Lords of the Backstage "... experts agree that the surprising news will send shock waves throughout the military complex. This alliance will undoubtly force Mitsubishi Industries to restructure their arms division sooner than expected, as the loss..." ----- The four figures cautiously made their way through the underground maze. Flickering yellow lights illuminated the damp passageways, ethereal neon ghosts flashing across rusty metallic walls. "At whose approach, ghosts, wandering here and there, troop home to churchyards..." she thought. "Nene, talk to me." "There's an abandoned power chamber twenty metres ahead. One more corridor afterwards... that's it. We're close, Sylia." "Security? Surveillance?" "EP shows nothing. At least the map seems to be correct." A small yelp suddenly came through the intercom. "Shit, sorry about that," a hoarse voice hissed. "Priss, you OK?" "Heh, the ribs will heal. Can't say the same about the pieces of scrap I left behind..." Sylia said nothing. She knew all had been her fault. She had to get them all out alive. That much she owed them. After that she'd eviscerate Fargo and force-feed him his own bowels. The double-crossing motherfucker would receive his commission, all right. They reached the entrance of the large chamber. Sylia took a deep breath. Very carefully, she slowly peeked inside. Empty. "Nene...?" "It's clean." Sylia end Priss entered the room, closely followed by Linna and Nene. The women advanced through the enormous metallic cave, an abandoned underground hangar which once housed a small nuclear reactor, now an empty cathedral of metal and rust. The exit loomed ahead, and almost unconsciously they began to increase their pace. ----- "... of the buy out, may take months yet. However, analysts agree that it is very likely that prototype design has begun, and some even claim that first-stage testing is already under way..." ----- "Nene, what's wrong?" asked Linna. The redhead had stopped. Four small figures now stood in the middle of the chamber. "It's impossible," came a whisper. "Nene?" "Oh God, Sylia, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." Nene was almost whimpering. "Nene! What is going on?!" Sylia hissed. "I relied on EM and thermal scans, Sylia... sonar readings... oh Sylia, it's all my fault..." Within her suit Sylia turned on the small echo sounder which sent a 900kHz pulse through the tiny transducer in her helmet. She gasped. A dozen BU-12K boomers surrounded them, immobile, weapons armed, full combat mode engaged. They stood silently, waiting. All four women stood frozen, their fingers tightening around the triggers within their suits, bated breaths scarcely making a sound. Time seemed to have stopped. Neither human nor mecha made a move. Small beads of sweat began to trickle down Sylia's forehead. Linna's eyes quickly darted from side to side, tightening her lips until they turned white. In spite of her efforts, Nene's chin began to tremble. And Priss... Priss grinned. "It has been a pleasure, ladies." She slowly lifted her arm... and fired. ----- "'... both companies are known for their technical excellence and leadership qualities. There is no doubt in my mind that all parts will benefit from the deal,' stated ex-chairman Shirow, who has recently decided to retire. Whether his resignation was voluntary or not is still subject of much speculation. Given his track record, it is highly unlikely that ..." ----- A bullet pierced Sylia's chest plate, and her right breast violently exploded. Three slugs suddenly smashed into her left side, while another lodged itself inside her back, shattering her right shoulderblade. Sylia screamed, a painful howl of fury as fountain-like gushes of blood poured from her wounds, her once shiny white suit now almost crimson red. She continued to fire wildly, spinning in the air. Two more bullets hit her. One broke two of her vertebrae and ripped into her left lung, while the other almost severed her head as it tore through her neck. Her agonizing scream came to an abrupt end as blood poured out of her mouth and nostrils, flooding what was left of her windpipe. In a last desperate maneuver she threw herself against the boomer closest to her, her blade fully extended. Priss was also screaming, but her cries were drowned by the almost continuous gunfire erupting from her arm-mounted machine gun, and the railgun in her left hand. Like a cornered animal she furiously lashed out, until she suddenly felt a powerful tug on her right shoulder and the barrage of bullets ceased. Priss looked at her arm. It wasn't there. A shock wave of pain suddenly exploded in Priss' mind as a geyser of blood erupted from the wound where her severed limb used to be. A bullet crashed through her visor and ricocheted into her cheek, smashing bone and teeth, destroying half her face. Semi-blinded, she pointed the railgun at the boomer in front of her, and somehow managed to fire two precise shots into its neck. The mecha staggered backwards, black oil spurting from the injured junction. With her electro-acoustic systems down Priss was no longer able to see the boomers. And yet, in spite of the intolerable pain and utter agony, she could sense something quickly approaching from her left side. She started to turn, howling in rage and despair, remaining teeth covered with blood, her legs buckling, vision blurring, fading to red, swinging her only arm, knuckle bomber fully armed. Nene was so concentrated in staying alive she didn't even realize how terrified she actually was. Her ECMs were not working properly due to the spectral attenuation filters which covered the walls of the chamber. Her sensors indicated a boomer charging towards her, directly in front from where she stood. She closed her eyes and pointed her arms at it, simultaneously pressing three of the triggers within her armour. She peeked only to see the mecha fall heavily on the floor, enveloped in flames. Nene's eyes widened in terror when she saw Priss a few metres ahead, mutilated, desperately fighting for her life. She froze, not realizing the boomer she had just downed was still moving. The mecha painfully tried to lift its right arm, pointing it towards the redhead. From the corner of her eye Nene sensed the robot's motion. It was too late. The barrage of bullets sprayed her legs. Chunks of metal and flesh flew apart as her shins began to disintegrate. Both her kneecaps exploded, and Nene fell back, blinded by pain, terrorized, screaming. The boomer's assault paused momentarily as the mechanisms within its arm automatically replaced the empty magazine. Almost instinctively, Nene aimed her arm-mounted laser towards the mecha's head, just as the robot targeted its machine gun towards her face. Unlike her comrades, Linna never uttered a sound. Her face was a mask of intense concentration as she maneuvered her way through the pandemonium, firing precisely towards the mechanical beasts, lashing her monostreamers in all directions, whipping through the air, like a dance. She performed a somersault, decapitating a boomer in the process, and landing in the middle of two other. She extended her arms, each one pointing towards a head. She pressed the triggers in her suit's hands. One fired. The other didn't. She suddenly felt her side rip apart, the bullets tearing her flesh, rupturing her insides. In one swift move she jerked her head. The incandescent filament cut into the boomer's forehead. Its brains sizzled and melted. The mecha staggered backwards. Linna furiously pressed on, as her foot smashed against the boomer's chest. She felt something inside her stomach burst. She continued her attack, mauling the mecha with a barrage of punches. Blood began to pour out of her mouth. Sparks flew with every blow she connected. She closed her eyes and screamed. Suddenly, she stopped. Silence. Everything was still, nothing moved. Linna fell to her knees. She looked around her, hurt, dazed. Inert, smoking bodies surrounded her, draining oil and hydraulic fluid. Others bled. Linna was very pale. Her lips trembled, her body was shivering. She heard a weak sob behind her. She turned around. Nene. Lying on the ground. Whimpering. Crying. Linna crawled towards her, leaving a trail of smeared blood behind her. She desperately tried to fight the pain which consumed her, flooding her eyes with tears. "Nene" She crept next to her friend. "Nene" She looked into the girl's terrified eyes. "Linna, oh, Linna I can't move, it... hurts so much, Linna, make it stop please," the little redhead cried, squirming on the ground, sobbing. "Shhhhh," Linna whispered, kneeling besides her, "I'm here, Nene, I'm here." "It hurts, Linna, I'm so scared, I don't want to die, please, please don't let me die, Linna, please don't let me die." Linna looked down Nene's body, her destroyed legs bleeding profusely. It was incredible that she was conscious at all, but she was quickly loosing blood, her breath becoming laboured, almost a wheeze. She put the girl's head on her lap. Linna winced in pain, but didn't make a sound. She could feel her own blood snaking down her hip and thighs. She had trouble focusing her vision, waves of nausea making her dizzy. She looked into Nene's eyes and weakly smiled. "I'm here, Nene." Linna clung to life, fighting death. She would not leave Nene alone. The redhead was now very pale. She kept crying, her delicate lips trembling, her large eyes filled with fear. "I don't want to die, Linna," she whispered. Linna held her close for what seemed a long time, tightly closing her eyes. She felt her arms go numb, the taste of blood and bile creeping from the back of her throat. Linna suddenly felt very cold. Consciousness began to slip away. Linna looked at Nene for the last time. She had gone into shock. A few minutes later, she stopped breathing. Linna wept. She cried until darkness overtook her, and she finally ceased to exist. ----- "...name?' to which chairman Quincy simply responded 'the Genom-Kyo-Re research division'. For channel 99, this has been Lisa Vanette. Good night." _________________________________ marco@chinook.physics.utoronto.ca Gunnm: Broken Angel http://128.100.80.13/marco/alita.html