Rise of the Kirin (Chapters 14 & 15)

[Cmdr Wyvern]

======================================
Chapter 14 (Burning Bridges)
======================================

The top brass were livid, for a couple of reasons; Firstly, they didn't like hush hush military equipment being available to any Tom, Dick or Harry that might have the credits to buy it. Secondly, they really didn't like being implicated in a conspiracy to destroy the only prototype of said military equipment. The words "constrictor incident," "monumental incompetency" "laughing stock" and "consider your career options" were mentioned a great deal, but to be honest Gouglass had really stopped listening as soon as Supreme Grand Admiral Ahruman had appeared on screen. The Corporal, Cheem explained, had been put on a watch list months before and had gone AWOL hours after the Kirin left. All lies of course, but it slowed the wheels down just a little. The wheels of justice and punishment for all but the most grotesque offenses turned very very slowly in the military machine these days. The war had seen to that. Everything would change soon enough anyway.

The plan was having to adapt with events, but its core was still the same. He could keep the pretence up for the few more days it would take the Kirin to return with Shulth in tow. Cheem had been using the military spy networks to tracking the flight. He was confident could have a significant Thargoid presence in system in seconds. It would be like prodding an ant farm when he set the drone now hooked up to the stations communication array to broadcast distress. The ships would jump into space litterally heaving with enemy ships.

Then came the difficult part, self preservation. His luxury Fer-de-lance was fueled and waiting. Concealed bombs were set to make the docking port inoperable as soon as they registered that he had left the station. At the same moment remote detonators would also cripple Ceedra Sector command, giving Cheem a water tight reason for not sending a force to meet the Thargoid attack. Even if by some lucky fluke he made it to the station. Cheem would leave Udian and his spawn in this spinning orbital coffin to be eaten alive by the swarm.

Not that he honestly thought that would be enough to kill the Chimera. So he's added a little insurance policy to one of the larger in system asteroids. A cloak jammer. He almost felt sorry for him. Frantically trying to cloak his ship as the Thargoids tore it out from under him. Yes, the trap was a good one, the odds insurmountable and the bait impossible to resist. From there his job would be easy. It would be a short hop to Sector command to give the obligatory speech condemning separatist acts of terrorist aggression. Just in time to look stern and saber rattle, as the desperate news trickled in regarding a "surprise invasion" of Tibecea and the surrounding systems. If by some unlucky accident the Kirin protoype was still flying, then a small but overwhelmingly powerful force could be quietly sent out to deal with that particular loose end.

Still, there were one or two worrying issues. The fact the top brass knew about the attack on the Kirin, suggested that Shulth was more resourceful than he thought at extracting information and getting it to the right people. There was the notable and disturbing increase in mercenary and freebooter activity, generally in well armed ships. Primarily around Beenri, although Zaleriza had also been effected. It wasn't at intervention stage yet, but the steady gathering of the privateers was slowly becoming more and more difficult to ignore.

Finally, there was the problem with Mima. Again, it wasn't technically a problem, not yet, hopefully not ever. But she had managed to completely heal the fractured and dislocated jaw he had given her in under three days. Since discovering this from the seriously injured navy doctor who had initially tended to her, he had avoided entering her cell and doubled the guard. She ruled that small space now with the quiet, dark malevolence of a biogenetic wolf in sheeps clothing. These where all unwelcome small surprises. Insignificant on their own, they were gradually and insidiously exponentially escalating.

======================================
Chapter 15 (Cloak and Dagger)
======================================

Gelegeus: A poor agricultural frontier world sitting on the edge of Chart 1. Insignificant in many ways, except for one. Surrounded by anarchies and feudal worlds, Gelegeus was a popular stop for smugglers to fence illicit goods, especially military grade firearms. Equally illegal modifications were also obtainable here, and a no-ask-no-tell policy existed among the seedier warehouses. However, to do business here meant keeping your sidearm charged and handy, and having a backup weapon just in case.

The huge shape of the Kirin prototype sat parked on a landing pad at one of the spaceports near a major city of Gelegeus. There was guarded activity around the ship. Welding flares lit the night under the bottom hull as work crews mounted chain-guns and R.P.G. launchers on popup, or rather, pop down gimbal mounts. Nearby, modification work was being done on a forklift, as it was steadily armored with pieces of cut up cargo containers and converted into a mini-tank armed with an R.P.G. launcher and a couple of assault slug throwers. Other forklifts were loading a small number of cargo containers onto the ship.

Anna Welsh looked upon the massive ship and the work going on around it from a distance with binoculars. "I've found them at last," she thought as she zoomed in on the tall draconian overseeing the work. "He's as big as the General said. It's almost a shame to have to kill such a specimen." She gathered herself together, preparing to carry out her mission: Kill the reptile commander and recover the Kirin. She checked the charge on her hand laser, as Roh'i strolled off towards a darkened warehouse, with two Ceerdians in tow. "Perfect. He's making it easier for me," she thought as she snuck off to intercept him, hugging the shadows. "Maybe after he's dead, the crew would be willing to tell me what they're up to before they die."

"Stay alert, boys, we're being tailed." Roh'i rumbled softly to the brothers.

"How do you know, Captain? I don't see anyone."

Roh'i pointed to his cybernetic eye, "I saw her, Ossil. A human lass, about 5 and a half tall." Roh'i indicated a dumpster they were passing, "Hide behind here, and watch. She'll have to come out into the light. When she does, apprehend her. She may only be curious, but we can't be too careful."

As the brothers ducked behind the dumpster, Roh'i walked a little further on, then ducked against a door jamb, pulling his blaster, and engaging the virtual HUD mode of his eye.

Anna lost sight of her quarry, and sure enough, stepped out under the streetlight, laser in hand. "Now!" someone bellowed, and the big saurian suddenly leaped out, leveling a blaster on her. "Damn he's fast!," She thought as she snapped off a couple of shots at him. She heard him howl in pain, before someone dropped a truck on her. Something pressed into her shoulder, there came an intense electric jolt, and the world went black.

Roh'i limped over to where his security guards were holding down the stunned girl. She managed to shoot him in the thigh before the brothers subdued her. "Are you alright, Captain?" Na'lik asked.

"She got a round in me. One more wound. It's not the first time someone shot at me." Roh'i picked up the woman's dropped weapon. It wasn't much, one of the many light, cheap hand lasers flooding the underground market recently. Nothing about it to point back to who hired her to ambush him. GalCop's version of a Saturday Night Special. The young lady's dress was equally nondescript. "Pick her up, and take her back to the ship. Lock her up and keep a watch on her, I want to question her."

Three hours later, Anna woke up on a bunk in a brig cell. The big saurian sitting on the other side of the bars told her what brig it was. She looked him over; he was dressed in modified swim trunks, a holster belt, and nothing else, showing the assortment of dark scars over his grey-green scaled body. He had time to shower and get patched up before coming down. A bright, bloodstained bandage taped to his thigh showed where she managed to hit him in her earlier attack, clearly she failed. And her head hurt.

"So, another would-be assassin," the reptile rumbled. "I don't suppose you'd want to tell me who sent you after me? I have my guesses, but why don't you be a dear and enlighten me."

"And what makes you think I'm telling you anything, you damned gecko?"

The reptile smiled, showing a frightening amount of sharp fangs. "It may extend your life if you do, my dear. You see, I'd rather repay this favor," indicating the fresh wound, "directly to your employers, instead of delivering justice to a mere peon. Once again, girl, who sent you?"

Anna bit her tongue and pouted, and crossed her arms, "I'm not saying."

The dragon shook his head. "I'm trying to be pleasant about this, despite you taking shots at me. You're failing to see the gravity of your situation. If you choose silence, your life is forfeit. And I'm not turning you loose to try again, or report to your employers. There's simply too much at stake."

Anna was sure he'd kill her anyway, and maybe a bit of bravado would anger him into getting it over with without divulging any information. "You fracking sunbasker! You can go to Hell! The Kirin will be ours, damn you, and you'll die with the Shulths!" Uh-oh. She just tipped her hand. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

The reptile sighed, and stood, approaching the cell door and drawing his blaster. "Unfortunately for you, that little outburst tells me exactly who's pulling your strings. I'm growing tired of that arsehole sending young, inexperienced hit-beings like you to shoot holes in my hide. I'd say you can tell the General to stuff this ship up his fat arse." The blaster leveled on her, "But you're not getting the chance. I'm going to tell him personally."

"Butbutbut..." Anna stammered, staring in fear at the large-bore weapon tracking her.

But the dragon was clearly in no mood to hear last second pleading, "My dear, you're a threat that I can't allow to exist." He sighed, seeming to Anna to be genuinely saddened by what he had to do. "It's such a shame, you're too young to throw your life away. I'm sorry, lass." The blaster spat a bolt of searing cyan plasma, and the smell of charred meat filled the ship's small brig as Anna's corpse fell lifelessly to the cell floor.

Roh'i turned to Na'lik, "Flush what's left of her out the airlock before we witch jump out of the system."

[Tivva]

story line coming along nicely...

:pedant mode on:
"Cheem had been using the military spy networks to tracking the flight. "

to tracking??-
either 'using to track' or 'tracking by the mil sats'...
:pedant mode off:

[ClymAngus]

Meh, It's good but in the tit for tat writing style one or two things have been missed. (by me, not W) I'll get my compy to read this to me tonight that'll fix it.