Prologue

“Where did all these fraggers come from?” I yelled out.

I don’t know how many people were firing at me but it felt like hundreds of bullets were ripping through the air around my body. I finally made it to the cover of the short wall. Where’s red? Why didn’t he answer?

I looked back the way I came. There was red laying on his back in a pool of his own blood. Drek, drek, drek.

Red was the only other person that was left from my corp days. We had started in the business him me and several other people. But they have all died or left to more legal pursuits.

Ok its time to settle down and decide what to do. The security guards will be rushing me in a few minutes I have to get prepared.

I reached back and grabbed fresh clips for my Predator , and for my Viper. I reloaded both the pistols.

“Give me a sitrep people.” I spoke into my transceiver.

“We have the merchandise and are heading for the site A.” a voice came back.

“I have a problem down here, though.”

“What kind of problem?”

“Red’s down and I’m pinned down, no way out.”

“I’m sending Soldier and Robert down to help.”

“Tell them to haul hoop, the guards are about to charge.”

“ten four”

I heard sounds of movement behind me.

I shot to my feet, with both guns held straight out before me. “FRAG” I thought. 5 guards in full armor were standing in front of me with assault rifle.

I aimed and fired the predator at one of the guards to my left, out of the corner of my eye I watched him drop to the floor. Dead or wounded, I didn’t know or really care. Either way he was out of the fight. I fired the Viper at a guard on my right. The flechettes just bounced off, like I thought they would. The other guards opened fire.

My body armor stopped a few but the rest of the bullets drove back into the wall.

Chapter 1.

What brought me to this spot? How did I end up getting shot multiple times? Lets see.

“ harder mr. Richards.” Sensei said. “You know how to hit me, all you have to do is believe that you are fast enough and your body will respond.”

I was sitting against the wall. It was where I ended up from the last hit. I stood up and walked back to the center of the mat, where sensei waited patiently. Mently I readed my self, finding the center of the peace that allows me to focus and control everything I do. I bowed to sensei and started in. I flung a sidekick, he dodged it. I stepped in and threw a couple of reverse punches, sensei barely dodged them. I snapped a quick front kick and tagged sensei in the chest. He staggered back a few stepps.

“ Good Mr. Richards. You have done well, have a nice weekend.”

I walked into the shower room. I took a shower and changed into my other clothes. I walked out of the dojo. My friends were all standing around waiting.

“Whats up chummers?”

“Not much. You are getting to look good in there matt” Laura said. Laura is good looking elf and is also the most powerfull mage that I know or have met.

“I’m not that good” I protested.

“That’s for sure.” John joked back. John is what you would call a samarai. He have had a love of weapons and destruction for most of the years that I have known him. That’s quite a few years.

“Remember Max?”

“Barely, didn’t he graduate two years ago?”

“Something like that, he gave me a call the other day, he wanted to know if we could help him out with a run.” Robert said. Robert is our resident matrix specialist, a decker. And he also has a crush on laura, and hopes to marry her.

Kim spoke up, “We’re suppose to meet them about 10 or 11 tonight. You up for it?” Kim is a dwarf, and a rigger. We all were there for kim when she went through goblinization. And we have always stood up for each other and probably always will.

“Did they hint about the job?” I asked. Like John I am a samarai, But I have learned a more subtle style.

“They mentioned that it’s a bodyguard run. Of course they didn’t give me any details.” Robert replied.

“Are you guys going to take the job?”

They all looked at me and nodded. This puts me a hard spot, I don’t want to do this but I won’t let them go out alone. They sometimes need someone to focus their attentions.

“you know that I wont let you take a job alone. I wont let you down like that. So I’m in. What time did you say we needed to meet them?”

“They wanted to meet at 10:30 tonight.”

“OK I’ll meet you at the parking lot at about 9.”

“sounds good”