Late February 1998 Story

[Recreation Area, C7 on First Landing Underground Level]

Zane dodges through the shifting crowds until he is within voice range of Urugg. "I don't know if Miemen can last until T'Klkk and Kare get here. We won't learn anything if Miemen dies. Got any doze grenades?"

Time stands still for a moment as Urugg's dormant combat instincts snap awake and adrenalin floods his wiry frame. "Hold on a sec, Zane. These boys look ready to rumble and they may not go down from just a doze. You toss the doze and I'll toss a tangler! Then let's smack some sense into these jokers. Ready--now!"

"Urugg, I don't have any doze grenades! It was just a suggestion! Oh hell, he can't hear me. Guess we gotta do it the hard way." With this, Zane slips on his brass knuckles and follows Urugg's lead. "Time to see if all those karate lessons were worth the money."

A pistachio shell falls to the floorplates, landing in a pile of others next to an inconspicuous column across the hall from the square. Syzygy's compound eyes narrow as he takes in the rapidly changing situation. Variables of movement, attack posture, and threat analysis run through his mind. Hunkered down behind a crete pillar some meters away, he sees Urugg charging, the crowds slowly reacting to the panic and panicking themselves, the reluctant Zane slipping on the brass knuckles and following Urugg into the fray.

"(munch, munch) Damn humanoids. . .always the same with them. . .fight, fight, fight," grumbles Syzygy. "You'd better stay back a moment, Taanik," suggests the Vrusk, noticing that his rubbery friend is now moaning and rubbing ids head.

Syzygy keys him chronocom: "Urugg, be careful. . .I'm watching you from above. Zane, close the distance with Urugg and watch his back. Make it look like you're bodyguards for Taanik--only plausible reason you'd get involved."

With that he switches off the channel and levels his gyrojet pistol at the tumultous throng. The compound lenses of his right eye focus as they look down the sights of his gyrojet pistol, taking careful aim at the head hoodlum.

His mind takes a moment to observe the almost primitive behavior of this pack of thugs. Could they be more than they appeared? They sure didn't look it. Unkempt, drab civilian clothing. Ordinary walking shoes. Yellowish eyes suggesting Ixiol abuse. Just your run-of-the-mill junkies.

[Syzygy Comprehension: 15%; Rolled: 73]

Urugg's hairy arm rises and falls as his tangler grenade arcs over the crowds towards Miemen's three Human attackers.

[Urugg Throwing Grenade: 35 (RW) + 0 (skill x 10) - 0 (point blank range) = 35%; Rolled: 13]

The tangler grenade hits perfectly between the three Human thugs, bursting on impact with the floor. Gluey threads slurp into the air, seizing any prey with less than light-speed reflexes.

[The dice are on your side this time, guys. All four REACTION SPEED rolls were in the 80's!]

Neither Miemen nor the thugs seem to have those light-speed reflexes today. All four are intertwined on the smooth euclidean floor, struggling within a prison of web and collicite.

Syzygy shrugs and re-holsters his pistol. "This is your cue," he says, nudging Taanik's amorphous shoulder. "It looks like Urugg and Zane have things under control. I'm going to see how T'Klkk is doing."

Taanik staggers to the scene, where Zane and Urugg are wielding brass knuckles and a stunstick, ordering the three thugs to settle down.

[Zane Diagnosis: 60 (base) + 30 (skill x 10) + 10 (INTUITION modifier) = 95%; Rolled: 77]

Zane recognizes Taanik's side effects. "Oh my gosh! Poor Taanik." Zane begins administering an antidote.

[Zane Neutralizing Toxins: 30 (base) + 30 (skill x 10) + 10 (LOGIC modifier) = 70%; Rolled: 48]

Taanik's body sags with relief. "Ah, if you only knew how much better I feel. . ."

But ids job is not done. "Are you okay, Miemen?"

"You again, kid," says Miemen. "I done told ya last time. I can't help ya."

"You don't seem to be too popular around here," replies Taanik. "It's lucky my. . .uh, bodyguards, showed up when they did."

Miemen shakes ids head within the webbing. "I keep telling everyone, but no one listens to me. I got no more stuff."

"Ixiol? I was told that this is where I could find it."

Miemen sighs. "Five days ago, I could help ya, kid. But now my supplier's up and gone. He used ta come to me every day. But he don't come 'round here no more."

Taanik makes a bold move and pops the question. "Who's your supplier?"

[Taanik PERSONALITY: 70 + 0 (racial modifier) = 70%; Rolled: 13--looks like 13 is the lucky number today]

"I dunno. I never seen him."

"I thought he came to you every day."

"He did. But he. . .had some way of making himself invisible. Called himself duh 'Lord of Shadows.'"

Urugg looks at Zane. "Why does that sound familiar?"

[East Life Support Building, K9 on First Landing Surface Level]

"Nice going, Tork!" hisses Kare through the tangler threads that bind them both. "Why didn't you tell me there was a psycho-terrorist behind me?"

Syzygy's voice begins to sound frantic, talking through T'Klkk's chronocom. "T'Klkk, are you okay? What's going o--"

Mute. T'Klkk shuts off her chronocom's speaker, but leaves the channel open so that Syzygy can monitor her and assess the situation.

As T'Klkk observes her surroundings, it is obvious that the circumstances are less than ideal. Both of her team-mates are held fast by tangler strands. The team's nemesis is standing in front of her, armed with assassinator rounds. And to say that he is less than rational would be understatement.

[Recreation Area, C7 on First Landing Underground Level]

Syzygy holds his chronocom to his bent antennae, listening intently to the conversation.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Dakka Syte."

"Shut up!"

"Be careful, T'Klkk. That needler's loaded with assassinator rounds."

"These aren't for you!"

"Who are they for, Dakka?"

"You have no idea what you're messing in! I've spent the last five years working for this moment! Get out of the way!!!"

Syzygy's mandibles bend into a stiff frown. He opens communication to Taanik, Urugg and Zane. "We've got trouble. T'Klkk and the others have run into Dakka Syte at the east life support building. I don't know about you, but I'm not staying here."

Without waiting for a reply, Syzygy switches back to T'Klkk's open channel.

The life support building is so far away, thinks Syzygy, With too many of these lethargic crowds of citizens to push my way through. There must be something I can do from here! If nothing else, I can alert security.

This is an easy task, considering that every holographic communication panel throughout the city's halls has an emergency alert system. Syzygy rushes to the nearest panel and activates his distress call.

"Welcome to the Streel Metrosphere Automated Alert System," says the three-dimensional hologram of a beatifully rendered Vrusk woman. The woman's movements are too smooth and even for her to be real.

"Great," replies Syzygy. "Our biggest moment of crisis and I have to talk to some computer AI." The virtual Vrusk isn't bad looking, but now isn't the time for that.

"We need help fast at the east life support building!" orders Syzygy. No reason to be polite to a computer.

"Please use the convenience panel to specify the coordinates of the emergency."

"I don't have time for this," moans Syzygy, observing the location of T'Klkk's chronocom and entering the information into the communication panel.

"A security team will be dispatched promptly," says the virtual woman with a very inappropriate smile. "Thank you for using the Streel Metrosphere Automated Alert System."

POOF! The virtual Vrusk vanishes.

[East Life Support Building, K9 on First Landing Surface Level]

T'Klkk calculates her options. At this point, she does not see a way around combat. Dakka is obviously not in a talking mood and diplomacy is not T'Klkk's strong suit anyway.

She is about to go for her projectile pistol when Kare speaks up.

"Stop this, flat face!" She is apparently talking to Dakka. "Selson Streel is mine, as is all Streel property on this rock. I have a buyer for him at Minotaur Station. My buyer wants to damage the reputation of the Streel family and corporation by ransoming him back to the family. He's worth much more alive than dead. I could be talked into letting you have, say. . .thirty percent. But I get to keep the Metrosphere bank balances and the patent office records. I get to keep them because I know where they are. I have a ship waiting to take us off this moon, with my partner Blackjack and the entire Gypsy Moon Corporation aboard. Help me dispose of these two. . .do-gooders and let's take what is rightfully mine. I can make you very rich."

Tork studies Dakka's face during the conversation, searching for any sign of the Laconian Red Eye. But there is none. Dakka Syte's rage is apparently genuine.

Dakka Syte bares his teeth, glaring at Kare like a wild Volturnian rastie. He shakes his head as his voice steadily raises from a mutter to shout. "You know so little about what you're talking about. I don't care about money, and I never gave a damn about the Streel Corporation! I HAVE ONE THING TO DO AND ONE THING ONLY! Go! Get out of here!"

Dakka apparently does not realize that it is impossible for Kare to leave, considering the tangler she is trapped in.

"CEASE AND DESIST!" orders a metallic voice from behind. Four law enforcement officers--all androids on hovercycles--arrive on one of the overhead emercency ramps, the same ramps that run above all of the city's moving walkways. They descend without hesitation onto a ramp leading to the floor.

"Get away from here!" warns Dakka, turning ever so briefly.

[T'Klkk REACTION SPEED: 71; Rolled: 16]

This is the opportunity T'Klkk has been waiting for. With one swift move, she hurls a solvaway vial onto her companions. The tiny container shatters, and the tangler threads begin to dissolve like cotton candy.

T'Klkk slides her automatic pistol from its holster and feels the kick of three powerful rounds.

[T'Klkk Firing Pistol: 41 (RW) + 30 (skill x 10) - 0 (point blank range) = 71%; Rolled: 89, 79, 44; Damage: 5]

Dakka reacts with the reflexes of a Quickdeath, turning away and ducking beneath the first two shots. The third bullet explodes against his right hip--but the majority of the damage is absorbed by his skeinsuit.

By this time, Tork and Kare have freed themselves, and the four security robots have come to a stop at the scene. But Dakka has an agenda of his own.

With the same cat-like instincts, Dakka rushes one of the androids, tackling it and grappling its cycle. The other three androids become confused, doing nothing but issue a verbal command to halt and return.

Dakka is already soaring up the ramp by the time Kare, T'Klkk and Tork can react.

Selson Streel's holographic image appears from nowhere. For the first time, he seems to have lost his composure. "I monitored a security call that said Dakka Syte was here! What's going on?"