Liberty and Death: Chapter 28
Chapter 28
While Cora’s crew remained on high alert the rest of the way to Luxholme, Cora trudging under the reins alongside Hawk as the giantess did the lion’s share of the work, it looked as though The Chains were done for the day.
Fuckin’ hope so, at least. We’ve personally killed, what, 40 of the fuckers today? Those are bad numbers for an army, much less a street gang.
Cora had been wondering about that. She wasn’t sure how many members the street gangs back in LA had, but she reaaaaalllly doubted they could take losing 40 bangers in a day without some pretty massive repercussions. Shit, most of her action movies didn't have that kind of body count.
That said, she had no idea what scale things operated in Tyrinno. It could be like the battles you read about in Chinese history, where thousands dead was a footnote skirmish.
She’d never have believed that before seeing the Bazaar, the city outside seemed deserted, but that place had absolutely teemed with humanity, like a New Delhi slum. Depending on how big that area was, and how well it represented population density, the thousands-as-footnote could be perfectly reasonable. Once more, her absolute ignorance of the situation she’d found herself in was a source of massive frustration, and that showed no sign of letting up.
She was still stewing in frustration and self pity a bit when the cart pulled up to a gate set into Luxholme’s courtyard. Cora swept the street once more, then tapped Trish to keep watch and went to help unload.
Hawk made an impressive standing leap into the bed of the cart to toss cargo down, and soon Iain, Dip, Jonesy and Tinny were all marching through the gate with their loads. Cora was barely paying attention when it was her turn, which meant her legs nearly buckled when Andy’s corpse landed in her outstretched arms.
“Gah!” She yelled, dropping the unfortunate cart driver. “Fuck, Hawk! Warn a bitch!”
Hawk just smirked down at her, already tossing a Link corpse over either shoulder. She jumped down to the ground with enough force Cora felt her land next to her, then wiggled one of the Link’s combat boots in her face.
“Juuuuust helpin’ ya toughen up a bit, Miss Mistress,” she teased, with a wink that, fuck, still managed to be a little charming. “No place for bein’ squeamish in Tyrinno. Linnea knew that. Coraline Casanova needs to learn.”
While Cora processed everything that sentence implied, Hawk strolled through the gates, no more weighed down by her grim cargo than by her clothes. Cora glared after her, then realized she was right, and glared down at Andy’s corpse.
It’d be a terrible idea to put the stat points I got from level 3 into [Str] just because this guy is overweight right?
OH TOTALLY. I PROBABLY WOULD THOUGH, PHYSICAL LABOR IS TOTALLY GAUCHE, NO NEED FOR IT TO BE HARD AS WELL.
Cora sighed, and popped the 2 into [Cha] while she was thinking about it. If she remembered anything from her gaming for roles, it was that if you had a stat that boosted everything, you pumped that shit into the stratosphere.
So, instead of her muscles bulging, making Andy’s corpse an easy lift, her skin just got a little better or something while she hoisted him onto her shoulder.
Motherfucker better at least have some cyberware.
He didn’t.
When the gruesome harvest was said and done, they had another 5 adrenobytes, some kind of internal body armor implant that had done absolutely no good to a dude who took a round of .45 ACP to the skull, and, bizarrely, another Party Array despite the absence of any Receiver Arrays amongst the Links.
However, the weirdness of that was barely worth commenting on, in the face of something far stranger.
“You’re sure,” Cora asked Kyra, who paced back and forth in front of the top-popped skull of one of the Chain-heads.
More specifically, the Chain-head. Cora was asking Kyra to confirm the impossible, but she was pretty certain herself: this was the same guy they’d killed out front of Jonah’s office.
“Fuck yes I’m sure,” Kyra hissed, snapping her head around to take one more look at the impossible corpse. It seemed like she’d been hoping to find she was in fact not sure, but no such luck. She growled, and continued; “that’s the guy. He damn near bit my ear off when I got sloppy, I’m sure.”
“Well how the fuck is that possible!?” Hawk asked, looking around like she actually thought one of them might know.
“Never ran into any… fuckin’... clones? When you were fighting the Chains, Hawk?” Cora asked.
“Nah, I mean, damn, that tech is expensive in the Spires, it may as well not exist down here,” Hawk answered.
The little lore drop there that meant it wasn’t technically impossible wasn’t lost on Cora, but she had to assume Hawk was right; if it was easy, everyone would be doing it.
OH SHIT
I THINK I KNOW WHAT’S UP
I assume you always know what’s up and just choose not to tell us
LIES AND SLANDER
ONLY SOMETIMES
THIS THOUGH, IS ONLY AN EDUCATED GUESS
Well?
OH RIGHT LOL
I THINK THE CHAINS HAVE A DUNGEON NODE
….
Like a kink thing?
NO, YOU FUCKING NERDOLOGY PHILLISTINE
LIKE A VIDEOGAME DUNGEON
MAKES MONSTERS
HAS LOOT
These are dudes, not monsters
HAWK’S A MONSTER
Cora’s eyes flicked to the towering woman, still looking to her companions like someone might have an epiphany. In a way, she was about to get lucky.
Okay, I think I get it. These are like… copies then. It explains all the weird implants, too. Loot.
YEP! WHOEVER’S DOING THIS EITHER DOESN’T REALLY KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOING, OR ISN’T A GOOD ENOUGH HACKER TO GET PAST THE COUNTERMEASURES I PUT IN PLACE TO STOP SPECIFICALLY THIS.
Well, that’s kinda a win right.
KINDA! BUT IT MEANS YOUR IMMEDIATE OPPONENT HAS AN UNLIMITED SOURCE OF MANPOWER TO SEND AT YOU!
Fuck. Kinda limited though, right? Or we’d have been fighting armies, not squads.
TRUE, BUT THOSE DUDES WILL PROBABLY BE BACK TOMORROW. MIGHT ALREADY BE BACK.
Honestly? Bring on the Shimmer.
During the long walk home, Cora had realised something about the weird surge of power she’d received on killing the Shimmer addicts. Whatever Shimmer actually was, it was the same thing that corresponded to ‘levels’. When she’d looked inward, after killing the Links, she’d found even more of the rainbow energy inside her, but slowly found less and less, even as she felt it filling something, like an organ she was entirely unaware of. During that process, [Big Sys] had let her know she’d reached level 3.
[PARTY CHAT STARTED WITH <IAIN BOONDOCK>, <KYRA LIGHT>, <TINA ‘HAWK’ TAGLIARI>]
C: alright, [Big Sys] is telling me some bad news. The Chains basically have a dude printer.
K: what the fuck does that mean and who the fuck is [Big Sys]?
H: that who yore always mutterin to yourself with miz miztress?
Fuck me, how is she so dumb but so perceptive?
STREET LYFE BAY-BEEEE!
[BS]: DINGDINGDINGDING! HAWK GETS IT IN ONE!
[BS]: IM THE ALL KNOWING, ALL POWERFUL VOICE IN CORA’S HEAD!
[BS]: THE CHAINS HAVE A DUNGEON CORE, AND YALL BETTER READY UP, OR YOURE FUCKED.
K: what, so this is literally the same guy?
K: that’s impossible.
I: Nay, ‘t ain’t impossible, lassie
I: seen it on the field
I: makes shit troops, but sometimes shit, disposable, troops are exactly what ye need.
[BS]: LIKE IF YOURE A SLAVER GANG!
H: Hey fuk u BS, the Street Wolves werr HARDAZZES
[BS]: AND DUH CHAINS TUK U GUYZ OUT IN A WEEK
[BS]: WHOMP WHOMP
[BS]: ANYWAY, ITS NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE SHIT TROOPS
[BS]: IT CAN DO SO MUCH MORE
[BS]: YOU IDIOTS HAVE TO STOP IT BEFORE THE CHAINS FIGURE OUT HOW TO THAT
H: fuk u again
“Excuse me?” Trish said, clearly repeating herself, but just now getting the group’s attention. She was looking at all of them like they were insane now, and Cora was happy not to be singled out on that front. “You all seem to be talking without saying much, and me and the boys would like the second half of our pay.”
Right. Do or die time, Movie Star.
“Easy,” Cora said, holding her hand out to Iain, who slapped a stack of bills into her hand. God bless him for that, it was even way more than just their pay, exactly what she needed. She saw Dip and Jonesy’s eyes go wide at probably more money than they’d ever seen at once treated so casually.
Cora looked deep into each of their eyes as she flicked out smaller sets of bills, splaying them in her free hand.
“This is what I owe you,” she said, dangling it near her face. In her other hand, she weighed the remaining bills. “This is what I have. Just on hand, mind you. Fact is, folks, this is a big house, and I need guards. How much of this-”
She rustled the big stack of bills, which was impressive, but was also almost all of the money she had immediate access to.
“-Do I need to pay to get you to stay, instead of leaving with this?” She asked, wiggling the lesser sum limply, and grimacing a bit like it disgusted her.
Dip opened his mouth, and Cora grinned before Trish slapped a palm over it.
“What are you offering, Light?” She asked, eyes hard and calculating. Calculating was good. That meant it wasn’t a no.
She’d asked Iain what he was paid, and if it was standard for mercs. He’d said 2k a week, which was low for someone of his caliber, but he was a slave, and it would be a good reference point for your average goon.
“500 ‘trish a week, plus room and board, for Dip and Jonesy,” she said. The two frowned at that, but Cora wasn’t done. “And 1k hazard pay anytime we have a dust-up like today. Retroactively of course.”
She counted out another 10 bills into each of their piles, and she watched them start salivating. Trish wasn’t convinced, but Cora hadn’t expected her to be.
“For you, Trish,” Cora said, smiling at the woman with full silver-screen dazzle, “Double that salary. 1k a week just to sit around here with a gun. Same hazard bonus. But you, I want with me in the shit sometimes. If you come with us on mission, whatever that might be, you get the Hazard pay plus 2nd pick of loot. First goes to me.”
Trish glared at her, sums running behind her eyes.
“1.5k hazard,” she countered.
“Nope!” Cora said, before she’d even finished speaking. This run had taught Cora something: there was a reason Trish had been sure to include loot rights. She had first pick this time, and if she took that Party Array, it was probably worth more than everything else combined. Even 2nd pick would secure more than triple her salary provided they got in a lethal scrap.
Trish scowled at Cora, then spat in her palm, and held it out.
Gross, you cowgirl-ass bitch, Cora thought, but was alllll smiles as she spit into her own, and slapped it into Trish’s, shaking it firmly.
Dip and Jonesy were all too happy to shake as well, spit or no spit, and after Cora doled out 10k ‘Trish for what she owed, she handed her new guards off to Iain to be shown around.