Saturday, March 17, 2012

Koreshi Chronicles - Chapter V : The Spider In The Web

Ti called Lukas and gave him the train and time of departure from Nicely. Rahel Bashakian was already gone but Ti ducked behind the nearest cover as soon as he heard the faint sound of someone approaching. He had his pistol trained on Tom when he appeared from the stairs.

“Prophet’s tears Tom, I could have killed you!” Ti said with an equal mix of relief and annoyance. Tom Chambers took a cigar out and lit it, his match illuminating a grin.

“Yeah, but you probably would have aimed for the leg. So how much did she give you?” For Bellow’s prized trinket.” Ti shook his head. Maybe telling Tom about his plan erlier wasn’t such a good idea.

“One fifty, plus future favours.” Ti said and Tom nodded, “I assume you recorded the meeting?”

“Listen Tom, I appreciate you coming here and all, but I don’t need you’re supervision> I happen to know what I’m doing.” Ti said, trying to express his discomfort couched in a friendly tone. Tom just nodded and puffed at his cigar.

“Really? And what if you’re little toy snipers hadn’t worked, or your communication jammer? What if she starts looking in to Bellow’s robbery after your meeting? How can you know you’ll keep her in check.” Tom’s tone was not friendly, Ti was used to him being patronizing, but he didn’t appreciate it when the Doc was condescending.

“I work on trust.” Ti said a little too defiantly, regretting the accusation in his voice. Tom ignored it anyway.

“Certain people can’t be trusted Ti, they need to be intimidated. Rahel is one such person. She’ll know not to mess with you when she finds her escorts don’t meet her afterwards. She’ll also know you’re not a man to be trifled with when she hears how you got Bellows figurine.”

“What are you talking about?”

“She’ll hear soon enough that you got it by force, when news spreads of the slaughter at the Kolson’s flat in Collin’s Town. You really have to think about back story Ti, You need to make a lie credible: dead bodies testify more eloquently than live ones when you’re selling your own brand of truth.”

“Sweet Prophet Tom, stop lecturing me. Did you murder a bunch of people tonight because I shared my plans with you?” Ti said, feeling more and more disgusted.

“I plugged some holes in your plan. I sold your lie. I made sure the Kolsons are on edge, which makes them look guilty. It also takes care of your new protegés' safety while I watched over yours, incidentally, light tricks are no substitute for a real sniper...”

“Stop,” Ti interrupted, “Tom just stop pontificating for a sec, what did you do, exactly?”

Tom Chambers took a long drag from his cigar, he turned his head up and blew out a malformed ring, wincing to himself for not getting it right. “I killed a bunch of Kolsons, one of which was a lieutenant of Ezekiel Smith’s -- the Mainz Kolson head man. I had him killed too, about an hour ago, replaced to be more accurate. Anyway, no one’s offering a bounty on those childhood friends of yours anymore. The Forzi here in Prince Gable meanwhile is in your pocket; you have put fear in her heart, shown her to be vulnerable and outwitted. All this will let you pursue Tantalus more freely and hopefully more aggressively. It isn’t about energy anymore. This is about a weapon, one which is meant to destroy Terra Nova from the inside.” When Chambers was done, Ti didn’t even try to hide his discontent, Chambers continued, undeterred but more conciliatory in tone.

“Ti, I’m not trying to undermine you, I really think I’m helping you. I know there are things I do which you do not approve of, you might come up with another way, maybe even a better one, given time. But I think that you’re on to something, something significant, maybe even pivotal for Badlands security. You are in deep, you and these new assets of yours. I can’t replace you or take your place, and I don’t want to. I just want to help. I’m sorry if I overstepped my authority or simply offended you. It was not my intent. “ Chambers butted out his cigar and made his way to the stairs.

“I know your disappointed in me, I hope you will see past that eventually and what’s more, I hope you’ll use what I have given you to your advantage -- In spite of your reservations about how I achieved those gains.” He said as he walked down the stairwell. Before stepping bellow view he paused. “Ti, I know you may doubt this right now, but if there is one person and one person only you can trust, its me. Think about it.”



Heavy Gear Roleplaying Game

1 comments :

Julie said...

"The Forzi here in Port Arthur meanwhile is in your pocket..."

You mean Prince Gable, no?


 
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