* that there would be a role for people like that in
diplomacy.  Or, maybe not -- whenever you replaced them with someone
else, everyone would *know* you were lying, instead of just suspecting it.

Mixing in lies with the truth and you doubt everything that's said: that's
the diplomatic way. :)

 >
 > "It's already coming," Iria assured her. "Keep your eyes open for it."

    Is it still paranoia when they really *are* out to get you?

Watch Paranoia Agents and get back to me on that. :)

Definitely a whacked out series, though Shonen Bat's first victim kind of
reminds me of Osaka if she became a manga artist.

 > Not only had they not slowed Zeiram down, but it appeared he (or more
 > specifically, Anton Scorphius) was accomplishing everything he wanted

to,

 > and running up a body count impressive even by Yuri's standards in the
 > process. It had to come to an end soon, one way or another.

    Can't be allowed to break the Angels' record, after all.

He's trying, though.

 > them off. She put her best smile on, thrust her chest out slightly, and
 > waved. Hey guys, how are you doing? We're trying to find Zeiram. I

    Missing opening quote.
    Now, *Yuri* has some idea of diplomacy.  At least, for dealing with
guys.  That tactic might not work so well on women.  Well, straight
ones, at least.

Heh. As was mentioned when she and Iria had their little trip on the latest
space station catastrophe

 >
 > "All I said was 'Hi'," Yuri snarled as she drew her pistol.

    Obviously those guards are gay.  Have to be.

Can't be fooled by a good looking pair of breasts or you won't last long at
the job.

 > "It's not that big a deal. We're used to complete strangers shooting
 > at us,"
 > Kei said.
 >
 > "Usually it's preceded by, 'Look! It's the Dirty Pair!' though. These
 > guys
 > had no idea who we were. They just decided to shoot first and not

bother

 > with the whole questions part." Making certain she was still under

    She's got a point.

True.

 >
 > The bounty hunter poked her head around the corner, pistol at the

ready.

 > Both men lay on the floor. One was unconscious from the stun bomb,
 > while a
 > low moan issued from the other, who was curled up in a fetal position
 > on the
 > floor.

    Harsh, but better than the alternative.

As Iria points out later.

 > trying to hunt us and Zeiram. It's never the easy way, is it?"
 >
 > Kei and Iria  merely nodded their heads sadly.

    Okay, this is where I had to stop and just snicker for a while.

Well if it was, it wouldn't be interesting to read about.

 > "I see," Iria said. "Well, marrying him seems a bit extreme, but I
 > have to
 > agree, it'd be worse than running into Zeiram." She turned off the

    *Geez!*  Like, MEOWRRR!

She still hasn't forgiven him, though she hasn't shot him yet either.

 > communicator before he could respond.
 >
 > "That has got to be one of the nastiest divorces ever," Yuri whispered

to

 > her partner. Kei could only nod in response.

    ROTFL!

It was, at least on her part.

And the second part:

 > and here's the second half

    Aaaand the second half of my C&C!

Yay!

 > neared the areas where the spacecraft had hit. The damage to the

building

 > was evident. Cracks had formed in the floor, ceiling, walls, and in

some

 > cases collapsed outright. Emergency lighting was the only form of
 > illumination, bathing everything in an eerie crimson glow.

    Heck, the center of the building should be just *gone.*

Well, area around the center I mean.

 > "I haven't seen any in a while. I'd bet they're sticking mostly to the
 > outer
 > areas for now. If any get in our way, we'll take care of them."

    Um.  The Angels lack any nonlethal hardware, I suspect.

True, but that's what you get for shooting at them. Can't try to kill people
and not expect them to not try to kill you back.

 > "What about Zeiram?" Kei asked.
 >
 > "If you find him just track him. Don't try to handle him on your own.
 > Lance
 > was right about one thing; he is too powerful to take on alone."

    Of course, with Z, there's always the question of who's tracking whom.

Yep, though in this case he's goal oriented on a non killing objective.

 > This time there would be no escape for the demon that had haunted her
 > for so
 > long.

    "Have you seen the white wh-- I mean, the green mushroom?"

Hmm. Missed the reference.

 >
 > Moving forward, Iria positioned herself so that she could ambush
 > Zeiram, her
 > instruction to Kei of not confronting him alone forgotten. She

    Stoooopid.

Obsessive to the extreme. She really thought this was taken care of a long
time ago.

 > other mercenaries Killgore had been complaining about. Iria leaned

toward

 > the latter. A mercenary would think something as ridiculous looking as

a

 > robotic dinosaur was intimidating.

    Hey, he had *you* ducking for cover.

Iria: You can be dangerous and still look stupid. Look at the Fumoffu battle
suits from FMP! Fumoffu. :)

 > Iria was about to spin around the corner and use her armor piercing
 > rocket
 > when she heard a loud click come from the direction of the cyborg.
 > Instinctively she backed away as fast as she could.

    Gee, that sounded like the arming mechanism for something big...

Yep

 > small mirror, no more than a handful of centimeters wide, around the
 > corner
 > to give her a view down it. The moment the cyborg fully popped out, she
 > would nail him with the rocket.

    Which is obvious enough that Stegrax can probably predict her... and
counter.

He is a bit cocky, since he's so heavily armed and armored. And crazy, as
Dane has noted.

 > The wait wasn't long as Stegrax showed his overconfidence in believing

he

 > had hit Iria with his second salvo. He appeared, turning to look at
 > where he
 > had fired, obviously expecting to find a body. Iria noted that from his
 > sides had popped out what appeared to be cylinders from a gigantic
 > revolver.
 > A pair of 'Revolver Canons' if she identified them correctly. Those

    No, in this case, it's cannon, not canon.  One of those rare

occurences

of the former in fanfic.

Yeah, will change all

 > Stegrax saw the movement and reacted. As the rocket erupted from the
 > front
 > of the bounty hunter's rifle, the cyborg pointed his maw at her and
 > opened
 > it. The rocket was halfway to him when he let out a roar. A solid wave

of

 > sonic energy erupted from his mouth, knocking the rocket off course and

    Yu-Gi-Oh!

Only seen a bit of it on CN when flipping through the channels.

 > Stegrax then
 > learned one of the drawbacks to having the cannons fire in

synchronicity:

 > when one shut down, so did the other.

    Well, it's for balancing recoil, y'see.  Otherwise he'd spin like a

top...

Not much recoil to them actually. It does double their destructive power,
though.

 > point..
 > Sparing some attention to the hand, she was surprised to see it

suddenly

 > fall from its housing on the arm. The hand only held on by a small
 > strip of
 > metal at the bottom.

    What, no rocket punch?  I'm disappointed.

Hey, can't have everything.

 > Then the bounty hunter realized that the hand had not fallen off, but
 > rather
 > had served as camouflage for the barrel of whatever weapon had been
 > concealed behind it. The one pointing right at her. Despite her winded
 > state, Iria dove left even as the missile left its housing.

    Vash:  Hey!  I'm calling my lawyer!

But Vash is cooler, and human, so he's not in any danger.

 > directly in
 > Stegrax's line of fire. Instead she abandoned the weapon and tried
 > running,
 > though her pace was slow with how badly her body ached from being

hurled

 > about into metal walls like a giant racquetball.

    But a very attractive one.
    What?  I'd say Iria qualifies as a MILF.  I certainly wouldn't toss

her

out of bed for eating crackers, even if she is getting a bit old for her
job.

Heh

 > Iria almost made it far enough to get out of sight when a trio of

guards

 > appeared in front of her. All of them were tense, obviously from the
 > sounds
 > of the combat between the bounty hunter and her opponent.
 >
 > "It's an intruder! Kill her!" one of the men shouted.

    This would be a perfect time to go flat and let them all waste each
other.  Unfortunately, I think Stegrax is a little too durable...

Yep.

 > Three rifles were aimed at her unprotected head. Standing no more than

a

 > handful of feet from her, there was no way all of them would miss. It

was

 > unlikely any of them would. Iria winced. This was one of the most

stupid

 > ways to go. Taken out by a toaster version of Zeiram and a handful of
 > rent-a-cops that barely knew which way to point a gun.

    Her colleagues would never let her hear the end of it, at that Great
Bounty-Hunter's Bar in the Sky.

True.

 > arm up
 > and the flechettes coming from the palm of the left hand. She had no

idea

 > why he saved her, but she had a feeling it wasn't to apologize for his

    Sug:  why he'D saved her.
    Okay, I was about to complain that she was waaaay to lucky.  But this
explains it.

Steggy isn't being discriminatory. He's crazy, and doesn't care who's in the
line of fire.

 > door, Stegrax's tail lashed out, cutting through the metal of the
 > wall, the
 > door, and the wall on the other side of about the same distance,
 > leaving a
 > long wide tear behind. The tail retreated out of sight. It was

    Whoa.

 > followed up
 > by twin thin laser beams that crisscrossed each other in the firing

port

 > created by the tail, slicing through the chairs like a surgeon's

scalpel

    Talk about supression fire...

Yep, he's crazy, but not stupid, and been at this for a while.

 > from the
 > effects of the concussion. It was only instinct that made her press the
 > remote on her belt.

    Dang.  That tail should have ripped her to shreds.  Must've caught her
body armor...

That and it didn't have a chance to build up velocity to really let loose,
which is what the whoosing sound was before he crushed the wall and door. I
had no way of making that clear from her POV inside the room.

 > multiple times, combined with her concussion, was too much for her to
 > take.
 > It overwhelmed her, and she let out one faint curse before passing out.

    That's one...

Yep, sort of.

 > xxxxxxxxxxx
 > while he
 > ran for safety. Far too many of his systems were down. He was
 > vulnerable in
 > a way that he hadn't been since he was made of only flesh and blood.

    And he's about to meet the Big Z, isn't he?

Yep, but Steggy'll pop up later. Well, some of him, anyway.

 > "Except those we found crushed by falling sections of the building,"

Yuri

 > reminded her.
 >
 > "Well, yeah. I meant shot up or ripped apart corpses. The type Zeiram
 > always
 > leaves behind wherever he goes. Not that crushed people don't count. I
 > mean
 > we can't tell which way he went if he doesn't leave us a bunch of dead
 > bodies to follow," Kei clarified.

    .....

She's been at this a real long time. :)

 > "Right." In a moment of epiphany, Yuri wondered when they had become so
 > casual about people being dead around them. She supposed others would
 > feel
 > sick or disgusted at the idea of a conversation about what sort of dead
 > people they were looking for. She supposed it was a type of defense
 > mechanism, though even in her days as a rookie, she couldn't remember
 > feeling too broken up about people dying around her. That she wasn't
 > responsible for their deaths helped, and she felt bad on an

intellectual

 > level about it, but that was all. Kei was the same way. The lack of
 > emotional response didn't even bother her. It was just something she
 > noted.

    Hm?  Hrm.

You'd have to be somewhat desenstized to it given the path of destruction
they've left behind.

 >
 > The black one said, "I'd say by their uniforms these are the 3WA
 > agents our
 > contact wanted dead."

    Well, so much for opsec.

Professional in some ways, but not so much in others.

 > "Unless there are another pair or agents around here," the albino
 > concurred.
 >
 > "I kind of doubt that. Ah well, won't be the first time we've wasted

the

 > 3WA's lackeys."

    These two talk too much.

They're brothers, and figure it'll be an easy kill. They don't realize it's
the DP they're talking with, or they'd be more cautious.

 > hoping to
 > find a weak point in the wall. Kei did the opposite, shooting at the
 > exact
 > same spot repeatedly, hoping to hammer through it with brute force.

    This would seem like a good time to try simultaneous opposing flanking
maneuvers.
    K&Y:  Huh?
    Split up and hit him from both sides, darn it!

They're going to get outflanked this time, though.

 > enabled
 > her to aim unerringly even as she brought it up, sighting in the
 > attacker's
 > head. Just as she fired, the shimmering appeared right in front of her,
 > stopping the laser only centimeters after it left the barrel.

    Figures.

Yep, couldn't be that easy.

    Okay.  Looks like he can only make one barrier at a time.  How can we
use this...?

Yuri's about to figure it out.

 > The Anvil smirked. "You'll run out of ammo long before I run out of
 > power,
 > thanks to this." He threw a thumb over his shoulder to indicate the
 > pack on
 > his back.

    Stoooopid.

Boastful, but he thinks the kill is in the bag, and he has the room to do
it.

 > It was then Yuri knew what to do. She bent down, firing at the Anvil

the

 > entire time, and removed her 'Bloody Card' from her boot. Keeping it

    YES!  The BC never turns up often enough in DP fics.

She used it once before in the fic when it was her weapon of last resort.

 > bad for him. Did he see her throw something out from behind her back
 > at the
 > height of her volley?

    Okay, so he does have *some* IQ points left.

Yep. Decent survival instincts, though not good enough.

 > brother retreated. With the force of the contained, but impressive
 > explosion, it blew through the protection of his exo-frame and sent
 > over a
 > hundred pieces of metal and plastic debris through his back and out the
 > front of his chest.

    "I feel I should point out that each of us is essentially carrying an
unlicensed nuclear particle accelerator on his back..."

Luckily it's not that powerful. It's more like a giant battery, though the
systems hooked up to it can cause a big enough explosion to do what it did.

 > through the faceplate of his exo-frame, killing him instantly. The
 > sledgehammers, no longer supported, slipped from his hands and fell
 > right on
 > top him, driving the upper part of exo-frame into his corpse.

    Gratuitous, but nicely cinematic.

Thanks, also sets up Kei 'Yuck, I almost got blood on me' bit

 > "I was more worried about getting his blood on me," Kei clarified. She
 > looked over to the dead body across the room. "Unusual foes."
 >
 > "Yeah, they gave you a hard time for a minute." Yuri shot her partner a
 > mischievous look.

    oooo.  Catfight!

Nah. It's just playful banter. They had a catfight earlier when Kei deleted
Yuri's report many chapters ago. Yuri popped free of her top. :)

 > Kei appeared offended. "Me? Au contraire. I was distracting the big

guy,

 > since I knew he'd squash you flat inside thirty seconds. I knew you'd
 > figure
 > out how to get around that force field thing before he'd come close to
 > me."
 >
 > "Yeah, right," Yuri said drolly as Kei recovered her weapon and the two
 > exited the room.

    It's nice to have a partner you can always trust to save your neck.

Yep, it's why they work so well together. Most of the time.

 > was after here. It was a pity they hadn't the time to find out where
 > it was
 > located at the facility, so he could head directly to it and kill

Zeiram

 > himself. He was certain he could do it. The monster could feel pain and
 > bleed, and anything that did those two things could die. If there was

    Arnie said that about the Predator.  He was right, but boy, did he

take

a beating first...

True.

    extra Bleed.
    I'm not sure hamstring is a noun.  I *think* it's a term used for
severing or damaging the Achille's tendon.

will change

 > had already circumvented one of his opponent's advantages by forcing
 > them to
 > make mass attacks from one point instead of single attacks from

anywhere.

    They sound like higher-end versions of the Bloody Card.

Pretty much

 > react acc
 > ordingly, or ignore it and move on until the body overloaded and
 > collapsed.
 > He'd swallow an anti-coagulant after the fight, when he had the time.

    ITYM coagulent.  An anti- would make him bleed more.

Oops. Yep, Will change

 > He shot again, and this time a trio of shurikens headed toward him,
 > barely
 > missing. And then it happened. Behind the original quarter of holes

left

 > behind his in his initial salvo, he saw a flash of motion from the

lower

 > two.

    I suspected as much.

Good call.

 > wouldn't be coming after him again since they were either injured or
 > dead.
 > There was no reason to confirm the kill.
 >
 > After all, it was about business, not pleasure.

    Smart, but if Whisper's not wounded, he could be setting himself up

for

a shot in the back.

Yeah, but walking into her trap would be the higher risk, so he's best off
walking away

 > of swirls with three 'eternal flames' going, was sure to make people
 > sit up
 > and take notice of the woman born into the galaxy as Contessa Anzia
 > Filiono
 > Pontaine.

    ...I guess I can understand that.

Yep. I thought it made sense.

 > kicked ass and taken names from one side of the galaxy to the next and
 > come
 > out on top every time. Replacing them with new guys as talented and
 > reliable
 > as they were was going to be a major pain in the ass. He even liked

them,

 > for the most part. Like he would a trio of favored hound dogs.

    ...yeah.  But at least he means to keep his promise to Whisper.

Yep, but things will be taken out of his hands momentarily.

 > Killing Zeiram, getting the fat bonus on the side, and maybe taking out
 > Killgore and company, would ease Dane's heart rending torment. Well,
 > major
 > annoyance might be a better word. Yes, that much money could wipe out

any

 > amount of misery. People that claimed money couldn't buy happiness
 > never had
 > enough to buy any.

    Okay, I'm stealing that line.  I don't agree, but it's tool cool not

to

use sometime.

Thanks. It's probably been used before somewhere.

 > Thirteen men aimed their guns toward the sound of the slow, yet

 > relentless
 > noise. A single bead of sweat came to Dane's brow. There was no
 > question in
 > his mind to who this could be, the one being in the universe that could
 > decimate half his team without giving them a chance to warn him.

    Heh.  He has *no* idea...

Yep

 > Then Stegrax's head appeared from around the corner.
 >
 > "I knew it." Dane sighed in relief, bringing his weapons pod down.

    Yeah, suuure you did.
    Of course, I don't think Steggie's head is attached to his own neck,
anymore....

Heh. nope.

 > fusion with what was supposed to be his mortal foe. Then Dane
 > remembered the
 > dossier on Zeiram that he had received from YSC mentioned his ability

to

 > merge with nearly any weapon system that existed.

    This would be a good time to run, wouldn't it?

Not if he wants his money it's not.

a three-way."  (:)

 > from
 > the barrel. The trio of energies formed a single beam as they went

clean

 > through Zeiram's front and out the back, blowing a large hole in him.

    I've seen that FX before, somewhere...

I think I have too, though I don't remember where.

 > one's
 > comrades in the line of duty had a certain upside. He'd make certain
 > to give
 > Whisper a really ostentatious mausoleum when the time came.

    He's underestimating his opponent...

Yep, though in his defense, these would be fatal to almost anything else.

 > size, especially considering the wounds he had suffered. His arm
 > lashed out
 > in an arc, and Dane was just barely aware of a trio of spikes, with red
 > tassels on them, heading toward him.

    ...aren't those Gren's signature weapon?  I've gotta watch "Iria"

again...

I think Zeiram was tossing those around in the first ep at Gren. I saw it 3
or 4 months ago, but can't remember now.

 > the inhuman pitch Zeiram's could, still rivaled the beast's earlier
 > cry as
 > it was Dane's turn to roll on the ground, the phosphorous eating away
 > at his
 > flesh.

    <shudder>  Okay, I wanted him dead.  But *that*... I wouldn't wish

that

on anyone.  Grife, what a way to go...

Well, not a lot fell on him. Just enough to make life... bad.

 > other then whiteness of pain that his entire reality had turned into.
 > It was
 > so great it refused to allow him even the relief of unconsciousness,

and

 > instead he was left floating in a world that was composed of one thing
 > only.

    He's not DEAD?  Good grief, a load of WP in the face should have

killed

him in a minute or so.

Will make it clear he only got enough to hurt, not kill on him.

 >
 > Killgore raised his heavy plasma cannon up and aimed it at Dane's face.
 > "Nice try, but I saw the empty unit. Right now there's only one thing

you

 > can do for me."

    Oh HO.  So, *that's* Killgore's secondary motive.  Or primary.

Seems likely, don't it? :)

 > Then Killgore felt the unmistakable touch of cold metal pressed
 > against his
 > lower back. He gave a tired sigh. "There's only one person in the
 > universe I
 > know who'd want to put a gun to my back yet not automatically pull the
 > trigger. How's it going, Sunshine?"

    If she heard any of that conversation, he can't afford to let her

live.

  But does *she* realize that?

She heard it. Things are coming to a head.

 > concern
 > you. I want Zeiram dead. You want Zeiram dead. YSC obviously wants him
 > dead,
 > maybe more than everyone else put together." His voice instantly went

    All true.  Technically.
    Of course, YSC want to make a Zeiram of their own.  After all, if
Scorphius can use Z as a weapon, why can't they?

You'll see. Two chapters from now I think most of it will be revealed.

 > from
 > tired to irate, as though something had snapped all at once inside
 > him. "And
 > I'm tired of your pointless questions, constant paranoia, threats, and
 > finding a gun pointed at me every time you feel agitated and want to
 > blow of
 > some steam. Either shoot me or get that damn thing out of my face."

    Gambler.  But it's bluff-or-die time.

Pretty much.

 > A figure detached itself from some nearby shadows. "The little tart
 > had no
 > idea how close to death she was."

    <low whistle>  Whoa.  But I think maybe she did.  Otherwise, she might
just have pulled that trigger.

Nah. He has to actively try something to make her kill him.

 > ship in
 > their database as a mercenary company and have us detained until they

can

 > ascertain we had nothing to do with the crash. I don't think we can

shoot

 > our way out. Their ships look mighty big, and they have us targeted."

    Cops.  Perfect timing, as usual.

Well, in a manner of speaking.

 > "Don't try it. Just let them be." He ran his hand through his hair in
 > frustration. "Are they at least pursuing the other ship?"
 >
 > "Yes, but none of their units were in position, so it seems unlikely
 > they'll
 > catch up before the ship's long gone."

    Scorphius's luck is downright unbelievable.

He hasn't had that much. It's one of the advantages to having a small but
powerful force that can strike just about anywhere, and that most people
aren't aware that he's even there until after he's gone.

 >
 > The light of understanding dawned in Cross' eyes. "I see. Yes. Just
 > give me
 > the word, and I'll take care of matters."

    Uh oh.

Yep, as I said, things are moving to a head.

 > [End fic]

    Whaaaaaat?!?  You mean "End CHAPTER," don't you?  This can't be the

end

of the 'fic!  Darn you, DB, you can't leave us hanging like this!

Chapter. Plans are for the next chapter to be the next thing I write. Might
have time tomorrow. We'll see

Thanks for all the help. You gave me a lot of stuff to work with, as always,
and I really, really appreciate it.

DB Sommer

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