From: yu-d@cis.ohio-state.edu (Moonrise Programmer)
Subject: Ehy! and the Dillybar:  Introduction
Date: 18 Aug 92 23:41:54 GMT


	Ehy! and the Dillybar: Introduction

	Jaz sat motionless trying to blink back the tears of pain.  Guido, a
standard moniker for big robust men who liked to hurt people, and Mogwid, Jaz
had made the mistake of commenting on the name once, grabbed his arms and
hauled him up, for another round of blows to the stomach Jaz assumed.  He
tensed and waited, when no flashes of pain were forthcoming he cracked an eye.
It was Melinda standing in front of him.  *I'm fucked*  Jaz was surprised at
how calm he felt, now that it was over, he could actually accept it.
	Melinda wasn't that tall, just up to Jaz's chin, but her high heels
put her up to his upper lip.  She wasn't pretty by any means, and if you looked
at her objectively, she was really quite homely.  No, she had never been
scarred by a thrown vial of acid, or mauled by a wild animal.  She was born
with the normal complement of toes and fingers and her facial features were
correctly placed in the normal geometric manner.  Rather it all came from her
*fuck you* attitude.  Never one to notice another persons capacity for kindness
her face was in a perpetual scowl or a terrible grin of glee.  Jaz had never
seen the grin but he had it on good authority, if she was grinning at you,
death would be looking real good at that point.  She was grinning at Jaz now
and he wondered how she would kill him and dispose of his body.  *Dammit* here
he was controlled by this bitch, who's only attentions to him had wavered
between arrogance and contempt and he was giving up.  Well, she did have the
rep for getting anybody who crossed her.  Anybody, even her ex-lovers, Jaz
wasn't one of them, no he detested her, but she had one of them skinned from
the waist down alive and kept alive artificially for a few days.
	She moved close to him now and a harsh hand clamped over his mouth
making it difficult to breathe.  She delicately ran her nails over Jaz's bare
chest, her lips touching his chin.  *Death by bile, so that's how* thought Jaz
as the foul fluid swirled its way out of the depths of his abdomen to crash
into the immovable hand barrier across his mouth.  Heaves wracked his body as
more fluid emerged, it was getting difficult to breathe and his throat was
clogged.  Melinda noticed his reactions and smiled, stepping back she surveyed
him critically.
	"Just for you Jaz, I came out.  I wanted to nail you myself."  She took
a half step and prepared to drop kick Jazs little's gems to the roof of his
mouth.  Jaz suddenly remembered that Melinda used to be a world class player
of soccerim, a soccer style game played across vast fields requiring massive
kick distances and leg strength.  She was among the best only a few years ago.
He couldn't bear to watch and screwed his eyes shut.
	The pain lanced through his abdomen and he lay there, sweaty, hot, and
ulcerous, unbelieving the reality.  He forced his eyes open, to stare at the
ceiling tiles, no Guido or Melinda in sight.  It was a bloody dream, Jaz
started to laugh but the sharp pain at the back of his neck and the dry croak
stopped him immediately.  He got up to get something wet when his stomach
reminded him of the huge ulcer he had.  Stabs of discomfort radiated through
his entire body, a reminder that Melinda was still out there and looking for
him.
	"Christ, she doesn't even have to lay a hand on me."   He grabbed the
glass of water he had left on the night stand yesterday anticipating just such
a morning, minus the dream otherwise he never would have let himself sleep.
The two big green pills were his ulcer medicine and he gagged as they went down
despite help from the water.  He never should have ripped off Melinda, it just
wasn't done and Jaz was rapidly finding out why.  Her eyes were everywhere and
it was a daily battle to remain hidden.  He'd had to disguise his bills and
his every action in the normal process of living.  All for a bunch of useless
data chips.  Melinda had cordoned off New Weiler City physically and
electronically, the scope of Melinda's operations was mind boggling.  It had
never occurred to Jaz that she could field this much manpower.  Jaz didn't dare
try to sell the chips locally, he'd be wasted for sure and he couldn't get out.
His money was running low and nothing oiled the gears like the powerful
lubricant of greed.  Jaz rose and walked over the seamy window, or more like a
porthole, that overlooked the grungy Friedman river.  Dull reddish glows from
Castout City reflected all the combustible fires used by the inhabitants.
*Perhaps there is a way out here*, the orange flickers danced around the eyes
of Jaz.

===============================================================================
Comments appreciated, nay required.  If there are no responses then this goes
no further and I'll try to think of something even more lurid.  Maybe.  Anyways
send comments/suggestions/thoughts and even flames to the address below.

Copyrights by David Yu 1992, all rights reserved.  Please do not use the
characters without permission.


From: yu-d@cis.ohio-state.edu (Moonrise Programmer)
Subject: Ehy! and the Dillybar (part 1/10)
Date: 19 Aug 92 22:15:20 GMT


     Ehy! and the Dillybar (part 1/10)

     The dispatch forwarded by electronic agents traveled the
length of the globe in a matter of minutes.  It arrived at
Central Processing where a harried regional officer quickly
perused and kicked it upstairs with an INTEREST tag annotated
to it.  The forwarded copy was run through a keyword check
and an IMMEDIATE ACTION flag came up in relation to the
location specified in the dispatch.

     "Jeremy, I want a Code Dingus, FLASH line open now to
Top Quarters."  The duty officer didn't know what was so
important about the message, but his job did not include
reading the messages.  He watched as Jeremy bent to his
console and in a matter of minutes the contents were again
being forwarded, this time to somebody who could do something
about it.

     Two hours later Jordan McKenzie entered the study of
Malcolm, current head of the department.  Malcolm had an
affinity for the turn of the century and this extended to the
decor of the office with long bookshelves filled with tomes
on varying subjects, plush leather chairs, and a real wooden
desk.  At the moment Malcolm was at his desk, a masterpiece
of antique craftsmanship with a computer viewscreen as the
only modern touch.  He leaned back and appeared quite
thoughtful at Jordan's arrival.

     "Good morning Jordan.  I presume you've had a look at
the first Q report."

     "Yes, I looked at the first view.  I think it's related
to the Dillybar courier from last month."

     "The courier was able to get through and make it to
haven, Jordan."

     "Yes, however we were right on him.  It is my opinion
that he did a drop in New Weiler and now it's turned up
missing."

     Malcolm mulled over Jordan's guess.  It was a guess,
they did not have any evidence to substantiate the scenario,
however Jordan McKenzie was one of the best anaylsts on the
staff and was seldom wrong.

     "Ok, what's your call."

     Jordan steepled his fingers fingers before he began,
"one, a courier trying to elude us made an unscheduled stop
there where we lost track of him for a half hour, not enough
time to really do something but just enough for a drop.  We
pick up the tail on his way out.  Unlike before he took a
standard travel route and went through customs without
incident.  Two, a few months later a surreptitious security
cordon by known elements is implemented around the city.
Three, they know that amount of activity would be visible to
us, yet proceed anyway judging recovery more important than
discretion.  I took the liberty of checking our assets in the
area.  We have a FORSEC team at Mesa Verde and an SR bunch
coming into Tandiagos.  The Search&Retrievel team is 48 hours
out of New Weiler and the FORSEC team, six."

     "Time is critical here, send the FORSEC team in and
assign the SR as backup sweep."  Malcolm ruminated his
decision and decided that it was the best strategy.  He
wondered who was commanding the Forward Security team.  His
unasked question was answered.

     "Major Lazlov commands the FORSEC, is it a good idea to
send them rather than the SR?  Major Lazlovs command is a gun
crew, not much of an investigative force."  There was not
another piece of furniture close to the comfort of his
leather chair, thought Malcolm.  Especially when he could
lean back and take the superior attitude.

     "Obviously you've never been to New Weiler, it's a very
close town and the SR team would quickly find itself going
balls to balls with the opposition.  Lazlov however is an ex-
ExOps man, Observation arm as I recall.  This is the time to
let the yokels do the legwork then snatch the target at the
appropos time and the firepower of a FORSEC team may turn out
to be very appropriate for the situation."  At the end of his
little lecture Malcolm smiled and added, "any other points of
analysis to bring up?"

     The analyst tried to rise to the challenge, "Colonel
Wile of the SR won't like being under Lazlov."

     "Colonel Wile is of the soldier breed, he knows how to
take orders despite his feelings.  Is your analysis done?"

     Jordan replied in the affirmitive and took his leave.
It didn't hurt to deflate their egos every once in awhile,
Malcolm mused.  He activated the secretary com link.

     "Yes, Mr. Vend?"

     "Ms. Hzu, summon Jan Mir of Operations."

     "Yes, Mr. Vend."

     Malcolm Vend leaned back in his big comfortable leather
chair.  *What is there I couldn't do with the Dillybar?*




=============================================================
  Comments appreciated.  Send comments/suggestions/thoughts
            and even flames to the address below.

 Copyrights by David Yu 1992, all rights reserved.  Please do
        not use the characters without my permission.

===============================================================================
	Weightless whales of the sky,		|            David Yu
	Floating in that ocean high.		|    yu-d@cis.ohio-state.edu
	A windful day of such beauty,		| 'Ware the Rabid Buckeye!!!!!
        Leaves me calm and a little happy.  	|