Brain Child

By Steve Fuelleman and Taunya Gren c2006

The ‘Guilty Pleasure’ was smoky, with a gray-blue haze hovering just above the denizens heads, obscuring the already dim lights. A moderately garish sign hung over the central ‘bar’ and things just got dimmer as you moved away from the service area. Although it was difficult to see what was happening in the corners, the movement taking place in some of the ‘Jill’ areas hinted at more violent, or sensual pursuits while the lack of movement in others indicated the ‘Jacks’, or addicts. Plugged, plowed or injected…this was not one of your high class establishments.

“You know Wonder, I wonder why bars are always smoky, when ‘smoke’ has little to do with what’s going on in here anymore?” the girl muttered to her companion. They made quite a pair standing there in the moderately lit area near the entry. The more flashy of the two, a delicately molded blond elven beauty wearing nothing but smoke and mirrors, the speaker a more humanly endowed girl with a figure barely masked by the leather and mesh she wore.

The lights reflected in a blue halo off the hair of the speaker as she turned her head scanning the human refuse that inhabited that little corner of heaven….”Halo” was her name, at least for now. Her hair ranged from very light blue at the top of her head to black at the tip of her long straight locks. She was probably about 18, but she didn’t really know. “Not that one…. Not that one… “ she whispered to herself as she scanned the prospects. That one looked too rich, probably had protection. That one wasn’t alone. That one…. Hmmmm…. That one may do. She smiled to herself and with a nod to Wonder she moved after her quarry.

The trick went down like usual… She approached him, he declined, she put the extra juice in it and he caved. Then to the alley out back...groping, kissing, whispered seductions… and the final risk. She closed her eyes and touched him… but not with her hands this time. Her mind took his and with just a little coercion sent it into sleep.

She lowered him to the ground and began going through his clothing. Cred-stick, papers, a little dust, all the usual stuff. Those things worth something found their way into the heels of her shoes, everything else put back where it belonged.

And then as her hands searched, she felt something. Odd… it called to her a little. When she pulled it from the compartment in his arm (well done cybernetics that) she saw it was just a little card. She’d never seen one like this before, but then, she lived on the bottom of the food chain. She wouldn’t recognize the more expensive tech if it bit her. She went to put it back, but found she couldn’t.

Not even sure really why she added it to the small group of items she’d stolen so far this evening and then with a quick glance around, stood up and strolled off to find the next hit. She sighed as she went… she sure preferred this to doing it the ‘old fashioned’ way.

What she didn’t notice were the eyes that followed her from the deeper shadows……..

“Wonder” moved to follow Halo, her hands itching to grab something that wasn’t supposed to be there.

“I don’t like this”, came a somewhat androgynous voice that didn’t exactly match the delicate exterior.  With a shimmer the holo-image faded, revealing an equally delicate Elf boy. 

“You always complain, but if they see me with a guy they won’t pick up on me.”, Halo replied, checking the balance on the cred-stick. 

“Not just that.  Something else felt, I dunno, creepy.”  The boy flexed his hand and a gun appeared in it like magic, the whirr of the power-holster almost inaudible. 

He looked around, his ears twitching nervously.  “Let’s be LG.”, he advised.

“Long and gone sounds good,” replied Halo, “but the night is still young.”  The pair moved quickly away, with “Halo” altering her appearance as soon as they rounded a corner.   

Trigger growled.  His companion’s magic could give her a new face as needed.  They’d only been able to afford one body template for the holo-mask though, so he was either himself, or some bim in an outfit that would make a harem dancer blush.

They steered clear of Eternal Night.  The corp kiddies who played there had the right numbers, thanks to daddy, but you couldn’t always tell the Goths from the real Vamps.  They ended up dealing a team-trick to a middie at the Under 21, a retro hang.  The man was mid-everything.  Middle aged, middle income, middle management, in the middle of a business trip, and probably had 2.5 children at home.  Had a weakness for Elves though, and wanted both of them.  Had a room too.

They were heading there when the man suddenly slumped.  Trigger first thought it was Halo, or the man’s lousy liver, but it wasn’t magic or booze.  There was a small red hole in the back of the man’s head.  And they’d never heard the shot. 

The click of her heels and the clatter of his boots was all that was heard.  No questions, no poking around, no nothing.  Questions would come later.  Maybe even some answers. For now, motion, and a hole to pull in after them.

________

“Who’d bother to waste a Chibi like him?” Halo breathed to her companion once they’d taken refuge in what used to be a boiler room and was now just a ‘boarded’ up home for refuse. Good thing she’d been disconnected when he’d gone, it always messed her up. Part of why she didn’t use guns very much.

They’d tucked back in behind the scrap, up close and personal and waited to see if they were followed. After a while when nothing showed she had relaxed and decided to take care of business.

Pulling the evenings take from its stash, she grimaced in disappointment. Not as much as she’d hoped. Her share not enough for even one shot of puff…one night of dream-free sleep. But.. there was that odd card. Once again as she touched it that sense of calling, contact somehow. Like a buzz at the back of her head. Almost she wanted to hide it, keep it to herself. But that wasn’t the deal and she needed Trigger.

“Hey Trig, what do think this is?”

Trigger looked at the card, turning it over and over in his hand.  There were no visible markings, and the plain cream/putty color carried no meaning.  Still, there was something about it.  He examined the edges, and saw… 

“Optics.”, he said.  “There’s fiber links at the edge.  Too big to be a data chip, unless it‘s an old one.  Or a non-standard, high capacity job.  Where’d you pilf’ it?”

“I took it from the guy I Jilled outside of Guilty Pleasures. He had it hidden. It feels….alive…. almost.”

She took the card from his hand and frowned at it, running her fingers over the edges. It felt good. Warm…. With a bit of willpower she put it on the pile. “How much do you think it’d rail for?”

“Don’t know,” said Trigger. “But, I’ll bet enough to keep us happy.” She nodded in reluctant agreement.

After a bit more time they decided it was quiet enough to head back to their current flop. Slipping past the middies the kiddies and the monsters that haunted this part of the run they made their way to the beat up building and the tiny room they called home.

As they entered they both went through their individual rituals…. Trigger combing the shadows for unexpected company, Halo scanning the minds of the tenants to get their surface thoughts. The rubes in number 3 were stoned, no trouble there, 5,6 and 7 were asleep, dreaming of things better left unspoken and their neighbor in 8 wasn’t there or was dead…either way no threat.

They slid into number 9 and locked the door behind them. After checking the cramped room, Trigger moved to the trough and began to rummage while Halo stepped into the shower.

When she came out he was spread out on the low couch eating something out of a box. She wandered across to the trough herself, aware of his eyes on her. It was kind of fun to taunt him that way. Not fair really, but then neither was anything else in life.

Trigger stopped chewing. It still gave him a bit of a shock when she did that…..walking around the place naked as a baby and as unselfconscious. Not that her working threads covered much more. Her appearance was the real girl now, or at least, he thought it must be. It was who she was at night when it was just the two of them.

Later, as she lay heavy in sleep she dreamt….

Glittering crystal, red wine, well dressed bodies moving in graceful patterns. Then a long wooden table…real wood, not the cheap synth she was accustomed to. Men, powerful seeming men, her enemies and her partners all at once arranged around it. Money… deference, hints of emotions, rage, triumph, calculation. And then…

Fear. Surrounded by dark shapes, the glitter of knives, the bark of guns, the scorch of flame and the stink of magic. His/her guardians falling until there was only the enemy surrounding. And then blinding pain and darkness, the cold metal of the machine…death….

She woke up screaming.

(Crouched on the blood soaked carpet in number 8, it listened.)

Halo looked around frantically, shaking off the dream.  Trigger was up, gun in hand, eyes wide in response to her scream. 

He quickly checked the door, noting that the wedge was still in place, then moved to the window.

“It was just a dream.” Halo assured him, still shaking a bit herself. 

“Was it?” the young Elf asked, still tense.  “Can’t you smell it?  Blood scent.  Close.”  He glanced at his partner, and saw the look in her eyes.  “No, don’t scan.  You don’t want to plug in to a corpse in progress, do you?” 

He moved quickly, grabbing his pants and trying to get dressed while holding the gun.  Sounded cool, but didn’t work too well.

“Time for some E&E.”, he declared.  “Pack it up, we’re finding some new digs.  Crash in the barrens for a bit, something.”

The murder last night had rattled him.  The Jack had been the target, no question.  There hadn’t been a second shot.  But was he the real target, or just taking a message for them? 

They’d practiced their Evade and Escape maneuvers before.  Their own digs could be under the eye, so they headed across the hall and out the window.  The fire escape was a wreck, of course, but it was good enough.  They headed out and up a floor, then down the hall and out again, to the roof of a nearby building, and away. 

“Can’t you slow down?” demanded Halo, still stuffing loose things into her bag.  “That place was paid for.” 

“Rent in the barrens is paid in bullets.” Trigger responded, quoting the old street adage.  “Two deaths, right on top of us. Maybe nothing, maybe something.  You don’t die of nothing, unless you ignore it.” 

They went down until they hit the pavement, and kept going.  The underground wasn’t a great place for Elves, but it was out of sight.

“Wait, hold it!” Halo finally ordered, stopping and refusing to move.  “Why the sudden jelly in your spine?”

Trigger stopped, panting, and considered this question.  He really didn’t know.  He’d had neighbors go down before, and had picked through their apartment looking for salvage.  He’d kept a frost on when a wirehead got fragged right next to him.  But something was wrong.  They were being stalked, but he didn’t know how he knew.

Okay, he’d broken security last night.  He’d dropped his holo before Halo had dropped hers, and walked away with her.  Bad practice, careless.  He decided to make a call.

“General repair, Manny speaking.” came the voice over the phone.  Manny was a “Fixer” in street parlance, a dealer in arms and the folks who used them. 

“Hey Manny, Trig’ here. What’s the L and G?  Got a repair job for me?” he asked, dropping even more into street-speak than usual. 

“Great but not late:  A pony got skinned twice last night.  First by a chippie, then a vibro.  Word is the lady’s real expensive.  Need details?”  Translation:  Good contract, but not fresh.  A courier lost his package last night, and paid the price for being careless.  There was a high price on the head of the lady who’d lifted his load…

“You know me, always curious.” Trigger responded.   

“Some outie wanted a little in, and hooked with a local talent.  She danced and took credit for it, along with some new bit of something from Aztechnology.  Five K for her head, seven and a half if it’s still on her body, ten if she still has the little somethin-somethin.  Sellers market, so expect some air on this one.  Glitter girl with Elf meat in orbit, at the Pleasure.  Corp-sec already fumigated, and you’re sloppy seconds on this one, so move quick or stay clear.” 

“Thanks, Manny.  Keep it sharp, ‘cause you’ll need it.” Trigger replied.  Then he translated: 

“The middie we tagged was an out of town type, looking to score a little in and out.  He got killed for losing that card, and they’re looking for us.  Word is out on Halo and Wonder, but not by name.  The price is high, and inflation will drive it up.  That’s the bad news.  The good news is that the price is higher if we’re alive, and even higher if we have the card.  The bad news is that it’s Aztech.  They don’t have any sense of humor.  The Guilty Pleasure is off limits for us, and anybody with any sense.  Corporate security is there, and will be for a while.  The place may be gone.  Manny thinks I want the contract, and I promised him his cut, but we’re behind the curve.  Someone else already has it.”

“We’re either rich”, he explained, “or we’re dead.”

“I prefer rich,” she bounced back, pretending to cool. She looked at him.

“So Trig, you thinking of Benedicting me for the cred?”

Trigger looked at her in surprise.  “Hey, tempting as that may sound, it’s not my style.  Plenty there for two, and a lot more fun to share.” 

He looked up and down the dark tunnel, then drew her along to a small niche in the wall.  “Besides if we choose ‘rich’, we have to avoid the ‘dead’ part, and that works better with two of us.”

He dropped to a crouch, his eyes glued on the opening above.  “You watch ahead, I want to see the tail.” 

But after several nerve wracking minutes, no shadow darkened the stair.  If they really were being followed, the shadow was cool and patient.

He closed his eyes for a moment, centering his pas as he’d been taught, then opened what his father had called “The third eye”.  In mage-speak, he was looking at the astral plane, to see if they were being spied upon from there.  Halo could do it easier than he could, but if he didn’t practice these things he’d lose the gift, and it had saved his skin more than once. 

A quick glance at Halo showed her as she saw herself, not that different from the way he saw her with two eyes.  Then he focused, and looked around.  Damnation… 

“We have a lot of company.” he advised.  “There’s about a dozen spirits hanging around us.  A couple of Watchers, a rogue City spirit, and some Elementals. Any of them yours?”

She focused on the Astral. “No, I don’t mess with them normally. Too risky.”

She looked around. Damn there were a lot of them all just sitting and watching. Wait, one looked…familiar. Where did she know it from?

A sound from the tunnel pulled her attention back to the meat. Trigger melted back into the niche even further, pressing her up against the wall. The tromp of boots, more than one set echoing down the tunnel. Overconfident, not even trying to be quiet boots.

“Shhh.” Trigger hissed, then realized his mistake.  Even that sound was too much.

Half a dozen Orcs stopped their move, and began to look around.  Their gang tat’s marked them as Cave Cowboys, and they dressed to match.

“Yo, anybody else smell Elf meat?” called one, the apparent leader.  In fact, the entire underground stank of mold and moisture.  Not as bad as a sewer, but whether a cave was a concrete subway tunnel or a limestone cavern, it was still a cave.  So Trigger knew he’d been seen. 

He flexed his will, and moved, reality dragging at his movements.  He stepped from his hiding place to give himself a clear field of fire, dropped to one knee for a stable shooting base, and brought his gun to bear.  He took his time aiming, nearly an eight of a second, and squeezed off his first shot.  The second one followed so quickly that the two discharges sounded almost as one. 

The leader stood slack jawed, shocked into silence.  He had drawn his revolvers, but found that he held only the grips.  The Elf’s rapid shots had shattered the antique bone of both guns, leaving him unarmed. 

“Just passing through, Citizen,” Trigger advised.  “Nothing to see, so move along now.”  He held his shooting pose, hoping it was dramatic enough.  He knew that he wasn’t going to out gun half a dozen Orc gangers.  All he could hope to do was convince them that this particular Elf was a lot more trouble than he was worth.

The Orc stared at his ruined pistols, and anger began to burn.  “Those things cost me two grand apiece, thin-mint.” he snarled.  

Calmly Trigger reached into his pocket and withdrew a biz-tag.  He flipped it to the Orc leader.  “Call Manny.  The number’s on the chip.  He has a guy who can fix them up as good as new.”  His gun never wavered, and his eyes, like his voice, were icy cold. 

“We wuz just lookin’ for some fun.” one of the Orcs said in a whiny voice. 

“Then keep looking chummer, ‘cause if this happens, it won’t be fun.” came the reply. 

“My boys will carve you up good.” growled the leader, still not calling the attack.  “But we’ll be nice and keep your pretty-pretty around for a few days.”

“I can’t drop all of you before it gets crazy.” Trigger conceded.  “But I can kill you, and the first one of your boys to grab iron.  Any volunteers?

The Orc leader considered his odds.  Not the gang’s odds, his own.  He knew his boys would skin this small fry and roast him, but they weren’t the ones staring down the barrel of the guy’s gun.  He was.

“You on a run?” he asked, looking for a way out. 

“Yep.  AzTech’s got a contract.  Not on you, so you get to live.  Just walk away.” 

The ganger decided to live, which was good for everyone.  He’d hassle a citizen who wandered down here, but this guy was the real deal, not some wannabe kiddie playin’ around.

“Your lucky day, Ears.” he growled.  “You got Aztech’ watchin’ your back.  Bring those ears down here again, I’ll have em’ on a necklace.”

“I’ll remember that.” Trigger conceded.  “You walk east, the way you were goin’, and we’ll walk west.  And everybody gets to live.” 

The Orcs shuffled and growled a few more threats, but the conflict had broken.  Each group backed away from the other, until the tunnel curved and they were lost from sight. 

“What if they find that we don’t have Aztech’s run?” Halo asked breathlessly.

“Doesn’t matter.  Their Johnson wouldn’t care.  Runners are expendable, and the Cowboys knew it.  He just needed an out.  Now we need one too.  Next stair up, we take it.” 

Trigger keyed his cell, and called Manny again.

“Hey Manny, I got a double-edge for you.” he said in greeting.  “Orc ganger with mini-vulcans gonna need new grips.  I tossed him your biz-whiz, so expect the call.”

“Chilly Trig’.” came the reply.  “It cuts both ways.  Stay tactile.”

He’d cut Manny in for some profit, so Manny would cut him in in return.  And he’d definitely stay in touch.  Days like this were usually hectic and deadly, but profitable as hell if you lived to see sunset.  That was always the question.

Down the tunnel another 5 klics and they scrambled up the ladder to the street. Stopping a moment to get their bearings Halo realized they were in Japantown proper. And ‘proper’ was what it exactly wasn’t.

Leering holographics spattering the streets, wriggling as the denizens walked through them, selling just about everything that could be sold, and some things that couldn’t. Even the out of doors here was covered in the blue/green haze of puff and stuff (the puff quieted the critical brain functions, the stuff heightened the physical sensations… not a healthy combo but effective).

She generally steered clear of Japantown, it ran too deep, even for her. And since she and Trig had hooked up, a definite no deal. But perhaps a good place to go to ground for now. Give them time to figure out how to square that deal and get paid instead of dead.

She looked at Trigger, not sure if he’d ever been here before but he still looked chilly from the showdown so she couldn’t tell.

“I think I know a place we can crash here. Payment’s a little… uh…lowdown, but not a hang for citizens. Even the president of Aztech himself couldn’t bribe his way in. You game?”

“Sure thing,” growled Trigger, eyes scanning the crowded street warily.

“Alright then, you get to be my Jack.” And with a phony giggle she draped herself on him and led him through the flesh on the road to a garishly lit place called the “Coral Kizune”.

They didn’t go in the front door though. Instead she laid hands on him (Trigger looked surprised but not entirely unhappy as she touched him) and nuzzling, pushed him into the alley next door. Once they’d moved past the reflected light of the sign she pulled away and changed her look to Japanese.

Towards the back of the alley was a door, half hidden in the shadows. She knocked and then murmured some words in Japanese. A faint reply then “Arigato” she said and the door opened to reveal a narrow hallway, dimly lit and a rickety stairway going up both blocked by an escapee from the Sumo circuit.

“Beni will take you to the room. I’ll be there in a little bit.” She whispered and watched as Trigger reluctantly followed the waddling Beni up the stairs to a tiny room with a cot and pretty much nothing else.

Then, she went down the hallway muttering to herself, “I hate doing things the old fashioned way.”

Trigger checked the flop.  It looked like a flop.  Better than a coffin, but it smelled worse.  His nose told him what he already knew:  This was a place of business.

He checked the Astral plane, and saw the crowd of spirits still hanging around. Most seemed drawn to Halo, but he still seemed to have a few fans.  Really creepy.  He’d never seen that kind of thing before. 

He swept the place for bugs and found the usual assortment:  Some multi-legged, and a couple of wired ones.  He grabbed a dust-bunny from under the bed and shoved it into the lens hole of the vid-link.  Maybe the letch that ran the place would clean it more often now.

Then he relaxed.  Sort of.  He popped the clip from his gun and replaced it with a full one, then began to assemble the long rifle.  He normally kept it in its case, but today wasn’t normal, and when all was said and done, he was a better shot with it than he was with the pistol.

Then he moved the futon away from the wall and sat behind it, folding his legs lotus style.  With the rifle laid across the bed this way, he could rest, and still cover the door.  It wasn’t even mid morning, but he didn’t know when rest would happen again, so he took it where he could find it.      

25 minutes later Halo left the ‘managers’ office and made her way upstairs, scanning lightly on the way. No one paying any attention to her. She breathed a sigh of relief as she straightened her skirt and scratched on the door to the room she’d just payed for.

“It’s me,” she whispered, not wanting a bullet for a welcome and then slipped inside. Trigger looked up from the floor behind the futon. “What kept you?”

She took a seat on the cot. Sitting as far from his rifle as possible she removed her shoe and emptied the stash inside before answering in her most official voice.

“We have exclusive title to these deluxe accommodations for 24 hours. We can also have up to 5 guests, according to the contract, before we have to give a cut.” She wrinkled her nose. “Smells bad in here.”

Trigger rolled his eyes. “We still have company.”

Halo focused on the astral plane. “Damn. What are they doing?” She shuddered. They just watched. And there was that one, really scary looking, that looked familiar.

Sighing she pulled the little putty-colored card from the pile. “Ok, so what do we do about all this?” She turned it over in her hands…warm…alive. “What are you?” she muttered to it and then on an impulse touched it to her forehead.

Trigger leapt to his feet as with a cry she stiffened. Where the card touched her he could see the fibers along the edges glowing and her name became her reality as the halo around her head intensified and took on a golden edge.

Time slowed to heartbeat and breath as he reached to strike the card from her hand. But even as he connected, the light faded and she sagged.

He grabbed her shoulder before she could fall. “Halo?” Not wanting to put the rifle down long enough to hold her proper he struggled for a moment to keep her upright. Then her eyes opened… but she wasn’t in them.

“Well, this is certainly unexpected.” The voice was Halo’s but had a certain masculine overtone to the words. Highbred too.

Trigger backed away a step and covered her with the rifle. It felt wrong, but safe will always be better than sorry. “Alright, spill.”

She/He smiled and looked at the dive around them…cool….frosty even, considering the weapon pointed at him/her. “Well, up until a moment ago, I was dead. Your talented friend here has seen to that though.” He/she frowned. “I can’t access her. Apparently it’s a one-way path. The technology obviously hasn’t been tested enough.” He/she stood slowly and bowed a little. “Perhaps you’ll understand more clearly if I introduce myself. I am what is left of Daniel Mahan Lonestar, president of Aztechnology, and I believe we can do business.”

Trigger began to shake.  He’d taken suicide runs, and dealt with gunfire and gang bangers, and was almost ready to face his father.  But this scared the hell out of him. 

He’d never heard of an AI that could fit into a card, nor anyone who could link to one without a cyber-port implant.  Of course he wasn’t one of those code-dependant technoids who lived in the net, but one fact was common knowledge:  AI computers went insane before too long.  And the more intelligent they were, the quicker they lost it.

“So, you’re what? A brain scan, using Halo as a player?  Or are you someplace else, and you’re just taking her as a Drone?” 

He lowered the gun, though he didn’t set it aside.  He didn’t want to shoot Halo.  But…

Wait a minute.  “You’re ‘what’s left of’ Lonestar, the Aztech’ president?  So you’re dead?”

He/She grimaced. “An unpleasant thing to exist through. It seems my Vice President wants my position. Unsuprisingly, she also wants my credaccounts. She had me assassinated …I assume less than 48 hours ago. Fortunately her greed has outmaneuvered her and she had me recorded for the banking information.”

He/she looked at Trigger. “You see, this is new tech. ‘Aztechnology’ of the very highest level, and the most secretive.” He/she smiled at the joke. “It’s not on the market and may never be openly.”

With another smile that put a chill in Trigger’s spine he/she began pacing. “A quick overview so that you understand, and then the deal. This is tech-magic. The magic preserves the awareness, memory, ‘soul’, if you will. The technology transfers and implants the magic in the host. A host genetically linked to the donor. Or a cybernetic with genetic material incorporated prior to the death of the donor which is preferable. At the moment of death, the ‘soul’ is recorded or linked to the chip which is then implanted in the host. The host activates with the full memory and awareness of the donor as if they had never died, just been transferred to a new body. Immortality.”

His/her chilling smile widened at the horrified understanding dawning in Trigger’s face. “Something no one took into account is that your young friend seems to carry the right mix of magic and genetics to hold my awareness.”

“And now the deal. The downside is that the awareness can only be held for 48 hours in the transfer agent before it dissipates. Much as I enjoy the youthful energy of this host I have another that is more appropriate. If you can get me to that host within the 48 hours which started…when? I will pay you an appropriately high amount of credit, say, 1 mil? And I will owe you a favor, which is perhaps more valuable.”

He/she cocked her head at Trigger. “If you can’t, then this host becomes permanent I believe, even with the unorthodox transfer. Oh, and my people, my enemies people and whatever runners she’s hired will be trying to stop you.”

He/she faced Trigger squarely. “Do we have a deal?”

“Okay, let me get this straight.  If I don’t get you out of Halo in 48 hours you’re locked in forever.  If you go back into the chip, you ‘dissipate’.  And whether I help you or not, there’s CorpSec after me, and a price on my head, ‘cause I know what’s going on.  That about sum it up?”

He paced.  He liked Halo, but he liked breathing too, and the best way to do that was to run like hell.  The deal was damned good.  Too good, in fact. Lots of Cred’, if he could trust a Corporate type.  The problem was, whether he helped out or not, he still “knew too much”, and a bullet was so much cheaper than a cred-stick.  Having an ‘in’ with Aztech was a two edged sword, but to stick it to them and still have an in was just too tempting.

“Okay, here’s how we’ll work it,” he proposed.  “You got numbers in your head.  Account numbers, passwords, stuff like that.  They’re worth money.  I get 10% up front.  We may need it to hire some help.  Besides, every Cred’ you slip me is one your corp-buddies can’t steal from you, so it’s a win-win for you.  I know people, a fixer who’ll ‘hold the gold’ until you clear it.  We can make a call, and have the transfer done at arm’s length, so they can’t use it to find us.  I won’t be able to get the money until the job’s done.  I’ll also need to know where we’re going, and what’s waiting for us there.  Security codes, floor plans, who and how many, what they like for lunch and when they eat it if you know.”

“Oh, and one more thing.” he said.  “As far as my fixer, or anyone else is concerned, your name is now Johnson.”

He/she quirked an eyebrow at Trigger… “To business then. The account you can take your money from is NewSeattle Bank account number,” here he/she rattled off a string of numbers. “Password is…” He/she paused as the very unfamiliar need to trust someone fought with the corporate need to manipulate. “Machiavelli731 and a sub-password of ‘Hierarchy’. Now, if you’ll be calling your ‘fixer’ I’ll show you what I can.”

He/she began to sketch a layout in the grime on the wall. “The host body is being kept at a laboratory secreted at the warehouse behind the ‘Dream-O-Rama’ at the edge of the New Z, sector. 2 entry points, password ‘mulvahill sandwich’, with remote sensors located here, here, here and here. Live guards scan the perimeter from these 6 points with 2 roaming drones masked as cleaners circulating at random intervals.” He/she smiled grimly. “There is a 3^rd entrance which only corp-execs use located underground here. Entrance requires a DNA scan. I doubt they’d expect us to use that, unless they knew of my… reinstatement, but I’m not sure how we’d get past that requirement.”

“Magic is the main weakness of the defense. Since too much located around the machine has a tendency to disrupt its effectiveness we weren’t able to utilize it as we normally would. And that’s about it.”

He/she looked at Trigger. “Isn’t it time to call your ‘fixer’ so we can get this, I suppose the vernacular is “show on the road”?”

(No one heard the muffled screams coming from the manager’s office.)

“Okay, and in an exchange of trust, his name is Manny, and his contact info this month is Aries-3-2739.  I’ll call him to receive the cash-fer, and then you’ll wire it in.  He’ll set us up with some help.

He speed-dialed Manny. 

“General Repair, Manuel speaking.” came the voice on the line. 

Trouble.  Manny never used that name, mainly because his name wasn’t Manuel. “Hello, my Holo-vid’s losing depth of focus.” Trigger said, in his best Citizen voice.  “It’s a Mitsubushido PJ136, and should still be under warranty.  Do you do warranty work on that brand?” 

“I’m sorry, sir, but you’ll have to talk to the factory, and get an RMA first.  They’ll direct you to an authorized repair center.  And are you sure you have the right model number?  The closest I know of is the PM1136.” 

“Thank you, I’ll check the numbers.” Trigger replied, then hung up. 

“Okay, Manny’s out of it for now.  Probably people there that shouldn’t be. He wants me to call him back tonight, but that’s hours that you don’t have.”

Trigger paced a little.  He needed muscle and magic.  Muscle was easy, but Halo was his latest Magical contact and she was out for the duration. 

“Okay, I’ll handle the help myself.” he declared. “I know a Street Samurai who’ll help, for the right price, and a Coyote Shaman you might have heard of.  Goes by the name of Howler, and if the stories are true you guys have a big price on his head.  Something about a run he pulled on Aztechnology down in Sierro Juarez? 

Trigger watched for the reaction to the name, and was satisfied when he saw it.  Howler was a trickster, as a matter of religion, and couldn’t be trusted in any way, unless he gave his word.  The trick was to get that word.  Tales had it that the Shaman had not only pulled off a heist against the techno-mages, he’d conned them into giving him permission to do it, and even tricked them into delivering the goods to him.  The man himself denied it all, but the fact remained that he was on Lonestar’s hot list, and had been for a number of years, courtesy of Aztech. 

He dialed:  “Howler, you handsome dog you.  Got a Johnson here needs an escort. Little in and out and gone, if you know what I mean. Short run in the green grass. You up for it?”

“Trigger, why the hell can’t you talk English?” came the harsh voice, with a hint of humor in it. 

“Sorry man, I forgot.” Trigger apologized.  Howler was strictly Tribal, and didn’t handle city-speak at all.  “Okay, I have a client, needs to get into a place of business, and sooner is better.  Pays well, but you’ll have to earn it.  10k plus ammunition.  I’m gonna try to get a Troll I know to come along, but I prefer to slip in quietly, and leave the place standing when we’re through.  24 hour window, tops.  Are you available on short notice?”

“Sure.  Meet at Loantaka park in 60,” came the reply. 

“Okay, We’ll be there.” 

He was about to call Dragon when the background noise of the place turned ugly.

The choked scream of ‘Beni’, cut appallingly short had Trigger moving swiftly to the door.  Before he reached it, however, it was kicked in.

Lonestar/Halo saw Trigger become a blur of motion and before he/she could take a step, the doorway was cleared of all but the 2 boots of the fallen runner… for runner was what this appeared to be.  Not heavily armed enough for corporate security.  Light body armor, gang symbols that he/she didn’t recognize painted on it with obviously cybernetic portions.  The small hole through the center of the forehead showed its weakness.

The elf-boy kept low as he slid into the hallway, rifle over his shoulder and pistol to hand.  Lonestar/Halo moved low and ready to the body and palmed the weapon, 9mm fully automatic.  It would do in a pinch, then out the door and down the short hallway after Trigger. 

Sounds of gunfire sounded below and to the front of the building.  Good thing they were going out the back.  As they ran down the stairs to the doorway, 4 more pairs of feet came running up the small hallway below. 

Turning he/she froze as 4 sets of hardware faced them down.  He/she could feel Trigger tensed at his/her back.  Then one of them spoke, apparently to Trigger.

“This is our contract.  Step away from the girl, runner, and we’ll let you walk away on your own 2 feet.  Hell, you took out the 'machine', perhaps we'll even hire you someday.”

Trigger relaxed.  They wanted Halo alive, so they weren’t about to start shooting indiscriminately.  He, however, had no such problem.

“The weakness of the cyborg is always the ‘Org’ part.”, he said, slinging the rifle casually over his shoulder.  “You guys want to hire me sometime?” he continued, fishing into his pocket with his now-free hand.  “Look me up.  Here’s my contact info.”  He casually flipped a small object towards the group, then quickly dropped his hand to cover Halo’s eyes. 

Halo caught his final words, spoken softly, before the blazer detonated.  “Thank you, Dragon”, he had whispered.

The corridor was filled with a cloud of metallic particles, each a scintillating mirror of blindingly bright light, reflected from the tiny card that had emitted them.  Aside from the blindingly luminous cloud of light, there was a piercing scream of sound, running from sub to ultra.  It made Halo/Lonestar’s teeth hurt, and was probably worse for the people at the other end of the hall.  They were closer, after all.

Then they were moving again, with Trigger dragging her along.  His Zen-focus had allowed him to minimize the effects of the blazer, so he was fully functional, but he knew that it had bought them a few seconds at most. 

The pair dashed past the stairwell exit, and Trigger slapped the door open as they passed.  It would still be swinging on its hinges when the others came.  Instead of going that way, however, he went one floor farther and exited where a door held an antiquated symbol of a triangle with a small ball on top and two sticks below to represent legs.  The “Ladies room” of this fine establishment.

Several of the “entertainment” were already here, but expressed no alarm as they pair entered.  Trigger had activated the holo-image, and once again looked like Wonder, one of the trade, hiding from the Runners.

“Gotta love Blazers.” he/she said softly.  “Particles screw up radar, sonar, ultra-violet and infra-red, and I almost feel sorry for anyone with low-light.”  His regret was that that was his only one.  Money had been tight, as usual.

He moved back to the door, pistol drawn.  The Rifle had more stopping power, but a slower rate of fire.  He hesitated a moment, then attached a ling cylinder to the end of the handgun.  Aries Armsworks didn’t make a silencer for the Predator series, because the powerful weapon tended to shred the lining in a very few shots.  Trigger, however, was a runner as well as a gunsmith, and knew that “a very few shots” were sometimes all you needed. 

The others wouldn’t stay fooled for very long, and would have all the exits covered by now.   Things did not look good.  He wished desperately that Dragon were here.  Hell, he’d like this kind of thing.

That thought gave him an idea.  He thumbed his cell-phone open and fast-dialed a number. 

“Dragon.” came the short answer. 

“Yo, Drag’.  Trigger here.  I’m in Toky-Ho, and it’s your kind of party.  Wanna join me?  You can bring your own fireworks.” 

“Love or money?” came the short question, though Trigger could hear the Troll’s feet already pounding pavement. 

“You’ll love the money, big buddy.  Right now I need D & E at Coral K’s.  Happy hour’s under way, so QIB my friend.”

Then, turning to Halo/Lonestar, and seeing the look of utter bewilderment on his/her face, explained.  “My friend Dragon is a Troll who likes to blow things up.  He isn’t a real dragon, but he’s damned near as dangerous.  He’ll provide “Distraction and Extraction”, and he’ll hurry.  He’d hate to miss a fight like this.” 

“QIB?”

“Quicker is Better”, Trigger completed the translation.  He then saw the look of confusion on the faces of the girls, and realized that he hadn’t even attempted his “Wonder” voice, so he switched off the Holo.

“Ladies, you should get into the stalls, and hide behind anything solid.” he advised.  “It’s about to get dangerous.” 

“You’re kidding, right?” replied one of the girls.  “It’s been dangerous for a while now, Mr. White Knight.”  She flicked her wrist, and 9 inch blades extended from her left forearm.  Her right hand suddenly held a slender shooter, though there seemed to be no place on her clothing to have hidden such a thing.

The others were producing weapons as well.  Long gone were the days when Jacks slapped their Jills around, and got away with it.  Still… 

“Nice.”, he commented with a smile.  “But cover is still a good idea, and flechette rounds aren’t going to do diddly to these guys.  Armored and dangerous.  You won’t get any main body penetration.  Aim for faces, aim for legs, and for God’s sake, don’t aim for me.  I’m on your side.”

The lady with the snap-blades moved towards the door, then grabbed the transom edge and swung herself up.  In seconds she was crouched there, above the door and out of the line of fire. 

So long as nobody tried shooting through the opaque glass, that was.  Gutsy and flexible, but not too smart.

Trigger pushed the door an inch and watched carefully.  He couldn’t see the stairwell door, but could tell when it opened.  It lit the hall slightly.

He saw the shine and counted until it darkened again, then lit, then darkened, then lit one more time.  Door opens, man comes through, second man comes through, then the door closes.

He centered himself, the mantra echoing though his mind.  “Time is an illusion.  The gun is part of your hand, your arm an extension of your will…”

He pushed the door an inch more, and time slowed.  Two of them, guns out.  The one in front was a tank-type, big and strong, with lots of armor.  Trigger’s view of the one behind was blocked by the sheer bulk of the other.  He took the luxury of a full quarter second to consider his options, even as the gun came up.

The first shot threaded its way between the legs of the tank and directly into the crotch of the smaller man.  Like many, he wore a hardened codpiece, and Trigger knew it.  He had fired off center, trying not to insult, but to kill.  The femoral artery ran to the inside of the thigh.

 The tank saw the shot, and opened his mouth to call for backup.  Trigger waited for that, a full half-heartbeat, and fired at the whites of his teeth.  Even armored skulls have their weak points, and nobody armors the inside of their mouths.

Two runners were on the ground.

The second was twitching, as sparks and hydraulics came from the back of his neck.  He’d live, but the shot had shattered his implanted reflex-booster, and until he got it repaired he’d be moving slow at best.

The first one, the crotch-shot, was also still alive, but wouldn’t be for long.  He stopped to drop the man a trauma-patch.  Once applied, the pro-thrombin would seal the wound, and anesthetize it.  He’d be operable, until he could find a street doc to fix him up, but he wouldn’t be going anywhere very fast.

“You try to steal my contract again, and I’ll let you bleed out.” he warned, as he lifted the man’s gun from where it had fallen.  “I got her first.” 

Then he heard the roar of a mini-Vulcan, and he knew that Dragon had arrived. 

“Come on, we’re gone.” he called, waving Halo/Lonestar forward.   

“You’re letting them live?” Halo asked.

“They got lucky.  Hell, I got lucky.  I’m not nearly that good a shot.”

Lonestar/Halo raised an eyebrow at that but followed as Trigger moved swiftly past the downed runners to the stairwell door and peeked out.

The alleyway was empty and the roar of the firefight and Dragon’s mini covered the sound of their light footsteps as they slipped out to the street. A quick look showed that all attention was on the door of the Coral Kizune, or at least, the smoking, blackened opening that used to be the door and the roar of the Troll inside.

Slipping down the street, past the clouds of smoke and holo-imagery, they quick-searched for the PT to Loantaka park. Glancing at the weapon tucked into Halo/Lonestar’s skirt. Trigger raised his own eyebrows. “You know how to use that thing?”

Lonestar/Halo smiled grimly. “You have to ask? I may hire my own security, but personal safety is something that has always been… high…on my priority list.” He glanced at the weapon. “Although magic is more my style, it seems that I can’t access my magic in this body. Disappointing but what can you do.”

“Funny, Since Halo’s more of a Mage than a shooter too.  But you’ll find her handgun in the bag.  She prefers the Warhawk, for the stopping power.  Revolver is slower to reload, but it packs a punch.”

He quickly keyed the local-com link to Dragon.  “Okay Dragon, we’re clear.  We’re meeting Howler in Loantaka park on the split.  Thanks for the evac.” 

“Frosty.  You go ahead and I’ll catch up.  I’m having fun!” came the reply.

-------

“What did you mean when you called me ‘your contract’ back there?” Lonestar/Halo asked, as he/she sat uncomfortably on the bus.

“Easy.  I want the word to get back that you’re in custody, and that you’re on your way in.  They won’t expect us to come calling at your little happy shack, if they think I’m bringing you someplace else.  Which reminds me…”

Trigger thumbed his cell phone again, quick dialing Manny.  He knew that the call would be monitored, of course.  Manny had warned him of that.  That was why he was making the call.

“General Repair, Manuel speaking.” came the voice on the other end.  A voice that wasn’t Manny.

“Hey, Manuel, this is Trigger.  Looking for your evil twin.  Caught his bird, and I’m looking for the birdhouse.”

The line went silent for a moment.  Not the silent of a “hold”, but the dead silent of a secure transfer.

“Where are you?” came a low, gruff voice. 

“Holding pattern, looking for a landing pad.” came the reply.  “I got your pizza, just need a delivery address.”

“Tell me where you are, and we’ll come and get you.” 

“Just met the last bunch to ‘come and get me’. Sent em over to the Pick-a-Part, looking for a heart and a brain.” Trigger replied, knowing full well the call was being traced.  “So point me towards the Emerald city, and the wicked witch is all yours.  Cash on delivery, of course.”

“Of course.” said the man on the other end, with a confidence that said they’d traced Trigger’s cell.  “Meet me at The War God, on the hill.  You know it?”

“Sure do.  See ya tonight.  Some exchanges are better in the dark you know.  Court time.”

“That’s too late.  We need her now.” came the response, almost frantic. 

“Chill bill.  Half-court then.  That better?” 

“Five PM it is.”

And Trigger clicked the phone off.  Reaching out the broken window, he flipped the phone onto the roof of another PT Omni, heading in the other direction. 

“Okay, we learned a few things.  Your 48 hours are up sometime between 5 and 10 tonight.  And the newsies will tell us more.  Like, how many men they send after that phone.”  Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out another phone, and slipped an activation chip into it.  “Burners”, he explained.  “Pre-paid and disposable.  Just in case a Johnson thinks we’re too dumb to know about signal trace.” 

Even so, they changed PT at the next stop.

---------------------

The man in the park sat quietly, playing with his dog and occasionally giving it a treat.  He was small, almost childlike in build, and might have passed for a citizen, except for the long fur coat he wore.  Clean and neat, but too odd a style for the conservative circle.

Trigger and Halo approached quietly.  “You see what he’s done?” Trigger asked.  “You can’t use a disguise spell to make yourself smaller.  It can’t hide the extra mass.  But he can hide it in the long coat.  That’s our man.” 

“Howler, I like the new look.” he called, by way of greeting. 

“Why thanks.  I think it’s slimming on me.” came the reply.  From the dog.

Nearby, a toppled trash can melted away to reveal the Shaman, and the “Man and his Dog” vanished away.  Howler rose to his feet and ambled over to the bench where his image had been.

Trigger was floored.  “Dammit man, you do that to me every time.” he swore.  Then he began the introductions.  “Howler, this is Mr. Johnson.  He needs to be someplace, safe and sound, before 5 this evening.  Target is Aztechnology, payment upon completion.  No other parameters, no other rules except that the place has to be left standing when we’re through.” 

“And the pay?”

“Like I said, 10 k for less than a day’s work.”

“Who’s holding?”

“I am.” 

The Coyote shaman looked Halo over for a long moment.  “She’s playing you, Trig.  It’s a trap, and we’re all gonna get paid in lead.” 

“So you’re in?” asked Trigger, seeing the wild look in the Shaman’s eyes.

“Oh hell yeah.  This one’s easy.” laughed the Shaman.  “We even know when and where we get screwed over.  Think I can get my price bumped again?”

“What’s it at now?”

“Last I looked it was ,,,”

“150 K”, replied Lonestar/Halo.  “You’re a long way from Sierro Juarez Mr. Greymoon.  I’m surprised you’re so easy to contact.”

“It’s never hard to see Father Coyote.”, Howler replied, a little less lighthearted.  “He likes to be seen.  Catching him, however, is another matter.”  He rose from the bench and faced her squarely.  “So, this is an internal squabble at Aztech?” 

“Yes, it is.  As a bonus, I can get that bounty for you dropped.  Presuming we succeed.” 

“Now why would I want that?  How can I trick the hounds if they aren’t chasing me?  I just want it clear this time:  No retribution.  Last time your Corp made a contract with me, and I kept it to the letter.  I was honest the whole way, and even told you who I was, what I was after, and why, and you gave me permission to steal it.  Then you got mad when I did.  Once I give my word, I never break it, but you guys are another story.” 

Trigger was amazed.  He wasn’t sure whether to believe this tale, since Howler had never spoken one way or the other on it.  “Is that true?  You skinned Aztech, and even told them about it before hand?”

“My promise it is.”, said the ragged Indian.  “I sold out my team to Aztech, with their full knowledge and consent, and then I sold out Aztech to my team, with their full knowledge and consent.  I kept my word to everyone, and everyone ended up pissed at me.  I swore I’d never do that again.” 

“Sell out your team?” Halo/Lonestar asked in wonder.  Apparently he/she hadn’t ever gotten the full story either. 

“No, I do that all the time.  I just won’t ask their permission next time.”

“Well, Coyote, I need your word on this one.  I get to my destination on time, with no sell out or double cross, and you get your money.”

“Okay, you have my word.” agreed Howler grudgingly.  “But you take half the fun out of it.” 

“Is he sane?” asked Halo/Lonestar, in a quiet aside.

“Is that a requirement?” Trigger asked in return.

They were interrupted by a cheerful voice, “Ah, I got all the fun and you guys didn’t get any. Gonna make me feel like a dirty corp’zec hoggin’ all the action.”

“’Lo Dragon,” said Trigger turning to face the new addition. The look on Lonestar/Halo’s face became slightly glassy eyed.

There stood the Dragon, a full-on troll in blown up Technicolor, bloodshot eyes and all. Carrying a mini-vulcan and covered in soot and blood-spatter.

“So, who’s the chippie? Do we get to keep her? I always wanted a pet.”

“Hey, Dragon, be nice.  This is Mr. Johnson, employer and passenger.” Trigger explained.  “We have about 8 hours to get our employer into a secure facility, hidden behind the Dream-O-Rama.”

“Uh huh. In and out with her, eh?” Dragon joked, as he broke down the Vulcan and stored it away,  “Whose place we blowin’ open?”

  “Aztechnology.”, replied Howler.  “And you, my friend, get to be as noisy and destructive as you like.  We need the building intact, and most of its contents the same, but other than that there are no rules.”

“Ohhh.  You said I’d like the money, Trig.”, Dragon chortled, as visions of chaos danced through his head.  “How mean is the green?”

“10K each, and there’s a small budget for ammunition.  We just need to hit a paypoint.”

“Got a Decker on this run?” Howler asked, referring to one of those odd folks who spent half their life in cyber-space. 

“Not so far.” came the answer.  “We have all the security codes and passwords, so there’s no reason to get one.  What we’re missing is a DNA sample from an authorized Corporate type.  That’s where you come in, Howler.  Any ideas?”

“Dozens.” came the reply.  “Can we get a picture of anyone authorized?  I can make Mr. Johnson here look just like one of them, right down to the DNA.  As long as they don’t have to extract to test, she’ll even pass a retina scan.”

“How does a picture tell you their DNA sequence?” Halo/Lonestar asked.

“It doesn’t.  Their DNA shapes their picture.  Magic fills in the gaps.  That’s why I love it when they depend on Biometrics. “, the Shaman laughed.  “But that won’t work, and we all know it.  If their top security could be bypassed by anyone with a Transformation spell, we’d all be out of work.  They’ll have a Wage-Mage on duty to look at the spirit, and the spell doesn’t change that.  But it will get us past a lot of cameras and guards.”

This conversation reminded Trigger to “check his 6’s”, as he was once taught.  He closed his eyes for a moment, murmured a Mantra, and peered into the land of the Spirits. 

“What’s wrong, Trigger?” asked Dragon, as the slight Elf’s knees buckled. 

“D-D-Dragon.” he all but babbled, shaking and white with shock.

“I’m right here, Trig’.” the Troll assured him. 

“N-no, n-not you.  Her.” he said, pointing at Halo/Lonestar. 

Howler’s face changed, the image of the Coyote spirit showing through, then he stepped back as well, though he kept his feet.

“Trigger, you damned fool.” he swore.  “Every wannabe with a pea-shooter knows this rule:  Never make a deal with a Dragon!”

Halo/Lonestar smiled grimly at the trio as they stared. “Fortunately for you, the deal is still operative. This doesn’t change the deal, just your understanding of it's true nature.”

He/she thought for a moment. “This body shares some genetics with mine, otherwise it couldn’t hold my awareness.” He/she paused, "It may bring some unexpected assistance.  We'll have to see how strong the genetic link is."   

Then he/she grinned a very dragonish grin, which in that slight body was even more unnerving. “Although as I’ve said before, this host is not exactly appropriate. I see no reason to delay longer. Let’s get going.”

“Well, I promised to do the job, so I’m in.”, Howler said, though traces of a smile flashed across his face.  Then he vanished.

“Wha…???” stammered Trigger again.  He knew Howler couldn’t Teleport, and he hadn’t even cast a spell.

“I’m over here.” came the voice of Howler, as he stepped from the bushes.  “Nobody looks for a second illusion.  It’s why I didn’t mind meeting you in a public place.”

“Well, Damn, Howler.  The least you could do is warn a guy.”, Dragon complained.

“Now where’s the fun in that?” the Shaman asked. 

“Okay then.” Trigger said, trying to calm himself down.  “What’s the plan, Howler?” 

“You’ll know as soon as I do.”, laughed the Shaman.  “The rules just changed, which makes it easier and harder.” 

He concentrated once more, and his face once again showed its “mask”.  Then a small version of Howler faded into view.

“I need you to go to this address,” he said, giving directions to the Dream-O-Rama.  “You’ll need to Manifest to find it.  Take a look around, particularly in back, and get me what you can of the layout.  Look on both sides.”

“Right, boss.” replied the miniature version.  It then hopped up into the air, and a small motorcycle appeared under it, and it zipped away. 

“Well, this is all just dandy, but you’re forgetting the important part.”, Dragon said.  “You said that there was money for guns and stuff.  How much?”

“I’ll hit a pay-point, and we’ll go shopping.” Trigger assured him.  He didn’t want to even hint at the real budget, even from the “Advance”.  Dragon would go nuts.

A quick trip to the nearest web-link, and Trigger’s Cred Stick was loaded.  He let Halo/Lonestar do the transfer, and used an unregistered credstick to receive it, to make tracing it hard.  Not that they’d have a problem guessing who had hit the account.

“We have about 45 seconds before CorpSec lands here looking for us.” Trigger warned.  “If we’re lucky.”

Dragon and Howler both laughed as they ran for Dragon’s wheels, for completely different reasons.  Somehow, that scared Trigger more than CorpSec did.

Peeling out, as best as the hover/hybrid vehicle could peel out, they took off for a shopping spree.

Dragon obviously used this ride for the fact that it had no real roof on the driver’s side. His head and shoulders loomed above what ‘had’ been the roof at one point, artfully removed with what looked like blasting powder.

Trigger, Howler and Lonestar/Halo crammed into the various passenger seats, Howler making a point of sitting next to Halo, smiling at him/her with wicked pleasure. Lonestar/Halo was studying him in return which meant the backseat was quiet and tense for the trip.

Arriving in good time and without incident at the BoomStick Street Hardware/Hardwire Emporium…aka Doyle’s Army Surplus they all climbed out of the cramped vehicle.

Trigger had to smile as Dragon shifted restlessly from foot to foot, obviously itching to get his hands on the ordinance. “Go ahead big guy, just keep within the budget.” And the Dragon was off like a puff of smoke.

“My big worry though, is the vehicle.” said Howler.  “Will we all fit in it, once Dragon has his stuff.”  Then he laughed, unable to hold a straight face.

Trigger just watched the door.  Nobody was stupid enough to start a gunfight in Doyle’s, or in any other weapon’s shop for that matter.  But there was always the chance that someone would try. 

Howler said he had something he needed to get, and would meet them at the vehicle in a few, then left. 

That left Trigger and Halo/Lonestar to talk.

“Kind of explains you not being that familiar with handguns, I suppose.” Trigger said, to sort of break the ice.  “It also explains you not being able to tap Halo’s Magic.  Completely different school.”

Halo/Lonestar was half listening, keeping an eye instead on where Howler went.  “I don’t trust him.” he/she declared.  “Do we really need him?”

“Nobody in their right mind trusts him, or any other Coyote Shaman.  Raccoons are a little better, but not much. “, Trigger answered philosophically.  “Bear Shaman are as reliable as they come, but we don’t need reliable.  We need someone crazy enough to take this job on short notice, and that makes for a very short list.  Yes we need him, and yes we can trust him, but only to a point.  He’ll keep his word, to the letter.  It’s the only rule he respects, which is why we didn’t go anywhere until we had that promise.”

“I can get you DNA form a Corp.” Dragon offered, as he rummaged through a bin of old Det-Cord.  “Just shoot one, then grab some body parts.  We can get fingerprints that way too.”

“The people we’d need aren’t walking around in public, and they have bodyguards.”, Halo/Lonestar cautioned.  “We’d need a way to get to one of them.  And if we’re going to shoot them, I have one or two particular people I’d like to nominate.  Getting to them is the hard part.”

“Would they be likely to meet us, if they thought we were bringing you in?” Trigger asked. 

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of gunfire coming in from outside.  The door opened and Howler dashed in, a heavy plastic case in his hand, nearly laughing himself silly.  Battle noises escalated outside. 

“What did you do?” Trigger demanded, ducking low.

“There were some lookouts who spotted us coming in,” Howler giggled.  “CorpSec pulled up too.  Somebody made a call.” 

“Okay, you’ve named the players.  What’s the game?” Trigger pressed, slipping into city-speak again due to the stress.

“I just threw a couple of Mask spells on the Runners.” the Coyote explained.  “CorpSec thinks they’re us.  If you folks have what you want, our ride is ready.”

Trigger paid for Dragon’s armful of toys, and they ran.  The mischievous Shaman directed them away from Dragon’s wheels, however, and into the side alley  He headed for the firefight. 

They saw Howler’s Mask manifested as he cast a spell, then make a low dash for the CorpSec van.  A moment later the van moved, with Howler at the wheel.  They saw the body of the driver fall out the open door as he swerved madly towards their hiding place. 

The Security guards had been using the vehicle as cover, and were caught flat footed when their cover drove away.  They still out-gunned the Runners, and had better armor, but with the loss of the vehicle the fight suddenly became a lot closer to even. 

“Everybody in!” screamed the mad Shaman.  “And somebody else take the wheel, I don’t know how to drive! 

They hustled inside, and Trigger took the wheel.  “Dragon, take Shotgun,” he yelled.   

The Troll looked confused, checking his various armaments for the gun requested. 

“No!” cried Trigger, as he took the first corner.  He slapped the seat next to him, where the main weapon controls were.  Dragon was seated a heartbeat later, all but drooling over the arms array.

“Always take the best!” laughed Howler, watching the fun they’d left behind.  “And Aztechnology always buys the best.  I never steal anything else, if I can avoid it.”

“Aries Warmaster, Armored Transport.” Dragon chortled, plugging himself into the arms console.  “Can we keep it?”  He rotated the auto-cannon turret, just for fun.  For an explosives junkie like him, this was the ultimate toy. 

“As far as I’m concerned, Dragon, it’s yours.” Trigger laughed.  “Though they’ll probably come looking for it.”

“Let them try.” smiled Howler, his face a mask again.  “Slow it down after the next corner.” he advised.  “We want to blend into traffic.” 

“Vans like this don’t blend in.”, Halo/Lonestar advised.  “They’re made to stand out.” 

“That’s what makes it so much fun.” came the reply. 

“Wha?” asked Trigger in shock, as the exterior of the van changed.  The distinctive bronze and gold colors changed to a simple white, and he heard… music? 

“Welcome to the Ice Cream business, friends.” Howler laughed. “I threw another Mask spell on it.  We are now the best armed sugar peddler in the city.”

“I don’t know,” said Dragon.  “I bought my first handgun from an ice cream truck.”

The sedate pace they kept had all of them but perhaps Howler itching within minutes. “Can’t we speed it up anymore?” whined Dragon. “At this rate we’ll get actual buyers.”

“Patience is a virtue, my friend.” Stated the coyote shaman with a smile. “Well, my virtue was lost a long time ago.” Chortled the Dragon. Trigger grinned.

“What kind of magic does this body use?” Asked Lonestar/Halo suddenly. The shaman and the troll looked at Lonestar/Halo with curiosity.

“Masking, command, reading, a lot of mind and body manipulation.” Answered Trigger.

The dead dragon nodded. “If it comes to a need for that, I believe that I can submerge and allow her consciousness to be in control.” He/she looked at Trigger piercingly. “I am the one ‘on top’ as you would say, so I can manifest at any time. There won’t be any locking me out while I occupy this form.

Trigger raised his eyebrows at that. “Aren’t you afraid we’ll take the opportunity to do you wrong?”

Lonestar/Halo smiled grimly. “That would be killing the goose with the golden egg now wouldn’t it.”

And then they were pulling past the Dream-O-Rama sim/stim theater, into the parking garage, and next to the graffitti covered concrete at the back.

“The entrance to the underground passage is in the backstage area of the theater, behind the sim-screen. The above-ground entrances are located on 6^th and 7^th and Granada.” Lonestar/halo pointed out. “So, now what is this master non-plan you have?” He/she asked Howler pointedly.

Howler looked around the parking area for a moment, visualizing the positions of everything.

“Okay, if I read you right, that wall over there is actually part of the secret facility? “ 

“Yes.”, replied Lonestar/Halo.  “There will be a fairly broad, open area in there, and some elevator shafts at the far end.” 

“Good, then here’s where we go to work.” the Coyote replied gleefully.  “Dragon, you can bet big newyen that we’re being tracked right now.  This van has a transponder and GPS built into the comm. system.” 

“I’ll take that bet.”, said Dragon, holding up a small box with wires hanging from it.  “You aren’t the only one who’s played with Corpsec before.” 

“Did you get the secondary? “, asked Lonestar/Halo.  “Ours have a secondary tracking system in them.”

“Aw slime!” swore Dragon, as he heard the beat of an Ornithopter outside.   

“It’s okay.” assured Howler.  “I was counting on it.  You get to go for a drive, and blow up anyone or anything that tries to stop you.  You have a full Vulcan, and a mounted Panther, and the last owners thoughtfully left you a couple of cases of concussion grenades in back.  Head for the Barrens, and stay near an Underground entrance.  That will give you a place to bail to when the going gets too hot.”

“You knew I couldn’t keep it!” accused Dragon.

“Yeah, but it’s not like it cost you anything, and you do get to play with all of it.”

“When you have to leave it.”, advised Lonestar/Halo, “There’s a big black ‘kill’ button under the floor boards in front of the driver’s seat.  Hit it and get clear.  It sends out an EMP that will shut down all systems within a hundred yards.” 

Dragon looked at his own cyber-enhanced limbs and gulped visibly.  “Okay, you guys get out.  It’s party time!”

The trio bailed, and Dragon roared off to do what he did best:  Mass chaos.

“Think he’ll make it?” asked Lonestar/Halo.  “My people are the best.” 

“He’s better armored than the truck is.”, advised Trigger.  “Besides, your folks aren’t the best.  We are.” 

He waved people back against the support pillars, and raised his gun, ready for trouble.  “Okay, Howler, I hope you’ve got a lot of kaboom in that box of yours.  This is going to be one hell of a fight,” 

Howler’s mask appeared, and in a moment the talisman bedecked Shaman was gone.  In his place stood a bored looking man in paint-stained coveralls.  “Well, you can fight if you want to.” Howler’s voice said, coming from the maintenance man.  “I plan to just go inside.”

And so saying, he walked over to the wall and opened the heavy case.  From within he produced what looked like a heavy rifle, with a snub nose and folding stock.  “Vibro-drill.”, he explained.  “I’ve set it for a 3 centimeter hole, 50 centimeters deep.”  Selecting a spot, he went to work. 

Outside, they could hear the screech of tires, sirens wailing, and the heavy “thud” of grenades and cannon rounds.  Nobody bothered them for nearly 5 minutes.

“Okay, I’m through.” announced the Shaman.  He set the heavy drill aside and reached into his pocket. 

“What the hell are you doing with that?” asked Trigger, as he recognized the Mono-whip in Howler’s hand.  “Those things are dangerous.”

“Oh, I know.” laughed Howler.  “You’re as likely to slice yourself up as anyone else.  Nobody in their right mind ever uses one.” 

“Which explains why you have one.” added Halo/Lonestar dryly. 

“Exactly!’ agreed the Shaman.  “There’s more than one use for these, you see, and more than one way to get into a building.”  He kept working as he talked, releasing a meter of the molecule thin mono-filament.  The cutting wire itself was invisible to the naked eye, its position detectible only by the weighted bead attached to the end.  Howler carefully picked up the bead and placed it in the hole.  Withdrawing a plastic tube from another pocket, he placed it into the hole, then blew into it. 

“You’ve done this before.” noted the Dragon/Human. 

“Do ya think?” laughed the Shaman.  Taking the handle of the mono-whip, he drew it upwards, explaining as he went.  “This thing is guaranteed to cut just about anything, so once I get the cut started, the bead will follow.  It can’t pull through the slit, so unless it runs into something inside, or Aztechnology is diamond coating their armored walls, it will let me just cut a new door.” 

And it appeared to be working.  He drew upward for almost 2 feet before he stopped.  “I think the bead hit a conduit.” he advised, then changed direction.   

“Why aren’t the alarms going off?” Trigger asked.  “They have to have this place wired.” 

“The mono-filament is so fine that even when it cuts a wire, the ends still touch.  This baby won’t make a sound until we’re done.  And then it will be too late.” 

It took almost two more minutes for Howler to finish his cut.  He braced the wall section with one hand as he did.  “I’ve cut on an angle, so this chunk can fall out, but not in.  And it’s going to do that as soon as I let go.  Everybody ready?”

Trigger nodded, his rifle now out and at the ready.  Lonestar/Halo nodded.  Howler released the chunk of concrete and armor, and it fell out, nearly as deep as a man’s forearm.  It thunked to the floor, and the sounds of alarms could be heard from within. 

“Well, I’m done.” announced Howler.  “The contract said I have to get her inside, and here’s her entrance.  I’ve kept my side of the bargain.” 

“I’m not inside yet, and I’m not going in first.” Halo/Lonestar advised, leveling a pistol at Howler. 

“If you plan on trying to shoot me, don’t you think you’ll need these?” asked the Shaman, holding out a handful of bullets. 

“Damn you!” screamed the mystic hybrid, hurling the weapon to the ground, and wishing he/she had her own body again.  This sneaky bastard would be shredded in a moment if only… 

Howler picked up the gun, aimed it at the ceiling and fired.  “Do you have any idea how many people fall for that trick?” he smirked.  “Just show them some bullets, and they think their gun is empty.  Hades, but mine aren’t even the right caliber.”

“Never mind that.” Trigger argued, before the pair killed each other.  “Howler, you don’t get paid until I get back out, so it’s in your best interests to see that I do.” 

“In that case, we’ll need these.” replied the Shaman, holding out some rope and a small metal hook. 

The line was quickly secured, and they were ready.  Trigger tossed in a pair of smoke grenades, then went over the edge.  Howler followed, then Halo.  Below, there was the sound of gunfire.

All three landed in a crouch and Trigger and Howler scanned the scene.

A laser firing grid crisscrossed the corridor in front of them and the heat signatures of 4 humanoids advanced through the smoke. Not the source of the gunfire though. That was further down the corridor, a roof mounted auto-cannon. Obviously, the approaching men had some form of protective gear because the cannon wasn’t targeting them even though they walked through the laser grid.

Trigger turned to the other 2, “If we get close enough to the corpses, we can….” He fell silent as Lonestar/Halo’s eyes went blank for a moment and then refocused. “What the hell?” she said as confusion registered on her face and her stance changed from confident dragon to frightened girl.

“Crap!” swore Trigger flatly as he turned back to scan the approaching corpsec. “What a time to check out.”

Howler said nothing but watched for a moment as Halo fell silent and preoccupied, perhaps listening to some internal dialog. Then…

“Take out the cannon, I’ll handle the men.” Howler’s eyebrows raised as the petite girl spoke. Her voice continued in the mantra of a summoning spell as her form wavered and shimmered.

“Anything for a lady.” Trigger shot back without looking and then, reality slowed. The smoke moving in lazy slow motion before him as he leapt forward, the vibration of the air as the cannon-fire struck the place he had left, it felt like lifetimes ago. Passing the all but frozen security men approaching, he aimed at the firing mechanism and his gun blazed as he swirled past. Then time sped up again as the cannon fire died to sparks and silence and he whirled to face the armed men he’d just passed. (this needs fixing)

And froze.

Blasting towards him, frightening in their silence, were the spirits. All kinds. Several of which he recognized from his glances on the astral plane as those who were following Halo. A few gunshots were all that the corporate security got off before the spirits tore them to shreds, still in silence, 3 or 4 to a man. Then they continued on down the hallway, eyeing Trigger hungrily as they passed.

Walking up behind them came Halo, surrounded by the not-quite-opaque figure of a dragon. Through the mask he could barely make out her smile for him as she walked up. “Hey Trig, nice to see you with my own eyes again.”

“Wha?”

“Well, it seems that this thing inside me has a one way connection. He can’t access me, but I can access him…it, and I have enough genetic compatibility to access some of its magic, kind of like being the poor relation. I was studying it while I was stuck inside.”

She closed her eyes and scanned the minds within range. “There’s a corporate exec up ahead in a room to the left side. 2 guards outside the door and 2 more inside with the zec..oops, no more on the outside.” The echo of screams came down the hallway.

Her smile turned predatory. ”Oh, I…. he knows this one. I think this one may be big enough to get us through the DNA lock and my magic can probably mess up the mage they have monitoring. Doubt he’s strong enough to deal with dragon."

“Actually, we’re kind pf past the DNA lock.” Howler said.  “We’re inside the complex.  All we have to do is get you wherever you need to be, do whatever the Dragon needs to do, and get out alive.  That last part being the important one.”

They moved.  Fast.  They hit a “T intersection, where Trigger and Halo broke left, and Howler broke right.  He stopped there for a moment to place a blob of insta-poxy, then came back and repeated the process on the other side.  He left a short rod of some type hanging there on the second one, at about waist level. 

“What’s that”, Trigger asked, as he waited for Howler to catch up.

“Sweet sorrow.” came the cryptic reply. 

The guards came running in hot pursuit.  They stopped at the intersection to look for snipers.  Seeing Trigger waiting, they dove through to flatten themselves against the near wall. 

Trigger would have fired, but Howler’s hand on his gun-arm stopped him.  “First, your handgun isn’t going to scratch that armor.” he advised.  “It’s military grade.  You’ll need the rifle.  Second, you won’t need the rifle.” 

Trigger glanced around the corner, and saw the three guards, all dying, literally cut in half. 

“What happened?” he asked.

“I told you, sweet sorrow.  I stretched the mono-whip across, and they ran straight through it.” 

“Where to Halo?” Trigger asked, a bit desperately as he shouldered the rifle.   There would be more, and they wouldn’t fall for that same trick. 

Halo, meanwhile, had gone to a spot halfway down the corridor, and was quickly punching keys on a pad there.  She finished, and a door opened with a loud hiss, and a low cloud of fog rolled out.  A new set of alarms also sounded.   

“Bio-containment breach at Primary holding.  Bio-containment breach…” echoed a metallic voice, vaguely female, over every speaker in the complex. 

“We’re in, and we’re almost home.” Halo called, stepping inside.

The other two followed quickly, Trigger hitting the door control as he went through. As it slid shut behind them, they surveyed the bio-containment unit. A large round room with a sealed portion in the center, dark but for the glow of the access panel at the airlock. A scattering of data stations throughout.

Halo paused a moment and then stepped forward with Lonestar’s confident stride. Instead of moving to the glowing panel in the center of the room, she walked to the side of the room and touched an inconspicuous portion of the wall. Then the wall melted away along with the rest of the room.

The first thing they all noticed was that the room was much larger and square, almost warehousish in shape, with banks of what looked like precision surgical apparatus and diagnostics lining the walls.

The second thing they noticed was the very large cyber-dragon shape tethered to multitudes of wires and iridescent tubes at the far end, a small, putty colored box carefully attached to it from a table beside it.

The third thing they noticed were the armed and armored men pouring out from behind the cyber-dragon and almost before they could react, they were surrounded.

Trigger flexed for his power holstered weapon, but then returned it to it’s resting place. A firefight here wouldn’t win against so very many opponents and no cover. Time for another tactic. He looked at Howler and then frantically around the room. Howler was nowhere to be seen.

An amplified male voice spoke, “Welcome to Aztechnology. I see you’ve been thoughtful enough to bring my package all the way home. Do you have the data card?”

Lonestar/Halo stepped forward, “The card is destroyed, Kyle. However, it seems past indiscretions have garnered unexpected benefits. Is the transfer ready?”

A small man walked out from between the armed security, approached Lonestar/Halo and spoke in the manner of someone citing a memorized speech, “I’m afraid that the summer was too cold.”

Lonestar/Halo smiled and responded, “Then perhaps we should go to the mountains.”

With a cry of joy the man kneeled before Lonestar/Halo, taking her hand in a reverent grip. “Great one, I feared you were lost.”

Trigger rolled his eyes at that. Just like something from a B-grade sim.

Standing the man led Lonestar/Halo to the dragon-host. Trigger trailing inconspicuously along behind until the security stopped him.

“When they told me you had been assassinated I despaired. When I found that they had recorded you, I took steps to find you and have prepared the host for that eventuality.”

‘Kyle’ eyed the scantily clad body. “So, how did this happen?"

Lonestar/Halo busied him/herself at the small putty colored box for a moment before replying. “Some of the first experiments with this technology involved in-vetro DNA manipulation. All the fetus’ from those experiments were thought… accounted for. Apparently at least one wasn’t. I’ll have to research which of the hosts was most capable of producing twins.”

He/she smiled grimly. “I’m not sure how well this transfer will work without the card, but I’ve calculated the possibilities and I believe the obvious answer should work.”

Taking a scalpel from a tray nearby he/she made a long incision in her hand and placed it over the box, letting the blood flow into the circuitry. There was a small pop and sizzle and then Halo fell to the ground as the huge cyborg figure of the dragon began to move.

“This is better!”

“I’ve never heard of any cyber-mage.”, Trigger said aloud, buying time.  “Much less a Cyber dragon.  Is Halo going to be all right?” 

“She does pose a problem, Elf.” said the Dragon, bringing his full attention to bear.  “She’s a close genetic match for one of my Human forms.  Useful, when I was in control, but dangerous to have running around loose.  Still, she may prove useful in the future.  You, on the other hand, are a different problem.  What should I do with you?”

“I suppose honoring our agreement is out of the question?” Trigger asked without hope. 

The room shook with the Dragon’s laughter.  “Let you keep a million NewYen?  You wouldn’t know what to do with it.  Runners like you always seek money and power, but you don’t really know how to appreciate them.  Besides, I didn’t get to be where I am by giving fortunes away.”

Howler stood at attention to one side, his body masked to resemble a security guard.  It wouldn’t fool the Dragon for a moment, once he remembered to look, but for the moment the guns were pointed elsewhere, and that was a good thing.  But Trigger had just said something.  Something key.

He sidled back, trying to reach the rear rank of the security guards.  He wasn’t going to get out the quiet way, not this time. So that left… 

Somewhere towards the back of the security detail, a guard’s face changed, just for an instant, the image of the Coyote.  Then a movement, and Howler leapt into full view, running for a control panel. 

“Shoot him!” came the cry, and a dozen guns shifted and fired.  The noise was deafening, the crossfire murderous.  Nothing human could have survived.

Alarms sounded, and emergency lights flashed as the illusion disintegrated, revealing the true target:  The control panel had been blown to pieces, shredded by the high velocity AP rounds.  And the Dragon instantly began to spasm and thrash about as the life support system for the cyber-clone shut down.

“Get them out of here!” came another order, as Trigger threw himself on top of Halo’s prone body. 

He looked up to see an HK140 pointed at his head.  “You, get up and come with me.  Carry the girl, it will keep your hands busy.” 

“Take them to Holding 3”, barked the security chief as he waved three more guards to accompany.  “And find that damned Shaman.”

Meanwhile technicians and medical personnel were frantically working to try and keep “their master” from dying again.

Trigger was relieved of his rifle and handgun, and marched out at gunpoint. 

“Do you know where you’re going?” asked one of the guards, after their second turn. 

“No.”, laughed Howler as his disguise melted away.  Fire leapt from his hand and detonated behind the group, staggering several of the guards. 

Trigger went down in the blast, though he wasn’t really hurt.  The bodies of the CorpSec people had shielded him from the bulk of the Manna Blast.  He rolled free, leaving Halo’s body where she lay. 

Howler was wrestling with a guard and losing.  The other two tried to get a clear shot, but couldn’t.  Then the pair fell together, rolling across the floor.  Somehow Howler came up on top for a moment, and raised his fist to strike the guard. 

The other two began to fire at the hide-clad figure as Trigger came to rest.  He had Halo’s gun in his hand, the one that Lonestar hadn’t known was there.  Time slowed until heartbeats were like heavy drums.  He brought the Warhawk up, waited for the stillness between those drumbeats, and fired.  The faceplate of his target shattered at his first shot, and the face behind it did the same on his second. 

Howler, meantime, had been struck several times and collapsed in a bloody heap.  The guard he’d been fighting brought up a gun and fired. 

The second of the shooting pair looked down in surprise at the hole in his throat, just above his armored vest and below the helmet.  Then he fell. 

Illusions melted once more, and the “guard” with the pistol became Howler, a little ruffled but none the worse for wear. 

“One thing I like about CorpSec.” he said, catching his breath.  “They’re predictable.  You bark an order and they follow it, and they like to shoot first and ask questions later.”  He tossed Trigger’s own gun back to him, and began to strip the armor and uniform off the guard he’d shot.

“We are seriously minus on minutes.” Trigger advised.  “We really don’t have time for any more jokes.” 

“Then what’s the fun of being here?” countered the Shaman.  “Besides this gear sells for a pretty penny.  A man has to eat, you know.” 

Trigger retrieved his rifle, and a few grenades from one of the downed men.  To his surprise he saw that Howler was using magic to heal them.  “What are you doing?”

“I don’t kill if I can help it”, Howler advised.  “Besides, we’re near the entrance.  All we have to do is wait for the other team to show up, and get out when they leave the door open.” 

“What other team?  Why would they leave the door open?”

Howler picked up a rifle, and walked to a corner.  He glanced around it, then went past and leaned the gun up against the security door. 

“This is an internal fight with Aztech.” he explained as he went.  “If these guys here are working with Lonestar, or whatever his real name is, then somebody else is going to show up from the other side.  You can’t have a war with just one army, you know.  So when they come in, we go out.”

Then they waited…

After a short time Halo stirred and with a soft moan of pain opened her eyes.

She took a moment to get her bearings and assess the situation before she shakily sat up. Wincing as she used her cut hand she glanced at it and wasn’t surprised to see the burn marks. Electrical feedback was what had knocked her out as the dragon’s awareness had traveled on the current and out of her.

‘Hey there,” Trigger moved to give her a hand standing up. Her legs wobbled and she clung to him for a second before getting her balance.

“Remind me to never do that again.” She stated shakily. “Where are we?”

“Front door according to Howler. Waiting for someone to let us out.” Trigger shrugged.

“You’re kidding.” She looked over at Howler. You know, I don’t believe we’ve met actually. Other than that bit in the hallway when I was ‘of two minds’ so to speak. I’m called Halo.”

She waved at him and Howler smiled back at her. “I’m ca…” He broke off as sounds began coming from the opposite side of the door.

Howler smiled his wicked smile. “Let’s all be dead.” The coyote mask appeared briefly over his face and he fell to the earth as a dead corporate security guard. Very much like the two actual dead corporate security guards.

Halo muttered a short mantra and touched Trigger, masking him as a bloody, wide-eyed corpse as well. He laid down sprawled against the wall near the door.

Then her turn, as the door began to open her mantra finished and she lay in a pool of illusory blood to the side of one of the real dead guards.

The door opened and the tromp of heavy feet announced the newest batch of corpsec. With barely a glance at the bodies strewn on the floor they hot-footed it around the corner and off down the hallway towards the still-blaring emergency alarm.

They had barely turned the corner when Howler appeared at the doorway, laughing silently. “This way out.” He bowed then disappeared through the door.

Trigger and Halo rolled to their feet and did their own hot-footing after him, dropping the mask spells as they ran.

The sounds of gunfire had receded into the distance, and Howler lead them through a utility door.

The other side was dark, with the occasional illumination from an emergency light.

They made their way towards the front of the building. 

“Hey, what are you still doing in here?” asked a startled employee.  “Didn’t you hear the evacuation order?” 

“Sorry, I guess we over-stimmed.” replied Howler, and followed the man towards the exit. 

“Might have been the power surge.” suggested the worker.  “All the systems blitzed at once.  Go home and get some rest.  You’ll probably be fine in the morning.” 

“We’ll do that.” assured Trigger. 

“We still on the expense account?” asked Howler quietly.  Seeing Trigger nod, he flagged a Hopper, a genuine human-piloted one.  “Loantaka park, if you please.” he told the driver, and they were away. 

Trigger punched Dragon’s latest number into his cell, and sweated blood as he waited to see if his friend answered.  Howler had set the big guy up as bait, and if he’d been killed…

“Dragon here.” came the answer.  There was a bit of pain in the voice, but a lot of happiness as well. 

“Trig’ calling.  You need a little D&E?” Trigger asked.

“No.  You couldn’t get here anyway.” came the happy reply.  “That “kill switch” worked like a charm.  Took out two Corpsec ‘thopters, and one Lonestar.  Got change for a 20?” 

“Yeah.  The 20 is the park, and the change will be there.” 

The line beeped, signaling another call.  “Stay tactile, Dragon.” he said, cutting things short, and switched to the other line. 

“I’m alive, no thanks to you.” came the voice.  It was the kind of deep voice that can only come from vocal chords a foot long, and it was angry. 

“Well, ‘Mr. Lonestar’, I’m happy to be able to say the same.” Trigger replied.  He glanced at Howler, who was gesturing for the phone.  He passed it over.

“Hey big guy.  Like the new chassis?” Howler asked flippantly.  He cut off the reply sharply.  “I kept my end of our deal, and you broke yours.  So here’s the new deal.  Your end is the same as the old one.  No retribution.  We’re done, and everybody walks away happy.”

“And what do I get out of this ‘new deal’?” asked the voice. 

“We know something that you don’t want anyone else to know.” Howler chortled.  “Not even those nice CorpSec folks keeping your new body intact.  We know that your magic just took a big hit.  It will be years before you recover, if you ever do.  And you can’t afford to let that out, now can you?  You’re going to have to terminate all those CorpSec folks who’ve seen the cyberware implants too.  And the cyber-techs as well.  So you call off the hunt for us, now, or we place some other calls, and your defenders find out what the rewards will be for their loyalty.” 

There was a long pause on the line.  “Agreed.  How do I know you won’t make the call anyway?”

“You’ll just have to trust me.” Howler giggled, and hung up. 

“Did you really just blackmail a Dragon?” asked Halo, incredulously.  

“Looks like we did.” said Trigger in awe.  “The question is will it work.” 

“Oh yeah. “, confirmed the Shaman. “The next move would be to put the info’ in ‘button down’ mode, so if anything happens to us it goes out.”

“Would be?” questioned Halo.  “That kind of sounds like it won’t be.”

“Smart lady.  They’re going to be looking for our button-down caches.  If they find them, we’re dead.  So we don’t make any for them to find.”

“Do you ever do anything the normal way?” asked Trigger, halfway between shock and relief.

“I could, but what fun would that be?” Howler laughed in response.  “You going to try and collect the rest of the contract?”

“Hell no!” answered Trigger.  “I took my 10% up front, and I’m happy with that.  I knew the rest wasn’t real.  Divided by four, and minus expenses, I see a bit over 22k each.  That’ll keep me in pork rinds for a while.”

Howler nodded.  “Smart move.  As for me, I’m gonna see what happens to the price on my head.  If it goes up enough, I just might go for it.”

“You’d turn yourself in?” asked Halo, still not fully up to speed.

“Sure.  I’ve sold out Runners and Johnsons before.  The only one I’ve never tried to cash in on is me, and why should I be any different?” Howler laughed. 

“Is he sane?” Halo asked, sotto voce’. 

“Not a requirement in our line of work.” 

<Finis>