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Just like that, the fish took the bait. Another one soon-to-be brought down by sympathy.
With a swift command to the other two gunships, he split the remaining sites between them. The Doc took priority. His own group embarked speedily, checking their weapons all the while. "Listen up. Our target is Doc Painless. He is a key 'healthcare provider' as it were, for the terrorists. He is not an easy target, however - he's one of Denon's Most Wanted."
As the gunship took off, Sar's mind was already racing. The Doc could be quite the jackpot.
The moment he finished typing up the command, the seven Redhands with him stiffened as one. Their free will was heavily curtailed as-is, but Grek-Red was something else entirely. Even the slightest sliver of hesitation would be met with intense pain and failure to prioritise the objective over their own survival would result in death by...
Well, it was unpleasant and protracted. In the end, that was all that mattered.
"A drone will make the initial approach. If it's empty, we take position nearby. If the target is already present, we breach. Failure is not an option. He is far too valuable to let escape." Sarvod would have his payday or heads would roll.
Doc Painless
+ any of his group suffering from a desire to help people.
Hexes inner voices '...Neutral...' '...Doubt...' '...Anger...'
Coloured '.....' are also words that Hex can hear , but I decided not to write them to reduce clutter
"That's as good an answer as any, it's a good couch, comfortable." She giggled as she listened to what else Under Foot
had to say. So much of her own tech was thrown out by someone, you could make a good living off of the wasteful rich.
Where to go next? Interesting question, the area was technically locked down, but that only applied to anyone that cared. The whole city was a maze of tunnels, corridors and vents, you could have the entire GADF here and not be able to monitor half of the escape points.
"I dont know, could lie low for a bit, I'd leave town for a bit but down want to go to far in case Dai needs me.
I bet every knucklehead in the Alliance is right now chasing after this powerful Jedi that needs to be rescued from a teenage girl.
Leaving the girl who blew up a passenger train to go chill in a tunnel with her favourite dealer!
Oh, to be as pretty as the queen of the Jedi and have everyone running around after you" Jedi were annoying, but Valery Noble
was pretty gorgeous. Maybe she was joking because she was worried about Daiya
people might forgive and forget what Hex did, but if things went wrong on Daiya's end, she could end dead, or worse.
'...Nothing the jedi love more than to sever limbs on behalf of their paymasters...' "Not helping!"
She looked at Under Foot
and her wild eyes didn't know what to do, which was the right decision. Maybe disappearing into the tombs and playing video games would be the best plan for now. "What do you think Undie? You're one of us, where would you go?" she was asking him genuinely, she was using a lot of her strength to keep her demons in check, the voices in her head that told her to get back out their and fight her way through the entire of corpsec until their bodies littered the streets.
As they dodged through the streets of Denon, moving unseen past tall buildings and scenes of corporate lockdown, Alicio couldn't help but wonder what exactly they would find at the scene of the explosion. He was certainly no forensic scientist, and while he couldn't speak to Iris, he knew they didn't bring along the tools they would need to learn much. He frowned at Iris.
Then, he frowned at the eye on the wall.
"Well, we'd probably learn more from Darkwire than by staring at a wrecked train, to be honest." Alicio phrased the statement like a joke, but he wasn't smiling, instead pondering the idea.
"I've... wanted to meet with them for a while," he noted, hiding his hands in his cloak. "Get their side of the story, bring it to light in the Senate. But... how would we get in contact with them? Especially now, with the Corporate Authorities closing their fist? And how are they supposed to trust us?"
Location: Seven Corners, Denon Objective 1: In the Pale Sunlight Soundtrack:3:00 Tags:Darkwire Shadow;
OPEN to DARKWIRE AGENTS
"Lockdown...?" Das muttered worriedly. The oppressive sigil of CorpSec sent a chill down her spine.
They'd be cracking down on anyone who even looks like an insurgent. She needed to find someplace to lay low, regroup with Darkwire, and figure out what's going on. What's really going on.
The Tombs were an obvious choice, whatever - or wherever - they are. Nim's CryptNet message would lead her there, Das was sure of it. She turned, stepping perpendicular to the oncoming flow of pedestrians, toward a nearby alley.
The teen slid a thin holodisk from her bag, its worn label reading in bold letters 'DDAS.' It was a little project she'd been working on since the heist at the Fiora warehouse, a decryption software that she'd begun coding out of spite for Johnny Diamonds. She huffed as she pushed the disk into her holopad, booting the device into a jailbroken root menu.
The grim reality of CorpSec's power and control made such childish motivations seem like a complete waste of time.
She swiped through the menu, navigating to the hack that should, in theory, decode the encryption on Nim's message. The holopad's screen filled with lines of code, the subroutines listing off faster than her eyes could read them.
"Come on, come on," Das urged, willing the program to fire without a hitch, but when the screen cut from a wall of code to black, her heart sank.
"Dammit!"
Maybe she should have gone to Johnny for advice instead of trying to compete with him, even if he did have a penchant for one-upping the rest of Darkwire's hacktivists. Maybe if she'd paid closer attention to her dad in the workshop, she'd have been able to program the crack by herself. Maybe...
"...it worked?" she half-whispered as the holopad came back to life, Nim's message - and its decrypted contents - staring back at the blue-eyed teen.
"About to go down?" Valery asked with a raised eyebrow. "A train was blown up..." She sighed and shook her head. There was no time to worry about anything but survival right now. Who was behind what or how bad the situation on Denon was exactly, she could worry about later, after taking some time to think and look at everything objectively. For now, she focused on following after Daiya
, who soon received another message from her contact.
"Alright, let's get moving then," Valery said but right as she readied herself to go, Daiya said something about the location that got Valery to briefly stop. She had spent almost 8 months in Yula's apartment during her pregnancy, and her description sounded awfully like what she was used to.
Were they going to Yula? Or had the vigilante problem grown even more, and other spandex 'heroes' were being painted as well? "I'm sure I'll be able to find it, but let's try not to get separated," she said, deciding against mentioning that she possibly knew where they were going. Unless she was with someone she felt like she could really trust, it was in her own interest to keep most information to herself.
Then it was finally time to head out of the door, and much like Daiya, Valery kept a low profile as well. Years of training as a Jedi Shadow had taught her not just how to cloak into the Force so no sensor or person could ever detect her, but she had learned how to blend into crowds as well and move without drawing attention. It made the journey feel much easier than it should have, and the only real tension she felt at the moment was still from Daiya, who had some kind of conflict going on within her. Whether that was still because of Valery's Force presence or something else entirely, she didn't know, but she understood that she'd have to keep an eye on the young girl. For both their sakes.
"We're just—FETH!"
Valery blinked and quickly looked around to make sure they hadn't drawn any eyes to them, but what happened to Daiya shortly after she yelled made it impossible to focus on the people around them. "Heyy, you okay? Come on, snap out of it!" Valery exclaimed but nothing she said had any effect. The woman was drawn into her mind own mind and whatever it is she saw, it looked incredibly painful. By the time it was over, Daiya looked pale and seemed to be far less steady on her feet, yet it didn't break her resolve entirely.
Especially when a new problem had revealed itself — bounty hunters.
"Great..." Valery said through gritted teeth and part of her wanted to just stop running, draw her blades and meet them head-on right about now. But with Daiya here and so many people watching Denon closely after the bombing, she knew better than to expose herself like that. "How far away is the safehouse?" She asked as they began to move through Denon's streets once again. Valery could feel people closing in on them, so there wasn't much time and with every passing second, she began to wonder if they'd even be able to reach the safehouse without dragging those people along with them.
"If they intercept us, I'll deal with them. I'm tired of playing this game."
‘Deputy Gorian' confronts Daiya and Valery, and attempts to diplomatically convince Valery to be escorted away.
He offers the opportunity for Daiya to leave peacefully, so long as it is without Valery.
His lifeform scanners had by-then honed on the signal. He was a tad familiar with the streets he had only just crossed moments prior. His strides were vast, with his squad struggling to keep up with the Hunter as he made his way to an inevitable encounter. They managed, but he was certainly a bit ahead of them.
“I’m taking point.” Said to the rest of his squad with determination - he couldn’t risk some itchy trigger finger (or fingers) getting in the way of a delicate situation, instead opting for them to keep some distance. If anything, they’d listen to him just so that he could get himself shot and they wouldn’t have to deal with him anymore.
Up a level, crossing streets with utmost urgency. Scanners got closer, and closer, until--
The next crossway saw the Hunter coming face-to-face with Valery Noble
, and Daiya
, skidding to a halt from his sprint as his gaze tilted to his left. Across the crossway, some distance away, was his target. Finally. He had begun to worry if it was too late.
“There they are! They’ve got her hostage!” Annunciator had already called out, audible for any party and his squad in the area. He deemed those were the first words to get out - to show that they considered her a hostage, not a target. “Everyone, hold your damn fire!” Were the next words he felt needed to be said, as the CorpSec squad began to file behind him, reluctantly lowering rifles. Steps motion forwards only a tad from an excessive distance, and he would shout out regardless of whatever fire was directed to him, holding steadfast. Hell, he wouldn’t even fire back, resolute in his stance. The armor that encased him gave an intimidating frame, yet he would nonetheless attempt to make his case.
“Stop right there! Drop your weapons, kidnapper - No harm is to befall Valery Noble
this day, if I can help it.” The helmet’s menacing black, glowering visor was directed towards Daiya
. She bore armor, and went without a helmet. And so, as his hidden visage met hers: “...A, kid?” More disbelief, and while audible, it was more to himself. What the hell was the trend with Darkwire and recruiting teenagers? He’s found multiple bounty listings for individuals of young age from that group on his way here. And as his scanners took in the face of Daiya, his HUD got to work - Biometrics were cross-referenced with whatever database his armor had on hand. Gaze flickered sidelong to a stream of information, as a certain list of crimes were brought to his attention. This one, two counts of murder. Not much, to be quite frank - not compared to some of these other folk. Scum, taking kids and folk off the street to do their dirty work. He was aware that this Kidnapper was one of the priority targets with the pink armor and diminuitive form - but he wouldn’t let her know that. His goal was ensuring Valery’s safety, not chasing after (presumably manipulated) criminals he can catch later. The last thing he needed was making the Kidnapper desperate. After this, he won’t be able to understand why The Family - more notably, Ivory - would hold such a connection.
It was then he affirmed that Valery had her lightsaber on her. And wasn’t handcuffed, or something. It ultimately didn’t matter, he had to clear this up now, or risk misunderstandings later. He still had a bounty to collect - no, a person to save, Jedi Master or not. To the pair, he was clearly different from the usual folk CorpSec sent out. Clad in a sleek, yet robust armor that would otherwise look like a Mandalorian, if not for the absence of the T-visor. And yet, his armaments befitted one. Regardless, it seemed the squadron that was CorpSec with him loosely complied with his orders, as weapons were not yet raised to aim at the two. Still, they adjusted and fidgeted, ready to bring their rifles back up at a moment’s notice.
“Miss Noble, please come with us.” He urged, modulated tone bordering on a plea, “I was sent here to ensure your protection, and escort you to safety amidst several criminal threats, as well as the bombings to your train and the surrounding area. It would seem I’ve found one of the reasons why.” The visor of his helmet looked towards Daiya
as he said this, before it turned back over to the Jedi. “If I have to negotiate for your release as a hostage, I will. I don’t know what’s stopping you from escaping from the folk who just took out your train, but we’re here to get you out of here.”
He initially believed this was some sort of, hostage situation - and frankly, still does, just with an unfortunate case of misunderstanding. Or perhaps Stockholm Syndrome. He didn’t want to fight with some… teenager? It felt inherently wrong, but these sorts of situations were fraught with shades of gray. This was no longer a matter of ‘who’s in the right,’ but a matter of ‘who does she trust more?’ And he hoped against all hope she wouldn’t side with the folk who just blew up her train and are more than likely going to ransom her later. They got to her first, and they likely got the first chance to tell the story in their favor.
So he had to offer a different perspective.
Taking another slow step, “...And if you’ve been led to believe CorpSec’s responsible for this mess, ask yourself - for what purpose would that serve to assassinate a diplomatic envoy - of your rank, no less? They’re business-folk. That would not be profitable in any capacity, and would only harm them.” Attempting to impart reason on the assumption she’s been led astray. “...Luring said high-profile diplomatic envoy with the promise of safety to capture for ransom later, however, would be profitable for many groups.” Pointing out this important detail, to try to get her to realize the situation she was in. “Like the folk who just bombed your Train, who from the looks of it…” He would peer at Daiya, once more. “Are trying to do just that.” The Hunter figured the kidnapper spewed whatever scrounged up lies she could get away with, what with the confusion of the situation. So, if he could give proper reasons…perhaps he may help Valery pierce the perceived veil of lies.
“...And can’t you lot sense intentions?” His head tilting some, as he posed the query, coming to this realization of which he so often guarded against. “Feel free.” Splaying his arms out to his side in the gesture. This was his first and thus far only moment he actually wished a Jedi could sense minds and intents, because his mental barrier would then drop with this gesture, purposefully keeping it down if she could utilize that at all. He knew Force Sensitives usually could - if they were a Jedi master, surely they could do that? Hell, he’d even broadcast his unfiltered intent if she could sense it - to Protect, and Serve. A sense of Justice, Righteousness, even. Yes, there were others - The Payday. The thrill of a hunt. But in the end, to him? These were just bonuses. There was no meaning for hostilities; quite the opposite, he wanted to resolve this as peacefully as possible. Unfortunately, he had no idea if that would actually work with his vague grasp on how the Force functions, but he nonetheless gave it a shot with what vague idea he knew of the accursed concept. He knew how to guard his mind, as well as project it - but he usually projected it as a smokescreen, a distraction, such was how most Non-Force Sensitive Assassins used it. This case was…new, but, it was one of his best bets.
“You have it on my word, my intents, and my honor, that I will not allow harm from any party to befall you. The CAD wishes to see you back in safety, and I will see to it that you are returned to the Galactic Alliance safely once we’re out of this mess.” He spoke with a steely determination, a steadfast belief in his purpose and cause in this moment. It was then his gaze turned to Daiya, for a brief moment.
“As for you, kid…walk away. Relinquish your hostage, and you can leave unhindered. Where you go from there is not my problem. Make this easier for both of us.” His job wasn’t to capture the assailant. Not yet. That could be left to someone else. His team’s goal was to get Valery out of the hot zone, and that was what he was going to do. If the kidnapper was smart, and perhaps cowardly, he hoped they would take the offer. They should know it was more trouble than it was worth to stick around with the Jedi. In the distance, helmets of CorpSec Officers glanced at each other with unreadable expressions, perhaps discontent with the offer. But, it was a hostage negotiation of high stakes - be too much of a problem to go after her now. No guarantees they won’t pursue her after she left this situation, anyways. More like, ‘being given a head start.
An impossible bargain. At least she wouldn’t have this Hunter to deal with.
He hoped things did not come to blows, and the Jedi would come along peacefully - he did not wish to be forced into conflict because she believed the words of the folk who were currently bombing the place over his. With weapons lowered, he stood, outwardly vulnerable (asides from his armor) to fire should someone choose to try to silence any further attempts. This was a gamble, a big one, but anything would be better than trying to force her to listen, this he knew - so he instead opted to try to convince her using the truth, and nothing but the truth as he knew it.
"They absolutely won't trust us. Jedi, Senator, top two things they think won't ever help them. Children being children, really." Iris shrugged. But it mattered little. She did know where to look at least. She pointed up, towards one of the walls. Towards one of the various graffiti along it. "We follow the marks to their safe houses. Hope someone's there, or at least find someway to contact them. And-"
She paused, closing her eyes. Listening to the bond she held with Valery Noble
.
<Master, tell me you're okay.>
Distress. She couldn't ignore Valery's distress any longer, and just reached out to speak with her. Was she wrong to just focus on trying to solve Denon's problems?
Brie appreciated honesty, and it often paid back more than a lie. Upon a second thought though, she would have prefered if her fellow shadowrunner had choosen to tell her a white lie, right there and then.
Safe. Right. The word safety were a rare vocabular occurrence in the everyday life of a shadowrunner, and this raid and Corpo crackdown were definitely taking the cake. At least, Brie knew that Daiya would be pretty mad at her boyfriend if he dropped her bestie. Maybe even earning him a slap in the face.
There was little time to think of it anymore. They had to get out and this was their chance. Brie braced herself and listened carefully to the force sensitive boys instructions. He knew his abilities. What he could do and couldn't do. He didn't want to risk that slap from Daiya. She did as he said and closed her eyes, before an idea struck her that made her eyes shoot back open and look back at Cartri.
''Wait! Just... How about you use it during my jump? That should make it even more... safe?'' she suggested, looking for if Cartri understood what she meant. ''I'll make a run for the gap, and your force powers assist me with extending the distance of the jump?'' she explained. That way both her own momentum and Cartri's force powers could work together, something she found way more comforting. Brie took the few steps over to the opposite side of the train, nodding at Cartri that she were ready, before launching herself towards the open door of the train...
Cartri watched brie gracefully fly through the air, his mind confident she'd reach the roof. However, to his dismay, she was a few inches off. Falling down a few seconds, he saw her manage to grab hold of a ledge a floor below, which forced a sigh of relief out of his anxious body "Shit... hold tight Brie! I'm coming!" Cartri shouted down to her as he looked across the gap to the roof.
Brie saw it happen in the last fateful second of the jump. She were not going to make it all the way, and her life flashed past before her eyes, realising that it was a very long, long way down to the ground beneath them. Her body met the wall of the building, and her hands managed to grab onto a beam, one floor below the rooftop.
She saw Cartri almost ending up where she were, but managed to climb up onto the roof and from there help them both from here. Although, the sudden sound of a blaster shot and Cartri screaming in pain made her realise that they were not alone anymore. Brie fought with all her might to climb up onto the beam, and from there she looked for a way up to see what was going on up there. She saw a fire escape ladder a stone's throw away from her position and figured she could get to it by using the windowsills. To keep it slow and steady were incredibly hard hearing the shouts and screams from above, but she made it over and ran up the ladder.
Coming up, Brie were terrified by the sight of Cartri being held by his neck up against a wall.
Jackal yells before picking them up by the neck with one hand, whatever this hunter was, their petite frame hid inhuman strength. Pressing Cartri against a wall, Jackal then stabs a black claw into his gut. The claw is soon slipped out moments later as Jackal gets a taste of their blood, allowing the young man to see her fanged maw once again as she ran the claw over her pierced tongue.
''NOOO!!'' she yelled seeing Cartri getting stabbed, her voice much louder than usual and its amplification went unnoticed by her in the heat of the moment. Brie drew her blaster and fired at the dark figures back, before throwing herself behind a ventilation shaft and some large pipes. ''Cartri?!? Are you okay?!? Hang in there!!'' she shouted in hope that he would come to from the awful pain he must have felt, to the brink of making him pass out.
Brie got up to her feet, but stayed crouched and hidden as she moved up along the pipes to get to a better position. She felt her belt, remembered the stealth field generator that she had got a while ago and activated it. With the push of a button, she disappeared for the naked eye.
Her fanged maw had opened, mere inches away from the young man's neck... She really was just going to eat him then and there. Yet just as her fangs pressed against skin, the blaster bolt hits here right in the back. A black singe is left on the stranger's armor, their leather had held up well against the blast.
Jackal's ears pick up the screams, quickly she tosses Cartri aside in a beaten mess.
"Two for one then?"
Despite her quick reaction times, Jackal could only faintly smell where their new attacker was, aiming a gun in their vague direction... Yet with still being in the dark as to where they could be, her goggles emit a low clicking sound as she scanned the area... Soon she picks right up on where her once hidden attacker, the sonar making a nice little figure right then and there.
Jackal stares right them with cold scarlet eyes, they focus right on Brie Jaxx
as she points a black claw right at them.
"Found ya!"
She gives them a devilish smile right as they take aim with their carbine, a few shots are thrown in the direction of Brie.
The Sangir had found the new target, mostly ignoring Cartri since they figured them to be a scared and broken mess by now.
(Post Soundtrack: "Hell to the Liars" by London Grammar)
Daiya rose on unsteady legs, her head pounding with a too-familiar rhythm. Thump, thump. Her ears were hot from the loud rush of sound returning to her, the clarity of reality crashing back down upon her again. Thump, thump. Her brow beaded with sweat from the ordeal, her eyes mere slits peering at the twisted world beyond her. Thump, thump. The woman looked to her, her, for answers.
Thump, thump.
The teen didn't have answers now. Fear beat in her chest, clouding the thoughts in her head. Every glimpse at the Jedi was a reminder of the nightmare images of her Vision, the pressure of the trigger on her fingertips, the ease at which it turned the living into violent death. Daiya grasped for the sensation, her palms itching to feel it again. What was easy in her cursed Visions became an ordeal for the teen who had to act them out, or be forever bound by their bloody end.
Thump, thump.
"Close by," she said, and in another breath Daiya had another answer with a shake of her head, "Too far. We'll just draw them there."
Thump, thump.
When the Jedi spoke again, Daiya nearly felt a spark of hope again. She couldn't feel much of anything right there, her fingers flexing just to test if there was any more to her. She could only feel the desperation of her beating heart, thump, thumping through her veins. Every part of her screamed to agree with the woman, and every part of her was terrified of what would befall them afterwards. If they met the Hunters, if Daiya was forced into the actions she Saw, then neither of them would survive it.
And Daiya was almost starting to wish they both would.
"If we do that," Daiya warned, her voice thin with a gritty tension in her throat, "then we both die." She didn't have time to explain it all to the Jedi, and the young shadowrunner didn't have time to convince her she was right. Instead, she swallowed back her fears, pushing back the pounding rhythm in her veins. She stepped out of the alley, turning away from Yula and from safety, if only to preserve its safety. They couldn't lead the Hunters right to their place of refuge, and Daiya couldn't finish the job if they interfered.
They had to draw them away, confuse them, and maybe escape into the chaos.
Daiya didn't make it far with the Jedi in tow. She knew these streets like the back of her hand, she navigated them every day. There was no one better to find a route to escape notice, like she had done on a thousand days before now. And still she failed, cursing herself as the enemy descended upon them in a dancing show of red and black armor, a swirl of movement focused around the one in the middle. He was shouting orders, at both the Seccers and at them, and the knot in her throat was too large to respond.
Thump, thump.
Fear returned with a vengeance, and her eyes darted about the scene. Seccers bore mean armor and nasty weapons, the sonic rifles could rip straight through her armor to burst the blood vessels of her body. Underneath her rain poncho, her fingers slowly drew out her twin blasters from their holsters, holding them ready to respond. It didn't matter that the Seccer rifles hung at low angles, the young shadowrunner wasn't oblivious to their power. Or to the power that waited at the tip of the white and red armored figure in command.
Thump, thump.
Her fear slowed as the minutes dragged by, stuck listening to the white-clad Hunter and the growing fiction of his diatribe. What would be annoyance became hot anger as her fingers tightened around the grip of her pistols, only the violent afterimage of her Vision staying her hands. "Oh my stars! What kind of chit do they feed you in Corpo-land?!"
Daiya turned to the Jedi, her eyes searching for signs that the woman was buying the silver-tongued pitch at all. "Every youngling on Denon learns how great the Corpos are, how it's all for our benefit, how the only people who fight back are jealous of how great it is here. There's a thousand new true believers born every day, raised on this bile, of course they think they're righteous. The only wrong thing to a Corpo is seeing us Discrete out of our place."
She shook her head, turning her tongue on the Hunter in charge. Righteous indeed, the teen nearly spat on the ground. The vile taste in her mouth came out in words instead, "I suppose you think I blew up that train, too. Did they tell you that while you were taking your cut of all the labor trafficking to Belazura? Or you're just bitter 'cause you were promised a big payday before we crashed that inflation scheme on Wann Tsir. Maybe you just missed out on swinging your stun baton around against defenseless protestors at Sakedo and you'll say anything to get your chance now!"
The young shadowrunner glanced at the Jedi once, throwing her a pleading glance. Her eyes sized up the squad ringing around them, figuring out her chances. They weren't good. Every second that passed, every thump, thump of her heart, and the choice of her Vision started to seem more and more like the reasonable course. There was no believing the Hunter's offer or his control over the Seccers, Daiya wasn't about to make it out of this alive anyway.
She stepped back, hoping to maneuver to a point where both the Hunter and her target were in sight, ready to move at any moment.
Yet like it or not, her fate rested on what the Jedi did next.
"I doubt it. These people are too incompetent to kill me even if I'm sitting still on a train," Valery said with rising intensity in her voice, body language, and especially in her fiery eyes. She wasn't injured or unable to fight, so she wasn't going to back down anymore if it came to that. She hoped, however, that it was possible to still find a way out of all of this without having to draw her blade. Even so, the rise in tension within the Jedi Master echoed through the Force, and Iris Arani
picked up on it.
<Master, tell me you're okay.>
Valery paused for a moment and let out a soft sigh when she heard that familiar voice. Iris was like a daughter to her, so it wasn't at all surprising that she came to Denon to help, but it was very much appreciated. <I'm okay and getting out of here. Please stay safe, it's getting really crazy out there.> Is all she could say in response with her motherly protective tone because as they continued to run for the safehouse, another new face appeared.
"Stop right there! Drop your weapons, kidnapper - No harm is to befall Valery Noble
this day, if I can help it."
Kidnapper?
Valery blinked and briefly looked at Daiya — none of this had felt like kidnapping and if the kid tried something like that, Valery felt pretty confident it wasn't going to work out the way she hoped. The difficult part was that she sensed no lies from Samuel Exel
when he talked, which meant that he was right, or that he wasn't entirely aware of what was happening here. His intent also seemed to actually be getting her to safety, but it wasn't impossible to mask true intentions, and she had to take into account that the chaos of this situation could cloud her judgment.
So rather than chiming in, she looked between the two as they went back and forth, trying to convince her who to follow and who to view as responsible for the attack. But the longer they talked, the more she wanted to just get out here alone. Right now on Denon, there was only one person she felt she could trust blindly.
<Iris, I'm in a tricky spot and might have to fight my way out. I don't know who is behind what, but if you can find out more, please do. I'll be okay.> She knew that if Iris believed her to be in real danger, she'd be with her in no time, so she hoped the assurance would get her former Padawan to figure out what she could not.
Finally, she let out a sigh and the hilt of her lightsaber slipped into the palm of her hand, "I'm sorry but I'm not going anywhere with either of you anymore," she said, knowing that one of them had to be right. "I'm going to get out of here myself, and I encourage you not to try and follow or stop me." She didn't want to fight either of them, but she was going to defend herself if she needed to. But there was something else to her words as well.
Valery turned around and began to walk away with her backs turned to both of them, but her senses were very sharp. If they made no move and let her go, she'd get out of there unhindered but if the one with ill-intent panicked and wanted to try and finish the job, they'd have to reveal themselves now.
Alicio looked down at his boots, contemplatively. "I understand why they don't trust us. The Senate has discarded their problems, and the Jedi are told to stay away." He set his jaw, summoning a bit of courage. "But they're wrong. Because we're a senator and a Jedi. And we want to help them."
"So... we just show them that. And it'll be their decision to listen or not." And if they still didn't want help, he couldn't force them to see his point of view. But first, they had to find someone to talk to.
Alicio turned his head to the side, tasting something subtle in the Force. Wisps of salted air, emanating from and being received by Iris. A message.
With his eyes fluttering and mouth wide open in search of desperate air, he felt the sharp touch of the bounty hunter's teeth pressing against his throat. Cartri was mentally bracing himself for the end, a violent pain that would remove him from this galaxy for good. All he'd regret was not being there for Daiya, he just wanted the spend the rest of his days with the girl he found to be one of a kind. Just when she was about to bite down, a loud scream came from the side, one that seemed to distract the monster in its tracks.
Cartri weakly moved his eyes and saw Brie shouting for him to hang on. She had come back for him as he did for her in the caves, and even through annoying the hell out of each other they always had a great friendship. Brie was only proving that in this instance. Suddenly, Jackal flung Cartri's motionless body to the floor, leaving him in a fetal position as she went after his friend.
Breathing out sharply, the ginger slowly began to stir again. His body was wrecked and bloodied, and even though he had escaped her clutches the bleeding from his gut was quite bad. His mind was telling him to keep down and let himself drift away, surrendering to what the fates had planned for him. Yet, when he heard Jackal go after Brie something dark brewed up inside of him. Anger began to flood through his body as if a barrier had been opened, fueling him and his body to get up and protect the ones he considered family.
Growling, he unsteadily got to his knees and stumbled to his feet, blood dripping to the floor from the wound that tainted him. His blue eyes looked coldly to the woman, mouth snarling like an injured animal "Leave her alone!" Cartri shouted before using the force to fling her back at him for the strike of his life. Drawing back his stun fist, the power from within the suit transferred to Cartri's knuckles. All of his muscles tensed as he flung his fist forward, slamming it into her jaw to send her flying across the roof.
Only when he saw the woman's body on the floor did he finally crumble. Falling to his knees, Cartri began to pant and look down at the wound. He was slowly running out of time.
While CorpSec waged a war for supremacy on Denon's trash- & discreet-littered streets, Commander Zur was hard at work. Cherrypicking through the storm of data coming in from every corner of District 7, he'd begun piecing together what he could of the train's final moments; from the moment it entered District 7 until its inevitable destruction.
First, he started with the web of passive surveillance which criss-crossed the layers of the city. He'd been able to identify the individual identified by Silver Shield Group
. There were a few blue-haired, tattooed women wandering Denon's streets... but none of them had the where-with-all to keep to back alleys. Whoever this feminine figure was, she was young... and that detail alone was enough to mark her as a person-of-interest. SSG had gotten close enough to get a decent still-image before POI-4 fled the scene on foot. The blue-haired terrorist had disappeared quickly; vanishing into whatever hole or sewer she'd crawled out from. Zur already had Counter-Intel cross referencing recent criminal sightings & surveillance on suspected Darkwire safehouses for a woman matching the same description as the supposed mastermind of the train bombing.
He hadn't received any good news yet, but it was only a matter of time.
With the gears turning there, the Commander had then directed his attention to locate & identify the individual identified as US-1:
The VIP & her Darkwire kidnapper had extracted from the train only minutes before its total destruction, disappearing into the hive of Denon's underground quickly... but he was able to piece together enough from still-images captured by SSG Surveillance & CorpSec's own surveillance feeds to narrow down a general appearance. The form accompanying the Senate representative was smaller... younger...
He was able to identify whoever this Darkwire agent was had been wearing a helmet. Their facial recognition software hadn't gotten a hit.
Even with Silver Shield Group monitoring the localized CryptNet signals, they were coming up short.
Her keen ears had bathed in his scream as the young man had yelled to leave the woman alone, she quickly turns an eyes, peering back at him to see that something had stirred deep within him.. Akin to what she had seen in the dark. As he pulls her, Jackal's boots skid across the pavement, trying to hold her ground... It was too late, a feeling washed over her, it was a slight hint of panic.
Could she raise her gun in time?
.
.
.
No..
His enraged fist met with her jaw, cracking the sturdy bone and sending shards of teeth onto the ground. The hunter's body would smash against an air cooling unit, denting the metal as her body laid their limply. Darkened blood leaked from them and onto the gritty rooftop, amazingly this time they didn't seem to get back up this time.
His strange hunter was either dead, or knocked out cold for a time.. Scarlet hair now drenched in blood hanged down, soon their body falls to the side, their hair covering the eyes as more strange looking crimson leaked from the hunter's mouth.
Within Jackal's mind she found herself confused for a time as to what just happened, soon realizing she had lost.. Anger had overtaken her as she had failed to secure the target, if she kept having failures such as this then her work would dry up.. What then? Could she ever get her dream?
A figure takes a seat next to Jackal, the chaotic hunter seeming to already know them as they simply just sigh at them.
"What do you want Adeline..."
Adeline places a hand on Jackal's shoulder, this time being the one to give a cold smile.
"Tough times never last, tough people do. Soon things will be better, we can always pay them a visit again at some point... Then I can deal with it.
Things grow dark, their shared and clouded mind soon taking a rest as Jackal fully went unconscious.
Gorian allows Valery to leave, albeit states his duties will still stand regardless.
He attempts one last time to give Daiya the opportunity to flee before his squad makes the decision for him.
After the Hunter made his piece, there was a rebuttal from the Kidnapper. His gaze turned from the Jedi, his visor once again resting upon her instead, as she made her own argument - though, hers was for more idealistic over pragmatic. Angry, certainly, as he noted the accusatory and clearly upset tone. She was passionate about this whole mess, to say the least. Folly as it may have been, he listened to her own piece without raising his weapons - though the CorpSec Officers were likely getting more, and more annoyed as time went on, for they probably saw little point in negotiating with a child.
Samuel was not like that, though. Everyone had a story. The only issue is that he wasn’t sure if this was just lies being spewed to stay his hand, or truth. As Daiya spoke her venom-laced words, his gaze narrowed. This was why he hated politics, all the intricate gears interacting in ways he could not always predict. Which means he would have to investigate himself later, and act as prudent in the now. There was no time for second-thoughts, only action. Yet, it was obvious the armored figure was measuring her words, picking them apart absentmindedly as he focused his attention on the situation. “I make my own way.” Came the only vague retort to Daiya’s accusations, “And I'd remember if I took such jobs.”
It was then Valery made her decision, his gaze flickering back for a moment as his mental barrier returned to its preferred place. Feth. He should’ve expected that, but he was hoping for the best outcome. Could he still get paid if she was under surveillance instead, rather than direct escort? Maybe, he'd have to check in after this was sorted. In the short moment following Valery’s words, he deemed it a smarter move to let the Jedi be, for now. Watch from afar, report in, and ensure her safety without directly escorting her. That was the more important thing between that and the payday, anyways. “...This is a big place, and dangerous amidst this mess. But, if that is the only option you’ll accept, very well, Miss Noble.” Neutral, monotone acknowledgement; making no move to prevent her, but not quite agreeing either. “Know my duty will still stand, should you come under threat later.” Came his blunt statement afterwards, of which she was free to interpret the honest words however she liked.
It was then his helmet turned to face Daiya, once more. He gauged her, for that brief moment. Perhaps he should take her, instead, to make up for the potential loss of pay. And yet, her words earlier...they needed more looking into. He could always track her down later. You can't hide from a Bounty Hunter forever. “Time’s running short, kid.” Came the cold, modulated voice, though perhaps one could note it was more neutral than previously spoken. “Last chance to run away while you’ve got the chance. Quit this mess while the door’s still cracked open. There’s no need to continue to get embroiled in all of this - I would do the same, in your shoes.” With a light gesture, to the opposite side of the crosswalk. There weren’t other squads around to cut her off, not yet. Just the small handful of officers behind him, who might end up making the decision for her if it wasn't done soon. “Perhaps you’re not the type of person I’m looking to bring in. I hope you don’t become one.” Came his simple, matter-of-fact reason for his actions. The Hunter was certainly more lenient compared to his peers. She wouldn’t get this opportunity from most others.
Kriiiff! Brie jumped at the glowing red eyes staring in her direction, and seemingly have made out her vague contours through the stealth field. How that was possible were beyond the young shadowrunner, but definitely not something she did have time to think about right now. Young and nimble as she were though, she managed to jump in between the pipes running along the wall behind her and continued to run along the roof. The blaster shots hit the pipes with a noise announcing to the evil bounty hunter that she had missed. It would probably anger the woman even more and make her charge after Brie, if it not were for a pipe breaking and spewing out boiling hot steam, which Brie took the opportunity to aim at the assailant. Not only being boiling hot, the steam did make for a perfect smokescreen between the hunter and its prey. Fight the creature she could not, but she could use her skills to get away from it, and throw in a distraction here and there.
Growling, he unsteadily got to his knees and stumbled to his feet, blood dripping to the floor from the wound that tainted him. His blue eyes looked coldly to the woman, mouth snarling like an injured animal "Leave her alone!" Cartri shouted before using the force to fling her back at him for the strike of his life. Drawing back his stun fist, the power from within the suit transferred to Cartri's knuckles. All of his muscles tensed as he flung his fist forward, slamming it into her jaw to send her flying across the roof.
The loud and growling voice from her fello shadowrunner sent a feeling of relief through Brie. As much as her and Cartri mocked eachother, they were Darkwire family, and shadowrunners stood up for eachother. And after all, he was the boyfriend of her bestie, and Daiya
would not have been happy with Brie if she just ran away. It was time for Brie and Cartri to be even from that time on Froswythe.
Brie watched from behind the pipes how the woman flung back towards Cartri, who was now on his feet, and were met with a merciless fist which sent the bounty hunter rocketing backwards and hit an air cooling unit. Spots of blood and shards of teeth decorated the floor between Cartri and their antagonist. Brie were in shock for a second, amazed by the brute force displayed before her by Cartri. The woman had it coming to her, Brie couldn't say any more than that. It was unclear wether the woman was dead or not, but at least she seemed to be knocked out, giving the two shadowrunners a respite in the fighting, and a moment to figure out how to get the kriff out of there.
Only when he saw the woman's body on the floor did he finally crumble. Falling to his knees, Cartri began to pant and look down at the wound. He was slowly running out of time.
As Brie saw Cartri fall to his knees again, she hurried crawling out from under the pipes and came running over to him.
''Cartri! Are you okay?!'' she called out to him before she reached him and took a knee in front of him, immediately starting to inspect the wound. She pulled out a small medpac and started to patch him up best as she could.
''You think you can walk if I help you?'' Brie replied through the syringe with analgesic she held in her mouth, before injecting it in the boys thigh.
Brie stood up briefly and jogged over to the edge of the roof. The devastation down there were substantial, but there was still trains running on other tracks. Maybe if they could...
''You are not going to like this, but I got an idea!'' she said with determination, as she walked over to a breaker box and pulled the lever to the off position. The vents stopped buzzing and there was a low dying hum from the electricity in this part of the building went out. Brie climbed up on top of a few crates and cut down a cable hanging, before again hurrying over to her friend. ''See the fire stairs back there? That will be the easy part... Then, we'll use this!'' she said and tapped on the cable she had twinned across her shoulder and down over her chest.
Location: Seven Corners, Denon Objective 1: In the Pale Sunlight Soundtrack:3:00 Tags:Darkwire Shadow;
OPEN to DARKWIRE AGENTS
Even decrypted, Nim's message was more of an enigma than true directions; A series of notes written in Basic mingled with strange pictographs, then laced with phrases in a language she'd never seen before.
Das furrowed her brow as she tried to decipher where to begin. She scanned over the message until her eyes met a potentially helpful clue. Between the drawn pictographs and fragmented Basic, she deduced that the Tombs were…
“… some kind of subway?” she muttered, squinting at the screen.
Seven Corners has a metro? Underground?
She’d never heard of the district having a subway, at least in the traditional sense of a subterranean tunnel system. But then again, Denon reaches ever skyward - chances are, if there ever was such a network, its old bones were buried and used as the foundation for some CorpSec cloudscraper.
Das swiped the message away as a pair of Corpo officers stepped by, their eyes scanning the alley for anyone who would make easy prey.
“That one’s cute,” one of the Seccers quipped. Thankfully, his partner was at least halfway decent.
He jabbed the offending man with his elbow, retorting, “She’s a kid, for star’s sake!”
Das kept her eyes low, looking just busy enough to be unbothered by the lockdown, but inside, her guts were twisting. When the men had passed, she slid the device into her pack with nervous hands and set out in the opposite direction.
“The Tombs is a metro…” she mumbled to herself as she set off to follow the clues.
Leading them down a side passage, he gave her what felt like a bare bones explanation.
"Corporation's can't do that. They-" She wanted to argue more, but it was his next words that solidified the idea maybe she didn't know as much about the real world as she liked to believe.
"If you...if the people of Denon...if that's the extremes you all will go to. I-" She couldn't find the words to put complete thoughts together.
Virus bombing companies. Defacing things to send a message. Extreme things when looked at from one side. Messages of hope from another side when looked at from the other.
How bad were things here? How could anyone let it just, happen?
"I mean. It's not like they'd shoot at a couple of kids, right?" She was still holding onto what vain hope for morality she could as she tried to process the tidbits she'd been told.
And felt a bit of guilt for being so ignorant of their situation.
"I mean. It's not like they'd shoot at a couple of kids, right?" She was still holding onto what vain hope for morality she could as she tried to process the tidbits she'd been told.
We are one with the shadows, just like you, but today we must be lanterns in the darkness: A guiding light to those who need refuge. Our home is yours, and the door is open. Find us in the Tombs of the old metro.
He packed it away and headed back to the main corridor.
"Alright, we've got a destination. We need to head...chit..."
Down to the left were now stationed two men in riot gear. Back to the right, where they had come from, he could hear people still searching. He couldn't hear any more blaster fire.
He turned sharply towards Lossa.
"Wait til I'm out of sight. Down to the left, take another left, down stairs an elevator ahead of you. Hit the lowest number and hold it open. When I shout stop holding it and...hope they're not that quick."
Without any further explanation he stepped out into the corridor. He ran to the left, scooping up half a brick as he went.
"Oi! Dickheads!" he shouted, hurling the brick. It loudly bounced off a riot helmet. Makko took a sharp right and sprinted off into the darkness, closely followed by the two seccers. The route was left open for Lossa to make it to the elevator.
Doc Painless
+ any of his group suffering from a desire to help people.
