The Pickup
"Can you imagine what this place would have looked like if it was finished?" Anna asked as she peered through the empty windows to a restaurant.
Elsa paused in front of a partially complete apartment building, admiring the Greco-Roman style architecture. Aside from the intricate statues and stonework, graffiti covered nearly every vertical surface, accentuating it with excessive profanity and drawings of male genitalia. Everywhere else she looked it was much the same.
"Would have been pretty cool," Anna shrugged and moved on.
"It's such a shame," Elsa said, falling in step beside her as she resumed scanning her surroundings for any threats. "All of it just gone to waste."
Anna placed her back against a wall and shuffled alongside it until she reached the edge, peering around the next street corner. "Yeah, well, that's the way it goes," she muttered. "Damn, this way is blocked too."
Ahead of them, the cobblestone street that stretched up towards the Calypso Galleria was jam-packed with concrete jersey barriers and metal shipping containers. The path before them was obstructed, as it had been for the last few blocks they had traversed.
All around them, the empty facades of the buildings looked down upon Elsa and Anna silently. So far, their journey across Cinnabar Bay had gone quietly and their presence was unnoticed, at least, so they thought. The outlaw colony was eerily still and empty, feeling almost as if they were just walking through a movie set rather than an abandoned resort town. Still, there were enough signs of human activity to indicate that the place was far from unoccupied.
Garbage and detritus lined the empty sidewalks and streets. There was no wind to speak of but still, the air carried with it the scent of burning fuel.
Elsa raised the railgun to her shoulder and used the scope to glass her surroundings, looking into open windows and doorways for any trouble. "We're getting close," she said to Anna. "Next block should take us to main avenue and it's a straight shot to the galleria from there."
They crossed the street and proceeded down the next sidewalk, staying close to the buildings for as much cover as possible. Once they reached the end of the block and turned down main avenue, the distinctive sounds of music and voices became clear. To one end of the avenue was the beach, still filled with umbrellas and chairs. To the other end was the galleria, easily the largest structure in Cinnabar Bay located in the center of the resort.
All along the main avenue leading up to the galleria was a tent city, filled with civilians who had chosen to make the resort their home away from the bustling city life of Arcadia. Flaming barrels were topped with crude barbecues, already smoking with grilled synth meat. Market stands were set up and merchants were advertising their wares, consisting of contraband goods attainable only here or in the sub-city.
"Huh," Anna lowered her hand cannon. "Not what I was expecting, but okay."
Elsa slung the railgun over her shoulder. "It's just regular people living out here."
"Yeah, the place is like its own little independent town. Guess the corps can't be bothered to kick 'em out."
"Hmm. How quaint."
With a glance at each other followed by a shrug, Elsa and Anna made their way through the bazaar. A few civilians gave them cautious looks but they kept their distance. They passed by scrap and salvage shops, bootleg clothing vendors, black market arms dealers, food stands, and more. Once they cleared the main avenue, they entered a sprawling plaza with a large fountain in the center, ringed with grass and palm trees.
People were there, lounging about in the sunshine, minding their own business. A few children were spotted splashing in the water. For what it looked like, even though construction had been halted, the resort still served its function as a place to relax in its incomplete state. Clearly, without the authority of the government or the corps bearing down on them, these people were able to just live their lives in peace.
"There's the galleria," Anna pointed across the plaza. "Place looks like a fortress. The Crimson Corsairs must be holding up in there," she started walking.
"What do we know about them?" Elsa asked, walking alongside her.
"Not much," Anna shrugged. "You got the Brutalikorps and the Rippers in Arcadia, but only in the sub-city. I never came across any corsairs, so I'm guessing this place is their only turf. Must be some small fish."
"Some small fish that ambushed an ArmaRex convoy and stole all of their goods."
"Pretty ballsy move on their part, you have to hand it to 'em. Pulling off a heist like that couldn't have been easy."
"And not only are they dangerous, but they're also ambitious. I don't imagine this will go smoothly, not like the meeting with that corpo agent."
"Oh, these things rarely do. Keep your eyes peeled and keep on your toes."
After clearing the plaza, they entered the galleria grounds, passing through a cul de sac that ended just before the main entrance. The galleria – essentially a shopping mall – was large and sprawling, and was the most complete out of any of the other structures. Its design was intricate and accentuated by the same Greco-Roman motifs seen along the way. Another fountain stood before them, on top of which stood a marble statue of a woman, Calypso, a figure in Greek mythology.
Elsa and Anna walked around the fountain then came up to the front entrance to the galleria, which was barricaded and sealed up. There was an intercom off to the side as well as several security cameras that spotted them.
"Guess we better knock and say hello," Anna looked up to the cameras, then reached for the intercom, hitting the call button.
A few moments later, a gravelly voice answered at the other end. "Hmm. Don't know you."
"Want to talk to Jezebel," Anna said. "Got biz with her."
"Main room," the voice replied. "We've been waiting."
The main doors to the galleria audibly clicked as locks were unlatched. Elsa opened them and went through first, followed by Anna. In the lobby, there was nobody to greet them, but there were multiple autoturrets and cameras, all focused on them. Their lights flashed yellow in warning, then blue as they returned to their idle state.
"Cozy place," Anna muttered. "Could use a few plants though."
"They look well prepared," Elsa examined the military hardware as they walked through the entrance and entered the galleria lobby. "This must be the gear that was stolen from the convoy."
The further they went into the lobby, the more security measures they saw. In addition to the cameras and autoturrets, they came across laser tripwires connected to antipersonnel mines, all of which were currently deactivated.
"Oh, yeah," Anna examined one of the mines as they passed by it. "Shrapnel spitters. Fun. Jesus, are they expecting a whole ArmaRex platoon?"
After heading through the lobby, they entered a large rotunda where a spotlight was shone on them as soon as they step foot inside. A multitude of corsairs was waiting for them, hanging around in the eaves or standing at attention with guns in their hands as they eyeballed Elsa and Anna. As their namesake suggested, the Crimson Corsairs were dressed in various shades of red clothing.
"Keep it moving, sheep," one of the corsairs growled.
"Stay cool," Anna whispered to Elsa as they walked by them. "They're just trying to spook us."
Elsa nodded, but she was still feeling unease, so she remembered Anna's advice and put on her mean face.
When they came to the other end of the rotunda, they stopped in front of an empty storefront where a lone corsair was waiting for them. He wore a ballistic vest and cargo pants, and his face was adorned with circuitry that wrapped around his head. In his hands was a pistol, gripped tightly.
"So, whaddaya want?" the corsair asked.
"You have a tank. Mark seven, Drachen model," Elsa said.
"And?" the corsair shrugged. "The hell you care?"
Anna stepped forward. "The guy we represent already paid Carver for it," she said. "We're just here for the pickup. We can talk directly to Jezebel, if necessary."
"Nah, you'll talk to me," the corsair shook his head. "Name's Bum Bum," he stepped aside and pointed into the next area. "Couch. Plant it."
The area in question was a wide, open court that was incomplete. The far wall led outside to the galleria grounds, but inside was all manner of crates and boxes filled with ArmaRex gear, including a large vehicle that was currently covered with an olive-green tarp. Gathered inside were more corsairs along with a few netrunners, currently jacked into their terminals.
A couch was set before the tank where Bum Bum was waiting for them. As Elsa and Anna took their seats, they both couldn't help but look around, finding that they were well outnumbered by corsairs.
"Well, alright," Bum Bum shuffled into place and sat down on the coffee table in front of Elsa and Anna. "Let's lighten up," he reached into a pouch on his vest and pulled out an inhaler, offering it to Elsa. "Go on, take a hit."
Elsa frowned at the offering. "What is it?"
"Fizz," Anna said. "Seen it before. Floods your brain with endorphins and adrenaline. Trip so intense it verges on psychosis."
Bum Bum chuckled and took a whiff, throwing his head back as he exhaled a fine white mist. "Whew, yeah!" he growled. "The corps fed it to their fighting legions during the resource wars. Some like to crush the tablets like candy. Vaporizing it mellows the burn without killing any of the effects," he held it out to Elsa once more. "Come on! Give it a whirl!"
"No thanks," Elsa said. "I'll pass."
"Heh, sure," Bum Bum took another hit. "Whatever you say, straight-edged princess."
"We're not here to get high," Anna pointed to the tank. "The tank. Need to see it."
"Yeah, here we are," Bum Bum stood up and went over to the tank, pulling down the tarp. "The Drachen," he stood aside and unveiled it.
The hover-tank – not hovering in its current state since it wasn't activated – was massive. It had four main thrusters where the tracks on a conventional tank would be, and its sloped, angular armor plating was slate gray. Its main gun was a gauss cannon, the two parallel rails of which were lined with electromagnetic coils.
"Fuckin' tricked out, this thing," Bum Bum gestured to the tank, showing off its many features. "Ceramic nanolaminate armor with prototype energy shielding. Pimped-out interior lining rated for full CBRN and EMP protection, made out of titanium-vanadium-kevlar composite. The gauss cannon can fire HE shells or armor-piercing depleted uranium sabots. Plus, it comes with hydra rocket pods, a twenty mil' autocannon, smoke launchers, and an active protection system to zap incoming enemy projectiles."
A loud metallic thud echoed through the court from a balcony on the second floor. When Elsa and Anna glanced up, they saw that somebody was watching them, partially concealed in shadow. Whatever they were doing, they said nothing as they sized Elsa and Anna up.
"And watch this," Bum Bum went over to a terminal and inserted a control key, typing in a few command lines to start the tank.
Instantly, the thrusters roared to life as the hover-tank did what its name suggested and hovered a few feet off the ground.
"Omnidirectional thrusters, so you can strafe, bob, and weave in any direction. Full three-sixty. Best of all," Bum Bum typed in a new command line. "Check this shit out."
One second, the hover-tank was there, and in the next, it wasn't. If it wasn't for the loud thrusters and the dust being blown away around it, Elsa and Anna would have thought that the tank had simply vanished.
"Dynamic thermo-optic camo plating," Bum Bum jumped up onto the tank and floated in midair. "Can turn invisible in the blink of an eye, useful for when you want to get somewhere without drawing any attention. Just make sure to keep your distance," he hopped off, deactivated the camouflage, powered down the tank, and removed the control key from the terminal.
Elsa and Anna glanced at each other, both equally impressed at the display of ArmaRex's technology.
Bum Bum returned to his seat in front of them. "So, whatcha think?"
"Primo tech," Anna nodded. "You aren't afraid ArmaRex is gonna come looking for it?"
"Fuck 'em, they can hop around and try," Bum Bum said. "We removed the serial number and lifted the access locks using our software. Once it's yours, it's yours."
Elsa leaned forward. "Good. Then we'll take it."
"Sure, yeah," Bum Bum rubbed his hands together. "Let's see your credits."
"Carver got it," Anna said. "It's all paid up."
Another metallic thud echoed out as the person standing on the balcony slammed their fist against the railing. They hopped down, landing with a resounding crash. From their formidable appearance alone, it was easy enough to tell that this was Jezebel, the woman who had iced Carver and taken his place.
Her body – which was to say chassis – was a metal exoskeleton standing over six feet tall. The only part of her that was actually organic was her head, but from the neck down, she was a full synthetic cyborg. Her head and neck had all sorts of cables sticking out and running around, connecting it to her chassis. Her skin was pale in complexion and where her eyes should have been, there were empty sockets filled with red LED lights. Instead of a mouth, the lower half of her face was fused into a metal piece, lending a harsh, demonic twang to her voice.
"Carver got it, heh," Jezebel stomped right up to Elsa and towered over her. "I don't see any fuckin' Carver around here! Do you?!" she reached for a pistol and pointed it right in her face.
Bum Bum and the other corsairs leaped into action, reaching for their guns and aiming them. In the meantime, Elsa and Anna simply remained seated. Tensed, but holding their hands up in surrender.
"Come on," Elsa scoffed. "You can't expect us to pay for this thing twice."
"And who the fuck are you to tell me what I can or can't do!" Jezebel pressed the barrel of her pistol against Elsa's head. "You'll pay twice because I say you'll pay twice! You want the Drachen? I better see some credits."
Elsa glanced at Anna, who was looking back at her. She subtly raised her cybernetic arm a little higher, making a fist and cueing Elsa into a possible exit strategy via way of her flamethrower.
"Seeing as how you already got the credits for it, you ought to offer us a discount," Anna said, glaring at Jezebel. "A big one."
"A discount? Fuuuuck," Jezebel pulled the pistol back from Elsa's head but still kept it pointed at her. "You know, you never did say who sent you. Never did say who you're working for."
"Alyosha Verenkov," Elsa said. "That's who."
"Alyosha Verenkov," Jezebel repeated, lowering her pistol. "You mean the pretty boy, wannabe politician who sucked off half of Arcadia? You mean him? Haha!" she turned to the corsairs and started laughing.
A few of the other corsairs started laughing too, temporarily letting down their guard. At the moment Jezebel had her back turned, Elsa quickly stood up and reached for her sidearm, placing it beneath Jezebel's chin. At the same time, Anna shot up to her feet as well, aiming her hand cannon at Bum Bum and drawing her katana with her other hand, holding the blade to another corsair's throat.
"That's right," Anna said. "He sends his regards."
Jezebel growled as she slowly turned her head back towards Elsa, aiming her pistol. Anna was in a similar situation with multiple guns trained on her. It was a classic Mexican standoff.
"Are you going to consider my offer now?" Elsa asked.
Jezebel growled again.
"Credits are on this," Elsa reached into her jacket and pulled out the credit chip she had acquired from Nyle, shoving it against Jezebel's chassis.
Jezebel took hold of the chip and held it up the light, examining it. She stared at Elsa a moment longer, then turned around, lowering her pistol. The rest of the corsairs took that as their cue to relax as well, so they lowered their weapons, watching as Jezebel ambled over to another terminal to slot in the credit chip.
Elsa sighed and relaxed, while Anna cautiously eyed the rest of the corsairs, lowering her weapons.
"Whew, hey" Bum Bum put one foot up on the coffee table and held out the key. "Drachen's good tech. It'll do the trick, whatever the trick is. Here are the keys."
As soon as Jezebel inserted the chip into the terminal, the lights in the court started to flash and other nearby consoles started to spark, smoke, and pop. The netrunners who had been jacked in started to scream in agony as their eyes burst into flames and their brains were roasted from the inside out.
Elsa realized then that the credit chip from Nyle had been spiked with a virus.
"Shit! Shit, shit, shit!" Jezebel cursed. "Chip's got a vector! They're breaking in!"
Before the other corsairs could realize what happened, rapid gunfire rang out elsewhere in the galleria, followed by confused shouting and explosions. ArmaRex soldiers were storming the building, shooting their way inside.
"Fuck you, dickfucks!" Anna raised her cybernetic arm and activated her flamethrower, sweeping it around in a wide arc to blast the corsairs in front of her while they were distracted.
Seconds later, the bullets started flying, so Elsa rushed towards Anna and tackled her over the couch, dropping down into cover.
"Zero 'em!" Jezebel shouted. "I want heads!" she jumped back up to the second-floor balcony, disappearing from sight.
"You heard the boss!" Bum Bum stored the keys to the tank inside a pouch on his vest and reached for a plasma scattergun.
A salvo of plasma bolts peppered the couch, causing it to burst into flame. The other corsairs were closing in on Elsa and Anna's position firing with their own guns. Before they were overwhelmed, Anna released another jet of flame from her cybernetic arm to suppress the corsairs. At the same time, Elsa popped up and dropped three of them with easy headshots using her sidearm.
"Gotta move!" Elsa pulled Anna to her feet and pushed her along, running towards better cover behind the tank.
As Anna rounded the corner, a corsair lunged at her, so she rammed the blade of her katana straight through his skull. Then, pulling his dead body close and using it as a meat shield, she dropped another two corsairs coming up behind him using her hand cannon, blowing gaping holes in their bodies. Meanwhile, Elsa was peeking around the edge of her cover, sighting targets.
The corsairs were positioned around the court, hiding behind their own pieces of cover. A few of them were laying down suppressing fire with automatic weapons, while others were rushing out to deal with the ArmaRex soldiers.
Before long, Elsa and Anna would be caught in a crossfire.
"What's the plan here?!" Anna shouted over the chaos, returning fire when she could.
Elsa found Bum Bum who was heading back into the rotunda where they had come from. "He's got the keys," she pointed at him. "We need to catch up to him!"
Anna bent down and picked up a submachine gun from a dead corsair, pocketing an extra magazine as she did. "Gotta clear a path first!" she returned fire to the other corsairs with short controlled bursts.
Elsa put away her sidearm and switched to the railgun, charging up a shot. The weapon hummed in response and blue arcs of electricity started dancing up the three rails, singing with deadly voltage. When she sighted a target through the scope, she pulled the second trigger, releasing the charged shot with a concussive crack that split the sound barrier.
The tungsten slug rocketed outward from the end of the railgun, crossing the length of the court in the blink of an eye and striking a corsair straight in the head, blowing it off with a cloud of gory mist. As his headless body slumped over, the other corsairs shouted in panic and adjusted their aim, targeting Elsa.
She then cycled the bolt to load in a new slug and charged up another shot. Popping out of cover, she targeted a corsair behind a thick, stone pillar. Another crack sounded off and the slug pierced through the pillar as if it were cotton candy, striking the corsair in the body and sending him flying against the wall.
On the other side of the tank, Anna let off a full-auto assault on a corsair who stepped out of cover, dropping him under the concentrated fire. She then dipped back into cover just in time to avoid a hail of bullets, pausing to reload by flicking the empty magazine out of her submachine gun, seating in a fresh one, and pulling the charging handle.
Elsa dropped one more corsair then leaned back, coming up against Anna's side. "They're clearing out," she pulled the bolt open and loaded in a new magazine. "We need to move now," she pushed the bolt closed.
"Got it," Anna nodded. "I'll cover- shit, get down!" she pulled Elsa back and shielded her with her own body.
The skylight windows above the court were shattered as smoke grenades were thrown in. The corsairs paused their firing and shouted in alarm. Seconds later, the court was filled with thick white smoke, obscuring vision. ArmaRex soldiers arrived on the scene, dropping in by rappelling down. At the far end where the exterior wall was open and exposed, combat robots swarmed in as well.
"Contacts! Weapons free!" a soldier yelled.
"Hostiles engaged," a robot said. "Termination protocols activated."
The ArmaRex forces opened fire with plasma rifles, clashing against the corsairs. Before they too were targeted for execution, Elsa and Anna sprung to their feet and sprinted out of the court, utilizing the confusion and chaos to their advantage as the attention was shifted away from them.
"Come on, let's move while they're killing each other!" Anna pulled on Elsa's hand as they ran.
Together, they dipped and ducked between cover as they made for the exit. They passed by a few corsairs who were currently preoccupied with fending off the ArmaRex forces and entered the rotunda. There, they were greeted by a scene of complete and utter violence.
Dead corsairs were strewn all over the marble floor. Others were yelling profanities and hurling insults as they dug in and shot back against the soldiers. Autoturrets were chirping in alarm and spewing lead while antipersonnel mines were detonating, cutting apart the opposition. Elsa and Anna had found themselves caught in a deadly confrontation between a gang and a megacorporation.
Elsa looked around until she spotted Bum Bum at the far end of the rotunda, running away deeper into the galleria. "There!" she pointed after him and took off in pursuit. "Heading that way."
"Let's get him, get the keys, get the tank, and get the fuck out of here!" Anna exclaimed as she ran alongside Elsa.
Bullets were flying all over, chipping away at the walls and columns. Plasma bolts ripped through the air, burning and blackening the once pristine architecture. Still, Elsa and Anna ran ahead, exiting the rotunda and entering a restaurant area. A group of corsairs was rushing towards them, diving, sliding, and rolling into cover as they took up defensive positions. By now, Bum Bum had realized he was being chased, so he shouted off frantic orders.
"Take 'em down! They're comin' in!" Bum Bum fired blindly over his shoulder with his scattergun as he ran.
Without breaking stride, Elsa launched a quick-hack at one of the corsairs, targeting his neural interface with a short circuit. The corsair in question started to scream in pain as his cyberware sparked and malfunctioned, causing him to squeeze the trigger of his assault rifle as he stumbled about. The attack was devastating and in his disorientation, he tagged a few of his own comrades with friendly fire, crippling them.
At the same time, Anna kept them pinned down with suppressing fire until her submachine gun ran empty. When it did, she drew her katana, jumped off a table, and leaped right into the fray. She landed and rolled, immediately coming up and using her forward momentum to stab a corsair through the chest, followed by slicing apart a second. A third corsair came rushing at her, so she fired her grappling hook at his legs, tripped him up, then stabbed him on the ground.
Another wave of corsairs arrived on the scene. Elsa and Anna hacked and carved their way through the same as they did to their comrades. They were both formidable fighters on their own with unique combat abilities to complement their skillsets, but together, they were utterly lethal and struck swiftly like a killing wind. Anna blasted apart her foes with her hand cannon, roasted them with her flamethrower, or cut them open with her katana. Elsa launched crippling quick-hacks, followed up by devastating strikes with her railgun.
After they cleared the restaurant, they entered a casino floor. Ahead of them, Bum Bum was running towards an open door, but Elsa quickly cut off his path by closing it with a quick-hack.
"Fuck!" Bum Bum pounded his fist against the door and turned around. "Okay! Let's do this then!" he took one last hit of fizz and started laughing maniacally as he released salvo after salvo of plasma bolts from his scattergun.
Elsa rushed towards a heavy baccarat table and upended the thing, allowing her and Anna to use it for cover.
"Come on!" Bum Bum racked the pump on the scattergun. "You want to play!?" he fired again, peppering the floor near Elsa and Anna with hot plasma fire. "Let's fucking play!"
Anna flinched away and pulled back her cybernetic arm which was right near a burning patch. "Ow, ouch!" she yelped. "That smarts!" she shook her metal hand around and blew on it to extinguish a small flame that had engulfed it.
"He's got to be empty by now, right?" Elsa asked.
Anna nodded. "I think-"
A fresh volley of plasma corrected her.
"Nope, nuh-uh," Anna shook her head. "Not empty. I have an idea," she leaned out from her side of the baccarat table and shot her grappling hook, tying it around Bum Bum's scattergun and yanking it out of his hands.
At the same time, Elsa rolled out from her cover and shot him in the shoulder using her sidearm. Bum Bum grunted in surprise and pain, then before he could utter another curse, two bullets found their way home inside his head, killing him instantly.
"He's down," Elsa pointed her sidearm around to look for any more threats. "Anna, are you okay?"
Anna leaned down to cough hoarsely, then hacked a globule of phlegm and spat it out. She wiped her mouth, looked at Elsa, and gave a thumbs up.
"That was gross," Elsa said.
"Oh, please, that's not the grossest thing you've seen me do," Anna patted her chest. "All the running, you know? Hard on the ol' lungs," she smiled at Elsa to reassure her, then went over to Bum Bum's corpse, patting around his pouches until she retrieved the control key. "Here we go, got it," she tossed it to Elsa, then started walking. "Come on."
Elsa stared at Anna and just as she opened her mouth to say something, the door that she had closed earlier suddenly blew off its hinges. A second later, the air between them was shredded with a lead storm of automatic gunfire, forcing them apart as they each dove for cover.
"You motherfuckers!" Jezebel roared, holding down the triggers of the two heavy machine guns she was dual-wielding. "You think you can come into my house, shoot up my men, steal my shit! Guess again, you rat fucks!" she focused her fire on Anna.
Anna rolled out from the table she was hiding behind seconds before it was ripped apart. She sprinted ahead towards a bar, all the while the bullets were whizzing around her and dove over it just in time. As for Elsa, in Jezebel's momentary lapse, she repositioned herself behind her and began charging up the railgun.
"Pathetic meat!" Jezebel shouted. "I'm going to end- agh, damn it!" she stumbled forward when a slug ripped through her chassis, opening up a hole that started to bleed oil.
Before Elsa could cycle the bolt to prepare another shot, Jezebel turned around and started gunning for her instead. Forced to abandon her position, Elsa sprinted in a wide circle around Jezebel faster than she could adjust her aim. Anna used that time to plug Jezebel's chassis with a few more shots from her hand cannon, ripping apart the metal panels and exposing the components lying underneath.
"Bring it, pussies!" Jezebel adjusted her aim with her machine guns and targeted both Elsa and Anna at the same time, firing indiscriminately and tearing apart the interior of the casino with a nonstop barrage of bullets. "I'll skull stomp your pretty faces and churn you out into cuts of fuckable meat!"
Elsa targeted Jezebel's inner components with an overload quick-hack, causing them to ignite and burst into flame from within. Jezebel gasped in shock and stumbled, but she regained her feet and redoubled her efforts.
"Again!" Jezebel laughed crazily. "Do it again!" she planted her feet and spun her torso in a circle, shooting in every direction at waist level.
Anna rushed forward to Bum Bum's fallen scattergun, sliding beneath the bullets. Once she closed the distance, she snatched it up and blasted Jezebel with a few bursts of plasma, melting her outer plating and blowing off one of her arms.
Jezebel stopped spinning and fell to her knees, looking down at her ruined chassis. "Is this... pain?" she groaned. "I'd forgotten the sensation."
To finish her off, Elsa charged her railgun and placed a shot through the center of her chassis where her heart would have been. Jezebel gurgled one last time and slumped over in a smoking, burning pile of twisted metal, finally dead.
"Looks like that's all of them," Elsa said, scanning her surroundings. "At least for now."
Other parts of the galleria were still ringing with the noises of gunfights, but they were beginning to quiet down.
"Oh, man," Anna dropped her scattergun, bent over, and clamped her hand over her mouth, breathing heavily through her nose. "That was intense," she started to laugh when she had suppressed her cough. "Talk about blowing a fuse, huh?"
When Elsa glanced over, she just missed the look of pain on Anna's face. "Come on," she said. "We need to get back to the tank."
As they made their way back the way they came, a squad of ArmaRex soldiers swarmed through the entrance to the casino. They pointed their weapons at the pair and began to shout.
"Stop right there! Don't move!"
"Drop your weapons and get down on your knees!"
"They're fine, stand down," a familiar voice said, walking past the soldiers.
Anna narrowed her brows in recognition. "You again."
"That's right," Nyle crossed her arms and stood in front of them. "Bet you didn't expect to see me here, did you?"
"What happened to your friend?" Elsa asked.
Nyle shrugged. "It was a shame he turned out to be the mole after all," she said, clearly lying. "ArmaRex doesn't take too kindly to that."
"We can see that," Anna eyed the soldiers. "Your men shot at us."
"And you never told us there was a virus on that chip," Elsa added. "We could have been killed."
"Can you blame them?" Nyle asked. "This place was a target-rich environment. We fucked you over. You fucked the gang over. Somewhere at the start of this story, somebody fucked the corp over. See how this works now? Lesson is, the corp always wins. But you did good work here. The Drachen is yours."
Elsa frowned. "You don't care what happens to it?"
"My only concern was plugging the leak and taking out the corsairs. And, we had a deal," Nyle said. "Besides, you know how fast one of our factories can shit out a hover-tank? No, I already wrote that thing off as lost beyond recovery. You're welcome."
"What happens now?" Anna asked.
"Now, you can get the hell out," Nyle said. "Our business is concluded, but you know, I like the way you two work. Maybe you'd consider working for me again sometime?"
Working with gangs was already troublesome enough. Working with a corp revulsed Elsa and Anna to their cores.
"We'll pass," Elsa said.
"Hmm. Suit yourself," Nyle turned to her men and gestured to them. "Secure the area."
The soldiers did as they were told as they fanned out and swept through the casino. By now, the shooting had stopped and all that remained for ArmaRex was to clear through everything and reacquire their stolen goods.
As for Elsa and Anna, they walked past Nyle and made their way back to the court. Along the way, they saw the dead corsairs they had killed, along with dozens of others who they didn't kill. Soldiers and robots alike were patrolling the halls, or were loading crates onto waiting trucks outside. When they returned to the tank, nobody harassed them when they climbed on.
"Here we go," Anna opened the hatch and looked inside. "Looks surprisingly cozy."
The interior of the tank held enough room for two seats placed side by side. Since all functions related to reloading the main gun and its supporting armaments were automated, tank crews could be reduced to two operators. Additionally, they had a full suite of cognitive controls, allowing the tank to be controlled by jacking in via neural cord.
Elsa climbed into her seat and fished out the control key from her jacket, slotting it into the main dashboard. As Anna slid inside next to her, she closed up the hatch.
"Okay, let's boot her up," Anna extended the cord from her left wrist and jacked in.
Elsa did the same, bringing to life a series of holo-displays that provided readouts of ammunition, countermeasures, hull integrity, as well as external camera views of the outside. Sitting before her were the controls for steering the tank and aiming the turret, and they were designed in such a way that a single operator could drive and shoot at the time if necessary. Anna had the same set of controls before her, and all said, despite the technicality involved, they were relatively simple to understand.
With that, they guided the hover-tank out of the galleria, exiting through the gap in the wall and coming around to the front entrance where they had come in. Several ArmaRex trucks and armored cars were parked outside, as well as a full platoon of soldiers and robots milling about. Elsa and Anna passed them by indifferently, then exited the galleria grounds, heading through the plaza on main avenue again.
Aside from the trail of bodies they had left in the galleria, Elsa came face to face with another consequence of her actions, this time inadvertent. The civilians they had seen peacefully minding their own business not all that long ago were being arrested on the streets by the soldiers. The bazaar had been emptied and cleared out, and the stateless residents of Cinnabar Bay had been rounded up.
This is my fault, Elsa thought as they passed along, looking like the very same people who were breaking down their isolationist way of life. I suggested we talk to Cohen to get more intel. ArmaRex is here because of that. If we had just gone ahead, found a way to get the tank ourselves, they wouldn't be here and none of this would have happened.
She couldn't be sure it would have ended any better by skipping the option to work with a corp, but she also couldn't be sure it would have ended any worse. What she was certain of were the consequences and ever since Elsa first got involved with the android freedom movement, they could be dire. But the difference was that she had made that choice. Just like Theodore, Sinclair, and Lizzie made their choices. Just like Anna did when she spoke of that fact.
On the other hand, the people before them now didn't make that choice. In fact, by living in an abandoned resort where the corps never came looking, they were opting to stay uninvolved and reside in their bubble, alone and in peace.
For Elsa, it was the first time that she had ever seen the actual ramifications of the android freedom movement up close. She knew them and she understood them, but she never experienced some of them herself. She worked remotely, so that meant she was always at a distance, never being able to experience what it was like on the ground. It was then she realized that no matter the crusade and no matter its intentions, whether for good or ill, innocent people always ended up in the crossfire.
Is this still the right way to be doing this? Elsa asked herself. I knew I would have to get my hands dirty sometimes when the situation called for it, and I was fine with that. But, working with a gang and a corp? Which one of them is the lesser evil? Does it even matter?
She looked away from the displays and instead glanced at Anna.
I even got Anna involved in this, was that still fair to her? Risking everything we've gained? I know this is the right thing to do, I know that. I need to keep doing this, but what more could it cost? This movement, this fight, how many more people will have to get hurt before the end? I want to help, but I don't know if I can help everyone. I want to.
Anna met Elsa's eyes and sensed her unease. "I know that look," she said. "What's going on in that head of yours?"
"It's just been a crazy day," Elsa sighed. "And these people looked like they were fine before I came along."
"Before we came along. Anyway, could that have gone smoother? Probably, but how could we have known this would happen? Sometimes, things just happen out of our control."
"And that's the problem, isn't it? I've survived as Caelestis for this long because I've always been careful and in control. Now, things are changing and I'm not sure how much longer I can stay in control."
Anna pursed her lips and frowned. "You think this is your fault."
"The fact is, I'm at least partially responsible for what's happening to these people," Elsa looked away. "This isn't like before with Sinclair or Lizzie, they made their choices and I get that. But these people didn't," she gestured towards the displays, pointing out the people being arrested. "And now, their lives are ruined."
"Come on, you don't know that," Anna said. "We don't know that. We don't know everything. We can't, how could we? You're right, this is shitty and maybe they don't deserve it, but- but... shit, I don't know. What can we do?" she tossed her hands up in exasperation.
Elsa didn't really know how to answer that question. Neither did Anna. Hard choices yet remained.
… … …
After returning to their rover, they loaded up the hover-tank onto the cargo bed and activated its camouflage, making it appear as if they weren't transporting anything at all. Then, they got back inside their EVA suits, climbed into the rover, and made their way out of Cinnabar Bay.
All along the way back to Arcadia, Elsa thought about everything she had managed to do so far and what it had cost, and everything she still had to do and what more it would cost.