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CONTINUATION....
Tragically, Portney's lowjack wasn't the only one in operation on the delivery vehicle at the time.
They had selected the only car in the chop shop that hadn't been "cleaned" yet.
This meant that every smart sign that it passed, sent out a "stolen" IFF signal in additon to an "illegal" M.F.P. tracking device. They didn't get very far before Lady Luck turned her backs on the pair and a desperate chase ensued through the streets of The Big Easy.
Unlike Waycross M.F.P. Cruisers....ALL Georgia State Police Trooper Cruisers sport a whole host of offensive and defensive weapon systems.
All I will say on this is that they were experts at using them and they got in a LOT of practice that night!
In the end, Portneys superior driving prowess managed to pull the two of them through the near catastrophe despite having to disable 8 L.E.O. vehicles himself.
Mee-Chan on the other hand had only managed to run few motorcycles off the road but did send an P.D. Cruiser careening off an overpass onto the bed of a northbound tractor-trailer.
During the chase however (more like hilariously) the delivery car was trashed and was only still running at all by virtue of its very "lucky" driver.
Kudos Phil, seriously.
(None of the players could keep from laughing as we took turns overacting Stevenson's facial expression once he saw his "inconspicious" getaway car....even Greg was in rare form!)
It finally went something like this:
Gary's jaw drops as he watches the vehicluar remains slowly shudder to a stop in front of him.
The engine run-on is almost enough to make you want to consider "taking cover".
Its filled with holes and damage from both pedestrian and vehicular weaponry.
The door almost falls off when Mee-Chan cracks it for the first time (but only after 3-4 failed opening attempts).
Mee-Chan calmly emerges and tosses the keyset to Stevenson while lighting a smoke, "coinsedently" exposing the fact that he has a loaded pistol tucked into his belt, should the good doctor have any thoughts of "acting a fool".
Gary: "DIDN'T I SPECIFY "EMERGENCY"!?!"
(Mee-Chan exhales into his face and double takes the car in feigned disbelief and shrugs)
Gary: "WHAT THE F@%K HAPPENED!?!"
Mee-Chan takes a big puff and winces slightly while tilting his head as he takes a last look at the "get-away" vehicle:
"Yeaahhhh....about that....something happened to it...."
North casually puts his hand to the custom Peacemaker in his belt.
"HOW THE F'K AM I SUPPOSED TO GET AWAY FROM ANYTHING IN THAT!?!"
(Despite that most of us can hardly find the air to continue laughing and we are now just collapsing into dry heaves, the role playing reality of it all is that the "ruse" is perilously close to failing when Phil pulls off a critical success roll that couldn't have been better timed if he had tried!)
Mee-Chan then, before the infuriated Stevenson can react, draws the pistol and cocking it begins to yell:
"WELL, HURRY UP....I AIN'T GOT ALL DAY!!!"
And begins to empty his revolver into the dirt at Stevenson's feet....but in all the excitement, gets carried away and accidently clips the mad chemist in the leg with a ricochet.
Fortunately....it DOES produce the desired effect of getting Stevenson to take the vehicular remains and flee but nearly causes every player at the table to spontaneously wet themselves.
This proves especially true after Stevenson tries to fire the cars main guns at the beligerent "Delivery Man" and discovers there is no ammunition remaining in any of them, prompting North to reload:
"You-Dirty-Mother-F'ker..."
(Phil got the character point for that most awesome display of: "What do I DO right now?....DIS is what de f'k I do right now, BLAOW!!!")
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION....
They had only managed to follow Gary for about 3 minutes when the Louisiana State Troopers swooped in and quickly took Gary into custody.
(This suprised everyone except Gary, who could only wonder "What ELSE could possibly go wrong today?")
At first it was believed to be a disaster...but after following the P.D. Cruiser for a short while it became obvious that Stevenson was NOT being taken to booking.
The pair had suspected that police might have been involved in the unfolding plot but this was the first concrete proof they had that the corruption had spread to surrounding parishes as well.
It wasn't until the procession pulled up on the Governor's Mansion that Portney began to have the sinking feeling that they were way out of their league.
They still had no real clue as to the true scope of the plot and all that was known is that this "conspiracy" seems to go right to the top and involves "bio-terror".
"People have been disappeared, for far less than this."
Portney reasoned that he found his car and got to mess with some corrupt cops and bagmen but this was beginning to look like a one-way trip which was a bit more commitment than he had planned on putting into this vacation....but he would defer to whatever Mee-Chan chose to do.
This was signifigant for both characters, as up till this point, Portney had never regarded Knowledge as an equal. Truth be told, even Knowledge had those same doubts but was unsure how to express it without seeming a coward, what with the vagueries of southern ethics an all.
Finally after a long and thoughtful silence, Mee-Chan said:
"Don't you think its time we got going?"
He had figured Portney would read that as: "Let's go home!".
He instead took it as a macho-challenge as if uttered like: "Little baby wants to split because things get a little rough?"
(Kudos to Greg for playing Devil's Advocate on the nuances of North-South interactions.)
Portney starts up Big C and the two get in, with Mee-Chan thinking they are gonna turn around and depart for Texas.
They DID drive a ways back from the gate...but as if on cue...like a nagging reminder in the back of his skull....the parade floats began to file past the Estate on their way downtown.
Pulling a flawless bootleggers reverse for the first time in the whole game to date (without the use of "Luck" to succeed) he charges headlong at the gate security forces, decimating them with a burst from the MLRS rooftop rack and breaching the estate perimetre.
A surreal chase ensues as opponents drive through a car-sized english hedgemaze filled with anti-vehicular boobytraps.
Emerging victorious from the maze, Big C charges straight at the fleeing Leision who tries to leave Stevenson behind for "failing once too often" and disable his aerodyne before he can reach it with a last minute save a-la window fired LAW rocket from a moving vehicle.
Only seeing Stevenson and not Leision, the heros close in on the wounded, poisoned chemist as the mastermind slipped away with the help of his remaining security forces.
Upon retrieving Gary in a very comical and painful manner that was very reminicent of Lethal Weapon II, the crippled and still soiled chemist (from when Mee-Chan decided to give him "dance lessons" as the Delivery Man) broke down and was about to spill everything to Mee-Chan when Portney stepped up to hear the tale being told:
"W-what!?!?....YOU!?!!?....I NO' TELLIN' Y'NUTIN' SUPAHCOPPAH!!!"
(Cue the group facepalm)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION....
"Are you SURE about that?"
Replied Portney looking towards Knowledge with that look the Jumper knew only too well.
Gary spat at their feet defiantly.
Portney shrugged:
"Well, I tried...." and slowly turned to walk away "....he's all YOURS, Chief."
Mee-Chan only smiled ever so slightly and only for a moment before having the cold distant gaze of a vengeful executioner in his eyes as he stepped up to the chemist slowly and deliberatly.
"Alone at last...."
(The exact words Gary had taunted them with at Amos's shack)
He took his giant Bowie from its sheath and began to twirl it.
This didn't frighten Stevenson at all but he did begin to show some unease when Mee-Chan started to run his hands through Stevensons hair as the bound Doctor began to squirm and protest.
Although seemingly homo-erotic, the true signifigance of the gesture was to find a good place to hold onto for when North begins to scalp him.
Stevenson finally began to make rich bribes in exchange for his freedom but this had no apparent effect on Mee-Chan (who was still doing his best "Micheal Madsen" impression) and before the words could finish falling from his lips...."The Chief" was on him, slicing and sawing.
He was half way through the scalping when admissions of guilt and defeat could be made out through the screams of pain and panicked blubbering.
Portney was especially disturbed by this evenings display as he has seen the young man perform this many times but he had never done such a slow and deliberately botched manner before. Even though Gary was a monster in Portney's eyes and deserved to suffer for his part in the past weeks monkey shines, the Sheriff was relieved when Stevenson chose to talk instead....just to stop the horrific display from unfolding further.
North seemed very upset by the sudden "change of heart".
Stevenson told them of the nerve gas he had created and that Bart had taken the detonator and was already on the way to establishing his alibi & taking the electronic transfers of ransom.
Most shocking of all were the admissions and testimony that he put enough nerve gas into the floats to kill the entire city AND anyone who arrives to clear the bodies for at least a month. Deaths due to wind currents (as a result of the unusually long active period of the nerve compound) will depopulate the entire gulf area within weeks....millions, if not tens of millions will be killed....but Bart only believes the compound to have effective radius to be 1 mile and an active duration of only 24 hours.
It is a nightmare of epic proportions in the flesh.
Portney, who had been listening to the tale the whole time without interuption or even so much as a change in expression, finally takes pause to speak in measured, calm tones:
"Scalp that piece of sh1t..."
Mee-Chan begins to smile again but only for a moment.
(Cue the screaming and wet, flesh-shearing noises)
So, you see....THIS is one guy they really should have just killed and been done with it....but with information learned and scalp taken, they left him to rot on the side of the road.
Had they ONLY known:
Crippled.
Disfigured.
Humiliated.
Poisoned.
Degraded.
Betrayed.
Beaten.
You have NOT heard the last from Mommy Stevenson's little boy!
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION....
The plan was relatively simple....
Leision had his booth set up 1.5 miles upwind from the centre of the parade route.
He would be hosting a "Meet n' Greet" with South Supporters who represent the interests he owes all that investment capital to.
They infiltrate the fairgrounds, locate and isolate Bart and them take him "down" before he can trigger the gas.
"And remember, NO SCALPING....just SHOOT him this time, okay?"
So it was with stolen state property, equipment and weaponry that these two nutters in an illegally modified vehicle decided to commit several federal crimes to stop the systematic genocide of the gulf coast.
(The tension was running a tad high amongst the players by now....even Greg was reverting to his old "punchy ways" with the rest of the group)
In a spectacular showdown, first in the crowded Mardi Gras streets....then to a posh, elegant mansion....and finally, the NBC Bunker hidden underneath it....this pair of heros REALLY stepped up to the plate with the help of a few locals they had met along the way.
Most notably of which was a hellion of a woman named "Lisa Devereux"....but more on her later!
The combat was pitched and desperate but after crashing the Big C into the upper level of the hidden bunker, this fight was ON!
It came so close to the wire that the heroes even decided to tell Leision the truth about Stevensons double cross....which of course Bart didn't believe but it provided the crucial seconds of doubt nessesary for a last ditch "Hail Mary Play" that pays off with no time left on the clock....literally!
Governor-for-Life Bartholomew Leision has kissed his last baby....his organization exposed....his plan destroyed but most importantly....his Creditors haven't been paid.
He won't be bothering anyone for a while....just never say never 007!
Portney and The Chief (as the vlogs have labeled him) are once more national heros.
They have exposed extensive corruption of organized and corperate crime with roots in the petrolium industry that had total control of Law Enforcement and the Military on a state and federal level. Willing to murder millions of Americans to get cheap oil and cheaper land.
Needless to say....THESE people were getting PISSED....but the "Sheriff and his Deputy" had the spotlight and it would be impossible to do anything about it now....but they were nothing if not patient.
Mee-Chan would have been happier to have recieved compensation for the petro-dollar bribes he shelled out for but The Key to the City would be fine if nothing else was up for grabs at the moment.
They also began to notice signs that The Wardogs might be on their trail again so they decided to shack up with a convoy riding scout through the Texas Badlands rather than ride alone.
Their reputations made it easy to find a trustworthy convoy to freelance out with.
The pay would also greatly subsidize the journey which (as of late) had become a little more expensive than anticipated.
The trip was riveting with chases and road deuls as the pair....now joined by Lisa....made their way to San Antonio but the real excitement happened at a truck stop the convoy came upon under seige by several biker gangs who had all decided to cooperate together to attack and loot the fortified station.
Very reminicient of Mad Max II as it began to develop from a simple encounter into a mini-adventure all its own.
During the combat, the pair made friends with a Trucker who ran a rogue custom mobile broadcast trailer that would report on the state of freedom in America and The Free Oil States called: "The Electric Mayhem".
Also was the ex-green beret Trucker who drove freelance for the Halpern Petrol convoy by the name of "Hammerdown" Smith. He took an instant shine to the very lovely Miss Devereux (token representation Halle Berry) much to her chagrin.
Finally were the bulk of mercenary malcontents whose job it was to guard the Halpern "wagon train" from the perils of the Badlands....The Swords of Texas as they were known back then. At least 1/3rd of the original Convoy didn't make it to San Antonio and many of those that did arrive in one piece were either damaged or wounded.
The Swords were so impressed that they offered Portney, Mee-Chan, Hammerdown and Lisa all jobs in their ranks with the promise of serious money. It's not as if they didn't have openings available after losing 20+ soldiers in the last job.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Portney was reluctant still figuring he had a job once summer had gone.
Hammerdown also was hesitant about accepting but Lisa had read the situation correctly and immediately began to work on Knowledge.
This made Hammerdown immediately change his mind as he really liked Lisa and was just looking for an excuse to follow her around.
Baker finally agreed but only with the understanding that it would be temporary.
More than anything else, he's just a bit worried that Knowledge was still a bit green to be left alone in Autodeul to his own devices.
The arrangement did indeed actually work out far better than Portney could have imagined it would have....for a while.
During this time the heros ranks would swell and shrink but many introduced during this time would form the backbone of the game.
Among those were notably:
- Hammerdown Smith (Who would eventually "inherit" the Electric Mayhem from Doctor Teeth after countless displays of driving and combat prowess as The Swords mission count grew.)
- Lisa Devereux (Who would serve as his replacement driver and gunner but spent most of her days as a "femme fatale extraordinaire" and cat burglar without peer)
- Robert Q Washington (A man who had suffered extensive amnesia after a biker raid that left his family murdered and and him crippled. Has signed on with various convoys in the remote hope of crossing paths with the ones who killed his wife and children)
- Hotshot Brewster (A cowgirl cop from Colorado who was trying far too hard to make a name for herself in Texas Law Enforcement in addition to being a "well-intentioned" foil for the group.)
- Catherine Calaveri (Who, while being a brilliant automotive and mechanical genius in her own right, had a father who ran an exclusive custom modifications shop for Autodeulers. The Swords visited there frequently and shopped there almost exclusively!)
- Old Man Calaveri (Called Gi-san by those close to him....the true brains behind the success of Calaveri Concepts and responsible for teaching Catherine all she knows.)
- Kyran Cruz (Whose father was the Mayor of San Antonio and had herself been abducted by people eager to squeeze political leverage from her father at any cost.)
- Jack Halpern (Owner and C.E.O. of Halpern Petrol. Eccentric billionaire and notorious prankster. The only "official" corperate entity that The Swords ever worked for.)
- The ever silent "Stone" even made a few cameos.
The game would progress to its 8 year mark in real time and to 2030 A.D. of game time.
The "bloodlust" that had been building inside of Mee-Chan since "The Big Easy" seemed to subside.
The jobs taken by The Swords may have been mercenary work but it was always very closely related to helping oppressed citizens.
Mee-Chan was turning 24 when he finally paid a visit to the address that Auggie sent.
In doing so he neglected one of his primary rules....NEVER go anywhere alone....but it was already too late.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
After a long but uneventful ride on a Calaveri Chopper, the Jumper soon found himself out in the middle of nowhere on the outskirts of The Alamo.
Surrounded by miles of nothing he decided to rest before heading back home....eight hours on a motorcycle can play havok on the "hemmies"!
He had no way of knowing it but he had strayed onto an ultra-top secret black ops military base. Basically, an "unregistered" research facility of a type which "Area-51" might farm research out to....and it wasn't long till they had their fill of this unknown interloper.
As he turned to mount his "steed", the ground around him seemingly erupted in a flurry of sand as a squad of special forces assets rose from the desert around him and leveled weapons at the very suprised Mee-Chan. Even more disturbing than that was the fact that there were at least 20 laser dots on his body, but only 6 men visible around him.
Knowledge still had his wits about him, despite the sudden and ingenius nature of the ambush he had fallen into, he casually put out his cigarette with a sheepish grin on his face and muttered:
"Alright, YOU win....I'll put it out."
As he was taken by transport to what appeared to be an abandoned base, he had already realized that he was out of his league but that didn't stop him from insuring a few of the guards who restrained would be walking funny that night.
He thought they would first question him then eliminate him.
No one would ever find him or know what became of him.
After a spike on an otherwise harmless looking sensor subsides, the tone of the visit becomes much different one.
An old "crazy looking" man (obviously a scientist) enters the room with a clip board. He asks a single question of Mee-Chan and while obscure in nature, he is obviously very excited about hearing what the answer will be:
"Have you seen it?"
He did everything he could to block the thoughts of Dustin Hoffman strapped to a chair in The Marathon Man but they kept popping into his head.
"Uhhh....yeah, I've seen it....it's uhhh.....it's nice and....all s-shiney?"
The odd little man broke into uncontrollable fits of laughter and hastily shooed the guards away (although the task took some convincing) and then even more suprisingly turned off the visible (and a handful of consealed) cameras.
He then walked up and sat down on the edge of the table in front of Mee-Chan showing no fear or self-restraint at all and repeated his question:
"O-okay....seriously, now....have YOU seen it?"
Knowledge thought long and hard and after agonizing in silence for what seemed like minutes, he finally spoke up:
"I....I-I....I....REALLY gotta tell ya I have NO clue what you're talking about....at all."
The scientist look confused for a moment:
"Really?"
Mee-chan just shrugged.
The scientist retorted:
"Well, we both know THAT'S not true."
He then held forth the harmless looking scanner with the reading on it that had altered the tone of the room like a really loud, wet fart in a crowded elevator.
"You know what this says?"
Mee-Chan shrugged.
"It tells me you are either lying through your teeth or that this d@mn thing is a worthless piece of crap!!!"
And with that, threw the sensor across the room breaking it into a thousand pieces against the far wall.
This made Knowledge jump in his seat at the sudden change in the atmosphere of the interrogation and his gaze hardened as he began to tense his shoulders, glaring menacingly at the doctor.
It made the old man nervous who then decided he would take a few steps away from the displaced jumper:
"Or....o-or you didn't even know you were being displaced?"
Mee-Chan then smiled meekly (trying to lighten the mood) and lifted a finger to touch his nose, indicating he had gotten it right.
The doctor was sent once more into fits of laughter that ended in horrid spasmodic (and painful sounding) coughing fits.
He held up his hand as he tried to catch his breath and assured the still bound Mee-Chan that he was indeed fine and that it would pass. Clearing his throat he asked:
"What's it like there?"
"Actually a lot like THIS place....same amount of guns, they're just not on the cars....less cannibalism maybe....the t.v. is WAY cooler here!"
Once more the doctor began to giggle like a schoolgirl.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
"Okay....w-why do you keep doing that?"
The crusty old scientist gathered his breath and said:
"It's not everyday one gets to talk to the worlds first and ONLY interdimensional traveller."
This made Mee-Chan begin to laugh, which caused the old man to follow suit. The two of them were onto minute two of the gut-wrenching laughter when the scientist finally gathered the breath to get out the words:
"What's so funny?"
"I don't know if I'm the first-" Mee-Chan managed to choke out gasping for air "-but I'm DEFINITELY not alone!"
It was at THIS moment that a look of dread came over the old mans face as he recoiled from the Jumper and men in dark suits with sunglasses quickly ushered him out of the room in a flurry of activity.
"F'K....when am I going to learn to keep my big stupid mouth SHUT!?!"
The Men in Black then turned to him, after donning rubber gloves, and produced an ugly, large looking syringe filled with a nasty looking fluid.
"Uhhh....guys....whats happened with the "HA-HA"....we're ALL friends here....THERE'S NO NEED FOR THAT....WAIT...S-STOP-"
He began to feel warm.
Then he became dizzy.
Within seconds he could barely hold himself upright in the chair as he murmered:
"You...y-you m-motherfu-"
Sound had now abandoned him as well and a strange tunnel vision began to set in until finally, he could fight it no longer.
Fade to Black.
(Greg is now salivating like a mad dog eager to see pain and misery lumped onto Knowledge with careless abandon.)
(Mike and Phil are itching to make a rescue with Portney and The Swords but his unannounced departure has left no clues to his whereabouts.)
(Everyone is DYING to see how it ends though....GM included.)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Portney is a sneaky one indeed!
For months he has had Mee-Chan living under a false assumption.
Namely that the implant in his head was deactivated the day he was released.
This was only partially true.
It is ALSO true that he reactivated it again when Knowledge first began to talk about joining the Swords of Texas in the first place for fear that he would run off when Portney was not looking, forcing Portney to go out and bring him back for his own good.
Mainly because Portney HATES running when he wears cowboy boots.
Never once did Portney suspect he would willingly agree to join but neither did he remember to deactivate the implant again.
With the tracker (in The Big C) specifically attuned to him in the first place, Portney would have a flawless way to track his friend if he can manage to get the signal.
Big C may not have enough juice to get the job done.
To this end he enlists the help of the Electric Mayhem's sat-dish uplink and uses the Big C as a mobile transmitter to boost reception in a given area.
Portney could only take two others with him and still use The Big C as a "converti-car" but the caverns and terrain The Swords made camp in, were often chosen to protect themselves from detection and often had the effect of isolating them when a satellite couldn't be hacked directly.
Flight-mode would be the only hope of sending or recieving a signal, despite the dramatically reduced range caused by using aero-mode. Portney set out with Lisa and Brewster (who by this time had chosen to resign from the State Police rather than face the embarassment of an public trial over sympathies she had towards The Swords ideology) and the three against all odds, manage to pick up the signal momentarily and relay the approximate coordinates to the The Swords (some of whom know full well that an installation had been "consealed there" for quite some time) gathered up all the men they could muster and called in every marker and favor that they had.
In doing so mustered up the largest (conventional) armored force in the history of the organization.
It was comprised of:
- (20) Modified C-130 Hercules
- (2) Skycrane Mechalifters
- (2) M-1A12 Abrams MBT
- (4) M-113 APC
- (2) M-2A9 Bradley IFV
- (2) TS-37 Viejo (commandeered communist-made early model light battlemechs of impressive design.Is to combat reliablity as the AK-47 is to assault rifles)
- (1) Modified Bell Jetcopter Gunship (think "Airwolf" on steroids)
- (1) A-6 Corsair
- (1) A-4 Skyhawk
- (1) P-40 Warhawk
- (1) Martin Marauder
- (1) B-25 Mitchell
- (1) Aircobra
- (1) Ascender X-Plane
- (1) Skyraider
- The Electric Mayhem
- The Big C
- A squad of off-road deuling vehicles optimized for desert combat environments using hit and fade tactics.
Plus another 500 or so "veteran mercenaries" in loose change.
They squared off against:
- (3) Advanced Prototype Super-Tanks (as big as the ones used in Venus Wars!)
- (3) Minuteman Light Battlemechs (similar to the Battletech Battlemaster series mecha)
- (6) Light Attack Aerodynes
- (10) HMV Style Light Transports
- (50) Prototype Exoskeleton Armored Troops
- (200) Rangers
- (100) Indie Defence Contractors
- (100) C.I.A. Assets
- (4000) Civilian Contractors (Non-Combatants)
It would be the biggest battle we had attempted yet using the tactical combat system. Fortunately (and unbeknownst to anyone) the two sides were almost even and any open conflict would not only be costly but a race against time as well.
Thanks to Doctor Teeth who had been hawking the complexe like an X-plane buff haunting the habitable zones around Groom Lake waiting for a glimpse of anything, the strike force was certain it had all the logistics they needed to attempt a successful forced entry and hostage rescue.
However there was more to unfold before The Swords would get into position to strike at the goverment black ops research facility.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Back in his cell, Mee-Chan kept reminding himself to keep his mouth shut in the future and curb his temper....through the narcotic-induced haze.
All he could do to keep from drifting into bleary oblivion was imagine his hands closing around the throat of Man in black-on-the-right who injected him with "happy juice" in the first place.
One thing was for certain....the next person through that door was gonna get a foot right in the nutsack. After trying to stand up for the first time since being stuck, he ammends that thought to be "the second person" instead.
When the door to the cell opened next, he was shocked to see that not only did this person "not have a nutsack", but was VERY attractive.
"Man....that IS a crying shame...." Phil said "....cause I'm gonna have to KNOCK her the f'k out ANYWAY!"
(It took a few minutes for the laughter in the room to die down enough to continue.)
Phil: I'm sorry....I meant to say: "WHO are you?"
GM: She replies: "No, I am Hoo."
Phil: "Uhhhh.....what?"
GM: She groans: "HOO!"
The lady introduced herself as Vivian Hoo, one of the lead executive project managers on site however her claim to fame was the first operational cross-dimensional Conveyor on Earth-6 and wanted to have first hand confirmation that Mee-Chan was indeed what he was claimed to be.
Upon confirmation she was both elated and saddened, remarking that because of this, he would never be allowed to leave the complexe alive but at least knew their invention had worked afterall.
This came as little comfort to Knowledge.
She also knew that the crusty old fart he had been "interrogated" by before was a brilliantly gifted crackpot was named Doctor Thadius Mobius.
"THAT F'KR WAS MOBIUS!?!?!. I'm gonna KILL Auggie!"
He was one of the first scientists involved with "Looking Glass" and is the sole remaining doctor from the original team.
Hoo also knows that Mobius IS completely out of his mind and against all common sence is going to try and engage their Conveyor again before it has been completely recharged (as it was the first time the "accident" occured).
Vivian is fairly certain if Mobius engages the conveyor again, it will do more than just bring something here....it might transport a "large" section of here, somewhere else. Or it could result in a nuclear explosion....she's not sure yet....but the news is grim in either senario.
All Knowledge can think to say is:
"Could we go back to the "never leave here alive again" part....does that mean if I stay I get to live?"
Vivian replies with a voice like silk:
"I couldn't help you even if I wanted to."
"What if I would tell you eveything I know about Jumping?"
(Which was absolutely nothing but Hoo didn't realize this and hestitated)
"You don't understand...they have people here...they'll MAKE you talk...its ALL they do around here...I am truely sorry."
She turned to leave but she hestitated and returned to give him a tiny pill:
"Take this....for the pain."
Mee-Chan blustered: "I'm not in pain."
"You WILL be"
"At LEAST think about it?" blurted out Knowledge with desperation finally causing his voice to crack and soften.
The beautiful scientist stopped at the door to his cell and once certain no one could hear her, leaned back and whispered to him:
"I am."
The cell door had barely been closed for a minute when it started to open again.
"what took you so long?" he joked thinking it was Hoo again and she had either decided to help him ALREADY or had simply forgotten something in her haste.
There WAS however another possibility he hadn't entertained till just then as the same pair of Men in Black wearing rubber gloves presented themselves to him with syringe in hand once more:
"Traffic is a b@$%h out here, Chief."
All North had time to do was scream.
Fade to Black.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
In a daring feat of piloting legerdomain, The Swords are airdropped near a rally point by C-130's flying N.O.E.(to avoid radar detection) and travelling at night by instrumentation only.
The cajones on these guys!
The entire strike force is on the ground and the planes engines already dimming to a faint memory as the various units begin to move out to take position for the attack.
Fanning out across the mesa, the sight of that armored column as it approached the black ops compound in the failing light of early dawn must have been a sight to behold as The Swords charged up on The Alamo Research facility probably for the first time since the spanish had first taken the real Alamo centuries ago. All for the friendship of a single man who had touched so many lives, that a literal army rose up, willing to ride straight into the mouth of Hades to save him.
Despite the cutting edge detection equipment deployed by the Federal Compound...The Swords had ways to spoof and baffle their sensors during the approach.
Even though there were numerous manned watchposts in the pitch of night...The Swords had mountains of experience nightfighting allowing them to easily identify and quickly eliminate opposition without breaking their steath approach profile.
The REAL fight occured when air elements on both sides made contact with each other while waiting the ground teams to move into position.
It was spectacular but brief as all Aerodynes were quickly destroyed by the antique (yet far more agile) WWII aircraft. Their armor made them tough at first but consentrated fire proved enough to remove even the most stubborn stains!
The battle had begun....and THIS is how it all worked out:
- Air Power was truely the deciding factor in the battle. Without the light bombers providing support and then strafing runs, the super-tanks would have easily overrun The Sword offensive line and their attack would have been over pretty quick as a super-tank could run over (and flatten) even a normal tank with the greatest of ease if it remains still long enough. The super-tanks while lethal to the allied armor were far less effective against air power but did make very short work of any off-road attack vehicle that came within range of its weapon suite.
- While the WWII aircraft were pivotal in defeating the super-tanks, they were unfortunately sitting ducks to the anti-air measures deployed by the Minutemen. The only two craft that had even a prayer of getting close to them were the A-6 and A-4, however the Jetcopter did volunteer as bait to lure the Mecha into a crossfire.
- No TS-37's survived the combat....while devastating against federalist infantry, the Minutemen were just too well armored and too well armed to stand toe to toe with them at close range. The final coups-de-gras on the Minutemen was administered by The Swords own armor elements.
- Exo-Armor (had there been more of it) WOULD have absolutely tipped the balence in favor of federal forces. Even a mere fifty suits made moments pretty tense as they carried heavy weaponry and there was ALWAYS one lurking around to take a pot shot.
- Despite the defenders infantry being firmly entrenched, the remaining air power was able to soften up and lend continuing support for armored elements that swept into the compounds perimetre. They were very quickly dislodged and routed soon after except for the C.I.A. Assets who mostly fought to the death rather than be taken alive.
- The clock had started ticking. This MAY have been an "un-base" but very shortly, men in unmarked aerodynes wearing black suits will be crawling over this place like white on rice and they still have no clear idea as to where the signal was originating from as it has not been received since first being detected.
- Its during this battle that Brother Conelius Teeth is mortally wounded and passes on the keys of the Mayhem to the only other bonafide "Brotherhood" member there....Hammerdown Smith. Together he and Lisa (with Washington) maintained the Mayhem as a jamming & command platform that was crucial to slowing the federal responce times to The Alamo.
- Final tally puts Swords casualties at 75% while the Alamo suffers +95% in the routing. The combat takes 32 real time hours to complete! The Swords have barely taken the airfield by the time the first of the C-130's starts to land to pick up and transport wounded soldiers and damaged but salvagable equipment.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Deep underground, the complexe is on highest alert as the reports of their gradual loss of the surface facility trickles through to the bases defenders.
Vivian Hoo decides as the battle turns in the favor of The Swords that Knowledge's offer might be the only way to go and hastily gathering up "sensitive" data and research (with Travelling Salesman storage technology!) she goes off to the detention area as either the bravest thing she has ever done....or the dumbest:
Greg: "WHAT....she's NOT a ninja?"
GM: "Nope."
Greg: "What a jyp!"
Phil: "Billions of asians in the world and we get the ONE that ISN'T a ninja?"
GM: "Yep...and THAT'S racist."
Mike: "Greg's right....this IS a jyp....I WANT NINJA SPEEDLINES!!!"
GM: "TRUST ME fellas, you're GONNA get ninjas, alright? Just not YET and Doctor Hoo ISN'T one of them."
Greg: "There f'kin' BETTER be!"
Using her smoldering looks, the good doctor is able to suprise and sedate the guard at the security desk, takes his weapon and manages to unlock Mee-Chan's cell.
Since the last time the door opened didn't go so well North was a bit apprehensive about who might appear in his cell this time.
He was relieved beyond words to see the exotically beautiful Miss Hoo and hoped that she had not come into to silence him, especially upon seeing the loaded sidearm in her shaking hand. Hesitantly, he inquired:
"Is that for me?"
"Yes." said the doctor.
"But WHY?" whimpered North.
"Because I'm a lousy shot." she replied, handing him the pistol as she unlocked his manacles.
Knowledge clued back into reality (as the hamster resumed running on the wheel in his head) and breathed a huge sigh of relief, realizing he wasn't about to be snuffed afterall.
Her plan was simple.
Knowledge would get into the guards uniform and "escort" her out of the complexe in one of the emergency egress tubes.
Once on the surface, she wagered they would be able to commandeer some transport and escape whatever battle is raging above.
In exchange, Knowledge would give her exclusive rights to all he knew about "Jumping".
(For the first time since our little "Boxer's Day Rebellion" began, Phil is quite happy that Vivian is NOT a ninja)
(Mike reassures him that it won't matter since they are both going to die long before they ever get near the surface)
(Greg squeals in delight when he discovers the next corner that Mee-Chan and Hoo round brings them face to face with one of the Men in Black)
To make a long story short; Agent Smith kicked Knowledge's keister....(and thats Smith as in "The Diehard Series" and not as in from "The Matrix Series")....he put up his "A-Game" and even tried every dirty trick he could think of....maybe even got in a few shots of his own but Smith was just too strong and it wasn't long before Mee-Chan was hitting the floor.
As fate would have it, Hoo had tried to intervene earlier by stabbing Smith with a scalpel in the back. He senced her coming and since Mee-chan was still sucking floor tiles, diverted his attention towards her. He quickly disarmed her and was about to cause her greivous bodily harm when Mee-Chan palmed the small blade and dove on Smith as if he still had no weapon.
Now, as the Man in Black closed for the kill, he plunged the tiny knife into The agents brain through his eyeball in a single VERY "lucky" called-strike. This only stunned The Agent but was enough for the jumper to get a hold of and repeatedly slam the Man in Blacks face down onto the floor, eventually driving the medical blade through the back of The Agents skull.
He had survived the fight of his life.
The victory had shocked him more than it did Hoo.
He was beaten to a pulp and exhausted....but he was STILL alive!
So, he did the only thing he could think of and quickly searched the corpse for anything of value and then promptly scalped the Agent with the government-issued blade tucked in the mans boot before moving on.
The dead Agent likewise carried considerable firepower which he did not employ as he already knew that Mee-Chan was no match for him in combat and the idea of beating him to death with his bare hands just seemed to carry more appeal.
Sporadic firefights would then begin to break out as the hero lead the damsel towards the elevators that would take them to the egress tubes and ultimately (hopefully) to freedom.
Greg: "SSSOOOOO CLOSE" that time!"
(Phil is "struting" having taken Knowledge North to another astounding victory against all odds.)
(Mike is getting hungry.)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Doc Hoo realizes that Mee-Chan will not last long in the state he's in and while taking refuge in a pilot's locker room, she administers first-aid and pumps him full of "expiramental battle drugs" when she is struck by an idea. Not far from where the pair hide lies a hanger that holds prototype semi-transformable weapons platform that is either directly or indirectly built from the "fruits" of the Conveyor Project. This new "Doomsday" weapon system, code named: G.U.N.H.E.D. is a revolutionary combat A.I. housed in a mech-sized body.
(As any anime fan worth their "neko-ears" should be able to tell you!)
It will certainly be guarded but it should prove less diffcult than all the security they would face trying to reach the egress tube launchers directly. Mee-Chan mumbles something about:
"As long as the are no more guys in black suits...."
It takes a while and he "whines like a baby" the whole time but she finally manages to get him into a Mecha Bodysuit and locates helmets that will fit them. She then seals him into pressure suit as the visor slips down and instantly polarizes.
Knowledge then stands up and aims his sidearm ahead of himself in anticipation of moving out into the unknown.
Hoo then stops him and turns him completely the other way around and slaps his ass.
He slowly turns and looks at her but fortunately, she can't see the expression on his face through the polarized visor.
Together they both head out to the hanger area.
Meanwhile on the surface, to penetrate the outer bunker, The Swords invited "Uncle Spooky" to the party.
The Federal Forces just couldn't say "no".
With the bunker busted wide open and The Swords pouring into the installation they quickly discovered that only 1 in every 10 staff encountered were actually combatants.
There were a few unfortunate "misunderstandings" at first but the error was caught and corrected....eventually.
The Federalists still had an ace up their sleeve....in this case, a team of experimantal armor suits called "Landmates" that had set up a defensive perimetre at the inner vault reception.
It would be a slaughter as these prototype weapons systems carried enough sheer firepower to easily qualify each unit a walking tank....they dwarfed the destructive potential of the Exo-Suits faced earlier on the surface.
Things almost took a turn for the tragic when the most unlikely thing occured.
Just as The Swords were about to fall into the Federalist trap, from behind the Landmates, the hanger began to rumble and vibrate as the G.U.N.H.E.D. roared to life.
The sounds of the Landmates begin torn apart by the gigantic G.U.N.H.E.D. was enough to cause the Sword's infantry to hesitate pressing their advance but it wasn't until the massive cybertank began to bash through the inner vault doors that they considered falling back and taking cover.
Imagine their suprise when the G.U.N.H.E.D. should emerge from the smoke and wreckage and Mee-chan climbs out of the top hatch.
Things were beginning to look up but once more, fate had proven to be unkind to The Swords.
To ensure that precious military secrets were not lost, and because a rapid reaction force would arrive too slowly, the decision is made to scorch the base and all personal in it.
Facilitating this task, a newly launched satillite defence (political euphemism for "offensive") system, that would be the precursor to the "Killer Dolls" from the classic BGC series, is used to sterilize the site.
While the G.U.H.H.E.D. and those who were inside the vault were spared long enough to make good a high speed escape through an adjacent transit tunnel on the monolithic cybertank, anyone who had not already been medivac'd by C-130 at the time was vaporized by the strike.
It took a concentrated bombardment which lasted 10 minutes during which the cybertank was barely able to make its way clear of the collapsing base behind it.
The team of survivors blasted their way to the surface and was exfiltrated by the remaining Skycrane.
The day was theirs but The Swords of Texas would never recover from the "Battle of The Alamo".
It was upon emerging from the tunnels that Knowledge was dumbstruck. Not by the devastation and people who has died to save him, but at the sand covered sabre that lay in the desert at his feet...just as he had seen months earlier in the Waycross vison-quest with The Old Man of The Swamp.
Try as he might, North would never discover to which fallen Texas Sword the antique cavelry sabre belonged.
It would haunt him till the end of his days.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Only a handful of the original Swords remained alive once the dust had settled.
(Numbering now in the low 100's and most of them had been injured early in the battle and had no clue about the existance of the G.U.N.H.E.D. or the Landmates)
- Portney Lee Baker
- Knowledge "Mee-Chan" North
- Doctor Vivian Hoo
- Lisa Devereaux
- Jeremiah "Hammerdown" Smith
- Robert "BBQ" Washington
- Beulla "Hotshot" Brewster
- Catherine "Shorty" Calaveri
With the exception of the Skycrane's crew, the above group were the only ones who had any knowledge of the G.U.N.H.E.D.'s existance.
Due to it's "highly sensitive nature", the lost installation took all its secrets with it. Hoo verified that no records of or copies existed anywhere on earth of the research or technology developed there.
The "Salesmen Binder" of portable drives Hoo liberates will literally change the course of human history.
Knowledge comes clean with Vivian that he actually knows nothing at all about "jumping techniques" or any of the technology & science behind it.
Instead of acting upset, Hoo simply said:
"I would have said anything to have escaped from there as well....I do not blame you....but it would have been nice."
Then came words that would echo like a shotgun in Knowledge's ears....he couldn't even recall (thinking back on it) who had initially uttered them over the dying whine of the Skycrane rotors:
"What now?"
Together they swore a pact never to divulge the cybertanks existance...not until such time as they can arrange for a buyer and have money sent to the families of all the fallen Swords.
(Approximately 650+ troops & support personal)
The ONLY chance they have is to find someone rich enough (r.e. CRAZY) to actually buy stolen black bag "otherworld" technology.
In Texas, that can one mean one thing....Jack Cornelius Halpern!
This is where Portney decides that it has been a he77 of a ride but its time to get the horse back to the stables and inquires if Knowledge will come with him. Leision was one thing but this has just gone one step beyond and then some. Their summer vacation has stretched to just over a year now and he feels the need to return to his beloved Waycross.
(What's left of it anyway!)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Mee-Chan, still moved by the sacrifice of so many for his sake, can simply not let it all be in vain and insists upon staying the course or its all for nothing.
Convinced that North has finally flipped out, the Dynamic Duo parts company in the middle of the Texas outback and would not see each other again for nearly a decade.
Hammerdown likewise decides he has had enough excitement for a while resigns himself to take up Doctor Teeth's mantle as "The Voice of Free America" but the rest decide to stick with Mee-Chan and ride that horse to the bitter end.
Jack Halpern takes no convincing to purchace the G.U.N.H.E.D. once he sets eyes upon it.
The only problem is figuring out how much it's actually worth.
Hoo makes certain that Jack clearly understands the potential of such a unique and powerful weapons system.
Jack was further comforted in knowing that no agency, Federal or otherwise, could possibly know the origin of the technology stolen. No evidence of it exists at any other installation and it was unique in its scope. Vivian also made claims that no copies exist and the very machine used to "steal" the technology was "crisped" in the sterilization process.
It was later proven that this was not true.
The sum of cash that Hoo had quoted was still far too high for Jack to consider and still hold onto his oil business so he was hesitant at first until Mee-Chan suggested that a lump sum of cash be paid to the dead Swords and the remainder (for those making the deal now) would come in the form of interest payments from the developing technologies discovered from the G.U.N.H.E.D.'s analysis.
This pleased Jack to no end.
It took a while to complete the deal but eventually Jack would successfully expand from petrollium into advanced cybernetic weapons research and Halpern Security Concepts was born.
Calaveri Concepts also began to grow in reputation and popularity as tales of The Swords legend grew until eventually, with the help of Doctor Hoo, Calaveri Concepts became the first distributor for civilian Landmates.
(Part of the data and research Hoo liberated from the base before its destruction)
It would make the company and all involved wealthy beyond all expectations....but her biggest contribution was to Knowledge.
To him she would impart the blueprints and designs to the famed Combat Hard Suits and Motoslaves with detailed instructions to follow for their construction, design and maintenance saying:
"So simple, even Catherine couldn't possibly mess it up."
Catherine has only just met Doctor Hoo but she ALREADY doesn't like her.
(Miss Calaveri's token representation was a pre-boob job Christina Ricci)
North finally realizes what he must do.
Thus ended The Car Wars Road Atlas Edition to The Free Oil States....but it continued into The West Coast Edition the very next week we played.
The year was now 2032 A.D.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
The demand for The Swords of Texas was never greater but no one remained to answer the call.
The survivors disbanded shortly after recieving compensation from Halpern Petrolium, leaving only the core group of heros to question what they would do next.
Federal Forces began to tear the Lone Star State apart looking for the Swords for years to come but find no trace of them in the desert wastes of the Texas Badlands.
For the first year there wasn't much money to go around and most were reluctant to surface long enough for steady work (such as the Kyran Cruz Bodyguard Job).
Jack was still true to his word and core Swords were supplied with a secluded residence anywhere in Texas (and some counties in Oklahoma) of their choosing where Halpern Petrolium had holdings....which, back then, was everywhere in The Free Oil States....even Louisiana but no one wanted to go back there.
Calaveri Concepts supplied parts and munitions on tab while the core group awaited payment from Halpern Petrolium.
Gi-San would never have agreed to the arrangement until Catherine showed him the engineering blueprints and technical schematics for the Landmate Powered Armor System.
Just one look....was all it took.
Catherine had JUST left to tell the others the good news (and ask them what color they wanted their new Landmate to be) when Gi-San noticed Mee-Chan looking very quiet and solumn:
"Alright....out with it....whatever "IT" is."
For the first time in years, he recounted the entire tale since his arrival to the old man and mentioned how he was concerned he had not recieved another "vision" and how he seemed haunted by the image of steel in the sand he saw at the conclusion of The Battle of The Alamo.
Most of all, he spoke (most passionately) of how he wanted it all to mean something....something that wasn't a slap in the face to the sacrifice of so many. Then he showed the old man the pages that held the Hard Suit/Motoslave schematics and undreamed of weaponry systems.
All weren't complete works and many of the sub-systems and weapon components had design flaws or critical design failures and taken as a whole to anyone in the field, the prospects for development of these Hard Suits are slim to none.
While the Motoslave concept is far more feasible with current A.I. technology, part of its design depends on the Hard Suit, which is designated in the R&D accessment as "currently an unworkable concept given current black bag project fiscal constraints".
The Landmates were like candy to Gi-San but they were already a finished product and lacked true challenge....unlike the type presented by the Hard Suit design flaws.
This mezmerized Gi-San who begged for the chance to make them work....it would be his crowning achievement were he able to make them function but absolute secrecy had to be maintained at all times.
It would only take the wily inventor 6 months to work out solutions to the primary design flaws and manage a working prototype for testing.
Catherine volunteered as test operator and managed to complete all combat requirements asked of it, after a few non-life threatening setbacks.
So, as one could imagine, it was with a great deal of confusion and anger that Cathy confronted Gi-San and Mee-Chan about why she would not be considered as a Hard Suit operator.
Gi-San put his foot down and said if she insisted on being a suit operator that he would scrap the entire project and end the discussion that way.
Begrudgingly she acquiessed but this caused a rift between Catherine and Knowledge at a time when they were beginning to grow close.
Mee-Chan decided that some time apart might be whats needed to gain some perspective and decided to attend an autodeul match at the Amarillo Arena to take his mind off things.
While there, he has a chance encounter with Crying Wolf who informs him that, not only is her father and Aims attending as a racing team but they are doing so well in the seasons standings that if luck holds, may even get a top ranked shot at the coveted Cross Country Deathrace Championship.
The good mood is spoiled when Aim's current gunner (for the team matches of which 4 remained) named "Turk the Terrible", a talented amateur racer who had been taken under Team Auggie-Darktread's wing shortly before the race season began. He had been "escorting" Crying Wolf on the way to get himself a buritto. Turk returned with his repast in hand and took an immediate dislike to the new guy.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
The fight broke out so quickly and unexpectedly that Crying Wolf was unable to do anything initially except protest Mee-Chan's innocence upon deaf ears.
Walking up calmly and (without hint or pervue) handed North his stacked tray of mexican food, licked his fingers clean and smiled, holding out his hand to shake Mee-Chan's.
Turk then proceeded to immobilize the arm and then managed to hoist the "Jumper" up over his head in a single fluid motion that that ended with Mee-Chan being bodyslammed straight through a nearby condiment island at the food court.
Crying Wolf was still speechless (as was the injured Mee-Chan) when Turk then grabbed the smaller man, single-handedly hoisted him up to feet, then armlocked him, only to throw him into one of the large tent supports in the race dining area (after spinning him around for increased momentum) before letting him careen into the solid pillar-like object.
At least THIS time, he didn't take it in the face....which I might add, was still covered in condiments.
THIS time Crying Wolf called out for Turk to stop but it quickly became apparent that nothing would stop him short of physical intervention....but by the time that would happen, it would already be too late.
(Greg is on the literal EDGE of his seat....giggling away....with his laughter growing as Knowledge's situation gets worse)
(Phil was absent that week....so Mike had to decide whether he was gonna bring his "A-Game" to the table or not.)
Mike did INDEED bring his A-Game and (in a stunning reversal of fate) manages to sucker punch the overly confident Turk while he is distratcted by the well meaning (but completely combat ineffective) Crying Wolf, with all he's got AND a timely critical failure on Greg's behalf (playing as Turk, which he kicked himself about for the next hour) sees the combat turn in favor of the one-time underdog.
A string of bad rolling sees the combat superior Turk hospitalized by the smaller Knowledge in a suprisingly short period of time.
Crying Wolf is finally able to gather her wits and intervene with the far more predictable Mee-chan.
(Mike....take a bow, dude!)
And so, what would have otherwise been a wonderfully unexpected reunion with his old friends and mentors ended in tragedy as Team Auggie-Darktread would find itself without a gunner for Teamwork matches as the season "raced" to a finish.
(Yeah, its alright....you can groan too....the players all did at the time as well)
Mee-Chan felt terrible for his part in the misunderstanding but authorities forgave the incident as North didn't want to press charges and cause any more grief than he had already caused while genuinely seeming concerned for Turks well-being.
He hadn't recieved much of anything as of yet (from Halpern for the G.U.N.H.E.D.) and most of that (which he would eventually recieve) would instead go into financing the Hard Suit project but he had the means to cover the infirmed mans hospital stay and recouperation costs.
This would not be enough end the racing career of Turk the Terrible in professional autodeul but it would not happen with Team Auggie-Darktread this year.
To make up for the incident, Mee-Chan offered to take Turks place in the Teamwork assignments as gunner for Aims Darktreads "Executioner", a custom deuling-rebuilt Lamborghini 5000SS gas-burner.
Rules against gas burning cars in matches were not "strictly" prohibited as of yet in the A.A.D.A. (the cost of petrol being so high that they just disappeared of their own accord) but most competition used electric engines and welcomed a "bomb on wheels" into the arenas with little convincing.
Fans LOVE big explosions!
It looked as if solution had been found.
They would get a bonafide "war hero" for a gunner...Mee-Chan would get the time he needed away from Catherine as racing season wrapped up...he would finally get to see The West Coast and while he was gone, the Hard Suits would be completed and the G.U.N.H.E.D. would hopefully begin to start paying off....but more importantly, he would have a chance to get caught up with "old friends" he hadn't seen in since his arrival in this strange land.
Win-Win, right?
WRONG!!!
WRONG!!!
WRONG!!!
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
NO good deed EVER goes unpunished.
Aims has always liked Crying Wolf.
Many of things he has done and achieved in combat racing he has actually done to "get her attention", but due to the often brutal nature of autodeuling displays, they didn't go over anywhere near like he had planned.
When Knowledge left previously, Aims thought he would finally have the time to woo Crying Wolf over....and for a while it seemed like it might work.
(THIS is when he REALLY started to smoke his competition on the track)
Now with Knowledge's return, Crying Wolf has gone back to shadowing the Jumper and it is driving Aims OUT of his mind!
His racing starts to slip right at a crucial junction, when his focus and concentration are needed most.
The night before a Teamwork Assignment, Aims trashes one of their cars (named "Hotshot", identical to Executioner but with a different weapons package) and is injured in the process.
Things are looking dark for Auggies Team but Aims manages the strength to race in the following day if only to do ONE thing...ensure Mee-Chan had an accident he doesn't walk away from!
Auggie, who has known Aims Carefully better than anyone still above dirt, quickly realizes that something has changed in the way Aims drives but doesn't realize until he notices that the ace driver is seemingly driving in to poorly executed passenger side attacks that never should have struck otherwise.
Spindle is torn over what to do next when this new "passive-offensive" driving style Aims adopts to get Mee-Chan deceased (and is something none of the other drivers has ever seen or expected) seems to have wracked up a phenomenal race score and he's afraid to jinx this welcomed twist of fate.
In a display (quoted by commentators and press) of unprecedented driving skill, he broke track records that day by mortally eliminating 22 of the 30 opponents personally, all while trying to get Mee-Chan killed.
The true controversy arose when it was revealed that the Arena (due to a little known municiple code) was exempt from emergency Gold Cross coverage the type of which was required that evening.
16 of the 22 had the funds required for emergency resusitation but were refused service due to this unique county ordinance.
As a result, not only did all 22 die (they were already dead anyways!) but one other who was injured but completed the race could not get prompt medical treatment and died before reaching assistance.
The incident spurred lobbyists to petition for changes in the death sport that would allow greater "medical participation" in all A.A.D.A. sanctioned matches.
It made Aims famous overnight.
Driving even though he had internal bleeding and a broken leg.
Driving like no one had ever seen before.
Driving that most people thought just wasn't even possible.
Somehow....(Welcome back, PHIL!!!)...Knowledge survived the ENTIRE ordeal with only a handful of single HP wounds.
His ARMOR on the other hand was COMPLETELY destroyed.
(Just the look on Gregs face was too much...every time Phil pulled "The longest surviving Good Guy in the storyline to date" through like a champ...it was like watching candy being taken from a diabetic child!)
Auggie felt guilty for not stopping Aims once he had caught whiff of what was going on and saw how serious it had become.
Truth be told, the part of Auggie that prayed his daugther would stay clear of The Starman, wondered for a moment, if Aims could really do it.
Mee-Chan had the decency to wait until the press had left and all the cameras were off of them before he went up to Aims and knocked him straight out of the wheel chair he had been sitting in with the hardest punch he had delivered since being created.
Auggie broke the two of them up before Aims had damaged Mee-Chan seriously.
(The outcome was never even in doubt...wheelchair or no, Aims woulda killed his @$$!)
And THAT was how Crying Wolf saw the three of them when she entered the room to tell this group of "Special Ed's" that because of the race that night, orders had almost doubled and were showing no signs of slowing.
She was less than pleased.
Auggie on the other hand was still excited...if Aims could harness and maintain that same level of anger energy in his driving, there would be nothing to stop them.
He had never seen a Driver/Gunner team like Aims and Knowledge before but doubts the volatile nature will see it survive even a single race let alone to seasons end....but there were only TWO Teamwork Assignments left in the season.
If Aims could just hold off on killing Mee-Chan UNTIL then...
The race also had another unforseen side-effect.
It let D.B.Only know EXACTLY where Knowledge was!
"Go WEST young man....Go WEST!!!"
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
He put together a hit squad composed of the most dangerous Wardog Enforcers he could find in his travels and set out, with the sole purpose of killing Mee-Chan:
- A massive jamaican by the name of "Masha Y'op" who specializes in completing jobs others have found too difficult. Claims there isn't a man alive that he can't kill for the right price.
- A Wardog champion simply named "Tank". Only speaks to animals and never to people. Rumor has he had accidently killed as many pets as he has deliberately killed men. In either case, no one has ever had the courage to ask him to his face. Looks like "Ahnuld".
- A Pharmicist named "Tabs" who discovered he enjoyed poisoning people more than selling "banned vitamins" and medications. Specializes in poisoning his targets gradually....many of the people he killed still don't even realize they are dying yet.
- A "Black Widow" by the name of Lindy Tame. Would approach her targets and throw herself at them until they begin to take the bait. She then lures them to a quiet spot and easily disposes of them in private. She never fails and her bite is fatal.
But more importantly....
- A Trick Rider Savant who fell into the biker way of life after the Hollywood route didn't work out quite the way she had envisioned. Undefeated in Jousting who runs simply by the title of "Maim"...but more on HER later!
Meanwhile, back in Mudville:
Aims subsequent solo race was only passable for rankings purposes....he hadn't lost any points (on a per race average) but hadn't gained any either. Auggie was desperate to come up with a plan.
What he did was both unorthodox, unethical AND dangerous.
As the race started and Crying Wolf would kiss both driver and gunner for good luck, he would make sure she is called away before she kisses Aims, gambling this will be enough to get Aims Carefully red-lining.
Enlisting the aid of the pit crew and taking advantage of Turk's visit to the pit (without his inclusion), the ploy worked.
Unable to control his temper around Mee-Chan, he flew off around the track and demolished every racer in his path without concern for rules or safety.
Most of those who tuned into that weeks race did so not to find out who had who or lost but to see if Aims has successfully killed his gunner this week.
On the track....the two were absolute magic.
Off the track...."Happily ever After" was a complete disaster.
Crying Wolf quickly deduced she had been used and was furious with her father over his actions.
To get back at him....she would do the one thing her father feared she would do most. She would seduce and sleep with Mee-Chan but then would tell both her father and Aims, at the same time, in pit row before she kisses the racers for luck, killing possibly 3-4 birds with one stone!
(Don't EVER get in Crying Wolfs bad graces...she REALLY knows how to knock 'em outta the park!)
Knowledge already found himself wishing "vacation-time" was over and began to wrestle with why he could never seem to just "get away from it all" anymore....but on the bright side, he hadn't thought about Catherine once all day!
"It's just one more race..."
After that he would just take an airship back to Texas and try to forget he ever left in the first place....if Aims doesn't murder him first.
The day before the final Teamwork Assignment, Crying Wolf wasn't the only person to catch up Mee-Chan.
She tried throughout the previous evening to seduce him but Mee-Chan seemed uncharacteristically resistant to her charms.
Perhaps he was more nervous about what would happen to him were Aims ever to find out about such a tryst.
(It boggles the mind, don't it?)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Her plan was on the verge of backfiring and she had all but given up on it when they had sudden, unexpected guests.
"Tanks" size had given the Wardogs approach away as he awkwardly made his way through the crowd towards them.
He wasn't sure how many there were but clearly saw Masha amd Maim with him.
Knowing how poor Crying Wolf is at confrontations and seeing that he was sorely outnumbered, Knowledge chooses to flee instead of fight.
The two had almost managed to clear the structure when they ran into "Tabz" dressed as a confections vendor with a tray full of toxic concoctions....literally. Covered in his own poisoned liquids and tainted "soy-based meat" products, Mee-Chan tried to calm the man and escape before they could be spotted.
"Tabz" with a big smile, proceeded to reassure Knowledge that accidents happen and that it was no ones fault....then, without hesitation....pulled out a BIG @$$ gun and proceeded to shoot anything that moved.
Maim, Masha and Tank quickly located the source and saw Mee-Chan wrestling with Tabz as the assassins gun went off randomly.
Good samaritans who were about to intervene quickly ducked and covered as the Wardogs hit team took aim at Mee-Chan AND Tabz.
It wasn't until Tabz eyes went wide that the Jumper instinctively released him and dove at Crying Wolf.
Tabz was mowed down in the ensuing barrage of lead but for all the firepower brought to bear, they had missed their intended target.
(To be fair....Maim had only took aim at Mee-Chan but refrained from firing because of the amount of innocent bystanders in the target area)
They were only after Knowledge and he ordered Crying Wolf to hide while he lured them away from the other civilians but she refused.
She instead tried to give Mee-Chan something but he pushed her to cover as rounds shredded the area, and leapt to similar cover nearby.
North had only his tomahawk and Bowie on hand but these would have little use in a firefight.
What he wouldn't have done for a shotgun or pistol, he thought to himself as he cowered behind what remained of his cover.
He then noticed Crying Wolf pull a gun out from her handbag (apparently what she had been trying to give Mee-Chan in the FIRST place before he tossed her to cover) and held it shrugging as if to say: "What do I do with this thing?"
Mee-Chan could only stare at her in disbelief:
"OH-FOR-F@#K'S-SAKE!"
Not appreciating the tone he had struck, she demonstrated the problem by pointing the pistol at him and pulling the trigger....without telling him it wouldn't fire first.
(Don't EVER piss off Crying Wolf....she will seriously f'k with your head!)
It took him a moment to realize he hadn't actually been shot but once he had recovered, he was NOT in the best of moods.
A critically failed temper check has Knowledge lose his cool at a flukishly timed juncture that results in cinamatic rpg gold.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Knowledge: "GIVE me the gun!"
Crying wolf: "Tell me what to do and I'll do it!"
Knowledge: "I-JUST-DID!!"
He rolls his eyes, face palms, stands up without regard for enemy fire....("Want something done RIGHT, y'gotta do it yourself")....which had slowed because the hit team had been reloading....and with a "when I get there I am gonna slap the stupid right out of your whole family" look on his face, casually walked over and snatched the gun away from her rudely ("GIVE-me-THAT!!!")....then, without aiming (thanks to Luck) shot "Tank" twice in the face, the second he poked his fugly mug out.
North held out his hand to Crying Wolf, having still not moved an inch since taking the weapon from her and turned to walk out, pulling her (against her will) with him.
Just then D.B. stepped from around the corner with Lindy Tame.
The one-time friend began to monologue about "catching his @$$ for so long tha-"
Still furious, Mee-Chan didn't hesitate to fire (as the pistol had JUST happened to be pointing in their direction anyways when they emerged) and while D.B. was too fast and avoided being mowed down, Lindy who had stood behind him was not near so fortunate when one of the rounds meant for D.B. struck her in the throat.
D.B. was caught off guard.
Mee-Chan had never been this aggressive and before Lindy's body hit the ground, he was on D.B. and had Crying Wolfs pistol to his head.
"W-wait, WAIT a MINUTE!!!"
Then he hesitated....as if he had wanted to savor executing D.B....when Crying Wolf (who noticed Maim and Masha approaching fast) pulled Mee-Chan along and the bullet that would have ended D.B.'s life, instead harmlessly imbeded in the wall behind him.
Knowledge tried to shake her grasp and reaimed at D.B. but a veritable wall of lead from the remaining two enforcers sent Mee-Chan and Crying Wolf scrambling for whatever cover they could find.
Things were looking grim for Mee-Chan and company but just then, two security guards emerged and managed to flank Maim and Masha.
Sticking his head out to see, Mee-Chan smiled when he saw two guards approach the assassins from behind....that is, until he watched D.B. step out and execute both guards.
"Hurry it UP!!!"
D.B. snapped at the remaining hitters who then reloaded and prepared to storm the Hero.
The two tried to flee again but D.B. had them covered with his pistol while the other two assassins paused.
Seeing D.B., Mee-Chan immediately took aim once more, only to have Crying Wolf pull him back to cover as the area was torn apart by suppression fire.
Knowledge only had the one clip and hadn't been keeping track of the number of rounds he had fired but knew the next round could be his last one and if he was going to die this day, he wanted to take D.B. with him.
Both of them then noticed that they could still hear shooting but it wasn't at them....federal troops had finally arrived and were in the process of fending off the attackers but Masha and Maim were too aggressive and the would-be rescuers quickly found their assault to be losing momentum.
D.B., sensing they had lost the advantage began to make his was out of the Arena by escaping down a maintenance grate.
Masha held off the remaining wounded guards as Maim resorted to her sidearm and closed in on Knowledges last known position.
The combat had been more difficult than she had expected....this had been a pleasant suprise. This one was smart, quick and instead of being afriad of their onslaught....was eager to slap hands to irons and blast it out despite being outnumbered.
This is exactly the kinda "Boot Hill" sh1t she craved....a "worthy" opponent who seemed as fearless as she was...or at least as crazy.
Maim would not enjoy killing this "mark" when the time came.
She finally rounded the edge of the cover Mee-Chan had been using and was suprised to find Crying Wolf there instead.
Held her hands up meekly in surrender.
Maim, realizing she has made a critical error and demands Norths immediate whereabouts from Crying Wolf.
She points behind Maim just over her shoulder when the assassin hears a hammer being cocked.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Auntie Maim slumps her shoulders and shakes her head as she turns slowly to see he has gotten the drop on her by using Crying Wolf as a decoy.
Maim: "Oh...THAT'S just f'king low..."
North said in his most intimidating sounding voice:
"You lose."
Maim then aimed at Crying Wolf and replied:
"I shoot her...YOU los-"
Mee-Chan didn't wait for her to finish and without hesitation, shot Maim in the shoulder, spinning her like a top and sending her antique Colt M-1911 flying from her grasp.
It was ALSO the moment when Crying Wolf's Seburo M-5 ran out of bullets.
Mee-Chan had only the time to look at the pistol with a: "Great...just GREAT." look on his face when a bullrushing Maim slammed into him full tilt and sent the two of them tumbling to the ground.
Crying Wolf then astutely noticed that Masha was on his way back and after taking quick appraisal of her surroundings, formulated a desperate plan.
Now, Maim was created as a combat machine with a point value (at the time) 50% greater than Mee-Chan had, who was himself created as a 50 point student with almost no combat ability at all.
Maim SHOULD have been able to kick his butt.
She was larger than Mee-Chan (being a bodybuilder...who was modeled after Raye Hollit) but even with a hole through her shoulder from a 7.5mmCLP round, should have been a match for the Jumper, but Phil was in rare form that night.
Mee-Chan stood up faster, after being tackled, than his opponent with only one arm...and as Maim got to her feet, Knowledge struck her in the jaw as hard as he could.
She felt it, but wasn't impressed and resumed standing up when he landed a second punch a little stronger than the first one.
Now, he had pissed her off!
Trying not to wince at how his hand tingled after his apparently ineffective strikes, she grabbed him with her one good arm and gave him a coco-bop that broke his nose and made his legs give out from under him.
One of her "trademark moves" is a grapple followed by an armlock and subsequent determined strong punch to the gut....she got as far as the armlock but as she went to finish the combo, she used her injured arm to strike (as she normally would) and froze up in agony after mistakenly trying to use a crippled limb.
This allowed Mee-Chan to gather his wits and stomp on Maims toes.
As she wailed out in pain, he followed up by striking her throat with his fist.
She responded with a back fist that sent the Jumper flying a yard before he hit the ground before he could draw his tomahawk.
Knowledge wouldn't last much longer...he was running out of steam and was starting to reel from his wounds.
Maim (on the otherhand) was still combat effective, despite being shot through the shoulder, and Knowledges punches just weren't scoring enough damage to shift the combat in his favor but he had been one of the most difficult contracts she had ever undertaken.
She KNEW she would beat him but Mee-Chan stubbornly refused to go down.
Realizing that more federal troops were on the way, she tried to reason with Mee-Chan claiming she would make it quick and even spare the girl if he surrendered.
"I can take all three of you-" he said...even though Maim was standing there alone.
She chuckled to herself:
"You've got heart...I'll give ya that...(as she pulled out a small blade consealed in her belt buckle)...but I gotta kill ya now, Chief."
Mee-Chan shook his head to clear away the cobwebs and spat back:
"You're gonna to be disappointed, darlin'..." but he hadn't noticed Masha, who was even now positioning himself to make the kill.
From behind, Masha leveled his Ithaca M-37 at the unsuspecting Jumper and "pumped".
Just as it seemed as if Phil should pack it in for the night....Crying Wolf (way to go Mike) crashed through the display partition (in a Custom Deuler that was being displayed in the adjacent exhibit) and ran into Masha, sending him flying like a ragdoll with a sickening "crunch".
Masha's shotty fell at Mee-Chans feet (after being run over) and the Jumper looked at the weapon thoughtfully for a moment before rolling it onto his toe tip and "kicking" it up to his grasp only to end the manuver with a one-armed bandit reload shtick....but when he looked up, Maim is gone and only angry approaching federal troops remained.
(Luckily, Crying Wolf kept them from shooting the Jumper)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Five bystanders had been killed and twenty-seven wounded in the exchange.
Instead of Knowledge, Crying Wolf was hailed as the heroine of the day.
While waiting for her to answer questions from the Authorities, Mee-Chan saw Maim's chromed Colt and was able to recover it without anyone noticing.
He had no problem with the legalities concerning this as he was still annoyed they had taken his Bowie and Tomahawk away.
Crying Wolf spent the day "acting" angry for being used as a decoy by Mee-Chan and made him suffer for it till long after sundown....at which time time she claimed she would forgive him if he did her a simple "favor".
He was wary but agreed to hear it out.
She then used his guilt to get what she had initially wanted (before the assassins had stumbled upon them) and seduced him on the evening before the last Teamwork Assignment of the racing season.
After all that had happened , Auggie hadn't the means nor heart to "inspire" Aims for the race.
Even Aims himself was pleased with Mee-Chan (who wasn't fooled by talk of Crying Wolf being the savior of the day) and their feud seem to get put on the backburner which suited Mee-Chan just fine.
The entire Auggie-Dartread Team was expecting a disappointing finish to the season en-lieu of all the "happy-happy, joy-joy" feelings that had developed between driver and gunner.
Truth be told....Auggie, Aims and Mee-Chan had never gotten along quite so well as they did on that day....and never would again.
That evening, when she came out to wish Aim's and Knowledge good fortune for the race....she dropped a little "bomb" of her own....on national television.
A bruised Kidney and a half-mended leg couldn't keep Aims from diving over Executioner's hood and grabbing Mee-Chan by the throat in a desperate bid to choke the living sh1t out of him.
Turk: "This is going to be epic!"
Pole position was reduced to a free-for-all within seconds and the evening was off to an exciting start!
The race was delayed for 2 hours as injured drivers, gunners, pit crews and fans were carted from the track.
Disqualification loomed over Team Auggie-Darktread but it was already too late.
Aims Carefully (a.k.a. Darktread) was already on his way to being firmly entrenched in Autodeul mythos. That evening he would give one of the best autodeul performances seen in the history of the sport.
Highlights of the race included a stunning display reverse-direction combat driving....Automotive Acrobatics & stunt driving that had yet to be seen in the sport such as a critically executed Bootlegger's Reverse that featured an opponent eliminating critical strike in mid-manuver, as the weapons had been triggered throughout the entire controlled skid....jumping directly onto "dismounted" opponents with Executuioner using disabled vehicles as ramps (which is frowned upon in The Free Oil States and The South)....but none of it quite so spectacular as the moment when Aims had enough of Mee-Chan and during an unusually aggressive sideswipe, sent Mee-Chan (who had been hanging out the window with grenade launcher) into the hood of one of the opponents cars for over 2 of the races 10 scheduled laps. Aims then spent the next two laps trying to eliminate that car only to have Mee-Chan leap back onto The Executioner before he nudged the "platform" vehicle into the retaining wall at high speed....and then spent the next lap trying to shake Mee-Chan from off his car but the damaged door that saw him ejected in the first place also provided his way back into the car but only after Aims had been distracted by another driver.
It was one of the most memorable autodeul combats in the game so far and proved more than sufficient to propel Team Auggie-Darktread into top standings for the next season.
Racewise....it was a resounding success....but Aims and Mee-Chan would never drive together again.
Auggie was not as upset as Mee-Chan believed he would be.
He had thought Crying Wolf was already been sleeping with Mee-Chan, so discovering it had only happened once was a bit of a relief for him.
Crying Wolf had taught everyone a valuable lesson but the toll it took on the team ensured that Knowledge would not remain with them for the seasons final solo race.
Before North would depart, she would appologize for "using" him and asked him to return with her, once race season ended.
He declined and as the autodeul spectacle moved onto the final location he found himself alone in the LA-1 Megaplex, better known as "The City of Angels".
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Unfortunately, he was low on dinero and didn't have enough left to afford an airship ride back to Austin.
He was eventually able to find some "gainful" employment but the jobs he found were mundane in nature and after a month he began to become concerned that his stay was costing him money instead of saving any.
He decided that "playing safe" might not be the best way to go.
It wasn't long before he found himself over his head once more.
Among the more memorable of these were:
- Becoming embroiled in a gang war that involved a entire C.T. eventually spilling out onto the adjacent highway and causing a 10 mile traffic jam that saw hundreds of gangbangers and motorists caught up in an historic free-for-all that lasted for 3 days before L.A.P.D. and LA-1 M.F.P. managed to regain control.
- Prevented another bio-terror plot involving the eco-group "Green Circle" with only the assistance of a commando scout troop, who were (oddly enough) more effective than local authorities at preventing the tragedy.
- Rode shotgun with a convoy heading up to Weed in Nothern California only to accidently stumble upon and exposed a massively scaled grow operation that used slave labour and preyed on motorists.
Upon returning from Weed, he actually found he had managed to get ahead of the game and was halfway to his goal of a return airship ticket when things got "interesting".
He had decided celebrate a bit (with the last jobs "bonus pay") and attend a deuling rally being held at the South Venice beachfront, resolved to enjoy himself for once.
It was well into the evening and Mee-Chan was on his way to getting trashed when he caught sight of a familiar face in the crowd.
None other than the blonde biker one-woman disaster known as Auntie Maim.
This time, he was alone and if he chose to go after her, there would be no one to back him up should things go wrong.
He had decided to follow her (just in case any others were present) and then ambush her once she was away from the crowds.
It would have worked too....if someone else hadn't jumped her first!
D.B. Only and a group of Wardogs suddenly appeared through the crowd and surrounded her in a very menacing fashion.
Mee-Chan thought it must be some kind of trick (because he was drunk) and decided he would remain in the shadows and find out whatever he could on his nemisis.
They disarmed her and took her down the old wharf (now long abandoned due to structural considerations and the proliferation of sharks in the immediate area over the last few decades) and after a brief conversation (which he was too far away to hear) they looked as if they were going to shoot her in the head and dump her off the pier.
Mee-Chan decided (because he was drunk) that he would intervene on Miss Maims behalf, reasoning that any enemy of D.B. is a friend of his.
Had he been sober, the decision would have been quite different.
Using Maims own custom Colt, he ambushed the distracted bikers, immediately gunning down 3 of the 6.
Maim, in the ensuing confusion, managed to throw 2 of the remaining bikers off the pier into the shark-infested waters below, of whom D.B. was one of them!
In the ensuing melee, she is shot in the shoulder by the final Wardog. He was about to execute her when Mee-Chan did a flying tackle that managed to knock the last Wardog from the pier but he had pounced so forcefully and found himself also falling from the pier....that is until he was caught by Maim.
Depite being shot in the shoulder, she not only held onto the "drunken samaritan" but managed to pull him up again.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
The two sat there for a second....exhausted and relieved until she noticed who had ACTUALLY saved her and that her lost now Colt lay between them.
Beating him to the pistol she took aim at the one-time mark and said but a single word:
"Why?"
He was speechless....still kicking himself for losing the pistol.
Not a minute ago, he was finally to have revenge, only to have it snatched away from the brink and be replaced with certain death.
What had he been thinking?
"I'm not sure."
Maim smiled, cocked the weapon and retorted:
"You really want those to be your last words?"
He was silent for a moment and tried to think of anything that wouldn't result in his death but nothing sprang to mind.
It wasn't until the pistol was pressed to his forehead that he spoke:
"I guess I just feel that if someone is going to lose everything they are and everything they'll ever be....they deserve to go down fighting, even if that person is YOU.....but then again I'm pretty sure that's just the booze talking."
Maybe it was because he saved her life when he had no cause to. (Possibly)
Maybe she was touched by what he had said. (Doubtful)
Maybe she had decided that she had been a "lone rider" long enough. (Don't make me laugh!)
Maybe she was just stoked to have her favorite pistol back but the final moment he'd been bracing for didn't come.
She lowered the weapon and suggested a hasty departure as D.B. screamed for back up, only now dragging himself onto the beach.
Picking up the drunken Jumper (even though he was the only one who hadn't been shot) she brought him to where she had parked her chopper only to see it had already been surrounded by Wardogs who were awaiting her return.
Enlisting the help of a few Surfer Punks who happened to be big Aims Darktread fans, a distraction was quickly planned and executed that allowed her to retrieve her ride and take them both to safety (depite having only one good arm).
This would mark the beginning of a long and arduous friendship.
Laying low for a few weeks, the Wardogs turned up the heat in LA-1 in a desperate bid to find Mee-Chan.
They don't take kindly to failure (as was the case with Maim) but the possibility of finally capturing Mee-Chan was to much for Mastiff Moulin to resist.
He ordered that all West Coast chapters converge on LA-1 and with the help of allies in the various C.T.'s, would flush Knowledge from his hiding place.
During this time he would nurse Maim back to health and even used most of that which he had saved to get home for her medical expenses.
Maim had never depended on anyone throughout her whole life.
She used to say the last person she ever trusted was her father (before he left home that morning and was never heard from or seen again) and even he used to beat her.
Problem is, as the weeks went by and she recovered her strength, she found herself beginning to rely on Mee-Chan....something she was not used to doing.
Nor was she used to being in debt to another like she felt she was to North....and not being used to it, displayed gratitude poorly.
She decided (once she felt better) to try and find them a job that would enable her to pay him back for medical supples and food but due to the bounty on both their heads from Mastiff Moulin, this became difficult if not impossible.
Then, in a stroke of luck, Jack Halpern managed to get in contact with Mee-Chan (after trying for some weeks to reach him after watching the "Darktread Debacle" on A.S.N.) and mentioned that he had a problem in California and if Mee-Chan would expodite its resolution, he would make sure he was flown back to Austin on a real jet (without all that TSA crap!) as soon as he was finished.
Mee-Chan agreed and enlisted Maim's help.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
Halpern Petrolium was in transition to becoming a global weapons manufacturer and was selling off assets to sustain the change-over.
Part of these assets were old off-shore oil rigs off the California Coast that had fallen into disrepair since the heady days of "peak oil" and the problem was that these old abandoned platforms had some new (very troublesome) residents.
Naming themselves "Petro-Kids" after their new found home, they had begun a distribution network for a new (but utterly lethal) designer drug meant to be applied "optically" that was taking the country by storm.
The Authorities couldn't stop them as the Petro-Kids unpredictable "junkie" suicide tactics were something the P.D.'s weren't prepared for in "peaceful" suburban settings like LA-1.
Each of the addicts would become enslaved to the drug (and in doing so fanatically loyal to the Petro-Kids faction) and this drug crossed every societal boundary there was. No group seemed safe from its toxic, fatal effects.
Of course Mee-Chan, Maim (and a few new found friends) had no idea any of this was taking place and thought the job to be a simple "sweep & clear" but nothing could have been further from the truth.
Together the group soon found themselves in the middle of a full-scale war.
The Petro-kids lucrative drug operation had provided their forces with top grade military equipment and combined with the absolute fanatical (drug-induced) mindset, the group proved to be a more than a match for the small (but well-equipped) strike team.
The heroes soon found themselves on the run, hopelessly outnumbered and trapped on the platform with over a hundred psychopathic maniacs.
Cut-off from escape, the few who remained tried to urge the others that fleeing was their only option.
The Petro-Kids could not be negociated with.
They would not stop until everyone was either dead or "converted" by Petrocil-Blue.
Maim was the first to say she wasn't going to run, knowing full well that they would be spotted and turned into chum by the platforms weaponry before they got very far but it was Mee-chan who came up with the idea to "blow this mutha' up".
Halpern Petrolium wanted to sell this rig but they wouldn't survive much longer unless something drastic took place.
Using the explosives that remained, they would attempt to plant it by the drilling apparatus (as the rigs still produced small amounts of oil used by the Petro-kids to power their vehicles) and turn the whole place into Dante's Inferno.
The teams leader was absolutely opposed to this course of action and forbade them from carrying it out.
This only lasted for about 3 minutes.
About the same amount of time it took for Thompson to have his head split open by a Petro-Kid with a fire axe.
From that moment on, the remaining five team members would dedicate themselves to the platforms destruction....but a new problem had now surfaced.
Thompson was the one who carried the explosives and now he was gone....his body left behind during the last Petro-Kid ambush.
The plan would be for naught without a suitable ignition source.
Fortunately, the Petro-kids kept a marvelously stocked armory on board "Xanadu" and after locating it, managed to procure the explosives (and ammo) needed to finish the job.
They would split into two groups.
One would place explosives in the main storage hold (filled with barrels of crude) and the other would sabotage the main drill.
Maim's group would take the main hold and Mee-Chan's group, the drill.
"And then there were four...."
After falling victem to a booby trap, one of the weapon specialists with Mee-Chan is killed in a very noisy and messy fashion alerting the guards to the presence of intruders.
20 of the crazed lunatics swarmed into the drill area to stop the pair but are held back single-handedly by Mee-Chan who lights a road flare and holds it near the spilled oil that surrounds the drill apparatus.
(It was a miracle that this action alone didn't blow them all up on the spot!)
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
He managed to back them out of the room and Fukes (the only remaining Halpern team member with him) locked them out of the drill room.
His watch told him that Maim would not only have completed her task but would be making her way topside to escape once the explosions had started.
He and Fukes were trapped in the bowels of the oil rig with only minutes to go before the big kick off.
Instructing Fukes to place the charges anyway, the two had resigned themselves to death when a Petro-Kid ambush emerged through the floor of the drill room.
The ambush failed but in the ensuing firefight, Fukes becomes mortally wounded.
Mee-Chan informs him that the ambush has now given them a way out of the drill room but Fukes is a realist and knows even if he should survive the fall to the water below that his injury will prevent him from ever reaching the shore.
If he did not exanguinate first, he would attract every shark in the area on the way back.
He told Mee-Chan to go instead and that he himself would detonate the explosives personally.
The sound of the Petro-Kids attempting to use the jaws of life on the rooms door would convince Mee-Chan that this was the only course of action left to them.
He thanked Mee-Chan for saving his life earlier and then said:
"Now, it's my turn."
Mee-chan shook his hand one final time and climbed out through the hatch in the floor in a desperate attempt to get clear of the primary blast that was sure to follow shortly.
True to her word, Maim and Saker (the last remaining Halpern team member) were already making their way down one of the platform struts to the boat dock at the base.
He had almost reached them when Fukes prematurely triggered his charge, sending the unprepared Jumper flying off the support into the water below...
Fade to black.
He awoke to find himself in a gold-cross hospital bed with Saker lying in the bed right beside his.
Shortly after this came police, DHS, DoJ, EPA officals, Halpern executives and lawyers....all of them none to pleased with the latest ecological disaster occuring off the California coast.
It wasn't until Saker explained the Petrocil-Blue connection that the majority of detractors backed off....all but the EPA....they were out for blood.
Fortunately, Halpern (being a petrolium company) had one of the best paid legal teams in the country and had dealt with the EPA many times before and it wasn't long till they arrived at an acceptable settlement.
Ultimately, destruction of the platform was placed solely on Thompson and after a month of proceedings, Mee-Chan and Maim were subsequently released and free to leave the state.
Maim couldn't help but be impressed by Knowledge.
Not only did he seem to have ties with the biggest "civilian" petrolium company in North America but also with individuals who held sway at the DoJ, by way of Jack Cornelius Halpern himself.
Most of all, she liked that he seemed to show no fear and was one of the only team members who refused to lose focus once everything had fallen apart.
She knew she had crossed a milestone in her life but what it would be and where it would lead her were still a mystery....until they boarded the Halpern private jet that would take them to Texas that evening.
That's when Mee-Chan hinted that he had something he wanted her to "show her".
Maim was flattered and putting a finger to his lips to prevent him from saying anything more, crawled onto his lap while unbuttoning her blouse and said: "I was beginning to think you were NEVER gonna make a move."
Mee-Chan was speechless when this occured, and was in the middle of trying to extricate himself from the predicament when Catherine (who had missed Mee-Chan terribly in his absence and convinced Jack to let her suprise him on the plane ride back) emerged into the flight cabin and shouted:
"Suprise!?!"
Well, it was a suprise alright.
This would mark the end of the Car Wars Edition Road Atlas of The West Coast and indicate the beginning of The Mid-West Edition.
The game year was now in the opening days of 2033 and in real time, the game had reached the halfway point of its 20 year run.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
Unconquered Kingdoms, July 2016 CotM
Thank you kindly for the compliment.
Perhaps I shall consider it...if I ever find out what a wiki is.
Believe me when I say:
"You ain't seen nuttin' yet, bwoi!"
So stay tuned good sir.
As for making an adventure out of this, I had attempted to flog this game on another site but recieved no interest from other GURPS players.
Hopefully, there will be a few here willing to take a chance once I have concluded this retelling.
(Crosses fingers!)
CONTINUATION...
The global situation had been one of turmoil but from out of all the chaos, came a new tool (for those who could afford them) to repair all the damage that had wrought upon the world by man in his quest for dominace over all other life.
These next generation artificials and "Assemblers of Prosperity" would become known as Boomers.
They were relatively new to the global scene and as of 2033 and were the brain child of a corperation then known as R.N.C. (a little tribute to Ben Dunn's "Ninja High School") and were currently only deployed on a large scale to countries that had survived the grain blight and oil shortage with relatively unscathed economies.
There were only two at the time:
- Australia (Well on its way to becoming the new global superpower as it's oil reserves were still plentiful and its relative isolation shielding it from the blight which gripped the planet)
- Japan (Which after the global chaos subsided, had renamed their country in honor of the corperation that had brought it through the darkest times in the nations history....Poseidon)
Only three cities in North America utilized Boomers at present:
- Los Disneys/LD-1 (Shortly to become the fledgling nation's capital, when it leaves The Union in less than a decade)
- Kansas City/KC-1 (The largest, and most heavily guarded Fortress City in North America. KC-1 in particular boasted a reputation that no cycle gang had ever managed to breach its defenses. KC-1 Peaceforcers were reknown for their brutality and were better armed and motivated than the local National Guard units. Vigilantism and autodeuling were strictly prohibited within its walls under penalty of death so, it will not come as a suprise to hear that's exactly where the group went next!)
The final one was:
- Toronto/TO-1 (Currently faring better than even the nations capital, Ottawa)
Half of the Hard Suits had been completed and only two operational Motoslaves had been built by that time.
Mee-Chan knew he wanted Maim in one of them but hadn't asked her as of yet and had spent most of last next week just trying to get Catherine to take his calls or not leave the room when he entered it.
He also knew for a fact that Brewster wanted in as well and (with the exception of Gi-San, Catherine and Hoo) was the only other person who had knowledge of the Hard Suits. Brewsters hand to hand training made her a shoe-in for the C.Q.B. variant (Linna Yamazaki's green suit from the classic series) just as Maim was a perfect choice for the Assault version (used by Priss Asagiri in the BGC series) but the the "pink" and "white" suits did not have operators yet.
The two existing Motoslaves had been optimized for the green and blue Hard Suits but the entire series had all been designed for female physiques. A male version would take years to design and develop from scratch but Mee-Chan didn't want to be left out of all the fun.
With permission from Calaveri Concepts, he would have a custom made Battlemover constructed for himself....very similar to the one employed by Mackie Stingray in the last episode of the Crisis series, "Scoop Chase".
The J-Type would be a revolution in Battlemover development as unlike Motoslaves and Landmates, the control of the heavier mecha's arms would not be dependant upon a "visible" set of smaller operator appendages. It would not be as fast as a Motoslave on foot but would boast heavier armaments and thicker plating. It could not transform either but enjoyed an incorperated flight system that other similar Landmate systems would not perfect for years.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
The MSX Motoslave DID exist at this time (from episode 6 of the Crisis series; "Red Eyes") but was a similar "unworkable" concept. Its legs were (or more to the point, its feet) were not strong enough to support the units weight once combined with armaments. It (like the original one from the series) could not transform and would never be redesigned to do so. The simple act of walking for an hour meant a week of repairs and adjustments to the delicate feet assemblies. It was a giant compared to the operational Motoslaves and unlike them was not capable of independant operation but it WAS the most heavily armed mecha in their arsenal. Its weapon suite included a customized field-jacketed heavy strike laser that was able to track, target and destroy a satellite in orbit.
(A job it performed admirably on many occasions to maintain the groups "anonymous" status)
Mee-Chan was beginning to think that Catherine would never speak to him again but then something occured which facilitated communication...
Catherine had a sister who had lived in KC-1 since their parents divorced.
Gi-San had always regreted not trying harder for custody of Kirstie but he had loved his wife dearly, even if she had no longer loved him, and could not bear to take both children from her.
The Old Man would take Catherine and Audry would take Kirstie with her to KC-1 where she had found employment as a algae plant manager.
During the grain blight, most modern agriculture ground to a sudden halt but during the food riots, algae had emerged as a substitute to grain, having not been effected by the bacteria.
Were it not for algae products, most of North America would have starved.
It was Audry who initially financed and encouraged Gi-Sans foray into automotive design.
Once she had died, Kirstie had no desire to return to Texas...KC-1 had become her home and unlike San Antonio or Austin, were relatively safe from the predations of the badlanders.
Still, Kirstie was somewhat of a wallflower and found life alone in KC-1 to be difficult despite all the luxurious ammenities.
It would hold OTHER dangers as she would soon discover.
Kirstie wasn't very close to her father and had no real memory of him but Catherine would visit her 2-3 times a year and correspond with her sister on a regular basis....until recently.
Catherine had no contact with her since Mee-Chan had left to goto The West Coast and she was concerned for her younger sisters well being until she recieved a letter from Kirstie that had made her even more fearful for the safety of the estranged sibling.
First of all, Kirstie NEVER sends e-mails, let alone almost non-existant snail mail but that was not what had concerned her.
Instead, it was the claim that she had finally found something to dedicate herself to...she had joined a church.
This shocked Catherine as theists do not run in her family but it was the cryptic sounding "I am truely fine....don't worry...don't try and look for me-" part that had filled her with dread.
She didn't know what else to do and so she asked Mee-Chan if he would go with her to KC-1 and help her try to uncover her sisters true fate.
Knowledge hadn't spoken to Cathy in weeks and so when she walked in (obviously distraught) and asked him for a "solid"...he said yes before she could finish her first sentence and didn't even want to know why or what it was she wanted from him. He only asked: "When do we leave?"
It was just to be the two of them...errrm...better make that three of them.
Brewster had been to KC-1 before and had some dealings with their Peaceforcers, so when she saw the two of them packing up Catherines Mini-Sherman (knowing how cheesed Cathy had been with him), it didn't take long for her to convince them that they needed her help....but she wasn't going to make that trip in some pipsqueak compact!
Instead they would take her customized vintage Grand National deuler and once ready, they would join up with a large convoy heading north through Oklahoma.
With any luck would arrive at KC-1 in a few days.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-
CONTINUATION...
With road deuling commonplace now for over a decade now, cycle gangs had begun to decline in size and frequency but all convoys that went to that region knew the closer you got to KC-1 meant the closer you came to getting ambushed!
No gang could defeat the citys defences so they would jump on anything that left from there or that was arriving there.
Almost like a k-9's instinct that makes a dog chase anything that runs, these gangs would attack ANYTHING outside the fortress proper. They were well aware of the effective range of the cities emplacements and also on the capabilities of its dreaded Peaceforcers and would only break off their attacks at the last possible second.
At least four large gangs were known to haunt the badlands outside of KC-1 and for ONCE....The Wardogs were not one of them!
(But you can be certain it wasn't for lack of trying on Moulin's part!)
The convoy was still about 30 miles from a truck stop at the Kansas border when Mee-chan caught sight of something in the distance. A telltale smoke cloud hinted at horrible tragedy just over the horizon and sent word for the convoy to slowdown. They would scout out the area first to ensure they were not rolling into a trap.
As the Grand National slowed before the carnage, they discovered the remains of a group of "Paladins", one of the only cycle gangs in existance that lived by a strict chivalric code. The Swords had even collaberated with some Paladins in the past and they considered to be as trustworthy as anyone you could hope to find.
North told Brewster to pull over as he took an antique Winchester shotgun from her rack and the first-aid kit from the glove box.
"No...we are rolling right passed this sh1t y'hear me...radio a meat truck if you think it will help, but we are NOT-STOPPING-HERE!"
They had only been creeping by at 10 kph so Knowledge was easily able to jump from the car.
"F'K, F'K, F'K, F'K, FFF'KKKKK!!!!"
Brewster snarled as she hit the breaks and looked to Catherine:
"Is he ALWAYS like this?"
"Like what?"
Cathy chirped as she put her arm outside the car to open her rear door.
It was an absolute horrorshow.
From the looks of things someone had run them off the road and then had returned to finish the job.
Most of them had been run over multiple times and there wasn't a single bullet or crossbow wound amongst the lot of them.
No one had looted the corpses and every item and body remained exactly where it had fallen...all but two.
Mee-chan discovered the first "survivor"....he could barely talk and had nearly been nearly split in half after being run over. Somehow he was still clinging stubbornly to life.
"W-water..." was all Mee-Chan could make out and he quickly opened his canteen and gave the man a sip.
"W-who did this?"
Knowledge asked the mortally wounded Paladin but the poor man was unable to speak as he coughed forth blackish blood. He was able to reach out to push away the painkillers North had just prepared and instead rested his hand on the Winchester's muzzle that Mee-chan had put on the ground beside him.
He feebly tried to pull the barrel to his head.
"I-I...I understand."
Though contorted in agony, the Paladin pushed his sword towards Mee-Chan, managed to smile for a second knowing his suffering had come to an end, then Mee-Chan took out his new sidearm given to him by Gi-San. A completely customized Smith & Wesson Earthshaker .660 Nitro-Express that utilized armor piercing enhanced penetrator rounds that were capable of splitting an engine block.
Cathy had just taken notice of Mee-Chan when he stood up...drew his pistol and fired on the man without hesitation.
She ran towards him and was about to yell at him when she saw him turn around and wipe the tears from his face.
"WHAT!?!?" he snapped at her.
She did not reply as he walked away.
TO BE CONTINUED....
-Peace-