Taric Taiservi"The pilot's dead. I'm guessing you're either her to throw me into the brig or send me to the black baron in person. Whatever one you're doing, get on with it" Head to the guy from the radio.
[3] - 'Shut up.' the officer snaps. Two of the soldiers march up and grab you by the arms. They begin roughly checking him for hidden weapons. Taric resists making some witty quip. They take most of his gear. A third waves what seems to be a flashlight at his face. After a while, he stops and croaks; 'He's clean.'
'Follow me. Don't try anything.' the officer says. The soldiers surround you and the group marches in formation out of the hangar. Taric can't really see his surroundings from behind the towering guards, but sees spartan, sterile corridors and little unused space. This is clearly a warship. The bounty hunter focuses on not stumbling and falling under the marching soldiers.
Finally, the soldiers stop.
'My lord?' the officer asks.
'Leave us.'
The men don't question the order, turning around and heading out of the room in perfect order. Taric looks around. The room is as cold and grey as anything else in the ship, but has a few specks of humanity - two engraved swords hanging from the wall, an ash tray, some paintings and images. The Baron's desk is orderly and neat, and the man himself regards him with a sullen expression. It's hard to judge his age, but he's obviously seen plenty of years. He looks like he hasn't slept in a week, though his clothes are in perfect condition.
'Taiservi.' he growls, spinning around a dataslate on the table. The bounty hunter's face stares back at him from the screen. 'I've read your files. Three notes of effectiveness, one of loyalty. Several recommendations for promotion by your commander. Though... your methods were considered somewhat unorthodox. But strange times require strange tactics. It says here you were a patriot, but your actions speak otherwise. Many good men died fighting the rabble, but you decided to go into hiding and... enter your current line of work. What was the reasoning behind this decision, Taiservi?'
Taric TaiserviHP: 75/75
Equipment: First Aid Kits (4/4)
Funds: 16,000¤
Known Perks: Focus Improvement PackageFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: 'The Black Baron' (Old Regime)
Recover, get taken to the destination, embark on mission.
[3] - The journey continues, Akhain's headache dying away. His eyes linger on the alcove, and a shiver runs up his spine. Never again. It takes him a while to calm down. Jinan is silent, turning to look at the bounty hunter every now and then. As soon as he's managed to relax himself, Jinan calls out from the cockpit that they're almost at their destination. Gazhorn forces himself up and joins her there. The desert spreads out below them, broken by jagged cliffs and ravines. Gradually, the cliffs begin to rise, leading up to a mountain range in the horizon. The land below looks like a labyrinth, small paths zigzagging through the clifs and rocks.
'The cathedral is on the other side of this thing, hidden in a mountainside opening. He's been sitting here for decades, way before the regime even fell. Even though it seems empty right now, this place is full of guards and mines. Alone, you wouldn't stand a chance. They'd slaughter you before you took two steps. But now that I'm here, I can monitor the area from up here and guide you through unharmed. Maybe provide a little air support as well, if needed.' Jinan explains.
'Or if you don't want to do that, there's an alternative route.' she says, pulling open a lid in the wall. It reveals breathing gear and a pair of climbing hooks. 'I hope you don't have anything against a little climbing? There's a pretty straight, unguarded route into the cathedral - unfortunately, it's up the side of the mountain. We're kind lacking in tech here, so it might be a little risky. But honestly, so is the first one. Which one will it be?'
Akhain GazhornHP: 75/75
Equipment: Zuche 3 Cloaking Device (6/6), Zuche 20 Shock Mine (4/4), RUS2 Accelerator Carbine
(14/14), Thermal Blade (8/8)
Funds: 500¤
Known Perks: MultiVision Ocular ModificationFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: Father Kosh (Old Regime)
Bah, this idiot made his last bad choice.
Slice and dice the guard with the T-blade. Get back around to the Judge's building and go to the top.
[3] - Systar pulls himself up and advances towards the guard, ready to attack. [Dodge:2] The guard is too stunned by the death of his friend to react, and gets a knife in his chest for that. [Damage:31] He slumps down, and slides off the platform as well. [6] Systar breathes in relief. He takes his time watching the man fall, but no other guards seem to appear. Once the guard's nicely splattered over the ground, the bounty hunter heads back up.
The front door was a stupid idea, so Systar decides to try the window instead. [4] He jumps up, drops down, [1] and crashes in vain against the strenghtened glass, [4] barely hanging on to the edge of the building. Right then. Systar pulls himself back up and lies down. He leans over the window and activates the Thermal Blade. [4] He manages to draw a human-sized hole and finally enters.
The Judge's apartment is warmly decorated in various earthly tones. Luxury goods, such as hologram projectors, are active and throwing a passable waterfall onto the wall. Another shows a snowy cityscape - even though he could just look out of the window a few months from now. The lights aren't on. Systar looks around, finding what appears to be his office. It's decorated in a less showy way, and obviously meant for work only. In the adjourning room, Systar finds a bed and a sleeping woman on it. His wife, or perhaps a mistress. Systar vaguely remembers something about the man being married.
[2] He isn't planning on waking her, but has no choice. A shrill alarm begins to sound, and the woman gets up, activating the screen on the wall. Another security guard appears in it, looking alarmed.
'Ma'am, we believe there's an assassin on the loose in the area. He might be seeking to enter your apartment. Please act according to the security protocols we went over. Do not worry, we will be there soon.'
[4] She turns the lights on, and Systar sinks into the shadows of the corridor. The Judge doesn't seem to be here, and things really aren't going to plan.
SystarHP: 75/75
Equipment: Thermal Blade
(4/8), Aurora Revolver
(6/6), Gravity Trap (2/2), Zuche 3 Cloaking Device (4/6)
Funds: 28,800¤
Known Perks: AugeanTech LightningBolt PackFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
"Shit. Sentience?" He shook his head. "Genetic scientists, man. They're crazy, the lot of them. Always trying to build the 'perfect lifeform.' Well, I always say that when they do that, what use is it going to have for the rest of us? Bunch of complete idiots." He sat on a shipping crate and ran a weapons inspection himself, satisfied with the results after a few moments work. Ratrik asked him a question, name about finding work. Gao laughed harshly.
"This planet? It's a gold mine, to use a Sol-3 phrase. There was a revolution quite recently and no one was able to grab power." He looked up at the ceiling. "There's more than enough work to go around... and with all of us mercs working different angles, there will probably be enough work for the next several decades, as long as we all play our cards right and keep every faction from getting too much stronger than the others." There was no money in peace; worse, there was no social advancement for a Vantahin. He would be stuck at a low caste forever if things here started to get patched up.
"Easy, right?" He smiled, or as much a being with his features could, anyway. "So how's Nahak, anyway? She still making enough to feed her kids?"
[3] - 'I hear that. I'll be sticking around for a while, then.' Ratrik grins. 'And I dunno, man. Haven't seen her since that big job on Titan. Y'know, I honestly thought I was going to make enough to never need to work anymore from that. Then a friend of mine tells me I could triple all that with a few well-placed bets in a gambling den in Proas Mal. Bullshit. I lost everything. Later I found out he was the owner, and got all of that. When I found him, he stopped being my friend. And he stopped being alive. He'd already lost most of it, though, but atleast I killed the bastard.'
The ship suddenly shudders. The pair hear groaning metal from the direction of the cockpit.
'We're here.' Tarur mutters. The doors nearby open, revealing a cramped airlock. They go in, grabbing their gear again. After a few minutes, the airlock opens up, revealing an empty entry tunnel. The few working lights flicker and die as soon as they enter. The freighter soon removes itself from the tunnel and flies off.
'Like something out of a bad horror movie. What's next, everybody's turned to zombies or something?' Tarur grins. 'Come on.'
The tunnel soon stops at a pair of doors. They seem unharmed, but fail to open at command. 'I guess the power's out. Let's hope the atmospheric generators still work, or we're screwed.'
[6] Tarur sends the doors flying open with a kick. They open to a dusty waiting room. There's an unmanned security post presumably used to monitor new arrivals. The pair can see decontamination chambers beyond that. There's no signs of violence, but the mood is still very eerie. [5] Gao ransacks the security post, fishing out a medium-clearance security pass. It should come in handy. There's probably a maintenance door somewhere if the pair wish to bypass the decontamination chambers. They seem inactive though, and they could probably just walk through.
Gaosaron el-Anaula Ra'VantahinHP: 75/75
Equipment: Widowmaker Shotgun
(6/7), Golgo Mechanical Blade, NTT Inferno
(26/26), RUS2 Accelerator Carbine
(13/14), Guard Security Pass
Funds: 25,450¤
Known Perks: NovaCore Electronic ModificationFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
Action: 971 heads back to his car, and starts to scope out Fashuks apartment from afar, looking for armed guards.
[5] - 971 walks back to his car and takes off, looking for a good elevated position. A blocky, ancient tower a few blocks from what seems to be it should do. He lands as close as possible and finds the doors. When he tries to open them, however, an elderly Habiri rises to stop him.
'The tower isn't open to public. It's an important heritage site, y'know.'
The area is in plain view from the street and the windows of the surrounding buildings and there are children playing nearby.
Subject 971HP: 33/75
Equipment: Flare Gun (3/4), Zuche 13 Gravity Trap (1/1), Aurora Revolver
(5/6), Thermal Blade (5/8)
Funds: 1650¤
Known Perks: AugeanTech FlexiSpeed AidFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: Fashuk il-Maldas (Sikhet Federation), Fashuk's Files
Read up all the information on tracking down the slave.
[2] - Burrow asks the gang boss for more info, but he doesn't reply. He should probably try again later.
BurrowHP: 75/75
Equipment: Funds: 20,000¤
Known Perks: AugeanTech LightningBolt PackFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
Barauc stretches after a night spent on an uncomfortable bed. Still, it's better than most beds he's had to sleep on during his career. The bounty hunter pulls open his computer and looks through his inbox, and flicks on the TV in his dusty hotel room. Time to work.
Barauc Na'ShalHP: 75/75
Equipment: Funds: 20,000¤
Known Perks: Focus Improvement PackageFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
---
Durr, SeriousConcentrate, I actually wasn't sure of the specifics of your mission before now. Fear not, there aren't any zombies. Maybe I shouldn't have said that, could've kept you wondering all the way to
the end. I did consider an eldritch abomination-ish mission earlier, but I didn't think it would fit in with the setting very well, so I scrapped it.
But I've finally got everything planned out, ehehehhehe.
Author
Topic: Nowhere To Run - A Futuristic Bounty Hunter RTD - Turn 51 (Read 86840 times)