Run 9 : Tunnel Vision (based on the mission written by Rene Hess)

Things had changed quite a bit in the last week for John and his roommate. She had actually started talking to him. A little, at least. At least he had her name now, though all she would say was that her name was Mina.

She still did not eat anything, and this did bother John quite a bit. In opening up a little bit she told him she used magic. John had no idea exactly how this worked, and it confused him even further when she apologized for using that spell on him while he slept for almost two days straight. This was when he had come home after raiding a DocWagon hospital. John wondered if this was why he had some very strange dreams then.

Mina did spend more time out of her room, but spent almost all of the time just watching John while he either practiced with his sword or fiddled with his Doberman drones or Katana-11 motorcycle.

It was only yesterday where Mina proved to John that she was a magician. One of the other groups that rented out some of the storage units thought it would be a good time to accost the both of them were coming back from a Stuffer Shack for some food. John had gotten knocked for a good loop when one had clubbed him in the head, and when she recovered Mina had unleashed a gout of bright red flame from both of her hands. It was not too serious for the other guys, only one guy had even got burned, but with no magician in their group they had taken the smart route and fled. Once they were inside Mina had touched up John's injury with a healing spell that left him good as new.

She had also had dropped a bombshell on John that evening, telling John she wanted to do the same work he did. Not quite sure what to say, John told her he would ask the next chance he god.

That chance came much sooner than he expected.

It was hours before dawn the next day when John's commlink started ringing. Without thinking he answered the call, stringing it to his mind. "Hullo?" he said sleepily.

"Mornin' kiddo." Tabby said.

"Mornin?" John asked.

"Too early for ya?"

John tried to look out a window. The sky above was still overcast with the storm clouds that had vented their rage earlier that night.

"Yeah." he muttered.

"Time to pack your bags, got a job for ya." Tabby told him. "Basic'ly it's search and rescue. Be at the corner of Broadway and Evans Avenue in two hours. And bring your gear."

"Mind if I bring a friend along?" John asked.

"I think he'd mind." Tabby said, "This ain't a game, ya know."

"She's a magician." John told her, "Been livin' with me a few weeks now."

"You sly dog you." purred Tabby.

"Hey! It ain't like that!" exclaimed John.

"She got useful skills?" Tabby asked.

"I guess." John said, "I mean, ya can't just sling spells without learnin' somethin', right? She's also a healer."

"Guess it should be okay. Anything else I ought to know?" Tabby asked.

"She's… um… 'bout my age." John said sheepishly.

There was a noticeable sigh from Tabby's end. "Alright, I'll let him know." she said, "But this is strictly a probationary thing. She fucks up it's your ass, not mine, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." John told her.

Mina seemed quite excited that she could do some work with John, though she really did not say it.

Once they were geared up, and some advice given to Mina, John opted to take a coyote path into the CAS sector. The address Tabby had given John was close to the western border of the old Aztlan sector, though you would not know it now with the reconstruction that had happened in the last eight years. This was especially true with the hurried construction for the 2072 Winter Olympics coming up next year.

They had time to spare when they got to the corner of Broadway and Evans. It was so early in the morning still that a light fog had covered the city, slowly beginning to burn off as the sun began to crest above the horizon in the east.

Hunter was already there, waiting, when John and Mina pulled up. He parked his motorcycle next to hers.

"Glad you could make it." Hunter said. "I think it's a bad idea to bring your girlfriend, though."

"She's not my girlfriend." John bit back. "She's gonna be workin' with us."

"Oh great." groaned Hunter. "Can ya do anything helpful?" she asked.

"Um… I, um…" she said sheepishly.

Hunter groaned. "She's greener than you were." she said.

"I can do magic." Mina managed to say.

"Spells and spirits?" Hunter asked.

Mina nodded. She looked rather intimidated by Hunter. But then what preteen girl would not at least feel a little intimidated by a curvy and rather well busted woman who was just as smart as she was pretty.

"Got a name?" Hunter asked.

"We, uh, hadn't gotten to that." John said for her.

"Hopefully we can pick something up for you that's not too embarrassing." Hunter said.

At about that time Valkyrie pulled up in her truck. Billy got out once she parked.

"Why'd you have to bring this bozo?" John asked.

Billy sneered back. Smart choice.

John caught Mina's eyes as she saw Valkyrie step out of the truck. Mina's eyes went wide as she looked up at the two meter twenty blonde woman.

"A troll?" she asked, sounding like she had never seen one before.

"Fomori." Valkyrie corrected. She gave Mina a once over and said, "Another magician, eh? Extra magic might be handy."

"She's really a magician?" Hunter asked.

"Unless she's got flamethrowers in her hands." John said.

"About as powerful as me." Valkyrie said, "Doesn't mean she's as skilled."

Mina frowned.

"And about Billy, he flagged me down on the way here." Valkyrie continued, "Said he had a job here. Thought I'd cut him a break. Again."

John snickered.

A black SUV pulled up close to them, parking a friendly distance away from their vehicles. Two large orks dressed in suits and holding submachine guns, one male and one female, stepped out first. They looked around like they were cops clearing a room, stepping to take defensive positions in the parking lot.

Then a back door opened, and a human male, slim and dressed in gray coveralls and a pink construction helmet stepped out. He walked up to John and the others, and he could see dark rings under the man's eyes. Maybe it was extreme paranoia?

"I was told to expect a few kids." the man said, "You sure about this?" he asked, looking at Billy.

"We don't need 'em." Billy proudly said.

"Bullshit." Hunter said. "Don't listen to him."

The man looked to Valkyrie.

"Cypher's good. He won't let you down." Valkyrie said.

"And I'm vouchin' for her." John added, pointing to Mina.

"I hope I won't regret sending kids in." the man sighed. "You can call me Mr. Johnson. What I'm lookin' for is for shadowrunners to do a search and rescue expedition. It's all underground. Are you all in or out?"

"Yeah, I'm in." Hunter said without hesitation.

"Me too." added Valkyrie.

"No question. I'm in." John added. He had to prod Mina to get her to speak up.

"Uh, yeah, me too." she said with quick strength.

"Search and rescue?" Billy asked.

"He thinks he can negotiate." John whispered to Mina. She did not look sure how she was supposed to take this.

"Are you in or out?" Mr. Johnson asked sternly.

"Alright." Billy relented.

"Just a bit of background, so you know." Mr. Johnson said, looking a little more relaxed. "Yesterday, during an excavation for the foundation of a new building a forgotten drainage pipe was found. Wuxing, who owns the property, wanted to know what's down there, so they sent an exploration team down there. They reported some 'disturbing' findings, then we lost contact."

"I get you." Hunter said.

John looked to Mina, who was looking at him. He only shrugged. He had no idea what Hunter might be thinking or knowing right now.

"I'll pay you, of course." Mr. Johnson said, "And I can help with equipment if you need. Pay will be seven thousand each when you get back."

"Shit." groaned Billy. "Only seven thousand?"

"You're really a greedy asshole, aren't you?" Valkyrie asked.

"You already accepted. I think it's a little late to negotiate the price." added Hunter.

John thought seven thousand each was okay for him and Mina. After all, it was more than the pay of his first job, and he was living alone at that time.

"Aren't I gonna need more?" Mina whispered to John.

"What'da'ya mean?" John asked back softly.

"I need a lodge… thingy… if I wanna make my magic stronger." Mina told him, still speaking softly. "It'll cost at least three thousand for everything."

"And a good fake ID'll cost over four at least." John added. Speaking up, he asked, "Hey, um, how many magicians did you send with the first team?"

"One. Why?" Mr. Johnson said.

"We got two." John said, "Think that might be worth for having a backup when the first team had one."

"He's right. We're both strong magicians." Valkyrie added, indicating to herself and Mina.

"You sure she's got the guts?" Mr. Johnson asked.

"Torched some gangers good the other day." John said, exaggerating a little.

"Hmm, alright. Ten thousand each." Mr. Johnson said.

Mina smiled.

"Cool." John said. He hoped Billy would not get too energetic about getting an extra three thousand nuyen, but he really wanted Mina to get a good starting reserve of cash. John did have the advantage of not having to buy some of his gear, which included the holdout pistols that were hiding up his sleeves.

"How else was the first team equipped?" Hunter asked.

"Small arms, mostly." Mr. Johnson said, "Two were weapons specialists and had assault rifles."

"Cypher, get the details on the team. I'll be right back." Hunter said.

Mr. Johnson sent a batch file to John, which included names, ages, pictures, and more details about the Wuxing team than John thought they would need. Most were human, but there was an ork and an elf among the mix, and all of them were Chinese. At least John figured they were based on their names.

When Hunter returned she had an assault rifle of her own in her hands.

"Where the hell'd you get that?" asked Billy.

"This Steyr AUG-CSL? I keep it in my cycle." Hunter said.

John did a quick search on what Hunter said, and found a match almost right away. The Steyr AUG-CSL was one of those guns that could be assembled in a variety of different ways in a few minutes to function from a submachine gun to a full on machinegun. By the images John found, Hunter had hers built as an assault rifle.

Mr. Johnson had night vision goggles with thermographic sensors for everyone, but only Mina and Valkyrie took a pair. Billy and Hunter both had cybernetic eyes with these options, and John's goggles included them too though he actually never used them.

Once they were geared up with extra climbing equipment, provided by Mr. Johnson, they made their way to the drainage pipe.

The tunnel itself was roughly five meters wide, and smelled rather musty as they headed deeper in. It was damp in the tunnel, with an occasional patch of moss and fungi, and even a puddle on the well-worn floor. The others made no efforts to avoid the puddles, but both John and Mina did what they could to sidestep or hop over them whenever possible.

The daylight behind them was almost lost when they came to a T junction with a choice to go left or right. Embedded in the wall was a tag that projected a simple ARO with "19:27" in white characters in a green field.

"What's that?" asked Billy.

"An ARO." John said flatly.

"It ain't an arrow." Billy returned.

Hunter sighed. "Looks like a timestamp for when an RFID was planted here when the first team went by." she said.

"Right then. Off we go." Billy said, taking the left passage.

No one else seemed to be in a hurry yet to go either way. John checked out both directions, and thought he could feel something down the passage to the right. It tugged at him, a signal that just was not quite there.

"I think we should go this way." John said, pointing the other way.

"Yeah, I'm getting it too." Hunter added. "Get your ass in gear, Billy. We're going this way." she called.

"What all could be down here?" John asked.

"Hopefully nothing." Valkyrie said.

"True." added Hunter.

"Hey, wait up!" panted Billy as he ran up to and past them. He took the lead as they walked down the tunnel and towards the next tag.

John, Mina, and Valkyrie all carried flashlights, supplied to them by Mr. Johnson with their climbing gear and such. Hunter had a nifty trick, with lights installed in her cybereyes to light wherever she looked.

But for John that was not all. Unlike his goggles or those worn by Valkyrie and Mina, John's eyes also let him see heat. This did not show up too well in normal light, but in the poor light of the tunnel he was able to see the pipes more clearly as they jutted and receded through the wall.

That next tag they found was similar to the first, except for the numbers "19:45" instead. This one was embedded in the left hand wall right at the corner of a four way intersection.

"I hope there's nothing." Mina said softly.

"Bah, I can handle it. What's the worst we could find?" Billy asked.

On the far side of the intersection was a drain. Apparently there was something in there that decided to answer Billy's question as it came bursting out of the water.

With Hunter in the way, John could not quite see what it was. From Billy's initial screaming, and some animal roaring, he figured it was something scary bad.

With a smoothness that only comes with experience and practice Hunter sidestepped Billy and opened fire with her Steyr. Rat-a-tat-tat was all John heard.

"What the fuck was that?" cried Billy.

"Alligator." Hunter said much more calmly.

John got as good a look as he could. It certainly looked like an alligator. With half a dozen holes in its body it certainly was now a dead alligator.

With a snap Billy extended the spurs in his left arm, and with a grunt he stabbed the dead alligator through the head three times before he stood.

"Satisfied?" Valkyrie asked.

It was hard to tell if Billy was glaring at her or not.

"This way." John said, feeling another tag down the tunnel to his left.

Continuing on they came to another T junction with a left or right choice. Billy was silent as both Hunter and John guided everyone down the left passage. After a sharp bend they came up to another T junction with choices of left or straight ahead.

"So, which way?" asked Billy.

John looked down both tunnels. "I can't get a good bead on which way." he said.

"Me neither." added Hunter.

"Well then…" Billy said, taking the lead down the left hand passage.

A good ways later John figured that it had been the wrong choice, especially when the tunnel turned away from the direction he had felt the next tag. What they found was a dead end.

The walls of the chamber they found were decorated with pictographs written in a red-brown ink. On the dry ground were small piles of ashes, dry herbs, small bones, and the stubby remains of red and black candles. The air had a dry, flowery smell.

"Looks like a ritual chamber." commented Valkyrie as she looked around.

"No magic." Mina said softly.

"What was that?" Hunter asked.

"There's… no magic here." Mina said a little more strongly.

"Not now, if there was." Valkyrie added.

Hunter knelt down to pick something up, and John noticed it was a shell casing.

"Assault rifle." Hunter said. She then sniffed the open end, adding "Fired within the last forty hours or so."

"Maybe sooner?" Valkyrie asked.

"Oh yeah." Hunter answered.

"C'mon then!" Billy said anxiously, already leaving the chamber.

They continued on, though had to drag Billy back from trying to go back the way they had came. As they walked along a gentle left hand bend in the tunnel they all could hear the sound of rushing water. Then they reached another tag with a timestamp of "21:03" and a rushing waterfall going down a wide hole.

The waterfall itself was made by half a dozen, thirty centimeter wide pipes spewing water at very high pressures. The hole itself was more than large enough to let someone climb down and only get misted by the rushing water.

It was either down the hole or go back.

"Looks like we've gotta climb down." Valkyrie said as she peered over the edge.

"What's the matter, Billy?" asked Hunter.

"You sure we gotta go down there?" he asked.

"Ya scared?" John asked him.

"Just not sure about this." was all Billy said.

"You've got claws." John said, "You can use 'em to climb down."

"I'll go down first." Valkyrie said.

John watched as Valkyrie's body lifted up on its own, floated over to the hole, and slowly went down.

"How'd she do that?" John asked.

"Magic." Hunter said, examining the ground around the hole.

"Ouch!" John cried out when Mina stepped on his foot. Before he could say more she had an arm around him. In the poor light he could see her face suddenly glow brightly with warmth. Standing on his feet brought her eye level with John, though she was actually trying not to look him in the eye.

Mina said nothing, only looking at him, and suddenly John felt himself floating up above the ground. He felt like a fishhook with Mina as the bait as they went down the hole next.

The walls were rather smooth, and wet. John was actually glad he was being levitated down by Mina instead of trying to hang onto a wet rope.

The bottom was about fifteen meters or so, John figured, and the tunnel progressed onward in only one direction that a metahuman could travel. A tunnel wider than any they had walked before. Actually it would have been possible to drive two lanes of traffic now if the cars could handle the fifteen centimeter deep water John was now standing in.

The walls and ceiling were covered with mosses and fungi in many places, with egg shaped growths at some of the patches of fungus. All of this glowed with a slight warmth.

"Anything unusual?" asked Hunter when she next reached the bottom, the Steyr slung across her back. With a whirring zip she wound the myomeric wire back into her left arm and reconnected her hand. With her hand attached she readied her assault rifle once more.

John had thought of mentioning a weakening matrix connection, but figured Hunter would know this just as well as him. He also figured that the others would be better off not knowing.

"Magic's a little hazy further on." Valkyrie said.

Mina nodded.

"Just how bad?" asked Hunter.

"It's not much now. On a scale of one to ten, two. Hopefully it won't get worse." Valkyrie finished.

"How bad's a ten?" asked John.

"Impossible for most magicians to work magic." Valkyrie said.

They all waited until Billy finally reached the bottom. He was thoroughly soaked from the spray of water. From there they trudged through the water. John's skin felt a little tingly as they walked, and when he tried to do a search on the fungus they walked under he found he could no longer access anything on the matrix. He gritted his teeth as they continued.

They stopped when they reached another T junction with a left or right choice.

"There's a tag that way." John said, pointing to the left.

It was not far, and the tag that said "21:37" was at another T junction where they could go to the right or straight on.

Billy led on straight ahead, though they did not have to go far before running into a dead end.

"Should've brought explosives." muttered Billy.

"Bullshit." returned Hunter as she turned to head back to the junction, "That wall's old. No way the other team came through this way."

John, with Mina right by his side, followed the women. Billy brought up the rear, grumbling.

They proceeded on, following the tags as best as John or Hunter could detect them.

Around a corner they found a human, and attached to his leg was the biggest snake John had ever seen. It was close to ten meters long, with orange and yellow banded scales.

It also saw them, releasing its bite on the man and rearing its head to hiss at them with bared teeth.

"Easy! Easy!" Hunter yelled, followed by more words that John could not understand.

Almost like an entranced cobra the giant snake held itself, though it did close its mouth.

"Why the hell should we take it easy?" Billy asked loudly.

"It's a naga. We can try talking to it." Hunter told them.

"It's a fuckin' big snake is what it is." Billy countered, snapping out the blades in both forearms.

The naga opened its mouth again, bearing needle sharp teeth and hissing.

Billy lunged at it, but the naga reacted with a gout of flame from its open mouth. The flames were sprayed short and wide, and Billy recoiled in surprise. He slipped and landed on his buttocks.

Mina replied with a gout of flame of her own, much more intense as the narrow stream skimmed past the naga's evasive head.

"Settle down, everyone!" Hunter yelled.

Oddly enough, the naga spoke. John cussed to himself as he could only guess at what it said, though it sounded like the strange words Hunter had used moments ago.

"Damn thing's hungry and scared." Hunter said.

"Well good for it." Billy said loudly as he stood.

John looked at the man, and thought his face looked familiar. He brought up the files of the first team and flipped through their icons. The slight flow of data barely eased the creepy crawly feel on his skin.

"Let's just kill it and go on." Billy continued.

"Not a chance." challenged Hunter.

John took a second look through the icons.

"It ain't got shit for fire, I can take it." Billy told them, "Just surprised me the first time."

"And you won't do well if I'm not countering it's magic for you." Valkyrie added. John took that to mean she was not going to protect Billy if he provoked the fight.

"Got it." John announced, finally finding the right icon. "He's Miao Jhong-Shun." he read slowly, trying to pronounce the man's name correctly. "He's the pale…ont…ologist of the group."

"At least we're on the right track, still." Valkyrie said, stepping towards Miao. The naga coiled itself back, making no aggressive moves as Valkyrie laid her hands on the man.

John could swear he saw a mirage around Valkyrie's hands, something like a concussion wave you can see from an explosion, except this held itself only a centimeter or two from her hands. The magic was obvious once Maio's injured leg began to repair itself at an astonishing rate.

"It's just a fuckin' snake!" cried Billy.

"I am no ssnake. I am a naga." it hissed.

"What's the difference?" asked Billy.

"Nagas can talk?" John asked.

"You're hungry?" Mina asked. Looking to her, John saw her looking at the naga.

"Sst…arving." it said.

Mina held a hand out, and the naga tentatively slithered closer, and John half expected a red forked tongue to dart out. They were maybe half a meter apart, almost like they were frozen in time.

"Move, and I'll shoot you." Hunter said.

Looking over at her, John saw she was watching Billy more than him. He looked back just in time to see the naga move close enough to put the flat of its head into the palm of Mina's hand. They stood like that for several seconds before they separated.

"How'd you know it'd be okay?" John asked.

"Just about every naga that can cast magic knows mind probe and such spells." Hunter said. "If she knew a spell that'd help it…"

"I am a he." the naga corrected.

"That'd help him," Hunter amended, "then he'll let her cast it on him."

"Healings done." Valkyrie announced, "But I don't think he'll be with it."

She must have been right. Miao was muttering softly about demons and devils and such.

"And he'll slow us down if we take him with." Hunter said.

"Will you watch him?" Mina asked softly.

The naga nodded. "For your aid, yess." the naga said.

"You're gonna trust it?" asked Billy.

"Would you like to be an it?" Hunter asked back.

"Hunter had ya by the nuts once before, don't forget." John added.

Thankfully Billy said nothing, looking indignant as he successfully kept his mouth shut.

"We'll be back for him. It shouldn't be too long." Hunter told the naga.

He simply nodded.

They moved on, and at another T junction they found a tag with a timestamp of "22:43". Heading straight John was able to pick up another tag with a "23:58" timestamp.

"What the fuck took 'em so long to cover thirty meters?" asked Billy.

No one spoke as they approached, and soon found that there was a sizable crevasse in the floor roughly five meters across.

"Maybe they checked down there first?" John asked.

"Let's check it out, then." Hunter said.

Valkyrie went down first, floating down like she did at the waterfall. Like before, Mina stood on John's feet while they floated down together. Her face lit up just as warmly as last time, growing just a bit more brighter with the longer drop.

As they floated down John noticed holes that had recently been bored into the wall.

The crevasse was almost directly over a Y intersection of subway tunnels. As far as John could see the tunnels went on forever.

They stepped away so Hunter could touch down without landing on them, her left arm making a metallic zipping sound as she recoiled the myomeric wire to collect her hand.

"Nifty thing, huh?" asked John.

"Been really handy today." Hunter said.

"Shit!" they heard Billy scream, and with the clatter of metal on stone he came tumbling down. He hit the ground with a thwump.

"What happened?" Hunter asked.

"Fuckin' bats." growled Billy before he stood himself back up.

"So which way do we go?" Hunter asked.

"No idea." John said.

"Thought I heard something that way." Valkyrie said, pointing down one of the tunnels.

Like before Billy led the way. He was infallibly confident that he could handle anything they might come across.

The tunnel was most certainly abandoned, with spots of rust marring the subway tracks.

Despite the cool air, John's skin felt warm yet irritated. Not to mention the click-clack of Billy's chrome feet was growing annoying and starting to feel like pinpricks to his eardrums.

About three hundred meters from the Y junction they found the tunnel was walled off. There was an old subway car, painted in shades of dark brown, next to the wall. It also glowed warmly in the dark, though John could not see through the walls or windows.

As they drew close an elfin woman came out of the subway car. She had olive skin, flowing black hair that reached well past her shoulders, and dark brown eyes. She wore a medium brown long coat, dusty gray from a long time of wear in the tunnels.

"Welcome!" she called to them.

"Welcome my ass." Billy said darkly, "What'd you do to 'em?"

"Shut the fuck up." John harshly said.

"Chill, both of you." reprimanded Hunter. She stepped forward, giving Billy a shove.

"We're here looking for another group of explorers." Hunter continued. "Have you seen them?" She still held her Steyr ready.

"Come on in and we'll talk." the woman told them, stepping back into her subway car.

"Why not just talk out here?" asked Billy as John and Mina walked around him.

"Ever hear of manners?" Valkyrie asked.

The inside of the subway car was a little cramped, but homey. Hunter apparently found things to be calm, and slung her Steyr. She also already had company.

Already sitting in her living room was Mark 'Raven' Longfeather, wearing a gray suit and holding is Hopi stylized raven mask. He stood, and nodding to them left.

"You can call me Eliza." the woman said, collecting five cups and setting them on a short table. Despite what John was expecting to find, the cups, while well worn, were clean.

"What do ya do?" asked Billy.

"Stuff." Eliza answered, pouring steaming black tea into their cups. When all of the cups were filled she replaced the decanter on its hot plate.

"What about the other explorers?" Hunter asked, taking a cup for herself and sniffing it. It must have been okay because she did take a sip.

Following her lead, John took two cups and handed one of them to Mina. Valkyrie also took a cup for herself, making the cup look like it belonged with a child's toy tea set in her large hand. Only Billy did not take his cup.

"Yeah, I know about them." Eliza said, pulling a small yet intact yet hairless devil rat from a pickling jar. With a knife that was as clean as the cups were she started slicing pieces off of it like it was a roast turkey. She put the rat back in the jar, and brought the cut pieces in a bowl to the table.

"Well?" asked Billy impatiently. He was the only one who reached for a piece of pickled devil rat meat. John only sipped his black tea.

"You think she's just gonna tell you?" Valkyrie asked.

"Yeah." Billy said with a conviction usually heard in fools.

"I heard them," Eliza continued, "they went by here and all."

"What's it gonna cost?" Hunter asked.

Eliza swallowed what John suspected was a bit of devil rat. "There's a spirit near here that doesn't get along with me." she told them, "I'll tell you everything I know about the other expedition."

"Or you could tell us right now." Billy said.

"Afraid you'll handle it like last time?" chided John.

"I'd like to see you try." Billy countered.

"Like I'd deal with a spirit on my own." John said, "I'd get a magician or the like to do it."

"I hope you've got a magician with you." Eliza said.

"We do." Hunter said.

Mina looked like she was about to say something, but when she looked at John he only shook his head.

"It's simple enough. I'll show you to the spirit and you get rid of it. When that's done I'll tell you what you need to know."

John gulped down the last of his tea, as did the others except Billy.

Eliza showed them down one of the other tunnels. They were a fair distance away when she finally stopped and pressed two particular stones at the same time.

A new tunnel opened up for them, large enough to let Valkyrie walk down without having to scrunch herself smaller or duck.

"It's about twenty meters down there." Eliza said.

Unsurprisingly Billy took the lead. Valkyrie was right behind him.

"Is it a good idea that we all go down?" John asked, walking between Valkyrie and Mina.

"Probably not." Hunter said, "But somebody's gonna have to help me drag Billy's ass out of here while they deal with the spirit."

"Fuck you! I said I could deal with it myself!" Billy yelled.

With an explosion of flying dirt the spirit attacked. An earthen fist of dirt, gravel, and broken bricks nearly clocked Billy in the head. The razorboy turned out to be surprisingly quick to duck just in time.

If only he were so lucky the second time, as a similar earthen fist came out of the other wall. He hit the wall, and amazingly was not out of the fight yet.

Valkyrie stopped, pushing the others back. John jockeyed to at least try and watch Billy get his ass kicked. He so hated missing it last week, when Billy said he could take on a troll magician by himself.

The spirit pressed the attack, this time landing two blows and striking harder with the second.

With a drunken swing of an extended spur, Billy managed to only knock loose gravel aside.

"Aren't we gonna help him?" asked Mina.

It looked like Billy thought he got an upper hand, lashing out with both sets of arm blades. To John it looked like he was really scratching up the wall.

"Not until he asks, or gets knocked out." Valkyrie said.

The spirit was impossible to see unless John managed to catch some dirt moving in an impossible way. It gave off no heat, and apparently had no body other than the very dirt itself.

That moment apparently came, with an attack Billy had not expected at all. The very floor decided to attack, launching the razorboy hard into the ceiling. When the dirt and rock receded Billy dropped like a rag doll.

"Can you see it?" Valkyrie asked.

"Yes." Mina said.

They waited, but nothing happened.

"What's it doin'?" asked John.

"Waiting." Valkyrie said.

John felt Mina press close to him, and before he could ask why her whole body went limp. He was barely able to catch her to keep her head from hitting the rocky floor like a basketball.

"Shit! Cypher, get her out of here!" ordered Hunter.

Holding her from behind, his arms crossed over her chest, John slowly dragged her backwards out of the tunnel.

"What happened?" asked Eliza when John came out of the tunnel.

"No fuckin' clue." John answered.

"Lay her down here." Eliza said. John saw she had taken her long coat off and bunched it up like a pillow. With the ground also a lot smoother than the tunnel was now, John carefully laid her down and pulled her night vision goggles off.

"Shit. Shouldn't've asked you kids to do this." muttered Eliza.

It was not long until Mina groaned.

"Looks like she's coming around." Eliza said, sounding quite relieved.

Her eyes fluttered open. "Ow." Mina said.

"Feelin' alright?" John asked.

Mina said nothing, and tried to sit up. Despite Eliza putting her hand on Mina's shoulder, she did anyway.

"I think she did a number on that earth elemental." Valkyrie said as she emerged from the tunnel. Behind her was Hunter under one of Billy's arms as she carried his still unconscious body.

"What happened?" asked Eliza.

"Numbnuts thought he'd be able to take it on his own." John said.

"And she projected." Valkyrie added, "It was like watching a phoenix zip around and tear apart a lion chunk by chunk."

"It's gone?" Eliza asked.

"Can't say it's gone for good." Valkyrie answered, "But, yeah, it's gone."

"Great! C'mon back and we'll talk." Eliza said happily.

John helped Mina to her feet, and Eliza collected her coat. He also helped Mina to stay on her feet as she leaned on him as they walked.

This time they sat down while Eliza refilled their cups of tea. John and Mina shared half of the couch, with Mina leaning against John's side.

Billy was dumped none too gently in a chair of his own in the corner. Eliza did not seem to mind.

"So, what all is it you've got to tell us?" asked Hunter.

"I first heard them after they passed the waterfall." Eliza told them, "They sounded tense but excited, like it was a Sunday walk. Even heard them talking about fighting some critters. They seemed quite confident about it all.

"That all changed when they crossed the abyss." she continued, "They were acting like they were threatened, that they should abort their mission."

"So you were following them?" Hunter asked.

"Sound carries pretty well." Eliza told them. "Heard them from down here. "A while after I lost track of them. An hour after that I heard screams and gunfire. It's been quiet ever since."

"Shit." cussed Hunter.

"What could they have run into?" Valkyrie asked.

"I'm not the only person living down here." Eliza told them. "There's another guy, Enrico Trebol. He's from Aztlan, before Ghostwalker came. He has a thaumaturgical laboratory down here where he could do his research undisturbed.

"When Ghostwalker drove out Aztech," she continued, "they forgot about him. He's been alone since then."

"Great way to go nuts." John said.

"I'm afraid so." Eliza said, agreeing with him. "We used to meet for beer and all. When I noticed he was losing his mind, we just kinda stopped."

"What're you thinking?" Valkyrie asked.

"What to do about Enrico." Hunter said.

"What would Billy say?" Mina asked sheepishly.

"Prob'ly cuss, say the team's dead, and we should head back." John said. He drew a shocked look from both Mina and Eliza.

"Kid's right." Hunter said matter-of-factly, "Doesn't mean we're gonna do that."

"I don't know what he could've done, but before he lost his mind he was an alright guy." Eliza told them. John could see a genuinely concerned look on her face.

John ran a few fingers over his ear, thinking. "Could he get help if we pulled him out?" he asked.

"No way to know for sure." Hunter said, "But we can't know if we don't try. Anyway, I think it'll be best if we wait for numbnuts to wake up before we go."

While waiting the others had a chance to relax some, and John ended up having to put his arm around Mina or risk it going numb.

It was about an hour before Billy finally woke up, grumblings and about as cheerful as a hippo with a hernia. True to John's word, upon hearing Eliza's recount of what she heard of the first team, Billy's response was, "Fuck it, they're dead. Let's get the fuck out of here and get paid."

"We're seeing this through." Valkyrie said sternly.

"I can hack his 'link, make it cluck like a chicken when he gets nuyen, and immediately send it right back." John offered.

"I don't think it'll be necessary, right?" Hunter asked, looking straight at Billy.

"Fuck." Billy muttered.

"Let's get going." Hunter said, picking up her Steyr.

John downed the last of his tea, having found it tastier than he really expected for a drink called 'tea'.

Billy grumbled all the way back to the chasm. There Valkyrie went first, levitating herself straight up.

With a blast of compressed air, Hunter sent her left hand flying upwards. When it looked like she had grabbed a hold of something solid she slung her Steyr and started walking her way up the chasm wall.

Like the last two times, Mina stepped onto John's feet and they began floating upwards.

"I wish I knew how you're doing this." John said softly.

"I'm levitating you." Mina said softly, looking upwards as they continued up.

Billy was the last to get to the top, still muttering obscenities under his breath. John wondered if he was the only one who wished the razorboy would just shut the fuck up.

Once again Billy took the lead, saying he could take on anything they might encounter. Glancing at Mina, John saw her give him a 'is he nuts?' kind of look. John made a winding motion with a finger pointed to the side of his head, and Mina giggled.

After a while the tunnel widened to about four meters. The walls were smoothed and the whole chamber was rather unremarkable looking. Almost ten meters away was a heavy looking metal door.

Hunter slowed as they entered the chamber, but Billy just strode right on ahead. Her caution turned out to be a life saver, John felt, as Billy was walking ahead and suddenly he and the floor disappeared from view!

"What happened?" asked Mina.

"Fuck!" yelled Billy. John thought he could hear the smashing of metal on metal.

Inching up carefully, John was able to get a good look down. Billy had fallen into a classic pit trap, complete with sharpened bits of metal at the bottom that was four meters down.

"Shit." cussed John when he realized that Billy looked completely unharmed in every way except his pride. The razorboy used his cybernetic hands to bash the various sharpened metal spikes. His clothing had not faired quite as well.

"Hang on, settle down, I'll get you out." Valkyrie said.

It must have been a levitation spell, John figured, as Billy started floating up into the air. He apparently did not like the feeling all too well, squirming about like a scruffed cat and cussing, all until he was none too gently dropped on the far side.

Getting across was not otherwise too difficult. There was a one meter wide walkway along the left side of the chamber where they went single file, with Valkyrie going last.

Before anyone could say anything, Billy muscled the door open.

"Try not to touch anything." Hunter advised as she stepped through.

"We won't." John said, with Mina nodding her agreement.

"Wasn't talking to you." Hunter added.

"Hey!" cried an indignant Billy.

The next chamber was also about ten meters long, and had a door at the far end. From both walls were about forty pipes, each roughly three centimeters across, jutting out from the walls. Strewn about the ground were a multitude of small bones. John could even feel a signal from several RFID tags in body bags at the far side of the chamber. The door at the far side had a plate above it and a rather prominent red button was on the wall next to the door.

"Weird place." commented Valkyrie as she stepped in, ducking through the human sized door.

Billy tried the door, shaking it vigorously despite it being quite obviously locked.

"Maybe this'll unlock it." commented Billy.

"Don't touch it!" Hunter yelled, but it was too late.

The door behind them slammed shut, with Valkyrie a split second too late to try and catch it. The plate above switched on, showing a prominent "45" in bright red LEDs. Right away it started counting down.

"Shit!" cussed Hunter. She slung her Steyr and went right to the button Billy had pressed, shoving the razor boy aside.

"Fuckin' smooth move, ex-lax." John said rather loudly.

"Like you know what the fuck it does." Billy returned.

"Check it for magic." Hunter said.

"I ain't a magician!" stated Billy.

"Master of the obvious you are." snipped John.

"I don't see you helping." growled Billy.

John looked up at the timer. It said "35".

"Do I look like a magician?" John yelled.

"Looks like there's an anchored spell." Valkyrie told them.

"Can you dispel it?" Hunter asked.

"Why not ask the genius?" Billy asked.

"I'm a hacker, not a magician, God damn it!" John yelled. He was seriously tempted to pull his Hatamoto II pistol out and use it on Billy. Was his head thick enough to resist a slug designed to blow a door off its hinges? Too bad the doors to their prison looked heavy enough to take the slug. Looking up at the timer, he saw it tick down to "30".

"I think it's too powerful." groaned Valkyrie.

Mina unleashed a primal scream, and when John turned to look back to see a an earth elemental appear. It stood easily past two meters, was almost as wide as it was tall, with a crest of shiny spikes that looked like short horns as well as many more smaller spikes on the shoulders, knees, and such, all giving it a vague appearance of a dirt demon. Did she just summon it?

"Destroy the door!" Mina yelled.

"What?" Billy asked before he was shoved aside by the elemental like a rag doll.

"Oh shit!" cussed Hunter, diving clear just in time to avoid a spray of clear liquid from the spirit's hand that sizzled when it hit the door.

Apparently perturbed by the door's resilience, the spirit redoubled its efforts. Everyone scrambled away as three streams of acid came from both hands and its mouth, hitting the door with a force greater than a fire hose. Thankfully the liquid seemed to dissipate before being splashed back too far. John watched nervously as the timer ticked below "20". Still the door persisted.

It was when the timer hit "15" that Hunter started yelling, "We've got a hole!"

Apparently satisfied its task was done, the demonic looking earth elemental stopped its attack and vanished.

Hunter was through the hole first, a neat tuck and roll bringing her up and ready with her Steyr.

John waited as Billy made a clumsy attempt to do the same, cussing as he hit his toe on the still slowly melting door.

Mina was next, having to be almost shoved ahead by John, and she quite gracefully managed a forward tumble that cleared the door. John was a little less graceful, but still better than Billy in clearing the door, with a grunt of discomfort as the Hatamoto crunched into his back.

Valkyrie was last through, having just managed to fit through the hole. They then continued on.

"You think that was really necessary?" Billy asked as they walked, now in step behind Hunter.

"You notice the animal bones in there?" John asked back.

"Let's just push on." Hunter said wearily.

"Just sayin'." Billy said.

"There was a pretty powerful offensive spell on that door." Valkyrie said, "Easily fatal."

"Bet it wasn't as offensive as Billy's stench." John said, waving a hand in front of his nose.

"Will you both shut up?" cried Hunter.

John kept his distance behind Billy. At least Mina was close to him, though she had a worried look on her face whenever he caught her looking at him.

It was not long until they reached another door. It was smaller, simpler than the last, with a basic handle for use. Billy was not in any rush to try and open the door.

"There's no magic on this one." Valkyrie told them.

Hunter positioned herself a step away from the door. "Open it." she told Billy.

"I ain't touching it." Billy declared.

"Fuck you. I'll do it." John said, stepping up to the door.

"On three, fling it open and get clear." Hunter said.

With a good grip on the door, John listened as Hunter counted. When she hit three he threw the door open and himself out of the line of fire.

"Clear." Hunter said, and she stepped in first.

The first room was a rather snug feeling bedroom and bath. Though it was three by four meters long, when Valkyrie stepped in it was feeling very cramped. Along the wall with the bathtub was a sink and toilet. It was even smaller than the fallout shelter John had lived in for a few months. It stank of rotting meat, compliments of a dead devil rat hanging from the ceiling, and the bathtub looked well stained with rust. John did his best to avoid looking at the toilet, the smell alone was enough to make him want to vomit.

"Don't suppose the next door's trapped?" asked Billy.

"Doesn't look like it." Valkyrie said.

"I doubt they will be. We're in his home." Hunter told them, opening the next door. The next room looked to be a mix of living room, office, and kitchen. It was also no cleaner than the previous room, with a stack of dirty dishes in the sink.

Hunter picked up an unfurled scroll from the table and after maybe two seconds she dropped it like it was the most toxic thing she had handled.

"What?" Billy asked.

"Whatever this crap is, it's written on human skin!" Hunter told them.

There was no warning as a large black dog came out at Hunter. She managed to get her Steyr in the way for the dog to bite. She screamed in panic as she tried to throw the dog off.

John could feel his heart leap into his throat. Before he realized it he had pulled a firearm and fired.

The room reverberated from the loud explosion, and John had found himself thrown to the ground from the gun's powerful recoil.

"Holy shit!" exclaimed Billy. John noticed the razorboy was regaining his composure.

Even Valkyrie had been cringing.

Accepting Mina's help, John managed to regain his footing.

"What the fuck was that?" Hunter asked, just now managing to pry the remainder of the dog's jaws off of her assault rifle. The back third of the dog's head was just gone, and its headless body lay on the floor, its dark blood spilling out onto the already grossly dirty floor.

John looked down at the gun he was holding. Only now did he realize it was not a Predator or his Warhawk he had pulled, but the Hatamoto II. "Uh, a lock shock shotgun round?" John said.

"What?" Hunter asked darkly.

Popping the breech on the Hatamoto II, John pulled a shell from a pocket to reload the gun. With a flick of the wrist the shotgun snapped shut.

The next thing John knew his skin was feeling like it was tingling all over, then his whole body was wracked with pain. It felt like he screamed out in pain, though he could not hear himself making any noise from the crackling in his ears. His whole body was in pain and every movement made it worse.

"Don't try to move." he heard someone say. All he could see was a blur of colors as his head spun.

"He's still alive after that?" someone else said. It sounded like Billy.

"Barely." the first voice said. John thought it was Valkyrie who was closest to him. "Kid's got some fortitude to take a hit like that."

"Didn't seem to affect the girl much." remarked Billy.

"She is a magician." Valkyrie said, "And looks like she's good at counterspelling, too."

Looking the others over as his vision began to clear, John figured he had missed out on most of a fight. Feeling a bit better he tried to stand. He accepted Mina's and Hunter's help in regaining his feet.

Billy by no means looked pleased, and like he had been hit by a cattle prod several times. He was also carrying a man that looked like was one of the first explorers. John could not tell who, partly because his vision would occasionally blur.

Hunter did not look much better, but less pissed off than the razorboy. The whole action and barrel of her Steyr shimmered in his thermographic vision.

Only the magicians seemed to have fared off the best. Both Valkyrie and Mina were apparently well versed in deflecting spells. Valkyrie held a rather dirty looking man over one shoulder.

"What…" John started to say just before his legs gave out on him. Mina fell with him, but with her help they only hit their knees rather than John finding out what the grungy looking floor tasted like.

"The hellhound was Enrico's pet." Valkyrie explained, bouncing the dirty man on her shoulder once. He wore a dark robe and his long black hair was an absolute mess. "Pissed him off when you killed it."

Planting a foot like it was the trunk of an oak, John pushed himself back up to stand. If only his foot had been like that oak as half way up he completely lost all of his strength. This time he did hit the floor, his whole body wracked with pain and not because Mina had landed on him.

"What the fuck's …" he heard Billy say, his voice becoming indistinct.

"Hell if I know." Hunter answered.

"You okay?" Mina asked softly while the adults talked. It sounded like she was really concerned.

"I feel like… I got run… over by… a steamroller." John said between panting breaths. Literally every extremity hurt, even his toes and fingers and more that John would not admit to anyone. Despite the agonizing pain he found he was having a hard time seeing anything again.

"… okay?" he thought he heard Hunter say.

"Huh?" John asked.

"Are you okay?" Hunter asked slowly.

"Ow." John groaned.

"C'mon." Hunter said, pulling John to his feet, "Let's see if we can get going." She hefted what looked like an improvised sack over one shoulder.

"What's in that?" John asked.

"What's left of the rest of the team." Hunter said solemnly.

John felt sick to his stomach. Especially when he realized it was just their heads that were in the sack. He figured he did not want to know where the rest of them were.

With help from Mina, John found he could walk. It was slow going at first, but as the minutes passed, and the further they got in the tunnels away from the wizard's hovel, the better he was starting to feel. Maybe it was something to do with the stench of rotting meat and more that was affecting him. Figuring this, John felt rather embarrassed that he needed a girl's help to walk.

After crossing the chasm, being levitated by Mina like before, Hunter told that Valkyrie figured Enrico had thrown a second spell within the lightning bolt that had lit him up like a Christmas tree. It was that second spell, she reasoned, that had nearly killed him. Mina had cast a healing spell on him just after the second time he passed out.

John had no idea why, but the trip back out seemed to pass by faster. Was it because other threats had been wiped out? Maybe it was because Mina was at his side, practically helping him all the way.

Floating over the chasm was slower this them than the times before. Mina also looked al little green as she held her spell.

They caught up to Billy and Valkyrie where Miao had been found, and Valkyrie was helping Billy balance an explorer on either arm.

"Fuckin' naga just left." Billy grumbled.

"He did wait for us." Valkyrie corrected, "He just left as soon as we came 'round the corner."

John opted to believe Valkyrie. Especially when it looked like Miao was at least half capable of walking.

The waterfall was, as best as John would describe it, a small cluster fuck.

Mina was looking a little better, and she levitated John back up the same way, with her standing on his feet. It was slow going still, and it looked like she was as glad as John was at the chance to sit and rest while the others worked out bringing the other three men up. It was also nice to feel the matrix again, though weak and just at the edge of his senses. It was like trying to look at something out of the corner of your eye, only to find it disappeared when you look straight at it. The itchiness of his skin was also slowly fading away.

Ultimately Hunter came up with one of the explorers on her right shoulder. John and Mina did have to help a little to pull him to safety. Hunter then dropped her hand down and hoisted the sack up.

Valkyrie was next, with the other explorer and Enrico under her arms.

Unsurprisingly Billy was last, cussing as he pulled himself over the ledge. John was feeling too sore and tired to say anything.

They continued walking on, with Billy leading.

They were almost to the exit, Billy walking straight on when Valkyrie stopped.

"Where's the alligator?" Valkyrie asked.

"Who cares?" Billy asked over his shoulder.

"I do." Hunter said, "And you're going the wrong way!"

"Well someone should've put some fucking directions down." Billy grumbled as he turned around.

The pool where the alligator had come from exploded as something came blasting out. Whatever it was plowed itself into John and Mina, roaring.

"Bug!" he heard Hunter yell. He really did not care what it was as John and Mina were scrambling out from underneath it. About all he could see was black and pale green that was dangerously big and too close.

It roared, spinning to face someone. John screamed in pain as a black chitinous foot came crashing down on his leg.

Brrrt went Hunter's assault rifle, and the creature spun around. John half drug himself, was half pulled, out from underneath the creature.

"Fuck you! Fuck you!" John heard Billy yell, and as he was lifted to his feet he got a good look at what it was.

By the bullet holes in its side John figured it was the alligator they had encountered on their way down. That's where the similarities ended, as the alligator now had a glossy black carapace down the length of its back, its back left and front right legs were replaced with a pair of insect legs each, a pair of spike like horns protruded from above its eyes and a third straight up from the end of its snout. Its eyes were also bright red compound eyes, like what you would see in a bad horror movie about giant bugs.

Billy was trying repeatedly to cut into the beetle-alligator hybrid with his spurs. Its hide repelled the razor sharp blades like they were nothing. Hunter was unloading the magazine of her Steyr into its face. Most of the bullets bounced off its armored and scaly hide.

John pulled his Hatamoto and fired. The lock shock shell fragmented against the beast's hide with no effect.

"How the fuck do we kill this fucker?" yelled Billy as he leaped clear of its snapping jaws.

"Just keep distracting it!" Hunter yelled back. John guessed she was loading another magazine into her gun.

The distraction worked too well. The alligator-bug-thing spun on Billy and with a powerful chomp of its jaws it got hold of his right arm below the elbow.

Mina and Valkyrie tried tag teaming it with spells. Frost and ice flew from Valkyrie's hand while Mina tried burning it with fire. The elements washed over its hide like water off a duck's back.

"What the fuck is this thing?" yelled Valkyrie so she could be heard over the noise of Hunter's assault rifle.

"Bug spirit!" Hunter yelled back between bursts of fire. "Possessed the 'gator's body!"

"Spirit?" Mina yelled.

John saw Mina and Valkyrie look at each other briefly, like they were sharing an idea in the moment.

"Fuckin' do something!" Billy yelled, trying to pry open the alligator's mouth.

From the passage Billy had walked down just a little bit ago came a large Viking warrior, running a spear through the creature's hide. Before it roared in pain it spun hard to face the new aggressor, tearing Billy's cybernetic arm from the stump.

Billy was about to rush back in with his one good arm when he was pulled off to the side.

Mina looked like a blazing star for an instant. From the nimbus of bright flame that surrounded her came a demon of fire. The fire elemental stood its ground and side-by-side with Mina they unleashed torrents of flame. The fire elemental proved the stronger as Mina dropped to one knee, her fire magic proving virtually ineffectual. John was at her side right away.

The Viking and demon both pressed their attacks, and together they were able to kill it. The smell of burning meat was overwhelming. With their tasks done they disappeared.

"God damn fucking asshole." swore Billy as he wrenched the remains of his cybernetic arm from the dead reptile.

"Now just what the hell was that?" asked John.

"Bug spirit." Hunter said with a grunt. "They can't materialize on their own, so they possess a body instead. They're a bitch to put down."

"Like those things in Chicago in '55?" John asked.

"Yup." answered Hunter, "Now let's get out of here, okay?"

Looking quite worn out, Valkyrie had to use a spell to levitate Enrico's body while she carried the other two out.

John could not care less at the moment as it was now his turn to help Mina out of the tunnels.

The light was quite bright as they emerged, and John was glad his goggles darkened to protect his eyes.

"You were gone for so long." Mr. Johnson said. It looked like he and his two bodyguards had waited the whole time for John and the others to return.

"We ran into a lot of problems down there." Hunter said. She was careful with the sack as she sat it down.

With help from Mr. Johnson's bodyguards, Valkyrie was able to lie the two explorers down.

"There's only two. Where are the others?" asked Mr. Johnson.

"What's left of their remains are in there." Hunter said, pointing to the sack.

Mr. Johnson tentatively looked into the sack, and quickly closed it again. Looking rather pale, he said, "Well, guess I ought to pay you." he said.

John was expecting a funds transfer, but instead Mr. Johnson handed each of them two credsticks. Checking both of them, John found that each held five thousand nuyen.

"Well, can't say it's been fun." grumbled Billy as he walked off, the remains of his busted cybernetic arm in his other hand.

"Just gonna let him walk like that?" Hunter asked once Billy had rounded a corner and was out of sight.

"I'm not gonna let him get rewarded for being an asshole." Valkyrie said. "Besides, didn't we cut him out of a share of loot from our second hit on RMD?" she asked back.

"True." Hunter admitted.

"What're you talking about?" John asked.

The women only looked at each other before Hunter said, "Best if you just come with us."

Enrico, still unconscious, was securely strapped into the passenger seat of Valkyrie's pickup before they drove off. Mr. Johnson said nothing, asked nothing at all about Enrico. John figured the man was not only being smart, but focusing his priorities on the surviving two members of his spelunking team, and what he was going to tell the families of the five who had died.

As they were on their way, John was glad that Hunter asked him for a coyote trail into the UCAS sector. Half an hour later they were back on the surface in the UCAS sector, and Valkyrie led the way again. To where he had no idea.

About all John was immediately concerned about was how tired and worn looking Mina was, her grip not as tight as it had been before.

Their destination was a large office like looking building. Above large glass doors was a logo of the world with a western styled dragon perched behind it, its wings hung low and looking like it was going to wrap the Earth in them, and its tail dangled down past the south pole. Only North, Central, and part of South America were visible.

But it was not the front doors that was their destination. Slowly, like it was unfamiliar territory for Valkyrie, she pulled around to the back of the building.

Several people in suits were waiting. They also had a containment box, the kind you would think a psychopath would be put into for transport.

"Are we turning him over to these guys?" John asked as he parked next to Valkyrie's truck. He and Mina both slowly dismounted his Katana-11, but then sat back down on the motorcycle's seat.

"Not like they're gonna kill him." Hunter said as she pulled her helmet off.

"Which one of you is Hunter?" asked one of the suits. He was dressed rather sharply, human, and gave John the feel like he was talking to a weasel or a lawyer.

"I am." Hunter said.

"We've got everything ready, provided he proves to be what you say he is." the suit said.

John had questions, but kept his mouth shut.

"Enrico Trebol." Hunter said, and John noticed that two people in lab coats were pulling Enrico out of Valkyrie's truck. "Formerly of Aztlan before Ghostwalker came in. Got a witness that says he was forgotten when Aztlan got kicked out."

One of the lab coats seemed to examine Enrico closely. After a little while he gave a thumbs up.

"Looks like everything's in order, then." the suit said, handing Hunter four credsticks.

"You okay?" John asked Mina, who had slumped against his side again.

"Tired." she mumbled.

Valkyrie was right at their side right away. Even kneeling she was an imposing person. John had no idea what she was doing as she looked Mina up and down very carefully.

"Anything?" Hunter asked.

"I'm not seeing it." Valkyrie said.

"What is it?" the suit asked.

"We had a run in with a bug." Hunter said, "Loner. Really nasty. Possessed a dead alligator to materialize."

The suit waved one of the lab coat guys over. He took seemed to scrutinize Mina very carefully, including shining a light in her eyes. "Doesn't look like something's trying to take possession of her."

"Fuck the bug. Burned it good." Mina muttered.

"Good sign." Valkyrie said.

"What?" John asked.

"Insect spirits can't easily possess live people without their consent." the suit said. "If she's got that attitude towards a bug then it's not likely one can take over."

"Hope she's not too against bugs." Hunter said, "Considering our last job I think 'Firefly' is a good name for her."

"Sure it's a good name?" the suit asked.

"Knew a hacker that called herself Crystal Spider." Hunter said, "Persona looked like her name."

"Okay." Mina said softly.

"Well then, since everything is in order, nice doing business with you folks." the suit said. He left, walking with the lab coats into the building.

"I think she's just tired." Valkyrie said, taking one last look at Mina. "Might've put a little much into that last spell she did."

Tiredly Mina swung her leg back over the motorcycle and John climbed on.

"Hey, before you go, these are for both of you." Hunter said, slipping John two of the credsticks the suit had given her. "Just don't go crazy with it, okay?"

"Okay." John said, feeling almost as tired as Mina looked, pocketing the credsticks with his others.

Mina's grip was just as weak as before as they drove home. She needed help as John walked her to her room.

It was not until John had collapsed back onto his own pitiful excuse of a bed when he pulled out one of the two credsticks Hunter had given him. He almost wet himself when he saw a balance of two hundred, fifty thousand nuyen. Checking the other one, he found the same amount.

He was sure Mina was going to need to spend a fair amount to set up her lodge, or whatever it was called. He would have to help make some calls.

But that would have to wait till later. Right now, John only wanted to sleep.