The Hunter Killer Teams.

[Astera]

It is hard for me to remember details sometimes. I look back and it all seems like one long fight.

"Swerve me? The path to my fixed purpose is laid with iron rails whereon my soul is grooved to run"
-Captain Ahab- Moby Dick


Run!
Son of a bitch!
Rage building near explosion. Eyes glazed as if in a trance. Heart beating, rhythmically, slowly. Never look to see what the enemy doing directly. Look to the side in anticipation of his move, like you were taught. Anticipation is key in victory.

The mark is slain in a firey burst of bullets. His body falls, racked and broken to the ground. Blood from numerous wounds spills out of him pooling on the dry, cracked earth. Almost as an afterthought I kneel next to him, dip my fingers in his blood and trace lines across my face. The blood, still warm and sweet drips on to my lips. The taste is overwhelming. I shudder with delight and call upon my innate abilities to teleport into this god forsaken grid.

This is...was my life from the beginning. I still get goosebumps thinking about it. In self imposed pennance i've given up and stripped my soul bare seeking to wash clean the many injustices i've inflicted on all of them. It doesn't work.

The kill kept me alive
The kill kept me going
The pain lingers

I feel as if I will never leave that behind. Its been several months now since i've been hunting at MMD or working special ops for various faction leaders.

*sigh*

I will begin again with happier memories at another time. I need time to remember them...god it seems so long ago as a girl, moving from cold, soul-less city to cold, soul-less city. Happily playing with my brother in open fields, playing soldier next to the omni troops who marched in perfect unison down the streets every day....

but that is another story for another day.

[Astera]

Bloodthirsty
Remorseless
Borderline Psychosis

Things change...sometimes.

*looks up to the night sky, takes a deep breath and closes her eyes*

When are they going to learn to put better trained guards in the building?" I thought to myself. I staggered up to the lone guard, the tattered black cloak concealing my armor just enough. The guard eyed me warily but I staggered on past. He watched me for a little bit and turned away to finish his route. As he turned I reached under my cloak for my Manex. In a burst I ran up to his turned back, reached around grabbing his face, making sure to place my fingers in his eyes and kicked the back of his knees. He was on the ground before he knew it. He began to struggle blindly. Quickly I whirrled to his front and kicked the rifle from his hands, backslapped him with the heavy Manex and was behind him again before he hit the ground.

Catching his fall, I put my lips next to his ear.
"Please tell me you're still alive." I purringly whispered. He responded with a groggy moan. I produced a flask of water and poured some on his balaclava covered face. He started, I quickly reached my arm around his throat, putting him in a choke hold.
"You're dead anyway, but it'll be quick or slow", I teasingly whispered. He made some sort of crying noise...I guess he knew this might be a permenant thing. He slumped in submission and I relaxed just enough to let him have his breath.
"Is the lady of the house in?", I purred. Releasing my grip slightly he muttered in a strained voice, "no..shes...in...Trade".

"Must be the reason you're guarding this place." I laughed. He shook slightly.
"You will deliver her a message?" releasing the chokehold I stood up.
"Don't turn around", I ordered.
he put his hands up in surrender and knelt, motionless.
I leveled the manex at the back of his head.

The trigger is squeezed and he became the message.

Examining his corpse I noticed a small sparkling object slightly poking out from under his armored breastplate.

*tears begin to flow*

Opening the locket, I stared in horror. Cold...numb, i fell to the ground and began sobbing uncontrollably.

My Brother...

[Vixentrox]

(Yay! Keep it comming)

[AdriaanBlackwind]

(wish I could write like that...*sigh*)

[Demenzia]

((*reads, nods, awwws, gasps, and awaits the next part!*))

[Astera]

((thanks! im working on the next part as we speak.))

[Astera]

NOTE: This was the adventure that ended service to the lady. Which is why I have deleted it.

[Astera]

The bad weather announced its arrival with a clap of thunder, significant of one of those ancient blood and bluster Gods whom preached love, but eternal damnation for failure to follow his edicts or rants. Perfect... The dying soul inside of me fought valiantly, but failed.... A deep numbing sensation overcame me, as if the soul marked its departure with a final stab into my conscious.

"Better you than me, brother..." my hand clasped over my mouth as I finished the words.

My eyes go wild...what did i just say? A light, mocking laughter began to echo in my mind, an inane sort of laughter, at nothing but at everything. Hollow, alone, crazed...casting my helmet off, letting it splash into the mud. The rain, huge fat drops, hot water from a desert sky washes over me. My face turned to the heavens, attempting to wash myself clean of this, silently cursing at the fates...and always...that laughter remained.

Wandering aimlessley, the laughter sometimes making its way through my lips. The rain seems to have take the place of my soul as one left, the other is there. Through that cursed city i walked, still in the guise of a vagabond...only my face visible. I must have wandered for hours or even days, i had no way of knowing. The growls of the wildlife of Rubi-Ka are the only voices out here. Here...somehow, I made it outside of Ent without being arrested or killed to realize that I am deep in a forest.

A light in the distance...growing with each step. Somewhere my subconscious noted this as each unsure step brought me closer. I only wished it was leading me to my demise. A cave jutting forth from the ground, a circle of torches, impaled bodies everywhere...the eye. This could only be the Steps of Madness. Somewhere I knew that a part of me wondered why I ended up here, but I didn't delve into myself for the answer. I stood in front of the eye as growls and movement began to close in behind me. Tearing the robe free, then dropping my armor off piece by piece i stood defiantly in the eyes gaze. The eye... boring a hole into me and finding emptiness and a longing for a cold, shallow grave.

The eye continues its gaze into my nude form... a noise... A noise coming from the stones themselves. Kneeling on the cold hard stone, I lean down to press my ear to it. Laughter...the same unending laughter echoing in my mind magnified as my ear meets the stone. The laughter booms in my mind causing me to wince in pain and grind my fists into my temples. Screams of pain, lust, fury and lamentation begin to accompany the laughs, my head is splitting. Crying out a shrill scream as the pain becomes intolerable, I lose consciousness.

[Astera]

I cant exactly remember how long I was in service to Neleb, as one of his protectors. I vaguely remember him only giving me painful memories...memories of my brother as he lay quite dead haunted me every day. Memories of a borg interrogation...*shudder*. That is something very few people have ever heard me speak of. Neleb let me have all those memories and would add to them. I almost remember...god the memories are so tainted... A child? What the correlation to the memory of a child and why I remember it, is beyond me.

I sat in hiding as the glowing blue figure sped by, scores of Nelebs creatures in her wake. Growling, I began the hunt... My natural ability to run fast out performed every creature there and I quickly closed the distance, leaving everyone else far behind, to the figure and fired my weapon. Almost as if something told her that someone was going to shoot her in the back, she stopped quickly and lept into the air, evading the burst. At that point she hit the ground in a crouch, an evil smile could be seen beneath the glow. I stopped my run and tried to dive away as her gun roared and the bullets ripped into me. I lay bleeding as the figure casually strolled up to me and pointed her gun at my head. Her eyes shifted as she contemplated my murder.
"can you talk?" she growled "you don't look like the normal sort of guard I usually find here."...sarcasm in her voice?

Fighting Nelebs control with all I could find within me, I was only able to nod weakly. I heard Nelebs crazed cries echoing through the cave. He screamed for our deaths and the creatures began slowly descending on us. The glowing figure laughed and laughed as one by one, they fell. She screamed insults at the protectors as they tried to hit her, but couldn't. She stood in one spot and moved with blurring speed, evading ten of them as they tried to hit her. I had only seen movement like that once before. Then, something hit her which pushed her to the ground. Everything paused at that moment. I watched the crowd part as Neleb made his way towards us. In that instant, the she was on her feet, grabbed my hand and in a flash I was in the grid. Nelebs control was gone... I had thoughts again... I could feel the pain of the bullets, I could feel the loss of something within me..though to this day I still cant place it.

I blacked out apparently because I woke up in a cold, dimly lit room. The glowing blue figure was there, sitting in a chair not far away, mumbling into her comm, tapping on a small computer unit not paying attention to me...or so I thought. I tried to move and found my strength sapped, the movement caused a small rustle and she looked up quickly. I looked at her, still unsure of who she was until she spoke to me.

"We've missed you, Taren...", she purred, standing and moving to the side of the bed
I began crying softly, recognizing her.
"yes... The Lady found you again. You are home.", she said happily. "The lady would never leave her own to suffer as you have. She is truly sorry and welcomes you back with open arms."
She inhaled deeply, "no rest for the weary in The Black Company. We have a job for you once you are better. A murder which won't amount to much other than furthering her wishes and power, though it will be difficult." (the black company never took anyone as a threat.)
I nodded weakly in response.

I began crying with joy as Synthx touched my cheek softly and left the room.

Those next few days, The Lady kept my dreams filled with happiness, soothing the scars created from my brothers death and my service to Neleb. I was told that my cousin was here on Rubi-Ka and The Black Company had been looking out for her. They even arranged a meeting between us. I never told her what happened to my brother. Life was tolerable again, though I cried every night for his loss and my cruelty. My wonderful cousin took care of me though. I went through some really tough times, those weeks, before The Lady sent me on an assignment that would become the end of her...or so I thought.
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