[FanFic] - DP/UF - Heartbreak
MegaZone
previous short 'Ronin'. All the UF stories are available via anon FTP to
130.215.24.1 cd /anime/FanFiction The file dp.uf.GUIDE.Z lists the story files
in chronological order.
a.s.h readers, this is the story I mentioned I'd cross-post recently...
Up Too Late Productions, DisInc.
in association with
Techno-Babble Unlimited
presents
A CyberRun Production
Of ShadowPunk Films
Brian D. Bikowicz
Heartbreak
Publishing by Virtual Publishing Co., Don'tEvenThinkAboutInc.
Copyright (c) 1993 Brian Bikowicz
The doorman sighed to himself as he closed the door behind the
latest patron. Another razorguy, he thought to himself. Sometimes he
wished his boss would stop associating with such gutter trash. They
really had no place in polite society, though he had to admit that
they were useful as expendable assets.
The razorguy slid though the crowded club with a grace
unexpected for someone of his stature. Well dressed in his black
duster, or so he thought, he still looked out of place amongst the
high class clientele. No one felt it prudent to mention the fact to
him, which was probably a good thing.
The bartender gestured him to a door in the back wall, which
opened as he neared. With a last scan of the club he left the bright
lights for the dark room beyond the door. The change was meant to
disorient him, put him on the defensive, it might have worked for
someone with less optics. He fixed his gaze on the room's sole
occupant, seated across way. A well dressed man, middle aged, minimal
cyberware, obviously well off. He didn't trust him.
"Nice place. Now, what's your proposal?"
"Ah, direct I see. Well, I'm not sure if you're the right man
for the job just yet."
"I'll give you 30 seconds to make up your mind, then I walk
out of here. If I wasn't the one for the job you wouldn't have called
me in. So cut the bullshit... Mr. Foreman."
"I see you've already done some research. Very well. Please,
sit down." Mr. Foreman gestured to a chair next to his own.
"Thank you, now as to business..."
"Yes, I want you to do some investigating for me on Reznor."
"You don't need me to do an investigation. What's the catch?"
"Well, depending on the results of the investigation, there
may be a few, ah, eliminations required."
"If you want me I presume that the eliminations will be... out
of the ordinary. Let's hear your offer."
"In consideration of your skills I'll offer twice normal rates
for the investigation and, if necessary, the eliminations."
"Twice normal rates, plus a ten thousand cred bonus per kill."
"Five thousand."
"Ten."
"Very well, ten it is. You do still have me at a
disadvantage, how do you wish to be addressed?"
"I believe Harland Valaquen will serve as an appropriate title
in this case."
"Well then, Harland, this chip has all of the information you
should need to start your investigation." He drew the chip from his
pocket and tossed it to Harland. "There is one more item to discuss."
"Which is?"
"You'll be working with one of my operatives on Reznor, a Ms.
Kryss Romes."
Harland scowled. "I work alone, you know that."
"Oh, I didn't mean to indicate that she would be a partner.
Rather she has done the preliminary investigation and may be able to
assist you in starting your work. She will also be my liaison to you
while you are in the field."
"I don't like it, just make sure she stays out of the way. I
wouldn't want her to end up in my sights, accidently of course."
"Yes... Well, I fully understand. I assure you, she won't
hinder your work."
"Good. Now, if there is nothing further, I shall be on my
way." He stood to leave.
"No, there is nothing further. Good luck and Godspeed."
Harland paused in the doorway. "I don't depend on luck... or
god." With that he slid into the crowded club.
Harland stooped to clear the bar's entrance. He had chosen
the dive for his first meet with Kryss as a form of test. Downtown
Trent wasn't the type of place a young woman would normally visit in
the middle of the night.
Harland set himself up in the back corner of the bar with a
clear field of fire and a good view of the exits. Not that he was
expecting anything, but better safe than dead. Right on time, Kryss
entered the smokey bar, shaking off the drizzle from the night.
Harland quickly sized her up: five foot six, lithe, obviously
a fighter, light complexion, blonde, twin stilettoes on the inner
thigh, light armor, heavy pistol in a shoulder holster, nice
proportions, likely enhanced reflexes, fairly attractive.
Harland worked his way across the bar, sliding up behind her.
"Hey babe, what brings you down here?"
"None of your biz chummer."
"Hey, darlin', don't be like that. If you're looking for a
good man, you've found 'im." Harland lightly caressed her ass.
"I think you've misplaced your hand chummer."
"I think it's right where it should be."
Kryss drew her blades and spun in one fluid motion. She
stabbed a stiletto through Harland's heart...
...or she would have if Harland hadn't moved several feet to
the left.
Before she could complete her spin Kryss felt her feet swept
out from beneath her. She tumbled to the floor rather ungracefully as
Harland circled her.
Both stilettoes arched gracefully toward Harland, to be
expertly plucked from the air. They returned to neatly auger into the
floorboards on either side of Kryss' head.
"You're good, but you need to learn to control that temper.
Never pick a fight when you don't know your opponents capabilities.
You would have been better off using the pistol." Harland offered
Kryss a hand up. "Kryss Romes I assume?"
"Never assume. When you assume you make an 'ass' out of 'u'
and 'me'."
"I'm not the one laying on the floor, now am I?"
"Point taken." Kryss accepted Harland's proffered hand. "So,
you must be Harland Valaquen."
"Must I? The name is useful for now I suppose. This way..."
Harland led Kryss back to his booth.
"You know, I've never heard of you before, but somehow you
seem familiar."
"Surely you realize I have used other names, but I don't think
we've met. I would have remembered, I assure you."
"No... I'm sure of it, I've seen you somewhere before."
"We haven't met... It might be better if you didn't think
about it too much, clear?"
"Yeah, I suppose it doesn't really matter."
"No, it doesn't. I just have one of those faces I guess...
Now, fill me in on anything Foreman may have left off of his little
chip."
"Well..."
Harland sat surrounded by electronics equipment. Various
panels flashed and beeped, drives whirred, and he noticed none of it.
He was in another world, connected by a thin optical cable to his
cyberdeck, exploring the matrix.
Harland wasn't exactly the best decker around, hell, he wasn't
really a decker. He just sort of picked up decking bit by bit over
the years. But he had plenty of time to practice and he could still
run rings around most of the electron jockeys he encountered. His
deck was totally scratch built, tuned to just his mind patterns. He
could deck by pure instinct, like fighting or walking. It gave him
the edge he needed in the matrix. Too bad he couldn't bring his
normal equipment along, but he couldn't afford the attention it could
bring. He'd just have to make do.
Harland finished installing the last watchdog construct on
Andy DiFranco's system. Everything was covered; phones, security,
cameras, data lines, trideo. Any moves Mr. DiFranco made in his abode
would be recorded and relayed back to Harland. This was almost too
easy, something had to be twisted, but nothing seemed amiss.
Satisfied with his work Harland jacked out.
"I never thought you'd pull the plug," Kryss said from over
his shoulder. Harland spun, pressing his extended spurs to her
throat. Kryss' eyes widened in terror as the tips pierced her skin.
Catching himself Harland retracted the spurs and backed away,
"That's not a smart thing to do. You should expect a decker
to be a little disoriented after jacking out. How the hell did you
get in here anyway?"
Kryss tenderly touched the cuts in her throat, feeling the
blood dripping from the wounds. "I, uh... um... I sweet talked the
desk clerk into giving me a key. I convinced him I was your lover and
I wanted to surprise you."
"Well, you did surprise me." Harland wiped some blood from
her throat with his finger, gingerly tasting it. "How do you like the
results?"
"Not quite what I expected," Kryss flushed slightly as she
watched him lick the blood from his fingers, "that's for sure."
"You'll find I'm full of surprises," he stepped up to her and
gently licked some blood from her wounds, "You should have those taken
care of." Harland left the room, leaving a very flustered Kryss
standing amidst the beeping, flashing mess.
"What happened to you?"
"Just a little misunderstanding, my fault really."
"Kryss, don't be coy with me..."
"It's ok Airryk, really. Just trust me ok."
"Ok, for now... Where is he now?"
"He went to set up some physical surveillance of the good Mr.
DiFranco. He has the electronic end covered already."
"Well, he certainly works fast. Is he good?"
"From what I can tell... he's damn good. I'm sure I know him
from somewhere though."
"Well, if he's as good as you say, he probably has a
reputation in certain circles. You probably just saw a holo somewhere
or something."
"Yeah, probably..."
"You don't see any problems do you?"
"Hm? Oh, no, no problems."
"Kryss, you can't afford to be daydreaming."
"Sorry, there's just something about him... I don't know,
when I look in his eyes I feel like I'm looking at infinity. I want
to know more about him."
"Do what you want," Airryk leered, "enjoy yourself."
"You really are scum you know."
"As long as you do what has to be done I don't care about your
private life... So, when do I get to meet Mr. Valaquen?"
"Tonight."
Harland scanned the restaurant as he entered. What would be a
casual glance for most was a tactical analysis for him. He didn't
stay in business, and alive, by letting his guard down. He felt naked
without his 'work clothes', his armored duster and flak pants, but he
didn't for a moment believe that he would have made it past the front
door dressed that way. As it was he settled on wearing an armored
bodysuit under his tux. Locating Kryss he made his way to the table.
"Good evening Ms. Romes, and...?"
"Oh, Harland, this is Airryk, Airryk Haemden."
Harland extended his hand, "Ah, Mr. Haemden, pleased to meet
you."
Airryk hesitated a moment before firmly shaking Harland's
hand, "And I you. Kryss has been telling me about you, she says
you're quite good."
"I manage to stay in business, I guess that's something."
"And modest too, perfect."
"You look strange in a tux," Kryss interjected.
"I feel strange in a tux," Harland replied, "I prefer function
over form. But one must make concessions. Inquiry, how did you
acquire tickets to Mr. DiFranco's reception?"
"That was Airryk's doing."
"Really?"
Airryk made a dismissive gesture, "Nothing really. I just
called in a few markers."
"Ah... A fixer, a man of many talents."
"Well, I manage to stay in business."
Harland and Airryk stared at one another, each trying to
evaluate the other. Kryss broke the tense silence. "Speaking of
business, look who just arrived." Harland and Airryk turned to look.
"The Guest of Honor, Mr. DiFranco, and friends," Airryk
observed.
"Hmph... Friends indeed. That's Doug Quinlan, head of the
R&D division of NanoVentures Inc. The lovely lady is Amanda Kramer,
NanoVentures' 'security consultant', aka Mrs. Johnson. It would seem
as if Mr. Foreman had some legitimate concerns."
"If only we could hear what they were saying," Kryss said
wistfully.
"I can my dear, I can. Pardon me." Harland activated his
audio filters and boosters, effectively blocking all unwanted sound
and amplifying those he wanted to hear. His headware RAM recorded the
conversation.
Airryk amusedly observed him. "He certainly does come
prepared."
"Like I said, he's good."
"Yes, that you did my dear, that you did."
"So, what'd you get?" Kryss asked as Harland drove them back
to his room.
"Nothing conclusive. Where'd Airryk take off to?"
"Business. And what do you mean 'nothing conclusive'? Do we
have any leads?"
"We? I'm sorry, but this is my investigation. I've been
fairly open so far, but don't expect me to tell you everything. I'll
do things my way."
"Alright, don't get so uptight. So what'd you think of
Airryk?"
"He's in fair shape, but not a fighter. Looks like he has
extensive headware, I'd wager audio recording, data management system,
and lots of RAM. Not surprising for a fixer. Fairly typical, good
talker."
"Do you always do that?"
"Do what?"
"Evaluate the people you meet as if they were a potential
threat. Like part of a tactical analysis."
"Yes, I guess I do."
"How about personality?"
"Well, I judge that too. Unstable personas add an unwanted
random element. But Mr. Haemden seems fairly stable. Maybe a bit
too guarded, but that could be job related."
"ARG!!!"
"What's wrong?"
"You, you're a goddamn machine. Don't you have emotions?"
Harland's grip tightened on the steering wheel and the car
sped up noticeably. "No. I used to feel, but it just got me into
trouble. Emotions aren't worth the trouble they cause."
"I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"Bringing back painful memories."
"Forget about it, I have."
No you haven't, Kryss thought, What happened to make you so
cold? Forget it Kryss, it doesn't matter. But she couldn't forget
it, somehow it did matter to her.
The arrived at Harland's room in little time.
"Goodnight, Ms. Romes."
"You can drop that Ms. Romes drek, I'm Kryss."
"Very well. Goodnight, Kryss."
"Well, I thought I might come in for a while..."
"That won't be necessary, I have work to do anyway." Harland
shut Kryss out in the hallway before she could protest.
I will get to him, somehow... There's something different
about him, and I want to know what it is.
Harland jacked out of the matrix. His watchdogs had captured
some good data, but he still had nothing concrete to nail Mr. DiFranco
with. It's just a matter of time, he told himself. And he knew that
if his suspicions were right he would be making at least one ten
thousand credit bonus.
"So how did it go?"
Harland slowly turned towards Kryss, she was sitting in the
corner wrapped in a robe. "You're learning, gave me time to recover.
It went fairly well."
"Not going to tell me about it are you?"
"No."
"Very well."
"What are you doing up anyway?"
"I was watching you."
"Watching a decker is like watching paint dry."
"Ok, so I was worried. I never liked the idea of plugging
your mind into a computer. I thought something might happen to you."
"Concern? For me? How touching," Harland mocked her.
"You bastard, I was really worried!"
"Don't be, I'm good, remember? You said so yourself."
"You miserable prick," Kryss angrily strode towards Harland,
"You can't even say thank you?! You're not a fraggin' machine you
know!"
"I have more metal that a lot of machines," Harland commented
sarcastically.
"Fuck you!" Kryss tried to slap him with her right, only to
have her wrist caught in his firm grip. She tried again with her
left, achieving the same results.
"That accomplished a great deal, what now Ms. Romes?"
Kryss did the unexpected, she firmly planted her lips on his,
and kissed him. Despite the myriad of mental alarms sounding in his
brain, he slowly loosened his grip. She took full advantage of her
freedom.
Harland awoke with the unfamiliar warmth of Kryss' body
against his side. He watched her breasts rise in fall with her
rhythmic breathing. Memories of violence and betrayal clashed with
the image of her peaceful slumber. He brushed back a tear and tore
his gaze from her body. "I hope you know what you've gotten yourself
into," he whispered to her sleeping form, and to himself.
"Mmph"
"Good morning Ms. Romes. I trust you slept well."
Kryss jerked up to a sitting position, quickly taking in her
surroundings. Remembering where she was, she relaxed. "Why yes Mr.
Valaquen, thank you for asking," she answered coyly.
"Good, there's a lot of work to be done." Harland jumped out
of bed, gathered some clothes, and headed for the shower. Kryss' coy
expression was quickly overcome by a combination of confusion and
frustration.
"What the hell is it with him? He certainly enjoyed my
company last night." She gathered up her clothes and headed for the
shower. To be stopped by the locked door. Shrugging, she sat on the
bed to await her turn.
Kryss sat in the far corner of the club, contemplating her
drink. She didn't notice Airryk's approach.
"Letting our guard down, aren't we?"
Kryss started, her train of thought derailed. "Huh? Oh,
yeah... Um.. I was just thinking."
"Dangerous habit. It'll get you killed if you do it too
much."
"We all die sometime." Kryss sipped her drink.
"True... So... How was he?" Airryk asked expectantly.
Kryss almost spit her drink across the table, "What?"
"Oh come now, you're transparent. I know you slotted him, how
was he."
"If you must know," Kryss snapped, "he was wonderful. He
knows techniques I wouldn't have dreamed of. It's the best sex I ever
had. You satisfied?"
"You'll have to show me these 'techniques' sometime."
Kryss glowered at him.
"Ok, ok, I'm sorry. So where is lover boy now."
Kryss almost snapped at him, but decided to just let it drop.
"He's running physical on DiFranco. His watchdogs picked something up
last night, he wouldn't tell me what it was, but he took off pretty
fast."
"Hm... Good, very good. This might just wrap up faster than
I'd hoped. Then no more lover boy. I do hope that you're not getting
too attached."
Kryss silently rose and left the club, Airryk lecherously
watching her retreating form. "Yes, you definitely need to show me
those techniques sometime my dear."
Harland burst into his room, a triumphant look on his face, a
surprising display of emotion. "We got him."
Kryss rose from the comm panel where she'd been working.
"What?"
Harland scattered a bundle of holos on the bed. "DiFranco, I
got these this afternoon. Quinlan and Kramer showed up for a quiet
little meeting. Corp razors sealed the place up, standard tactics.
They sucked. Anyway, I was in place waiting, got some good holos."
"So, we already know that they've met. They were at the party
together, in public."
"Yes, but they didn't have this in public." Harland selected
a holo from the jumble and passed it to Kryss.
"That's the stolen matrix crystal!"
"Of course, Mr. Foreman's suspicions were correct. Apparently
Mr. DiFranco did sponsor the run against him. He's planning on
selling the crystal to NanoVentures, probably give them a few years
lead on the competition. I can see why Mr. Foreman was so determined
to get it back."
"I'd better fill him in on this."
"I was wondering when you'd get around to that. I'll assume
he'll want DiFranco eliminated, ask him about Quinlan and Kramer. I'm
going to get cleaned up."
"Ok," Kryss began establishing a connection as Harland left
the room. She waited until she heard the shower door latch to
complete the call. "Airryk, looks like we've got what we need."
"Good, forward the information. I'll fill in the boss, he's
getting anxious, they're putting some pressure on him."
Kryss uploaded the holo dated to Airryk. "You want Kramer and
Quinlan taken out?"
"No need for that. If they get in the way, fine. Otherwise
just terminate DiFranco and get the crystal back. Then we can get
lover boy out of our hair. When is he going to move?"
"I don't know, probably tomorrow."
"Let me know."
"Ok," Kryss glanced at the bathroom door and sighed, "Will
do."
"Make sure that you do." Airryk cut the connection.
Harland found Kryss waiting for him in bed after his shower.
Don't get attached, he warned himself, Stay professional. "So, what
did Foreman have to say?"
"Well, he wants you to take out DiFranco, as you said, but he
said to leave the others alone unless they get in the way. Just make
sure you get the crystal."
"Null perspiration. Consider the job done."
"Be careful."
"Is that from him?"
"No, that's from me. I... I just want you to be careful."
"Don't worry about it."
"So, when are you going in?"
"Tomorrow some time, I'm not sure exactly. Whenever it looks
the most promising. I'll just watch his flat from here."
"Ok..."
"Hey, don't look so tense, this will be simple. You're acting
like it's the end of the world. It's just another job."
"I know... It's just that after tomorrow you'll be gone, then
it's back to the same old shit. Trying to keep Airryk off of me,
menial jobs..."
"So, I'm a bit of excitement for you?"
"No, it's not like that... I don't know. It's just something
about you. I mean... You act like an asshole, but I know that isn't
really you. You're a good actor, but you've slipped too much around
me."
Mayday! Do not get involved! "Well, I wasn't always this
way." No! Turn back! Harland silenced his mind and continued, "I
did love once. I thought we'd be together forever. I guess I do
still love her, but..."
Kryss put her arm around Harland and snuggled closer as he
searched for the words.
"I don't know. Things sort of fell apart pretty fast at the
end. We we're part of a group, close friends. One of them did some
pretty nasty shit, and she, well, she helped him get away. Then
another one took off after him. After that I just couldn't trust her.
I was pretty scragged up, so I turned tail and ran. Because of me a
lot of my friends died. I wasn't there for them." Harland paused and
looked into Kryss' eyes. "That's why I try to avoid relationships. I
couldn't go through that again. I don't want to let anyone else down.
That's why I operate alone. I'm afraid it has to be that way."
"But it doesn't... I'd be..." Harland cut her off.
"Shhh... Yes it does. I'm not ready to try again. We were
together for a very long time, longer than you could know. It's going
to take me a while to accept it."
"So, what have I been, a distraction?"
"No, remember, you're the one who jumped me. But I really do
care for you. It's too soon for me to say love, and it's too soon for
me to make a commitment. That's just the way it has to be."
"So you're gone tomorrow then, and that's it."
"I don't know. If I had a reason to come back from time to
time, I suppose I would."
"Well, let me give you a reason."
They didn't do much more talking that night.
Harland was bored. For the past three hours he had done
nothing but watch the reports from the watchdogs he had in place,
DiFranco was still out. Kryss was trying hard to relax, he had gotten
tired of telling her "nothing yet" each time she asked what was
happening. He couldn't understand why she was so nervous, he was the
one making the run. One of the monitors beeped. Finally, something
new.
Harland watched as DiFranco entered his flat. He waited for a
quarter hour before making his move. "Ok, looks like he's going to be
in for a while. I'm moving now. I should be back within two hours.
Got it."
"Yes."
"Ok, bye." Harland gave her a quick kiss on the way out.
Getting into DiFranco's building was ridiculously easy. High
security, yahright. Well, maybe his skill did have something to do
with that. DiFranco's flat itself, however, had a bit tighter
security.
Harland worked his way through the service space to the
junction box. The building's security nets were isolated, to prevent
outside deckers from running overwatch. Harland carefully undid the
box's cover and began connecting his deck to the nets. A job that
took several nerve wracking minutes.
He couldn't bring his full deck with him, so he brought a
slimmed down model. Designed specifically for work against security
systems, it would allow him a safe way in. Providing everything went
ok of course. Satisfied with the diagnostic returns, Harland punched
into the matrix.
DiFranco had extra monitors and locks installed on all the
doors and windows to his doss, as well as panic buttons spread about
the apartment. Since he was home the motion detectors and infrared
systems were off. But he also had an alarm on the alarm system. If
the alarm was cut, the warning system would alert the flat's
occupants. Smart. The trick was to re-route the system so that the
flat's computer still thought they were on, and the security company
still thought so, but in reality all of the signals were cut.
Harland spent several long moments monitoring and recording
the standard signals. Once he was satisfied with the data collected
he called up a basic program frame and started customizing it. The
frame would continue sending the signals, even after the system was
isolated, and it could do some basic improvising if something went
wrong.
Satisfied with the frame he initiated the program and cut the
normal signal off. He wired the deck into a communications line, just
in case.
With the alarm cut, Harland worked his way to the roof. It
would have been simpler if DiFranco had the penthouse, but life wasn't
always simple. Andy was three floors down, which meant repelling down
the outside of the building. That was the riskiest part of the entire
operation. If he was spotted on the wall he had no where to go. With
a sigh of resignation, he began his decent.
Harland carefully worked himself into position alongside a
window to Andy's flat. He used a cutting laser to sever the latch.
After waiting to be sure he hadn't been heard, he opened the window
and slipped inside.
No one was in the living room. DiFranco had been there.
Where? Wait, what was that? Harland paused as he heard cries coming
from the next room. "Sounds like Mr. DiFranco is getting some,"
Harland chuckled to himself. That means two targets, one an unknown,
the tactical part of his mind told him.
Harland drew his Predator II, a large, custom, silencer was
fitted to the muzzle. I silenced Ingram smartgun hung at his side.
As he approached the bedroom door he noticed that the sounds had
stopped. Just as he reached for the door handle the door opened. And
Mr. DiFranco stepped out, wrapped in a robe.
Both Harland and Andy reacted in surprise. Andy turned to run
back into the room, but Harland was quicker about gathering his wits.
As Andy started to run he was thrown back into the room by the bullet
entering his skull. Harland quickly fired a second bullet into Andy's
head and slammed his back into the doorframe. He still had one
unknown to deal with.
Inside the room Amanda Kramer watched as Andy left. She hated
the fat bastard, but she was under orders to be 'extra nice' to him if
it meant closing the deal. She dearly hoped that she would be able to
kill the fucker later. She was surprised to see Andy turn to run back
into the room, but even more so as the familiar sound of a silenced
gun was followed by his face leaving his head.
"Damn!" Before Harland had fired his second shot she was
moving. She slapped the panic button as she ran to her pile of
clothes. The button started flashing as it was supposed to, but she
didn't know that the signal only got as far as Harland's deck. She
all but leapt into her pants and she pulled her shirt on while
checking her ElectroMag. She didn't like her situation. Alone, with
an unknown number of the enemy waiting outside her only exit. She
decided her best chance was to wait until building security arrived.
If the target was DiFranco she might get away clean. She settled in
to wait.
Harland was still waiting, hoping for the person inside to
make a move. He wished he had some backup. Going in alone he could
only face one direction, if he guessed wrong he could get plugged in
the back. A few more minutes.
A few minutes passed.
"Damn! Why don't they move? Shit, maybe it's some call girl
scared out of her wits," Harland mumbled.
"Damn! Where the frag is security? Shit, the alarm must've
been cut," Amanda mumbled.
They both decided to move at the same time.
Amanda had just gotten up when Harland leapt through the door
in a crouch. Both saw the other and fired. Harland's shot was wide,
but Amanda connected with his shoulder. Gore sprayed from the searing
wound the plasma left.
Grunting from the pain, Harland continued his roll into the
cover of the bed. Amanda dove for the cover of a dresser.
"So, Ms. Kramer, how are you doing?" Harland asked.
"I'd say better than you, Mr.?"
"Valaquen, Harland Valaquen."
"Mr. Valaquen. What do you intend to do now?"
"Well, I just wanted to kill DiFranco, but you happened to be
here. Unfortunately, that means I have to kill you too. I could make
it easy on you."
"I'm not one to give up, and as I said, I'm not the wounded
one."
"Yes, a minor inconvenience really." Harland checked on the
already healing wound.
"Overconfidence can kill."
"So can I."
Harland leapt over the bed, spraying her cover with the
Ingram. Amanda fired blindly at him. When he was almost upon her the
Ingram ran empty. Seeing her opportunity she left cover and shot him
through the torso. He continued coming and collapsed on her.
Then he ripped her gun from her hands and stood.
"Y... You... You're a..."
"Detian," Harland finished as the Predator hiccupped in his
hands.
Then all hell broke loose. Alarms went off, security was
alerted, lights flashed, and Harland sighed, "What the fuck..."
His best option was checking on his programs. He jacked
directly into the communications web, naked, and connected to his
deck. All of his programs were down, and the alarms had been
triggered remotely. He scanned the deck quickly, no one had accessed
it. Good. Now, to get out of here. He released his Pandora's Box
construct, a little custom program he had created. It instantly
triggered all of the alarms in the system and released highly potent,
but short lived, viruses into the buildings network. Random sprinkler
systems were triggered throughout the building and all the emergency
services were called. The communications net was scrambled, with
calls being re-routed at random. The building was in electronic chaos
in seconds. Before leaving he grabbed a log of all connections to the
buildings communications grid. His last move was setting a ten minute
destruct timer on the deck, he'd have no time to retrieve it.
Harland grabbed the crystal and ran to the service elevator.
It was waiting right where the program had sent it. All but the
ground floor were locked out. Harland crouched, waiting for the doors
to open. Trying to both hide his pistol and his wounds. He breathed
a sigh of relief when the doors opened on bedlam.
No one noticed him leaving.
He sat in a dive of a bar, sipping at a bad synth-ale and
running through the communications log in his headware. No one had
noticed his now mostly healed wounds, or at least they had the good
sense not to indicate that they had. He sat upright as one of the
caller Id's caught his attention.
Airryk Haemden
"Son of a bitch!" Harland exclaimed, drawing a little more
attention. He quickly gathered his belongings and left the bar.
"Well done, he got there right when you said he would," Airryk
congratulated Kryss.
"Great," Kryss replied sourly.
"Why so glum, we got him. I don't think even the great lover
boy could have made it out of there. Ms. Kramer got in a few solid
shots. If that didn't kill him security would have finished the job."
"So the job's done, right?" Kryss snapped.
"Yes, the job is done. Pack up his stuff, maybe we can use it
later." With that Airryk cut the connection.
"You bastard. I hope he makes it out. I hope he comes after
you," Kryss hissed at the dead screen, "I should kill you myself."
Airryk's monitor came to life, displaying an image of Harland
entering his home. "So, he made it out after all. Good, it's been so
long since I've been able to do the job myself." Airryk quickly
initiated several programs from his console and waited.
Harland worked his way through the hallways, fired by the rage
of betrayal. All of the old emotions had flooded to the surface.
Airryk, and therefore Kryss... He was going to make them pay.
Unfortunately the rage also dulled his senses, he never noticed, or
thought about, the security systems that were sure to be in place. He
was about to enter Airryk's office when a steel plate sealed the
hallway behind him and a strong anesthetic gas flooded the chamber.
Stupid! I have to control my temper better, he thought as his vision
tunneled. Harland was unconscious in seconds.
He awoke unarmed and firmly tied to a chair in Airryk's
office. Kryss was in the corner looking rather upset, and Airryk was
behind his desk, looking very pleased with himself.
"Ah, I see you're awake. The great solo and lover boy,
captured and on display. Today only."
"Screw you."
"Ah, still spirited. Good, good..." Airryk gestured to
Kryss. "She seems to have taken quite a liking to you, she even tried
to free you. What is it in you that inspires such loyalty."
For the first time Harland noticed the bruises on Kryss' face
and arms, and the restraints tying her to the chair. He clenched his
jaw to restrain the rage.
Airryk noticed and followed his gaze. "Ah, how refreshing, a
display of chivalry in this day and age. Maybe she was right, there
is something about you. I'm dying to know more."
"I'm not going to talk."
"Oh that won't be necessary." Airryk produced a small I/O box
and a set of interface cables from a desk drawer. "I'm simply going
to take what I want." Airryk slid a cable into his jack and
approached Harland with the other cable.
"You don't want to do that," Harland deadpanned.
"What, fear now? How disappointing."
"No. I didn't say, 'I don't want you to do that.' I said,
'You don't want to do that.'"
"How amusing. Now be a good boy." Airryk snugged the cable
into Harland's jack and pressed the 'Go' button on the box.
Airryk marvelled at the expanse of Harland's mind. He always
had a sadistic rush when he mind raped someone, and Harland seemed a
very promising target. He started to pick out bits of data...
Something was wrong. This data was hundreds of years old. No
human could be around that long. He turned to leave.
That's when he noticed the gateway was gone.
"I told you you didn't want to do that," Harland's voice
echoed throughout the mental matrix. "But would you listen? No, of
course not." Suddenly the illusion of a human mind vanished, to be
replaced by a structure far more vast. The infinite scale of it was
maddening for Airryk. "Now it's my turn."
Airryk could feel memories being ripped from his mind. He
tried to rip the plug from his jack, but his body wouldn't respond.
Then he realized that he was moving. He was freeing Harland! But
how?
"How?"
Airryk was stunned.
"Yes, I can read all of your thoughts. It is rather trivial.
I'm controlling your body now. Haven't you ever decked into a Detian
before?" Harland asked sarcastically.
"A Detian? But I didn't think there were many around. Not
since the WDF..."
"Yes, we are fairly rare. So, Mr. Foreman is being paid by
GENOM. Interesting, that's useful. Oh, you were planning to kill me
all along. That's very impolite you know. It's not nice to kill the
hired help. My, my, you do have a sordid past don't you." Harland
dug through his memories. "All the deals you made, all this lovely
data. This may be useful someday, thank you."
Airryk felt utterly violated, he had no secrets left, no
privacy, even in his own mind.
"Oh yes, you were going to kill me weren't you. That calls
for punishment. You know that, as a Detian, all of my experiences are
recorded. All of the joy, all of the pain, everything. A few hundred
years of experience, more than you'd ever have. Here, let me
demonstrate."
Airryk's body writhed on the floor in the throes of ecstasy.
All of the pleasure Harland had felt in his life was compressed into a
few seconds. It was pure heaven for Airryk, an eternal instant. His
sanity slipped...
And then he was screaming.
Intense pain, suffering, hate, all flooded his mind. Images
of wounds, broken bones, attacks by voracious creatures, betrayal, all
flashed through his mind. And then it looped through again.
A slow smile spread across Harland's face as he fed his
memories to Airryk's mind. The data flow alone was enough to drive
Airryk mad, but the images would make him suffer for the rest of his
days. He continued to loop hundreds of years of pain through Airryk's
mind in a matter of seconds. Over and over, until the screaming
stopped. Harland pulled the cable out of his jack. And stared at
Airryk.
Airryk was staring too, but at things no one else could see.
Curled tight in a fetal position on the floor, he gibbered to himself
as drool ran down his cheek.
"I told you you didn't want to do that."
Kryss had been watching with horror as Airryk jacked into
Harland. But she was amazed when Airryk undid Harland's restraints.
Then shocked as Airryk screamed. It was a scream of pure madness.
The entire incident took just over a minute. Then Harland was
standing over Airryk's gibbering form.
She shied away as Harland turned his attention to her.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you."
"What about him?"
"He won't be doing much of anything from now on. Even a
cyber-therapist couldn't help him."
As Harland undid her restraints she began to sob.
"Shhh... It's ok now."
"Don't you understand? He already reported that I tried to
save you, Foreman's already called for my execution. And I can't
run..."
"I know..." Harland knew from Airryk's mind. Kryss had a
special processor implanted to boost her 'diplomatic' skills when she
started working for Foreman. The chip was also a tracking device.
Foreman didn't like making investments that could get away.
"What am I going to do? He'll torture me. Or worse. He's
got brothels where the women are just toys. I couldn't handle that."
None of this was new to Harland.
"I can remove the chip. You'll be fine."
"No, you don't understand. I was injured on an early run for
Foreman. He liked my looks and the run was successful, so he helped
me. Part of my mind was wiped, and I had extensive brain damage.
They reconstructed what they could and encoded it onto the chip. If
you remove the chip you'll kill me."
"That's not true, your body is fine..."
"Yes, my body is fine... But without those memories I'm not
me! I would be like a newborn, well, I'd have a few memories left. I
can't do it, don't you see? I don't want to lose who I am," she
pulled Harland into a tight embrace, "I don't want to lose what we
had."
"I understand," Harland whispered in her ear.
"I knew you would."
Harland backed away from her a bit and pulled an old holo-ID
from an inner pocket. It showed him, slightly less ragged looking, in
a full Captains uniform. "Remember how you said you thought you knew
me. You probably saw me in some old history trids back in school."
"You mean you're..."
Harland nodded.
"But what am I going to do?"
He gathered her into his arms and consoled her. "Don't worry,
I won't let you suffer. I won't let them get you."
She hugged him tightly.
He whispered "I love you" as a single tear rolled down his
face as the blades slid from his forearm. "No commitments."
A sleek red ship raced away from Reznor, the solitary pilot
sobbing tears of sorrow and rage.
"You and I are going to have a little talk Mr. Foreman. Just
you and me."
He looked at the holograph in the console.
"You will have your revenge Kryss. Be kind to her Teleute."
perfect little dream the kind that hurts the most forgot how it feels
well almost no one to blame always the same open my eyes wake up in
flames it took you to make me realize it took you to make me realize
it took you to make me realize it took you to make me see the light
smashed up my sanity smashed up integrity smashed up what i believed
in smashed up what's left of me smashed up my everything smashed up
all that was true gonna smash myself to pieces i don't know what else
to do covered in hope and vaseline still cannot fix this broken
machine watching the hole it used to be mine just watching it burn in
my steady systematic decline of the trust i will betray give it to me
i throw it away after everything i've done i hate myself for what i've
become i tried i gave up throw it away
-gave up, from the album nine inch nails "broken", written by
trent reznor
The End