Monday, November 30, 2015

Koreshi Chronicles - Chapter IX: Newton's Third Law

Mads had never moved so fast or so purposefully.

There was a short rappel from the suspended cyberattack post in the nook of the elevator shaft down to the top of the elevator car. Then came his wriggling into the elevator car itself. When they reached the basement his hurried amble to extraction point C was followed by his climb through the shaped-charge blasted hole into the sewers and into the rubber dinghy. Finally, his flight up the stairs and into the parking garage to their getaway van.

These extraordinary feats of dexterity came on the heels of the most audacious hack he had ever attempted. He was now looking around the back of the van, taking in the aftermath of the op. Lukas and Griz were shot, though the latter look more deeply damaged than the bullet hole suggested. Fennec was performing first aid on both of them as Rys drove.

With every turn their assortment of equipment and weapons, hurriedly chucked into the van, rolled around loudly on the corrugated metal floor. It splashed through puddles of sewage trudged up from their escape and across pools of blood. The ghastly scene resembled the images of war Mads has seen in old videos.

“That was a resounding success!” Lukas said without a trace of irony.

Mads’ shaking limbs went limp and before he could say a word he disgorged the contents of his stomach, adding his own stench to the miasma sloshing around the getaway vehicle.

---

Every movement hurt, and there were plenty. Gabrielle was being jostled as they carried her on a gurney up the stairs. Apparently the elevators were still out. She was also trembling quite violently, a combination of shock and being soaked. The first responders didn't want to risk taking the knife out until they could get her to better medical equipment lest there be complications. Luckily there was a first aid station a few floors above in the executive offices. She hadn't considered not having access to a hospital when she plunged Todd’s ceramic blade into her own stomach.

She moved her blanket over slightly to see the handle neatly protruding through the silver sequins of her ballgown. ‘Too bad,’ she thought to herself. She had liked that dress.

She had asked about her attacker but they had politely told her not to worry about him now, apparently she was safe. From that evasion she concluded Todd had gotten away. ‘Good.’ She relaxed.

She couldn't get justice for her father, but in turning the entire northern security apparatus on Todd for his apparent assault on her, she could get revenge and she wanted it be as long and agonizing for him as possible. The thought of his suffering distracted her from her own and made her discomfort easier to bear.

---

Katerina was fuming. She nearly expected steam to rise off her wet skin. The reception hall of the 40th floor was a scene of chaos: overturned tables and chairs, pools of water from the fire suppression system, corralled guests, and a mix of building, WestRim, Northco, and federal security forces coordinating their collective impotence.

Her mind was racing, considering who was behind this insolence and how she would reap her revenge. The lieutenant she had sent to the security station on floor 36 had returned and stood to attention.

“Report,” she snapped.

“We have a couple of casualties. We’ve recovered four bodies from a detail squad: two fell in the elevator after overloading our security and two more died in the labs on floor 35. We also have reports of a secondary squad attacking the servers on floor 32. They’ve escaped.”

“And the woman?”

“NGIS.”

“Dammit!” Katerina cursed.

After a brief pause her subordinate continued. “Her assailant has escaped. But we have blood samples and some footage from some of the party attendees.”

“What of our own cameras?  Surely we have images from before the overload.”

The lieutenant swallowed hard. “I'm afraid not, Director Schroeder. Apparently, although active, our cameras have not been recording for the last four hours.”

Water drops were slowly and inexorably forming a puddle under Katerina’s very soaked form. One glare sent the lieutenant scuttling out of her view. She stood there, in perfect stillness, surveying the pandemonium, counting the costs: the loss of face, the political embarrassment, the unknown losses to their server and the lab, and finally the immeasurable price of facing the Bear’s ire.

She was going to make someone pay for this. She promised herself that when the bill was tallied, her reprisal would be slow and deliberate.


Heavy Gear Roleplaying Game

1 comments :

LeRoi Singe said...

I dispute Newton! NO COMEUPPANCE!

Though I gotta say, we really know how to ruin a party, don't we?


 
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