The way of things in this life...
The vision of the bodies of his comrades haunted Dule yet again. Omni-Tek bodies littered the same battlefield, and for some reason or another, Dule concentrated more on the fallen bodies of the Omni-Tek troopers. It was by his hand that these men had fallen, and it was his gun that had created the grisly mess that now haunted him so. Dule moved through the fields of the dead at 2Ho and as he passed a fallen Omni-Tek soldier he heard a mumble. Dule kneeled by the Omni-Tek soldier and removed his helmet, listening to the words that this dying man was uttering.
"Time...soon...*cough* *cough* ..." The soldier snapped his head around with ghostly speed and stared into Dule's eyes. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust." With those words the body of the soldier turned to dust in Dule's hands.
As Dule rose from the ground he stared across the field of death where a lone figure now stood; a figure covered in shadows so that Dule could not make out the face or armor, only the figure of an Atrox...an Atrox with a very big sword. The devilish red sword swayed at the figure's side, then was brought up to it's shoulder as it began charging towards Dule. Dule could not move, could not raise his weapon, could not speak. The figure barreled towards Dule with demon-like speed, still covered in shadows, with the red sword raised high above its head. The figure was within striking distance and brought the blade down with frightening force, intent on cleaving Dule in two.
"Damn!" Dule yelled as he sat upright in his bed.
Dule held his head in his hands, contemplating this new dream...it had been the worse thus far and it had been weeks since the battle at 2Ho. What frightened Dule even more was the presence of this new figure in his dream, before it had just been visions of the soldiers dying or the aftermath of the battle, never before had another living being been seen that wasn't present at the battle.
Dule rose and poured himself a shot of whiskey...then another...and another. Dule would try to forget this new dream he decided, it's probably for the best to do so. Gathering his strength for the day, Dule picked up his shotgun, threw on his armor and trenchcoat and headed out into the bustling city of Borealis.
The Dust Brigade had deemed it intelligent to move Dule out of Tir because of the recent conflict the Dust Brigade had had with Henry Radiman, the unspoken leader of the Council of Truth. Dule was moved into an apartment in one of the slums of Borealis, the city where most of the Dust Brigade had apartments themselves.
Dule met up with Bayala at a small building not far from the grid terminal in Borealis, she had informed him of a mission that needed his attention immediately and said that she would give him more details at this location.
"Ah, Dule, good to see you up and about before the sun has set." Bayala joked as Dule had a tired look plastered on his face.
Dule chuckled a bit, "What was it about this mission?"
"We have reason to believe that a certain...group...of people has taken sides against us and are threatening to turn us in to Omni-Pol."
"On what charge?" Dule half said, half mumbled.
Bayala smirked a bit, "You remember about a month ago that little business with the apartment building in Omni-1? Well they claim to have proof it was us, which is absurd as I'm sure you know."
"Yeah...right. What group of people has those kind of resources if you don't mind me asking?"
Bayala handed Dule a sheet of paper with the name of the group and that group's president, "Heard of them?"
Dule suddenly snapped wide awake as he looked at the form he had just been handed, "Dammit, Bayala, this is a Clan." Dule looked back to Bayala who had a look of doubt on her face, "You want me to take out a Clan president? You've gotta be joking."
"What's wrong Dule? Lately you've turned in to quite the killer, I'm sure you'd have no problem with this target."
"It's not a question of being able to or not." Dule shifted a little bit, still trying to process the information. "It's a damn CLAN president. I don't feel right even talking about killing a president of the Clans."
Bayala put an arm around Dule's shoulders, "Dule, let me tell you something about this world we live in. Sometimes sacrifices must be made, sometimes comrades have to be the ones who get sacrificed. You must believe me when I tell you that this person and her organization have been in contact with Omni-Tek and have threatened to turn us in to them." Bayala gave what Dule thought to be the most evil looking smile he had ever seen at that moment, "This is the way of things in our kind of life, Dule." She then stepped back away from him. "You have your orders, Dule, I trust that you will not screw this up." With that Bayala produced a curved blade from her cloak and handed it to Dule before disapearing into the crowded streets of Borealis city.
Dule stared at the dagger in his hand, then placed it inside of his trenchcoat. "The way of things...right..." Dule mumbled as he made his way down the street.
((To be continued...))
Passing of a dark torch...
Six months had passed since Dule had first heard about the portal to Jobe. During that six months Dule had heard plenty more on the city of Jobe and the place they were calling the Shadowlands. Most of what Dule heard sickened him, stories of adventurers being sent out into the Shadowlands only to be found at reclaim several days later, rocking back and forth on the ground and muttering gibberish. Dule heard things that angered him from Omni-Tek...but he grew more and more angry with the Clans after every passing day; stories of the Council of Truth sending adventurers into the Shadowlands in order to get a foothold in the strange lands before Omni-Tek could, no matter how many lives were sacrificed in the process. The Clans had grown greedy in more ways on Rubi-Ka as well; Dule observed aftermath videos of Omni-Tek and even neutral outposts smoldering and littered with the bodies of citizens with no military connection whatsoever.
Dule's political views had definitely changed since his time in the Dust Brigade; his views of the Dust Brigade and the Clans themselves had both been tarnished in more ways then one. The strange part was that Dule began wondering what his life would have been like if he would have signed up with Omni-Tek instead of the Clans so many years ago when he first arrived on Rubi-Ka.
It was nearly midnight when Bayala's associate entered Dule's cabin; she seemed to be in a hurry. "Dule, Bayala requests your presence at once."
Dule rose to his feet from the crude chair he had been sitting in, he set the bottle of whiskey on a nearby table, "Does this mean I'm coming back?"
The Opifex woman looked at him and let a large smile spread across her delicate features, "Yes! I have a vehicle ready, all you need to do is pack and we can be off."
Dule wasted no time throwing all of his belongings into a duffle bag, scooping up his shotgun, giving the Opifex woman a sudden kiss on the lips, and heading out the door. Bayala's associate stared after him as he left the cabin then followed him outside, trying to hide a smile.
The Opifex woman and the Dust Brigade trooper drove all night until they reached the gates of Omni-Entertainment. Even though Dule knew about the stealth device that was protecting their identities, he still became uneasy as they made their way through the city to the grid terminal, it wasn't until they were safely encoded into the grid that the feeling left him. Once the vehicle had stopped outside Bayala's apartment, the Opifex woman turned to Dule, "I'll drop you off here, Bayala is expecting you inside."
"Aw, you're not coming in?" Dule gave the woman a wink as he got out of the vehicle.
The Opifex woman blushed a little bit as the door closed and she drove off into the city itself. Dule knocked on the door of Bayala's apartment and was surprised when it opened almost instantly. Inside, Bayala had her gun torn apart on a table and seemed to be cleaning it's many parts. "Have a seat." She said to Dule, not even looking up from her work.
Dule took a seat opposite of Bayala at the table and remained silent until she spoke again. After roughly five minutes of silence, Bayala looked up from her gun to Dule. "So...how does it feel to be back in the city?"
Dule didn't bother hiding the broad smile on his face. "Feels damn good. Although, I'll miss my visits from your lovely associate." Dule grinned even bigger.
Bayala didn't show the slightest amount of amusement. "You liked her, huh? That's good. The reason I brought you back into the world of the living is because the case with that dead bitch in West Athen is old news. The new news, for us anyway, is the state of this clan." Bayala stared into Dule's eyes, trying to bore a hole right through him. "There has been talk from others that my methods are too sloppy, unprofessional." Bayala shifted her head to one side, still penetrating Dule with her cold gaze. "What are your feelings on this situation?"
Dule seemed confused. "You mean there has been talk of a coup?"
Bayala nodded, taking a drink from the glass of vodka that sat close to her on the table. "Exactly, but it won't come to that." She leveled her gaze at Dule once again, this time Dule sensed the slightest amount of helplessness in her eyes. "I have decided to disband the clan, although I know for a fact that the individuals who are already against me will want control of it for themselves." A deep sigh escaped Bayala. "I have a few friends in the clan Fatal Exception, they have offered me a position with them and I told them I'd have to think about it, but I know what my answer will be." Bayala looked away from Dule, back to her disassembled weapon. "This clan has been my life for so long Dule, I have poured my soul into it and what it stands for. I can feel it changing though; no longer do I want to destroy the lives of the people I have come to love, the Clans are full of good people and I want to defend them, not destroy them." Dule thought he saw a tear in Bayala's eye, but she turned away too fast for him to be sure.
Dule thought on what had just been said for a good while before speaking up. "Why wage war on the Clans in the first place?"
Bayala shook her head. "You don't understand. We weren't waging war on the Clans, we were waging war on the Council of Truth and Henry Radiman, curse his name." Dule understood more then Bayala could ever know. "Anyway, the reason I'm telling you this is because I have seen your disapproval of my methods, yet, I still believe I can trust you, am I wrong in that asumption?"
Dule shook his head. "I won't tell anyone about this conversation, Bayala. Tell me one thing though, what makes you think these people who are against you so much wouldn't try to perma-kill you once you left the clan?"
"I know they'll try, but I have faith in my friends in Fatal Exception, and I have faith in this..." Bayala patted her unassembled machine gun. "Let them try to kill me I say, they'll learn why I have so many notches on this gun." Bayala let a big smile spread across her face. "Alright Dule, I'm glad we've had this talk but I'm going to have to ask you to leave, I'm expecting a friend anytime now."
Dule rose to his feet and gave Bayala a nod. "I'm glad we've had this talk too." As Dule left Bayala's apartment many things were going through his mind, mainly the identities of the renegade Dust Brigade members who were so against Bayala's methods. Granted, Dule himself didn't agree that much with Bayala's methods either, but this sounded like something more.
As Dule walked down the dark streets of Borealis city, duffle bag in one hand, shotgun in the other, questions arose about Dule's own loyalty. Dule had been questioning the Clans for awhile now, it just seemed like the Council of Truth or someone else behind the scenes had a hidden agenda. Dule passed the Fair Trade shop and swore he saw someone in the shadows of a building but quickly dismissed it as a late night wanderer like himself or a figment of his imagination. As Dule moved past a building on the way to his apartment a message came through on his com unit. "Dule, it's Convoked, I need to speak with you now, it's urgent." Dule frowned a bit, then swung around as he heard footsteps running away from him. Dule looked around the corner of the building he was standing near and saw the figure of an Atrox disappear into the night, an Atrox that seemed strangely familiar to Dule.
((To be continued...))
Scratching the surface...
Sweat poured openly down the face of Dule as he briskly walked through Borealis city, towards the grid terminal and his meeting with Convoked. Who was it? Why did that Atrox seem so damn familiar? And why the hell was it eavesdropping on Dule?
Dule reached the grid terminal and began the cell encoding process. Convoked had sent coordinates to Dule shortly after the Atrox had disappeared into the night; it was an old outpost that was all but abandoned near the wastelands of Mort, an outpost called Meetmedere. Dule finally found himself encoded into the grid network and began making his way to the Meetmedere exit when a message came through on his com unit; "You move forward blindly, unwilling to open your eyes and see what your world has become, fool." There was no name associated with the message, only a scattered, static filled image and several random symbols.
Dule stopped moving and took in what had just been said to him. "Who the hell is this?"
Dule's com sputtered static for a moment, then spat out another anonymous message from the same sender; "My identity will be made clear to you soon, Max Kenley, but what is important now is the Dust Brigade as well as something more..."
Dule waited a moment, then replied alittle irritated. "Which is?"
The voice took longer to reply this time, letting time pass by slowly and the uneasy feeling that had materialized in Dule's stomach grow. "Your dreams...I know about your dreams. They will make sense soon enough...let us leave it at that."
Dule replied quickly. "What the hell are you talking about? How do you know about my dreams!?" But the voice was gone and a simple "User Disconnected" message is all that showed itself to Dule.
Dule dismissed the cryptic conversation for now and continued on through the Meetmedere exit. As he materialized in the countryside surrounding the ruined outpost a message from Convoked came through; "It's about goddamn time, Dule. I'm in the outpost near it's center, I can see you on my scanner from here, hurry up."
Dule jogged briskly across the open field to the outpost itself and found Convoked crouching near a ruined building, his SMG at the ready. As Dule approached, Convoked motioned for him to crouch next to him. "Get the hell over here and put that duffle bag down!" Convoked's voice was lowered but full of urgency.
Dule ran over to Convoked and crouched next to him, dropping his duffle bag and bringing his shotgun up to a ready position. "What the hell is all this about?" Dule was looking at Convoked the whole time but Convoked kept scanning the area, worried, paranoid, frightened. "I guess I got myself into alittle trouble, Dule. I was hacking around in some of Omni-Trans' files when I came across something interesting to say the least." Convoked turned to Dule, still alert and wide-eyed. "I found files detailing shipments made to an unnamed party, this kind of thing happens all the time but there was something else." Convoked quickly turned his head to the direction of a small noise in the distance.
Dule continued staring at Convoked. "Hey! What was different about this shipment?"
Convoked turned back to Dule. "Well lets just say it wasn't a shipment of e-beamers or flak jackets. Either the guy that wrote out the shipping ticket was a real amature or someone messed up real bad because I think this transaction was supposed to be off the books." Convoked lowered his SMG and stared at Dule, boring a hole right through him. "It was explosives, Dule. And they weren't f**king around either, this stuff had more kick to it then the stuff the Dust Brigade used on that apartment building in Omni-1. But here's what got me thinking; Omni-Tek already has the resources for this stuff and it was being shipped out of Omni-1. If they were shipping to Omni-AF or Omni-Pol they would have just said so, but this stuff was being shipped to an address in Borealis and to an unnamed buyer so...I decided to check it out."
"You thought it was going to a neutral or Clan buyer?" Dule had lowered his shotgun as well, oblivious to his surroundings at the moment.
"Exactly. Turns out I was right too. I got to the warehouse and saw the explosives, but I had to off a few Omni-Trans guys first. Well, I was on my way out when I ran into a familiar face...Mr. Black. The son of a bitch recognized me too, and he started trying to fill me with holes from his assault rifle but I was too quick, I hauled ass out of there as fast as I could." Convoked's voice was shaky and even though he was trying to hide it, fear oozed from every word he uttered. "Ever since then there has been an Agent after my ass. I'm sure it's from the Dust Brigade but I can't prove it. I don't think he tracked me out here but I can't be sure."
Dule was completely lost in his thoughts after hearing Convoked's story. Mr. Black is obviously one of the members against Bayala's leadership, and those members had to be planning something big with that much firepower stockpiled, but what could their target be. Dule tried to forget about it and focus on the problem at hand. "You think you gave him the slip, huh?"
Convoked shook his head slowly. "I'm fast, Dule, but this guy is good, I don't know how I'm still alive right now, I'm sure he could have killed me at any time since the warehouse."
Dule brought his shotgun back up to its ready position. "You're right, he could have. But he didn't want to...he wanted to kill two birds with one stone. He's out there right now, waiting. Convoked, I want you to check your gear, calm down, and run your nano programs on me."
Convoked looked from the treeline in the distance to Dule. "Why?"
Dule let a smirk spread slowly across his lips. "Because we're going hunting."
((To be continued...))
I Defy You to Continue...
There was little that Convoked or Dule had to do during the entire process in which Convoked's unnamed associate altered their records and erased any evidence of them even existing on Rubi-Ka. Apparantly Convoked's associate was a very capable hacker, in fact he was so capable that he was able to break the encryption on the ICC databases that house every civilian's personal record; this information was all that Dule was made aware of, he didn't know this associate's affiliation or why he owed Convoked such a massive favor, but he didn't care.
The process was completed after a mere week. Dule and Convoked found themselves standing in the main ICC shuttleport that processed incoming citizens seeking to find a better life on Rubi-Ka. Dule stood in the main entrance cooridor and watched the hundreds of people moving past him on every side, the look of hope and better things to come placated on their face, Dule gritted his teeth as he thought about what awaited them on the main planet; war, strife, betrayal and sorrow. Dule let this thought escape him as Convoked nudged him and continued on to the Omni-Tek recruiter and whompa. The recruiter was more then pleased to hand them each an application for employment with Omni-Tek, though Dule thought he saw a glint of doubt in the recruiter's eye as he examined them. Convoked hastily filled out his application, scribbling in Fixer where it asked for his occupation. Dule looked the application over carefully, thinking on many things as he did so, as if he still had a choice in the matter at this point. Dule came to the occupation question on the application, after a slight pause he carefully wrote Soldier. The recruiter accepted the applications and stamped them as "approved" without a second glance, he then explained that the whompa behind him led to one of the apartment complexes in Rome. With a slight nod, Dule and Convoked passed through the whompa and appeared in a small courtyard next to a gigantic apartment building that seemed to rise up into the dark clouds forever. The two new recruits turned towards the exit into the main city and glanced up at a large neon billboard near the exit, it read, "Omni-Tek protects."
"So it begins..." Dule sighed.
((To be continued...))
A Darker Piece of the Puzzle...
The ICC shuttle port bustled with movement. Refugees, entrepreneurs, middle class citizens and ICC personnel all moved about with a purpose, each seeking to accomplish their own goals, whether it was to board a whompa to Rubi-Ka or ensure the security of the shuttle port itself. The recruiters stood at their desks lazily scanning the crowd of possible recruits and finishing up last minute paper work as a whompa to their respective territories hummed close behind them. The ICC guards stationed on the shuttle port stood rigid at their posts, barely moving as they held their Krutt assault shotguns securely at their sides. To any normal person the scene would have represented a vision in security and safety.
Amidst all the movement in the shuttle port, one figure could be seen standing near the entryway draped in a black cloak. The figure was an Atrox, although he stood taller and more massive then any normal Atrox should be. His head was bald and a strange tattoo crept its way around his right eye and down his cheek, disappearing into the cloak. Many scars could be seen riddled across his face and head, although the most distinguished one jutted down from his forehead and across his left eye, causing that eye to have a type of constant squint. Although the cloak hid most of his body, the hilt of a sword could be seen sticking out from the top of the cloak. The ornately carved hilt seemed to be made from a black volcanic stone that had a dull shimmer to it whenever the Atrox moved; the rest of the sword was covered completely by the cloak.
It was as the Atrox began to move into the main shuttle port area that he was noticed by the ICC guards standing their post near the entranceway. In unison, the two guards approached the Atrox and stood blocking his path to the main shuttle port, “You’ll need to secure that weapon with us before continuing on. It is against ICC policy for citizens to possess weapons in the shuttle port.” The ICC sergeant leveled his gaze at the hilt of the strange weapon as he spoke.
Speaking in a lowered, deep voice the Atrox replied, “You wish me to disarm myself and surrender my weapon…to you?”
The sergeant tightened his grip on his shotgun, “That is correct. It is against policy to continue past this point with your weapon. Either surrender it or turn around and leave the way you came in.”
The Atrox smirked slightly, “I have pressing business on Rubi-Ka and I will continue on, but I surrender my sword to no man.”
The sergeant gripped his shotgun with both hands as he took a slight step backwards, “I’m going to have to ask you to come with us, now.”
The Atrox let the smirk widen as he eyed both of the guards then said in a grave tone, “I hope for your sake, you’re faster than you look.”
Just as the sergeant was about to question this strange statement, the Atrox flung back his cloak and drew his massive sword in one inhumanly fast motion. With a savage horizontal slash, the Atrox severed the sergeant’s head from his body. Before the severed head of the ICC sergeant even fell to the ground, the Atrox had plunged his blade through the second officer’s chest. Kicking the officer’s lifeless body, the Atrox retrieved his sword and took a step over the fallen guards and the rapidly growing pool of blood that surrounded them.
Pandemonium had ensued within the shuttle port after the brutal slaying of the guards; citizens were trampling each other to get out of the main shuttle port area, ICC personnel were making frantic com transmissions, and the recruiters stood at their desks, stunned by what had just happened. The Atrox calmly moved through the shuttle port, his large, red bladed sword swaying at his side as he moved to the center of the main receiving area. By this time, the rest of the ICC personnel who were stationed on the small shuttle port had armed themselves and made their way to the receiving area. The Atrox stopped when he saw the roughly twenty ICC guards armed with shotguns come rushing out of three different hallways; he brought the sword to his shoulder and smiled openly.
The guards began firing on the Atrox as soon as they saw him brandish the tremendous weapon, but none of their shots found their mark; the Atrox moved with an unnatural speed as he made for the nearest group of guards, weaving between their shots as if it was second nature to him. The first group of guards fell quickly as the Atrox cut into them with no remorse, letting bodies fall where they stood and sending some into nearby display terminals, tables and chairs. It didn’t take long for the Atrox to carve a swath through all of the ICC guards, leaving the small receiving area of the shuttle port bathed in blood and littered with bodies twisted in their last agonizing moments.
The Atrox stared at the whompas as he stood before them, sword in hand, and a wake of carnage at his back. As he moved past the Omni-Tek recruiter’s desk, completely focused on the whirring entrance of the Omni-1 Entertainment whompa, he failed to notice the recruiter who had finally gathered himself enough to dive under his desk. The recruiter had been relaying several com transmissions to Omni-Pol, describing the scene in the shuttle port and the powerful Atrox who carried the strange weapon.
It was because of the recruiter that when the Atrox emerged in Omni-1 Entertainment district he was greeted by a detachment of Omni-Pol troopers and two scourge-class slayer droids. As the troopers held their weapons on the Atrox, he realized that this was a battle even he could not hope to win; reluctantly he plunged his sword in the ground by his feet and stepped back, arms raised in a sign of surrender.
As the troopers moved in to capture the Atrox, the commander of the detachment whispered to one of his nearby sergeants, “Take this one to HQ, Omni-AF has expressed special interest in this matter…they wish to make a deal with him.” The sergeant nodded at this and moved forward to carry out his commander’s orders.
((To be continued...))