From: sdenoms@austin.onu.edu (Cyberlok)
Subject: The Hunt
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 1994 19:50:46 GMT
Wed. 11, 2019:
I was kicking back at the Crypt, sipping my third Armmegedon, and
feeling the music of the club hammer its way through my head inspite of my
audio dampeners. I had been living quietly for the past few weeks and my
cash stock was dwindling away. I has little more eb then what was in my
"escape-savings", money thats there if I direly need to "escape". I was
hoping that at the Club there would be some small time job offers, and I
wouldn't have to worry about be challaged by a punk that would be looking
for a reputation.
Two suits were approaching me. I sensed them before I saw them, and
even when I saw them I had a feeling there was something wrong with them.
Other then the fact they looked like identical twins, they look like your
average run of the mill high-powered corps, from their flawless skin to
their 2000 eb. clothes. Instinctively I switched to Theromgraphics, and
thats where I saw the cyberware. They were almost totaly cold, full
conversion borgs, most likely Gemini series.
"You are Mr. Micheal Dillinger, aka Hardcore, aka Afterburn, aka
Pyro?" they asked in unison.
They said it more like an affermation then a question and not one to
waste time I replied with a "Yea, who's asking?"
"That is unimportant Mr. Dillinger, you are to come with us, now."
What unnerved me more then the fact they had on them enough armament
and techonology to wipe out a company of corp assassins, was that they
knew my name and from their analytical stare, knew exectly what I was
carrying, what armor I wore, and probably how much alcohol I had in my
blood.
With out a word I slowly got up from the table, collected my stuff
and let them escort me out the club. I stopped the two bouncers from
detaining the suits with a quick nod of my head, and they walked me out
into the night sky and then into a hover limo. The car was remote
controlled and as soon as the door was shut the limo took off towards its
destination.
My companions didn't say a thing, which I expected, but I attempted
a few half hearted tries to get them to reveal any information to me. I
wasn't able to keep track of the route we were taking because the windows
were mirrored from the inside.
Soon enough the limo landed on the roof of an old warehouse and the
two suits escorted me towards the stairs. After pressing a 15 digit
password one opened the door to the stairs revealing it was actually an
elevator. When all three of us were in the elevator, the elevator went
down. To be truthful it shot down like the floor had been dropped from
underneath us. And it stopped just as suddenly. Like my escorts I gave
no appearence of being fazed but unlike them on the inside my stomach
isn't bolted to my gut so I could feel it lurch.
The room that we were in now must have been a stolen Arasaka
shelter. The amount of high tech security and black market enforcement
made my hair stand on end. The only "normal" items included a book shelf
filled with books, a real wood oak desk, and high backed swivel chair that
presently wasn't facing me.
When the elevator door shut it, the chair swiveld around and the
man in the seat stood up. Max E. Mum, or Maximillean to his friends, one
of the hardest fixers I have ever known. He had ties with every known
criminal organization in the world, and was well respected by the
non-criminal organization that knew of his existence. Early in our lives
we were partners, he was the fixer and I was his bodyguard. We were best
of friends and thought we still were until he suddenly dropped out of sight.
Grinning broadly he said "It is really good to see you chombatta."
I was still shocked but managed to answer "Its is nice to see you
too, but where have you been all this time? I go to Europe for a year and
I come back only to find that nobody has even heard of your existence.
"Sorry about the deception, and I'm sorry about your abduction but
they were both neccessary for the same reason, protection of this
country's most valuble treasure."
"Yeah, like what?"
"Me, of course." He finished with a grin.
As always he was able to get me to laugh, but then in more serious
tones told me of how Arasaka now has a 1.5 million eb price on his head.
"Not as much as your price" he commented "But then again I didn't
bomb and destroy a multi billion dollar skyscraper for the simple
extraction of the chief military intelligence operative. Besides your
trade doesn't rely on people knowing who you are."
This time his laugh seemed a bit more forced so I quickly made him
get down to buisness."More then likely you didn't send Twiddle Dee and
Twiddle Dumb after me to remenice, so what's the job?"
"Your not going to like it."
"So why did you get me?"
"Your the only operative that I trust that can do it."
"Then what is it already?"
He sighed "Tomorrow the Cyber Circle is beginning their annual Hunt,
and your the only member I have that isn't a EuroSolo. I need you
to enter the Hunt."
I originally was going to not go due to lack of funds, but taking
this as a job would pay for all of my expenses. However I had the feeling
he was holding back. "There's more to this, and I want to know now."
For a moment he seemed as if he would deny it but then resignedly
said "Arasaka has been 'funding' certain parties in Spain, to allow one of
there soldiers to represent Spain in the Hunt."
I began to get a sinking feeling in my stomach, worse then any that
any elevator could give me.
"This year Spain is being represented by Miguel Jesus Santos, aka
Fiacho Muerte, aka Clone."
Clone, the name echoed like a funeral dirge in my head. Before
Arasaka picked him up he was nothing but a vicious overweight nomad named
Fiacho Muerte, or "Very Bad Death". The Arasaka R and D aquired him as an
almost slab of meat and used him for trying to perfect full conversion.
Their intent was to create a borg with little loss of humanity. They
failed, horribly. Some say the only way you can measure how far gone he
is, is by using negative exponents, and that he is so cyberpsycho that
empathy drugs only make him a sociopathic homicidal maniac. The only joke
I've heard about him is that he is so infatuated with putting on more and
more weapons, that he'd have his dick shoot napalm if he could. I hear
his kill number is up in the thousands, and those only include wetwork
jobs I faced him more times then I care to, I've personally seen others
kill him as many as three times, I my self have killed him twice, and he
has killed me twice in return. The second one of those time I was in a
steel room with him and in a suicide attack fired a HEAP grenade into a bag
of about 2 dozen other grenades. I was reborn under the money of
Maximillean. And I thought Clone to be no more then the slag that the room
was.
"I'm sorry to spring this on you Hardcore, (that is what your calling
yourself now isn't it?) but this assignment comes from way above me.
Dreamkiller has ordered for you to do the hit on Clone."
That name hit me harder then any of Clone's punches. Dreamkiller is
thought to be the most powerful Nilistic netrunner on the planet. He is
known as being the third most powerful. That is one man it is even more
dangerous to be his friend then his enemy. He has no physical body now,
his mind is stored in an AV-7 that's under his total control, and he makes
his appearence by way of Holoprojectors. He was also the man who had me
reborn the first time through chips and an electronic brain.
"Now, both Dreamkiller and I realize the intensity of this job and we
are making this offer to you. We are both prepared to drop the the favors
you owe us for your 'rebirths'. I am going to pay in advance to your Swiss
Bank Account, you know the one you call your 'escape-savings', 1 million
eb. And finally DreamKiller will erase all of your records. Now is it a
deal?"
The room became totally quiet. With my cyberware I could feel every
motion in the air hear the calm beating of Max's heart, feel the faked
breathing of the Gemini. It was hard what to know to say. I know both these
men, as well as anyone could, and I know short of
"all-hell-is-breaking-loose" with a side of "the-shit-has-hit-the-fans"
would cause them to take such drastic actions. Carefully I brought out my
electronic contract and recorded top it the terms of the agreement. I
then handed the contract over to him without another word.
Maximillean recorded his voice into the contract, and handed it back
to me. Handing me an envelope he said "Here, in this envelope is your
Passing saying you're the representative for the Free State of California.
There is also a hotel address. In the suite will be all of your
belongings non-combat oriented that I had retrieved from your room. The
combat equipment is being sent through political courier to your lodgings
in Europe. You will also find a set luggage, a decent suit, and tickets
for the 6 AM AV to Germany. And I think that about covers it."
The cyborgs escorted me back to elevator, but just before I went
through the doors, I turned around and said "You know, I don't plan on
dying just yet."
He smiled slightly and replied "I know.", and swiveled the chair
around.
Late that night, I finally laid down in the king sized bed. I let
my cyberliver take care of the alcohol in my system and I set myself for
deep sleep. My last thought before I drifted off were those of my last
look at Clones face, right before the explosion that took our lives.
--
_____ _____ _____ _____
/ _ _ \ / _ _ \ CYBERLOK / _ _ \ / _ _ \
I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I ---------- I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I
I /-\ I I /-\ I sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu I /-\ I I /-\ I
\I I/ \I I/ Lord of Shadows \I I/ \I I/
I_|_|_I I_|_|_I Future Ruler of the World I_|_|_I I_|_|_I
From: sdenoms@austin.onu.edu (Cyberlok)
Subject: The_Hunt.2
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 04:20:50 GMT
Here's the second installment.
copyright c.1994 Stephen Denoms (sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu)
The Hunt, part II
_________________
Thursday 12, 2021:
Last night I made sure that everything was in order for my trip, and
then set myself for eight hour deep sleep. I figured I'd need the rest.
This morning I awakened dress and was met outside by the Gemini twins.
They escorted me into a different hover limo then last nights, and we took
of for the Airport. After landing they followed me to my Shuttle Gate and
made sure I was on the Shuttle, then they left. Seat D-0-A, D0A, DreamKiller
has a really sick sense of humor. Once I was settled in my first class seat
the Autopilot informed us of our departure. Are take off was fairly
smooth for a faster then sound shuttle, and we were soon allowed to walk
around the cabin, that was when I was called up to the cockpit.
When I walked in to the cockpit it was empty as it normally was for
these routine flights, but just before I turned to leave the all too
familiar hologram of a techno-ninja materialized in front of me.
"Greetings Micheal. Hmmm, when I last saw you, you were nothing more
then a slab of charred meat with a barely functioning brain. Obviously
your doing much better."
"My handles Hardcore now, and what are you doing here?"
"You never were one for formalities Micheal. I'm here to take you to
your destination, and see you off of course."
"I doubt that, but then tell me DreamKiller, why have you hired me
for this job? Its not your style, your usually off trying to bring the
demise of third world countries and take over all the others, and stinks worse
then raw sewage"
"Lets just say this is a cyberspace game, and my trump card can only
be played in the real world. And don't worry it has no real affect on
your precious Cyber Circle, or even the Mythical Angels"
The Angels were a legendary group of solos that recruited from the
highest ranks of the Circle and lived in the Crystal Palace in orbit. "Then
I'm the card?"
With a sneer, "Not hardly, you are merely the hand that plays the
card. Over there," he motioned towards the console, "is a bright red
chip, put it in your chip socket."
I picked the chip up in my hand, and after noticing it had what
looked like a micro taser on the back, I unquestioningly put it the
socket. "I don't feel anything."
"You won't, its a subliminal chip, it will tell you when to get the
job done. Now have a nice flight and enjoy the Hunt!" And with a smile
he disappeared.
I casually went back to my seat. Once I sat down I reminded myself
that DreamKiller was one of my few friends left, and then I remembered
that old addage about who needs enemies when you have friends like that.
In total the flight lasted a little over thirty minutes. When I
departed from the plane I was greeted by a gentlemen holding a sign the
read "Dillinger". Quickly scanning him over I was realived that he was
all meat (no Gemini this time). I went up to him and said "Mr. Dillinger
couldn't come. I'm Mr. Cyber can I help you?"
"Mr. Circle has sent a car for Mr. Dillinger.", he replied.
"Well I must give Mr. Circle my thanks then."
A smile spread on his face as the ritual passwords, and finger
signing were exchanged and he motioned for me to follow him. "Your bags
are already checked through and in the car Mr. Dillinger.
A large Rolls Royce limo was parked out front, and the chauffeur
opened the door for me. After settling down in the plush seats, I
realized how much I missed Eurostyle.
The Rolls rumbled out onto the road and I was given scenic route of
the town of Vienna, before we pulled up to the Hotel. My luggage and
things were taken inside and I was helped out of the car by no less then
four door men. After a critical at the hotel and appraising it to be a
five star hotel in which a one night stay would cost more then a low level
corps salary. The chauffeur reminded me that I was one of the last to
arrive and the meeting would start in about 13 minutes, and handed me an
envelope to open later. I followed the
bellboys with my luggage and went up to one of the top story suites that
was my room for my stay. After making sure that my clothes were put away
, my equipment was undamaged, and the room was free of bugs, I headed down
to the conference hall.
Once in the conference hall I felt like I was at the same time at home
and in a den of wolves and snakes. Friends, enemies, allies, associates,
challengers, and all of them fighters, and all with a predatory look about
them. There was a low buzz of talking in the room, usually friendly but
always cautious.
I fought the urge to go greet a solo from Italy named DeepFreeze.
He and I were partners back when I was AfterBurn, Fire & Ice we were
called, but he wouldn't recognize me and it is important that some others
wouldn't either. I walked over to a group that was talking in friendlier
tones I recognized a few of them. One was a man called Mr. Toolbox, he
was the first and so far the only none solo ever entered in the Cyber
Circle. He was a tech that had been there with me when we bombed the
Arasaka tower in Mexico City. A quick greeting and a handshake that was
all that was needed, Mr. Toolbox was hovering on the edge of
cyberpsychosis even with the Swiss implants. Others that I had fought
with were Vipertreads, a Escort driver; DocMarius, a part-time swiss
ripperdoc; and Renard, a weasly little fox that was missing a few
implants.
I gave a small start when I saw David Goliath in his Dragoon full
conversion, thinking he was Clone. But quickly I corrected myself, he was
too elegant looking, and as an after thought, not enough weapons.
A hand caressed my neck, and when I turned I was met by a deep, firey
kiss. She bit my lip ever so gently letting her vampires draw a slight
amount of blood. When she withdrew I managed to sigh "Lucretia...".
Lucretia, a exotic dancer turned eurosolo. Still holding her body
close to mine she said "Hey stud, I never did get to thank you for that
night in Neo-Chinatown."
Before I had a chance to reply anything, she took a step back and
punched me in the jaw, the force of it picking me of the ground. If I
hadn't rolled with it even through the skinweave, she would have broken my
jaw. With daggers in her eyes she finished "I also never thanked you for
trying to blackmail me with that old holoporn of me.", and she stalked.
That women was part sex, part feminine, part elegant, part beauty, all
deadly. The rest of the crowd paid little notice or if the had gave no
sign of it.
Still staring after the sashaying form of Lucretia the hair on my
neck began to rise and with fear in my stomach I turned a quickly as I
casually could. Over the heads of the crowd I saw the approaching form
of Clone.
The crowd parted before him like sea parted for Moses, but this was
no creature of God, more like something spawned from the deepest realms of
hades. I could here his sound systems continually emitted what could only be
described as the low, deep growl of a rabid St. Bernard. Weapons
covered him like porcupine quills. He hads weapons welded onto weapons,
weapons that could be ripped off to expose more weapons. But even if
you stripped this unholy thing of all its weapons you still had to deal
with the 13 foot fully armored monstrosity that had broken the laws of
physics with the strength it possessed. Clone was the ultimate weapon
unto himself.
In my trying to appear calm, I froze all I could do was watch as
this thing approached me like the embodiment of death. Before he got ten
feet from me with the resounding sound of a gong the entire hall was
brought to order. Even Clone stopped what looked like his unswerveable
steps.
Residing over the meeting was Shamen ranked number one in the
standings and thought to be in the Angels, although no one speculated
about it out loud. He wasn't going to take part in the Hunt, because
rules wouldn't permit it. He could only be challenged in straight arena
challenge.
He stood at the podium on the right side of a table who's occupants
I couldn't distinguish just yet. With his booming voice he said, "Welcome
Ladies and gentleman to the 75 annual Hunt. I am not a speech maker, I ,
like yourselves, am a fighter, so I will tell you simply whats this years
events are going to be. The actual hunt won't be till tomorrow, but today we
are to have the Qualifying Hunt. After then you will be allowed out on
the town. However any fighting outside of the Hunts will result in
disqualification and being stripped of your rank. The Qualifying Hunt
will begin in thirty minutes. You will be using your preferred type of
weapons and they will be real. Your individual mission is explained to you
in the envelope you were given upon arrival. You will arrive to your
destination by helicopter. And thats it folks, return to your rooms, suit
up, and come down to the helipads in half an hour."
The gong resounded one more time and the meeting convened. Focused
on the Hunt ahead, I tried pushing the thoughts of Clone out of my head,
and file out with the rest.
Half an hour later I was in my roto-chopper, heading off to my drop
off point. The thing was that an Insane Asylum computer had been violated
and so badly trashed (courtesy of the Circle's netrunners) that entire
wings of cyberpsychos and criminally insane had been let loose. My part
in this insanity was to protect an old burnt out McDonalds from getting
over run. Pretty purposeless, but none the less trick, especially if they
come at me en' mass. Oh did I fail to mention, the escape psycho have
come conveniently across an armory and are now armed to the teeth...
literally.
I was dropped off at a dilapidated McDonalds, on the edge of the
Waste, a town that look like it had been nuked and was now a ghost town.
Like an old habit I set up a perimeter of flash bombs and gas sprays, set
up a hologram of me that "patroled" the front of the building, and hid in
the husk of the restaurant. I was waiting there for hours and I thought my
mission was done, when my hologram derezzed as a result of being touched
by something, and the wall behind it exploded from a sniper shell, the
odor that hit me warned me that who ever fired was firing depleted uranium
bullets. I judged the trajectory of the bullet and followed it to the
roof of a nearby five story building. Sure enough there was the barrel of
what looked like a 7mm sniper rifle. Who ever was behind the barrel
however was history.
Using image enhance, thermal, and cross hairs I brought me mini
rocket launcher to bear. Seeing my movement the sniper barrel shifted over
to me but they never had a chance to fire. I launched the shell and
everything in a ten foot radius of the sniper barrel exploded. Not being
on to take too many chances I fired another shell at the only remaining
stable foundation of the building. I watched the collapse of the building
with a small amount of satisfaction, and then restarted the hologram and
hid once again. To my boredom and dismay I only had that one attacker.
And two hours later the roto-chopper picked me up again.
When I returned to my suite to change I flipped the vid screen on.
On the news the anchormen was proclaiming that they had some of the
greatest action footage ever shot. Then they went to the monitor and
showed a 13 foot cyborg leaping out of chopper roughly three stories off
the ground, his landing left a very deep crater. The cyborg was quickly
surrounded by dozens of armed cyberpsychos. The cyberpsychos, were very
far gone, because they attacked the monster with out hesitation. Like a
sea of rapid dogs the swept over him, wolvers extended and firing
mini-rockets like madmen. They never stood a chance. Clone waded into
them like they were nothing but ants and in the most violent way proceeded
to rip what little meat they had left to shreds. What got me was his
howl. When they were all dead, their blood covering him like a new paint
job, he stood there shaking his fists at the cameras, spraying blood
everywhere, and he howled "YOU ARE DEAD!!!!!!!!!!"
I felt the his scream reverberate through me and all I could do is
stare at the frozen frame of his face. Same face, different explosion.
End Part 2 of The Hunt
--
_____ _____ _____ _____
/ _ _ \ / _ _ \ CYBERLOK / _ _ \ / _ _ \
I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I ---------- I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I
I /-\ I I /-\ I sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu I /-\ I I /-\ I
\I I/ \I I/ Lord of Shadows \I I/ \I I/
I_|_|_I I_|_|_I Future Ruler of the World I_|_|_I I_|_|_I
Subject: The_Hunt.3
Date: Sun, 1 May 1994 05:21:39 GMT
Sorry this is so late in the posting folks. Hope you enjoy, and try
to send any comments or critisicms you want. And now the story...
copyright c.1994 Stephen Denoms
The Hunt part 3
---------------
Thursday night 12, 2021:
After seeing that gore covered face on the screen I had to take a
shower. The hot water on my face felt good. Unlike most other solos I
never got a pain editor put into this body. I had one before but while it
served its purpose it never quite felt right to me. I later rationalized
it to be that since I never wanted to numb myself emotionally with all the
cybernetics, I should never numb myself physically. It was the day to day
feelings I missed, like a cool breeze or burning sensation in your mouth
when you eat something too hot. The pain also reminds you that you are
alive. At times I think its stupid but then I see the types of people I
have to work with, some with less emotions then a toaster and I'm glad of
the way I am now. All the implants I have are swiss made and while it cost
me almost as much as the bounty on my head, I don't think I could face
becoming something like Clone.
When I finished my shower I began toweling myself off, and I grimaced
slightly at the stiffness of my skin. I had my skinweaves and subdermal
armor made from space made materials, but with the amount I had, it showed
everso slightly, although you'd have to be looking for it to realize it.
I heard a faint knock on the door, and wrapping the towel around my
waist, I answered it. It was Lucretia, and looking immaculate as ever.
Even though I had opened the door only a little bit she managed to slip
past me and the door.
"Come in." I said with as much sarcasm as I could muster.
"Thank you, I did." she replied smoothly. "What are you doing still
not ready? The Hunt ended over 15 minutes ago?"
"I wasn't aware that I was going anywhere tonight."
"What? I hope you weren't expecting to stay in tonight."
"Well...", I never had a chance to finish before she started rummaging
through my clothes picking out a set clothes suitable for Euro club hopping.
"Even though I don't mind the outfit your wearing now," staring
obviously at my toweled attire, "You _are_ going out, and how is anyone
going to take you seriously if you don't wear the prop-style?"
As soon as she finished finding me the prop-style clothes, she
ushered me into the bathroom, and waited for me outside. Still nursing a
bruise on my jaw, I attempted to send her in to eternal damnation under my
breath, while as reluctantly as possible change into suit.
When I finished up, after a quick check in the mirror, I left the
bathroom. She smiled at me, took my arm and began escorting me out of the
door, into the hallway, and to the elevator. I asked her where we were
going and all she would say is that there was a nearby club that most of
the solos from the Circle were going to and she wanted to see it.
When we were walking along the street, I asked her "Why did you
hit me earlier?"
She paused for a moment and said "Besides the obvious reason that
you did try to blackmail me, during that little scene I kissed you then
slugged you and no one paid any attention. However if I walked up to you
tried to say something and then began to cry, the whole room would have
noticed. Why do you think that is?"
"I don't know."
"Well then I'll tell you why. The actions of kissing you and then
punching you fits into what society expects of me, as a femme fatale.
Could you even conceive of a femme fatale crying or showing any emotion
other then passion and anger?"
"No I really couldn't"
"There is a difference between conforming to society and doing what
society expects. Conforming is when you do nothing extreme and do nothing
that "goes out of bounds". Doing what society expects is like putting on
the mask of a common cliche or stereotype and then society gives you the
freedom of that stereotype. As a femme fatale I'm allowed a lot of sexual
freedom as well as emotional freedom, in a job that you aren't supposed to
have emotions."
"Couldn't that go against you to? I mean, take a police officer.
If in a shootout killed four of the most evil people in the world and
accidentally shoots a innocent in the crossfire, the police officer could
lose his job, his money, his dignity, and may face criminal charges. On
the other hand a perp could kill half a dozen good, bad and innocents and
get treated no different then if he had killed 6 good people."
She stopped walking and turned to me, brushed the bruise on my jaw
with the back of her hand and said "Point taken, I guess we have to figure
out how to draw the line of good, bad, and useful. I'm sorry about
punching you but then again," she said with a smile, letting the blades
from underneath her fingernails slowly slide out, "I could have slapped
you."
I started to smile but quickly stopped when I saw a clear drop a
liquid drip from underneath the nail, and gulped. Skin weave or not,
nerve toxin would hurt, hurt bad.
When we got to the club, the sun had just started to set. But in the
club the sun had gone down and there was an all new world had risen. Due to
the darkness I had to flip to my IR optics and was amazed by what I saw.
IR strobe lighting with lasers blasting everywhere in tempo with the music.
The music was a mix of old fashion techno and cyberpunk from the states.
It wasn't loud but you could feel it ears, body, and heart as if it was.
There was a small dance floor, a long bar, a very secluded but large area
that was nothing but soft couches, chairs and pillows, and then on the
other wall there were a few booths. Even though I knew for sure that she
wanted to dance, I led her to one of the booths who's sole occupant was
Mr. Toolbox sipping a Techdriver.
I let Lucretia slide into the booth first and I sat next to her.
Toolbox regarded us coolly, finished off his drink, and when the waiter
came to get the empty glass he ordered another, an Armageddon for me, and a
Diablo for Lucretia.
After watching his movements, I remarked in a serious tone "Your
looking a little closer to the edge chomba."
After looking at me he gazed fondly back to his cyberarms and mildly
rebuked me with a "Ah yes well we all can't afford to get swiss mades like
you Hardcore"
Lucretia asked how much of him was what.
After thinking about it for a moment he said "Well, my legs are
Speeding Bullets, My arms are prototype cybernetics, I have a pain
editor, a cyberheart, a and a little bit of internal wiring. 'bout you?
"Eh, some enhanced sensors, boosters, and optics. I mainly rely on a
well placed kick, and a gun."
"And poison tipped scratchers." I added under my breath, quite aware
that the two could here me. I turned back to Toolbox and said "Prototype
arms? Are they the reason for the loss?"
"Yes." he replied simply.
"Why did you do in chomba? You know how close you were already, are
trying to end up like clone?"
"Why do any of us do it? Why do we get cyberware, why was it invented
in the first place when no matter what you were like, when it all gets put
on you, you end up mentally worse then any meatboy could ever be?"
"To stay alive." Lucretia interjected
"No that is the physical, what is the mental reason, what is the
emotional reason..." He paused waiting for us to answer when neither did
he continued. "We get it because each piece makes us more then human.
Each piece brings us a closer step to godhood. And you talk about me
getting these," pointing to his arms, "as a bad thing to do. I got them
in the first place because my limbs were ripped off and I was left to
die. When found, I got cybered because meat had failed me. And then I
changed my regular cyberlegs to speeding bullets because these are fast,
and I got these new arms because these make me stronger." His voice began
to get louder. "I got wiring to make me faster and more intelligent. I
got skin armor to make it harder to get to the skin beneath." He was near
screaming now. "I got a pain editor so I wouldn't have to to feel the pain
of bullets passing through my body! And I got even more cyberware so I
wouldn't feel the pain of killing people and watching others get killed!"
With these last words he slammed his hands on the table, nearly destroying
it. His eyes opened wide when he realized what he had done and he
despondedly sat back looking downward.
While Toolbox composing himself, the waiter brought back out drinks.
The waiter took a look at the marks Toolbox had left and when he left I
heard him say something about "...uncouth American barbarians..." I sighed.
Lucretia surveyed Toolbox critcally.
Toolbox looked back up at me and apologized "I'm sorry Hardcore, you
are right I am beginning to go over the edge. Sometimes I'm as cold and
analytical as the machines I work with, Other times like this I get so
emotional. Usually its anger, but sometimes I'll stop what ever I'm doing
and sit down for no reason and start crying. But what I said was true
however..."
"I know its true TB," I replied "If you know this then why don't you
stop?"
"Its kind of like a drug addiction, a long lasting one but it one
that still makes you crave for more. I remember when I was being
outfitted with these new arms. They had cloned me a pair of meat ones to
use in the meantime. Even though I had them for only a day, I felt as
weak as a newborn. They couldn't even support my weight. That entire day I
spent huddled up in bed, in fear that someone would attack and I wouldn't
be able to defend myself. Remember when after Clone killed you the first
time and Max remade you into Pyro. You got yourself entirely bodysculpted
to look like a humanoid dragon. You had a tail, spikes, scales, muzzle,
and teeth to match. You delibertly wanted to be something other then
human. You didn't even stay for after sculpting-consulting. You just
left."
Lucretia spoke up "Yeah I remember you like that. You had honestly
even began to act like one. You got a voice synthesizer so your voice was
more throaty, and you growled and roared more then you talked. There was
other cyberware you had put in to match "your new look". You got a
customized piece nicknamed the "Dragons Breath" which you mounted in your
throat, it even shot lightning didn't it?"
I was subdued somewhat by the memory of facing exoticpsyhosis. "It
fired a microwave pulse matched with a strobe flash out of my mouth." I
growled.
Toolbox continued "Face it though, you wanted to be not quite human
while being more then human. No other profession gets so much cyberware
then the soldiers, the fighters, the killers. For most other people,
while even though there average city block is as dangerous as any of our
DMZ's, they have cybernetics as a fashion statement. The only difference
between the Vietnam vets of yester year, and the Panama vets from last
year are that the vets from Panama have some much cybernetics that they
are too cyberpsycho to have any flashbacks."
"What does it feel like to being going over the edge?" Lucretia
asked. "I mean I've met many on the edge or over it but none have been
willing to talk about it."
"Well..." he started out slowly, "at first you don't notice your
losing it. You by a part here to replace a meat part there, you buy a
attachable tool or weapon here so you don't have to carry one there, and
it goes on. I think in the back of your mind you have the need to become
more computerlike and less emotional because on a daily basis you are
dealing with horrors that most men would die of shock from. You also have
this need to prove that metal is better then meat, and you look down on
those who are meat. Anyways after a while of stripping yourself of your
humanity, you begin to feel this emptiness in you, a hollowness in your
soul, and the only thing that can seem to replace it is the humm of
another electric part."
Memories of my own dancing on the edge of psychosis had begun to come
to me, "At the same time you are out there becoming more then human you
are becoming less then one also. Everthing that makes you human slowly
goes away. I had a friend who went cyberpsycho after a stupid little
thing as a new channel being added to his internal radio. He jumped onto
the New York City powergrid, frying himself and turning off the power to
all of New York which set off The New York Apolyptical Wars. Before he got
the new channel he told me of going over the edge. How it was like a slow
death and thats why most cyberpsychos became mass murders or go into
catatonic states. He said the only emotions you had left were the ones
you had when you were in a rage and they were only anger and joy of
killing."
"Your friend was very accurate." He then looked very hard at me and
said "Tomorrow I am going to die and before you say that is impossible,
just take it as a vision of the insane and humour me. First of all I want
you to take all thats left of me and keep it as a reminder of what you
could become. Secondly to take this key," reaching into a space in his
arm and pulling out a card, "and open the storage space it goes to. You can
keep the contents and you'll know what to do. Lastly" his voice going
hard "I want you to kill Clone." And with that he got up and left,
throwing down a cred-chip to pay for the drinks.
I watched his retreating form, then I looked at the table of drinks
we had incurred during our talk. I then I look at Lucretia, she was
leaning against me slightly, she has as much as me to drink but she didn't
have a cyberliver like I did. I helped her up and steadied her while I
got up. It was already earlier in the morning and the club was emptying
out the few that were left were the regulars and a few of the more
hard-assed of the solos as well as a few of the less intelligent ones.
While we were crossing the dance floor a slow song came over the
speakers and with a strength belying her size, Lucretia stopped me, put
her arms around my neck and began to dance. I put my arms around her
waist and we danced silently, resting on each other for support.
When the song was over we headed back to our rooms, and even though
she offered to let me stay in her room, I went back to mine. That
surprised me almost as much as her because I had never before denied her
anything. Perhaps tomorrows events have disturbed me more then I had
thought.
In a few minutes I was sitting at the desk in my robe, the only thing
lighting the room was my laptop computer. I was staring intently at the
screen. Clone's dossier, hmmmm. His face filled the screen. I was
analyzing what was known about his cybernetics. Nasal Filters: sinus
cavities, Reserve Air Storage: (15 minutes) Central chest, hmmmmmmm...
End Part 3 of The Hunt
--
_____ _____ _____ _____
/ _ _ \ / _ _ \ CYBERLOK / _ _ \ / _ _ \
I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I ---------- I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I
I /-\ I I /-\ I sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu I /-\ I I /-\ I
\I I/ \I I/ Lord of Shadows \I I/ \I I/
I_|_|_I I_|_|_I Future Ruler of the World I_|_|_I I_|_|_I
From: sdenoms@austin.onu.edu (Cyberlok)
Subject: The Hunt part 4
Date: Fri, 20 May 1994 08:00:59 GMT
Here you go all. Part Four. Part Five and the Epilogue will be out by
the weekend and I hope you all enjoy.
--Master of Disaster
copyright c.1994 Stephen Denoms
The Hunt part 4
---------------
Friday morning 13, 2021:
I woke up from deep sleep with a start. It wasn't my internal clock
but something was giving off a high pitch squeal that was exactly set at
my alarm. Suddenly the squealing stopped and a voice came on.
"Good, you are awake Mr. Dillinger. You are to be down in the
briefing room in one hour. Be prepared to go on to the Hunt from there.
That will be all."
Fully recovered from last night's events I quickly gathered my gear,
got cleaned up, ate the "Continental Breakfast" laid out on the desk in
the room, suited up, and checked my gear over one last time. I brought
none of my heavy hardware like my flame thrower or mini-gun. The only time
the heavy stuff would be needed, I'd need a prayer more. I brought with
me all of the traps, surveillance, stealth, and surprise weaponry in my
arsenal. My landing was dead quiet and I smiled taking note that my gear
didn't even make noise as I made my way to the elevator.
In the briefing room there was considerablely more activity. For the
most part it was all filled with techies on one side of the room.
They checked, rechecked, examined and replaced little bits of chip here
and their as they scurried around the room.
There were only about ten of us in the room. However Shaman stepped
up to the podium and addressed us, "Your lots were drawn as Wave A. You
are to be the first sent into the Hunt. The location is in the center of
a toxic desert south of Austria, the exact location is unimportant.
Beneath the desert is a huge network of caverns, man-made passages, and
man-made rooms. It is an old underground temple. The objective is,
while moving to the temples only way out, a bottomless pit that chimneys
to the surface, successfully take out your fellow solos till one of you
remains to go to the top. Your weapons will all be sensor rigged and
worked into a special lace netting which you will all be fitted into.
That includes weapons from rocket launchers to scratchers. This lace
netting here is of our own design. On it there is wristband and a neural
plug. This lace netting reacts with your sensors, so although no weapons
will be live, through the neural plug you will see, hear, smell, and
feel as if they actually are. The wristband has the direction and
distance to the Exit, and also tells how many are left "alive". When
you have been registered as dead (the damage the lace netting gets is
registed) the lace netting will begin sending electronic pulses throughout
your body effectively freezing you. This works on both cybernetics and
meat. If a "live" lace netting touches a dead one the live one will
automatically become dead. That makes it so the few here with out honor
won't try to pull a cheap shot. All of the lace netting and electronics
are monitored by our computer, K.O.M.B.A.T., and in the system is the
talented Ms. Wraith."
My blood froze at the name. Wraith. She stood up from her console
and mock-curtsied for us. She was still dressed in all black loose
clothing, and her face still had its unmatched, bodysculpted beauty. The
Wraith was supposedly the second best netrunner in the world, and she
was DreamKiller's prime nemesis. I had some friends that she gave a job
to, in which they were cut down in less then a minute by remote lasers.
All she wanted them for was to test out the laser's accuracy to see if it
would be worth stealing. She was a cold-hearted bitch that made even
'droids look cuddly. 'Course like always she had too many powerful allies
that owed her much so she was untouchable, at least by me. But looking at
her now with that smiling face of hers renews my want to pay her back for
the deaths she caused.
I was so busy focused on my anger and my clenched fists that I missed
the rest of what Shaman said. I was able to pick up on only the last
thing he said "...no questions? Good. Now step through the gate and be
refitted, and then you will be shipped out. Good luck and may the One be
with you."
While I was being refitted, the tech checking me over made small
talk. I said nothing in response, which he expected. When he began
looking at the fire gear, he made a note of the Mini-Dragon, the gel pods
of gas and the fire extinguisher. He refitted the pods and the Dragon.
Then he got to my nearly 5 dozen grenades, gave me a look, then dully refitted
them. He refitted my monokatana with a mock-up that acted and felt like
real thing. He refitted two grenade launchers, a gas pellet gun, an armlatched
mini-rocket launcher, and the various one shot guns I had all about my
suit. Once he got that done he got me into my lace netting and hooked me
up. The cybernetics were automatically checked and made inert so that
they couldn't be used in RL. Once that was done he set the net to immobilize
me and put me on a sky sled
The sky sled ride was uneventful. All of our senses and
sensors were dampened for the ride, and the netting was set to keep us
immobilized for the trip. Over the comm units however there was one
slight event. Back at the hotel when the techs started to refit Clone and
all his weapons he nearly went into a berserker rage when they continued to
pull out his secret caches of weapons and refitting them. Soon enough we
got to the temple caverns and we were individually dropped off at our
assigned points. Mine was a choice location. It was near the top and
even nearer to the central shaft. Most of the ones who are going to make
a run for the exit are going to have to go by me.
As soon as the immobilization ended, I quickly began to set up the
perimeter and all of the traps. The room that I was in was about 70ft by
50ft with a high ceiling. There were two corridors leading it, and a
small airshaft the lead to the exit. All along the corridors I set up
monowhips triggers about 6 per corridor set at heights from neck level and
down. Those lethal traps would slice through any armour and at the very
least dismember the unwary. Once in the room there were dozens of
"rock'em" grenades, the combination explosive sound and flash should shake
even the veterans. I would be lying on top of a crumbling 15ft column. My
eyes and ears were protected but it was my motion sensor that I was counting
on. The instant after one of the grenades would go off, I would fire on
the next moving thing. I was going to use two Sternmeyer Grenade Launchers
(loaded with HEP grenades). In case of a bust up, I had a Wombat gas
pellet gun loaded with nerve toxin. The rest of my equipment was for my
assassination attempt.
Once I was completely set up, I took a nap on top of my column. I
knew they would voice the beginning of the hunt and there would be no
sense staying alert and anxious... I would need the strength later.
I napped for two hours before the gong sounded. The others of Wave A
would be wrecks now if they tried to stay hyped up. All I did was roll
over onto my stomach, facing between the two corridors and waited.
To give them all credit it didn't take them long to get here. Within
half an hour I had my first victim of the monowhips. Two more came from down
the other corridor and were quickly sliced and beheaded (at least
virtually). A forth was unable to dodge the whips from the first corridor.
Four in little bit over an hour... must have been a CyberCircle record.
I checked the wrist monitor of the netting. There were 31 left. A
sliding noise preceed the explosion, but i was able to steel myself.
Somebody was sliding saucer grenades down the corridors. Pucks of Doom,
Frisbees of Death, whatever you call them they aren't fun when you are on
the receiving end. About three were thrown, fortunately one didn't slide into
the room and the other two slid past. Unfortunately my monowhip traps
were made useless. There was a long pause, and during it the assailant
with the grenades snuck into my room. I never saw what he looked like
before one of my grenades went off. True to veteran form the solo dropped
and rolled towards the other side. My motion detectors picked him up
instantly, and with the grenade launchers, I zeroed in on his location and
when he finished his roll, he was met up by twin explosions. The wrist
counter went down by one.
I had two solos enter my room, not knowing it was trapped. They saw
each other, brought their guns to bear, and moved to dodge, tripping my
grenades. Since I was unsure of the outcome if I let them go, I fired my
grenade launchers at them, three at each. From my vantage point I could
tell that neither had gotten a shot off.
About half an hour went by it had been nearly one and half hours since
it began. One hunt was known to have lasted 86 hours. The winner was
nearly starved, and many died due to starvation. The quickest game lasted
under 45 minutes. I wonder how long this one is going to last?
I was just thinking about this when radio silence was broken by
bursts of sustained fire. I winced at the sudden sound. In between
spurts of fire could be heard "NO THAT'S CHEATING..*explosions*
AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! *explosions* DIE MOTHERFUCKER!!!!!!!! gak..." This
was unsettling, it had the sound of at least two people screaming, one
with fear, the other with anger. It was unsettling that not only did it
sound like they died in real life, but they were showing extreme reactions.
For solos of this calibre its alright to feel something, but to express it is
something different. Two more times this happened first the explosions
and screaming were brought to a halt by the sounds of a man choking and
the other was stopped by the audible ripping of flesh and metal.
I was snapped out of my reverie about what was happening by a form
dashing across the floor. He ,like the others, set off a grenade but as
unnerved as I was, I unloaded one of the launchers on him. If this had
been RL there wouldn't have even been a floor for the specks of blood to
land on. I leapt down from my perch to get a closer look and maybe find
out why he did this. It was the "Artist" Laroche. Probably the last man
on this planet to lose his cool, friends of his would joke that his
reaction to an A-bomb explosion would be to put on his shades. The only
time he did lose his cool before is when a woman dared to not reciprocate
his seduction of her. But now, something made him freak. I looked closer
and I saw that that was blood on his red armor. I gave him a once over
and crossed out that the blood was his and he wouldn't be able to tell me
a thing until he was unfrozen.
I was still looking at the Laroche when I heard the his of a sword
being drawn. Instantly, my monokatana was out and I was facing my hunter.
It was DeepFreeze, and he recognized me.
"Hello Afterburn... long time no see chomba"
We began to circle each other "You too, what have you been up to?"
"Nothing much, you know I knew you were still alive, but I wasn't
sure as what or by what."
Neither of us wanted to make the first move "How did you figure it
out?"
"Well I found out later about your re-emergence as Pyro, but when
you died then I felt that had to be the end. When I saw you talking with
Toolbox and Lucretia I made the assumption. You have also maintained the
same style as you used to."
I was about to continue the conversation but another bout of screams
burst through the radio, and we both tried to take advantage of the
distraction and simultaneously attacked. We were both trained by the same
man in kendo and we had changed little. Our strikes and attacks were
perfectly similar like mirror images of each other. Sparks flew off the
striking blades, lighting the room around us. I needed to finish this
fight as quickly as possible. I went for a head slice, and DeepFreeze
ducked beneath it, which i expected but what I hadn't expected was he
continued down, and leg sweeped me neatly off the floor. I rolled
with the fall slamming agains the column, but only in time to duck behind
the column when I saw him draw a grenade and throw it at me. In VR the
grenade exploded and caused the column to collapse. I dodged debris and
stood to face DeepFreeze again. Swords touching, we began to circle again.
"I'm sorry you must lose this way, but I must accomplish my objective."
DeepFreeze looked at me quizzically for a moment, as he asked "In
what way?"
He hardly had the time to finish before I released the sword with
one hand and with a flick of the wrist brought my Surprise Stranger one
shot pistol cannon into my empty hand. In RL a shot with this to the head
at point blank would leave nothing but blood, here it just signals you lost.
I checked my counter it read that there were two left. Somehow I
doubt the other wasn't Clone, but in any case it was time I started heading
towards the exit. I hauled myself up to the airshaft. It was a tight fit
even with so much of my equipment gone, but I was able to slide through.
It led to a much smaller room that was longer than it was wide.
Gracefully, I dropped to the floor and began walking to the door that led
to the exit shaft.
There was a flash of sadness as I walked close to the walls. I was
thinking of the outcome of our battle, either way we would both lose.
That thought was quickly washed away by the remembrance of the fear
in that voice over the radio, and my own fear of that face. Then there
was only silence.
End Part 4 of The Hunt
--
_____ _____ _____ _____
/ _ _ \ / _ _ \ CYBERLOK / _ _ \ / _ _ \
I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I ---------- I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I
I /-\ I I /-\ I sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu I /-\ I I /-\ I
\I I/ \I I/ Lord of Shadows \I I/ \I I/
I_|_|_I I_|_|_I Future Ruler of the World I_|_|_I I_|_|_I
From: sdenoms@austin.onu.edu (Cyberlok)
Subject: The Hunt part 5
Date: Fri, 20 May 1994 20:20:35 GMT
Wow did I get this one put out fast...
copyright c.1994 Stephen Denoms
The Hunt part 5
---------------
Friday afternoon 13, 2021:
The silence still surprised me. I could still hear the gunfire and
screams in my head. This silence was unnatural and I kept to the side of
the wall wary of both doorways.
The only warning I had was the slight crunch of stone before a large
blood covered metallic hand punched through the wall I was walking along,
grabbed me by my throat and managed to drag my head back through the hole.
My brain reacting as quickly as it could only recognized pain, and that
on the other side of the wall was Clone. I managed to squirm free of the
hold and get my head back onto my side, however once I had done that all I
could do was stare dumbly at the hole. There was thundering crunching
sound, followed by another, on the third Clone managed to ram through the
nearly foot thick stone. I needed more time to prepare so I started to spin
away and run for it. But before I had even turn 90 degrees Clone fired
one of his Grappler Hands at me. With dead-on accuracy the hand grabbed my
throat and a winch jerked me off my feet and began to drag me back to Clone.
Once I was back in his grasp using little effort Clone slammed me up
against the wall and used one hand to still keep a grip on my neck and two
others pinned my arms. Getting a good look at him I saw that all four of
his arms were soaked up to the elbows in blood. He had pinned me up high
enough to look him in the eyes. Arasaka had given him a new type of
multifractal cybernetic eyes called "Fly's Eyes" and I saw my reflection
it everyone of them. As grotesquely reflected that I was I could see that
I wasn't betraying my horror.
For a moment he held me there and then he spoke,"I am here to kill
you."
I didn't have a think to say so I just stared at him.
"Now you will die...*squarrrrk*". Clone shook his head like he was
just hit over the head by a metal pipe, then he snapped his head back
facing me"...No, hehehehe, you will know pain, hehehehehe, more pain then
I have ever felt, hehehehehehe, more pain then you have ever felt,
hehehehehe!!!" and with that he pulled back his one free fist and punched
me full force in the torso. The force was so great that the wall behind
me audibly cracked. The only thing that kept his first punch from ripping
through my body was my internal armor, and even that wouldn't be able to
stop it from reducing my insides to paste.
He kept slamming his fist in me over and over. I felt metal laced
bones break, I could feel internal cybernetics shatter, and everything
inorganic being reduced to mush. The wall behind me had formed deep
cracks and breaks in it. Each punch was accompanied by a maniacal laugh
or even a girlish giggle. Then suddenly he paused again.
His head shivered for a moment then in a clear voice minus the normal
cybernetic tone or the dog like growling, one that almost sounded human he
said, "You know Micheal you and me, we aren't so different. We serve cold
harsh masters, we have died only to be brought back to this hell, and we
both have had more then our share of violence. Micheal you are going to
die and I envy you... *squarrrrrrk*" his head shook again, "No we don't we
hate him we hate everything and you will die for the crimes of
everything." He punched me full force in the face. The wall couldn't
take the pressure and gave way.. and the remaining force threw me through
the other room and slammed me against the wall.
Clone was taken aback by this happening and stood still. I began to
vomit, I was vomiting up blood, it was mixed with shiney wires. I laid
there letting the light headedness wash over me as I watched the shiney
stuff float in the blood. It didn't take Clone long to recover. He
stepped through wall enlarging it somewhat and began to talk again.
"You know it never occurred to us to kill people in this hunt with my
bare hands. We thought we would just come in here and play by the rules
and then when we faced you just to pull a wall down over your head. But
then this dumb solo-wannabe tech made us mad and we ripped his new arms
out. Then we decided to have fun. Hehehehehe and it is so much fun!"
As he was striding to me in his slow measured way I began to right my
self. I pointed my arm launch at him and reminded myself that while he
may not play be the rules he is still subject to the effects, and fired.
The micro-missile hit him dead-square on the nose. Most men would
have had there entire upper torso blown off, but Clone just got a minor
crater on his face. He howled out of anger rather then pain and began to
advance on me faster. By this time I was half looping/half crawling my
way out of the room and up the corridor after I had dropped a nerve-toxin
grenade.
He screamed after me "You can't go much farther! And I have an
independent air supply you can't harm me like this! But I have some good
news... You will live longer, because I'm going to take 10 times as long
killing you!"
He was following me slowly and was just barely faster then what I
was moving at. He would catch up to me but he was definitely going to
take his time doing it. I dropped another nerve grenade. At each stop I
dropped another grenade and moved on. He was right. I wouldn't be able to
keep this up. I was nearly blacking out from the pain as is. Blood was now
pouring out of my nose, mouth and even my ears. Five minutes had passed...
had to keep going.
Finally the bleeding had stopped, Clone was only slightly closer to
me. I had thrown eight of the twelve nerve gas grenades. The pain was no
longer threatening to make me black out, it was keeping me awake. As long
as I could feel the pain I was alive. Every once in awhile though I would
feel any intact cybernetics short out for just a second but that was
minor... for now. Ten minutes had passed... had to keep going.
We made a full circle. I had dragged my self back to my room I was
originally station. The flash grenades on the floor dead, the column on
the ground, the monowhips used or destroyed. My clothes at the elbows, knees
and shins were worn through, my fingernails had blood crusted underneath.
I finally came to rest on the doorway opposite the one I had come in. I
could hear Clone's growling before he entered. Using my remaining will, I
stood up, straight and tall. Clone entered looked at me and roared with
laughter. He continued to walk towards me and only stopped in the middle
of the room when I addressed him.
"Clone, you were the one who said you were going to drop a wall on
me. I will have to settle for a virtual ceiling." and with that and
before he could react I pulled out remote device and pressed the button.
Over head the charges I had left exploded and the virtual occurrence was
that a ceiling and all the stone it supported dropped on Clone. I took
refuge from the falling debris in the doorjam. While only plaster actually
fell on him the net lacing made him react as if he was just crushed.
The nightmare was almost over. I walked on unsteady feet toward
Clone. I was wary because even though he should be completely immobilized
Clone still shook and rocked, straining to free himself from the device.
When I was next to him I brought out my fire extinguisher, it wasn't
refitted, after all how could that be used as a weapon. I pointed the
nozzle towards Clones face and pressed the button CO2 foam poured out.
"The micro-missile destroyed your nasal filters, to keep from
shutting down from the nerve gas you used up your air supply. This foam
will smother you and in RL you will be dead. Goodbye Clone, goodbye
nightmares."
I had a steady stream of four minutes of foam. Even as the foam
covered his face he shook and strained. Then all at once he
shuddered and stopped. The extinguisher was empty and I tossed it away. I
looked at Clone's still form and I collapsed. The counter read 1 was
left. I started to crawl towards the airshaft, but I paused and as an
after thought I popped out the red chip from my chip socket and tossed it
onto clones prone form. I turned away but out of the corner of my eye I
could have sworn I saw a spark shoot from the chip but my eyes were already
going on the fritz, so I gave it little thought afterwards.
I pulled my self up into the airshaft. I dragged myself through it,
and tumbled out of the other side as ungracefully as possible. When I
landed instead of a regular thump or crack, there was a wet squish sound
as hit my left side. The pain was beginning to fade and I moved forward
if not a little faster but a with a little bit less discomfort.
By the time I made it to the exit shaft any remaining cybernetics
had either shut down or like my eyes so staticy as to be the next thing to
useless. I was able to make out a ladder built into the side of the shaft
and with a tremendous effort I hauled myself out to it. Up the ladder I
headed, and to keep my self going I began to talk out loud.
"C'mon Micheal...*pant* take a deep breath, focus, go up a step,
take a deep breath, focus, go up a step... *pant* Heh, Heh can you
imagine... *pant* dying... *pant* after all this? *pant*."
I kept this up for I don't how long, I figured if I could keep this
almost mechanical motion of mine I would make it, then the stone crumbled
from the above steps. It was only two or three but there would be no way
I could get up it without them. My left arm (which had more wiring in it
had fallen useless to my side. My internal computer and radio had been
reduced to static. My eyes were flipping in and out so fast that I wasn't
sure what was real or not, I had to feel ahead with my other hand to know
where to go and now I felt only the crumbling stone with in my reach. I
began to cast about desperately and then I began to think how simple it
would be to just let go and fall to my death...
"I can't let you do that Micheal," I heard myself say "We won't die
like this, mission is not accomplished. Clone may be dead, you may have
won the hunt, but your first and foremost mission will be to live. Not
survive like some animal but live."
I slowly drew my katana, and while it wasn't real, the tip would be
sharp enough to stab with. With a some of the last vestiges of strength I
plunged it into the stone as deep and as high as I could get it. I almost
lost my balance but I regained it and without even testing it to see if it
was stable I pulled myself up with it, placed a foot on it and grabbed the
next step.
"I did it!!!! Ha ha I knew I could... well thought I could... well
doubted very little that I couldn't."
However all my energy was sapped, I began to bleed again, the blood
frothing on my lips, and darkness began to overwhelm me. The pain was almost
gone though, and I felt a smile spread on my lips. My voice had died away
in little rasps. All around me I saw the faces of those I'd killed in
each of my incarnations. Maybe this time I would be able to have peace.
I felt my grip begin to slide and I closed my eyes. Then I felt a the
drops of little pebble on my head and I looked up. There precariously
hanging from the steps was Shaman, or at least look like Shaman from what
my vision granted me.
Who ever he was he said, "You young man look like you have taken
the punishment from the entire Panama War unto yourself. You look a lot
like I did. Now you are hanging here getting ready to kill yourself
because it is the easiest thing to do. Let me tell you something what we
do is not easy, was never easy and will never be easy so you just have to
be harder then what you do. Now I'll either see you at the top or when we
scrape you off the bottom." And he quickly climbed the back up the ladder.
How dare he do that!, I thought. I have been through nine levels
of hell in this one event. In my life I have been used and abused by the
best. I have fought and killed for most of my lives and now he is saying
I am not harder then my job?! My scream of anger came out as a gurgle of
blood but my mind had kicked my body in the right way. I felt real
adrenalin pumping through my veins. My left arm came to life again and I
began to drag myself up once again.
There were only about five more steps to go but each one was one
were I felt the adrenalin weaken just a little bit more. Then finally I
reached up with a shaking hand and felt packed desert stone. With a
exhalation of air and blood I lifted my self out of the shaft and into
the desert sun. I sat up on my knees and stared around me the brightness
made me blink... my anti-dazzlers were shot. The adrenalin was gone and so
had everything else, I was about to collapse like putty when a stiff
breeze hit and I felt myself falling back down the shaft. I didn't care
though and that when I firm hand grabbed my arm and hauled me back. I
blinked again and recognized the face of the man who had just talked to me
in the shaft.
He smiled and said "Glad I was able to see you in the light young man."
The last thing I heard was the scurry of medtechs and their equipment
around me, and then the pain stopped.
Monday 12, 2021
I stepped out of the hospital for the first time since I arrived. I
had been in there since The Hunt. The doctors here were some of the best
in the world but even they were hard pressed to save me. The only bones in
torso area that weren't broken were in my spine and almost all of those were
slipped. The cybernetics that were smashed acted like blenders and
contributed to the devastation to my innards. All major and minor organs
from my neck to my hips had to be replaced and the appropriate cybernetics
and tissues put in. My all internal cybernetics had to be rewired and my
subdermal and weaves had to be replaced. All bones in my body the were
broken were replaced with adamantite bones with artificial marrow inside.
It took them 3 straight days of work to save me, another week of not
emergency work and even then I was in the hospital for about 2 months.
I was just happy to be breathing, let alone this fresh air. The sun
was out and I let it fall on me. I was still relaxed even though I was
carrying no external weapons. I was given another penthouse suite, one
with the bill paid for up to a year. I was now ranked second in the
CyberCircle. Solos are already counting on me to challenge Shaman in less
then a year. The prize for winning The Hunt was the suite, my cybernetics,
a free bodysculpting, my own personal AV-4, and of course the rank. All
others go down one to were ever they fit. There were a total of 7 solos
killed by Clone, Mr. Toolbox among them. Arasaka after proclaiming him
dead shipped him back to there Madrid Headquarters.
A voice interrupted a reverie, "Hey stud." It was Lucretia.
"Hey, yourself." I met here with open arms and kissed her and
hugged her tight. "Ow..." I said "Don't hug me to hard, there are parts
that are still a little pained."
She smiled at me "Ooooh after going through all this you are going
to let a little girl like me hurt you? Besides thats not what you said
last night."
I laughed and hugged her again. There was a small spanish boy
headed past us selling roses. I stopped him and to buy a rose from him.
He smiled at me and hand me a rose.
"No charge senor." He stopped smiling and growled the last words
"This one's on Arasaka, they want to congratulate you." With that he
popped wolvers out of his right forearm and plunged them into my guts,
twisted them around and ripped straight up, slicing my heart along with
the rest. I looked in his eyes and saw only my reflection. From the
searing pain and icyness that followed I could tell that there was a
combination of poisons laced in with those wolvers. I fell to the ground,
Lucretia screamed, and the little boy walked non-chalantly across the
street got in a car and drove off. My last thoughts were of DreamKiller
and how maybe this time he will let me sleep.
End of The Hunt
But will there be a epilogue???
--
_____ _____ _____ _____
/ _ _ \ / _ _ \ CYBERLOK / _ _ \ / _ _ \
I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I ---------- I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I
I /-\ I I /-\ I sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu I /-\ I I /-\ I
\I I/ \I I/ Lord of Shadows \I I/ \I I/
I_|_|_I I_|_|_I Future Ruler of the World I_|_|_I I_|_|_I
From: sdenoms@austin.onu.edu (Cyberlok)
Subject: The Hunt epilogue
Date: Fri, 27 May 1994 03:56:45 GMT
Well folks this is truly the end of The Hunt but not of everbody else. I
hope you enjoyed it as much as I did reading it and I hope you mail me
your critiques, responses, flames, and kudoos. Friday is my last day at
school but I will be intermittenly get at my account again. So have no
fear about mailing me stuff. Look for my final send off tomorrow and read
my techno-horror short story THe Corrupted.
--Steve
copyright c.1994 Stephen Denoms (sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu)
The Hunt: Epilogue
------------------
Somewhen:
In the farthest reaches in the seemingly infinite reaches of cyberspace,
in an area rarely ever seen and totally unpatrolled mountain of data as
high in cyberspace as Mt. Olympus is in RL, sits a black castle perpetually
exposed to lightning storms of disused data and self destructing programs.
This this data fortress's black ice etched and chiseled with such
intricacy as to seem to complete make up the black castle's stone walls.
Modified gargoyle programs sit still as statues completely surrounding and
guarding the area. How realistic the datafortress's icon seems to be
from its turrets to the grooves in the wall is a minor testament to its
owner and creator's ability. This is Castle'Lok and its master is
Dreamkiller.
Through the maze like twists and turns inside the corridor and down
many code-doors, down to its "subterranean" level sits a man, staring
intently at a image floating before him. On the image you can see a man
just walking out a hospital, just getting hugged by a beautiful female,
just getting murdered by a child. The image zooms in on the dying man's
face and faintly you can make out him murmuring the words "Peace, peace at
last..." With a wave of his hand the dark man dispells the floating image
and stands up.
For a moment he looks at himself in his reflection from the VR mirror
and pauses for seconds remembering that this is what his flesh body looked
like and now he only uses its image as a way to relax. The thought was
frivolous and consequently fleeting.
The dark man sighs, "My friend, peace will never come to those like
us." Regret etches his face as he turns to a file rendered invisible by
such hi level programs as to make any other black op protection it
meaningless. After reciting incrediblely long strings of words, it being
so long it made even him pause to remember it all, the file opens. From
it he withdrew what looked like a 3D stylization of a human brain, placing
it in the air, he circled its hovering form.
"I couldn't give you peace even if I wanted to let you go. You like
me, are destined to have such a radical impact on the earth that to let
either one of use die would be a crime past the redemption of even hell.
I hope you understand that, and while you may never forgive me, even
though I am torturing your soul, I am actually saving it. Day'Lok...
status."
From the above levels float downwards a glowing yellow ball, with in
appeared the image of the Illuminati eye. "Project-Immortal-continued-
successfully. Subject-Micheal-Dillinger-aka-Afterburn-aka-Pyro-aka-Hardcore-
conscious-still-functions-within-set-parameters. He-remembers-up-to-three-
seconds-after-the-ten-minute-death-stages. Anything-further?"
"No, no that will be all. Has there been anything of note since I
have been out of touch?"
"Outside-of-Castle'Lok-gargoyles-reported-and-attacked-a-group-of-Cyber-
Cowboys. Once-the-Cowboys-went-out-of-range-Program-Deathlok-determined-it-
was-within-his-programming-parameters-to-seek-and-destroy. Unknown-when-
it-will-return."
"Hmmmm, I see. Send it down here when it returns. Other then that I
wish you to check over your CPU's 1-7, understood?" And with that the
glowing yellow globe floated back up through the floors to the upper levels.
"Night'Lok report."
A amorphous black form materialized next to the man. Dozens of eyes
stared darkly from its depths, dozens of smiling fanged mouths accompanied
them. "I don't know why you even created that pitful termite of an AI.
Why waste the computer space. You should just let me take it over add all
his abilities to mine and I will be able to serve you even better Mi'lord."
The man flashed a bemused smile and said "You never give up do you.
Day'Lok controls levels 1-4 and has only 7 CPU's. All he does is keep
track of my programs and watches over the datafortress. You on the other
hand are guardian of Castle'Lok's sub-level have 36 CPU, the last 6 were
totally unauthorized I might add, and you not only watch over but initiate
all black ops. I never should have made your icon in the form of Azeel
Devil of Power and Corruption but I thought it fitting. Now have you
acquired a body for Project Immortal?"
"Yes Mi'Lord. It fits perfectly with all specifications, its wet
drive will be dumped and Micheal Dillingers will be imputed. Oh by
the way, the man who sold his body to use cursed Arasaka to his dying
breath for firing him and forcing him to such lowness. Rather ironic
don't you think?"
The dark man almost smiled at that "Yes what Irony. Give me a review
of the Legacy Program."
"Hmmmmm Project WraithWake. Dillinger was successful at killing
Clone, even though Arasaka has him stored much like we have Dillinger. It
was unnecessary to kill Clone. Placing the red chip on the lace netting
and letting the taser electrically send the Legacy program straight into
the netting was all that was required. The netting would then send the
program directly in the K.O.M.B.A.T. computers as any other bit of
information those things were sending. Knowing Miss Wraith we figured she
would have her equipment hooked-up to the computer. The mother cell of
the Legacy program would have traveled piggyback on all the other signals
and then incorporated itself in one of her own programs. By itself the
mother cell can only create other cells which will then need its own
program to latch onto and create more cells. It isn't until all all
programs are are laced with cells that program Legacy may be executed."
"And the status?"
"Miss Wraiths systems will be totally incorporated in three weeks.
The required stealth slows its time considerably. But in three weeks her
programs, computer, deck, and even herself will be under my complete
control."
"Very good Night'Lok, you may go now."
With that the AI disappeared the way it appeared and the man was
left alone with the icon of the brain. Turning to face the brain, the man
began to think out loud "I wonder, what will you turn into this time? You
have been an arsonist, a murderer, a dragon, a heartless killer, a thief,
and cop. I wonder who you will be and what you will be and then how will
you judge me? I wonder..."
The End!
--
_____ _____ _____ _____
/ _ _ \ / _ _ \ CYBERLOK / _ _ \ / _ _ \
I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I ---------- I I_\ /_I I I I_\ /_I I
I /-\ I I /-\ I sdenoms@gauss.onu.edu I /-\ I I /-\ I
\I I/ \I I/ Lord of Shadows \I I/ \I I/
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