Another Day, Another City

[James Justice]

James flexed his back muscles with a slight wince. The fracture on his spine had healed well, and despite the protests of the doctors... he was up and out of the hospital sooner than they would have liked. They didn't understand that he had work to do. That their pathetic lives depended on it as much as it depended on his continued existence.

The past three weeks the spacer had not wasted a moment. He had read everything there was to find about their next prey; the communistic City of Bankor Ultimata. There was tragically little. The city had been incredibly tightlipped on what they let out of their boarders, and even tighter on what they let in. James had worked long and hard to worm his way into thousands of years of documents--all of which lasted shorter than he would have liked.

It was no secret that Bankor Ultimata had a history of war and ill-ease with Dal'Bor. Their strict laws did not mix well with the lawless nature of Dal'Bor. An honest offworlder could get into Bankor to refuel, sell or buy goods. And that was the only way that he had gotten in.

"Thank you for your stay, Mr. Jay," the well groomed and clean clerk behind the desk said handing James his passport back.

The spacer gave him a slight nod before walking out to the front of the Space Station. He grit his teeth, feeling so naked without his blaster. Weapons were highly regulated within Bankor. That was going to make their job harder--but not impossible.

James looked over his shoulder, waiting for [member="Thraxis"] to arrive. He partially believed that the Zeltron had read the same files he sent him. But James wasn't counting on it--Thraxis didn't strike him as the type to go over paperwork. Either way, he was ready to rely the basics of their plan; find the leading counsel, kill them, take over, cause as little stir as possible. Without their guns. This was going to be a walk in the park.

 

[Thraxis]

"Goddamn Communistis...." Thraxis grumbled as he made his way towards the rendezvous, apparently, this planet had an anti-gun law of some sort. A ridiculous law for a ridiculous planet. "Thinking guns could kill people...." he continued to grumble, he had come adorned in his armor, to them it was nothing special but it had all the arsenal he needed, a Needle, Phirik Plating and Boots to crush mudholes through.

He arrived with a grimace expression, hidden beneath a thin facade of a Gas Mask. The picture on his Gas Filter had changed once again, a smiling face with an ominous feel about, its face to pleasant and happy, almost ultra-realistic joy covering his mask as he made his approach, his voice as ever crumpling through the air filter.

"I don't know why we are on some communist crap hole of a planet." he said looking around with an angered expression, he hoped he could get his blasters back one day, though with the strict hold on everything here he doubted it to a great extent. "When we could just as easily be in Space leveling this place to a crisp." he grunted out, looking around the park to all the citizens that walked around, this false joy similar to the one painted with great precision onto his face.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James began leading down one of the side allies. His new dark trench coat whisking along as he moved down the street.

"Because," he murmured as they moved along, "If we blast this place to a crisp, we have to re-build. And if we rebuild, we spend more money on construction materials and less on more guns to shell out other places." It was a flawless logic. Or... sort of. It would do for now, "Besides, I thought ye wanted a challenge."

The spacer quirked a slightly amused smile. A patrol speeder flew by them, James casually took stock of it; on the outside it looked incredibly powerful. Strong. Able. But his well tuned ear could hear that the engine was cheep. Mass manufactured, it would be gone in a matter of a few months. He looked at the natives walking down the street and felt his lips furrow into a frown. Everyone was wearing the same looking coverall jump suits in various colors. It would be virtually impossible to blend in without a pair. Through his studies the spacer had already unlocked the color codes; police were grey, mechanics and techs were drab blue, minimum and no skill workers were white, the upper echelons were hard to find--and came in black. James turned the corner again with Thraxis before nodding down towards a massive building a few stories bellow the perch they were on, "Down there, where the building is spewing smoke is the city's laundry room. Grab us each a pair of coveralls so we can move around more discretely.

"Quietly," he added. "I will give you a distraction."

James closed his eyes for a fraction of a second before throwing himself infront of the next moving vehicle.

"Gods, my body!" James screamed as he hit the pavement.

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

Thraxis paused for a second, he had no idea why they needed clothes or why James opted to jump in front of a vehicle, but it proved to be a worthy sacrifice. Thraxis slid into the alley way, his fingers crunching against each other as two walked past him, his face contorting to a smile as he pounced on his chance his fingers wrapping around their necks as he quickly swiped them down and into the alley way, the grip tightening as he felt the life drift away from their dead eyes.

He paused for a second, moving deeper into the alley way with the bodies in toe as he cut a corner looking around to make sure no witnesses to the crime. He grinned, quickly removing his helmets as he stripped them of their clothes. It looked like a bit of a squeeze, but he should be able to cover up most of his armor, all but his face at least.

He stripped the next one, a young girl from her face, though seemed to be as tall as James from the looks of things. He took a few steps before he heard a moan, quickly turning his head quickly discarding the ill-gotten loot and his helmet. He snatched the head of the girl, his fingers cracking around her face as he picked her up. His face visible as he sweeped his hair out of his face, his tongue slithering from between his sealed lips as he reeled his arm back, crashing her body against the pavement of the wall. One strike, two strikes. A erratic repetition occurring until he lost his grip, her body slipping from his grip as he swiped his hand along the wall. His job was done.

He turned around, the portly gentlemen had been knocked right the hell out and wasn't waking up for a while. He slid on his new found clothes, the grey of the suit covering up a few bloodstains as he put on his happy face. Quickly he slid across, picking up James costume and moving with haste towards the scene.

Quickly he darted around, it looked like he had caused more of a scene then necessary. Quickly he pushed through the crowd, clutching to his arms he flopped him over his shoulder, "Your ideas suck balls." he muttered as he quickly ran away, he could already feel the stares glaring at him, and it wasn't like a Mas with a big old Happy face was exactly discreet. With sharp turns he darted towards an alley way, taking a left, then a left, then a right and a left before coming to a halt. Dropping James body on the ground with little care as to his state. He was the idiot who jumped in front of a moving vehicle.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James lay on the ground shouting and writhing. A crowd quickly began to gather around him, some tried to touch him, only to get more screams and cursing. Everyone was so busy trying to tend to the man, they didn't notice Thraxis' murders. The spacer felt himself pulled up by his team mate and pulled away. When he was sure they were alone and not followed, he dropped the act and pulled himself to his feet.

"Relax, mate, ye think that is the first time I been hit by a speeder?" he chuckled tapping his forearm, "An old Outer Rim Con, if ye know how to roll off the hood of the speeder ye can get a few extra credits without anyone being the wiser--or taking an ounce of the pain."

Yeah, it wasn't the first time he had pulled that con either. He quickly changed over into the set of grey clothes. It was loose fitting and would work, for now, as long as someone didn't pay too close attention to the spacer's name badge. He looked up for a moment, getting his bearings before emerging from the ally like the phoenix.

After a brisk five minute walk, they were in the drab, grey building marked the Center of Commerce.

"As I told ye, we need to find their counsel," the spacer whispered lowly, "so riddle me this, if ye were a counsel of overlords in a tightly run society, what would ye do with all the luxury goods? Squander 'em, on yourself," the spacer explained as they walked through a series of concrete halls, "Time for a little detective work, mate. We follow the luxury goods, we follow the trial to the counsel," he opened a rusty metal door bolted into the wall. Beyond it stood a dimly lit room with rows upon rows of three teired shelves stacked with boxes of files, all on paper. The spacer looked the room over, with its size and the contents in here, this search could take days, or weeks even at best. He gave [member="Thraxis"] a wink, 'We are looking for a history as much as we can, just like the pirates used to do back in the day, a supply line. Let's get to work.'

 

[Thraxis]

Well, it seemed James was more elusive then Thraxis had given him credit for. He knew the man had a knack for money but didn't think he would go as far as to get hit by a speeder. Seemed like a risky job too, if you screw up there goes all your money down the drain. Though shrugged it off, he had more pressing matters to attend too.

As James got changed Thraxis kept an eye on the streets, he didn't know if anyone would follow him, this society was separated from the outside world, and with media being completely controlled it wouldn't be a surprise if most public information would be spread by word of mouth.

After the short walk he took in the scenery, the drab building was nothing surprising in a city of boredom and stasis, the words commerce being a joke to him, since that normally comes with trade and it seemed this community had seldom any of it.

He looked at all the halls, the boredom was starting to get to him as he looked through each isle. As James pushed open the rusted door, he almost fell to the ground in tears, all this work just to get to some prissy overlords. Thraxis got to work on the files, looking for one isle of interest. It would take forever to find out where the luxury was being moved to, but someone who might know is a transporter. He waddled until he found the transporter isle. He wasn't going to waste his time trying to find where they were getting moved too, finding out who was moving them would be far quicker.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

The old spacer began looking down the isles. Most people thought that being a pirate or a smuggler was a menial, no skill job only requring a lack of morals and a lust for money. In reality, nothing could be further from the truth for professionals. A lot of digging was required to hit the most profitable target in the best way. The spacer began looking down the isles of the city's production. He had to admit, for a city this place had the productivity of an entire factory, or more. Every nut and bolt was accounted for, every tin credit. He turned down the food isle and began looking for one specific box. Barq.

One of the rarest and most expensive grains in the galaxy, Barq was on the high end of all foods. Most of it was grown on a strange world called Quilluria, but a few pocket settlements could crop up here and there that gave yield to the substance. It wasn't enough to sell in mass quantities, but it was enough to make the wealthy feel incredibly opulent.

The spacer stopped at the B box and began combing through the files. After several minutes he found what he was looking for and began scanning the file.

"Fething hell," he cursed, slamming the folder closed, "I got a product and I got a date, a regular shipment but the arrival locations have been blotted out. The path traces them all the way to here but we know they ain't storing some goods here," he absentmindedly fished into his pockets, only to realize that his cigarettes were left in his jacket. "Any luck?"

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

After combing for what felt like the most menial job ever he stumbled upon what he was looking for, High End Transporting Companies, quickly he started to pull out file after file, giving quick run overs before putting it back in. That was until stumbling into the F column. Just what he was looking for, Florence Delivery and Co.. Thraxis lips split into a smile as he pocketed the file into his blood-stained coat.

Quickly he put the box back, looking through each Isle to try and find James only to be lured to the sound of curses being spewed. He rushed over, worrying that something happened to see him rummaging through files, "More luck then you. Found a transporting company, moves high end furnishing around the city." he said before looking into the section, seemed food was on James' mind.

"Now, do you care to explain why we are in this city of all places?" the question finally surfaced, this place didn't seem like the kind of City James would want for his criminal empire, there were better places to take, places with influential corrupt members of government, not some posh boys who have suckled on their daddies business their whole life.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James looked over Thraxis' find before looking back at his file on the Barq's deliver lane. Yes, this business he found was in charge of moving these goods, it was the best place to start that they had after all.

"I got a few reasons," the spacer agreed, leaning on the shelf laiden with papers. "First, Bankor is more factory than city. The government keeps things on a tight leash, we can see how intensive their records are of the place," he said waving at the massive building they were in, "They dun't waste time on luxury goods most of the time, and the people are used to being robots, not to being humanlike. Infrastructure like this takes decades to set up, or longer. We take a little surgical strike, take over and the people never know the difference," he said with a slight smile, "They go on living forever as they have before and we get ourselves a factory-city.

"The other reason is that Dal'Bor and Bankor have been enemies for ages. For the past 100 years they've been at a stalemate, we are taking this city before Bankor can strike and catch us on our heels," It was killing two birds with one stone; they were taking over a new city and eliminating an eminent enemy. If stopping mass losses, setting up for a massively expanding navy, and securing the public's peace of mind were included.... well they were on a bird massacre right about now, then.

"Come on, let's get to that company, ye got an address?"

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

Well, there was a shock, he had maliciously planned every step about this. Except for how to find the top dogs, though that was where he liked to imagine he would come into the equation. On top of that, he was planning on taking out a threat with it. But that wasn't a threat Thraxis was worried about. Mainly because once they were done here Thraxis would have no say in this place ever again. With the exception of possibly abducting a few people. It was rare to find organic robots and to see what happened with them in the Pitt would be something to behold.

Before he could finish his train of thought he snapped back to reality, looking at the file to see where they needed to get too, "Ah... yeah, looking here it looks like its on the edge of town, 28 Balstar Road." he said with a sigh, it was either they were going on another ride on the Speeder or they were walking. Though with the scene they cause a bit earlier, he didn't exactly want to do anything that could be seen by the Public Eye.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

28 Balstar Road, the spacer quickly committed that name to memory before going out the back exit. They had already been seen going in the front, and if he was timing things right, he was counting on there being more cameras there than around back.

It was a long walk through the shadows to 28 Balstar. The route was a lot longer than the direct route but it was a lot safer, and quieter. Dusk was beginning to fall as they finally reached the shop/home that served as Florence Delivery and Co. The building was massive, mostly concrete, and looked old enough to have been here when the city was first built. The years of wear and tear were showing through grease stains on the concrete, rusting iron, and chips in the stone. James couldn't help but notice the lack of graphitti or broken windows. That was a major accomplishment, he had to admit that.

"Minimal damage," the spacer whispered to Thraxis. "If we leave too much, the cops will be here and will kill us before we reach the counsel, so try the files first, then if that fails, maybe the people are next."

The back door was locked, but that wasn't much of a problem for James. He slunk into the small room and found his way into the records, Thank the Force they had a few computers to handle this instead of files.

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

It was nice to travel through the dark abyss of tunneled alleys, it reminded him of his hellish assistance on Zeltros, normally tied up in the attic away from all life around him, only to escape through the alleys and leave a string of murders about. And it was more familiar then he was ready for. He had his weapons in hand, and a Zeltron just an inch away from snapping his neck. His fingers twitched as blood lust came rushing over him, only for him to stop an inch away. No... we need him alive... The thought ran through his mind as he suppressed himself. Even if the pheromones weren't getting to him, the setting was a blistering reminder of who he was with.

Thraxis eyes twitched, his jaw dropping at the idiocy that James had just said, "Minimal Damage!" he hissed, trying to keep his voice down as his mind slowly snapped, "James, if we were going to play pussy foot around a city like a group of frightened mice, why the hell did you bring a Dog to do a Mices Job!" he hissed again, this was absurd, he was a man of action, violence and explosions. Not, passive aggression.

Though he begrudgingly had to follow through, James was his ticket off planet and with the state of clothes he is in and the state of security, he doubted he would be able to get off planet. Thraxis watched as James slowly slithered into the building, Thraxis struggling to do the same, trying his best to keep himself from making a ruckus just to get some action. Quickly hoping onto a computer he started to type in keywords, Games, Cat Videos, Memes and other assorted nonsense. He wasn't no Hacker and with an upper class place like this would be a Splicers job, something he trusted James had hidden somewhere up his arsenal.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James began typing away with quick fingers. It was almost like he did this for a living or something. Bypassing the password was an easy thing, something that took no less than a few moments, no less.

"I brought ye along," the spacer said as he scanned through the pages and pages of documents, "Because I know that when the bullets start flyin' I can count on ye to stay on me side, more than some at least," he looked over his shoulder, 'There be a breech in the ranks, Thraxis. I dun't know who yet, or why but there be a breech in the ranks. And when we have secured these cities we will give them fecking bloody hell over it," he found what he was looking for, "Here it is, Grand Avenue 405," the spacer closed his eyes and thought for a moment on where that was to the map he had committed to memory. For someone who had traveled the galaxy on a memorized set of aged hyperspace lanes, that wasn't too hard.

The spacer tossed him a set of keys from the wall, 'I trust ye can drive a six ton, aye?"

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

Well, he didn't know if he was a trustworthy man, but he was the man that if you give him down and dirty work, that at least decreases betrayal rates by a hundred percent. Though for him to trust the man who tortured him was something that was shocking. But the most shocking thing was a breech in the ranks. Which means that expansion should not be the best course of action. He would have though sitting down and rating them out would be the best plan, but then again. He wasn't the boss.

"I mean... I can drive one... but that doesn't mean I should drive one." he responded the Speeder incident was far from a one off thing. It was common place for a kamikaze technique to be implement by Thraxis, in fact, in his eyes it was the most effective method of destruction he knew.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

In a rare moment, James realized the depths of wisdom hidden behind Thraxis' eyes. Ok, perhaps that was stretching it a bit, but he did remember the last time the psychopath drive he ended up in the hospital with spinal fractures.

"Ye are right, get in," he said climbing in the driver's seat of one of the massive speeders sitting by in the bay.

He started the old engine up with a quick turn of the keys. It was an older model, but built to last. With a satisfied sigh he settled in and got the speeder moving, gaining momentum as they moved through the night streets. He went slightly slower, it was better to remain under the radar than to get too much attention going too fast. After a few minutes he pulled up to a gated, oppulent building that rose for dozens of stories into the air. This was it.

Two guards stood out front. Armed with assault weapons and battle armor. The spacer shot Thraxis a look, 'Time to see what kind of challenge you are really up for."

With that the spacer strode out from the driver's seat confidently.

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

Following the orders he hopped on the back, with a hick of the boots he took a short rest, his eyes furrowing as he watched James take the slow and steady approach. It was a good thing he was driving, because if he had it his way they would already be flying through the center of some random building causing a stir.

Thraxis sighed heavily, it was a good thing they didn't take his armor, or things would be more challenging then he was ready for. Cracking his knuckle he turned to James, a smile lacing his lips hidden beneath the Smiling helmet. Slowly Thraxis pushed through the gates. His whole mannerism changed, he started to dawdle, coughing and slowly sliding across the ground. A false visage of weakness laced him as he walked to a guard.

"We need backup..." he coughed and spattered, his uniform was grey, the same as a Policeman and with the moon now hovering overhead the blood stains were night invisible. The closet guard approached, his gun strapped to his side as he moved to support his 'fellow' policeman.

"What the hell is going on here?" the man cried as the other guy watched carefully, his hand on his gun. Thraxis slowly moved his hand along his body, feigning in an attempt to get support when in truth looking for a crack in the armor. After a few seconds he found a tender flesh part right under the pits. Quickly he ejected the needle, sticking it into the arm pit while his other hand took control, bouncing onto the gun he pulled it onto the other Guard. A quick casing of blasters started to rain on Thraxis by the last man before using the corpse as a shield.

In a second Thraxis drew the gun on the guard, tossing the body aside to let the blaster fire bounce of his armor before being met with quick return fire. He had gotten to check the armor and knew where the fault points where. Taking careful aim he took a quick shot at the knee, before igniting his boots towards the guard. His hands wasting no time to wrap around the guards neck before letting out a resounding crack.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

As Thraxis got to work on the guards, James slipped by and began working on the gate's lock. It was a six digit pass code with the needed access key and a finger print. His fingers pried the casing away and began to cross a few wires here... there... and there. Suddenly the wrought iron metal gate slid open with a clang.

The spacer grabbed one of the soldier's rifles standing by. It was better than nothing, though bulky and heavy to say the least. Hefting the weapon, he sprinted across the grassy courtyard, barreling into the front door. The Force accelerated his speed until James was a living cannon, the two wooden, massive decorative doors went flying appart, splinters shattered and clattered along the stone flooring.

Tumbling head over heels, the spacer landed on his side, shoving the soreness off as blaster bolts began to hiss through the air. He clamored to his feet, sending a triage of rounds down range. The guards behind the desk fell backwards in a pool of blood. James vaulted over the wooden counter and began vigorously searching, pulling up blue prints and scouring for their destination. A blaster bolt scortched the desk by his hand, flecks of molten wood splayed on his hand.

"Cover me, damn it!"

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

As the gates slid open with a hiss Thraxis watched as James went head first into action, his body clashing with wood as Thraxis covered his sight, flecks of wood flashing before him, some landing with whispered thuds.He paused for a beat, trying to engage in all the information that had just happened.

Though no sooner could he piece the puzzle a hail of light came flashing forward, his clothes laid bare before being awash with molten light. He paused for a second, the heat intensifying over him before raising the gun, his feet ejecting its own burst of light before darting forward, his gun ablaze with bullets as he came to a sudden halt, smack dab in the center of the firing range.

He looked around, his masked face still aglow with a jubilant smile as he started to lay down a stream of covering fire, one hand on the trigger the other too busy flipping the bird, "I was told, to not alert attention! Now we will have the whole damn city on our heels!" he groaned as he fell back behind a pillar, flecks of stone flying pass as he went into a melody, one man shoots, returned fire, continuing this pattern until James pulled his foot out his ass, stop looking through paperwork and help in the onslaught.
[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James finally jumped away from the computer, raising his rifle and spraying a barrage of fire back at the enemy. He ducked low, taking cover under the desk as he sprinted closer towards Thraxis and the elevator.

"Well excuse me for believing ye were up to the challenge," the spacer growled as he waited for the elevator. He sprayed a few rounds over the edge, from behind his cover of a few metal filing cabinets. You never knew when these old relics would come in handy. After what felt like an eternity, the doors opened with a ding and the spacer hobbled over--right into the room full of armed guards.

James swallowed before nodding, "Fellas."

The guards surged forward, James didn't have time to stop himself. His left hand extended in a twisted, gnarled pose, drawing off the darkside around him, in him, and the vast well within Thraxis, it hurrled a simmering, rabid hail of electricity into their bodies. The men halted in their tracks, falling to the ground amid screams of agony as their lives were snuffed out, slowly. Painfully.

The spacer stepped over their bodies couldly, smoke still rising off the carcases. He didn't have time to think about what he just did. And frankly, he didn't want to. After pressing a button, he waited as they rode up to the seventy-third floor.

[member="Thraxis"]

 

[Thraxis]

"I will have you know James, I am not accustomed to Rifles!" he yelled in retaliation to James, he was a Pistol man or a punching man. The main point was he was a Man that revolved around the letter P. He continued to spray repressively towards the incoming guards, the recoil constantly knocking his aim off. "Goddamn it!" he yelled as he grew more and more frustrated with the weapon. The heavy feel, the huge amount of recoil and the excessive magazine was at most a nuisance, and at worst pointless.

His hand came to his face as he watched as James ran to the Elevator, like a cat following a light, "Why does this guy keep trying to get himself killed?!" he yelled as he tossed the gun to the ground, its clip emptied as he watched as James spewed fourth a hail of lightning towards the Guards. He moved slowly to the Door, paying little attention to the flaying corpses.

As the elevator doors closed he listened to the ding, "You know. Ya keep almost killing yourself. One of these days you will die." he said with a pause, wanting to let it sink in before he released his next line, "And the minute you do. Kay is back on the table." he said with dead eyes, though his mask alluded to a more pleasant smile, "Just. Thought you should know how dependent she is on you not being six feet under dirt." he said with a emboldened voice. He was dead serious, the minute he died was the minute the hunt began.
[member="James Justice"]