The Deadman

Robert wrapped his bicep around a guy’s neck. Gu, who was standing in front of him, kissed the barrel of his revolver on the guy’s forehead while scowling, his digital mask changing to that of a devil.

“That’s all of them?”

“It is! Now can you fucking let me go? I can’t fucking breathe with this asshole choking me.”

“Let him get some air.”

Robert took his arms off while keeping his gauntlet pointed. One wrong move and this guy gets lasered by a spare battery that Robert prepared. Gu had asked him to accompany him on this, and even though Uncle Pei had Mil-Vets that does searches, acquisition, and purchase. Gu, who was basically Uncle’s warehouse manager still does some wetwork and intimidation once in a while when someone tries to fuck with them. It was Robert’s first time coming in a job like this, and in a way he was still delivering.

Just that he was delivering messages and violence. Robert normally would have just refused outright, but Gu had asked for a favor. After the shitshow with the Soltemps, Vultures, Gangs, and Huchens. Things have become messy.

“Like I fucking said, you chinky. I don’t know shit about who fucked with your boys. It was chaos. Guns spewing hot lead and some psycho running around with mantis blades and slicing and dicing fuckers where he go. Have you seen the footage?”

“George, you sure?”

“‘Course, I’m sure. Damn, this white cunt has no Netics? Fucking hell, what have you been eating? You one of those super soldier fuckers I hear about?”

“Not really? I’m semi-natural, I guess?”

“Fuck me, I think you moved my esophagus implant.”

“You changed gills?”

“I travel to Shanghai now and then. Try living in that shithole with throat filters and adaptable lungs. You’d wished that you’d get your damn lungs out.”

“Can you check, Rob?”

“Sure.”

Robert inspected the metal plates on his throat. Using his finger, he pulled back the dented side of the plate and made George exhale loudly.

“Fuck me!” George spat out blood. “Shit, that fucking hurts, I think I need a doc after this. Bloody hell you chinky, can you leat pay for the fucking throat.”

“Should have told me the truth.”

“I would have! But you fucking operate like a piece of shit, Gu. Punch first, you poisonous fucker.”

“It’s a good name my parents gave me. I like it.”

“Sure, whatever you fucking chinky. Anyway, I said that I don’t know shit. No one knows shit other than Soltemp idiot provoke some fucking psycho who went vigilante on their ass.”

“Vigilante?”

“Yeah. What did you expect? Fucker who zeroes them takes their cred sticks, electronics, and deets, but most of the time there’s no intention that maiming them. The important shit doesn’t get stolen and when Vultures got their greedy beaks on the desecrated and butchered place. They started scavenging, got accused of killing Soltemps and shit went down hard.”

“Any clue on the psycho?”

“Nope. No footage. No footprints. No traces other than the dead left behind. Honestly, shit is strange. Don’t know why, but recently there have been other movements.”

“Other movements?” Gu asked, taking out an auto-syringe from his pocket. George took the syringe and inserted it on the spot around his collarbone.

“PMC’s and I believe it's Brave Industries.”

“BRAVE?”

“What are they after?”

“Don’t know. You heard about Old Theo’s landfill?”

“I have an idea.”

“They said that they lost something there. Probably a relic ages ago. Don’t know why they are looking for it, but there are problems with acquiring it.”

“Brave… aren’t those fuckers Larping as Knights?”

“They do. Fully plated, barrel helmed assholes?”

“What’s that?”

Robert asked. Gu sent a pic on his device and opened it. It was the image of a fully plated, powered armor knight customized. Fully clad in armor, wearing webbings containing ammunition. It was an image of a modern knight complete with the sword on the waist. Segmented Vibro Sword that could cut through steel.

Robert whistled, “One hell of a look. Exosuits, cooling, and a 6A protection. Damn, what are these monsters doing here?”

“They were done with their work in Africa, so they sent a detachment here to protect their interest.”

Brave Industries was a PMC company that was well-known around the city. If there were apex predators in the city, then it belongs to the Knights who were walking around with their armor. It was hard to piss these people off since they wore slim power armors and were augmented to endure a lot of punishment. Squires, who weren’t as armed as their Knights weren’t as monsters as their Knight counterparts, but still remained deadly because of the strict training that they have.

“The  Apex Predators of Lux City. Jesus, what made them come here?”

George rubbed his neck, “Because someone’s been killing hard. There were a lot of accidents in Corpsec, so the Consortium invited them to the city. Don’t know how it will affect this, but I heard that their owner’s been searching for something.”

“Hard to believe that shit coming out of your mouth.”

“Fuck off Chinky, I don’t talk nonsense and if you spend around Informants, you’d hear that they’re looking for shit. They’d been poking everyone’s asshole trying to look for it. Other than, these fucks are scared of something.”

“Scared?”

Gu took his cig out and lit it. George snorted at the smell of nicotine and then took one for himself. Gu offered one to Robert, but he passed.

“Yeah. They’ve been running around fully armored all the time. They’d been poking around the city, entering through areas, and then sometimes coming out with one Knight missing. You understand that? If they are missing Knights, then they must be fighting something that needed these fucks to be present.”

Gu listened, “You think it’s Muties?”

“Don’t know, but it could be experimental as well. No one fucks around underground, and even if there are Aboms in the city.”

Abominations and Anomalies. 

They were typical in this city because of certain companies performing research in Augmentation, and mixing Serums that would change the body and in a way they made mistakes, created mutants, and Abominations that have mutated creatures underground. It was like the creatures he had seen underground, and they were nasty creatures that seemed able to bite through the body of anyone with complete ease.

“That doesn’t explain shit about all the PMC’s and other Corpsec gathering around,” Gu said.

“How would I know what these retards are thinking about? Like I said, we’re low-level compared to these assholes going around, killing, and shooting. You fucks are lucky that Pei’s a Mil-Vet and no one fucks with the Dragoons.”

Dragoons are still active militias who volunteered to be part of the city’s defenses and were given the best augments the city could offer in the condition that if the city meets hostiles forces trying to take away the city’s autonomous status. Then the Militia will have to make a move, and start defending. The Dragoons are retirees, veterans who had paid their service, and had done a lot for the city. The Dragoons were mostly neutral and they run courier businesses, restos, and even clubs to make ends meet. The Dragoons were infamously labeled as ‘fence-sitting assholes’ because they don’t take sides. The only time they did was when there was enough justification that they needed to move. It’s the reason why they were asking George for information. If anyone else had come to George, they would have done much more worse. George seemed to understand how ‘light’ he was getting and even though he doesn’t show it. He knew that he just got away from a lot of trouble.

“What I do know is that everyone’s pissy about the psycho who started this mess. Coming around our fine city, killing, murdering, and thieving as if he’s some badass.”

“It gives others wrong idea, but at least he doesn’t fuck around with other gangs.”

“For now. But you know how it is. They think that it’s a good idea to imitate this piece of shit, use that piece of shit as a scapegoat, and then do what they want. Problem is, the fucker operates alone, does shit silently that so far NONE have managed to copycat his shit.”

“You sound impressed.”

“I am. But a vendetta in this city can be troubling since a lot of idiots start to assume. Hency why this mess with the Vultures started.”

“All of this seems unrelated,” Robert said blandly. “I get that the gangs have been making a mess because of the idiot with the Vendetta, but how does this shit connect to the PMC’s? As far as I know, the guy doesn’t work with the PMC’s and isn’t even playing with everyone.”

“Oh, I get that meatman, but the thing is it doesn’t matter what he does. This city has the second highest crime rate next to Coronado City. Ever since WW1, this city has remained as it is. A city that is perfect for smuggling shit in east and west. Best part is that no one gives a single shit about Lux, and it’s rare for folk to even think of Lux City. What he does, no one gives a shit! But the folks playing around in this shithole can use that to their own advantage. Hence why they’ve been using this to fuck over the cult.”

Robert crossed his arms, “Like I said. This doesn’t affect us in the slightest, you said it yourself. We are low-level compared to these guys. That’s why we only want to learn who killed our boys and that’s.”

George spits on the floor, “And I was nice enough to tell you all of this shit for free.”

“I do appreciate that George,” Gu said, then added. “But yeah, like Robert here said, we need to know who shot our boys. That’s all we ask.”

“Could have said that while you choked me and threatened to shoot my balls off.”

“Hey, it’s better this way. At least they would think that it’s reasonable for you to spill out.”

“Makes sense in your own twisted way,” George looked at me. “See? Reason why I don’t work too much with Chinky here. What an asshole, isn’t he?”

Robert shrugged. George, according to Gu, had to deal with folk back in Shanghai who were very good at their jobs. They were ruthless businessmen that fought for every penny they could get. Before coming here, Gu told Robert about how George was dealing with Shanghai’s Businessmen who made his experience hell because of the sale of steel and concrete. It was the experience that made George somewhat an asshole when dealing with people from there.

Gu’s used to him at least. No, even Gu sympathized with George when it came to dealing with folks there.

“Still, I really know nothing other than they got shot. Don’t expect me to have the answers, idiots.”

Gue sighed, “So, at least the fuckers who stole the package?”

George thought hard, “I think the footage is still around. Address should be here.”

“That’ll do,” Gu sent a message to someone. “Yeah, sorry about this shit George, you know how it is.”

“I understand. But seriously though, try not to fucking threaten me with a shot in the head. You know how hard it is to get an appointment on my Doc?”

George accepted Gu’s hand and then punched Gu on the face. Gu spat on the side and then smirked at George. “Don’t try punching him. He’d knock your lights out. Doubt you can sucker punch him.”

George turned around and tried to punch Robert on the jaw. Robert caught his fist with his gauntleted hand and then lowered George’s hand while raising his other.

“Fine, I get it.”

“Sorry about it, man.”

He rubbed his throat and then sat back on the crate. Robert stood on the doorway, while Gu stared at the air.

“You really think something’s happening underground?”

“I bet my bastard child for it.”

“I’ll talk to Uncle Pei about this. Again, sorry, George, it’s not personal.”

“No worries. Uncle Pei’s more generous than your ass.”

The gears turned somewhere.

Robert walked outside and felt them turning somewhere.

The city’s legs and arms were moving.

It's predators skulking the shadows.