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2000. Life Wagon Garage, MSP. July 10, 2045
"Hey! You got an input?" yelled the body armor clad Solo beside me. -- "Huh?" I replied not sure to what this guy was referring. We were both in the back of a TTI AV-16 Aerodyne Armored Car. He had an HK-88 barrel down between his legs, I carried an MP-20/10 slung across my chest. I'd guess he was between 5'-10" and 6'-2", weighed over 220# and had a round almost pudgy face behind the SWAT Goggles he wore.
"You got a girlfriend? A ladyfriend, ya know?" -- "Oh yeah. Sure do," I replied reaching for my wallet. Most people didn't carry wallets except for coupons, pictures, and the ID card. I withdrew mine and flipped it open to Zona's picture in the middle and handed it to him.
"Whooo Weee! She's a real gem, buddy! That's some nice sculpt," he said with a nod of the head and a real appreciative look in his eye. I grinned. He handed it back, "The name's Wizard. You?" he asked extending one hand in a handshake. -- "Sharkman. Thanks," I said taking back my wallet, shaking his hand and stowing the wallet.
The last quarter of the vehicle was devoted to the two Solos that normally rode there, now there were three. It had vests, explosives, a pair of EMGLs, bays for ammo, and dispensers for grenades. All the stuff you need to have a good time. The third Solo was up front at the moment and that gave me a minute with this guy. "So what's the scoop?" -- "Well, you know REO Speed Wagon, our major competitor in the crashwagon/revive business, tried to hit one of our wagons yesterday. Well ours are pretty well armed, especially with the new Dynatronics Light-Vulcan defense system. So we burned four of their wags and only took minor fan damage. So I guess you're here as extra muscle."
"Sure. Makes sense," I replied. He was right I was extra muscle, but one of Doc Raven's friends inside Life Wagon had asked for a bit of help concerning this problem. Doc then asked if I would mind helping. Having nothing better to do and with Zona busy at her Clinic I decided to tag along. Plus I'd probably get to shoot something. I hadn't shot anything all week.
The TTI AV was a pretty slick ride. Roughly fifty feet long (making it about the size of a short Winnebago) and twenty wide, it was pretty big. The lower section, about four feet was devoted to the huge Pegasus-Honeywell Aerodyne Thrust Engine. The other eight feet of height provided the crew section. With a large rear ramp like a moving van or APC and two sliding side doors like a Helo, it was easy to get customers in and out. I'd brushed up on their lingo a bit and that's what wounded were. Cuz after they revived you, you had to pay the bill.
Back to the description. The nose was shaped much like a Winnebago, and the three flight crew (Pilot, Copilot, and Flight Engineer) all sat side-by-side. There was one door leading into the cockpit and the rest of the ship was devoted to medical care (except for the last quarter.) Inside were two Automeds and a series of high-tech-fangled gadgets that Zona would understand. It all looked electronic and shiny to me. Much like a late 20th century Ambulance would have been, except the medics and Solos wore armor and carried guns. Usually two Medics and two Solos, they fought more and on a more regular basis than most bodyguards or mercs. The Solos also lived 500% longer, given the excellent medical care they were under.
"So, how long you worked for TTI?" I inquired. -- "About 1.4 years. I love it. I get great guns and lots of spots." Spot was street-slang for targets, from the spots Smart Links projected on targets. "Ah," I said looking around hoping he'd take the bait. -- "Let me introduce the crew," he said taking it. The rear ramp was going up and we were strapped in as the pair of 5,000 lb. thrust engines wound up. The left door closed and then the two Medics and the last Solo walked in.
Pointing at the very large Black medic wearing a red jumpsuit with a white plastic armor vest, "that's Stitches. He's our crash cart guy." Shifting his finger over to the young lady by Stitches side, "that's Lady Mercy or just LM. She is the newbie after we lost Spades." Everyone was quiet for a second, then the talkative Solo continued. Pointing at the third Solo, "that's Meat Hook." Meat Hook was a sleek, dark haired, Italian or North African type that wore a TTI Company jacket with lots of Kevlar lining from the look of it. Meat Hook stuck his hand in my direction and I gave it a firm shake. "Nice to have you aboard," he said. -- "Same here," I said as the AV-16 took off and started cruising out the main doors, "sounds like you got some trouble with REO. Why would they try to shoot it out. It always seemed to me that there were plenty of bodies to go around."
"Yeah, me too." Meat Hook said. "I just protect the Medics and the Van. But if you want my opinion, ask me off duty," he sat down and looked over with a bitter smile. "Ya never know, anything can make sense today."
Wizard scooted over to make room for the sitting Meat Hook and then continued the introductions. "Driving this ship is the Cap, the copilot is Light Foot, and the engineer is Gears." I couldn't see any of them since they were in the cockpit and odds are they'd stay there. TTI was on high level alert after the incident with REO last night, but all day had gone by and I felt unlucky
I had no idea what I was doing here. Mo had made up a fake ID that put me in good standing with TTI Corp. and allowed me to slip in for this job. I was wearing a Corp. Field Jacket emblazoned on back and front with big luminescent letters 'MEDIC' but they were on Velcro and could be pulled off in a second. I had my trusty Ares and the MP-20, plus all assortments of nasties under my jacket. Everyone else was pretty much dressed the same except for the Medics, they had alot more red and white on.
When I looked out the back we were over the Capital and at about 400' from the looks of it. Cap's voice came over the intercom, "We're on duty now. Everyone stay sharp we've got a twelve hour shift infront of us."
2045. Eat Til You Die Restaurant.
Somebody had taken the name literally I thought as Gears reported we'd picked up a Life Wagon call and were heading inbound. Everybody locked and loaded, Medics too. Stitches spun the cylinder in his pair of Colt Combat magnums. "Holy Shit!" I said, "Wizard, some guy is just choking on a piece of SPAM and Kibble." -- "Huh, hu," laughs from around the cabin, "Yeah, tell yourself that now. Just load up and stay alert." These guys were high strung. What were they gonna do, shoot the Kibble out of his throat?
As Cap brought the Aerodyne down into position outside the restaurant, the rear ramp lowered and Wizard and I trotted out. Stitches and LM passed us and headed into the building. We were right behind then Wizard darted past and opened the door to go in. Inside was the most greasy, fat slopping, soy-sausage restaurant I had ever seen. It appeared that they threw the cooked sausages at the customers to serve it. Yup, a NYL from behind the counter wound up and lobbed a ladle full of weenies at a table. Some hit the floor and some the table, but it was all grabbed up and eaten. Ugh.
The three Wags had gone over to the far corner and were reviving this guy. More slang there, Wag was either the wagon itself or the people onboard. LM was down on the ground trying to lift the patron to his feet when Stitches grabbed him by both arms, picked him up, spun him around, wacked him on the back and a big slimy green hunk of sausage went flying out across the room. "There. Chew your food better. Bill is 1900Y," said Stitches.
"What!! For a piece of Kibble-meat? No way I'm paying that." -- "Sir we have rendered services. Please pay," he said getting stern. -- "No way!" Some of his buddies were gathering around. Mostly corps, but they could still have guns. LM got behind me as I moved to put myself between the clients friends and Stitches. Meat Hook looked over and gave me an acknowledging glance.
Then it started. One of the jokers behind the Corp. started going for his weapon. My accelerated reflexes kicked in, and time slowed down. I could see Meat Hook keeping up with me, so he must be boosted too. I drew my Ares Predator and shouted, "LEAVE IT IN THE HOULSTER!!" But some macho-testosterone deal grabbed hold of that guy and he kept drawing. I knew TTI shot first and asked questions later, that was company policy but this guy was stupid, not dangerous. I take that back. He was drawing a 'Dirty Harry' Militech Revolver. The EEMax Cased Rounds from that thing way exceeded Magnum power. Thinking of the pain I'd be if one hit me, I instantly revoked my membership in the 'masochist of the month' club. Meat Hook beat me to the pull though. He chilled that guy; giving him a third nostril.
The corps head snapped back and he slumped to the floor. His four friends were now taking advantage of this pause to draw their guns. CG1 had a little plastic gun, CG2 got out a monoblade, CG3 had a nice new HK USP5, and CG4 had a nasty looking Ingram M13. I picked CG4 and put five stylish holes in his Armani Knock-off suit. The holes looked nice, but the blood was not fashionable at all. Walking my fire into CG1, who was the next closest was easy enough and I tagged him twice. Wizard had out a big old Glock and he shot CG2 once in the arm. CG3 then promptly let the USP5 dangle from his trigger finger. I walked over to him, staying out of Wizards LOF, and took it. "Thank you for patronizing TTI," I said sarcastically. The two wags, LM and Stitches ran over and promptly revived all three as the guy that had choked on the Sausage was crawling out from under the table.
Stitches gave each of them their bill as they were revived and they promptly paid. "What a slow night," lamented Wizard. -- "What!?!" I asked astonished. -- "Yeah, normally the joint would have opened up at us too, but either these guys aren't regulars or every body was just too busy eating." I looked around and saw another serving of the greasy sausage fly over the counter. Boy that looked good now, I don't care if the cows were raised on the moon. The customers seemed to take no notice of the gunplay that had just gone on. Oh well.
2330. Warehouse District MSP. July 10, 2045.
The middle of a thundershower that was blowing in from the Dakotas was no place to run a hostage rescue. But then again, who said Corp. Security Commanders were smart. So here I sat with 10mm hole in my gut.
Let me take a few steps back now that I'm lying down. TTI insures prompt service to anyone of legal age (i.e. over 6 months) with a valid SIN. Even Corp. Security Force Members. Even in the middle of a Hostage Rescue. I can see you out there, you're asking why I would go along; I was undercover. Yeah right. I wouldn't be if I didn't go. So I went.
Corp Goon A (I didn't know his name) on the Land-o-Lakes Security Detachment Zulu (their counter terrorist unit) had been the lead man in the stack and from the reports we got on the way in, they were here to take the warehouse back from the eco-terrorists that had broken in, taken the workers hostage, and then began destroying what they weren't testing.
There, I see you again in the back. Testing for what you ask? Why some conspiracy or another that the Corp was behind the falling grades in america's schools because they poisioned or tested new chemicals on their customers. Do I sound skeptical. Well I am. Let me get back to the story.
So CGA had been the lead man, he was first in. First in is bad because it means that you're the most expendable. Usually they know that and feed off it in a sado-masochistic way that gives them great pleasure when they don't die and get to do it again. Crazy huh? Well I know a dozen or more guys like that...
But this time CGA was too slow and didn't shoot fast enough. He entered the room and because they'd been compromised or the terrorist lookouts were too good, had been seen. That's when the shooting started. The Door man hit the door with the 20 lb sledge, knocking it in. CGA bust in and fired his whole magazine. He unfortunately didn't see the guy at the far end of the hall with the heavy rifle. He was hit in the chest and wasted. The rest of the team was fast enough and was able to get through using their team members death as a distraction. The next two men fired at the rifle gunner who'd exposed himself wasting CGA. When CGA's heartbeat went below normal, his TTI LIFEGUARD (tm) card in his waistband sent out a coded GPS signal to the TTI satalite, which then notified the Central computer at MSP Corp HQ of the customer's location. The Automated radio-modem called up Wagon 45 (us) and gave us the location of the client.
We raced in and tried to get to the client. Unfortunately in the fifteen seconds that had elapsed whilst the message was being handled, the terrorists played their trump card. They detonated charges that were placed in the glass facad of the factory. The explosion threw heavy hot chunks of clear ceramic material (read: glass) at all the persons out in the front parking lot. We saw the blast from ten miles away.
Fifteen seconds later (and us a quarter of the distance closer) we got two dozen more calls from LIFEGUARD cards. TTI scrambled eight more wagons, and we were heading in hot. The terrorists began opening fire from locations in the heavy brick warehouse, they were prepared to turn this into a bloodbath. And they did.
As we were coming in, the CT (Counter-terrorist) teams were pulling back from the front but we could see teams moving in in the back. Then the rear plant entrance detonated, leveling the whole structure (and the CT team inside). All I could think was "Shit, the CO really screwed this one, whoever he is."
Cap came over the radio then, "We're going for the roof. I'm not touching down, Gears will guide you through the building to the clients. We have real-time GPS. Good luck." We'd need it. I grabbed an extra EMGL and a bunch of grenades. What the hell, I took two extra frame charges too. So there we were, Cap hit the roof with two feet to spare and we barreled out the side door.
Me and Wizard were at lead, and the rest behind us. Running across the roof, dodging around HVAC and fans mounted up there, we came to a roof entrance. Wizard spun around and blasted a tango (terrorist) on the edge of the roof. Two more popped out from behind roof features. I threw a frame charge on the door, as Wizard and Meat Hook returned fire. LM and Stitches had gone to ground. As Wizard had tagged another, and the last tango took cover, Meat Hook had flanked them with lightning speed and was behind tango 2. All I heard was a long burst from a Steyr carbine and a short scream.
I stepped back from the door and blew it. There was a secondary explosion that leveled the entrance building and then I heard the roof stairs collapse. SHIT!!! FUCK!!! Mother puss bucket. I tossed two frags down the stairs I was so mad. After they exploded I jumped down and surveyed the hall way. Empty. I radioed back up to LM and Stitches. "Sharkman, thirty yards northwest," Gears said. -- "Roger." that meant I had to go up and over or over and up, respectively since the building was oriented north-south. I went over, LM was right behind me, and as I turned the corner to go up I smelled for an instant the freshly oiled smell of a new action. I halted forward motion and pushed myself back aroudd the corner as high-velocity debris colided inadvertetly with the sheet rock and gypsum walls around me (i.e. bullets.) I used my back hand to push LM back too.
As the impact of bullets threw me to the groud given my off balance position I tumbled and landed on her. I knocked the wind out of her (I weighed over 300 lbs now with all my gear) and bashed my nose religiously (read painfully) into the floor. I rolled over and came up in a crouch. I pulled her back behind me, grabbing the medical harness on her chest (no not her tits, she had a fine pair, but I was being shot at.) I tossed another frag around the corner, it detonated on impact. I lept around the corner, and opened up with my trusty Colt Carbine. Two tangos graciously stood up, exposing themselves as they opened fire with Ingram M-13s. Left tango shot high and lost control of the gun when my armor piercing rounds put large holes in his chest. As I brought my fire over to Right tango things went bad. He regained control of the gun after firing too far to my right, and pointed the muzzle at my gut. He and I squeezed the trigger at the same time.
His rounds impacted just above the bottom of my body armor. My rounds impacted his cranium. I won. Unfortunately he'd changed magazines or something because the 10mm rounds in the M-13 had torn big painful holes in my armor and me. I slumped to my knees over the tipped over table and fuel drum they'd been using for cover in the once bare hallway. You ask, Once bare? What was it covered with now?? I answer, their blood.
Footsteps ahead of me and behind me made me nervous. Behind me they'd have me, I was in no condition to turn around. In front of me, I'd kill them dead. I lifted the carbine up on the table and cleared and rechambered the rifle. A loud gasp behind me told me the footsteps there were LM. She must know it was bad if my wounds had exited (which is the only way she'd see them, being behind me.)
She knelt behind me and began applying slap patches as I squeezed the trigger. Even with the gut wrenching pain, the recoil was absorbed by my cybernetic muscles. The hallway filled with crimson mist and the powdery debris from the sheet rock. Three tangos went down hard. Did I mention the lights were out? Oh, must have been the pain. They hadn't seen me in the dark and now they were dead. LM let out a short suprised scream as I fired off another 50 rounds and the action locked back. Four more were down in the hallway.
As I was getting to my feet through the pain in my gut, I lobbed another frag down the stairs. LM grabbed me by the arm as she slid herself under it and levered up with my arm over her shoulder to keep me up. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she whispered up at me.
"I don't know, but staying here is bad." As we hobbled towards the stairs Gears came over the radio, "You're almost there. Just up ahead and ten yards left."
-- "Roger, thanks." Outside I could hear the thunder and the pouring rain. The bedlam the rain generated on the metal roof could be heard all the way down here, presumably from all the holes that had been blasted in the building. I just wanted to find our guy and get out of here.
I came to the corner and stopped. Little use being sneaky, but old habits die hard. I lobbed a distraction device around the corner, it went off with a wallp and I stepped around shielding LM by using the corner of the wall. Nobody there. Good. I continued on until I got to the body at the base of the stairs. So this is where CGA had taken a dive. I pushed LM towards him and used the wall for support.
As She began chattering over the radio to Stitches to get a cart down here stat. I liked the word stat, I thought as I slumped to the ground. My legs gave out and I rolled over onto my side facing up at the ceiling. Either the lights were still out or everything got real black.
So you can imagine my surprise when I woke up with rain hitting my face. I tried to sit up but my gut hurt too bad. Looking left and right I wasn't in heaven, or in hell. It was MSP. I could see the Land-o-Lakes archology and smell the fires burning. LM stood over me, "We didn't think you'd make it." -- "Neither did I."
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