Akhain GazhornContinue up the path to where Kosh was headed. Try and be wary, and ready to defend myself.
[4] - Gazhorn hefts the cult leader on his back. He's heavier than he'd thought. Good thing he didn't have to face him in close combat, then. Blood drips from Kosh's body on Akhain as he begins to make his way up the narrow path towards the hole in the mountainside. He can still feel a strange guilt at killing the man. The pheromone emitters might still be active, or there just might be a trace of the stuff still lingering in the air.
[1] He's mid-way through the distance when [1] the distant crackle of an automatic weapon begins far behind him. [Dodge:3+1+1=5] Bullets begin impacting on the rocky path around him, accompanied by far-away voices shouting for him to halt. Akhain does the opposite, [6] keeping his balance perfectly even with Kosh on his shoulder and while running up a twisting mountain trail. He closes the distance between him and the doorway in no time, rolling in while the volume of gunfire rises to deafening levels behind him. He's sure he can hear a missile launcher being fired just before he gets off the path.
[5] The doorway leads to a large, round chamber, with a pair of huge metal doors closing the way into a crudely-hacked corridor. It presumably leads through the mountain. There's a personal grav-glider on a raised platform - Kosh must have been intending to fly away. [3] Acting quickly, Akhain figures out a way to close the door to the outside path. The heavy metal chute that slams down behind him should keep them out for long enough. The bounty hunter lets the Father's body fall to the floor.
Unfortunately, when he approaches the grav-glider, he realizes its truly personal, genelocked to Kosh only. Akhain hopes the Father's body will be enough to unlock it, [3] and is proven partially right. The grav-glider's controls light up once he touches Kosh's hands to them, but die the second they no longer touch his skin. Looks like Akhain will have to tie his body against the bottom, or into his lap. There's no telling how it will affect the fragile machine's balance.
[6] He looks around, spotting a control console near the wall soon enough. Opening the main doors is child's play from there, and soon he's treated to a view of a cramped corridor, stretching to a distant pinprick of light on the other side of the mountain. The faint emergency lights in the floor provide little visibility.
[1] A banging begins on the door behind him, maddened voices screaming to him from the path. After a while, he hears the whine of an energy weapon powering up...
Akhain GazhornHP: 13/75
Equipment: NTT Inferno
(22/26), Thermal Blade (8/8)
Funds: 500¤
Known Perks: MultiVision Ocular ModificationFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: Father Kosh (Old Regime)
Systar"Yeah, that sounds good. I'll get you a copy."
Accept the offer and get off the phone before I go broke.
[2] - Calamien insists on talking for a few more minutes, bringing the comms price up to 9000¤. Once Systar's managed to detach himself from the information broker, he hurries to shut the connection and pay up. Finally safe from the ever-rising price, he stretches a bit after the cramped cocoon and heads out, pondering his next move.
The Vantahin will take a day or so to come here. He doesn't have any time to waste, with the Consul's big speech looming in the horizon. Remembering his request of intel on her on the black market, Systar decides to check if anything's come up.
[6] He's in luck - a recent leak by a drunken assistant has flooded the underworld with information about her. Most of it is useless to him, insights into her personality at most, but he's told there's plenty of juicy details the general public has overlooked. Wading through it all would take time, but he needs everything he can get. [5] There's several offers of specifically-tailored packages for men of his profession. Systar soon determines the largest and cheapest, just 1500¤. If he's willing to look through endless gossip and useless chatter, though, he could just try read it all on his own.
SystarHP: 75/75
Equipment: Thermal Blade
(4/8), Aurora Revolver
(6/6), Gravity Trap (2/2), Zuche 3 Cloaking Device (3/6)
Funds: 19,800¤
Known Perks: AugeanTech LightningBolt PackFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: Boka yl Vsiri (Crime Syndicate)
Gaosaron"I'll get this one," Gao said. "You handle the other." He switched out for his mechanical blade and rushed the little creature. No point holding back on these things. Whatever they are, or were, they're clearly in a killing frenzy. Nothing sane would have taken on that construct in melee.
[6] - Gao surges forward, [Dodge:1] running the alien through with his Mechanical Blade. [Damage:17+9=26] The bloodied weapon tears open his chest and proceeds inside, ripping apart his heart before exiting through the back and bisecting him not-so-neatly in two. Gao lets his pieces fall, turning to face the other furred creature. [2+1=3] Ratrik isn't willing to let anyone steal his kill, though. He fires again with his shotgun, [Dodge:3][Damage:45-15=30] and the ferocious little thing flies back, his armor shattered. Despite its wounds, it gets back up, snarling in a way that reminds Gao of the gene-engineered beast in the Steelworks.
[2+3=5] It begins approaching Ratrik, [2] who waits patiently for it to come forwards, perhaps wishing to engage it in melee. [6] Gao has no such ideas, [Dodge:4] but the thing moves faster than he expects. Gao's blade rips apart chunks of the wall, [5+3=6][Dodge:6] too close for the creature to execute a proper strike.
[4+3=6] It slips past Gao and leaps at Ratrik, [Dodge:1+1=2] embedding the jagged blade inside his thigh before he can do anything. [Damage:5] He seems more shocked than wounded, and reacts with a [5+1=6][Dodge:2] well-placed kick that [Damage:5] caves the creature's skull in. He finishes it off with a quick slash with his Thermal Blade for good measure.
Out of combat, the two bounty hunters study the direction the construct and the aliens came from. There's doors both on the left and the right, though the one on the right is quickly proved to be a cleaner's storage or somesuch.
[6] The one on the left is much more interesting. It's empty of any aliens, with seemingly random lab equipment scattered around. It looks less like a lab and more like a teenager's room, as Ratrik puts it. There are several glass doors leading to cells, with the remains of one shattered on the floor. The construct must've come through there. Looking into its cell, Ratrik reports several bodies, both unmodified ones and things similar to it. It may have killed them all before its escape. Or perhaps the aliens killed them. It's impossible to tell. The other cells are empty. Investigating the bodies might yield something useful.
[2] Ratrik scouts up ahead, returning quickly. 'There's another group of the little blue ones coming. I couldn't get a good look around them, but I think there's more labs like this up ahead.'
AlliesIn the lab next to GaosaronTarur RatrikHP: 58/75
Equipment: Flechette Shotgun
(4/10), RUS9 Incendiary Grenade (2/2), Thermal Blade (6/8)
Known Perks: AugeanTech FlexiSpeed Aid,
NovaCore Analytic-Reactive Augmentation,
FocusedFaction: Bounty Hunter
---
Gaosaron el-Anaula Ra'VantahinHP: 35/75
Equipment: Widowmaker Shotgun
(4/7), Golgo Mechanical Blade, NTT Inferno
(26/26), RUS2 Accelerator Carbine
(13/14), Guard Security Pass, Low-Level Security Pass
Funds: 25,450¤
Known Perks: NovaCore Electronic ModificationFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
Subject 971Accept the Recruiter job for later.
Put away my mine, and pick up my first aid pack. Load up with my four Aurora clips and two Widowmaker clips.
Then move to rendevous with Kaviv Otoli for the shopkeeper mission, after sending the person who hired me I accept, and and that there will be two hunters on this job.
4xAurora Clips
2xWidowmaker clips
Combat Knife
Frag Grenade
First Aid Pack
Zuche 13 Gravity Trap
[2] - 971 sends a few messages and begins gearing up for the mission. He takes two First Aid Packs, discarding the Flare Gun and lone RUS8 Mine, and the Widowmaker, Thermal Blade and fancy Aurora Revolver. He tells the young Kaviv where to meet up and sets off towards his employer's store.
The trip is short and uneventful, from the Old District to the outskirts of the Industrial District. He lands on the street, and doesn't have to look for the right place for long - the windows have been smashed to pieces, with a dour-looking horned alien surveying the damage from outside. When 971 approaches, his expression only grows worse, having finally found someone to vent his anger on.
'Little good I pay my taxes for!' he begins, poking his thick finger against the bounty hunter's chest. 'Look at what they've done now! Just a few hours ago, in broad daylight! This is the third time this month! You're supposed to be a big hero or something - why isn't anyone doing anything?'
971 tries to soothe him with a few vague promises he's seen Dalia throw around. 'Was this done by the gang you mentioned?'
The man lets out a little snarl 971's grown to understand to mean a shrug or similar. 'Doesn't matter.' he says. 'Might've been them, might've been just some stupid kids down the street. There's no difference these days. I'd never thought I'd be missing the old regime.'
Seeing the change in 971's eyes at the last sentence, he quickly adds; 'Err... sorry. It's just something people say. Didn't mean no disrespect.'
A younger man approaches from behind the man, and 971's visor identifies him as Kaviv Otoli. The youth's eyes widen as he sees 971 and he stumbles, almost falling over.
'This is my partner, Kaviv Otoli. I believe you hired us, Mr...?' 971 says.
The store owner, finally calmed down, begins actually talking about the job. These gangers have been terrorizing the street for several months now, running 'protection' rackets and setting fire or breaking into the buildings every time they get bored. They aren't your run-of-the-mill teenagers, but violent and drugged-up people from all around the Industrial District. He doesn't know their base of operations, but they come out of the unused factories a few blocks down. Someone's supposed to come collect their share of the owner's profits today, so the pair could follow them to their leader.
Just as they're about to leave, the man grabs 971's arm. 'I... my nephew. He's gotten mixed up with these guys. He's not a bad kid, but you know how it is. If he's there... please don't kill him.' he whispers. He hands over a picture of him - taken from pretty far away, though the red headband he's wearing should be pretty striking. Otherwise, he has few features that stick around from the norm.
'His name is Larro. He'll listen to reason if you talk to him, I'm sure.'
Subject 971HP: 75/75
Equipment: First Aid Packs (2/2), Widowmaker Shotgun
(4/7), Thermal Blade (5/8), Aurora Revolver w/ Analytic-Reactive Targeting System
(5/6)Funds: 6250¤
Known Perks: AugeanTech FlexiSpeed AidFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
BaraucTry some more! Or otherwise try to scope out a spot thats easier to climb to
[3] - Barauc focuses, breathing in deep before trying the climb again. It doesn't work on the first try, or the second, or the third, but on the fourth try, he manages to get a grip and begins pulling himself up.
A pained scream and the clatter of gunfire snaps him out of his focus, and he glances back to see previously-hidden police units swarming into the warehouse yard. The panicking gangers seem to have started to shoot at them, and the police are responding in the same way. He can't see Baseba anywhere, but this far away and hanging from the side of a support isn't the best place to look.
He ignores the raid for now, beginning to make his way up to the good spot again. He slips several times more before reaching the top, where he finally sits down and begins to scope through the yard, looking for Baseba. Looking around, it seems most of the gangers and the smugglers have been arrested, though someone is on the megaphone, shouting to a ganger who's barricaded himself inside the warehouse.
[1] He looks and looks, but Baseba is nowhere to be seen. He can even see inside the warehouse and the face of the ganger inside, but not the police chief. Either he's still inside one of the vehicles, not here at all, or just out of view for now. After all the effort he wasted on getting to this position, he still can't find his target.
Barauc Na'ShalHP: 75/75
Equipment: Zuche 4 Railgun
(1/1), Zuche 3 Cloaking Device (6/6), Aurora Revolver
(6/6), RUS2 Accelerator Carbine
(14/14)Funds: 6000¤
Known Perks: Focus Improvement PackageFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: Baseba yl Eos (New Regime Police)
LoriaTracy looks down at the small knot of dilettantes and smirks. Black market implants? This shouldn't be too difficult. Still, it never hurts to be overly cautious. She turned to Teodosio, "What's the pay for this job? Your ad mentioned splitting a reward." She turned to look back down at the dance floor. "I'll need names and at least brief bios on anyone you can as well."
[3] - Teodosio nods, taking a dataslate from the depths of his coat and placing it on the table. He thumbs the activator and the scren flashes to life.
'The pay's 14 000¤, to be split between us - in two, as long as you get the job done. You done this sort of thing before?'
He manipulates the controls of the dataslate, bringing up the face of a female alien. She has that sort of beauty that comes from pre-birth gene-engineering, and various grafts and implants bulge out from under her skin, and inside the quill-hair of her species. Looking at the group downstairs, Loria realizes she's the one with the glowing hair. The text in the bottom identifies her as 'Mille Roskank'.
Teodosio gives you some time to look at her and moves onto the next one. This pic has been taken from further away than the first. It's a human male with scars - ones that seem oddly symmetric and accentuate his features - and neatly-cut blond hair. He's dressed in a thick fur-trimmed coat, both in the picture and down below, for reasons Loria cannot decipher. He must be sweating like hell down there, unless he's got implants that take care of that as well.
'Anthony... something. Planetary records just call him 'yl Earth'.' Teodosio sneers. The government's habit of removing existing surnames and replacing it with the place of birth hasn't been very popular.
The third image is of a giant of a man, a veritable mountain of muscle who's in the process of bashing the cameraman's face in in his picture. He's also a human, a bald man with striking, aquilline features. Loria can't see him below, but his face and body language in the picture just scream 'bodyguard', so that's not much of a surprise.
'I don't know much about him. This fellow's not on the records. He's Anthony's bodyguard, but I don't know anything else.' Teodosio admits. 'These are the three you'll be following. Anthony and the lady live together - don't ask - so they should stick together for the most part. If they don't, let me know. Follow them and eavesdrop on them, but not too openly. Don't let them realize they're being followed.'
'Was there anything else? I think my chunk is preparing to leave.'
LoriaHP: 75/75
Equipment: RUS2 Accelerator Carbine
(14/14), Zuche 13 Gravity Trap (2/2), Flare Gun
(1/1), First Aid Kit (7/7)
Funds: 4300¤
Known Perks: Navigator Uplink PackageFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
Kaviv OtoliKaviv's eyes widened as he read 971's message, having pretty much given up on getting a reply from the shopkeeper.
"He's on his way now?! Agh, better not keep him waiting, then." He quickly adjusted his various pieces of equipment, glanced once more in the mirror to ensure he still looked like a hardened revolutionary bounty hunter and not some scrawny kebab vendor, and then powered off the computer and headed out to find his way to the store.
'Well, let's hope 971 was right about the "luck" business...'
[4] - Kaviv hurries to leave, running down the steps of his apartment and to the river-bank to hail a taxi-boat. This doesn't happen as quickly as he'd imagined, though. Despite what always happens in the action pics, there's no cab for him to get into and shout 'follow that car!'.
When one finally arrives, he spends several minutes haggling about the price with the owner. When the boat finally leaves, he's sure enough time has passed for 971 to complete this mission three times over.
He finds the correct street quickly enough. Kaviv sees 971 talking with someone, his heart beating faster than he'd thought possible. To be in the same general area with his hero! The bounty hunter almost falls on his face, not looking where he's walking, and turns red-hot with shame. 971 doesn't seem to notice, thankfully.
When the revolutionary hero calls him his partner, Kaviv's heart swells with pride. He barely hears the rest of the store owner's speech, only snapping out of it once he stops. Oh well. 971 will know what to do.
Kaviv OtoliHP: 75/75
Equipment: Snaplock Pistol
(8/8), Frag Grenades (5/5), First Aid Packs (6/6), Widowmaker Shotgun
(7/7)Funds: 5000¤
Known Perks: Navigator Uplink PackageFaction: Bounty Hunter
Target: None
---
Dwarmin, I wasn't sure what you intended to bring with you (limit of 4 and all that), so I removed the Flare Gun. If you want to change something else for it, I'll retcon it.