Setting
- 56 posts here • Page 2 of 3 • 1, 2, 3
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Randin meanwhile, was not making any more progress in understanding why he was here. Even if he COULD help the two of them smooth things over with the WCPD, why should he? How was he to know that these were the good guys? What if they were just in it for their own interest?
He groaned and nestled into his seat.
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Two more knight XV armored SUV's approached the scene both were clearly Marked as S.E.C. Out of the Armored Cars filed out security forces.They approached Holidays wrecked car but only set up a perimeter. These things were made to secure VIP'S it was very difficult to get one out.
Then from the sky came another vehicle a hovercar luxury class. It landed swiftly and a man in a suit jumped out and walked over to the vehicle. He held a simple key non electronic it was one of a few but it served a purpose they key was special with a specific magnetic signature in moments he had the door open and was helping Holiday out.
"Damion take over the clean up I'm going to have a word with these people." She said as she walked over toward the Puma and up to Randin behind her the security forces and the three commandos trained weapons on the vehicle. "Excuse me sir a word if I may?" She asked her voice was kind her personality different from when she was in the vehicle. She could have ordered an arrest but she decided against it.
She turned towards the lone commando. "Sometimes, I don't play favorites. Other times I do, this was one of those times I do not." With that she stepped through the hole in the wall, picked up her Gravtiy Hammer and then went to the door and all but broke it open. On the other side a figure stood, bathed in soft white light and with data scrolling across his body. No larger then ten inches in hight the strange hologram floated in the air.
Puma put a hand to her forehead, this was going to be a long day. When she heard the voice of the woman however she disappeared from the armrest projection station and then appeared at eye level, her nine and a half inch frame of dark red backlit from behind she spoke, her voice echoing slightly. "Greetings. I am ONI Section III Experimental Weapons Devision AI PUMA. I must apologise for disabliing your transport. Leaving like you were presented a possible theft of important ONI SecIII EWD material that we cannot allow to fall into the wrong hands. Protocolo dictated that I was to disable your transport to ensure further questioning by a Recovery Agent." Randin still seemed out of it. Unfortunate for him, Puma was really just getting started.
Puma then noticed the dust on the woman she was speaking to. "I must apologise again." echoed the AI's voice, "Had I known there were others beyond the wall I'd have waited before opening a pathway for our Agent to complete her mission. With primary and secondary routs blocked, a tertiary route was then established. You were caught in the crossfire. By your exit, it was naturally assumed you were our cuplrit. We see otherwise now."
The sound of thudding metal boots resounded down the hall. More were on their way. Carolina would need to make her escape quickly. Now that she'd fired on TNG troopers, there was no stopping them from doing the same.
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Randin could only hold on to his hat as Puma relentlessly pursued her objective. He still had no idea what was going on, but he supposed he deserved this. He HAD gotten into the strange car with the strange woman, after all. He only hoped they weren't doing anything TOO illegal.
The Ai came into full appearence, "That I am" He replied, its voice echoing slightly as it spoke. "One of our soldiers in the field incerted me in the network here in order to maintain a Overt Battlenet oversight. I was never suspected or found until I activated the recovery beacon when an enemy soldier attempted to eject me from the network."
That explains the body on the floor. Carolina thought as she stepped forwards, Endless Summer jumped into her armor network from the Terran Battlenet as she passed through the AI. Her active blending system shifted and she appeared then as a Terran Marine. A perfect match to them in fact. It could work for the moment to get free of this building. "Recovery One to Command, come in Command."
"Go ahead Recovery One" Came the reply
"I have Endless Summer, our beacon. I'm picking up two more. And I have incoming hostiles at this time. Advise ?" Carolina reported as she moved through the room to the main entery door.
"Return to Puma and head for Five Thre Two for extraction." A NAV appeared on Carolina's HUD. Perfect. "Command out." Carolina turned and exited the room using the door. as she did so she came out behind the newly arrived marines. With the lights out, none notced her inside the computer server room. If they did see her, they'd think her one of them. A Terran Marine making sure everything was all good. Which it mostly was. Either way these Marines were not very skilled and could not keep up with her to begin with.
Puma seemed slightly bored. And if she was even the least bit bored, it meant a lot of trouble. She had no brakes that worked on her massive M12 LRV rig. So going anywhere with sane driving was out of the question. However Puma's radio activated and started rattling off, in spanish, news of recent bullfights. However the hologram reappeared next to Randin, tapping her foot Puma grumbled "What the hell am I gonna do with a carsick passenger ?" She was clearly unhappy with Randin's lack of progress at this point, which meant a whole ton of trouble to come for sure. After all, Puma was insane. It came with the job of being beyond metastable.
"Get Holiday out of her command it's not safe there are bogies loose here." He reported as he left the building himself, they would be back he was sure of that they had business to discuss with the Terrans but for now they would leave the Terrans to clean up this mess.
The security officers led Holiday to her vehicle and then the two armored vehicles along with their security team and the commandos left the government center. Damion ensured the broken vehicle was hauled away before he left as well. He didn't like loose ends and this was the only way he would be sure it was taken care of. Then he finally left in his hover car.
" A shame...I didn't even get to watch "
He pays little attention to the scene unfolding, preferring to wallow in his own self pity from the looks of it. Something would be off about this man however, should one look at him. At first glance he was human but, even a human with no training in the occult could sense something about the suited man, something possibly....malicious?
Carolina heard the last soldier flee the area, as if saying 'screw this I'm gone!' The lone 'Terran Marine' Stepped into the hall. Holding a pistol in one hand she spoke, her voice deeper and sounding like a male soldier to the Marine in charge. "Room's clear." With Endless Summer running her systems, Carolina was able to properly mask herself and blend in perfectly with the other Marines. Even her Gravity Hammer had disappeared.
If only she had Maine's Knifle.
"Ah, it does seem that you are a bit too late to participate in the fun."
His voice was of an average quality, sounding at an age that placed him somewhere close to around 60 years of age. Though this more gruff voice, it would appear that his voice was being kept down lower, as if to only apply to the other man standing before him.
The man speaks to the new arrival with very little concern for privacy it would seem, his words quite capable of being heard by anyone within the vicinity. He casually raises his right hand, sliding it into his coat, withdrawing a cigar mere moments later from an inner pocket. Without even moving, He further addresses his apparent associate.
" Got a light? I seem to have left mine back at the office "
Withdrawing his hand and flicking the lighter closed, the older man proceeded to put the lighter back within his right pocket, and he resumed his former position of his hands behind his back, one grasping the other.
"Well, that choice is up to you, yes? I doubt they could do anything you wouldn't want, anyway."
'Recovery One, Got some trouble out here, meet up with you later. Sheila's not happy at the moment. Laters.' Puma radioed before hitting the gas, Randin buckled in her passenger seat. Without brakes this was going to be an insane ride for sure. That and Puma did not possess any barf bags onboard either. Puma hit the gas and she was off with her rather ill passenger.
That said, Guardians DID have on-screen scouters that would allow them to track her energy-signature eventually. Carolina was safe for now, but not for long.
"Corner round the back!" they shouted, quickly storming out of the room.
As they left, a tall, broad man in a grey suit approached Warlock and Dravor Lash.
"Gentlemen," he implored them, "please, this is not a safe area. I insist you come with me away from all this chaos..." He smiled at them both before introducing himself. "Parliament Chairman Rubano Malijin of the Terran National Government, at your service." He bowed at the waist. "Please, follow me this way."
---
"Buckle in?!" Randin screamed. He was already holding on for dear life. How much worse could this ride get? "You need to pull over NOW!! You are performing some SERIOUS traffic violations!"
Carolina noticed the Marines with their weapons as they began searching the rooms in the area. She paid no heed to the new comers however. Her primary goal was to get Endless Summer and get out. But someone had to fuck up the plan and delay her. Which resulted in the completely stunned up marines standing and laying around in the hall.
'Agent Carolina, I must inform you of the chances of getting out of here unnoticed by these underprepared soldiers are decreasing at a rate of .98 with every passing minute. The scanners they possess track unknown energy sources.' Endless summer said through her internal helmet comm network
'So what else is new ? Odds ?' Carolina asked. Thankful that her armor was soundpoofed unless she wanted to speak to the other soldiers.
'Exactly 61 percent chance of being descovered by one of these marines. Even while using the Terran Battlenet, the chance is not fully decreased.' Endless Summer replied
'Using the battlenet, can that increase our chances of not being descovered ?' Carolina asked.
'In the battlenet there are orders for certain groups, they are heavily encrpyted. It may take some time to get through them. Through the Battlenet I may be able to mask our energy signature as an offical Terran energy source for their power armor.' Endless Summer said.
'Just tell me what the odds are when you're done' Carolina grumbled. She acted like one of the Marine soldiers as they checked the rooms carefully.
'Done, chances of being discovered have been lowered, our chances of being undiscovered have increased from 38 to 71 percent. Orders are jumbled for these marines. Something of a bomb set up within this building complex.' Endless Summer was a busy AI.
'Drop a NAV for me, I can disengage it. Maybe even warp it out with the teleport grenades.' Carolina said, a second later the NAV point appeared on her HUD. Perfect. Along with a countdown timer.
'Done. I have also included a countdown timer. The make and construction of the explosive device is unknown, yet it is very perimitive. I suggest teleporting the device into space, or a open area, or deep within the sea if possible.' Endless Summer was running calculations of what could occur should something go wrong.
'Not enough time to dunk it in the sea; I can however teleport it out. Until then, lets act the part of one of their soldiers.' Carolina loved it when she got to act like she was part of her enemies team. In recovering Endless Summer, those that delayed her became her tempoary enemies. They got in the way. But none of them were killed off. Just, frozen in place.
" Agreed, The rank-and-file can take care of things here. Forgive me, I've forgotten my manners. You may call me Alistair Smith. "
With that, The Warlock simply awaits to be lead elsewhere, uncaring of whether or not the Chairman would be aware of his covers status in society. This alias was a renowned capitalist, one with a questionable yet effective code of ethics when it came to business. As he waits, The Warlock steals a quick gaze at Carolina in her disguised form, an amused, spine chilling grin forming upon his face for only a brief moment. As he looks away, he ponders internally at the hilarity of the situation unfolding.
Rubano, meanwhile, was leading his guests safetly down the grand hallways of the Government Center.
"You must forgive the attacks, Mr. Smith," he said, "Terra is quite an oddity of a planet, as you doubtless know. Super Saiyan showdowns and massive battle-royales are the norm, I'm afraid. We try and keep order as best we can." He looked to Warlock. "If you do not mind me asking, what are you doing here in the Government Center? Perhaps there is something I can assist you with?"
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"Well when we stop," Randin growled, "IF we stop, I am going to slam you with a traffic ticket SO BIG you'll have to sell yer'own engine to pay HALF OF IT off!"
Smith stops, letting forth another puff of cigar smoke, closing his for a moment to savor the brief event.
" I Think we should talk elsewhere but know that my offer includes a very generous sum of funds and support. "
The Warlock had played this game for an extremely long time. His face was home to a half cocked, superior than the average man grin. He could have an agenda as no true businessman wouldn't have one, a way to profit from the investment at a later date. The question was however, Would his offer be heard?
Great 'Say again ?' Carolina asked. Silent alarms meant someone was already tracking them before they even arrived!
'Rudimentary AI have been discovered within the Terran Battlenet. One moment.' Endless Summer replied. Carolina felt him seem to shut down within her suit and for a fleeting moment she thought she had been discovered, the lights in the area were still out. 'Done, I've managed to reroute all file pathways for orders of you joning a TMC squad to make sure this level of the complex is secure. Once our part is done, we leave.'
That'll work, 'Order was given through.....' Carolina asked
'UNSC Marathon Class Cruiser, Dead or Alive requested you to join a TMC squad for classified reasons. Any searches will dead end.' Endless Summer said, 'The AI in this system are.... rather dumb.' That made Carolina smile, so the odds of them getting caught decreased right ? Endless Summer proved it. 'Your chances of successfully recovering me and returning to Ready or Not without being fully discovered have increased to exactly 67.82 percent. There are other AI in the battlenet, these are more.... complex. I may need time to set up my firewalls against them.'
Carolina smiled, as long as there were no Holographic Locks, she'd be fine.
'Do what's needed, I can handle things from here.' Carolina said. Without a word she then activated her blending camo system and headed through the darkend halls headed towards the elevator banks at first, then turning and going for the stairwell and heading, of all places. Downwards. a NAV point appeared on Carolina's HUD.
"Head for the NAV point. It leads to the sewer network and to the buildings across the street. Worst comes to worst we can always exit through the lobby if need be." Endless Summer then began to sysamtically shunt all resources of the Terran dumb AI into overloading, allowing him easier access and above all else, the resources to match wits with the Terran smart AIs in the network. Which compared to Endless Summer, were pretty stupid.
'Anything better then the sewers ? If we must we can also head for open spaces.' Carolina replied. She turned a corner and took the stairs downwards to the lobby level, and then from there to the streets. There was some damaged transports there. Which were perfect for what she needed. She withdrew a purple energy ball, a plasma grenade, and chucked it after priming it. It stuck perfectly to a armored transport not far away. She did not have as good an arm as Donut, but it did the job.
"Good enough of a distraction. Quickly, follow the new NAV point. We can escape this mess and find a transport out of the city." Endless Summer tagged a nearby armored car parking garage. Perfect for what Carolina was going to need. Unless her speed systems were up and running properly. But when Carolina entered the parking garage she found it was loaded with several dozen troops. And none of them were Terran troops either. "Or we could find us some more enemy troops. I think this is a bad time to mention there were other hostiles in the area."
'Yeah, bad timing.' Carolina thought before she opened fire with her plasma rifles before diving for cover and throwing a frag, then a plasma grenade in tandem. Thinning the ranks of her enemies before moving deeper into the parking structure. Leaving smoking hulking armored wrecks in her wake. This was just not going to be easy. If that.
- 56 posts here • Page 2 of 3 • 1, 2, 3