Kira's time in the Advanced Power Research Facility was almost crushingly educational. In her first two weeks there was an onslaught of textbooks to study and access to research that she could barely comprehend. She began to study feverishly, fearful that she'd lose her apprenticeship should it be discovered how poorly qualified she was. She kept her head down and her voice quiet watching how others got along. Thankfully as Letch's assistant nobody was all that interested in who she was or what she did.
Kira found time to go over power plant specs with the Crafter, hinting that she had noticed that that a lot of cyborg women visited him. Letch smiled leeringly as he worked, his pale face lit by the paler light of his screen "Yes, one of my hobbies is the design and calibration of cybernetics" Kira smiled and tried to arrange her body in an attention getting pose, not easy for a girl who had worked hard at not being seen all her life "You know I have cybernetics?". Letch didn't even make eye contact as he explained "Yes, you have a ketonic sheathed nervous system, is it out of calibration?" Kira felt the hook sink in her catch "It's not a problem Crafter but it could use calibration, perhaps one of the Engineers here could tend to it.." Letch finally looked up from his work "Nonsense, he rose and grabbed his volt tools and walked over to her with a kind smile before pulling her clothing away from her maintenance port. What followed was an uncomfortably unromantic exchange where the Crafter treated her non-cybernetic parts like so much meat as he adjusted her body and ran her through a competent calibration without ever speaking to her.
Back in Tikal two weeks flew by. The ship was no almost completely scrubbed clean. With the ship less toxic crews began working on the interior but there was only so much that could be done without power. Towards the end of that time Genin Fox came to Lady Sakura and suggested that the contract be suspended for a vacation until the ship had power so that her money wasn't being wasted. Ian didn't have enough firebirds to pay out the two weeks of work yet. He had been counting on hearing from Boss Harmon already. He flew to the Guild Hall in Carllion and send a reminder to Boss Harmon via the Avalonia guild hall that he was waiting for that work.
When Ian and Lady Sakura returned they could see soldiers in red armor as they flew over the village. It was the Red Dragon Guard, finally hitting Tikal. As they set down they both walked to the stairs down to the town, already finding soldiers well-armed and ready demanding to know their business in Tikal. Sakura addressed them with the polished confidence of a woman who no matter what wasn't going to prison for any of this nonsense. She explained that she was pursuing a reclamation license in town and she had employees working in the building behind her. The soldiers radioed this in and their commander ran forward. After a brief interaction at the bottom of the stairs the commander climbed up to Sakura and Ian with a charming smile and introduced himself as Commander Eron Chun. He apologized for any misunderstanding and explained that his men were in Tikal looking for insurgents and would need to search their camp and the surrounding ruins. Lady Sakura tried to flaff him off with moans of her long travels and a longing to just get a cold night's rest on the mountain but the commander insisted. Sakura sighed and directed Ian to run ahead and alert the camp they'd be having guests and make sure everything was in suitable shape for inspection.
As Ian ran for the camp Commander Chun summoned his half-dozen men from the village below and they came running, giving Ian a lead of only seconds. Ian found the Diakang Longdong with weapons trained on the door as he arrived, heckles up. He told them they needed to look inconspicuous but the Daikang, already aware of the Count's soldiers were in a contentious mood and argued with him until the Red Dragon Soldiers were running down the stairs towards the landing bay. Ian just hissed at the angrily to get their dumb asses in the ship. However soldiers burst into the doorway before they could all get in. With guns raised and cries of "Halt!" they caught the last of the Diakang soldiers outside of the ship and forced him to surrender.
As Commander Chun entered the bay and found a Daikang rebel in the camp and reports of more in the ship his demeanor changed. He wanted everyone on the line with papers ready or he said he'd shoot. He summoned more soldiers. Lady Sakura looked frightened. Ian tried to fast-talk the Commander but was shouted out to stand in the corner like a child. The Camp was tossed and his contract workers were interrogated. Once the rest of the solders arrived they made Apprentice Hume force the airlock and they negotiated the other four Diakang to surrender and come out to be arrested. Ian watched the Diakang being arrested and as a last bid of desperation he begged the Commander if there was some sort of fee that could be paid to just get back to business. Chun looked at Ian thoughtfully and shrugged asking for 16 Firebirds with an outstretched white glove. Ian was beside himself, and quickly dug the coins out of his pockets. Commander Chun doled out a single Firebird to each man and then told them to take the prisoners away. Ian looked at the commander in disbelief "I paid!" and chun's eyes narrowed "And my men appreciate your quick payment of the fine for attempting to bribe a House official.. if there are additional fines to be levied once I have interviewed these prisoners I will come to you directly..". The Red Dragon Brigade began leading their prisoners down the mountain in the afternoon and Ian felt genuinely horrible for letting the Diakang down.
Ian and Lady Sakura flew down to Lawton hoping to get ahead of the soldiers. Sakura went to go talk to her father and find out where the prisoners would be held and find out what she could about how they would be tried. Ian, lacking anyone more powerful to talk to in the guild, went to meet with Lula Blue. He found her tending to her orchids in the terrace room of Blue Tours. He explained what had happened and asked her if there was a way to bribe the judge or break the Diakang out. Boss Blue listened distractedly while spraying each petal, her expression difficult to read. When Ian finished she stood tall and looked to him "Do you love these men?". Ian had never considered his motivation other than he had a deal "Uh.. no". Blue set her spray bottle down and looked up at the big glass windows thoughtfully "Freeing them would run maybe 10,000 FB? And it would be chancey.. Bribing their freedom would cost around the same and be less reliable. No matter how you cut it they won't generate a fraction of that for you, rebels just don't have money like that.. If you don't love them you write them off as an expense..". Ian hated the realization that she was right and after months of moral ambiguity it felt good to hate her for being right, like the principal was enough for him, but she was right. He couldn't possibly raise that much money and his principals weren't worth trading the one asset he had for. He thanked Boss Blue for her perspective and left.
Sakura didn't have better news. The judge slated to rule over prisoners of the Red Dragon Guard was an ornery justice and the political shift against rebel fighters in the Ceremanique Mountains meant they were unlikely to get more than a show trial before their execution. Sakura didn't have any connections that could help. She was out of options and didn't even know if she could keep this from blowing back on her family. Ian comforted her and explained they'd find a way.
Back in the Advanced Power Research Facility, Kira had achieved the sort of Fake-it level of understanding technology the Imperial Eye had showed her how to project and she began to take on supervision of workers in the factory. Letch would demonstrate how to construct a module and Kira would simply ensure that those standards were being met. Not fully understanding the function of these plants didn't stop her from measuring a part of approving it or rejecting it. Kira was also able to keep better tabs on Letch with her nose out of the books. She noticed he had a lot of female visitors who had a lot of conspicuous cybernetics, not that that surprised her anymore. She made a note of it as a way to control him.
Before the end of 30 days word was sent from the APRF that the Power Plant was completed and would be delivered. In just three days a freight hopper landed above the bay and workers started loading crates down into the ship. The Scravers had managed to jimmy the cargo bay doors open and aired out the engineering area with fans. Letch and Kira performed the installation over several hours, restoring power to the vessel after a number of system's tests. The reclamation crew cheered and hollered and drinks were poured. Crafter Letch presented formal papers establishing his rights to 10% of the ship and her profits and reluctantly the other owners signed him in. Kira wasn't so satisfied with the deal so she suggested Letch might have to refund some of his share because she did most of the work constructing the power plant. He just smiled and suggested she choose the percentage of the power plant she'd like to return to him. She persisted and he just smiled and finally told her that she has been hinting at how much she'd like further enhancement, if she'd like to upgrade her eyes she may pay the price of one eye and he'd gracefully buy the other. She was taken aback and unsettled by his fetishism. At the end of the day she flew back to her training with Letch, thinking about the eyes she might have installed.
Days later in Tikal a skimmer arrived with a guest, it was Harmon's man Maeve. Maeve had completely changed his look, now dressed in tight clothes with a golden afro. The sight of it was almost enough to make Ian laugh. Maeve made some small talk about how things were going and gave a few Scravers on the contract a nod and smile of recognition before going into Sakura's tent with Ian to talk shop. He had a job form Boss Harmon; there were 4 coffins-sized containers being transported on a train from Avalonia to Susa in one week's time. Maeve warned that the cases were being transported in a Tithe car for the Cathedral and would probably have half-a-dozen guards. Harmon wanted them pitched off of the train along the massive train bridge stretching across the southern straights between the continents where a boat waiting at the first bridge support would collect them and go. The job paid 5000 FB for all four cases, less firebirds for any less cases. Ian asked how close to the boat he had to get the cases and Maeve reiterated what Ian was being paid for all four cases getting into the boat.
Ian flew down to Carlion and called out to the Engineers APRF to talk to Kira. He told her about the job and that he'd pick her up the day before and drop her off the next morning. He took a train ride down to Susa to get a look at the train. It was a Duraplast and aluminum bullet train but rarely traveled faster than about 100 mph. It was comfortable and most everyone slept on the long trip. He found the town of Susa strange and off-putting. It was dirtier and rougher than he was expecting and as a visitor he only had access to a tiny row of restaurants and inns, not permitted into the city proper. He camped a few miles down the tracks and in the morning he woke early and began crossing the passenger span on the bridge. He studied where he hoped to attack the train and found the drop very severe. There was nowhere on the tracks to land the skimmer so he'd have to try to come in on the train or land on top of it. He caught the train again in Susa as he returned from Avalonia and rode it back. On the return trip he realized each car had an emergency break so if he or Kira were on board they could stop the train where they wanted. He arrived just in time to get 4 hours of sleep, fuel up the skimmer and fly out to the Engineers APRF to grab Kira.
Kira had found some time while Crafter Letch wasn't occupied and interrupted his drafting in his private quarters to talk to him. She explained that she had a family emergency and needed time away. Letch didn't like the sound of it but asked her how long ago her last break was. She said she had been working uninterruptedly since she arrived, a small lie. Letch seemed sympathetic and told her to take half a day and give his respects to her family. Kira was almost angry at how little he afforded her but she wasn't going to fight him for it.
When Ian landed to pick up Kira she was packed and ready for the fight. He tried to explain all of the details of the job to her while flying and rushing to get her on the train. He explained he just needed her to pull the emergency stop when they reached the bridge and to be near the rear of the train to back him up. Kira had some other stuff going on in her mind and didn't really listen as well as she could. He shoved her onto the train and ran to get in the skimmer car and go get into position ready to ambush the train and ditch it's cargo.
Kira sat on the train patiently at first. She made a note of the emergency pull for the brake and thought of how she'd inconspicuously pull it when the time came. She looked over the 5-talon rail map she had purchased at the little stand that sold candy and other snacks. She didn't see any good point of reference for where the bridge began so she'd just have to watch vigilantly. She noticed people getting up and moving around the train so she thought she'd go investigate what's going on in the other cars. At the rear of the passenger cars she spotted a conductor distractedly doing some book entry of some kind. She decided she'd like a closer took at the tithe care at the rear of the train so she rushed to him and whispered fearfully "I think I saw a man in the car before this one with a gun, I don't know what he's doing is there a constable on the train?" the conductor leaned around his little alcove to a woman curled up sleeping across two seats and mentioned there was a suspicious character in car six. The woman got up and spoke quietly with the conductor. Meanwhile Kira crept out the back of the train car undetected.
Deep in the Southern pines about 12 miles from the bridge head Ian was sitting on the hood of the skimmer car down a logging road from the train tracks, keeping a close eye out for a train that should be passing soon. He was keeping warm with a thermos of tea that had long gone cold. Suddenly overhead he heard the drum of contragav engines as two massive hoppers slowly drifted by. He didn't know the territory down in this part of Rampart well but he didn't think there were any cities in the direction they were travelling or where they were going. They vanished over the tops of the trees across the road. He didn't think they spotted him. With all the noise he hadn't realized the train was coming until it was zipping past the road. He jumped into the skimmer and started to pursue it.
In the the blustery space between passenger and cargo cars, Kira pulled out a tube of molecular adhesive and squished a few applications into the door jamb leading back into the passenger car to keep passengers out of her business. She proceeded into the freight car, cutting cargo nets open and letting goods fall to the floor to hinder those that might pursue her back through the car. She found the door to the rear of the car locked so she put three rounds through it and used a metal box she found to beat it until the door latch fell off and she opened the door into the space between the last two cars. She slipped up to the door to the tithe car and peered into it's barred window. A quick glance showed a group of men in the center of the car sitting among crates and boxes. She dared a second longer look into the car, seeing soldiers playing cards on a makeshift table next to the big coffin-containers and a man in Church livery and heavy armor lazing on a stack of rice sacks, probably a knight. Sadly this time one of the soldiers made eye contact and started to get up.
Kira, not sure what she was doing at this point and lacking a plan just started banging on the door and trying to demonstrate that she couldn't explain what was going on with the door closed. The soldier, alarmed but not terribly freaked out watched her pantomime for a bit before checking with the others and opening the door "Hey, I don't know how you got back here but this is a private car and you have to go back.." Kira somehow managed an appealingly warm smile and pleaded "Oh come on. I heard you guys have a game going back here and I'm dying of boredom, please can I play just one hand?". Everyone in the Tithe car seemed to understand this was a bad idea but they were won over by the excitingly strange woman and after the knight offered no objection they helped her into the tithe car and found her a seat around the table. One hand was over very quickly without a chance to gather any more information and surely someone would eventually realize the door was glued shut. One of the soldiers was getting up and escorting Kira back out of the car despite her tame protests and questions about what they were doing back here.
Finally at the door of the train car Kira sighed, drew her rapier and ran the guard through the gut. Everyone was caught flat-footed and the lazy knight actually fell off his pile of rice sacks in shock. Men scrambled for rifles or cover. Kira pulled her Rip-roarer and put two rounds into one of the solders, hitting him solidly in the thigh and taking him down. There were two rifles shots returned, then the sounds of reloading. Kira couldn't believe it, she charged the men firing into one of them and wounding him. As she neared the bags of rice the night burst forward and trapped her gun against the stack with his pistol and quickdrew his vibrosaber which Kira tied up with her rapier. The night looked at her through the visor of his duraplast helm "Hey, calm down.. what do you want?". Kira huffed and puffed at him, shifting her grasp on her weapons looking for a way to strike without being attacked "I just wanted to see those containers but you wouldn't let me.." The knight swallowed and nodded "How about this.. you can look at the containers, then you're going to put your weapons down and we'll be more relaxed ok?" The Soldiers looked rattled but didn't want to shoot the crazy woman while she was tangled with their knight. Kira shifted anxiously and slowly lowered her weapons, edging around the knight to look at the big coffins. They were refrigerator units, with a window that showed tiny bags of fluid on racks, well that didn't make her less curious. She examined the case and started looking for a way to open it before the knight spoke up "Ok, you've had your look, now you keep up your end and put your weapons down..". Suddenly Kira saw the bridgehead shoot by the rear window of the train and she noticed an emergency stop pull on the wall behind the knight. She was going to have to get by him quickly.
Soaring above the train Ian was lining up his landing when he spotted those Fright Hoppers coming in from behind. They were definitely going to pull some bullshit. He patiently watched the train approach the bridge, roll past the bridge head and nothing, fucking Kira he was going to have to land on a moving.. oh wait.. there's the breaks, sparking kicking up from the wheels as the engineer tried to right the breaking. He kicked on the landing software and tried to lock on the top of the tithe car. All he had to do was dump that cargo before these dicks in the hoppers get in his way.
Below in the Tithe car everything lurched forward, people grabbing onto what they could for support as the train braked sharply, screeching down the tracks. Kira saw her opening and just shoved past the knight out the back of the train, shoving the door closed between them. She could see Ian settling down above, that was a mission accomplished in her book. Although, if she didn't pull the brake who did? She leaned around the side of the decelerating train she climbed up the ladder to the roof.
Ian was shutting the engines down and trying to get Kira on his whisper pin when all of a sudden he saw someone clawing their way up on the front of the tithe car, it was an angry-looking church knight armed with vibrosaber and pistol. He quickly popped open the canopy on the skimmer and pulled up his rifle. The knight charged him to get cover on the front of the skimmer as Ian began blowing big-bore rounds through the roof of the train car, parts of the knight and the hood of the skimmer car. He stood there freaked out aiming at the hood of the car waiting for her to pop up as Kira walked up "What are you shooting at?". Ian swallowed "Crazy church knight.. I think I got her but I don't know if she's dead.. check it out?". Kira snerked at Ian "Why me? You've got a rifle?". Ian, maybe a little afraid of how quickly she closed ground adjusted the rifle against his shoulder and held aim "Just go look and see if she's dead.." Kira leaned around the edge of the skimmer car and round a river of blood running down the side of the train car from a crumpled armored form. She prodded it with her rapier, then stuck it with no reaction "Yeah.. dead.." She spotted the hilt of a vibro saber still rattling in the grill of the air car and turned it off before drawing it out of the mechanics of the skimmer "She may have gotten you though..". And just then the two big black hoppers glided to a stop over the tithe car and masked faces peered down over the side at Ian and Kira. Ian couldn't see any livery on the vessels before but at this range he could see that their emblem facing had deliberately be covered with tarps. Yeah, they were here to fuck some shit up.
Ian told Kira to cut a hole in the roof of the Tithe car with the vibro sword while he kept an eye on the hoppers above. He could see armored crewmen with submachineguns edging out along the hopper frame and dropping cargo cables down along the train car. Their movements looked somehow wrong. They had digitigrade legs, they were changed like the Hounds. While Kira was cutting away one of the hopper crew slid abruptly down a load cable and landed on the train car behind the skimmer, hands held out in a don't shoot me gesture but Kira drew her pistol once more and Ian raised his gun just in case it spoke muffledly from behind a mask "Hey.. put it down.. there's a lot of guns up there and they're going to shoot you a lot if you threaten us.. He says we don't have to fight..". Ian lowered the Hazat Battle Rifle "What do you mean 'He'?". The tall skinny changed gestured at the roof of the train with his empty hands "Down-down.. I don't want to get shot when they tear you apart..". Ian looked up, the faces peering back all hand gun barrels not pointed directly at him, more like 'hey, look, it's a ton of guns up here..' he tossed his rifle into the back of the skimmer and immediately the changed descended in droves from both hoppers, climbing down the sides of the car and bracing the doors shut below. The one who had been doing the talking cocked his head to the side while pressing his helmet to his ear, then stood a little taller and pulled down his mask to show off his feline features proudly "Dr, Corruthers says you can come with us, are you staying or going?". Ian was perplexed by the choices and he looked to Kira who seemed to have no better understanding until the cables went taught and the Tithe car shifted under their feet and the skimmer skidded atop it "Oh shit!". The speaker for the changed gestured up at the hoppers and cargo netting was thrown down, he barked in a foreign language and more of the 'sky pirates' climbed up the car and began webbing the skimmer to their stolen train car as the hopper's contravrav engines grinded to life and begin to carry the it away over the water into the sunset.
The trip was short but at harrowing speed the rush of water below gave way to tree-tops just a few meters away. Ian and Kira gripped the cargo netting holding their leased skimmer and the changed all seemed to just grapple onto something and fearlessly fly along, many with hooks seemingly designed for their sky-pirate lifestyle. Down below there was a lot of commotion and shouting in the car, nobody could hear it over the engines but the shit was definitely hitting the fan. In just under an hour the hoppers descended and set down in a clearing on either side of the train car. Ian and Kira climbed down with the friendly assistance of their new pirate buddies and the other team moved into position ready to breach the train. Ian could see someone was giving orders on the other end of the train but with pirates stacked up there wasn't a way to get over there without getting in the firing line so he just scurried under the train car like a rat. As he emerged a tall masked man wearing tech gear and synth clothes rushed forward to offer him a hand up.
Changed raiders threw choke-gas grenades into the car and there was a limited amount of gunfire before people came stumbling out of the enclosed space with their hands up, pulled to the ground and restrained. The leader of the raiders pushed aside a light machinegun strapped over his shoulder and pulled down his mask. He looked Ian over with a smile as he led him away from the train car "Watch your head son.. I figured we'd probably run into one another sooner or later.. I'm Dr. Corruthers.". Ian stared searchingly up at the face of a man he had no way of recognizing but recognized like a reflection of himself "You're my father." his tone matter of fact. Dr Corruthers smirked Ian's smirk and nodded "I am what passes for that.. I'm sorry I wasn't around for you son. Our people do a lot of things well but family isn't one of them.. I'm glad you've made your way in the worlds well.". "Ian looked at the guards being detained and his fathers little army of changed cat-people "This was a job for me Dad.. a lot of Firebirds, what's your gain?". His father looked at Ian a bit judgmentally for a moment "It's altruism... this car is carrying a cure for a plague. I'm making sure it gets to those the church would deny it to." Ian raised dubious a brow at the folk-hero nonsense coming out of Dr. Corruther's mouth "You're saying the Church let loose a plague to kill the changed?". Dr. Corruthers chuckled at how absurd his claim sounded "Maybe not let loose... But certainly the Church isn't breaking a sweat to save these people..". That was a lot easier for Ian to accept. They bickered over the loot a brief bit before it was decided that the Dr. was taking the serum, save five doses he'd gladly give his son and his friends and Ian and Kira would take what they want from the train car.
Kira was eyeing the knight she had faced off against. It was problematic leaving a witness that had seen her face and she didn't much like that she had fought him and both of them were living, it left a sort of lack of closure. When she had heard Ian and the Dr. come to terms with the loot she drew her rapier and gesture at the prisoners "So I can kill them?". The Church knight spoke up quickly "Whoah.. wait.. we're not a threat to you. You've beat us fairly, you have our weapons, show us some mercy, let us go free. We won't complicate things for you." Kira smirked "You're not going to tell the Church who robbed them? I'm doubtful..". The knight frowned and looked at his men bleeding and beaten "You're a gambling woman right? Three coin flips, if I win you let me and my men walk into the forest. If I lose you can do whatever you like to me but you let my men go free? Ok?". Kira was distractedly thinking about the most economical way to terminate the prisoners and the end of the knight's question broke her out of it. She pulled out a Firebird and showed him heads and tails. "Tails" the knight called and Kira flipped Tails, Heads, Tails. The knight sighed and breathed a a breath of relief. He stood on shaky legs and held out a hand to Kira "You're an honorable woman.. thank you for this decency.." and he helped his men onto their feet, leading them away. Ian looked at Kira in astonishment but Kira was just confused "Wait, I was supposed to kill them all if they lost and?". Ian just shook his head and shouldered his Hazat Battle Rifle, taking aim at the knight's back. Dr. Corruthers objected in soft tones "Son, they're not a threat to you..". Ian fired, dropping the unarmored knight, then picking off the two soldiers that had survived as they scrambled to escape with crippling injuries. He turned and looked angrily at Dr. Corruthers "You've given up on your guild, they aren't a threat to -you- for Kira and I those men could destroy us and everything we're fighting for. Dr. Corruthers just nodded bitterly, not seeing a good end to that fight.
The Raiders loaded the serum onto their hoppers, disconnected the cables from the train car, and prepared to take flight. Ian approached his father before he climbed aboard "If I need to reach you how do I get in contact..". Dr. Corruthers smiled as he pulled himself aboard, shouting over the engines "There's an inn in Sazu called the Stumbling Pig, if you leave a note there I'll get it.." and he took off into the air, fading away across the treetops.
Ian and Kira looted what was left in the train car, a strongbox with 2400 FB, some finery and a collection of easily fleeced goods they found in luggage that was stored over from the freight car and a crate of hand-crafted clocks that Kira believed was worth a good deal. Ian flew Kira back to the Advanced Power Research Facility to continue her watch and he flew back to Tikal to spend his loot resurrecting the Starship he'd already sacrificed so much for.
And so things progressed...
[This is the end of the First Book of the game.]
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